International service learning (ISL) has been integrated into engineering education and has become increasingly more popular in co-curricular experiences. While prior research investigates each of these avenues of ISL, we have not investigated how these experiences compare to one another in terms of student learning outcomes or understood these experiences from a national perspective. The purpose of this thesis is to address these gaps in existing literature and to provide a comprehensive, holistic perspective of ISL experiences ability to impact student learning on a national scale. To better understand student learning outcomes in engineering ethics, agency and identity and draw comparisons in student career choices, several survey instruments were used within a nationally-representative survey distributed to engineering seniors (n=1911) at four-year universities within the United States. Descriptive statistics were used to categorize he responses by type of ISL experience: capstone, work, or co-curricular. The survey instruments were used to measure the individual learning outcomes: engineering ethics contained 5 items, engineering identity contained 14 items, and engineering agency contained 12 original items. Each survey instrument was validated using an exploratory factor analysis (EFA) to determine the relevant factor groups for each construct. An ANOVA test or Kruskal Wallis, the non-parametric equivalent test, was used for each dataset depending on normal distribution of the data. Responses in engineering ethics showed a significantly higher score in students’ ethics understanding with ISL capstone (p< 0.001) and work experience (p<0.0001) and a medium effect size for both (Cohen’s d=0.3). Responses in engineering agency scores showed a significant difference with ISL capstone (p<0.05) and co-curricular experience (p<0.05) with a medium effect size (Cohen’s d=0.3). Additionally, responses to predicted career choice post-graduation showed a lower percentage of students anticipating leaving engineering from the 9% population rate to 6% for those with ISL capstone experience and 5% for those with ISL co-curricular experience. These results give reason to consider more frequent incorporation of ISL projects into engineering courses such as senior capstone design. / Master of Science / International service learning (ISL) is a way of learning that allows students to use their engineering skills to help others, while gaining experience in a global context. ISL projects allow students to interact with people around the world, gaining experience with cultural and social diversity while using and developing their engineering skills. ISL projects take many forms and have been used within engineering education in many ways. The three most common ISL experiences are integration into capstone courses, independent ISL work experience, and co-curricular programs such as Engineers Without Borders. Prior research has focused mainly on capstone and co-curricular ISL experiences. Research found ISL experiences beneficial for student learning, however prior research has not investigated how these experiences compare. Additionally, many studies are conducted within courses or programs which provides a limited general understanding. This study aims to provide more clarity between student learning by ISL experiences and provide a national perspective on the impacts of ISL experiences. The purpose of this study was to determine how effective ISL experiences are in improving student learning in engineering ethics, agency, identity, and retaining engineering students in the field after graduation. A survey with a total of 31 questions related to these topics (5 for engineering ethics, 12 for engineering agency and 14 for engineering identity) was nationally distributed to senior engineering students enrolled at four-year universities in the United States. The responses were categorized by student’s ISL experience (capstone, work, and co-curricular) and compared for each engineering topic. The data was analyzed statistically, and the survey questions were analyzed to ensure that they were measuring student learning as expected. The results showed that ISL capstone projects improved students’ understanding of engineering ethics, increased their sense of engineering agency, and led to a lower percentage of students who planned to leave the field of engineering after graduation. ISL work experiences improved ethics understanding for students but had little to no impact on engineering agency. Finally, ISL co-curricular experiences had little impact on engineering ethics understanding, but improved student’s engineering agency beliefs and led to a less students leaving the field. These results give reasons to consider integrating ISL experiences into engineering education more frequently to provide benefits to students.

