Digital Commons Network^™

Fashion For All: An Exploration Into Adaptive Fashion, Morgan F. Harrison

OTD Capstone Projects

The purpose of this doctoral capstone was to educate future clothing designers on the adaptive/inclusive clothing market and the need for further exploration into accessible, fashion forward clothing. This project was completed through a partnership with O’More College of Architecture and Design at Belmont University. The goal of this project was to provide students with an introspective look at the interface of fashion and disability. This was achieved by creating case studies based on interviews with individuals with various disabilities regarding their relationship with clothing. The result of this project was a recorded lecture that included demographics, available adaptive clothing …

Does What Doesn’T Kill You Make You Stronger? Examining The Effects Of Resilience And Functional Outcomes On Post-Traumatic Growth In Adults With Acquired Disability, Dominique Renee Ghirardi M.S.

Theses and Dissertations

Disabilities acquired in adulthood are often unexpected and disruptive because a loss of functioning can affect one’s ability to maintain employment, pursue their interests, and participate in social activity without assistance or accommodation. This is especially true for those who experience a life-altering injury or develop a chronic health condition between the ages of 18 and 64, as they likely have not planned for the financial and social adjustments that life with a disability involves. However, factors such as post-traumatic growth can reveal the extent to which someone experiences personal growth and improvement in the wake of a traumatic and …

Inclusive Education Is Power: Revising Sexual Health Education For People With Disabilities, Carly M. Tsuruda

Master's Projects and Capstones

For people with disabilities in the United States, comprehensive sexual health education is not always available. There are a number of reasons for the lack of comprehensive sexual health education, including excessive censorship and curriculum that is not representative of people with disabilities. Sexual health education and disability are both topics that have several preconceived notions attached to them, yet there is a dearth in resources that could provide accurate information to those both with and without disabilities. These preconceived notions that have been associated with these identity labels lead to negative health outcomes for people with disabilities such as …

Accommodated Gymnastics Program For Atypically Developing Children, Ashtin Callahan

Department of Occupational Therapy Entry-Level Capstone Projects

No abstract provided.

Addressing Academic And Faculty Challenges: Empowering Success And Accessibility With An Occupational Therapy Perspective, Madisyn Anderson

Graduate Projects & Research

Introduction: The increasing presence of students with disabilities in higher education necessitates improved faculty support and awareness of on-campus support services and accommodations. Occupational therapists can play a vital role in promoting inclusion and Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles by collaborating with faculty to enhance the academic experience and success of students with disabilities.

Purpose: The primary aim of this project was to evaluate and educate faculty on student support services at the University and share knowledge on Universal Design for Learning to enhance the existing literature on the significance of OT in higher education.

Approach: I completed an …

On-Campus Mental Health Service Use Among College Students With Autism: A Case Study Applying The Andersen Behavioral Model Of Health Services Use, Estella C. Lilyquist

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The unique set of impairments and limitations presented by students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) make the accessing of campus-based nonacademic resources more difficult and complicated than their typically developed peers. Each year, the rate of students entering college with disabilities continues to grow, but their mental well-being is relatively poor. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to apply the conceptual framework of the Andersen behavioral model of health services use (ABMHSU) to the experiences of college students with ASD to understand and predict their utilization of campus-provided mental health resources. The participants were seven college students with …

The Meaning Of A Choice, Julie-Louise Zeitoun

Masters Theses

If you are disabled or disadvantaged, you will be dismissed and stifled. Few people will actively care for your struggles. As a person with autism, I was deeply fearful of the persecution I had faced throughout my life; it was a fear that followed me with terrifying determination. I desperately wanted to blend into society. So I designed myself to be devoid of any weakness, and productivity was the way I chose to conceal any difficulties I faced. It was a way to measure my success — a way to measure my normalcy.

Standard medical textiles are generic, cumbersome devices. …

Special Education: Inclusion And Exclusion In The K-12 U.S. Educational System, Erik Brault

Dissertations

The U.S. Department of Education defines students with disabilities as those having a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more life activities. Previous research has found that students with disabilities placed in inclusive environments perform better academically and socially compared to students with disabilities who are placed in segregated environments. Yet, we know that inclusion in K-12 general education classrooms across the country is not consistently implemented.

