Digital Commons Network^™

"I'Ll Stay Where You Want Me To Stay": How Latter-Day Saints Navigate Conflicting Social Values While Remaining Committed To Their Faith, Venice Jardine

Theses and Dissertations

While recent efforts in religious studies have focused on why many Americans seem to be leaving religion entirely, much less is understood about why many others choose to remain committed to their faith--especially when they hold many of the same social values, doubts, or divergent opinions that others cite for leaving. Within a Latter-day Saint context especially, very little research has been done to explore the experiences of those navigating the complexities of competing ethical affordances while remaining committed to their faith. Through ethnographic research in both Salt Lake County and New York City, I document the patterns and processes …

Sleep It Off? Exploring Sleep Duration And Bedtime Regularity As Potential Protective Moderators Of Early Adversity's Impact On Mental Health In Infancy, Childhood, And Adolescence, Sarah Lindsey Hipwell Kamhout

Theses and Dissertations

Introduction: Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) are known to increase risk of mental health challenges throughout development, and sleep is known to decrease risk of mental health challenges. These have not been studied in tandem in younger cohorts. We investigated whether interactions between sleep duration and sleep regularity would moderate the impact of ACE exposure on risk for the development of mental health disorders. Methods: We conducted secondary cross-sectional analyses on the 2020-2021 waves of the National Survey of Children's Health (NSCH) (n = 92,669). We used logistic and ordinal regression to replicate known main effects of ACEs (total, household, community, …

Psychotherapy Outcomes Of Sexual Minority College Students: A Comparison Of Religiously-Affiliated And Non-Religiously Affiliated U.S. Universities, Elise Burton Johnson

Theses and Dissertations

This study compares U.S. university counseling center therapy outcomes of Sexual Minority (SM) students who attend religiously-affiliated compared to SM peers who attend non religiously-affiliated institutions. Using archival data from the Center for Collegiate Mental Health (CCMH), we examined psychotherapy outcomes of 4257 SM student clients.We analyzed pre-treatment symptoms and post-treatment outcomes based on differences in Distress Index (DI) scores. We used the reliable change index (RCI) to separate outcomes into four groups based on the change in distress index level: no change, deteriorating, reliably improved, recovered from pre-treatment to post-treatment. Our participants (n = 4257) attended 34 religiously and …

Type 2 Diabetes And Marital Quality Declines Moderated By Positive Health Behaviors, Rebekah Case Fankhauser

Theses and Dissertations

Type 2 diabetes affects more than one-quarter of older adults in the United States. Many older adults manage type 2 diabetes (T2D) in the context of marriage, although few studies have acknowledged the effect the illness has on marital quality. The current study examined how the presence of T2D in later life relates to marital quality, and how positive health behaviors--diet, physical activity, and sleep--can moderate the relationship between T2D and marital quality. Data from the 1,200 married older adults in the Life and Family Legacies study were used to estimate moderation models using structural equation modeling in Mplus. Results …

Perceptions Of Violent Content And Their Relationships On Aggressive Behavior: The Effects Of Implicit Beliefs On Aggression In Relation To Video Content, Logan Mccombs

Theses and Dissertations

Previous research shows that consuming violent media can lead to increased aggression in thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. Several other factors also contribute to such behaviors but have not been thoroughly studied including implicit beliefs about aggression in relation to media content. This two-part study consists of (1) an exploratory iterated principal-factor method to create an implicit belief measure about consuming violent media in conjunction with correlational analyses and (2) between subjects hierarchical linear regression models to determine what effects implicit beliefs have on subsequent aggression after participants view either a violent of nonviolent video, while controlling for violent media consumption …

The Influence Of Religious And Political Discrepancies On Parent-Adolescent Social Cohesion, Emily De Schweinitz Taylor

Theses and Dissertations

American youth are leaving organized religion at historical levels. Given that religious and political similarity (consensual solidarity) tends to strengthen affectual solidarity (emotional connection) in parent-adolescent dyads, decreasing adolescent religiousness and increasing political disagreements may threaten family social cohesion. However, during adolescence, youth empathy skills tend to increase and adolescents’ conflict with their parents tends to eventually subside. Based on principles outlined in intergenerational family solidarity theory, I hypothesized that adolescent empathy skills and authoritative parenting style would buffer the negative relational effects of religious and political discrepancies within the parent-adolescent relationship. I used Waves 2-4 (referred to as Times …

