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Women and people of color are some of the most underrepresented groups in the STEM field (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics). The purpose of this study was to uncover the barriers that undergraduate Hispanic women, as well as other women of color, face while pursuing an education in a STEM-related

Women and people of color are some of the most underrepresented groups in the STEM field (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics). The purpose of this study was to uncover the barriers that undergraduate Hispanic women, as well as other women of color, face while pursuing an education in a STEM-related major at Arizona State University (ASU). In-depth interviews were conducted with 13 adult participants to dig deeper into the experiences of each woman and analyze how race and class overlap in each of the women's experiences. The concept of intersectionality was used to highlight various barriers such as perceptions of working versus middle-class students, the experience of being a first-generation college student, diversity campus-wide and in the classroom, effects of stereotyping, and impacts of mentorships. All women, no matter their gender, race, or socioeconomic status, faced struggles with stereotyping, marginalization, and isolation. Women in STEM majors at ASU performed better when provided with positive mentorships and grew aspirations to become a professional in the STEM field when encouraged and guided by someone who helped them build their scientific identities. Working-class women suffered from severe stress related to finances, family support, employment, and stereotyping. Reforming the culture of STEM fields in higher education will allow women to achieve success, further build their scientific identities, and increase the rate of women graduating with STEM degrees.
ContributorsValdivia, Lilianna Alina (Author) / Kim, Linda (Thesis director) / Camacho, Erika (Committee member) / School of Mathematical and Natural Sciences (Contributor) / School of Social and Behavioral Sciences (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2018-05
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The purpose of this paper is to bring awareness to autism to those whom may not be familiar with the disorder, or may know someone that has been diagnosed and is looking for references. Another purpose of this paper is to identify possible effects or strains that a family can

The purpose of this paper is to bring awareness to autism to those whom may not be familiar with the disorder, or may know someone that has been diagnosed and is looking for references. Another purpose of this paper is to identify possible effects or strains that a family can face when there is a child diagnosed with autism. Research shows that an array of stressors can be experienced by the family. Stressors include marital strain or divorce, additional stress or relational strains with siblings, the diagnosis process, as well as the subsequent therapies and treatments that will be received after the diagnosis. Research shows that mothers are especially susceptible to stress, depression, and strain from various doctor's appointments. The method used for this research was a single case study. An interview was conducted with the mother, as well as a short interview with the adult child that asks questions concerning his view of autism and how it has affected him personally. The interview did allow a view of how autism can affect the family through stress and differences in sibling and parental relationships. The interview also lends some insight into possible prognoses for children with autism. The mother discusses the positive attributes of her son also. The case study shows that there is stress on the whole family, and in their case how little personal and medical support through the process contributed to that stress.
ContributorsEngels, Naomi Ann (Author) / Lewis, Stephen (Thesis director) / Gaffney, Cynthia (Committee member) / School of Social and Behavioral Sciences (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2017-05
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Recidivism rates in the United States are alarmingly high. The vast number of inmates who re- offend upon release and re-enter into correctional facilities upsets people and many individuals focus their blame on the private and public prisons. Currently, the research that is available on private and public prisons is

Recidivism rates in the United States are alarmingly high. The vast number of inmates who re- offend upon release and re-enter into correctional facilities upsets people and many individuals focus their blame on the private and public prisons. Currently, the research that is available on private and public prisons is unpersuasive because it creates a harsh polarization between the two prison systems. The benefits as well as the detriments of each sector are explained in great detail, but all of the current research is lacking one thing: insider experience. The majority of the available research is conducted by people behind a computer screen or behind the binding of a book. While a wide variety of different articles, short stories, and journals have been published and are readily available to eager readers and researchers, these arguments repeat themselves and fail to weigh the complex merits of each system against the other; specifically, each body of work is lacking knowledge from people who have experienced both private and public prisons from an internal perspective. To compensate for this lack of ethnographic research, the current study allows the reader to get an internal perspective of public and private prisons. This was done by interviewing two wardens who have served on the federal, state, and private levels as well as touring a private correctional facility in Arizona. These experiences paved the way for novel research to be conducted and was used as a tool to weave the complicated web of private and public prisons in the United States. Findings, interviews, and ideas for the future of prisons are discussed.
ContributorsTometich, Drake (Author) / Wright, Kevin (Thesis director) / Young, Jacob (Committee member) / School of Criminology and Criminal Justice (Contributor) / School of Social and Behavioral Sciences (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2018-05
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Stress, empathy, and emotion regulation are factors that can greatly shape an individual's behavior, thoughts, and physiology. The degree to which an individual experiences stress, demonstrates empathy, or is able to regulate emotions can influence his or her ability to establish strong social bonds. The current study investigated the relationships

