US Universities Research Articles

Forever fields: studying knowledge practices in the global North: a view from the global South

ABSTRACT While there is a multitude of academic work with respect to cross-border collaborations between South Asian countries and the US, almost all of it is produced by scholars located in US universities, either as tenured faculty or as doctoral students. Much of this work is predicated upon the access these scholars have to stakeholders in both countries, which is dependent on the predominantly one-way flow of gaze/theory from the global North. Based on in-depth interviews with Indian doctoral scholars enrolled in Women’s Studies and allied disciplines in universities in the US, but whose research fields are in India, this paper examines the ways in which coloniality structures the knowledges thus produced. Particularly, it examines how the construction of the ‘field’ is contingent upon complex processes such as visa regimes, funding opportunities to travel, and disciplinary framings. It argues that despite the increased focus on a globalised academia and movement of scholars and students around the world, material inequities continue to frame certain locations as ‘forever fields’. Finally, unpacking the politics of mapping a field, it poses the possibility of activating a disruption in the ways in which the category ‘field’ is perceived.

Dynamic development of cohesive devices in English as a second language writing

Abstract The dearth of research examining the progression of cohesion in L2 writing through a time-series research design is evident. Therefore, the current study employs the Complex Dynamic Systems Theory to explore the evolution of cohesive devices in L2 writing. Thirty advanced-level L2 writers from a US university participated over a semester, providing 210 written samples at seven measurement points. Analysis of these samples, utilizing 40 cohesion indices from the Tool for the Automatic Analysis of Cohesion, revealed significant improvement in eight cohesion indices (three local, four global, and one text cohesion indices) with large effect sizes. However, time-series analyses indicated nonlinear trends and variability. Additionally, a positive association was found between two local cohesion indices (lexical and semantic overlap) at the initial and final measurement points. The findings demonstrate the multifaceted developmental trajectories and complexities evident in L2 learners’ approaches and carry important implications for L2 writing instruction and assessment.

(Invited) Is Commercialization of Intellectual Property in an Academic Environment Feasible?

A career in academics is in some ways at odds with commercialization. The priorities of an academic institution are publish or perish. Yet, the path to commercialization embeds either patents or trade secrets. Many in academics do not acknowledge patents as academic achievement. For a variety of reasons, university laboratories are not established to build the demonstrations needed to promote commercialization.Universities support patenting but are not equipped to facilitate commercialization of research, especially research based on sophisticated, fundamental ideas. Because of the constraints of the academic environment, ideas are driven to patents before devices are demonstrated. Yet the Bayh Dole Act provides that federally supported research be commercialized with any profits returned to the universities and inventors.These constraints create a barely navigable matrix for the academic inventor.When financial constraints reduce the University's support of patents, ownership is transferred to the inventor. This creates complexities in IP management with the University and increases cost to the inventor. However, it also creates opportunity.To commercialize the existing and evolving IP, a small business was formed with family. And now we maintain the patents, write grant applications restricted to the personally held IP, promote the IP, and try to bridge the chasm to commercialization.Startup success is elusive under the best conditions with experienced founders that understand both the technology and more importantly the business need. Founders typically have a working system and industry contacts before attempting to launch a new venture. Founders spend most of the time selling to investors and early prospects.New ventures started by academics have none of these advantages. They often have a great idea but no commercially viable prototype, no industry contacts and no connections to investors. They do not understand the amount of time spent on fundraising, and lack the skills and desire to raise funds. Commercialization of university research is more difficult than starting with nothing outside because university life is a full time job with many constraints. Investors are not interested in part-time CEOs. They want full time commitment and focused dedication. Investors are not interested in dealing with university administrations and procedures.Successful commercialization requires three roles: Business person that understands the market opportunitySubject matter expert that can defined a solution to the problemProduct manager that can translate between the other two and build a working system. A successful combination of these roles in coordination is required to build an investable business that can attract the capital required for commercialization.Academics can provide the subject matter expertise but engaging successful business people and product managers need to be found outside universities. Finding these connections is difficult but friends and family, industry organizations, and angel investment networks can provide some paths. University business schools and administrations should facilitate these connections with vetted business people.Universities should have an investment pitch competition put on by professors with patent portfolios each semester. Universities can invite investors to view the commercializable research that is being developed within the university. This is a non-trivial undertaking but can be done virtually to reach a wide range of investors across the country.Very few US universities have provided successful paths to commercialization. These most famous, well funded, private universities attract most of the investment interest. A few worked examples coming from other universities will encourage the appetite for future investment.

