Digital Commons Network^™

Gridfields: Model-Driven Data Transformation In The Physical Sciences, Bill Howe

Dissertations and Theses

Scientists' ability to generate and store simulation results is outpacing their ability to analyze them via ad hoc programs. We observe that these programs exhibit an algebraic structure that can be used to facilitate reasoning and improve performance. In this dissertation, we present a formal data model that exposes this algebraic structure, then implement the model, evaluate it, and use it to express, optimize, and reason about data transformations in a variety of scientific domains.

Simulation results are defined over a logical grid structure that allows a continuous domain to be represented discretely in the computer. Existing approaches for manipulating …

Adolescent Mothers : Youth In Need Of Developmentally Appropriate Services, Patricia Arlyne Zimmerman

Dissertations and Theses

This research examines the childhood abuse and maltreatment experiences of adolescent mothers (age 14 to 17; N = 80) to investigate if these experiences have hindered their socioemotional development and consequently, their parenting behaviors and attitudes. Data were gathered using four standardized self-report instruments: the Child Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ), the Trauma Symptom Checklist for Children (TSCC), the BarOn Emotional Quotient Inventory-Youth Version (EQi-YV), and the Adult Adolescent Parenting Inventory (AAPI-2). Two additional questionnaires were developed to gather demographic and social service information to add to the knowledge base of the field, and to examine what (if any) developmentally focused services …

An Examination Of Conflict Conversation In An Online Community: The Pie Fight At Dailykos.Com, Samantha Isabella Soma

Dissertations and Theses

The increasing popularity of the social web and online communities requires the attention of researchers of conflict resolution. Although there are many ways to resolve conflict offline, the ways in which conflict takes place within a native online context have not been much studied. Are any of the tools and strategies that are used to improve communication offline used successfully online, or are some other strategies taking their place? What communication patterns occur within an online community equipped with comment moderation capabilities? This research is a case study and addressed these questions by performing a qualitative analysis of comment conversations …

Scalable Load And Store Processing In Latency Tolerant Processors, Amit Vasant Gandhi

Dissertations and Theses

Memory latency-tolerant architectures support thousands of in-flight instructions without proportionate scaling of cycle-critical processor resources, and thousands of useful instructions can complete in parallel with a long-latency miss to memory. These architectures, however, require large queues to track all loads and stores executed while a long-latency miss is pending. Hierarchical designs alleviate cycle-time impact of these structures but the Content-Addressable-Memory (CAM) and search functions required to enforce memory ordering and provide data-forwarding place high demand on area and power.

Many recent proposals address the complexity of load and store queues. However, none of these proposals addresses the fundamental source of …

Social Workers Addressing Student-Perpetrated Interpersonal Violence In The School Context : Awareness And Use Of Evidence-Supported Programs, Natalie Diane Cawood

Dissertations and Theses

Researchers have argued that there is a research-practice gap in the delivery of prevention and mental health services in the school setting. An extension of the work of Astor and his colleagues (Astor et al., 1997, 1998, 2000), this study addresses that gap by examining the extent to which evidence-supported school violence intervention programs (ESP) are known and used by school social workers, and the barriers that are related to the use of ESPs.

A cross-sectional, web-based survey was completed by 250 members of the School Social Work Association of America, the majority having an MSW as their highest degree. …

Efficient Support For Application-Specific Video Adaptation, Jie Huang

Dissertations and Theses

As video applications become more diverse, video must be adapted in different ways to meet the requirements of different applications when there are insufficient resources. In this dissertation, we address two sorts of requirements that cannot be addressed by existing video adaptation technologies: (i) accommodating large variations in resolution and (ii) collecting video effectively in a multi-hop sensor network. In addition, we also address requirements for implementing video adaptation in a sensor network.

Accommodating large variation in resolution is required by the existence of display devices with widely disparate screen sizes. Existing resolution adaptation technologies usually aim at adapting video …

Sons Providing Care At End-Of-Life : Common Threads And Nuances, Patricia Ebert

Dissertations and Theses

Family care is common in the majority of families in the United States, the primary care providers for older adult family members most often are wives, daughters or daughters-in-law. As the proportion of the oldest old continues to expand so too will the need for family careproviders. Recent demographic changes have served to deplete the pool of available caregivers. Caregiving research has naturally evolved into investigations into the experiences of women with little attention paid to the care contributions men make.

This investigation examined the perceptions of sons who served as primary caregivers for their dying elderly parents. It was …

The Fisheries Of The Lower Columbia River, 1792 To 1850, Based On Euroamerican Explorer And Fur Company Accounts, Michael A. Martin

Dissertations and Theses

The role of fish in the Native American economy of the lower Columbia River has never been considered in detail. My study focused on the Columbia River from its mouth to the Cascades and the Willamette River from its confluence with the Columbia to Willamette Falls. For this study I asked: How was salmon used? What other fish were important? Where and how were these fish taken and used?

To address these questions, I evaluated historical documents, including explorer's accounts and the administrative records of fur companies dating from the late 1700's through the 1850's. I used fishery data, physical …

Impact Of Universal Health Coverage On Health In Late Life, Nathalie Huguet

Dissertations and Theses

The growth of the elderly population is a major public concern in industrialized countries. Understanding the factors contributing to better health in late life is essential. Canadians appear to be healthier than Americans, yet concrete findings that determine whether older Canadians are healthier than older Americans are missing. The primary goal of this study is to examine the relative importance of the health care system in explaining why older Canadians may be healthier than older Americans. To achieve this goal, this study (a) assessed if older Canadians are healthier than older Americans; (b) investigated the impact of health care coverage …

The Challenges International Students Face In Adjusting To Their New Status As Graduate Students: An Exploratory Case Study, Vincent Womujuni

Dissertations and Theses

Over the last several years, the number of international students attending colleges and universities in the United States has increased substantially. While considerable time, effort, and university resources are often devoted to the recruitment of international students, it is unclear how well institutions are meeting the needs of these students. This growing number of international students requires foreign exchange professionals and university administrators to better understand the reasons why international students pursue higher education in the United States and the challenges they face.

