Matching Items (6)
Filtering by
- Genre: Diaries--Authorship.
- Genre: Diaries--Psychological aspects.
- Genre: Maps
- Creators: Arizona State University
Description
This dissertation investigates spatial and temporal changes in land cover and plant species distributions on Cyprus in the past, present and future (1973-2070). Landsat image analysis supports inference of land cover changes following the political division of the island of Cyprus in 1974. Urban growth in Nicosia, Larnaka and Limasol, as well as increased development along the southern coastline, is clearly evident between 1973 and 2011. Forests of the Troodos and Kyrenia Ranges remain relatively stable, with transitions occurring most frequently between agricultural land covers and shrub/herbaceous land covers. Vegetation models were constructed for twenty-two plant species of Cyprus using Maxent to predict potentially suitable areas of occurrence. Modern vegetation models were constructed from presence-only data collected by field surveys conducted between 2008 and 2011. These models provide a baseline for the assessment of potential species distributions under two climate change scenarios (A1b and A2) for the years 2030, 2050, and 2070. Climate change in Cyprus is likely to influence habitat availability, particularly for high elevation species as the relatively low elevation mountain ranges and small latitudinal range prevent species from shifting to areas of suitable environmental conditions. The loss of suitable habitat for some species may allow the introduction of non-native plant species or the expansion of generalists currently excluded from these areas. Results from future projections indicate the loss of suitable areas for most species by the year 2030 under both climate regimes and all four endemic species (Cedrus brevifolia, Helianthemum obtusifolium, Pterocephalus multiflorus, and Quercus alnifolia) are predicted to lose all suitable environments as soon as 2030. As striking exceptions Prunus dulcis (almond), Ficus carica (fig), Punica granatum (pomegranate) and Olea europaea (olive), which occur as both wild varieties and orchard cultigens, will expand under both scenarios. Land cover and species distribution maps are evaluated in concert to create a more detailed interpretation of the Cypriot landscape and to discuss the potential implications of climate change for land cover and plant species distributions.
ContributorsRidder, Elizabeth (Author) / Fall, Patricia L. (Thesis advisor) / Myint, Soe W (Committee member) / Hirt, Paul W (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
Description
Daily dairies and other intensive measurement methods are increasingly used to study the relationships between two time varying variables X and Y. These data are commonly analyzed using longitudinal multilevel or bivariate growth curve models that allow for random effects of intercept (and sometimes also slope) but which do not address the effects of weekly cycles in the data. Three Monte Carlo studies investigated the impact of omitting the weekly cycles in daily dairy data under the multilevel model framework. In cases where cycles existed in both the time-varying predictor series (X) and the time-varying outcome series (Y) but were ignored, the effects of the within- and between-person components of X on Y tended to be biased, as were their corresponding standard errors. The direction and magnitude of the bias depended on the phase difference between the cycles in the two series. In cases where cycles existed in only one series but were ignored, the standard errors of the regression coefficients for the within- and between-person components of X tended to be biased, and the direction and magnitude of bias depended on which series contained cyclical components.
ContributorsLiu, Yu (Author) / West, Stephen G. (Thesis advisor) / Enders, Craig K. (Committee member) / Reiser, Mark R. (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
Description
The comparison of between- versus within-person relations addresses a central issue in psychological research regarding whether group-level relations among variables generalize to individual group members. Between- and within-person effects may differ in magnitude as well as direction, and contextual multilevel models can accommodate this difference. Contextual multilevel models have been explicated mostly for cross-sectional data, but they can also be applied to longitudinal data where level-1 effects represent within-person relations and level-2 effects represent between-person relations. With longitudinal data, estimating the contextual effect allows direct evaluation of whether between-person and within-person effects differ. Furthermore, these models, unlike single-level models, permit individual differences by allowing within-person slopes to vary across individuals. This study examined the statistical performance of the contextual model with a random slope for longitudinal within-person fluctuation data.
A Monte Carlo simulation was used to generate data based on the contextual multilevel model, where sample size, effect size, and intraclass correlation (ICC) of the predictor variable were varied. The effects of simulation factors on parameter bias, parameter variability, and standard error accuracy were assessed. Parameter estimates were in general unbiased. Power to detect the slope variance and contextual effect was over 80% for most conditions, except some of the smaller sample size conditions. Type I error rates for the contextual effect were also high for some of the smaller sample size conditions. Conclusions and future directions are discussed.
A Monte Carlo simulation was used to generate data based on the contextual multilevel model, where sample size, effect size, and intraclass correlation (ICC) of the predictor variable were varied. The effects of simulation factors on parameter bias, parameter variability, and standard error accuracy were assessed. Parameter estimates were in general unbiased. Power to detect the slope variance and contextual effect was over 80% for most conditions, except some of the smaller sample size conditions. Type I error rates for the contextual effect were also high for some of the smaller sample size conditions. Conclusions and future directions are discussed.
ContributorsWurpts, Ingrid Carlson (Author) / Mackinnon, David P (Thesis advisor) / West, Stephen G. (Committee member) / Grimm, Kevin J. (Committee member) / Suk, Hye Won (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2016
Description
ABSTRACT
Learning world history has the potential to develop adolescents into thoughtful, active citizens. This is especially true when students are taught in ways that engage them with complex issues and help them make connections between what they learn and their personal goals and experiences. However, instructional time in social studies is limited because of the current emphasis on standardized achievement testing in other content areas. Furthermore, in the specific field of world history, the scope of material covered, coupled with debate over what should be taught, has made it difficult to present a curriculum that is meaningful and relevant to students. As a result, the study of world history may be seen as tangential or incoherent.
