US Universities Research Articles

Risk perception and use of personal care products by race and ethnicity among a diverse population

Personal care products can contain phthalates, parabens and other endocrine-disrupting chemicals. However, information on perception of risks from personal care product use and how use varies by race and ethnicity is limited. We evaluated differences in personal care product use and risk perception in a diverse sample of participants recruited from a US college campus and online. A self-administered questionnaire captured information on sociodemographic factors, personal care product use trends and perception of risk associated with them. Pearson’s chi-square and Fisher’s exact tests were used to determine differences in personal care product use and risk perception by race and ethnicity. Ordered logistic regressions were performed to measure associations between personal care product use frequency across racial/ethnic categories. Participant (n = 770) mean age was 22.8 years [standard deviation ± 6.0]. Daily use of make-up (eye = 29.3%; other = 38.0%; all = 33.7%) and skincare products (55%) was most frequently reported among Middle Eastern and North African participants. Non-Hispanic Black participants reported the highest daily use of hairstyling products (52%) and lotion (78%). Daily make-up use was more frequently reported among females (41%) than males (24.6%). Levels of agreement were similar across racial and ethnic groups, that personal care product manufacturers should be required to list all ingredients (≥87%). There were significant associations between the frequency of use of some personal care products and racial/ethnic categories when the use frequencies of participants from other racial/ethnic categories were compared to the use frequency of non-Hispanic White participants. There were significant differences in daily use frequency, levels of trust, perception of safety and health risks associated with personal care products by race and ethnicity, underscoring that there may be different sources of exposure to chemicals in personal care products by race and ethnicity.

‘Even (if) I choose the right answer, that goes wrong’

While studies on second language academic discourse socialization are increasing, how less academically prepared undergraduate multilingual students, such as RBSs, negotiate literacy challenges across the curriculum is still under-researched. As part of a larger qualitative study, which explored how three Bhutanese/Nepali youths negotiated the discursive, interactional, material and perceptual challenges they faced across their undergraduate curriculum in a US university, this article focuses on assessment-related textual challenges across the curriculum in a research university. Initiated as a teacher research-based study in an undergraduate ESL writing class, this longitudinal multiple-case study followed three RBSs for five years during their undergraduate study. While all three participants persistently struggled throughout their degree in various academic literacy events, they managed to graduate within five years because of various kinds of support they received. While there was no formal support tailored to RBSs at the university, this article illustrates how some literacy sponsors were able to create informal support mechanisms for these students. It also highlights how the most common literacy support at the university – that is, teaching of essayist literacies, was inadequate for preparing RBSs well in successfully negotiating academic literacy challenges.

Goal Setting Moderates Behavior Change Outcomes in College Students After an Online Health Coaching Intervention

ABSTRACT Background Health coaching sessions that incorporate goal setting may help improve college students' health behaviors. Purpose This study examined whether specific goal-setting practices moderated changes in health behaviors during an online wellness intervention in college students. Methods Participants were 90 college students recruited from one US university. The intervention was a one-hour virtual one-on-one health coaching session where participants set two goals for either physical activity (Metabolic Equivalent Task (MET)-minutes or MET-minutes), nutrition, sleep, or stress management. Self-reported baseline behaviors were collected, and follow-up surveys were completed at 6- and 12-weeks. Mixed effects models examined behavior change outcomes across the follow-up timepoints while testing the moderating effect of goal setting using interactions. Results The Goal×Time interaction was significant for moderate MET-minutes at 1st follow-up (b = 443, p = .003), and for total MET-minutes at the 2nd follow-up (b = 717, p = .047). The Goal×Time interaction was also significant for stress management at 1st follow-up (Odds Ratio = 7.3, p = .042). Discussion Participants who set physical activity and stress management goals had significantly higher physical activity and utilized more stress management techniques. Translation to Health Education Practice The use of specific goal-setting strategies for physical activity and stress management is recommended during online health coaching sessions.

Bargaining identity: A transnational multilingual student's fight against raciolinguistic positioning in English departments

This study contributes to the limited research on linguistic racism in higher education settings. It examines a transnational multilingual student's experiences with the English language and English literature across Indian and US universities, and the influences of language ideologies on her academic pursuits. Qualitative methods were used to collect data that include the student's written reflection on her experiences, talks-around-text interviews, and artifacts of her academic work. Raciolinguistics and positioning theory support data analysis. Findings indicate that, across Indian and US universities, the student was continuously positioned by others as lacking in English competence, resulting in academic and psychological trauma for her. However, the student also exercised agentive resistance and fought to reposition herself as a legitimate speaker of English and student of English literature. Implications are offered for research, theory, and educational practice.

