Digital Commons Network^™

The Role Of Image Resolution To Locomotion Tasks In Virtual Desktop Wayfinding, Lisa Dawn Anderson

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

An experimental study at a large research university evaluated the role of image resolution on 60 participant's locomotion tasks in an interior virtual desktop wayfinding environment. Four virtual environments were developed using different resolutions for wayfinding images including high level 150 ppi, medium high level 100 ppi, medium level 75 and low level 30 ppi images. The environment was designed to accommodate forward, backward, sideways and figure 8 locomotion tasks as defined by the VEPAB. The effects of the different image resolutions on time-on-task performance scores to navigate through the environment, object-based visual attention as recorded by two eye movements …

Sharing The Power Of Words And Changing Lives Through College-Level Instruction In Grammar And Mechanics, Carol Ann Tillema

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Intrigued by the English language and its far-reaching applications worldwide as a standard means of communication, I begin my disquisition with a focus on the meaning and derivation of grammar and its place in the trivium of ancient and modern study. I stress the need to reemphasize college-level instruction in grammar and mechanics as a complement to rhetoric and logic by studying and teaching editing, which involves semantics, syntax, phonology, morphology, conventions, mechanics (spelling, punctuation and format), in writing centers and classrooms. Noting growing nationwide illiteracy, I research the pedagogies and writing of experts in the field of rhetoric and …

The Effect Of A Reasoning Warning On Faking In Personality Testing For Selection And The Perception Of Procedural Justice, T Ryan Dullaghan

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

A major concern with using personality tests in the selection process is the prevalence of applicant faking behavior which can influence the rank order of applicants such that fakers are hired at an elevated frequency. This study examined the effects of the detection/consequence warning and a more applicant-friendly warning on faking and perceived procedural justice. I hypothesized that a positive warning (reasoning warning) and a detection/consequence warning would show similar mean personality trait levels compared to honest responses, with all means showing less socially desirable responding than no warning prompt. Results suggested that the detection/consequence warning is more effective at …

Considerations Of Multicultural Science And Curriculum Reform: A Content Analysis Of State-Adopted Biology Textbooks In Florida, Margaret H. Delgato

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this investigation was to determine the extent to which multicultural science education, including indigenous knowledge representations, had been infused within the content of high school biology textbooks. The study evaluated the textbook as an instructional tool and framework for multicultural science education instruction by comparing the mainstream content to indigenous knowledge perspectives portrayed in the student and teacher editions of 34 textbooks adopted in Florida within the last four adoption cycles occurring from 1990 to 2006. The investigation involved a content analysis framed from a mixed methods approach. Emphasis was placed, in consideration of the research questions …

A Case Study In Public K-12 Education: Hispanic Female (Latinas) School Administrators’ Perceptions Of Their Role And Experiences As Principals Within Central Florida, Martha Santiago

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

A gradual but significant change in America's demographic composition has occurred during the last few years. Millions of Hispanic students, many of them immigrants, have been absorbed in the nation's schools, turning public institutions into multiracial, multicultural, and to some degree, multilingual sites (Tallerico, 2001; Ferrandino, 2001).

In light of the demographic changes and the important role of school leaders, how is the Hispanic principal in the K-12 public schools reflecting the growth of the Hispanic school population? This research studies perceptions the Hispanic female principal attached to their role and role expectations as a principal.

This qualitative case study …

The Provision Of Spousal Support: Antecedents, Consequences, And Crossover Effects, Jay M. Dorio

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The present study had four main objectives. First, the relationship between the provision of spousal support and its theoretical antecedents and consequences was assessed as informed by the conservation of resources theory (Hobfoll, 1989). Second, the crossover of physicians' work interference with family conflict on their spouses' family demands (perceived family demands and family hours) was investigated. Next, the mediating role of social support as an explanation for the crossover process was examined using two distinct pathways. Lastly, the fourth objective of the present study was to investigate the relationships described above across multiple time points and using dual-source data …