Stress, empathy, and emotion regulation are factors that can greatly shape an individual's behavior, thoughts, and physiology. The degree to which an individual experiences stress, demonstrates empathy, or is able to regulate emotions can influence his or her ability to establish strong social bonds. The current study investigated the relationships among stress, empathy, and emotion regulation and considered gender differences in these relationships. I hypothesized that higher levels of current stress would be associated with lower levels of empathy and greater difficulties with emotion regulation, and that empathy and emotion regulation would be positively related. Supporting these hypotheses, the following relationships were found: (a) negative correlation between stress and empathy, (b) positive correlation between stress and emotion regulation difficulties, and (c) negative correlation between empathy and emotion regulation difficulties. Results also revealed that greater perceived stress was associated with less empathy in women, but it was unrelated to empathy in men. On the other hand, stress was associated with greater emotion regulation difficulties in both men and women, indicating that either gender may experience a greater disturbance in their emotional response within a social situation when under the influence of stress. Empathy and emotion regulation are positively correlated in both genders, which might suggest that high emotion regulation may allow for appropriate empathy responses within a given social context.
ContributorsHanna, Rand Maria (Author) / Roberts, Nicole (Thesis director) / Burleson, Mary (Committee member) / School of Mathematical and Natural Sciences (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Social and Behavioral Sciences (Contributor)
Created2016-12
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The objective of this study was to determine whether prosecutors would be more inclined to prosecute a juvenile sex offense case when the offender is gay versus straight. I also tested whether the effect of offender sexual orientation would be different for male versus female juvenile offenders. Based on previous

The objective of this study was to determine whether prosecutors would be more inclined to prosecute a juvenile sex offense case when the offender is gay versus straight. I also tested whether the effect of offender sexual orientation would be different for male versus female juvenile offenders. Based on previous research showing leniency toward lesbian juvenile sex offenders among laypeople, I hypothesized that prosecutors would be more likely to prosecute a case in which the offender was gay instead of heterosexual—but only if they were boys. In contrast, if the offenders were lesbians, I hypothesized that prosecutors would be less inclined to prosecute, compared to heterosexual girls. Based on survey data, I found that prosecutors’ decisions to prosecute were not affected by the offender’s gender or sexuality, but their impressions of the offender were. Prosecutors perceived males to be more likely to recidivate than females. Specifically, gay males were perceived as more likely to recidivate than heterosexual males; however the difference between lesbians and heterosexuals were nearly indistinguishable. Prosecutors also viewed gay males as having more negative attributes than heterosexual males. Contrarily, lesbian girls were perceived as having slightly less negative attributes than heterosexual girls. Still, females overall were perceived as having less negative attributes than males. These impressions on recidivism and negative attributes were important because they both positively correlated with the prosecutor’s decision to prosecute the case.
ContributorsFletcher, Sarah Renee (Author) / Salerno, Jessica (Thesis director) / Hall, Deborah (Committee member) / School of Social and Behavioral Sciences (Contributor) / School of Criminology and Criminal Justice (Contributor) / School of Politics and Global Studies (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2016-05
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We have seen the joy pets bring into people’s lives, and the sadness that follows the loss of them. Many pet owners view their pets as more than just animals: they are family. They offer a level of love and support similar to friends and family, despite not being human.