Research on the Impact of AI on University Student Learning based on Principal Component Analysis and Factor Analysis Methods

Artificial intelligence (AI) was introduced in 1956 by scientists from McCarthy and Minsky held at Dartmouth College in the United States. Its rapid development has a different depth of impact on all social strata, but also has a great impact on the education industry, especially for the future college students of the motherland. This paper uses the formal statistical data of the questionnaire to analyze and establish the mathematical model to understand the influence of artificial intelligence on college students in different aspects. First, the raw data is visualized and numericized. Secondly, the analysis results of the data are taken as the evaluation index and comprehensively considered from many aspects such as priority, scientificity and operability. We used principal component analysis and factor analysis to measure each index reasonably. Finally, a comprehensive evaluation method is used to evaluate the influence of AI on college students' learning.

The role of mindfulness and compassion in early adults' subsequent mental health, coping and compliance with health guidelines during the COVID‐19 pandemic: A prospective longitudinal study

AbstractThe present study explored prospective links between trait mindfulness and compassion on subsequent coping and compliance with Centers for Disease Control (CDC) guidelines and indirect effects via well‐being and internalized distress during the COVID‐19 pandemic. The study included N = 736 US college students who participated in a three‐wave longitudinal study across a single academic year. The first two assessment waves took place in 2018 and 2019, respectively, while the third wave took place in May 2020 during the COVID‐19 pandemic. Participants completed self‐report measures of trait mindfulness, compassion, well‐being, internalized distress, coping, and compliance with CDC health guidelines. Results of a series of autoregressive, cross‐lagged panel models revealed that trait mindfulness was associated with better coping via indirect effects of greater well‐being and lower internalized distress. Greater compassion was linked with greater adherence to CDC guidelines. Findings suggest that trait mindfulness and compassion may play a role in college students' coping and compliance during the pandemic.

Teaching geopolitics through sport

ABSTRACT This paper reflects on teaching sport in political geography undergraduate courses in the United States, through which I simultaneously aim to de-essentialize geopolitics and de-essentialize sport. I integrate sport examples in diverse courses on political geography and teach a dedicated “Geopolitics of Sport” course. By framing my approach to the political geographies of sport around the specific term “geopolitics,” I deliberately tap into a sense among Americans that it is a “more serious” topic than “geography.” Since students in my courses rarely come from Geography, but are primarily majors in Political Science and International Relations, “geopolitics” invites them to approach sports geography as a serious subject and to be more open to the field of geography. Since geography remains a neglected subject in US schools and universities, teaching sports geography through geopolitics, and geopolitics through sports geography, can be a powerful way to encourage critical geographic reasoning, especially among non-geography majors.

Assessing Korean writing ability through a scenario-based assessment approach

Advocating for measuring a broadened construct of writing ability, scenario-based assessment (SBA) has recently been used to assess writing ability. While SBA for writing has been explored in ESL contexts (e.g., Banerjee, 2019; Purpura, 2021), it has been rarely used or examined in the context of languages other than English, especially those that are typologically distant from English, such as Korean. This study explores the feasibility of designing a scenario-based Korean writing assessment (K-SBA). A pilot study was conducted with 51 participants from a Korean as a foreign language program at a US university. Through a goal-oriented scenario of a study abroad program in South Korea, examinees were presented with a collaborative problem-solving task where they were expected to learn about two potential class trip destinations and write a summary of the pros and cons of each destination based on what they learned. The results indicated that the K-SBA was psychometrically sound, providing adequate evidence of reliability. It elicited construct-relevant performances reflecting features unique to the Korean language, such as sociolinguistic competence through the use of honorifics or rhetorical control through a range of cohesive devices. Additionally, variations in examinee performances were observed across the different course levels.

