Discipline: Social, Behavioral, and Economic Sciences
Subcategory: Social Sciences/Psychology/Economics
Session: 3
Liquitha Rogers - Norfolk State University
Co-Author(s): Dr. Carlene Turner; Dr. Claude Turner, Norfolk State University, Norfolk, VA
In this increasingly technological world where we are dependent on the internet for many services, cybersecurity has become crucial to protecting ourselves. This runs the gamut from a university student using a learning management system to a federal agent utilizing the nation security apparatus. One of the most effective cybersecurity protocols is proper password creation and management (NIST, 2014). A great password can make the difference between one’s internet security being compromised and not. This poster will present the learning outcomes of two cohorts of students in a Social Problems course at an HBCU after they were taught a Password Module in a socio-cybersecurity project. Before the modules were taught, it was projected that the students would experience better learning outcomes if experiential techniques (hands-on activities) were used to teach the concepts. The hypotheses that drive the research is: Hypothesis Statement: Ho: There is no difference in the mean of the password indicators across the pre- and post-test conditions for both sets of students. Importance of Research: The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) recognizes passwords are still the most widely used authentication mechanism within the federal governments. The proper use of passwords are important for the security of everyday individuals (students). The current literature shows that many users believe that complex passwords can be burdensome, therefore it is a good idea to teach students how to manage their passwords for their best security. This research examines if non-computer science students can learn these concepts and retain the information through hands-on activities. This will be important in changing passwords norms for this sample and future populations that will be taught this modules. Methodology: Quasi-experimental methodology was used to gather data from two cohorts of students in Social Problems classes (Spring 2017, Spring 2018). Pre-test surveys was first conducted, then the Password Module with hands-on activities was taught, finally, the post-test was conducted utilizing the same survey. T-test analysis will be conducted to examine the mean difference of seven password concepts across the pre and post-test conditions. Results: The expected results should demonstrate that there were changes in students understanding of the password concepts based on the instructions and in-class activities. It is expected that the differences should be similar in both the Spring 2017 and Spring 2018 samples. Conclusion: It is important to teach non-computer science students cybersecurity protocols and techniques. Applying their socio-cultural background to cybersecurity can demonstrate the rational choices behind password management.
Funder Acknowledgement(s): HBCU-UP - National Science Foundation
Faculty Advisor: Carlene Turner, cmturner@nsu.edu
Role: I will analyze the data that was collected by the faculty mentor. This will include data entry into SPSS, and data cleaning and coding. I will also create the poster presentation.