Digital Commons Network^™

Sexual Behavior And Substance Use Among Women Across The Spectrum Of Sexual Orientation, Margaret M. Wolff

Dissertations and Theses

Background: Compared to non-sexual minority women, sexual minority women are at greater risk for substance use and abuse, sexual risk behaviors, and unplanned teen pregnancy; few studies measure differing associations by sexual orientation (e.g., identity, behavior, attraction) or discordance (e.g., heterosexually-identified women with female partners) components. Minority stress may explain sexual minority women’s health disparities; thus, as U.S. policies evolve to reflect growing acceptance of all sexual minorities, research should examine sexual minority women’s health risk behaviors using multidimensional constructs of sexual orientation.

Methods: Using the female sample of the 2002-2013 National Survey of Family Growth (Aims 1-2 n=25,523; …

Community Schools: A Public Health Opportunity, Catherine Diamond

Dissertations and Theses

Community schools link students, families, and communities to educate children and strengthen neighborhoods. They have become a popular model for education in many U.S. cities in part because they build on community assets and address multiple determinants of educational disadvantage. Since community schools seek to have an impact on populations, not just the students enrolled, they provide an opportunity to improve community health. It has been proposed that community schools influence the health and education of the area residents through three pathways: building trust, establishing norms, and linking people to networks and services. However, no research has been published exploring …

An Evaluation Of The Effect Of Abortion Laws On The Timing Of Abortion, Elizabeth Fuentes

Dissertations and Theses

A record number of restrictive abortion laws, particularly those known as Targeted Regulation of Abortion Providers (TRAP), have been passed in US states in the past half-decade. TRAP laws differ from abortion laws that target patients, such as parental involvement and waiting period policies, because they are often expensive, difficult, or impossible for providers to comply with, resulting in the reduction or elimination of abortion services. This can result in farther travel to and higher costs of abortion services for patients; however, there are no studies assessing whether one consequence of reduced geographic accessibility of abortion services is delays in …

Patient And Family Engagement In Addressing Hospital Patient Safety Concerns: Experiences, Attitudes And Patient Safety Engagement Comfort Levels Of Recently Hospitalized Patients, Catherine M. Besthoff

Dissertations and Theses

Introduction

Patient engagement involves the behaviors of patients, family members, and health professionals (i.e., doctors, nurses, and other healthcare staff) in a collaborative partnership to improve health and healthcare. It also constitutes organizational structures policies and procedures designed to foster and promote the active inclusion of patients and family members in health services delivery. Patient engagement is associated with enriched patient experience, patient safety and clinical effectiveness. An evidence base is essential for its translation from a conceptual framework to tangible programs that can be pragmatically implemented in healthcare delivery systems. However, little is known about how individual level factors, …

"Sociocultural Predictors Of Risky Sexual Behaviors: 1 The Role Of Nativity Status, Race, Ethnic Identity And Self-Construal", Elvine B. Andjembe

Dissertations and Theses

Recent national health reports have shown that despite a considerable increase in sexual health knowledge, risky sexual behaviors’ rates among the youth are on the rise. Minorities are disproportionately affected, which translates into strong racial disparities in health outcomes such as STI/STDs, and HIV prevalence. The literature examining ethnic differences in health behaviors has studied ethnic identity (self-identification with and commitment to the values of one’s ethnic group) as a protective factor against an array of maladaptive behaviors. In addition, self-construal, which refers to the extent to which one is individualistic or collectivistic has also been established as a positive …

The Incongruence Of Development Assistance: An Overview Of World Bank Policies, Elizabeth Garcia-Polanco

Dissertations and Theses

In post-conflict countries were instability has intensified, it becomes apparent how inadequate development assistance can be and why even after large sum of investments development assistance has not been able to completely alleviate poverty. For agencies like the World Bank that provide first hand assistance, we question whether there are prerequisites needed in order for their policies to be effective and whether these policies are targeting the core reasons for the countries’ poverty dilemma. African countries continue to hold intricate predicaments that may at times be too complicated to be analyzed without sufficient resources provided by the international community. While …

