Digital Commons Network^™

Executive Functioning In The Context Of Urban Poverty: An Examination Of Poverty Related Stress And Its Relationships To Academic Achievement, Jacquelyn L. Doxie

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Living in urban poverty has been linked to numerous negative conditions that disproportionately expose low-income urban youth and their families to severe and chronic stressors (Collins et al., 2010; DeNavas-Walt, Proctor, and Smith, 2012; Sznitman, Reisel, and Romer, 2011). Research has consistently shown a strong relationship between these stressors and numerous negative outcomes that can impact an adolescent emotionally, behaviorally, and academically (Conger et al., 2002). This dissertation is focused on the area of academic achievement, an outcome consistently found to be negatively impacted by poverty (Rouse and Fantuzzo, 2009). Based on Bronfenbrenner’s model of bio-ecological human development (Bronfenbrenner and …

Social Support And The Role Of Housing For Homeless Families Involved In The Child Welfare System, Saidah Chambers

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

The present study investigates the impact of a housing intervention for homeless families involved in the child welfare system on social support and their networks. Qualitative methods were employed in a randomized control trial of a housing intervention to examine the meaning of social support ±rom the perspective of caregivers while exploring the relation between instrumental support (e.g. advice, emotional support, and perceived support), family roles, decision making processes, and housing. Findings suggest little difference in families' perceptions of social support regardless of receiving a housing voucher; however, differences between doubled up housing arrangements and independently housed families may be …

The Cross Cultural Examination Of A Brief Autism Diagnostic Interview (Adi-R) In Korea And The United States, Elizabeth Lally Daley

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Autism is the fastest growing developmental disability in the United States; as many as 1 in 88 individuals have been identified with an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], 2010). Although scientists are working on understanding how many people in the population have autism, there is a limited amount of focus on the identification of any cultural factors that may influence people’s understanding about autism, attitudes about autism, and reporting of symptoms. The accepted methods for diagnosing autism are the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS) and the Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised (ADI-R). This study seeks to …

Manifestations Of Traumatic Stress Among Adolescent Girls In Post-Conflict Northern Uganda, Tiamo Katsonga-Phiri

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

This study examines manifestations of mental health concerns in response to Gender Based Violence (GBV) specifically rape in a Non-western post-conflict setting. The population is a sample of girls aged 13-18 years residing in an Internally Displaced Person’s camp in Northern Uganda. Through semi-structured interviews, the girls shared their experiences of Gender Based Violence. Using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis, 30 transcripts were analyzed to explore what these girls’ experiences have been with regard to rape, mental health and cultural and contextual stressors. Findings show that the girls described experiencing symptoms similar to those outlined in the DSM. Additionally, the girls described …

Black Actresses In American Films: A History And Critical Analysis Of The Mammy/Maid Character, Valerie Coleman

College of Liberal Arts & Social Sciences Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines the history of the stereotypical mammy/maid characters in American films. The analysis serves to show the ongoing racialized casting of black women in domestic roles for over a century. Equally important, the analysis includes a discussion of how the black actresses who performed these roles thought about and negotiated them. The actresses themselves faced much criticism for their participation in and contributions to racial stereotyping, and this thesis seeks to show how these actresses understood and responded to such critiques.

Tanzania Post-Colonial Educational System And Perspectives On Secondary Science Education, Pedagogy, And Curriculum: A Qualitative Study, Eugenia Lucas Wandela

College of Education Theses and Dissertations

The development of technology and innovation in any country depends on a strong investment in science education from the lower to the upper levels of education. In most of the Sub-Saharan African nations, science education curriculum and teaching still faces many issues and problems that are inhibiting the growth of technology and innovation in these nations. In order to address these issues, an interpretive qualitative study that aims to examine how Tanzanian secondary science educators perceive secondary science education was conducted in the summer of 2013. The purpose of this study is to investigate problems and educational issues that might …

An Ethnography Of Voice(S) In The School House: Making Sense Of Girl World, Julie Devaud

