Involvement in International Adjudication and the Use of Torture

Blake R. Rupe

This project investigates the current use and severity of torture by countries who are active and participating members of the International Court of Justice and the European Court of Justice. I compare torture used by members of these courts before and after they became members to discover the importance of international mechanisms in deterring the use of torture. This research is relevant at the domestic level because if adjudication does not work, it will take domestic awareness and action to deter torture and advance human rights in the 21st century.

A Mixture of Identities: A Look at Zulu Nationalism in the Nazareth Baptist Church

Brian M. Buh

The Nazareth Baptist Church in South Africa is a unique mixture of traditional Zulu religion and Christianity that has been combined to create a new religious movement. The church, which has a following of around 5 million people, has often been labeled as a Zulu pride movement. My research project examines this claim in the post-Apartheid era to see whether Zulu pride still runs strong in the church and to what extent it does. I also look at the question of identity, and whether followers primarily identify themselves by their racial, ethnic, or religious qualities. South Africa provides researchers with an opportunity to study identity change. A better understanding of the power of identity change and group dynamics allows us to better understand how to cure other problems within society. For example, a understanding of the group identity will allow future aid-workers to find the best possible ways of fighting the HIV/AIDS epidemic that is plaguing South Africa. It can also help combat the high poverty rates. As Iowans, these problems are human rights issues that we can take an active part in to ensure the freedom of others.

Mapping the lesioned brain (methodological poster)

Annie E. Tye

The human brain can be thought of as the orchestrator of the symphony that is your life. When it works well, the output is an incredibly beautiful and complex range of behaviors. But when there are regions of damage, it’s as if one or more instruments are out of tune. If we can determine the dissonant instruments, perhaps we can restore harmony. The Boston Symphony and the Los Angeles Philharmonic can have very different personalities even while playing the same piece. The critic’s challenge is to compare the ‘anatomy’ of a single piece even when it is performed quite differently. Likewise, a challenge for neuroanatomists is to accurately compare two brains while accounting for anatomical differences. I use magnetic resonance image (MRIs) to graphically recreate lesions while maintaining the anatomical fidelity by reorienting a ‘template’ MRI of a healthy brain to match the coordinates of the damaged brain. After mapping the lesion, the template is re-rendered to its normal coordinates. Several maps can then be overlaid to show patterns of brain damage. If a group of patients display a common behavioral deficit and also shares a common region of damage, we can infer a relationship between anatomy and behavior.

Multi-level Translation of Research Application in Nursing Homes (M-TRAIN): A case study example of pain and urinary incontinence interventions for residents with dementia in nursing homes

Jennifer Schwarzkopf et al.

Purpose and Rationale: Forty-five to 83% percent of elders in long-term care facilities experience pain, and 50% experience urinary incontinence (UI). When looking at residents with cognitive impairment (CI), 60% of residents had at least one diagnosis known to cause pain, however, they hadn’t been prescribed any pain medication in the past month; 80% of CI residents experience UI. These alarmingly high numbers warrant the need for implementation of evidence-based practices (EBP) within nursing homes. The M-TRAIN study has proposed specific pain and UI EBPs to implement in nursing homes. The purpose of using case studies to facilitate incorporation of EBP is to demonstrate strategies to help nursing home staff implement EBPs in regard to pain and UI for persons with dementia. Sharing evidence alone does not change practice; the ultimate test to determine if EBPs were implemented effectively is to change resident outcomes.

Synthesis of the evidence: Many misconceptions exist among healthcare staff and the lay public in regard to both pain and UI in the elderly population. These misconceptions have led to the under-treatment of both among many nursing home residents. A situation involving a CI resident exacerbates under-treatment, and often these residents are not properly assessed. Current EBP suggests that within 24 hours of implementing a pain treatment plan, pain and side effects of treatment will be reassessed and managed to meet comfort goals. Similar to pain, UI has been under-assessed and under-treated especially among CI residents. M-TRAIN introduces EBP recommendations for UI such as: accurately assessing the type of incontinence, establishing a baseline pattern of voiding by use of bladder diaries, and implementing a voiding plan. Research has demonstrated that both pain and UI can be managed successfully in CI individuals.

Proposed change in practice: To demonstrate improved outcomes regarding one resident with pain and one resident with UI by illustrating EBP through the use of case studies. One case study for pain and one for UI will be presented.

Implementation strategies: Sharing evidence does not ensure that new information will be accurately implemented into practice. For this reason, presenting pain and UI case studies to nursing home staff will help implement appropriate assessment and interventions regarding pain and UI for residents with dementia and will serve as a strategy to augment translating evidence into practice.

Evaluation: Case studies will be shared with nursing home staff, identifying areas frequently omitted from the planning, i.e. thorough assessment and reassessment, the need to track changes over time, and modifying the plan based on those changes. Assistance is provided to nursing home staff to review and modify care plans in order to positively affect resident outcomes.

