Being labelled as a ‘liberal’ doesn’t hurt Democratic presidential candidates. But in Senate elections, it’s another story.

Despite Democrats becoming more liberal in recent decades, they are often very reluctant to describe themselves as such. In new research analyzing the contents of candidates’ televised political advertising Jacob Neiheisel investigates the effectiveness of whether or not calling a Democrat a ‘liberal’ reduces voters’ support for them. He finds that in presidential elections, such anti-liberal rhetoric has no effect, but those running for the US Senate are unable to escape the negative trappings associated with the liberal label

Cognitive Predictors of Success of Graduate Nurses on State Board Test Pool Examinations and After Two Years Employment.

The main purposes of this study were to determine the relationships between cognitive predictors and the success of graduate nurses on the State Board Test Pool Examinations and between cognitive predictors and the success of the nurse after two of years employment. Data were obtained and recorded on appropriate sheets for the first hypothesis and from a mailed questionnaire for the second hypothesis. The population for the first group was the members of five graduating classes of a state university, and data for the second group was from 37.7 percent of the members of one graduating class. Statistical analyses of the data included correlation coefficients, correlations of forecasting efficiency, Multiple R and regression equations. Findings. (1)The majority of the American College Test scores, which represented five of the twelve cognitive predictors, were negligibly related to the State Board scores and indicated even less of a correlation with the Employee Success scores. (2)The National League for Nursing scores, which represented an additional five cognitive predictors, generally proved to have substantial correlations with State Board scores. The relationships between the National League test scores and the Employee Success scores were negligible. (3)The grade-point averages are weak predictors of State Board test scores and generally are one of the last variables to appear in the regression equations. The relationships between grade-point averages and the success of the graduate in employment is extremely low. (4)The National League for Nursing Maternal-Child test explains the great percentage of the variability in the dependent variables. (5)The correlations between the State Board Test Pool Examination scores and the Employee Success score are low. Conclusions. The independent variables identified for this study were inconsistent in reliability as predictors of the actual earned scores of the dependent variables. The American College Tests are written prior to college admission and are understandably weak predictors of scores achieved on tests related to the nursing curriculum. The grade-point averages failure to correlate with the dependent variables might be explained on the basis that the grade-point average is a mixture of basic courses as well as nursing courses. The National League for Nursing test scores as predictors of the dependent variables did prove to be reliable, but the domination of one variable, Maternal-Child Nursing, is an area for further investigation

How future Supreme Court rulings may fuel the decline of religion in the US

Following the Supreme Court’s ruling which overturned Roe V. Wade, there has been fresh concern that subsequent cases may also overturn the right to same-sex relationships and marriage. In new research Jacob R. Neiheisel and Paul A. Djupe examine the link between changing attitudes towards gay rights and Americans’ declining religiosity. They find that increasing support for same-sex marriage over time is linked to falling attendance in houses of worship. Conflict within congregations which may increase following a new Supreme Court ruling, they argue, may cause more people to leave the organized religious services that they feel they no longer fit

The Supreme Court, Constitutional Development, and Evolution Theory: A Critique

This article spotlights how University of Chicago Professor David Strauss’s publications present the early stages of a descriptive theory of constitutional interpretation and evolution, and how his theoretical contributions might be strengthened. Specifically highlighted here are ten milestone Supreme Court rulings with the objective of determining which were “evolutionary” as opposed to “modernizing,” based on Strauss’s theoretical formulations. On various occasions these cases demonstrate how Strauss’s theory can be not only refined but broadened. The concluding section assesses Strauss’s contribution to the study of American constitutional development and how it might be revamped. There we argue that despite Strauss’s influence on the study of the Supreme Court and constitutional evolution, he relies on concepts that must be clarified and honed for future research, and he must make his theory more comprehensive. At a minimum, Strauss should extend his descriptive theory to three types of Supreme Court decisions: those that are retrogressive, revolutionary, and confirming status quo in nature. Finally, Strauss should attempt the most difficult task of all: developing a causal theory of constitutional change