Design thinking ability is vital for engineers who are tasked with solving society's toughest sustainable development challenges. Prior research identified that the percentage of design thinkers among freshmen engineering students is greater than the percentage among the general population. However, engineering education's lack of attention to fostering creative ability may cause the design thinking ability of senior engineering students to suffer. The research addressed in this thesis compares the design thinking ability of engineering students across age groups, and compares design thinking ability between the design disciplines of engineering and architecture. To draw design thinking comparisons between these groups, a survey with a nine item design thinking instrument was distributed nationally to freshmen engineering students (n= 2,158), senior engineering students (n= 1,893), and senior architecture students (n= 336). The survey instrument was validated by conducting confirmatory factor analysis on the senior engineering and senior architecture samples' data. The Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) test was utilized to statistically compare scores across sample groups. Both the freshmen engineering students (2.80) and senior architecture students (3.30) scored significantly higher on the design thinking scale than senior engineering students (2.59). These results have important implications for engineering educators as engineering education may contribute to a decrease in design thinking among senior engineering students. A lower design thinking score among seniors was consistent across all engineering sub-disciplines and should be of concern to engineering educators, since design thinking skills are critical for the development of engineering solutions to grand societal challenges. / Master of Science / Design thinking is a way of thinking about the design process which places the user at the center of the design. Thinking about design in this way is a vital ability for engineers and other design professionals to develop because it enables them to solve “wicked” problems like sustainable development challenges. Wicked problems are those which are difficult to solve due to the number of conflicting components involved. Prior research has found that design thinkers are more prevalent among engineering students in their first year of study than among students in other majors. However, engineering education does not attribute much attention to the development of creative ability which could cause the design thinking ability of engineering students in their final year of study to be worse than the ability of those in their first year, as well as worse than the ability of students who study other design disciplines like architecture. This study compared the design thinking abilities of engineering students in their final year of study to engineering students in their first year and to architecture students in their final year. The goal of making these comparisons was to explore if engineering education helps or hinders the development of design thinking. A survey with nine questions related to design thinking was distributed nationwide. The data from the survey was collected and statistically analyzed. The results showed that the design thinking ability of engineering students in their final year was significantly lower than the ability of first year engineering students and significantly lower than the ability of final year architecture students. A decrease in design thinking ability between freshmen and senior year must be addressed by engineering educators. The National Academy of Engineers and industry leaders are calling for the development of engineers who are design thinkers, and the results of this paper suggest that some changes may need to occur within the engineering education curriculum to accommodate this need.

The non-medical use of prescription drugs is an important public health concern. Non-medical use of prescription stimulants (NMUPS), specifically medications used to treat Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), is particularly concerning. One timely concern regarding NMUPS, especially among young adults, is their role in appetite suppression/weight loss. Indeed, some individuals are motivated to misuse such drugs for the purpose of losing weight. Engaging in NMUPS for weight loss has been examined only minimally in the research literature. However, extant data demonstrate that this behavior is associated with other unhealthy behaviors and poor psychosocial health. Limitations of prior research include the exclusive use of college student samples and little attention to relevant health behavior theory. The current study investigated NMUPS for weight loss in a national, young adult sample (n = 1526), ages 18-25 years, utilizing Amazon’s Mechanical Turk. Motivations and attitudes about NMUPS were evaluated, within the framework of the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB). A structural equation model (SEM) was analyzed, which included attitudes; social norms; and perceived behavioral control (PBC) to lose weight without stimulants, as predictors of engaging in past year NMUPS for weight loss. Approximately 12.0% of participants reported lifetime NMUPS for weight loss, and of these, 48.4% reported past year use. Findings demonstrate that use is related to disordered eating and unhealthy weight loss behaviors, including vomiting; high rates of other substance use; and psychological concerns, including body dissatisfaction and depressive symptomatology. These results suggest that NMUPS for weight loss is associated with a variety of negative consequences and users are not well-informed regarding medication knowledge. The SEM provided adequate overall fit to the data; two of the four social norms and both PBC factors were significantly associated with NMUPS for weight loss. This study extends the literature on the utility of the TPB in examining NMUPS, and provides the first research on utilizing the TPB to examine NMUPS for weight loss. Methods aimed at increasing PBC regarding stimulant use and weight loss, and emphasizing healthful and sustaining weight loss strategies, improving mental health, and educating about polysubstance use are potential intervention targets.

Background Younger indoor tanning initiation leads to greater melanoma risk due to more frequent and persistent behavior. Despite this, there are no published studies exploring the predictors of indoor tanning initiation in teen populations. Purpose This longitudinal study uses latent profile analysis to examine indoor tanning initiation in indoor tanning risk subgroups from a national sample of female adolescents. Methods Latent profile analysis used indoor tanning beliefs and perceptions to identify indoor tanning initiation risk subgroups. The teens in each subgroup were reassessed on indoor tanning initiation after a year. Results Three subgroups were identified: a low risk, anti-tanning subgroup (18.6 %) characterized by low scores on positive indoor tanning belief scales and high scores on beliefs about indoor tanning dangers; a moderate risk aware social tanner subgroup (47.2 %) characterized by high scores on positive indoor tanning belief scales but also high scores on beliefs about indoor tanning dangers; and a high risk risky relaxation tanner subgroup (34.2 %) characterized by high scores on positive indoor tanning belief scales and low scores on beliefs about indoor tanning dangers. Teens in the aware social tanner and risky relaxation tanner subgroups were significantly more likely to initiate indoor tanning in the following year. Conclusions These findings highlight the need to identify teens at risk for indoor tanning initiation and develop tailored interventions that will move them to the lowest risk subgroup. Subgroup correlates suggest parent and peer-based interventions may be successful.