Guidelines for Developing an Academic Acceleration Policy

Emily Ladendorf

Academic acceleration is an educational intervention in which high-ability students progress through school at rates faster or ages younger than typical. Acceleration helps match the level, complexity, and pace of the curriculum with the student’s intellectual abilities. Students demonstrate academic success and social-emotional development whether accelerated in one content area or for an entire grade. Many school districts, including some in Iowa, lack a policy that addresses the value of acceleration or describes procedures to be followed in making decisions about acceleration. Without an acceleration policy, high-ability students may not receive equitable educational opportunities. For my 2009-2010 ICRU Research Fellow award, I supported the development of Guidelines for Developing an Academic Acceleration Policy, a document intended to assist schools in writing and modifying acceleration policy so that all students have appropriately challenging curricula. In the Guidelines document, we define accelerative options, review the research evidence in support of acceleration, provide an overview of recommended acceleration policies, and explore in practical terms how these policies can be implemented. My work on Guidelines was an extension of my contributions to the IRPA website, which serves as a clearinghouse of information on acceleration to parents, educators, and the general public.

Co-crystallization of Thiophene-based Semiconductors with Carboxylic Acids and Effects on Crystal Packing

Kristin M. Kester

Materials that consist of semiconductors surround us – a well-known example being the silicon chips in computers. A new form of semiconductor is based on flexible materials in the form of organic molecules. Organic semiconductors offer the promise of low cost, flexible electronics. Electronic paper, electronic clothes, flexible solar energy storage devices are all possibilities. The current semiconductor industry is in excess of $1 trillion. Organic semiconductors will expand this industry considerably, having broad applications. At the University of Iowa, we are working to develop a method to optimize how electric charge runs through organic semiconductor materials. We develop solids known as co-crystals that allow us to place the organic molecules responsible for the movement of electric charge into tailored geometries. More specifically, we use small organic molecules to assemble and preorganize organic semiconductor molecules into geometries most favorable for charge movement. The latest developments of our work will be described.

Is Personality in the Eye of the Beholder? Discrepancies Between Self-reported and Objective Ratings of Adaptive and Maladaptive Personality Traits

Jonathan J. Lewis et al.

Current personality measures rely heavily on self-report, which are necessarily subjective, that is, based on individuals’ self-views. This study uses a new measure—the Schedule for Personality Assessment from Notes and Documents (SPAN-DOC)—to investigate whether 26 personality traits (e.g., mistrustfulness, impulsivity) can be assessed reliably from information in psychological-clinic clients’ files, such as clinicians’ reports of clients’ intake interview, and how much SPAN-DOC ratings agree with clients’ self-rated personality test scores. The study also examines how traits that SPAN-DOC measures are interrelated.

Differences between self- and other-report previously have been found for the broad trait of Disinhibition, which encompasses whether people are carefree and spontaneous, act impulsively, and are easily distracted, or are more planful and focused on specific goals, so this study highlights Disinhibition. Study findings may help to improve the validity of personality assessment in clinical settings.

This project provides data of use in the ongoing revision of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders. Specifically, the study’s findings will increase understanding of how best to assess personality trait dimensions, which are important in diagnosing personality disorder. This will improve the validity of personality assessment in clinical settings and help clients understand their own personalities better.

Zooarchaeological Analysis of Animal Remains from the Scott County Pueblo, Kansas

Sandra Walker

Scott County Pueblo is a 700 year old Native American archeological site in western Kansas. The site is unique, being the easternmost site of its kind known in North America. This project examines hunting and butchery strategies used by the site’s inhabitants to acquire and consume animals such as white-tailed and mule deer, antelope and elk. Detailed analysis was performed on over 600 bones and fragments. This analysis included making identifications as to the species represented, and the age and number of animals present. This project characterized the damage to the assemblage caused by natural weathering, breakage patterns, and the presence and type of humanly produced butchery marks. Classification and statistical analysis of these details about the animal’s remains provides a greater knowledge base from which we may understand the subsistence strategies and life ways of the Puebloan peoples which inhabited the site. In addition, these results may inform on how important hunting was to the diet of the site’s occupants, who mostly made their living though farming corn.

Women in Exile: Self-Perception and Arts Education in Correctional Facilities

Rebecca McCray

This poster highlights research results obtained through writing and arts workshops I have facilitated at the Iowa Correctional Institute for Women in Mitchellville, Iowa with Assistant Professor of Art Education, Rachel Williams. Working with the genres of memoir and painting as primary mediums of expression, I spent twelve weeks with a class of women exploring issues of identity, reflection, and self-perception through writing prompts and portrait painting. My research highlights the beneficial effects of providing a safe, non-therapeutic and healthy outlet for expression in an environment that generally discourages creativity.

Polychronic Technology Usage: Understanding Intra/Intergenerational Variation of Multitasking in Diverse Groups

Brandon L. Kramer

Polychronicity, or the preference for doing more than one thing at a time, has become a prominent aspect of contemporary life since the advent of technological advancement. Related temporal phenomena, most notably media-multitasking, are largely unstudied and misunderstood. Two conceptual models, a Temporal Imagination Model as well as the Polychronic Context Continuum, are presented and elaborated for integration into future research regarding multitasking and polychronicity. This research explains considerable differences both inter- and intra-generationally on a multitude of personality and social variables. Using a diverse sample of 1,319 participants, the study analyzes nine variables related to media-multitasking preferences and time practices. Results of this study demonstrate those with fewer social limitations (i.e. those living alone or with less social responsibility) are more likely to multitask. Those who spent more hours on the internet, playing video games, and listening to music also showed significant relations with elevated multitasking. Additionally, in regards to current societal worries about the social fragmentation facing children and heavy technology users, results demonstrated that participants preferred face-to-face interaction over any alternative social interactive technology method in informal networks, where preferences throughout formal networks were largely role dependent.