Combining Human and Artificial Intelligence for Enhanced AI Literacy in Higher Education

This paper seeks to contribute to the emergent literature on Artificial Intelligence (AI) literacy in higher education. Specifically, this convergent, mixed methods case study explores the impact of employing Generative AI (GenAI) tools and cyber-social teaching methods on the development of higher education students’ AI literacy. Three 8-week courses on advanced digital technologies for education in a graduate program in the College of Education at a mid-western US university served as the study sites. Data were based on 37 participants’ experiences with two different types of GenAI tools–a GenAI reviewer and GenAI image generator platforms. The application of the GenAI review tool relied on precision fine-tuning and transparency in AI-human interactions, while the AI image generation tools facilitated the participants’ reflection on their learning experiences and AI's role in education. Students’ interaction with both tools was designed to foster their learning regarding GenAI's strengths and limitations, and their responsible application in educational contexts. The findings revealed that the participants appeared to feel more comfortable using GenAI tools after their course experiences. The results also point to the students’ enhanced ability to understand and critically assess the value of AI applications in education. This study contributes to existing work on AI in higher education by introducing a novel pedagogical approach for AI literacy development showcasing the synergy between humans and artificial intelligence.

Retrospective perceptions of support for career development among PhD graduates from US and New Zealand universities

Purpose PhD graduates are entering an increasing range of careers, but past research has highlighted a lack of preparation for these careers. This study aims to explore the reflections of PhD graduates from science and humanities and social science disciplines regarding support for career development (CD) during their study. Design/methodology/approach The authors used an explanatory sequential mixed-methods design and collected 136 survey responses and interviewed 21 PhD graduates from two US and one New Zealand universities to investigate their career readiness. Using the lens of Cognitive Information Processing theory, the authors explored the development of self-knowledge and career options-knowledge, and how support at the macro (institutional), meso (departmental) and micro (supervisors) levels influenced CD. Findings During doctoral study, there was very poor engagement with CD activities. Graduates displayed limited self-knowledge and poor knowledge about career options. Graduates reported drawing mainly on their departments and supervisors for career guidance. Although there were pockets of good practice, some departments were perceived as promoting academia as the only successful outcome, neglecting to support other possible pathways. Some graduates reported excellent supervisor support for CD, but others described disinterest or a damaging response if students said they were not wanting to pursue academia. Originality/value The enabling aspects for developing self- and options-knowledge are collated into a conceptual model, which identifies key factors at institutional, departmental and supervisor levels, as well as for PhD students themselves.

The floating duck syndrome: biased social learning leads to effort-reward imbalances

Abstract An increasingly common phenomenon in modern work and school settings is individuals taking on too many tasks and spending effort without commensurate rewards. Such an imbalance of efforts and rewards leads to myriad negative consequences, such as burnout, anxiety, and disease. Here, we develop a model to explain how such effort-reward imbalances can come about as a result of biased social learning dynamics. Our model is based on a phenomenon that on some US college campuses is called "the floating duck syndrome." This phrase refers to the social pressure on individuals to advertise their successes but hide the struggles and the effort put in to achieve them. We show that a bias against revealing the true effort results in social learning dynamics that lead others to underestimate the difficulty of the world. This in turn leads individuals to both invest too much total effort and spread this effort over too many activities, reducing the success rate from each activity and creating effort-reward imbalances. We also consider potential ways to counteract the floating duck effect: we find that solutions other than addressing the root cause, biased observation of effort are unlikely to work.

Multimodality in third turn repetitions: Evaluation, mitigation, and the pursuit of responses in a Korean-as-foreign-language classroom

This conversation analysis (CA) study extends our understanding of the complexity of three turn instructional sequences by investigating the multimodal turn design of a teacher’s third turn repetitions (TTRs) and the actions accomplished in the third turn position as well as subsequent post-expansions. The videorecorded data are from an undergraduate Korean as a foreign language classroom at a large US university. The analysis reveals how a teacher coordinates resources such as language, prosody, gaze, gesture, body movements, and objects during and immediately following TTRs to mitigate negative evaluation, direct student attention to trouble sources, and intimate answers. The findings show that actions accomplished by talk, i.e. negative evaluation, and actions accomplished by multimodal resources like gaze, i.e. directing attention, may be undertaken simultaneously. The article contributes to understandings of teaching as complex and contingent interactional work by unpacking in fine-grained detail the moment-by-moment multimodal unfolding of pedagogical practice. We conclude by discussing implications for teacher preparation, namely the central role microanalysis of videorecorded classroom interaction should play.