Associations Between Young Children's Problematic Media Use And Physiological Regulation -- Does Temperament Act As A Mediator?, Noah Alexander Chojnacki

Theses and Dissertations

Given the ubiquity of media use, especially among young children, the current study examines the impact of problematic media use (PMU) on children's (N = 418, M age = 53.62 months, SD = 3.38 months, M and SD are taken from the full sample of 418 children) physiological functioning. With previous studies reporting relations between media use, temperament, and physiological regulation, it was hypothesized that children with greater levels of PMU would have lower levels of baseline respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA; a measure of physiological regulatory capacity). It is further hypothesized that, higher levels of negative affect, and lower levels …

Planning, Outcomes, Oversight: A Linguistic Analysis Of New Jersey Statutes And Reports From 1970 To 1999, Sharon E. Mccann

Theses and Dissertations

Between the decades of 1970 through 1999, there were major shifts in higher education in New Jersey. Utilizing a grounded theory approach this dissertation created a database of legislation, hearings transcripts, and education reports. Searching this database for commonly used terminology, this dissertation was seeking a pattern in language use that could demonstrate the incursion of neoliberal economic terminology into the way high education was discussed during these years. A grounded theory exploration, this dissertation does not claim to have achieved a proven connection between the language shift and decisions made by education leadership. All it can demonstrate is that …

Distinguishing Between Symptom Presence And Severity Using A Two-Part Sequential Model, Luiza Ferreira Pradera

Theses and Dissertations

Most symptom measures either implicitly or explicitly distinguish between symptom presence and symptom severity. For example, item 2 on the PHQ-9, a commonly used measure of depressive symptoms, asks respondents to rate how much they have been 'feeling down, depressed, or hopeless.' The response options are 0 (Not at all), 1 (Several Days), 2 (More than half the days), and 3 (Nearly every day). Answering 0 indicates that the symptom is not present, and any response greater than 0 suggests the symptom is present. Higher values indicate higher severity of the symptom. Although the response options distinguish between symptom presence …

Deliberate Practice With Motivational Interviewing: Basic Helping Skills Among Novice Helpers, Angel Laurencio Vega

Theses and Dissertations

We examined the effects of deliberate practice (DP) in teaching motivational interviewing (MI) helping skills to 45 upper-level undergraduate students in a semester-long course using an experimental crossover waitlist design. Students participated in a three-hour MI skills workshop focused on open-ended questions, affirmations, reflections, and summaries (OARS) and engaged in ongoing practice throughout the semester. Students video-recorded four skill demonstrations involving real-life changes with a volunteer client, addressing behavioral change. Pre- and post-workshop video recordings were analyzed to evaluate changes in reflective listening skills and the overall consistency of using MI OARS skills. The results revealed significant increases in reflections-to-questions …

Two Sides Of The Same Coin Or Two Different Coins? The Differential Predictors Of Casual And Committed Sex, Carson R. Dover

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this paper is to analyze potential predictors of accumulating casual vs. committed sexual partners in emerging adulthood. Using a large, national sample of emerging adults in the United States, I examined how alcohol use and attachment orientation differentially predicted accumulating casual and committed sexual partners. I found that higher anxious attachment positively predicted the number of committed sexual partners, while higher avoidant attachment negatively predicted the number of casual sexual partners. I also found that alcohol use positively predicted both the number of casual and committed sexual partners emerging adults accumulated. Further, I tested the strength of …

The Impact Of Applied Mental Health Classes On Eudaimonia, Gratitude, And Heart Rate Variability, Derek Charles Bartlett

Theses and Dissertations

Rates of depression, anxiety, and stress have been increasing and college students are especially at risk. College counseling centers often have long waitlists and have difficulty addressing the growing need for psychotherapy. Researchers have suggested that depression and anxiety may arise because of low levels of eudaimonia and self-compassion. Depression and anxiety not only have a toll on mental health but on physical health as well, as researchers have observed decreased HRV in individuals with depression and anxiety. To address the disparity between available resources and treatment need, applied mental health classes were developed to see if teaching psychotherapeutic principles …