Epistemic Communities And Proliferation: The Implications Of Nuclear Knowledge, David Ayar Roze

Dissertations and Theses

How do epistemic communities facilitate nuclear proliferation? The nuclear nonproliferation regime contains numerous actors exerting varying levels of influence on policy outcomes and state behavior. Neoliberal institutional theory emphasizes the role of sub-national groups play in forming policy preferences; one under-researched group is epistemic communities. Existing literature tends to consider only the nonproliferation action of epistemic communities, however this study aims to examine how these communities can facilitate and lower the cost of undertaking nuclear weaponization, effectively encouraging proliferation. It is especially ironic that the literature has ignored the facilitation effect, given that America’s decision to investigate nuclear weapons began …

What Accounts For The Success Of New Ethnically Based Parties In Latin America And The Rise Of Ethnopopulism: – A Comparative Study Between Ecuador, Bolivia And Peru, Monica M. Orellana

Dissertations and Theses

No abstract provided.

Short Story Long: Towards A Poetics Of The Novel Stories, Sarah Meyer

Dissertations and Theses

No abstract provided.

Ultrahigh Field Magnetic Resonance Imaging – Technical Development And Translational Applications, Judy Alper

Dissertations and Theses

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) may be used to provide detailed images of the human body with excellent soft tissue contrast. Alongside its current widespread clinical applications for diagnosis and treatment, MRI allows researchers to measure structure and function of different tissue types in order to advance our understanding of human biology and enable new medical applications of MRI. In particular, diseases affecting nerves and vessels, such as trigeminal neuralgia, with uncertain etiology can be studied using multiple MRI modalities so that treatment planning can we more effective and patient outcomes can be improved. Ultrahigh field MRI scanners, such as those …

Change And Continuity: Turkish Foreign Policy Since 2002, Under The Justice And Development Party (Adalet Ve Kalkinma Partisi - Akp), Ustun Yuksel

Dissertations and Theses

This thesis analyzes the changes and continuity within Turkish foreign policy since 2002, under the Justice and Development Party (Adalet ve Kalkinma Partisi - AKP). In order to understand modern Turkish politics, it is important to realize Turkey’s aspirations of becoming a full member of the European Union and its subsequent push for strategic alliances with the Middle East and former Turkic republics from the Soviet Union. The evidence shows that Turkey has consistently strived to improve its relationship with the EU in its effort to become a full member state, but the EU’s reluctance to accept Turkey as an …

Improving Medicare & Medicaid Reimbursement Framework For Molecular Diagnostics Tests Using Gene Sequencing: A Case Study In Health Economics, Advait Apte

Dissertations and Theses

Breast cancer is the second leading cause of deaths among women, as about one in eight women in the US will develop invasive breast cancer during their lifetime. After the diagnosis of breast cancer, chemotherapy is the commonly prescribed first line of treatment. In the recent past, research has shown that molecular diagnostic tests have revealed that about 20% of the tumors carry the HER-2 mutation on cell surface, which can be treated with the drug Herceptin, or trastuzumab, improving cancer free survival rates from 71.9% to 84.2% in five years. However, in spite of the observed increase in survival …

The Influence Of Running Extreme Obstacle Courses On Positive Affect, Character Strengths, And Well-Being, Ewa Opala

Dissertations and Theses

A large body of research demonstrates the positive benefits of numerous types of physical activity. However, the outcomes of running extreme obstacle courses (EOCs) remain unexamined. The aim of the present study was to explore the influence of running EOCs on positive affect, character strengths and well-being. The study utilized a pre-existing sample of 21 participants who filled out an online survey at two time points (pre-and-post race). The findings showed that participating in an EOC was related to increased positive affect (PA) and psychological well-being. Running an EOC with a team was associated with increased post-race teamwork and the …

From Tulsa To Ferguson: Redefining Race Riots And Racialized Violence, Hesley R. Keenan

Dissertations and Theses

No abstract provided.

