Barrett, The Honors College Thesis/Creative Project Collection
Barrett, The Honors College at Arizona State University proudly showcases the work of undergraduate honors students by sharing this collection exclusively with the ASU community.
Barrett accepts high performing, academically engaged undergraduate students and works with them in collaboration with all of the other academic units at Arizona State University. All Barrett students complete a thesis or creative project which is an opportunity to explore an intellectual interest and produce an original piece of scholarly research. The thesis or creative project is supervised and defended in front of a faculty committee. Students are able to engage with professors who are nationally recognized in their fields and committed to working with honors students. Completing a Barrett thesis or creative project is an opportunity for undergraduate honors students to contribute to the ASU academic community in a meaningful way.
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- Creators: Brian, Jennifer
- Creators: O'Flaherty, Katherine
Description
This thesis project examines the likely factors that cause students to drop out of Barrett, the Honors College. Honors literature regarding retention and attrition suggests four areas encompassing individual student attributes and honors program characteristics which may impact a student's decision to stay or leave an Honors College. The primary question in focus is, "Why do students leave the Honors College?" followed by the tertiary questions of, "what can be done to mitigate this occurrence?" and, "how does this affect the quality of an honors education?" Assessing attrition can be broken down into biographical, cognitive-behavioral, socio-environmental, and institutional-instrumental components. Students who graduated with honors and those who did not graduate with honors were assessed on these four components through survey methods and qualitative interviews to investigate specific reasons why students leave the honors program. The results indicated a wide array of reasons impacting student attrition, the most significant being negative perceptions towards (1) honors courses and contracts, (2) difficulty completing a thesis project, and (3) finding little to no value in "graduating with honors." Each of these reasons reflect the institutional-instrumental component of student attrition, making it the most salient group of reasons why students leave the Honors College. The socio-environmental component also influences student attrition through peer influence and academic advisor support, though this was found to be within the context of institutional-instrumental means. This project offers solutions to ameliorate each of the four components of attrition by offering standardized honors contracts and more mandatory honors classes, mandatory thesis preparatory courses instead of workshops, and emphasizing the benefit Barrett gives to students as a whole. These solutions aim at increasing graduation rates for future honors students at Barrett as well as improving the overall quality of an honors education.
ContributorsSanchez, Gilbert Xavier (Author) / Parker, John (Thesis director) / O'Flaherty, Katherine (Committee member) / School of Criminology and Criminal Justice (Contributor) / Department of Psychology (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2017-05
Description
Undergraduate on-campus residential education is a topic of significant inquiry within the field of higher education, and specifically student affairs. It has become commonplace for institutions of higher education in the United States to leverage the intersections between academics and residence life in order to promote student success by offering on-campus housing options that strategically place students in residential communities that provide additional connection to the students' academic experience, often by major, college, department, or other focus areas. Such models vary by institution, but are often referred to as living-learning communities or residential colleges, depending upon their structure and goals. For example, Barrett, the Honors College on the Tempe campus of Arizona State University implements a residential college model within its student housing; honors students live and study together, with the addition of three "special communities" designed for students majoring in Engineering, Business, or the Arts. This honors thesis case study describes and investigates the impact the visual and performing arts Barrett residential community has upon its residents in their first-year college experience. Through the lens of student development theory, this research focuses upon examining this specific residential community in detail in order to gain an understanding of its effect upon residents' academic and personal well being.
ContributorsBieschke, Sara Danielle (Author) / O'Flaherty, Katherine (Thesis director) / Rendell, Dawn (Committee member) / School of Art (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2017-05
Description
Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is a fascinating and complex topic. There is consensus that companies both make a large impact on the world and have a responsibility beyond profits. The challenge with this responsibility is that determining businesses' responsibility and measuring the impact remains unclear. Scholars most often point to the early to mid 1900s as its starting point and the increased economic growth and workers' unions occurring in the 1950s as one of the reasons for scholars paying more attention to the topic. This thesis project analyzes current examples of CSR from Starbucks and IBM. These companies have reputations for their positive CSR practices. Both companies' availability of information, the vast number of their CSR practices, and efforts to measure the impact set them apart. IBM and Starbucks stand out because of the sheer volume of CSR activities they have, and when examined closely, the mixed, primarily good, impact of these activities is revealed. Having a high number of CSR practices alone does not equate to doing CSR well. Instead, companies' CSR should be examined based on both the number of practices and their impact. Considering both of these metrics will help consumers, as well as other stakeholders, better evaluate the success or failure of CSR in a business.