Siento Que Tambien Yo Podria Borrarme Con Facilidad: Epistolaridad Y Constitucion Del(Os) Sujeto(S) En Querido Diego, Te Abraza Quiela, Pablo A.J. Brescia

World Languages Faculty Publications

A través del personaje de Angelina Beloff, la escritora refiere no sólo una autobiografía sino el mundo interno de un conflicto aparentemente irresoluble. La forma epistolar permite adentrarse en la intimidad de la pintora para narrar desde dentro la historia de un desamor.
The writer uses an autobiography of the character of Angelina Beloff to explain an apparently unresolvable conflict. The epistolary format allows us to delve into the intimacy of a narration of unhappy love.

My Enemy’S Enemy Is My Friend: Why Holding The Same Negative Attitudes Of Others Promotes Closeness, Jonathan R. Weaver

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Holding the same negative, as compared to positive, attitudes about a third party has been shown to predict increased liking for a future interaction partner (Bosson, Johnson, Niederhoffer, & Swann, 2006). The current work extended past research by examining two possible mediators of this effect: perceptions of "knowing" the future interaction party, and state self-esteem. Participants learned that they held the same positive or negative attitude of a professor with a future interaction partner, and then rated their feelings of "knowing" their partner, their own state self-esteem, and the closeness they felt to their future interaction partner. It was predicted …

Metadrama And Antitheatricality In Shakespeare’S King Lear And Troilus And Cressida, Douglas R. Willcox

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Shakespeare uses metadrama as a rhetorical vehicle for responding to antitheatricalism; realistic drama and staged theatricality therefore coexist in his plays. The cultural context of the early modern era, especially its antitheatrical rhetoric and the predominance of theatricality throughout the structures of its society, illumines the interaction of metadrama and antitheatricality Shakespeare's plays, particularly Troilus and Cressida and King Lear. By failing to consider adequately the unique nature of the emergence of early modern theater and the equally distinct reaction to its popularity, previous scholarship considering antitheatricality has exhibited essentialism and a universalizing tendency similar to that of the …

Linking Health Hazards And Environmental Justice: A Case Study In Houston, Texas, Marilyn Marie Williams

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation seeks to extend quantitative research on environmental justice and address methodological limitations of previous studies by: (a) using new indicators of exposure to air pollution and contemporary risk modeling techniques; (b) assessing disparities in human health risks, instead of focusing only on potential exposure or proximity to pollution sources; and (c) using multivariate regression models that consider the effects of spatial dependence. The case study examines racial/ethnic and socioeconomic disparities in the geographic distribution of exposure to airborne toxic emissions from industrial point sources in the Houston-Galveston-Brazoria metropolitan statistical area. Industrial pollution sources for this study comprise facilities …

Emotional Exhaustion And Its Role In Service Sabotage Among Boundary Spanners, Diane R. Edmondson

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this dissertation is to investigate how emotional exhaustion (EE) impacts a boundary spanning employee's usage of service sabotage behaviors (SSB). This dissertation also investigates how perceived organizational support (POS) and perceived supervisory support (PSS) alleviate a boundary spanning employee's EE and SSB. Furthermore, this dissertation examines how extraversion (EXT) and imagination (IMAG) moderates the relationship between POS and SSB and between PSS and SSB.

A boundary spanning employee is any organizational employee who "engages in job-related interactions with a person who is considered part of the environment, who is not a member of the organization" (Robertson 1995, …

A Group-Based Approach To Examining The Association Among Risky Sexual Behavior, Drug Use, And Criminal Involvement In A Sample Of Newly Arrested Juvenile Offenders, Kristina K. Childs

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study focuses on the interrelationships between risky sexual practices, substance use, and arrest history. The sample consists of 948 newly arrested juvenile offenders processed at a centralized intake facility in 2006. A series of confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling techniques are used to 1) determine if risky sexual behavior, marijuana and cocaine use, and arrest history form a unidimensional latent factor, 2) examine the direct effect of age on the latent factor, and 3) compare the factor structure, as well as the effect of age on the latent factor, across four demographic subgroups based on race and …