We have seen the joy pets bring into people’s lives, and the sadness that follows the loss of them. Many pet owners view their pets as more than just animals: they are family. They offer a level of love and support similar to friends and family, despite not being human. Some pets are also trained as service animals to assist humans who struggle with diagnosed physical, mental, and other disabilities. However, emotional support animals appear to lie somewhere between pets and service animals, as there are rules and policies still developing around them. With more and more college students requesting to bring ESAs on campus, the question of their effectiveness has been raised. The aim of this honors thesis study is to examine the effectiveness of ESAs in alleviating mental health symptoms in college students. More specifically, I wanted to evaluate students who currently live on campus (or have lived on campus in the past). The first aim will be to determine whether non-pet owners versus ESA owners (and pet owners in general) show a difference in their stress levels. The second aim is to examine if owning a pet or ESA predicts stress levels differently between genders. The final aim of the study is to determine if degree of attachment to pets predicts differences in stress in the owners.

ContributorsRuminski, Faith Elizabeth (Author) / Mickelson, Kristin (Thesis director) / Hall, Deborah (Committee member) / School of Social and Behavioral Sciences (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2021-05
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With a prison population that has grown to 1.4 million, an imprisonment rate of 419 per 100,000 U.S. residents, and a recidivism rate of 52.2% for males and 36.4% for females, the United States is facing a crisis. Currently, no sufficient measures have been taken by the United States to

With a prison population that has grown to 1.4 million, an imprisonment rate of 419 per 100,000 U.S. residents, and a recidivism rate of 52.2% for males and 36.4% for females, the United States is facing a crisis. Currently, no sufficient measures have been taken by the United States to reduce recidivism. Attempts have been made, but they ultimately failed. Recently, however, there has been an increase in experimentation with the concept of teaching inmates basic computer skills to reduce recidivism. As labor becomes increasingly digitized, it becomes more difficult for inmates who spent a certain period away from technology to adapt and find employment. At the bare minimum, anybody entering the workforce must know how to use a computer and other technological appliances, even in the lowest-paid positions. By incorporating basic computer skills and coding educational programs within prisons, this issue can be addressed, since inmates would be better equipped to take on a more technologically advanced labor market.<br/>Additionally, thoroughly preparing inmates for employment is a necessity because it has been proven to reduce recidivism. Prisons typically have some work programs; however, these programs are typically outdated and prepare inmates for fields that may represent a difficult employment market moving forward. On the other hand, preparing inmates for tech-related fields of work is proving to be successful in the early stages of experimentation. A reason for this success is the growing demand. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment in computer and information technology occupations is projected to grow 11 percent between 2019 and 2029. This is noteworthy considering the national average for growth of all other jobs is only 4 percent. It also warrants the exploration of educating coders because software developers, in particular, have an expected growth rate of 22 percent between 2019 and 2029. <br/>Despite the security risks of giving inmates access to computers, the implementation of basic computer skills and coding in prisons should be explored further. Programs that give inmates access to a computing education already exist. The only issue with these programs is their scarcity. However, this is to no fault of their own, considering the complex nature and costs of running such a program. Accordingly, this leaves the opportunity for public universities to get involved. Public universities serve as perfect hosts because they are fully capable of leveraging the resources already available to them. Arizona State University, in particular, is a more than ideal candidate to spearhead such a program and serve as a model for other public universities to follow. Arizona State University (ASU) is already educating inmates in local Arizona prisons on subjects such as math and English through their PEP (Prison Education Programming) program.<br/>This thesis will focus on Arizona specifically and why this would benefit the state. It will also explain why Arizona State University is the perfect candidate to spearhead this kind of program. Additionally, it will also discuss why recidivism is detrimental and the reasons why formerly incarcerated individuals re-offend. Furthermore, it will also explore the current measures being taken in Arizona and their limitations. Finally, it will provide evidence for why programs like these tend to succeed and serve as a proposal to Arizona State University to create its own program using the provided framework in this thesis.