A Bill Of Goods: How Advertisers Sold The Great War, And Created The Lost Generation, Adam Poltrack

Dissertations and Theses

No abstract provided.

"Voices At The Crossroads: East Indian Women, Grass-Root Culture, And The Power Of Becoming", Rufena Watson

Dissertations and Theses

No abstract provided.

The Revolt, Donald Mccarthy

Dissertations and Theses

No abstract provided.

Not Black Or White, Lori Balaban

Dissertations and Theses

No abstract provided.

"Language Preference And Cognitive Availability Of Sexual Identity In Gay Japanese Bilinguals: An Analysis Of Habitual Use Of Linguistic Categories", Sebastian Cordoba

Dissertations and Theses

Sexuality is a very private matter in Japan. Japan’s cultural mores and concepts of family unity have led to very conservative attitudes toward homosexuality. For instance, gay people generally fear disgracing their families, and this fear might prevent them from revealing their sexual identity to others, and so keeping it secret. Thus, homosexuality in Japan is a highly controversial topic. Being gay in Japan is not as tolerated as it is in some Western cultures (McLelland, 2000). Homosexuality is an issue that is not acknowledged by mainstream Japanese society – it is taboo and not spoken about publicly. The present …

Hedonia And Eudaimonia: Associations With Academic Success, Wellbeing, And Neuropsychological Functioning, Maria Kryza-Lacombe

Dissertations and Theses

This study examined the relations between happiness and academic success and wellbeing in a diverse, urban college sample by viewing happiness through the lens of hedonia (seeking pleasure and relaxation) and eudaimonia (seeking meaning), and their neuropsychological correlates. Undergraduate students (n=76; 68.4% female; mean age [SD]=21.17 [3.12]) completed self-report measures of hedonia and eudaimonia, and depression, anxiety, and stress. They also completed objective measures of “cool” executive functioning (WAIS-IV Digit Span, Stroop Color-Word test, Wisconsin Card Sorting Task, and a Stop Signal task) and “hot” executive functioning (Iowa Gambling Task, Temporal Discounting Task). Semester GPA was collected from school records. …

The European Union At Stake? A Comparative Analysis On The Dimensions Of Eu Decisionmaking In Crisis Settings, Franziska Kipp

Dissertations and Theses

This thesis examines how the EU as an international organization deals with international crisis situations by looking at its functions and imperfections in its decision-making process. Drawing from theoretical organization theory insights, particularly realism and constructivism, as well as empirical findings derived from two case studies, the goal if this study is to identify the dimensions of crises and find an answer to the question which factors influence decisions on crisis management. The Eurozone crisis and the Refugee crisis serve as case studies to investigate the narrative of crises in order to explain process outcomes. In both case studies I …

The Effects Of Grameen-Model Microfinance Institutions And Self-Help Group Microfinance On Women’S Economic Empowerment In Rural India, Forrest Weaver

Dissertations and Theses

Women in rural India suffer from pervasive gender inequality and disempowerment. One road to equality is economic empowerment through microfinance. Economic empowerment consists of an increase in savings, income, ownership of property or a microenterprise, and access to social services and training. I compile studies of two most common types of microfinance models used in India in order to determine if there is a general trend indicating that microfinance as a whole has a positive impact on women’s economic empowerment. The two types of microfinance examined are Grameen-model microfinance institutions (MFIs) and Self-Help groups (SHGs) through the SHG-Bank linkage model. …

Globalization, Tourism And Sustainable Development: The Multifaceted Impact Of Tourism On Development And Poverty Alleviation In Brazil, Gaëlle Lopes Saraiva

Dissertations and Theses

Globalization is a popular concept deeply embedded in our era that represents the widespread intensification of transnational connections emblematic of this century. In general, this study aims to clarify the contradictory effects globalization exerts on development by specifically analyzing the particular impact of tourism in the emerging economy of Brazil. It is argued that the unequal distribution of tourism activities between urban and rural areas, and the prevalence of specific sizes and types of tourism are the main factors involved in sustaining unequal patterns of development across the country. The study concludes that public-private partnerships in tourism should prioritize the …