College of Education Theses and Dissertations

The life of a gifted adolescent girl both in and out of the schoolhouse is dynamic and complicated. This qualitative study, using the methodology of narrative inquiry and multiple interviews, examines how these young women make sense of their lives as they move quickly towards the socialization of womanhood. This study specifically examines which factors lead to their academic success in the schoolhouse and personal success as happy individuals. Using grounded theory and a critical feminist perspective as my framework for analysis, I found the support of family, teachers, and peers was critical. I also discerned four distinct themes among …

Creating Futures: Transformative Involvement Experiences For Immigrant Latino Parents., María Del Carmen Aragonés Guarro

College of Education Theses and Dissertations

Despite more than half a century of debate about parental involvement in the education of children, it still remains an evolving and elusive topic. While much is written about Latino immigrants and U.S. schooling, much less is known from the parents´ perspectives. This qualitative case study explores the experiences and perspectives of immigrant parents in an early childhood Latino parent education program and the impact of this non-formal educational program on their role as parents. Theoretical lenses for this study are transformative learning (Mezirow, 1978) and popular education (Freire, 1970). Findings demonstrate that: (a) a context of isolation impacts parents´ …

Expectations Of Peace: Documentation, Memorialization, And Construction Of The Archive In Northern Uganda, Matthew Sebastian

College of Liberal Arts & Social Sciences Theses and Dissertations

This thesis considers how documentation and memorialization initiatives curate historical narratives in contemporary northern Uganda since the collapse of the Juba peace talks in 2008. Taking the collapse of political settlement as my starting point while staying attuned to the history of humanitarian activity in the region more broadly, I address how each of these initiatives produces knowledge about the war between the Government of Uganda and the Lord’s Resistance Army and its aftermath despite the lack of a formal resolution or cessation of hostilities. Based on ethnographic fieldwork conducted annually between 2009 and 2014, I argue that sites of …

Participatory Theater In Community Health, Nikki Zaleski

College of Liberal Arts & Social Sciences Theses and Dissertations

This manuscript describes the need for innovative strategies in health education through a comprehensive literature review, detail of forty-three participatory theater activities for use in a health context, and field observations of employing participatory theater activities at three different application sites. Through analysis of adolescent health research, invention of original educational methodologies, and observation of personal experience, the manuscript seeks to instill new vision and life into the field of youth sexuality education.

Get Yourself Connected: Time, Space, And Character Networks In David Mitchell's Fiction, Josh Lesser

College of Liberal Arts & Social Sciences Theses and Dissertations

This thesis explores the works of novelist David Mitchell, paying specific attention to the ways in which he uses his narratives to emulate and remediate global networks and contemporary fiction tropes. Though his novels are rarely set in the immediate present, Mitchell's creations are connected in ways that specifically evoke social networks, Internet databases and new media. He has created an insular universe through five novels, and goes out his way to show that every character is a node in a web that spans all five. Characters reappear in novels that are not otherwise related to each other, or reveal …

Trickster-Hero And Rite Of Passage: Effects Of Traditionally West African Folklore Forms On Postcolonial Afro-Caribbean Literature, Virginia Slana

College of Liberal Arts & Social Sciences Theses and Dissertations

This thesis focuses on the implied presence of African storytelling tropes and characters in postcolonial Afro-Caribbean literature. It argues that Afro-Caribbean writers deliberately utilize these tropes in order to separate themselves from a vestigial European cultural presence. The three main tropes and characters studied in this thesis are rites of passage, Trickster, and Hero. A hybrid character that embodies traits of both Trickster and Hero appears in contemporary Afro-Caribbean literature, suggesting that an African-inspired cultural hero is needed to transcend neocolonial boundaries. African-inspired rites of passage suggest that all Caribbeans of African descent should undergo both cultural and identity-related rites …

Continuity, Constellation, And Unworking: An Exploration Of Language In Nietzsche, Alicen L. Beheler