Leading with Marianist Values: Report of the Marianist Leadership Task Force

In the academic climate survey conducted in April, 2014 some respondents indicated they did not believe UD is responding/behaving in ways that are consistent with a Marianist institution. This finding was found in multiple units, leading to several unit leaders proposing to conduct training/education on Marianist administration. Many deans and others had already shared with their leadership teams the Steven Neiheisel paper “Characteristics of Marianist Administration,” and units were trying to draw practical conclusions from the content of that manuscript. Discussion of the document at the Provost Council meeting in December 2014 led to the suggestion that Deb Bickford convene a group of people involved in leadership development touching upon our Marianist charism. Our charge was to develop, if possible, programming guidelines that complement and support work already taking place with MEAs and in Leadership UD and HR. Specifically, we were asked to tease out, and extend more deeply some of the work already taking place, and to identify guiding principles or guidelines for engagement around training supervisors and supervisees on administrative standards fitting for a Marianist institution. We were asked to develop educational opportunities for academic leaders to gain a better understanding of what Marianist Administration would “look like” in everyday practice

Sorption of radioactive contaminants by sediment from the Kara Sea

The purpose of this study is to quantify some of the parameters needed to perform near-field modeling of sites in the Kara Sea that were impacted by the disposal of radioactive waste. The parameters of interest are: the distribution coefficients (K{sub d}) for several important radionuclides, the mineralogy of the sediment, and the relationship of K{sub d} to liquid to solid ratio. Sediment from the Kara Sea (location: 73{degrees} 00` N, 58{degrees} 00` E) was sampled from a depth of 287 meters on August 23/24, 1992, during a joint Russian/Norwegian scientific cruise. Analysis of the material included mineralogy, grain size and total organic carbon. Uptake kinetics were determined for {sup 85}Sr, {sup 99}Tc, {sup 125}I, {sup 137}Cs, {sup 210}Pb, {sup 232}U, and {sup 241}Am and distribution coefficients (K{sub d}) were determined for these radionuclides using batch type experiments. Sorption isotherms were developed for {sup 85}Sr, {sup 99}Tc, and {sup 137}Cs to examine the effect that varying the concentration of a tracer has on the quantity of that tracer taken up by the solid. The effect of liquid to solid ratio on the uptake of contaminants was determined for {sup 99}Tc and {sup 137}Cs. In another set of experiments, the sediment was separated into four size fractions and uptake was determined for each fraction for {sup 85}Sr, {sup 99}Tc, and {sup 137}Cs. In addition, the sediment was analyzed to determine if it contains observable concentrations of anthropogenic radionuclides

Vocation Learning Outcomes at the University of Dayton

This working paper summarizes the work of the Habits of Inquiry and Reflection Vocation Fellows. It offers a definition of vocation for use at the University of Dayton, proposes a series of steps the University could take to promote vocational discernment on campus, and identifies challenges the institution must address to achieve that goal

The Vocation Learning Outcomes at the University of Dayton

In the Fall of 2015, the HIR Fellows for Vocation entered an exploration of the Vocation Learning Outcome outlined in the Habits of Inquiry and Reflection (2006), the document undergirding the development of the Common Academic Program. The Fellows took the following steps in developing our collective understanding of vocation, the learning outcome, the University’s current approaches to addressing vocation via curricular and co-curricular offerings, and opportunities ahead. We studied David S. Cunningham’s (2015) At This Time and in This Place: Vocation and Higher Education\u27, discussed our collective understanding of vocation; studied Habits of Inquiry and Reflection; reviewed curricular offerings approved through the CAP process that included vocation as a learning outcome; reviewed co-curricular offerings related to vocation; conducted focus group interviews with students, faculty and staff who are already interested and engaged in vocation-related activities on campus; and conducted focus group interviews with undergraduate students to better understand their experiences at the University of Dayton related to vocation and vocational discernment. In this white paper, we share the results of our research and discussions and identify some of the challenges and opportunities facing our campus in meeting the University’s Vocation Learning Outcome, as articulated in Habits of Inquiry and Reflection