ContributorsSullivan, Victoria Mary (Author) / Brian, Jennifer (Thesis director) / York, Abigail (Committee member) / School of Human Evolution and Social Change (Contributor) / W. P. Carey School of Business (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2017-05
Description
Advancements in science and technology, particularly in the field of genome editing, hold significant potential to change how future generations will treat disease and may fundamentally change what it means to be human. There are concerns by scientists and non-scientists about how to explore the values and perceptions of the public regarding the implications of new technologies. Use of participatory Technology Assessment (pTA) has arisen as a type of interactive group discussion to disseminate information about technology and collect non-scientists' perceptions of the value, impact or usefulness of a technology and potential ethical issues or consequences to be considered. There is no one size fits all model of pTA; several are discussed in this paper, but there are similarities between them such as the structure of engagement or recruitment criteria. It is important to note a difference in public understanding of science and public engagement with science as it relates to the structure and execution of pTA. This study was undertaken to evaluate pTA as a tool to explore perceptions, values and opinions regarding a case study of CRISPR-Cas9, a tool for genome editing, among ASU Barrett undergraduate students.
ContributorsChapin, Natalie Ann (Author) / Brian, Jennifer (Thesis director) / Bennett, Ira (Committee member) / School of Life Sciences (Contributor) / Department of Psychology (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2016-12
Description
Death with Dignity is a concept that initially began as a set of philosophical and ethical principles that sought to define what it meant to die a "good" death that was reasonable to the person experiencing the dying process. This dying process is terminal illness, or any condition that cannot be cured and who's ultimate prognosis is death. Today, Death with Dignity still embodies this, but it is also a set of legal and medical treatments and practices that can be used to aid terminal patients in accomplishing a "good" death. The Death with Dignity treatment options that are chiefly discussed in this study are patient withdrawal of care, patient control of pain medications, and physician-assisted suicide. Physician-assisted suicide is legal in six states in the US excluding Arizona. Considering that Oregon is the first state to pass a Death with Dignity Act and that it is the precedent for all other Acts, this study sought to understand the differences in perception of physician-assisted suicide between Arizona and Oregon in the pursuit of clarifying what barriers are still in place in Arizona to passing a Death with Dignity act. To ask the question of "Do physicians and ethics committee members in Arizona support Death with Dignity in the forms of patient control of pain medications, withdrawal of treatment, and physician-assisted suicide?", a literature review was conducted to determine important national and local perceptions of physician-assisted suicide and Death with Dignity, a 14-question, structured survey was created with the identified concerns, and it was distributed to Arizona health care workers by email and in person. This survey was approved by ASU's Institutional Review Board. This survey found that 100% of participants would vote for a Death with Dignity Act in Arizona if it were on a ballot measure. 76% of participants would aid a terminally-ill and eligible patient in physician-assisted suicide under some circumstances if it were legal in Arizona, and 24% of participants would never aid a patient in physician-assisted suicide. The concerns with physician-assisted suicide that were marked most important by Arizona healthcare workers were that hospice is a better option for the terminally ill and that physician-assisted suicide may be misused with disadvantaged persons. The most important factors of terminal illness that influence views of physician-assisted suicide marked by Arizona healthcare workers were the amount of pain the patient is expected to experience in the end of life, the amount of pain that can be relieved for the patient, the expected quality of life of the patient, and the patient's right to autonomy in healthcare. The significant differences between Oregon and Arizona in this study were the importance of expected mental decline of patient, patient's wishes that differ from family's, and hospice being a better option than suicide in influencing views of physician-assisted suicide. These differences could be deemed hurdles to Death with Dignity legislation in Arizona. This study recommended addressing those differences in public education and medical education and seeking Death with Dignity legislation via ballot measure.
ContributorsCohan, Hailey Elizabeth (Author) / Brian, Jennifer (Thesis director) / Piemonte, Nicole (Committee member) / Stevenson, Christine (Committee member) / School of Life Sciences (Contributor, Contributor) / W. P. Carey School of Business (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2017-05
Description"Writing the Races" is a documentary exploring how two writers talk about race in their comedy television shows. http://www.writingtheraces.com/
ContributorsTyau, Nicole Jenice (Author) / Rodriguez, Rick (Thesis director) / O'Flaherty, Katherine (Committee member) / Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication (Contributor, Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2017-05
Description
Of the over 17 million surgical and minimally-invasive cosmetic procedures performed in the United States in 2016, women accounted for over 90% of patients and nearly 70% of all patients were white. The goal of cosmetic surgery is to surgically restructure a healthy body part to more closely represent the contemporary ideal of what defines a particular gender. For example, femininity being linked to large breasts and small waist-to-hip ratio maintains binary heteronormative standards of what female body should look like. Plastic surgeons rely on advertising to attract patients for their businesses, since insurances do not cover elective cosmetic procedures. The ethical dilemma with this medical profession is with establishing aesthetic criteria for categorizing which bodies are considered normal and which are deviant. To understand the role of the physician in perpetuating cultural standards of beauty and promote surgery through their advertising, a random sample of 5 board-certified plastic surgeons from Scottsdale, AZ 85258 was obtained, focusing primarily on the images and textual content of their web pages. Of the 50 images sampled, nearly 75% of images portrayed white women. Women of color did not present in any of the photos. 52% of the home page images sexualized female clients using seductive posing and lingerie and promoted femininity using makeup and long hair. The language used in these websites criticized the presurgical female body and suggested that only physicians could eradicate their deficiencies, thereby normalizing cosmetic surgery as a means of beauty enhancement and maintaining the cultural superiority of doctors. 60% of websites failed to include adequate description of surgical risk. By choosing cosmetic surgery, women are negotiating their lives and acting as agents, even under circumstances that they cannot control such as the withholding of information, minimizing of risk or the social context and its corresponding pressures. Although the forewarning of surgical risk is rarely effective as a deterrent, it is the responsibility of the physician to provide the patient with all the information to the best of their ability so that they can decide what's best for their present circumstance, although rarely taken under conditions of perfect knowledge or absolute freedom from societal pressures. The American Society of Plastic Surgeons should work in conjunction with the Better Business Bureau's National Advertising Review Council to mediate regulatory solutions and increase public assurance in the credibility of advertising, perhaps an initiative similar to that of advertising for the cigarette industry. A pledge from the cosmetic surgery industry in conjunction to the Hippocratic Oath of the American Medical Association, which outlines the physician's responsibility to the patient within the context of advertising and marketing, could strengthen social responsibility and foster stronger, more honest relationships between surgeons and consumers.