Using Speculative Design to Understand Preferred Futures for the Design and Use of Tracking Data in U.S. College Sport Teams

US college sports teams are increasingly adopting personal data technologies, such as wearable sensors, with a goal of improving individual and team performance as well as individual safety. These tools can also reinforce the power that coaches hold over student-athletes and compromise student-athletes' needs for privacy and agency. To investigate preferred, and anti-preferred, approaches for navigating this complex sociotechnical challenge, we used a speculative design approach in which student athletes and technology design students developed three videos that portray tensions between student-athletes and coaches around the use of sports tracking technologies. We then shared these videos with 15 participants including student-athletes, coaches, and designers. Drawing on the perspectives of student-athletes, team staff, and designers embedded in the videos and expressed in reaction to the videos, we describe preferences for boundaries on tracking and sharing, how tracking data represent athletes, and for data practices. We also propose design requirements and recommendations for use to better align tracking technologies with these preferences.

Improving Self-Reported Person-centered Care Competency in Nursing Students: A Pilot Study Using Interactive Case Studies.

To prepare nursing students to deliver high-quality care, educators need strategies to foster person-centered care (PCC). This pilot study evaluated an intervention with interactive case studies on undergraduate nursing students' PCC competency. We conducted a pilot study with sophomore undergraduate nursing students (n =39) from a Midwestern US university. We developed a 90-minute class seminar with interactive case studies highlighting how patient preferences, values, and circumstances could influence fall risk. We assessed PCC using the Patient-Centered Care Competency Scale. Although there was no statistically significant change in overall PCC competency before and after the intervention, we noted a small to medium effect size on PCC competency per Cohen's d standards (d =0.35). Content analysis of students' open-ended responses reflected PCC and clustered into 5 themes. Findings suggest that educators may use interactive case studies to foster nursing student PCC competency.

The Impact of ChatGPT on Academia: A Comprehensive Analysis of AI Policies Across UT System Academic Institutions

Since ChatGPT was released by OpenAI, an American company, in 2022 for the public, ChatGPT has become the talk of every town, as evident by its over 180 million users worldwide. This chatbot's ability to engage in human-like conversations, answer questions, and generate diverse content has sparked widespread debates across various fields, including education. In response to the growing rise and influence of ChatGPT, educators have contrasting opinions; some view ChatGPT as an opportunity, whereas others regard it as a challenge that needs to be addressed on time. In order to deal with the complexities caused by ChatGPT in the field of education, universities have formulated their policies on AI. Guided by the research question, "How does universities' policy on AI reflect academia's view toward ChatGPT?" this study attempts to review the AI policy of the nine academic institutions under the UT system of the United States. The primary goal is to understand the extent to which universities have adapted their policies in response to the challenges and opportunities posed by ChatGPT and how these policies reflect the broader sentiments within academia. To achieve this, this study reviews the universities' policies regarding AI using a qualitative data analysis methodology. The primary data sources include official policies, statements, and guidelines developed by the universities in response to the challenges and opportunities presented by ChatGPT. While reviewing the policies, the study determines whether ChatGPT is banned and why. Or embraced, and if so, in what ways? By examining these policies, the study aims to uncover the various approaches universities have taken to integrate or regulate the use of ChatGPT within academic environments. The thesis of this study is twofold. First, it seeks to provide a comprehensive overview of how US universities have responded to ChatGPT in the educational landscape. This involves identifying common themes, concerns, and strategies institutions employ to deal with the complexities introduced by this generative language model. Second, the study aims to contribute to existing scholarship by offering insights into how academia adapts to the influence of AI technologies like ChatGPT. This study examines the intersection of AI and education and the evolving nature of educational norms in the digital age by uncovering the diverse perspectives and approaches within university policies.

Perception of uncontrollable mortality risk is associated with food insecurity and reduced economic effort among resource-insecure college students during COVID-19.