The purpose of this study was to better understand the effects, if any, of general education high school teachers’ personal and professional experiences and knowledge on their attitudes toward educating …

Occupation-Based Sexual Health Education For Adolescents With Disabilities, Elizabeth J. Klocke

Occupational Therapy Capstone Presentations

Individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities experience barriers to learning about sexual health education even though there is documented interest in this subject. Additionally, caregivers of children with disabilities lack experience and knowledge of their children’s sexual developmental needs. My capstone project aimed to provide comprehensive sexual education to adolescents with disabilities and education on childhood sexual development to healthcare professionals, educators, and parents. The literature and needs assessment indicated a need for sexual health education for both students with intellectual and developmental disabilities and caregivers. Due to viewing clients in a holistic manner, occupational therapy is uniquely qualified to …

Caregiver’S Perspectives Of Community Acceptance Before And After Surgical Treatment For Their Child’S Disability, Kali Johnson

Graduate Projects & Research

Background: In Tanzania, about 600,000 children and adolescents between the ages of five and twenty-four years old have a disability. Individuals with disabilities in Tanzania face numerous obstacles due to the social stigma and exclusion they face. The purpose of this formative evaluation is to assess how caregivers of children with correctable disabilities in Tanzania perceive their community’s acceptance of their child before and after surgical treatment.

Methods: A qualitative study was conducted. Interviews from 86 caregivers of children (ages … with disabilities treated at The Plaster House in Arusha, Tanzania were qualitatively analyzed using content analysis to assess for …

Unheard Victims Of Covid-19: The Impact Of Mask Use On Communication For D/Deaf And Hard Of Hearing People, Kym Couch

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Masks are effective at preventing the spread of COVID-19, but they also impact communication for d/Deaf and hard of hearing (DHH) people. This research is a mixed methods approach to analyzing the impact that the widespread use of masks in response to COVID-19 has had on DHH people. Building on the allowance for nuance and paradox presented by Deborah Stone in her book Policy Paradox: The Art of Political Decision Making (2012) and holding to the Social Model of Disability, this research involves the qualitative and quantitative analysis of a survey of one-hundred and ninety-eight (198) DHH people, interviews with …

Circumventing Ableism: A Grounded Theory Study Exploring Caregiver Strategies To Promote A Positive Identity, June Furr

All Dissertations

This qualitative research study explores how caregivers and persons with disabilities navigate the rhetoric of disability and caregiving through the interviews of fifteen caregivers and fifteen persons with disabilities using the lens of grounded theory and Burke’s (1952) dramatistic pentad. Significant findings describe how focused disability description can circumvent ableism when rhetorical resources that assist caregivers and persons with disabilities to navigate the rhetoric in disability descriptions are provided. Disability description theory includes the three stages that define, collaborate and revise, and practice and apply a disability description. This qualitative research offers an introduction into the phenomenon of …

Features Of Optics And Mounts That Facilitate Participation In Birding For Power Wheelchair Users: An Exploratory Study, Alexander Field

Capstone Projects

Birding as a leisure task may facilitate increased quality of life and regulate the nervous system through nature-based experiences; however, there are no prior published studies that examine adaptive birding equipment, making this research a crucial addition to the field of occupational therapy. Existing birding equipment is built very heavily, making it difficult for users to apply and reposition during the act of birding. This capstone project focused on adaptive birding equipment use by power wheelchair users to determine the supportive features that best facilitated participation in birding from their mobility devices. Researchers purchased lighter weight mounts and various optics …

Depression As A Prognostic Factor For Lumbar Spinal Stenosis Outcomes, Ariel M. Morales

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Lumbar spinal stenosis (LSS) is a degenerative disease common in older adults and is associated with significantly reduced health-related quality of life and increased disability. Depression has been found to be associated with poorer health-related outcomes in patients with spinal conditions. A systematic review was conducted to examine the literature regarding the prognostic value of depression for LSS outcomes. Findings suggest small to moderate prognostic value of depressive symptoms for postoperative outcomes in patients with LSS, with strong evidence for disability. Next, a secondary analysis of a cohort study was conducted to investigate two objectives. The first objective was to …

Hiv Stalks Bodies Like Mine: An Autoethnography Of Self-Disclosure, Stigmatized Identity, And (In)Visibility In Queer Lived Experience, Steven Ryder

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation examines self-disclosure of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) status within the context of communication between long-standing friends. For the purposes of my study, I define this type of friendship as those who have known me for at least two years and with whom I communicate regularly. These are friends who tend to know a variety of personal details about me, ranging from superficial to private and trivial to essential. I use autoethnography to ground the study in my lived experience. By doing so, I present intimate accounts of my communication with others across my lifespan to function as background …

Tabletop Role-Playing Games As Autism Psychotherapy: A Video-Cued Multivocal Clinical Ethnography, Adina Rubin-Budick

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative study is a video-cued multivocal ethnography that analyzed the clinical reasoning and perspectives of psychotherapists using Tabletop Role-Playing Games (TRPG) as a therapeutic treatment for children and adolescents diagnosed with Autism Spectrum conditions. With a growing number of TRPG therapists nationwide using this modality in their clinical practices, this study aimed to develop a clearer understanding of the ways in which their therapeutic orientation, gaming practices, and knowledge of Autism Spectrum Conditions informs their use of TRPG psychotherapy with Autistic clients.