ContributorsUchendu, Nneka Nwamaka (Author) / Brian, Jennifer (Thesis director) / Weitz, Rose (Committee member) / School of Life Sciences (Contributor) / School of International Letters and Cultures (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2017-05
Description
Every year, millions of people find themselves displaced from their homes because of fear or threats of violence. Some of these people will become refugees, who will then be resettled in the United States. In order to help with the resettlement process, refugees are given cultural orientations through their resettlement organizations. The Phoenix Police Department teaches one of these cultural orientations for local resettlement agencies in order to dispel some of the fears refugees have about law enforcement and build a stronger relationship with the refugee community. Past research on this topic has been limited within the United States, but communities are still trying to figure out how to interact with refugees despite not knowing how to do it. There are various possible complications inherent in the integration process and many potential methods of trust building available to the refugee community and public services like law enforcement. This project seeks to understand the refugee resettlement process through field observation of the cultural orientation taught by the Phoenix Police Department and interviews with detectives familiar with the process in Phoenix. Cultural and language differences as well as lack of education and research on the topic of refugee resettlement are all key points in comprehending what the police, refugees, and resettlement organizations are doing during the integration process. Once these issues are addressed to alleviate gaps in knowledge about refugees, it may be possible to adjust the process to be easier for stakeholders involved in refugee resettlement.
ContributorsBaumgartner, Rachel Paige (Author) / Telep, Cody (Thesis director) / O'Flaherty, Katherine (Committee member) / Department of Psychology (Contributor) / School of Criminology and Criminal Justice (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2016-12
Description
This creative project is a collection of profiles focused on Arizona nonprofits and refugees. The profiles share stories of refugees, volunteers, employees and others involved in the community serving refugees. Nonprofits are a vital resource for refugee resettlement. These organizations offer services to support refugees as they transition into new communities. Some services include: housing, English language learning, cultural orientation, job placement, medical treatment, education, and farming. Each of these programs support resiliency for refugees and for the communities in which they live. We Are Resilient was created first, to show the important role nonprofits have in serving refugees. Second, to connect people to a few of the stories and experiences within the Arizona refugee community. And third, to build understanding of the strength refugees bring to communities of Arizona and by extension the country. Visit weareresilientaz.com to learn more.
ContributorsGray, Elizabeth (Co-author) / Johnson, Kelcie (Co-author) / Shockley, Gordon (Thesis director) / O'Flaherty, Katherine (Committee member) / School of Community Resources and Development (Contributor) / School of Sustainability (Contributor) / Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2017-05
Description
Postmodernism has been one of the dominant modes of thought in literature and philosophy since the 1960s, but its roots go back much further. This thesis is an examination of Brechtian frameworks in an assortment of popular postmodern works. Both literary texts, such as novels, films, and music, and philosophical texts are used to form a general understanding of the postmodern project, and these concepts are then placed in conversation with ideas from the works of the 20th century German playwright Bertolt Brecht. I found that despite certain differences, the central ideas of postmodernism can be seen as the extension of Brecht’s philosophy, especially his concept of the Verfremdungseffekt. First, multiplicity—in perspectives and understandings—can be seen as an attempt to achieve this Verfremdungseffekt in the reader, and second, transgression in these texts can be used to evoke the same feeling. Many of the identifying techniques of postmodernism, e.g. juxtaposition, unreliable narrator, self-reference, and so on, can be interpreted as the extension of ideas pioneered by Brecht in the 1920s and 1930s. My thesis illustrates these connections.
Keywords: Postmodernism, Bertolt Brecht, Verfremdungseffekt
Keywords: Postmodernism, Bertolt Brecht, Verfremdungseffekt
ContributorsTeipen, Jakob Corry (Author) / Gilfillan, Daniel (Thesis director) / O'Flaherty, Katherine (Committee member) / School of International Letters and Cultures (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2016-12