Postsecondary Students’ Social Stress and Learning Styles

Postsecondary students can experience anxiety or stress upon initial entry into large campus classrooms or education abroad settings. Social phobia scrutiny fears combined with social interaction anxieties may culminate in social anxiety disorder or social stress. Social stress may negatively affect one’s enjoyment and fulfillment of learning and one’s ability to learn. This study investigated relationships between students’ social stress, educational setting, learning style, and demographics using the Social Phobia Scale, Social Interaction Anxiety Scale, and the Learning Styles Inventory. Through a multiple correlational design, quantitative analysis revealed that social stress was positively associated with reflective observation and assimilative learning styles, but negatively associated with active experimentation learning styles for 144 students at a large southern US university. Females and on-campus students experienced more social stress than did males or those who participated in education abroad. Multiple linear regression revealed a significant increased level of social stress among minority students. About 18% of the variance in social stress was accounted for by significant independent variables (accommodative and convergent learning styles, being male, and Caucasian). Increased understanding of associations between social stress and learning style will help educators develop learning activities that promote inclusiveness for all. Continued research is needed to learn how to decrease social stressors in postsecondary education, especially for female and minority students to enable equitable learning spaces.

Do you 'like' problems? The linkage between college students' interactions with alcohol-related content on social media and their alcohol-related problems.

Alcohol-related content (ARC) on social media and drinking motives impact college students' drinking. Most studies have examined peer-generated ARC on drinking outcomes but have yet to extend this relationship to other sources of influence. The current study explores the link between drinking motives, alcohol company ARC, celebrity ARC, and alcohol-related problems among college students. Students (N = 454) from two US universities completed a cross-sectional online survey assessing demographics; drinking motives (Drinking Motives Questionnaire-Revised; Cooper, Psychol Assess. 1994;6:117-28); following/awareness of alcohol company ARC; engagement with celebrity ARC; peak drinks (most drinks consumed on one occasion); and alcohol-related problems (e.g., passed out). Greater celebrity ARC was linked to coping, enhancement, and conformity motives, and peak drinks. Frequent engagement with celebrity ARC was associated with higher problems. Positive indirect effects were observed from celebrity ARC to problems through coping and conformity motives, and peak drinks. After having adjusted for the influence of celebrity ARC, no significant pathways were found between alcohol company ARC and any of the drinking motives, peak drinks or problems, nor were there any indirect effects between alcohol company ARC and problems. Results revealed that a possible explanation for why students who engaged with celebrity ARC experience problems was due to coping and conformity motives as well as peak drinks. Interventions targeting alcohol cognitions might assess engagement with and exposure to different sources of ARC given their potential to influence problems.

Examining secondary–postsecondary articulation of Chinese language programs: A survey of US college placement procedures

AbstractThis study reports the results of a national survey of the types and uses of assessments for matriculating secondary students into college Chinese language programs. In addition to providing an overview of college placement procedures obtained from 35 college Chinese programs, the survey also probed into the rationales behind the varied placement procedures across different colleges and universities, the range of commonly used standardized tests and related policies and perceptions, and the perceived effectiveness of such practices by 125 secondary and 74 postsecondary instructors. Our analysis identifies both practices that hinder high school students' smooth transition to college and practices that facilitate the transition and achieve optimal placement in postsecondary Chinese programs. Based on analyses of convergent and divergent practices and perspectives, we recommend a series of principles and strategies for more effective secondary‐postsecondary articulation of Chinese language programs in the United States.

Public Commitment to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion Displayed on US Schools and Colleges of Pharmacy Websites

Public Commitment to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion Displayed on US Schools and Colleges of Pharmacy Websites

Human Subjects Research Guidelines for Undergraduate Researchers: An Analysis of Institutional Review Board (IRB) Websites at Top Liberal Arts Colleges in the United States.