From Cancer To Sexually Transmitted Infection: Explorations Of Social Stigma Among Cervical Cancer Survivors, Karen E. Dyer

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This research project aims to examine the idea of stigma attached to cervical cancer in light of its association with HPV, a sexually transmitted infection (STI). The public recognition of this relationship appears to be increasing due to the current media attention surrounding HPV's causative role in the development of cervical cancer, and the newly-released HPV vaccine. Thus, this study explores the experiences and perceptions of cervical cancer patients and survivors living with this disease at a moment in time when it is becoming a very visible manifestation of a sexually transmitted infection, versus one identified historically as a life-threatening …

Hemingway’S Development Of The Female Characters Catherine From A Farewell To Arms To The Garden Of Eden, Amy K. Recla

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This paper explores the possibility that Hemingway scholars are overlooking the development of Hemingway as a writer by concentrating too much on the autobiographical elements of his writing. I am not suggesting that scholars ignore the autobiographical aspects of the writing, but rather propose that scholars acknowledge and look for the development of Hemingway's craft of writing in his novels by comparing the early texts with his posthumous works. I have chosen to show this development by comparing A Farewell to Arms and The Garden of Eden, especially through his use of the females characters Catherine in both novels. …

Measuring Culture Change As An Evaluation Indicator: Applying Cultural Consensus Analysis To Cultural Models Of Lymphatic Filariasis In Haiti, Kelly M. Simpson

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Introduction: This project explores the links between shared cultural beliefs in the illness domain, specific to lymphatic filariasis, and a support group program implemented in three Haitian towns. The purpose is to introduce an innovative approach to evaluation, the cultural model evaluation technique (CM Evaluation), as well as gain an understanding of the shifting cognitive belief structure around the cultural domain of lymphatic filariasis in the Haitian setting as associated with a support group intervention.

Method: The sample population was comprised of 241 women across three sites in Haiti: Archaie, Cabaret, and La Plaine. Data were collected from longitudinal surveys …

A Comparative Study Of Six Decades Of General Science Textbooks: Evaluating The Evolution Of Science Content, Anna Lewis

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study examined science textbooks over time to better understand the science content expectations that the U.S. educational system deems appropriate for 8th and 9th grade science students. The study attempted to answer the questions: 1) What specific science content has been presented via the textbook from 1952 to 2008? 2) Within which areas and in what way does the science content change? 3) Are new scientific findings reflected in 8th and 9th grade U.S. general science textbooks? Twenty-six themes were identified which reflect five areas in science: Chemistry, Physics, Earth Science, Biology, and Process of Science. Trends in science …

Access To Health Care Services: A Case Study In Hillsborough County, Florida, Jaime Nodarse

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The UpliftU® program is a long-term residential program for women and families who are homeless or at risk for homelessness. This program is one part of a larger, community-based non-profit organization serving low-income and homeless families in Hillsborough County, Florida for over 35 years. This program is not an emergency shelter program, but rather offers up to 18 months of participation in a self-sufficiency program to single women and families. The goal of the program is to prevent future homelessness for residents by helping them to reach their highest level of self-sufficiency. After volunteering at this organization for nine months, …

Scripting The Unscripted: Gender And Sexual Orientation In Strategy-Genre Reality Television, L Elizabeth Zollner

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Since 2000, there has been an explosion of "reality," or unscripted, television shows in a variety of formats. The series in which new societies are created in isolation appeared almost immediately to be influenced by certain identity constructs, particularly gender and sexual orientation. Audiences came to these shows with definite expectations already in place. I intend in this study to determine why this is so and what those expectations are.

Survivor, the germinal presentation of this genre, has as its motto "Outwit, Outplay, Outlast." However, as the show has developed through many iterations, the ability to literally survive in …