Syrian Investments And The Insertion Of Displaced Syrians In The Egyptian Labor Market, Sajeda Khattab

Theses and Dissertations

This study explores Syrian investments and the economic insertion of displaced Syrians in the Egyptian labor market, specifically focusing on middle/large scale investments in the hospitality and textile sectors. It addresses a gap in the theoretical literature concerning Syrian investments during displacement and their economic insertion in Egypt, examining the legal framework and provisions related to employment. The conceptual framework investigates how Syrian business owners' investments contribute to the insertion of displaced Syrians, emphasizing business size, legal status, and economic resources. The findings reveal a positive impact on economic integration, highlighting entrepreneurial strategies, local growth, difficulties, and their transformative role …

Moving Through The Violence: Yemeni Migrants And The Reconstruction Of Lifeworlds In Cairo, Jonathan Hearn

Theses and Dissertations

This Master’s thesis is based on an ethnographic study, following the lives of a small number of Yemeni people rebuilding their lives in Cairo. Their displacement is the consequence of many factors not least the outbreak of war in 2014. In response to this, I ask: In the midst of ongoing conflict, how do Yemeni migrants go about reconstructing their lifeworlds in Cairo? That is, to ask how are Yemeni migrants in Cairo responding to the violent disruption of their social realities and what sense are they making of the consequences. The reorganisation of social realities disrupted by conflict means …

What Is Beyond Graduation For Mena Scholarship Alumni? Understanding The Global Journeys Of Tomorrow’S Leaders Scholarship Alumni, Albaraa Quradi

Theses and Dissertations

The research conducted by the author delves deeply into the migration experiences of students from the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, with a specific focus on graduates of the Tomorrow's Leaders scholarship program. Through the use of a case study methodology, the study investigates the complex interconnections between migration, development, inequality, and the students' countries of origin.

The investigation critically analyzes the aftermath of pursuing higher education on a scholarship basis, shedding light on how migration experiences are intertwined with broader issues of development and inequality in the MENA region. Furthermore, the research examines the factors that drive …

Experiences Of Female Academic Leaders In Higher Education: A Case Study In Cairo, Amina Sabour

Theses and Dissertations

Such as in many contexts, the gender gap in higher education leadership persists universally. Women are still underrepresented despite the contributions they demonstrate in leading higher education institutions. This study aims to contribute to the area of research in this regard by exploring the experiences of female academic leaders in Cairo, Egypt. It specifically highlights the challenges these women face, and how they manage to overcome it. Using a qualitative approach to deeply explore the phenomenon, ten interviews were conducted with female leaders at the American University in Cairo. Looking through the lens of intersectional feminism, under the umbrella of …

Exploring Purpose, Practices, And Impacts Of Non-Formal Education In Egypt, Mariam Hussien Sayed Abdelhamid

Theses and Dissertations

This research explores non-formal education in Egypt, analyzing its alignment or divergence with prevalent human capital and modernization discourses. Using a narrative approach, the study explores the practices of four organizations that offer non-formal education opportunities in greater Cairo: San3a Tech, Wataneya Society, Alwan wa Awtar, and AlAthar Lina. The study explores the narration of 9 educators and 10 learners from these organizations to understand from educators’ perspectives how they design their experiences and its relation to the culture and needs of the targeted audience. It also looks at what kind of impact do these experiences have on the learners. …

Moonshine Babies, Arghavan Heydareslam

Theses and Dissertations

Moonshine Babies is a two-screen film made of collage/cut-out stop-motion and live-action. It is a visual poem based on my journals from when I recently started living in the US as an outsider. The experience left me feeling divided between the empty present and memories of the past. suggesting that there are collective memories among a group of interconnected individuals that unite them within a single narrative.

There was a moment when I asked, "If you are your memories, what does it mean to be somewhere you have no memories of and no one has memories of you there?"

