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Financial autonomy and happiness in college students: Can they coexist?
Get PDFPrior research and theory suggests that happiness is often associated with charitable expenses and associated with feelings of autonomy. The present research examined how autonomy influences the happiness experiences participants have when spending money either charitably or on themselves. Participants completed the research online in an hour setting. Participants were asked to imagine situations where they have the ability to spend money freely, or where they first must seek advice or consult before making spending decisions. For half of each of these participants, they were directed to consider spending money on themselves, whereas the other participants were directed to consider spending money on others or on charities. Then all participants completed a series of scales that measured outcomes consistent with happiness, autonomy, and feelings of financial restraint. It was hypothesized that spending money on others freely will result in higher happiness and autonomy ratings, as compared to people asked to spend money on themselves, as well as people asked to spend money on others when they first need to consult with others (e.g., non-autonomous). It was also hypothesized that feelings of financial restraint may moderate these effects, such that less happiness is experienced when individuals sense they do not have autonomy to spend freely. Although the results of the study did not support these hypotheses, it was found that the method used tended to increase happiness for college students who spent on themselves freely compared to spending money on themselves after consulting how to spend. The results also demonstrated that the methods used seemed to make students feel more guilty about how they spend their money, particularly after thinking about spending money charitably. These results are interpreted in light of justification theories rather than studies that have induced happiness via charitable behaviors
Zuzana Tomas, Oral History Interview, 2024
Get PDFZuzana Tomas is an ESL and TESOL professor at Eastern Michigan University who also facilitates the Academic Service-Learning (AS-L) courses. In this interview, Tomas recounts growing up in Slovakia, developing an interest in English and American culture, and her decision to study abroad in the United States. Tomas discusses adjusting to life in the US, getting involved in ESL and TESOL, and how she decided to work at EMU after completing her PhD. Tomas describes her experience helping refugees gain literacy, becoming involved in AS-L, and her classes collaborations with Jewish Family Services. Tomas also explores her AS-L students decision to put on a cooking demonstration led by Afghan women and their children, the logistics of preparing for the the demonstration over Zoom, the importance of acknowledging refugees skills and what they bring to the table, and projects she hopes to work on in the future.https://commons.emich.edu/oral_histories/1160/thumbnail.jp
Jessica Decky Alexander, Oral History Interview, 2024
Get PDFDecky Alexander is a Drama Professor and the director of academic engagement programs (Engage@EMU) at Eastern Michigan University. In this interview, Alexander recounts how she became interested in theater, growing up in the Chicago area, and the impact college had on expanding her worldview. Alexander describes her theatre initiatives, working to improve harmful public school policies, and how she ended up at Eastern Michigan University. Alexander explains her life during her “year of yes”, getting involved with the Jewish Federation in Washtenaw County, and her involvement in resettling Afghan families into student housing at EMU in 2022. Alexander explores how she thinks EMU can better engage with the international community, her desire to help formerly incarcerated people get an education, and other humanitarian initiatives that she has been involved with.https://commons.emich.edu/oral_histories/1170/thumbnail.jp
Stealing, scavenging, or storing? Breeding behaviors of unisexual Ambystoma salamanders
Get PDFThe unisexual Ambystoma salamander complex is a lineage of all-female salamanders that use a unique form of reproduction: kleptogenesis. Kleptogenesis requires sperm from male salamanders of co-occurring sexual species, potentially putting unisexual and sexual females in breeding competition. We investigated if unisexual salamanders require courtship from sexual males or if they can use sperm left over from previous breeding events. We put unisexual salamanders into boxes containing spermatophores from a previous courtship and examined if they laid viable eggs. We also genotyped adults and embryos to assess parentage. Some of the unisexuals in the boxes produced viable eggs; however, the varied combinations of alleles in the eggs suggest unisexuals may be using a combination of breeding, spermatophore scavenging, and sperm storage to reproduce. Unisexual salamander breeding is a genetically and behaviorally complex process, and their ecological success may be due to the diversity of their reproductive strategies
Indicting the 45th president: Boss Trump, the GOP, and what we can do about the threat to American democracy
No full textIndicting the 45th President is a sequel to Criminology on Trump in real time, continuing the criminological investigation into the former US president. Developing and expanding on the themes of family dynamics, deviance, deception, dishonesty, and the weaponization of the law, this book offers the next chapter on the world\u27s most successful outlaw. In this new book, Gregg Barak considers the campaigns and policies, the corruption, the state-organized abuses of power and obstructions of justice, the pardons, the failed insurrection, the prosecutions, the indictment of Trump and the politics of punishment in the context of the Trumpian character and the social structures that maintain and encourage such crimes of the powerful. Another accessible and compelling read, this is essential reading for all those engaged with state and white -collar crime, and those seeking a criminological understanding of Trump\u27s evasion of justice
Mark Margolis, Interview, 2024
Get PDFThroughout 2024, the city of Ann Arbor celebrated its 200th anniversary with community events, festivals, and art displays that highlighted its rich culture and history. To cap off the celebrations, in December 2024 the EMU Center for Oral History Research invited community members to Skyline High School to share what makes Ann Arbor special. In this interview, long-time Ann Arbor resident Mark Margolis talks about running a small business, the vibrant community he\u27s found, and the city\u27s changing landscape.https://commons.emich.edu/oral_histories/1200/thumbnail.jp
Racial and ethnic disparities in the monetary value of informal caregiving for non-institutionalized people living with dementia
No full textObjective: To examine racial and ethnic differences in costs of informal caregiving among older adults with dementia in the United States.