The purpose of this action research study was to introduce an innovation aimed at helping students think deeply and find personal relevance in the study of world history. Specifically, visual imagery and reflective journaling were used to help students to become proficient in historical thinking and to fully engage in the study of world history. The study was developed according to a mixed-methods design: the quantitative data collection tools were pre- and posttests and a student survey, and the qualitative data collection tools included discussion transcripts, reflective journals, student-created presentations, and observations.
Results showed that the use of images and reflective journaling enabled students to develop some critical thinking skills, such as making claims, supporting claims with evidence, and considering divergent perspectives. Furthermore, students' awareness of their connections to the world around them increased, as did student performance on tests about historical events and concepts. Unfortunately, students did not reach proficiency in factual knowledge on post-tests in the class, despite these increases. However, this study highlights the benefits of explicitly connecting students to historical thinking through the use of images and journaling that allow students to explore their own thoughts and deductions.
Learning world history has the potential to develop adolescents into thoughtful, active citizens. This is especially true when students are taught in ways that engage them with complex issues and help them make connections between what they learn and their personal goals and experiences. However, instructional time in social studies is limited because of the current emphasis on standardized achievement testing in other content areas. Furthermore, in the specific field of world history, the scope of material covered, coupled with debate over what should be taught, has made it difficult to present a curriculum that is meaningful and relevant to students. As a result, the study of world history may be seen as tangential or incoherent.
The purpose of this action research study was to introduce an innovation aimed at helping students think deeply and find personal relevance in the study of world history. Specifically, visual imagery and reflective journaling were used to help students to become proficient in historical thinking and to fully engage in the study of world history. The study was developed according to a mixed-methods design: the quantitative data collection tools were pre- and posttests and a student survey, and the qualitative data collection tools included discussion transcripts, reflective journals, student-created presentations, and observations.
Results showed that the use of images and reflective journaling enabled students to develop some critical thinking skills, such as making claims, supporting claims with evidence, and considering divergent perspectives. Furthermore, students' awareness of their connections to the world around them increased, as did student performance on tests about historical events and concepts. Unfortunately, students did not reach proficiency in factual knowledge on post-tests in the class, despite these increases. However, this study highlights the benefits of explicitly connecting students to historical thinking through the use of images and journaling that allow students to explore their own thoughts and deductions.
ContributorsShanahan, Carrie (Author) / Rotheram-Fuller, Erin (Thesis advisor) / Liou, Daniel (Committee member) / Schonaerts, Claire (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2015
Description
When cartographers and graphic designers create maps they choose typefaces. Often, serif and sans serif typefaces are paired together to represent different information on a map. Typefaces have a communicated tone and choosing the correct typeface combination to send the intended message can be challenging. The purpose of this study was to create an analysis of the aesthetic characteristics of typeface pairings to assist map creators when choosing typefaces. An online survey was utilized to collect responses from graphic designers who have been trained in at least one year or more in design from a higher education institution. There were 30 participants in the study and they scored 24 typeface pairings, 12 differentiating and 12 superfamily, on 48 maps. Scoring was done on eight aesthetic characteristics: friendly, whimsical, cheap, neutral, bland, corporate, serious and modern. The researcher conducted an analysis of each typeface’s microaesthetics and then compared these to the survey’s scored aesthetic characteristics. It was concluded that there are many factors that go into comparing the typeface pairings of serif and sans serif typeface combinations. However, a selection of a superfamily typeface pairing is better than selecting a differentiating pairing. Future research should focus on conducting studies with a varying amount of typeface styles. Also, to include less maps per survey and a survey completion status bar.
ContributorsFinden, Nathan (Author) / Ralston, Laurie (Thesis advisor) / Carrasquilla, Christina (Committee member) / Westover, William (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2018
The effects of an internet-based self-compassion writing intervention for adults with mental illness
Description
Multiple studies have found that writing with self-compassion about a difficult event helps promote mental health and improve affect in college students and non-clinical populations (Johnson & O'Brien, 2013; Leary et al, 2007; Shapira & Mongrain, 2010). This study investigated whether a self-compassion writing intervention would lead to increases in self-compassion and proactive coping and reductions in depression and physical symptoms in a sample of individuals with different types of mental illness. This study also looked more broadly at the feasibility of conducting an online randomized trial on individuals with mental illness, including psychotic disorders, on Amazon MTurk. Individuals with schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, bipolar disorder and/or depression on Amazon MTurk were recruited and randomly assigned to either a (1) treatment condition in which participants wrote with self-compassion or a (2) neutral condition in which participants wrote about how they spent their time. Participants were asked to write for 20 minutes each day for three consecutive days. Outcome measures were administered at baseline, after the three-day intervention, and one month later. Computerized linguistic analysis (LIWC; Pennebaker et al., 2015) was also used to analyze participants' writing to determine if the intervention had the intended effect. Both the treatment and control groups showed significant improvements in self-compassion, proactive coping, general mental health and physical health following the intervention and both groups showed significant improvements in self-compassion, proactive coping and general mental health between the post-test and 1-month follow-up. In addition, the self-compassion writing group's positive affect improved significantly more than the control group after the wave 1 writing intervention and the control group's negative affect improved significantly more than the self-compassion writing group after the wave 2 writing intervention. Overall, the results suggest both self-compassion writing and writing about how one spends one's time may be beneficial for individuals with mental illness with different needs. Moreover, it was found Amazon MTurk may not be a reliable platform for recruiting individuals with psychotic disorders, and that the prevalence of individuals with any mental illness on MTurk may be equal or greater than the prevalence of any mental illness in the general population.
ContributorsUrken, Debra (Author) / LeCroy, Craig W. (Thesis advisor) / Holschuh, Jane (Committee member) / Stalker, Katie (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2018