Research that focuses on clinical decision-making and the knowledge that informs clinical interventions and technique generally refers …

Disparities And Attitudes Toward Sars Cov2 Vaccine Among People With Disabilities, Ahmed A. Omar

Capstone Experience

The pandemic caused by SARSCOV2 that began in late 2019 posed a significant public health challenge for communities worldwide. The pandemic negatively impacted people's health, economy, and living conditions. Pharmaceutical companies worldwide have begun a race against time to invest in vaccine development to control and eliminate the worst outcomes of the COVID 19 associated disease. Scientific research resulted in several effective vaccines being developed and authorized for use in people (Salmeron Ríos S et al.).

Public health agencies like the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) prioritized high-risk populations for vaccination. This process is meant to accomplish the …

Chronic Poetics: A Waiting Room Of One's Own, Madeleine Simmons

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

This article explores chronic poetics, through my personal lens I take readers on a walk- through of poetry and the discussions surrounding chronic illnesses. I examine the current state of chronic illness and the nuances to its discussion. I analyze chronic illness in the context of disability studies, and touch on the tensions of categorizing chronic illness as a disability. As well as how to best navigate reading chronic poetics, as poets engage in new territories as they form a new language to describe their circumstances. While analyzing multiple poems from different authors, I explore why specifically the vessel of …

Investigating Bilingual Aac Practices In Bilingual Communities, Johanna R. Salisbury

Masters Theses

This thesis investigates best practices for teaching and supporting bilingual augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) users as they develop their communication skills. Although there are guidelines that inform best practices for teaching and supporting bilingual AAC users, there is very little information on what these practices look like. This thesis investigates the techniques and strategies that bilingual speech-language pathologists (SLPs) who practice in Catalunya, a bilingual community in northeastern Spain, use to evaluate, teach, and support people who use pictogram-based AAC modalities to communicate.

To do this, six SLPs who practice in Catalunya participated in interviews regarding their practices when …

Epistemic Injustice, Endometriosis And Dance/ Movement Therapy: An Autoethnographic Investigation, Kevana West

Expressive Therapies Capstone Theses

As the field of dance/ movement therapy evolves to meet the demands of a rapidly changing social landscape, it is imperative that clinicians think critically about the degree to which our work is steeped in oppressive frameworks and ideologies. This investigation uses testimony to explore epistemic injustice as it relates to the author’s experience of living with endometriosis and the pursuit of professional licensure. Considering the limited amount of research on the condition, along with the perceived absence of literature within the field of dance/ movement therapy, further study is warranted. The experimentation phase of this research incorporated the use …

Understanding Advocacy For Promoting Occupational Engagement Among Individuals With Disabilities, Rebecca L. Benson

Occupational Therapy Capstone Presentations

Advocacy can greatly affect many individuals throughout the community in their ability to engage in occupations. Individuals’ with disabilities engagement in daily activities (occupations) is greatly affected by their diagnosis whether it be physical, psychological, or developmental. This population experiences disadvantages due to many barriers in society including physical, sensual, visual, and cognitive barriers as well as societal attitudes, and absence of policy and implementation. These disadvantages are not always recognized or known by the general public despite the number of individuals who are impacted. The lack of knowledge creates a need for advocacy, education, and training of the community …

Nursing Students Attitudes Towards Patients' With Disabilities, Sonny Miles

Honors Theses

Attitudes have been found to impact the quality of healthcare provided to patients. Nursing students are individuals that will eventually care for and impact the livelihood of all individuals including those with disabilities. Measurements of attitudes among nursing students serves to evaluate the efficacy of nursing curriculums regarding disability and determines if revision is needed to better promote healthcare administration for the patient with a disability. This study utilized the Scale of Attitudes Toward Disabled Persons (SADP) to measure attitudes among nursing students enrolled in a baccalaureate nursing program at a Southeastern University. The mean score from participants was 108.49 …

Investigating The Attitudes Of The D/Deaf Community Towards Genetic Counseling And The Utilization Of Genetic Services, Katie Baudoin, Jennifer Czerwinski, Laura Farach, Malorie Jones, Rebecca Lunstroth, Caitlin Mauer, Chelsea Wagner

Dissertations & Theses (Open Access)

The Deaf community has previously expressed concerns about the process of genetic counseling/testing and the potential implications it can have for Deaf individuals. Prior studies have explored the motivations of Deaf individuals for pursuing genetic testing related to deafness; however, information regarding the interest and motivations for indications other than deafness is limited. Our study aims to characterize attitudes of individuals within the d/Deaf community towards genetic counseling and testing and to assess interest and motivations to seek genetic counseling for indications other than deafness.