Methods: We used data from the 2002 to 2018 Health and Retirement Survey to estimate annual informal care hours for adults with dementia (n= 10,015). We used regression models to examine racial and ethnic differences in hours of informal care for activities of daily living (ADL) and instrumental ADL, controlling for demographic characteristics, education, and level of disability.
Results: Our sample was 70% non-Hispanic White, 19% non-Hispanic Black, and 11% Hispanic. Hispanics received, on average, 35.8 hours of informal care each week, compared to 30.1 for Blacks and 20.1 for Whites. Racial and ethnic differences persisted when controlling for covariates.
Discussion: Informal care is a greater cost to racial and ethnic minoritized families. Informal care was valued at a replacement cost of 37,508 for Blacks, and $25,121 for Whites
Bullying victimization and suicidal thoughts: Emotional distress and neighborhood conditions
No full textThe study aims to examine (1) the association between bullying victimization and suicidal thoughts and (2) neighborhood conditions as a moderated mediated model of the association between bullying victimization, emotional distress, and suicidal thoughts. The sample consists of 414 African American youths (ages 12–17) in Chicago’s Southside neighborhoods. Variables included suicidal thoughts, bullying victimization, emotional distress, neighborhood conditions, age, sex, and government assistance. Analyses included descriptive statistics, bivariate correlations, and multivariate regression analyses. The study found that bullying victimization was not directly associated with suicidal thoughts. However, bullying victimization was positively associated with emotional distress, which was related to suicidal thoughts. Moreover, emotional distress as a mediator of the association between bullying victimization and suicidal thoughts was observed when neighborhood conditions were a moderator. The findings suggest that bullying victimization and suicidal thoughts are major concerns for African American adolescents, and prevention and intervention need to be cost-effective
The role of leptin in regulation of the soluble amyloid precursor protein \u3ci\u3eα\u3c/i\u3e (sAPP\u3ci\u3eα\u3c/i\u3e) levels in lung cancer cell media
No full textPreviously, we found that the levels of soluble amyloid precursor protein alpha (sAPP alpha) are regulated, in part, by acetylcholinesterase (AChE) in human A549 (p53 wild-type) and H1299 (p53-null) NSCLC cell lines. In this study, we found regulation of sAPP alpha levels in the media by leptin, a widely recognized obesity-associated adipokine that has recently been shown to play a possible role in cancer signaling. Increased levels of sAPP alpha, that were accompanied by lower A beta 40/42 levels in the media of A549 and H1299 cells, were detected upon cell incubation with leptin. Conversely, knockdown of leptin or its receptor led to reduced levels of sAPP alpha and increased levels of A beta 40/42 in the media of A549 and H1299 cells, suggesting that leptin likely shifts APP processing toward the non-amyloidogenic pathway. A549 cell treatment with leptin increased acetylcholine levels and blocked the activities of AChE and p53. Treatment with leptin resulted in increased activation of PKC, ERK1/2, PI3K, and the levels of sAPP alpha, effects that were reversed by treatment with kinase inhibitors and/or upon addition of AChE to A549 and H1299 cell media. Cell viability increased by treatment of A549 and H1299 cells with leptin and decreased upon co-treatment with AChE and/or inhibitors targeting PKC, ERK1/2, and PI3K. This study is significant as it provides evidence for a likely carcinogenic role of leptin in NSCLC cells via upregulation of sAPP alpha levels in the media, and highlights the importance of targeting leptin as a potential therapeutic strategy for NSCLC treatment