Teaching students about the ethics of Human Subject Research (HSR) should be a fundamental component of students' education about research. In this article, we analyze the Institutional Review Board (IRB) websites of top-ranked Liberal Arts Colleges (LACs) to examine their framing of HSR carried out by undergraduate students. Our descriptive quantitative analysis from 50 top-ranked LACs in the United States indicates that a majority of IRB websites provide information about undergraduate research, and most include information about students' classroom-based research. Our qualitative content analysis of a subsample of ten colleges' IRB websites provides information on how they inform and educate about issues including informed consent and highlight different resources for students including their research advisor, and disciplinary standards. We conclude by discussing recommendations for IRBs in their accessibility to undergraduates.

Incorporating teacher emotions and identity in teacher education practices: affordances of critical autoethnographic narrative

ABSTRACT Recent research has studied teacher emotions vis-à-vis teachers’ learning, practice, and identity development and called for teacher-learning practices to include an intentional focus on emotions. Responding to this call, I designed a teacher-learning activity called ‘critical autoethnographic narrative’ (CAN). I coached teacher candidates (TCs) to narrate and analyse their experiences with the use, learning, and teaching of languages in order to explore their own identity construction and corresponding emotional responses. In this study, I draw data from my CAN implementation in a Linguistics course with MATESOL students at a large southeast US university. I specifically analyse a TC’s (Rachel’s) case to explore how in the guided and iterative process of writing CAN, she made sense of teacher emotions in her storied experiences to understand her language teacher identity. I found that as Rachel moved forward in writing CAN, she began discussing her emotions and identity in relation to meso- and macro-level ideologies. Reflecting the iterative process of the CAN writing, she also went back to earlier emotional experiences and re-interpreted them with her developing teacher lens. The paper presents her emotions in learning and using languages, navigating the university institutional landscape, and teaching and learning to teach English.

Cultural Comparison of University Students in Entrepreneurial Intentions, Creativity, And Emotional Intelligence: An Example of USA and Turkey

This quantitative study aimed to provide a comparison between graduate students in Turkey and the United States of America (USA) in terms of levels of entrepreneurial intentions, creativity, and emotional intelligence. Within this context, we surveyed 799 students in two different universities in Turkey and the USA. In analyzing the data, we completed a confirmatory factor analysis to obtain structural validity followed by comparative tests. The results demonstrated that the students in the US university had higher levels in emotional intelligence dimensions of problem-solving skills, emotional awareness, and interpersonal relations as well as creativity when compared with the students in Turkey. On the other hand, the students in Turkey showed higher levels of self-control, emotional intelligence, and entrepreneurial intentions. The results were discussed within a cultural context and recommendations are provided accordingly.

Bilingual education of future natural sciences teachers as today’s requirement

The article deals with the issue of introduction of the elements of bilingual education in professional training of future natural sciences teachers. It has been found out that Ukraine has some historical experience of introducing bilingual education in general secondary education institutions. It has been revealed that the main drawback, in this perspective, is the insufficient bilingual training of future natural sciences teachers. The content of the elective course «Science teachers training in US universities» which is taught in English, as one of the means of ensuring a «parity model» of bilingual education for future natural sciences teachers and a «displacing model» has been revealed. Learning of this course involves a dual purpose – the formation of students’ knowledge of the concept of natural sciences teachers training in the United States and (structure, features of the content, forms and methods of science teachers training under conditions of continuous pedagogical education) adaptation of this knowledge to the educational process in Ukraine; formation of intercultural interaction skills. It has been established that the teaching methods which include the use of different doses of assistance during the performance of cognitive tasks and differentiating of their complexity level are effective while teaching this course. The use of such teaching methods allows to provide each student with the optimal conditions for the maximum satisfaction of his cognitive needs and formation of communicative skills. These methods involve a gradual transition from collective forms of work to partially independent and fully independent and performing of the tasks, the complexity of which is growing. The effectiveness of the introduction of the course «Science teachers training in US universities» has been experimentally proved.