Revised Distributional Estimates For The Recently Discovered Olinguito (Bassaricyon Neblina), Using Museum And Science Records, Beth E. Gerstner

Dissertations and Theses

In the context of global change, a necessary first step for the conservation of species is gaining a good understanding of their distributional limits. This is especially important for biodiversity hotspots with high endemism such as the Northern Andes. The olinguito (Procyonidae: Bassaricyon neblina) is a recently described, medium-sized carnivoran found in Northern Andean cloud forests. A preliminary distributional model was published along with the original description, and I here provide revised distributional estimates using updated locality records and more current ENM methods. I build ecological niche models in Maxent using occurrence data (georeferenced museum records and citizen science-derived photo-vouchers) …

Analyzing Evapotranspiration In The Tropical Montane Cloud Forest At Sierra De Bahoruco, Dominican Republic, Emmanuel Rodriguez-Gonzalez

Dissertations and Theses

Lake Enriquillo is located in the southwestern extreme of Dominican Republic and has been experiencing a rapid expansion in surface area, along with other water bodies in the same region, since 2004 causing major flooding to the surrounding agricultural and cattle-raising lands, infrastructure and communities. Understanding why the lake is expanding at such rapid rate and accurately forecast how they will behave in the future is the main goal of The Hispaniola Lakes Project. The purpose of this project is to investigate the effects that hydrometeorological drivers are having on the forested areas located in Sierra de Bahoruco, which is …

The Relationship Between Childhood Trauma And Paranoid Personality Disorder Symptoms, Ayse Arikan

Dissertations and Theses

Background: Recent literature consistently shows a relationship between childhood trauma (CT) and personality pathology. History of childhood abuse leads to severe loss of trust. This loss of trust in early years is a strong predictor of the majority of personality disorders and is related to several problems in adulthood such as insecure attachment and distrust in interpersonal relationships. Although distrust is the key diagnostic component of Paranoid PD (PPD), empirical research mostly focused on borderline personality disorder (BPD) yielding limited information about PPD regarding its development and potential risk factors. This study has two aims. First is to examine the …

Vehicle Engine Classification Using Of Laser Vibrometry Feature Extraction, Chi Him Liu

Dissertations and Theses

Used as a non-invasive and remote sensor, the laser Doppler vibrometer (LDV) has been used in many different applications, such as inspection of aircrafts, bridge and structure and remote voice acquisition. However, using LDV as a vehicle surveillance device has not been feasible due to the lack of systematic investigations on its behavioral properties. In this thesis, the LDV data from different vehicles are examined and features are extracted. A tone-pitch indexing (TPI) scheme is developed to classify different vehicles by exploiting the engine’s periodic vibrations that are transferred throughout the vehicle’s body. Using the TPI with a two-layer feed-forward …

Bodies On The Line: Border Crossing In The Fiction Of Ernest Hemingway And Salman Rushdie, Rachel Northrop

Dissertations and Theses

No abstract provided.

Why John Stuart Mill Cannot Dismiss The Poet Of Culture, Nelson Tuero

Dissertations and Theses

No abstract provided.

Desecularization Of The State As A Resistance To The Globalization: A Case Study Of The Criminalization Of Blasphemy In Russia., Artem Profis

Dissertations and Theses

A cultural aspect of westernization remains in the shadow of widely discussed economic and political ones. While many states are conforming to the Western rules of the global market game, the cultural characteristics and differences are less mutable and thus less easily compromised and resolved than political and economic ones. The dissolution of the U.S.S.R. has left behind a void in the Russian identity. After unsuccessful attempts to assume a Western liberal identity during the first half of the 90s, Russia has opted for tried and tested Orthodox Christianity to fill that void and to form a new post-Soviet Russian …