Individuals were recruited through local and national d/Deaf organizations to participate in an anonymous, online …

Supporting Characters: Prosthesis And Aesthetic Technologies Of Disability In The Victorian Novel, Rebecca L. Mccann

Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation investigates the production of physical disability and the function of prosthesis in nineteenth-century British fiction. My intervention in disability studies readings of Victorian literature attends to the prosthetic object and prosthetic body not only as the dual products of medicine and art, but also as catalytic elements of fiction and culture. I read reciprocal developments in medical technology and disabled characterization in the Victorian novel to demonstrate how the artistic translation of the prosthetic object effected a set of criteria for defining people through both bodies and things and, in so doing, revealed the ways in which the …

Emergency Preparedness: Perceptions Of People With Disabilities, Lidia Adamina Fonseca

Theses and Dissertations

The prevalence of emergencies and disasters has increased over the past decade which has caused cities, states and countries to routinely develop emergency preparedness and management plans (Turk, 2016). Although these demands have increased, individuals with disabilities have been less represented in the development of the plans (Timmons, 2017; Turk, 2016). According to The World Bank Disaster Risk Management Report (2020), disasters (e.g., infectious disease outbreaks such as COVID-19, hurricanes, earthquakes, industrial accidents.) and post-disaster consequences have increased over recent years.

Although individuals with disabilities have become more aware of emergency preparedness and its importance, researchers have noted that there …

La Discapacidad En Los Sistemas De Educación En Bolivia Y Chile, Kree Pace

Student Research Submissions

The flawed approach to the education of disabled students is an issue that plagues countless countries across the globe, and those in Latin America are no different. Bolivia and Chile are two vastly different countries from a cultural and economic perspective. However, one issue that they have in common is the manner in which they attempt to teach disabled students. There are two major models of disability; social and medical. The social model teaches that disabilities are not inherently negative traits to have, and that those who have them should be supported by society. It also emphasizes that the organization …

Coaching For Independent Living Skills In Adults With Intellectual And Developmental Disabilities At Friends Life Community, Ashley G. Raby

OTD Capstone Projects

Friends Life Community is an organization that serves individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) in Nashville, TN. They provide a day program, drama therapy, social clubs, career coaching, and life coaching. The life coaching program is an individualized service provided to clients who are striving to become more independent in life skills. This project focused on creating resources and assessments to aid in the coaching process. Resources were created in the following categories: activities, cleaning, hygiene and routines, nutrition and exercise, and budgeting.

Disability In An American Indian Community : Prevalence, Distribution, And The Role Of Polychlorinated Biphenyls, Thoin Farzana Begum

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

The Akwesasne reservation along the St. Lawrence River has experienced significant exposure to several persistent organic pollutants due to rapid industrialization. The Aluminum Company of America, General Motors, and Reynolds Metals operated aluminum foundries that used polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) as hydraulic fluids, which contaminated the community environment, the soil, air and water, and community food sources with PCBs. We administered the World Health Organization Disability Assessment Schedule II (WHODAS II) to 119 Akwesasne Mohawk adults residing along the St. Lawrence River in New York. We used exploratory factor analysis to summarize the 36- items comprising the WHODAS II. The 7 …

Contraceptive Use And Sterilization Among People With Disabilities, Gabrielle Y. Defiebre

Dissertations and Theses

Background

Approximately 20% of individuals in the United States (US) have a disability, with 1 in 4 adult women above the age of 18 having a disability. People with disabilities include individuals who may experience difficulties with mobility, cognition, independent living, vision, hearing, and/or self-care. Disabled people face physical/environmental barriers, provider-level barriers, and system-level barriers in accessing health care, including sexual and reproductive health care, and are more likely than people without disabilities to have unmet medical needs. Four recent studies have indicated that those with disabilities are more likely to have received female sterilization as a family planning service …

The Debate On Physician-Assisted Death In The United States: A Narrative Analysis Of Formula Stories, Rebecca Blackwell

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Public policy discussions can be viewed as empirical windows into broadly shared culturalvalues and emotions of the social contexts in which the policy discussions take place. This project is a narrative analysis of the public debate on physician-assisted death (PAD), drawing from three data sources: newspaper articles, the websites of social movement organizations, and testimonies from a state legislative hearing. This analysis explores ways in which social actors deploy personal stories that contribute to shape the policy-making process by appealing to cultural beliefs and broadly shared emotions. The findings of this project constitute a contribution to the study of emotions …