Statistical learning (SL), the ability to detect and extract regularities from inputs, has been considered as an early-maturing and domain-general mechanism that is critical for typical language development. However, recent evidence in neurotypical adults and children have found that individuals can vary in their SL abilities across linguistic and…

This dissertation examined two phonological and morphological changes in Ghamdi Arabic (GA), focusing on vowel harmony and gender distinctions. By comparing Prochazka's 1988 findings with recent data from 26 participants across two age groups. Participants consisted of 20 younger speakers (10 males and 10 females, ages 20 to 35) and six older…

Student motivation and technology use are important considerations for higher education institutions. With increasing proportions of institutional funding being tied to student success and retention outcomes, gaining an awareness of how students tend to be motivated as well as their comfort and skill level with technology is critical for…

Quantitative literacy or numeracy skills are increasingly important at every level in a knowledge-based society. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationships between numeracy achievement, environmental and intrapersonal characteristics. Although the sample for this study included 5,862 U.S. adults (aged 16-65) from the Program…

Statement of the Problem: This study aimed to understand the impact of exposure to ACEs in childhood on college attainment in adulthood and if safe, stable, and nurturing relationships (SSNRs) in childhood mitigate the risks of exposure to trauma through a contextual lens by exploring results by race/ethnicity and gender. Research: Exposure to…

Adult humans are uniquely proficient in reasoning with abstract relations (relational reasoning) - a capacity which underpins much of human-unique cognition, including scientific analogies, artistic metaphors and many phrases in day-to-day language and thought. An important question for cognitive science, therefore, is exploring the nature of this…

The effect of gamified elements among adult learners in online post-secondary education classrooms is essential to determining the needs of each learner and if they vary from generation to generation and affect their playful experience and academic success. The gap in research exists as this is yet to be determined. The research questions tested…

The purpose of this quantitative correlational study was to determine if, and to what extent, correlations existed between self-esteem level, age, and grade level change of an adult male inmate enrolled in a Functional Literacy (FL) Program in the Southern Region of Arizona. Current research examined the relationships between self-esteem and age…

Gender inequality limits women's ability to make decisions in their best interest and behave independently of the male patriarch in the home. These inequalities can result in limited access to healthcare, support, services, and positive outcomes from receiving medical care. In addition, women deemed to have a lower social status than men do not…

The current study explored individual differences in sensitivity to sub-phonemic variation of acoustic cues in the perception of a native language (L1) category in order to test the hypothesis that second language (L2) learners' different sensitivity to the L2-relevant acoustic dimension in L1 perception could explain individual variability in…

This study explores male allyship, a growing trend in the Technology (Tech.) sector, from the perspective of women who work or have worked in the industry. This qualitative case study consisted of a sample of ten women and ten self-identified male allies from the industry along with three men and four women who participated exclusively in a focus…

Given the imbalance in the ratio of male to female ADHD diagnosis, there is a dearth of information on the profile for women with ADHD, especially in adulthood and with those of higher intelligence levels (Rommelse et al., 2016). Each, if not all, diagnoses of ADHD or giftedness come from a parent, teacher, or outside observer's scale of symptoms…

As the number of refugees worldwide continues to rise at an alarming rate, it is pivotal for resettlement processes to include equitable pathways to postsecondary education and the workforce. Despite the growing media coverage of the experiences of individuals with refugee backgrounds, empirical research on adult refugees in college is scant,…

Understanding how a child's language system develops into an adult-like system is a central question in language development research. An increasingly influential account proposes that the brain constantly generates top-down predictions and matches them against incoming input, with higher-level cognitive models serving to minimize prediction…

The overarching goal of this quantitative study was to explore factors that were associated with the prevalence in reading intervention programs. Specifically, the purpose of this study was to explore Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) among adults along with various demographics to determine factors connected with the involvement in a reading…