College of Liberal Arts & Social Sciences Theses and Dissertations

This project is an investigation of language in the work of Friedrich Nietzsche. The framing question is whether Nietzsche’s treatment of language as an explicit philosophical theme in published work and notes of the early 1870s is in fact only an early interest abandoned by the later work and notes in which the treatment of language as such does not assume such a central role. I suggest that if we consider language not as a unitary concept but as a constellation, a network of shifting thematic nodes, we find that language remains a chief interest throughout the Nietzschean corpus, but …

Fable, Method, And Imagination In Descartes, James E. C. Griffith

College of Liberal Arts & Social Sciences Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation traces the effects that attending to Descartes' deployment of fable have on our understanding of the Cartesian method and its conception of the imagination. Descartes must take on the task of inaugurating a break from Scholastic metaphysics and physics. Because of the limitations he sees in Scholasticism’s methods, especially in syllogisms and syntheses of previously established knowledge, Descartes frequently finds it impossible to defend his own approach to metaphysics and physics through those methods. Thus, he must find a way to establish his method without deploying it. To claim that his method is useful is not helpful in …

Gangstas, Thugs, Vikings, And Drivers: Cinematic Masculine Archetypes And The Demythologization Of Violence In The Films Of Nicolas Winding Refn, Christopher John Olson

College of Communication Master of Arts Theses

This thesis considers how the depictions of masculinity in the films of Danish director Nicolas Winding Refn function as a critique of mainstream Hollywood cinema’s perpetuation of the notion that violent male behavior represents a heroic ideal for men to emulate. In films such as Pusher, Bronson, Valhalla Rising, and Drive, Refn constructs and presents his male characters by drawing upon recurring archetypal figures such as the gangster, the gangsta, the gunslinger, and the samurai. These figures recur throughout popular culture and across genres, and they perpetuate and reinforce a specific version of masculinity that emphasizes individualism, stoicism, and violence. …

Effects Of Temporal Perceptions On Employees’ Work-Life Conflict, Eileen M. Linnabery

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Work-life conflict (WLC) occurs when an employee is unable to simultaneously fulfill the responsibilities of their home and work roles. This study attempted to understand the perceptual antecedents of employees’ WLC. Specifically, this study investigated how employees and their leaders think about time and perform their work in regard to time. The temporal perceptions of interest include time urgency, pacing, and future time perspective. Two hundred employees and their supervisors were recruited to participate in this study. Employees completed an online or in-person survey addressing how they structure their time at work, work together with their supervisor, and how their …

The Impact Of Culture And Neighborhood Context On The Mental Health Of Latino Youth, William Martinez

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Latino youth are members of an ethnic group that shares similar values, customs, beliefs, and, often, the Spanish language, that serve as protective factors for some youth. The extent to which these factors are protective across neighborhood contexts has yet to be explored. The present study adds to the literature on contextual correlates of mental health symptomatology in Latino adolescents by examining individual cultural dimensions as protective factors, and environmental risk and protective factors through the lens of the person-environment fit theory (Caplan, 1987). Specifically, the person-environment fit theory is evaluated by proposing that the fit between a Latino youth’s …

The Effects Of Physical Activity On Suicidal Ideation In Adolescents, Sydney Shepperd Smith

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines how physical activity influences suicidal ideation longitudinally in a population-based sample of adolescents in grades 7 through 12, as well as investigates potential mediating and moderating factors of this association. Physical activity has been found to be protective against depression and suicidal behaviors in various populations. Few studies have explored the relationship between physical activity and suicidal ideation in a representative sample of adolescents, and even fewer have examined this relationship prospectively. This study included measures of physical activity, self-esteem, social support, and suicidal ideation from Wave I and Wave 2 of the National Longitudinal Study of …

Preventive Mental Health As An Approach To Improving School Outcomes Among Youth: A Meta-Analytic Review, Katrina Elaine Roundfield

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Researchers, policy makers, and educators continuously seek new avenues to enhance the academic achievement of children and adolescents. This goal is particularly pressing among youth from low-income, urban backgrounds, who are at increased risk for school failure (Aud, Wilkinson-Flicker, Kristapovich, Rathbun, Wang, et al., 2011). Taking a more holistic approach to understanding academic achievement, burgeoning research has begun to focus on the mental health of the child. Preventive mental health (PMH) is a theoretically sound and effective means of reducing the incidence of mental illness among youth from varying levels of risk (Durlak & Wells, 1997; 1998; Greenberg, Domitrovich, Bumbarger, …