In the framework of the uncontrollable mortality risk hypothesis, resource scarcity intersects with mortality risk, shaping resource allocation strategies with enduring impacts on human health and wellbeing. Despite rising economic and food insecurity among US college students, little is known about how these insecurities relate to mortality risk, or how scarcity and mortality risk interact to shape college students' resource allocation strategies. We examine perceptions of resource scarcity and mortality risk and their associations with food insecurity and resource allocation strategies among economically insecure college students during COVID-19 lockdowns. Participants were recruited through an economic crisis response center at a major public university in the United States. A total of 118 participants completed an online Qualtrics survey assessing sociodemographic characteristics, perceptions of mortality risk and resource availability, food security, economic effort, and time perspective; a subset (n = 51) also participated in a telephone interview assessing psychological distress. In general, participants reported more environmental adversity and economic effort during COVID-19 lockdowns compared to before. Students experiencing higher levels of uncontrollable (and not controllable) mortality risk report lower levels of economic effort, and the association was strongest among students perceiving the fewest resources. We also found significant associations between uncontrollable mortality risk and food insecurity. Our results highlight uncontrollable mortality risk's influence on human well-being. Public health efforts should target the experiences and root structural causes of uncontrollable mortality risk, which among economically insecure college students increasingly involves food insecurity.

Developing and implementing survivor-centred approaches for college student-athletes: perspectives from athletic department, Title IX, and campus advocacy personnel

ABSTRACT Background: Sexual violence (SV) is a persistent issue on US college campuses, particularly among college student-athletes. Strategies to address SV are urgently needed. Yet, prior research shows that many university practices can be more harmful than helpful to SV survivors and necessitates a reimagination of how institutions support SV survivors. Survivor-centred approaches may be one way to effectively address SV for students, including student-athletes, across college campuses. Objective: This qualitative study explored campus personnel experiences with and perceptions of survivor-centred SV prevention and intervention policies and practices on college campuses and examined how these approaches serve SV survivors, including college student-athletes. Methods: As part of a larger study on campus SV and student-athletes across four institutions, semi-structured interviews with 22 representatives from athletic departments, campus advocacy, and Title IX were conducted. Guided by phenomenology, a thematic analysis approach was used to identify key patterns in survivor-centred SV prevention and intervention policies and practices. Participant demographic data were analysed descriptively. Results: Most participants identified as white (72.2%), heterosexual (63.6%), women (68.2%), and were an average of 41.8 years old (SD = 10.2). The majority were in positions associated with athletic departments (63.6%), and they had been in their role for an average of 5.6 years (SD = 6.6). Through thematic analysis, three main themes were identified: (1) education & accessibility; (2) interpersonal relationships & individual well-being; and (3) campus and societal norms. Conclusions: The findings from this study highlight clear policy and practice recommendations for survivor-centred SV prevention and intervention on college campuses, such as accessible, applicable SV training and the implementation of survivor-centred approaches. Further research is needed to understand existing survivor-centred practices and the facilitators and barriers to their implementation across institutions and within athletic departments.

Faculty demographics in criminology and criminal justice: a wider view

Large-scale analyses of the demographics of postsecondary students and faculty in the United States have found that the student population has become quite diverse while faculty have not made the same strides. Unfortunately, knowledge about the demographic diversity of faculty that are specific to criminology and criminal justice (CCJ) has been based on surveys of CCJ organizations with general memberships and/or the faculty in a small sample of Ph.D. granting institutions. This study attempts to fill this void through a wide-scale analysis of the demographics of faculty in 726 universities and colleges in the United States that offer CCJ majors. Utilizing photographs of faculty along with all other existing information at our disposal, we found CCJ faculty to be slightly more diverse than what has been found in other recent analyses, although still well below the diversity statistics that are known about CCJ students.

Effect of using the snackability app on snack quality among US college students with overweight and obesity: A randomized controlled trial

Objective To determine if using the Snackability app improves snack intake among college students. Participants US college students with overweight/obesity were recruited in June 2020-April 2021. Methods A randomized controlled trial was conducted to test the Snackability app use for 12 wk on snack scores (calculated from the app) compared to controls. We also explored the effect on diet quality (Healthy Eating Index-2015) and weight. Outcomes were compared between the intervention and the control groups at 4, 8, and 12 wk using repeated measures ANOVA. Results Participants in the app group significantly increased snack score at week 4 (p < 0.001) and week 8 (p = 0.015) and increased HEI-2020 score (p < 0.001) at week 4 compared to controls. The first 4 wk had the highest app usage. No significant differences were seen in body weight. Conclusions The Snackability app can be used as a tool to help improve snack and diet quality in this group.