Memories …

The Impact Of Perceived Job Satisfaction, Motivational Attitudes, And Organizational Commitment: A Comparative Analysis Between Special Education Teachers Employed In Public Versus Private Schools, David Haimovich

Theses and Dissertations

During and after the Covid-19 pandemic, a high turnover rate of PreK-12 special education teachers continues to persist. To ensure all students with disabilities receive equitable access to a special education teacher, turnover intentions among private school teachers require further insight due to a long-standing gap in research. Using the theoretical frameworks of Herzberg’s (1959) Two-Factor Theory and Meyer & Allen’s (1997) Three-Component Model of Commitment, this non-experimental correlational study examined the influence of six demographic factors related to teachers’ perceptions of job satisfaction, motivational attitudes, and organizational commitment among special education teachers employed in PreK-12 suburban schools in the …

From The Deceptive Delinquent To The Illusive Illicit Alien: A Qualitative Study Of 21st Century United States Border Security Law Enforcement’S Capabilities, Competencies, And Capacities Designed To Counter Transient Criminality Recruitment, Christopher C. Palme

Theses and Dissertations

The transient criminal enterprise progressively evolved through expansion of illicit trafficking pathways throughout the 21st century. Scholars and practitioners share roles and responsibilities in missed opportunities to combat transient criminality. The Intelligence Community’s intelligence process is deficient in timely production and dissemination of their products. Starting with the transient criminality recruitment process, a correlated lack of psychosocial training programs dedicated to countering the transient crime threat exists. This study is rooted in sociological theory. It addresses Homeland Security dilemmas through the theoretical lens of sociology of security (Bajc, 2013) and is enhanced by concepts from Social Identity (Tajfel, 1979), Social …

Broadcasting Bombs: Classifying Antecedent Behaviors And Strategizing Preventative Tactics In Lone-Actor Terrorists And Mass-Murderers, Julia Varvaro

Theses and Dissertations

The modern notion of a socially isolated lone-wolf terrorist and public mass- murderer is challenged by analyzing those individuals’ pre-attack behaviors. Many of these behaviors can be explained with theories such as Social Identity, Social Network, and Social Movement Theory, which examine the changes in human behavior to understand motivations. Properly classifying certain behaviors in a radicalized individual could help identify potential risk factors indicating an impending attack, prompting better responses, and solutions to strategize tactics and policies in preventing terrorism. Using existing literature and theory as the basis, this dissertation will examine common broadcasting behaviors of individuals who have …

Shinners, Alexis E. Mabry

Theses and Dissertations

Shinners is a project that aims to examine the position of women in subcultures and capture conversations of women in subcultural sports. Within feminism, sociological constructs, campy horror, and personal experience I am manifesting the physical and mental obstacles faced in the subcultural sport of Bicycle Motocross (BMX) through photography, painting, collage, video, and sculpture. I interpret images posted to social media of injuries obtained while riding BMX as forms of empowerment, bodily gore as extreme evidence of participation, performative violence, valorizing the understanding of both the physical and psychological pain of failure, and the use of failure as a …

Department Chairs’ Impact On The Diversity, Equity, And Inclusion Of Their Departments, Nicholas R. Garcia Ii

Theses and Dissertations

Department chairs serve not only as the leaders of their departments but also as middle managers in their schools, colleges, and universities. While many department chairs see their role as having little authority, they still play an integral role in day-to-day campus operations (Hunt & Jones, 2015). As leaders of their departments, chairs can directly influence the department’s organizational culture (Schein, 2010), including the culture of diversity and inclusiveness. Departments nationwide are being held responsible for increasing the diversity of the faculty and responding to students' calls for diversity. Departmental organizational culture and the role of the chairperson are essential …

Spouse Violence In Case Of Police Officers In Puerto Rico: Violence In Police Families, Jorge Ismael Suarez

Theses and Dissertations

This applied dissertation was designed to explore the relationship between factors related to police work and whether these factors help predict domestic violence in a sample of officers of the Puerto Rico Police. The following factors were explored in this study: external burnout, alcohol abuse, department withdrawal, and authoritarian spillover. This study was based on a previous study by Johnson et al. (2005), which revealed that violence exposure and domestic violence among police officers are linked according to four mediation chains. The mediation chain was a model implemented by the authors to determine the influence of burnout, authoritarian spillover, alcohol …