Examining The Pathway From Maternal Criminal Involvement To Adolescent Delinquency, Dina Chavira

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

As incarceration rates across the United States have continued to rise, there has been growing concern with the unintended consequences that have resulted. This has prompted researchers across multiple disciplines to study the effects of incarceration at the individual, family, community, and societal levels. An important but overlooked factor pertains to extensive multiple social service agency involvement and missed opportunities for intervention. Families involved with the criminal justice system (CJS) are often at risk of involvement with other human service agencies, one agency being the child welfare system (CWS). Little is known about families who fall within these two systems, …

Roles Of Retinoic Acid And Cyp26 Inhibitors In Ovarian Follicle Development, Shruti M. Kamath

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

The ovaries are the female reproductive organs that are located on either side of the uterus. They contain eggs and secrete hormones that are critical for female reproduction. Each follicle consists of an egg at the center, surrounded by multiple layers of somatic cells. These eggs undergo various stages of development wherein the follicular structure matures as a whole; the hormones and growth factors secreted by the somatic cells are essential for the maturation of the egg while the signaling molecules produced by the egg are crucial for somatic cell proliferation and follicle maturation and development.

Thus, mammalian ovarian follicle …

Parenting Dimensions And Internalizing Symptoms Among Low-Income Latino Adolescents: Cultural Values As Moderators, Crystalia Sulaiman

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Among ethnic minority youth, Latino adolescents disproportionately report higher levels of depression and anxiety than their peers of other ethnic backgrounds. The purpose of the present study is to better understand the familial and sociocultural factors that impact mental health among Latino adolescents. Specifically, the present study examines how youth cultural values (i.e., family obligation and affiliative obedience) moderate the relation between parenting dimensions (i.e., parental acceptance and parental psychological control) and youth internalizing symptoms (i.e., depression and anxiety) cross-sectionally and longitudinally. Latino adolescents (n = 115) from a Chicago public school categorized as "lowincome" participated in a survey and …

Synthesis And Analysis Of Novel Copolymers Of Methyl 2-­‐Cyano-­‐3-­‐Phenyl-­‐2-­‐Propenoates With Styrene, Sonia Elena Chavez

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Electrophilic trisubstituted ethylenes, ring-substituted methyl 2-cyano-3-phenyl-2-propenoates, RPhCH=C(CN)CO₂CH₃ (where R is 2-CH₃CO, 3-CH₃CO, 2-CN, 4-N(CH₃)₂, 4-N(C₂H₃)₂, 2-I, 4-I, 3-I-4-OCH₃, 5-I-2-OCH₃, 2,5-Br₂, 3,5-Br₂), were prepared and copolymerized with styrene. The monomers were synthesized by the piperidine catalyzed Knoevenagel condensation of ring-substituted benzaldehydes and methyl cyanoacetate, and characterized by CHN elemental analysis, IR, ¹H- and ¹³C-NMR. All the ethylenes were copolymerized with styrene (M₁) in solution at 70 °C, using 1,1-azobis(cyclohexanecarbonitrile) as a radical …

Don’T Remind Me: Part-Set Cuing Inhibits Consumers Prospective Memory When Reviewing Home Loan Terms, Mark Alexander Leboeuf

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Three experiments examined whether part-set cuing effects might impair consumers’ abilities to remember to check loan attributes on a home-loan disclosure form. In part-set cuing effects, memory is typically impaired when a subset of previously learned items are offered as cues to aid subsequent recall. Participants studied a list of loan attributes to check when they subsequently reviewed a home-loan disclosure form. Results indicated that participants cued immediately prior to reviewing the form remembered to check (visually fixated) a lower percentage of non-cued attributes relative to those presented with no cues (Experiments 1 – 3). The magnitude of impairment increased …

The Psychological Well-Being Of Divorced Fathers: A Theoretical Model And Projection, Todd Lawrence Bottom