Women’s Colleges and Economics Major Choice: Evidence from Wellesley College Applicants

Many observers argue that diversity in Economics and STEM fields is critical, not simply because of egalitarian goals, but because who is in a field may shape what is studied by it. If increasing the rate of majoring in mathematically intensive fields among women is a worthy goal, then understanding whether women’s colleges causally affect that choice is important. Among all admitted applicants to Wellesley College, enrollees are 7.2 percentage points (94 percent) more likely to receive an Economics degree than non-enrollees (a plausible lower bound given negative selection into enrollment on math skills and major preferences). Overall, 3.2 percentage points – or 44 percent of the difference between enrollees and non-enrollees – is explained by college exposure to women instructors and students, consistent with a wider role for women’s colleges in increasing women’s participation in Economics. HIGHLIGHTS In US colleges, men are more than twice as likely as women to major in Economics. Enrollees are twice as likely as non-enrollees to major in Economics. The difference is a plausible lower bound given patterns of selection on observed variables. Over 40 percent of the difference is explained by the gender of students and faculty.

Development of the United States’ University tenure system from the perspective of the protection of teachers’ rights and interests

As a fundamental system for protecting the rights and interests of teachers, the university tenure system plays a crucial role in the development of universities in the United States. The tenure system has developed and evolved over a long period of time, from the dual track system of university teachers under church management in the 17th century to the formal establishment of the university tenure system in the 20th century and then to the “up-or-out” policy in the 21st century. The foundation of this system’s development has always been maintaining teachers’ academic freedom and guaranteeing their livelihoods. This article explores how universities and related institutions in the United States have integrated the protection of teacher academic freedom and economic security throughout the development of higher education by studying the development of the US university tenure system.

Smoking behaviors among Middle Eastern college women in the United States

Objective: to examine factors associated with cigarette and hookah smoking among Middle Eastern (ME) Arab college women. Participants: 406 adult women of ME Arabic background, currently enrolled in or recently graduated from a US college. Methods: a cross-sectional design, using an anonymous online survey of demographic characteristics, sociocultural factors, and access to health care factors. Data analysis included regression model to identify predictors of smoking behaviors. Results: Smoking rates were 21% and 19% for cigarette and hookah smoking. Cigarette smoking was higher with having liberal attitudes toward sexuality and lower among those having a healthcare provider. Hookah smoking was higher among students who are Muslim, involved in student organizations, have higher acculturation-heritage levels, and have more liberal attitudes toward women. Hookah smoking was lower among students born in the US, attending college part-time, and having higher religiosity levels. Conclusions: The study findings have several implications for interventions to address smoking behaviors among ME Arab college women through community organizations and within college campuses.

The Significance of the French and Francophone Presence in North America in French Language Learning and Advocacy in the United States

This article examines the significance of the French and Francophone presence in North America and its impact on French language learning and use, with a special focus on the linkage between Québec and French language advocacy. Within a context of heritage languages, the lack of opportunity to learn additional languages in US public schools, and declining enrollments in languages in US colleges and universities, the scope of both the historical and contemporary role of Francophones in the US is described, and a brief overview of French language advocacy is provided. Current trends, including Francoresponsabilité and Franco-Activisme, as well as the importance of advocacy partnerships and online learning, are also explored.

Promoting Research Collaboration with Open Data Driven Team Recommendation in Response to Call for Proposals

Building teams and promoting collaboration are two very common business activities. An example of these are seen in the TeamingForFunding problem, where research institutions and researchers are interested to identify collaborative opportunities when applying to funding agencies in response to latter's calls for proposals. We describe a novel deployed system to recommend teams using a variety of AI methods, such that (1) each team achieves the highest possible skill coverage that is demanded by the opportunity, and (2) the workload of distributing the opportunities is balanced amongst the candidate members. We address these questions by extracting skills latent in open data of proposal calls (demand) and researcher profiles (supply), normalizing them using taxonomies, and creating efficient algorithms that match demand to supply. We create teams to maximize goodness along a novel metric balancing short- and long-term objectives. We validate the success of our algorithms (1) quantitatively, by evaluating the recommended teams using a goodness score and find that more informed methods lead to recommendations of smaller number of teams but higher goodness, and (2) qualitatively, by conducting a large-scale user study at a college-wide level, and demonstrate that users overall found the tool very useful and relevant. Lastly, we evaluate our system in two diverse settings in US and India (of researchers and proposal calls) to establish generality of our approach, and deploy it at a major US university for routine use.