Differential effectiveness of COVID‐19 health behaviors: The role of mental health conditions in mask‐wearing, social distancing, and hygiene practice

AbstractBackgroundMental health conditions are known to increase susceptibility to infectious diseases, including coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19). Health behaviors play a crucial role in mitigating this susceptibility. We aim to examine the differential effectiveness of COVID‐19 preventive health behaviors among individuals, considering the presence or absence of specific mental health disorders.MethodsMultivariable logistic regression with interaction terms was performed to examine whether associations between adherence to health behaviors and COVID‐19 infection were conditional on depression, anxiety, or eating disorders in a national sample of adults (N = 61,891) from 140 US universities, 2020–2021.ResultsAdjusting for age, race/ethnicity, and gender/sex, the effectiveness of mask‐wearing was significant and comparable among individuals with and without depression, anxiety, or eating disorders. Social distancing provided significantly less protection among individuals with depression, anxiety, or eating disorders. Hygiene practice provided significantly less protection among individuals with anxiety.ConclusionMask‐wearing is robustly effective in the prevention of COVID‐19 among individuals. However, social distancing and hygiene practice provide less significant protection among individuals with certain mental health conditions, suggesting the importance of prioritizing these individuals for additional preventive measures (e.g., vaccines targeting variants) and mitigation strategies (e.g., financial assistance, targeted mental health care, health education).

The development of ESL students’ synthesis writing through reading instruction

Synthesis writing, or discourse synthesis, is important in university contexts and has received increasing attention in research on academic writing. Synthesis is challenging because it involves using both reading and writing skills to integrate information from source texts. Although previous research has found that writing instruction leads to improvement in synthesis writing, no studies have investigated the effect of reading instruction. The current study investigates the effect of reading instruction on synthesis writing among learners of English as a second language. Participants were students in two in-tact high-intermediate writing classes in an intensive English program at a US university. Participants were assigned to either an experimental group or a control group. Both received the same synthesis writing instruction. The control group received standard reading instruction focusing on comprehending individual texts, while the experimental group received reading instruction focusing on making connections between the texts. Quantitative results indicated that the two groups improved similarly; however, qualitative results using the Appraisal framework from Systemic Functional Linguistics found that the experimental group more explicitly acknowledged information from the source texts, connected the two source texts with each other, and connected ideas from the source texts with the student author's own position.

Enhancing Career Adaptability Among University Students: An Intervention Study

Recent college graduates are navigating a complex labor market due to the COVID-19 pandemic, changing economic conditions, and advancing technologies. Career adaptability, a psychosocial construct focused on managing career transitions, is critical for college students in this environment. Career adaptability interventions have shown promising results, but many are time consuming or involve one-on-one counseling, and none have focused on US college samples, which prompted this study. We tested a brief career adaptability training on a sample of 89 US college students and measured its effect on participants’ career adaptability resources (career concern, career control, career curiosity, career confidence) and career adapting responses (career decision self-efficacy, career planning). Results showed no increase in career adaptability resources or career planning but indicated an increase in career decision self-efficacy, suggesting that brief interventions may be effective for some desired outcomes but not others. Future research should examine which intervention ingredients are necessary to enhance career adaptability.

“What Makes You, You”: The Discursive Construction of the Self in US College Application Essays

“What Makes You, You”: The Discursive Construction of the Self in US College Application Essays

Comparing Design Features of Campus Buildings with Adaptation/Demolition Outcomes

Adaptable buildings are a vital part of circularity in the built environment. With long-term owners, defined sustainability goals, and frequently shifting programmatic and organizational needs, college campus buildings are positioned to be at the forefront of this movement. Many Design for Adaptability (DfA) strategies are published, but there is a scarcity of empirical evidence showing that they work. This study investigated whether these DfA features in US college campus buildings led to more adaptation and reuse. Data were collected on 26 adapted or demolished buildings and were analyzed using logistic analysis. The results suggest that DfA features lead to more adaptations, providing evidence for campus decision-makers that these strategies work.