ContributorsAwawdeh, Bajis Tariq (Author) / Halavais, Alexander (Thesis director) / Funk, Kendall (Committee member) / School of Social and Behavioral Sciences (Contributor, Contributor) / School of Humanities, Arts, and Cultural Studies (Contributor) / Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2021-05
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Veterans are approximately 30% more likely than non-veterans to suffer from severe hearing impairment. Tinnitus, or ringing in the ears, which is increasingly common among military service men and women, has been linked to significant cognitive and psychological impairment and can be worsened by the same sounds that trigger post-traumatic

Veterans are approximately 30% more likely than non-veterans to suffer from severe hearing impairment. Tinnitus, or ringing in the ears, which is increasingly common among military service men and women, has been linked to significant cognitive and psychological impairment and can be worsened by the same sounds that trigger post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). In fact, tinnitus and PTSD often present as comorbidities, and recent studies suggest these two disorders may share a common neurological pathway. Additional studies are required to better understand the connection between hearing loss and impaired cognitive function such as that observed in with PTSD. Here, we use the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster, to explore the relationship between hearing loss and cognitive function. Negative geotaxis climbing assays and courtship behavior analysis were used to examine neurobehavioral changes induced by prolonged, intense auditory stimulation. Preliminary results suggest that exposure to loud noise for an extended period of time significantly affected Drosophila behavior, with males being more sensitive than females. Based on our results, there appears to be a potential connection between noise exposure and behavior, further suggesting that Drosophila could be an effective model to study the link between hearing loss and PTSD.

ContributorsMichael, Allison Faye (Author) / Hackney-Price, Jennifer (Thesis director) / Sellner, Erin (Committee member) / School of Social and Behavioral Sciences (Contributor) / School of Mathematical and Natural Sciences (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2021-05
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A recent analysis has predicted that close to a million Americans will have died from contracting COVID-19 (Sullivan, 2021, para. 1). Unsurprisingly, the most vulnerable people, like those who have been incarcerated, have been hit the hardest (Brennan Center for Justice, 2020, para. 1). The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has created

A recent analysis has predicted that close to a million Americans will have died from contracting COVID-19 (Sullivan, 2021, para. 1). Unsurprisingly, the most vulnerable people, like those who have been incarcerated, have been hit the hardest (Brennan Center for Justice, 2020, para. 1). The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has created additional stress affecting inmates both physically and mentally. Therefore, the maintenance of good mental health among inmates should be a concern. However, the nature of the correctional environment limits the therapeutic options available to health care professionals. Among the challenges mental health professionals face in ensuring quality care are a poor rapport between the care provider and client, having a client living in an environment where distressing factors are omnipresent, and a lack of resources (Gussak, 2015, p. 2). All of these issues are exacerbated when the client requiring mental health care is in the correctional system. Depression and anxiety are some of the most common disorders affecting the prison population. However, in the correctional system, therapies that have been found effective among a general population have been shown to not benefit 30% to 60% of clients (Abbing, Baars, Van Haastrecht, & Ponstein, 2019, p. 1). Effectively treating depression is of great concern because, as Gussak (2007) found, depression can lead to self-harming behaviors and suicide when left untreated (p. 2). Additionally, addressing and treating anxiety is of particular importance today as COVID-19 has been a significant source of distress; explicitly, one incarcerated journalist reported witnessing entire units of inmates experiencing high levels of anxiety and panic attacks (Popperl et al., 2020, para. 5). Thus, a critical review of the available literature can reveal the particular effectiveness of art therapy in treating depression and anxiety in prison populations. The impacts of implementing more effective therapies in the correctional system are a reduction in recidivism and successful reintegration into society. Consequently, this literature review will suggest a potential application of art therapy for improving the mental health of those incarcerated in the correctional system with the intent of engendering positive social impact.

ContributorsBayne Lopez, Alyssa (Author) / Knowles, Alissa (Thesis director) / Craft, Sherry (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Social and Behavioral Sciences (Contributor)
Created2021-12