The School Of SharīʿA Judges: SharīʿA Courts’ Reform And Legal Modernization In Egypt (1907-1927), Yamen Nouh

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis studied the history of the school of sharīʿa judges (1907-1927) as an essential episode of the reform of Sharīʿa courts in Egypt in the early 20th century. The thesis studied the school in connection with the broader context of legal modernization of the Egyptian legal system. The study explored the institutional, pedagogical, and legal aspects of the reform that the school advocated. The study analyzed the impact of the school’s pedagogy on the practice of the Islamic judiciary and the theoretical conception of Sharīʿa. The study used a significant yet understudied historical source: the judicial press. A comparative …

Understanding Obsessive Compulsive Disorder Among Racial And Ethnic Minority Groups: A Content Analysis, Tyson William Lovell

Theses and Dissertations

Historically, racial and ethnic minority (REM) communities have faced reduced access to resources for mental and emotional health issues. While research has placed a greater emphasis on REM experiences, there is still a need to further understand the unique contextual factors surrounding mental health challenges among these marginalized groups. Research on Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) among REM communities is one area in need of further evaluation. Therefore, this study is a content analysis of literature analyzing the current research focused on the intersection of REM communities and OCD experiences. The purpose of the study is to analyze OCD research among …

Age At First Marriage And Marital Success In The Context Of Stress Theory: An Updated Investigation With A Longitudinal, Nationally Representative Sample, Anne Marie Wright Jones

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to use family stress theory to examine the relationship between age at first marriage and marital quality and divorce. Age at marriage continues to increase and the demographics keep changing. Past research suggests that early age at marriage has been a contributing factor to divorce risk. Marital quality outcomes can also give us an idea of how well couples are faring in their marriages. This study employs a sample from a longitudinal, nationally representative investigation (CREATE), which has followed newlywed couples since 2016. The sub-sample for this study comes from wave one and includes …

Investigating Programmer Bias Transfer To Computer Tasks Among Hispanic Csci/Cmpe Students In A Minority-Serving Institution, Ana Cecilia Sánchez Ramos

Theses and Dissertations

Algorithm-driven systems are increasingly being used across a variety of settings (Center for Democracy and Technology, 2020; O’Neil, 2017; Sauppé and Mutlu, 2015). However, many everyday technologies are imbued with racial biases that unfairly discriminate against racially marginalized groups (Hankerson et al, 2016; Crawford, 2016; O’Neil, 2017). While sources of bias like the unintended overrepresentation of elements in an algorithm’s dataset have been well researched (Hankerson et. al, 2016; Lee, 2015), the transfer of personal prejudices onto a system remains understudied. Here I address this issue and draw from Sociological literature on organizational theory, assimilation, and colorblind ideology to develop …

Examining The Conditions Affecting The Success Of Income-Generating Activities By Refugees: A Focus On Programs Provided By Ingos In Egypt., Wesal Elkorashy

Theses and Dissertations

With the global decline in resettlement opportunities for refugees in the so-called Global North, many displaced populations are hosted in the Global South. The shift towards first asylum and transit countries often places them in environments where economic stability is often elusive, coupled with legal, social, and cultural barriers. In this challenging situation, addressing refugees' economic lives resilience, and their contribution in the overall economy of host countries becomes increasingly urgent. This is intrinsically linked to the support provided by humanitarian organizations, particularly INGOs, which play a pivotal role in implementing economic programs aimed at increasing refugees’ engagement in the …

Seeking Connection By Forsaking Self: Associations Of Autonomy And Relatedness With Self-Silencing And Emotional Fusion, Amber A. Price

Theses and Dissertations

Humans innately feel a desire for connection, but in its pursuit, some may inadvertently thwart the very connection they seek. One way this may happen is through forsaking a sense of autonomy in favor of relatedness using behaviors such as self- silencing (stifling the self to preserve a relationship) and emotional fusion (relying on validation from others). To better understand how these four variables—autonomy, relatedness, self-silencing and emotional fusion—function together, I used latent profile analysis to identify classes among US adults in long-term relationships (n = 1065). Separate classes were identified for men and women. I then used the Bolck-Croon-Hagenaars …