Youthful indoor tanning as few as ten sessions can increase the risk of melanoma by two to four times with each additional session adding another 2 % to the risk. Recent research estimates that indoor tanning can be linked to approximately 450,000 cases of skin cancer annually in the USA, Europe, and Australia. Despite these risks, indoor tanning remains popular with adolescents. This study tested the efficacy of a web-based skin cancer prevention intervention designed to reduce indoor tanning motivations in adolescent females. A nationally representative sample of 443 female teens was enrolled from an online panel into a two-arm, parallel group design, randomized controlled trial. Treatment participants received an appearance-focused intervention grounded in established health behavior change models. Controls viewed a teen alcohol prevention website. Outcome variables included willingness and intentions to indoor tan, willingness to sunless tan, and measures of indoor tanning attitudes and beliefs. The intervention decreased willingness and intentions to indoor tan and increased sunless tanning willingness relative to controls. We also examined indirect mechanisms of change through intervening variables (e.g., indoor tanning attitudes, norms, positive and negative expectancies) using the product of coefficient approach. The web-based intervention demonstrated efficacy in changing adolescent indoor tanning motivations and improving their orientation toward healthier alternatives. Results from the intervening variable analyses give guidance to future adolescent skin cancer prevention interventions.

<p>Syftet med studien är att se hur upprättade åtgärder överensstämmer med resultatet på det nationella provet i svenska i skolår 5, samt att studera vilken typ av åtgärder som nedtecknats. Syftet är också att granska specialpedagogens roll vid arbetet med de elever som inte nådde målen. De teoretiska ramar vi valt för denna studie baserar sig på författares och forskares böcker och forskningsresultat vilka behandlar ovanstående ämne. För att utföra denna studie har vi intervjuat två lärare och två specialpedagoger på två olika skolor och i två olika klasser. I de två klasserna finns tio elever i behov av särskilt stöd. De dokument vi använt oss av är nationella provet i svenska i skolår 5 och åtgärdsprogrammen för dessa elever. Vår studie visar att det finns mycket få brister i överstämmelsen mellan de åtgärder eleverna erhållit och de svårigheter de uppvisat på provet.</p> / <p>The purpose of this study is to examine if actions written down in the action program is consistent with the results pupils reach in the national sample in Swedish in school year 5 and to study what sort of actions teachers write down. The purpose is also to find out what roll the special teacher has in the work with the pupils that did not pass the national sample. The theoretical framework we have chosen for this study is based on the writers and researchers, books and researches which deals with the above topic. To perform this study, we interviewed two teachers and two special educators in two different schools and in two different classes. In the two classes are ten pupils in need of special support. The documents we made use of are the national sample in Swedish in school year 5 and action programs for these pupils. Our study shows that there are very few shortcomings in consistency between the actions the students received and the difficulties they have shown in the sample.</p>

Syftet med studien är att se hur upprättade åtgärder överensstämmer med resultatet på det nationella provet i svenska i skolår 5, samt att studera vilken typ av åtgärder som nedtecknats. Syftet är också att granska specialpedagogens roll vid arbetet med de elever som inte nådde målen. De teoretiska ramar vi valt för denna studie baserar sig på författares och forskares böcker och forskningsresultat vilka behandlar ovanstående ämne. För att utföra denna studie har vi intervjuat två lärare och två specialpedagoger på två olika skolor och i två olika klasser. I de två klasserna finns tio elever i behov av särskilt stöd. De dokument vi använt oss av är nationella provet i svenska i skolår 5 och åtgärdsprogrammen för dessa elever. Vår studie visar att det finns mycket få brister i överstämmelsen mellan de åtgärder eleverna erhållit och de svårigheter de uppvisat på provet. / The purpose of this study is to examine if actions written down in the action program is consistent with the results pupils reach in the national sample in Swedish in school year 5 and to study what sort of actions teachers write down. The purpose is also to find out what roll the special teacher has in the work with the pupils that did not pass the national sample. The theoretical framework we have chosen for this study is based on the writers and researchers, books and researches which deals with the above topic. To perform this study, we interviewed two teachers and two special educators in two different schools and in two different classes. In the two classes are ten pupils in need of special support. The documents we made use of are the national sample in Swedish in school year 5 and action programs for these pupils. Our study shows that there are very few shortcomings in consistency between the actions the students received and the difficulties they have shown in the sample.