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

The U.S. divorce rate increased substantially from WWII until the 1980's. Although the number of divorces decreased marginally in the past decade, the number of marriages also decreased, causing the divorce rate to remain nearly unchanged from 2000 to 2010. The most frequently cited negative effect of divorce and separation is perhaps the loss of father-child contact, although little research was dedicated to understanding the post-divorce outcomes of fathers - especially with regard to their long-term outcomes. The present study assessed how several factors (e.g. parenting decisions, custody status, parenting efficacy, and parenting encouragement) influenced divorced fathers' psychological well-being. Results …

Sexy But Not Sexual: An Examination Of The Sexual Narratives Of African American Adolescent Females, April Timmons

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Much of the research on sexuality during adolescence has focused on the potential negative sequelae of adolescent sexual behavior such as STI acquisition or teenage pregnancy. Researchers have begun to advocate for examining adolescent sexuality as a normative aspect of adolescent development. One aspect of this examination would be to form a more complete understanding of how adolescents develop their sexual identity – their conceptualization of themselves as a sexual being. Erickson’s (1968) identity development theory asserts that identity is developed internally and shaped by the social environment.

Development of a healthy sexual identity may be particularly difficult for African …

Transplantation Of Neurospheres Derived From Genetically Modified Adult Bone Marrow Stromal Cells Following A Controlled Cortical Impact (Cci): Effects On Transplant Survival And Behavioral Recovery, Austin M. Favory

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) affects thousands of individuals annually who have limited options for treatment. The use of mesenchymal stem cells derived from bone marrow (BMSC) has therapeutic potential, free from ethical ramifications. Previous transplant studies have grafted naive BMSCs into injured brain tissue or infused them intraventricularly (i.v.) with varying results (Bonilla 2012, Osani 2012, Bakhitany 2010, Li 2009).. In this study, we transplanted Notch-induced rat BMSCs (BMSC-NICD) with properties of neuroprogenitor-like cells, into the rat controlled cortical impact (CCI) model of TBI. Adult rat BMSC were harvested from femur and tibia of adult Fischer 344 rats. These cells …

The Influence Of Verbal Assurances And Intrapersonal Empowerment Traits On Contract Signing Behaviors, Jasmine N. Ahmad

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines the acceptance of nonsense explanations in a contract signing scenario. Based on review of literature in contract signing behaviors, trust, social scripts, and empowerment, it is hypothesized that low status groups would be more likely to adhere to social scripts and sign problematic contracts. However, participants would be less likely to sign problematic contracts and accept senseless explanations if they are empowered. Accordingly, groups with lower status and low scores in empowerment were predicted to be more likely to sign a problematic contract than those with low status and high empowerment. Two studies test these hypotheses. The …

The Mediating Effects Of Transformational Leadership On Leader Goal Orientation And Team Performance, Tyree D. Mitchell

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Transformational leaders are capable of elevating individual and unit performance by articulating a compelling vision, explaining how the vision can be attained, and expressing confidence in team members and followers. Despite the abundance of research on the effects of transformational leadership behavior on organizational outcomes, research regarding the antecedents of such behavior is limited. Drawing on goal orientation theory, this research examined the leader’s goal orientation, specifically state learning-approach and state performance-avoid goal orientation, as precursors of transformational leadership behaviors, leader effectiveness, and team performance. The relationship between leader state goal orientation and outcomes (i.e., team performance and leader effectiveness) …

Social Identity And Wellness Of People Who Have Acquired Physical Disability: What Is The Role Of Social Support?, Katherine S. Ong

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

The degree to which individual members of social minority groups identify with their stigmatized ingroup vary—some closely identify whereas others distance themselves from it as a byproduct of stigmatization. Research findings are mixed in regard to whether group identity influences well-being. One reason is that the relationship may be obscured by other factors. This study sought to clarify the mechanism by which group minority identity relates to health through social support. To assess the linkages among the three variables, individuals with acquired physical disabilities were surveyed. The study of disability identity is of import because, first, it may predict health …