This exploratory case study is to examine the challenges international graduate students encounter in adjusting to their …

Expanding Responsibilities And Shifting Demands: An Analysis Of The Effects Of Migration And Employment On Immigrant Women's Negotiating Power In The Household, Kerry Greer

Dissertations and Theses

This study's objective was to examine the affect that migration and employment have on immigrant women's negotiating position within the household. Depth interviews were conducted with nine women who migrated to Portland, Oregon from Ethiopia or Eritrea. Women were encouraged to share a narrative history of their migration and employment experience. These interviews were analyzed to answer three primary questions: Who are immigrant women supporting through their participation in the paid labor market? How do women utilize gain access to employment opportunities and what strategies do women use once employed to meet competing demands on them at work and in …

A Market-Based Framework For Semiconductor Industry Growth The Reduced Ecological Impart, Dawood Sulieman Abugharbieh

Dissertations and Theses

Reducing the ecological impact of industrial development is an emerging trend that affords companies the opportunity to gain competitive advantage. Semiconductor manufacturers have specifically identified ecological impact as a strategic variable that presents a long-term challenge. The socioeconomic nature of the ecological impact construct increases decision-making complexity in a manner that is not typical in business-to-business contexts. To account for social and economic aspects, this study utilized a cognitive structure-based model. Such models have been successfully utilized in consumer and industrial markets as adaptable frameworks that can encompass social and economic constructs.

This research focuses on linking two ecological constructs …

Avian Affairs: A Study Of The Occurrence And Benefits Of Extra-Pair Breeding Behavior In Eastern Kingbirds (Tyrannus Tyrannus), Amy Catherine Dolan

Dissertations and Theses

Over three consecutive breeding seasons I examined the breeding system of Eastern Kingbirds in Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in SE, Oregon. To assess genetic paternity, I optimized seven microsatellite markers and determined that extra pair paternity was common. Extra-pair young were present in approximately 60% of nests, representing 47% of young. I examined implications of extra-pair paternity from three perspectives.

First, I examined the impact of extra-pair paternity on the opportunity for sexual selection within a socially monogamous system and identified correlates of male reproductive success. Some males were successful at the expense of others, and 24% of males did …

Conceptualizing And Measuring The Self In Chronic Illness And Its Relationship To Adjustment, Jessica Marie Morea

Dissertations and Theses

This research sought to clarify the role of the self in chronic illness by developing and evaluating several new constructs, which intend to describe the extent to which illness permeates the self-concept. Following the works of Lewin and Asch, the concepts of central and peripheral regions of the self were elaborated to describe the state of illness within the self, termed "illness self-concept".

Three subsidiary constructs were introduced to further depict illness self-concept: directionality, pervasiveness, and illness self-consciousness. Directionality refers to whether illness drives the self or self drives illness. Pervasiveness refers to whether illness affects many or few regions …

Children’S Perceptions Of The Learning Environment And Aesthetic Qualities Within Their Classroom, Sheryl Reinisch

Dissertations and Theses

Primary grade children spend considerable time in elementary school classrooms. The learning environment can play a powerful role in the physical, emotional, social, and cognitive development of a child (Bredekamp & Copple, 1997). The aesthetic dimension is particularly intriguing. Studies positively link the condition of schools to student achievement and behavior (Earthman, Cash, & Van Berkum, 1995; Yarbrough, 2001). Educational literature often addresses the topic of learning environments; however, a key ingredient seems to be missing, the voices of children. If children are spending so much time in these settings, what do they notice? This study addresses the fundamental …

Exploring Interethnic Dialogue Design, Stephen Hiroshi Gilchrist

Dissertations and Theses

Dialogue is a process that can help change the culture of our organizations and communities to better respond to interpersonal and intergroup conflict. Dialogue brings people together, in a safe environment, to reflect on and transform their assumptions that are often the root cause of conflict. Deepening the understanding of interethnic dialogue and conflict resolution can have a significant effect, not only in our organizations and local communities, but in helping create a strong and vibrant democracy.

Many organizations across the United States are currently involved in organizing interethnic dialogues. Each organization has developed a unique approach to the design …

Redrawing The Color Line : A Case Study Of The Alliance Of Minority Chambers Of Commerce In Portland, Oregon, Francisca Inez Trujillo-Dalbey

Dissertations and Theses

This study focused on a minority coalition formed in 2002 to secure municipal parking lot contracts in the City of Portland, Oregon. It is grounded in Bates and Howell's (1998) theory of barriers to minority entrepreneurship. The minority group's actions are applied to Butler (1991), Prabhu (1999), and Dees' (2001) theory of social entrepreneurship. The formation of the coalition provides empirical support for Allport (195411979) and Pettigrew's (1998) positive intergroup contact theory.

The creation of minority group coalitions for community economic development purposes, using the chamber of commerce structure, adds to the community economic development literature. Further, the intercultural communication …

Early Moral Sense : Behavioral Self-Regulation, Temperament, And Prosocial Behavior In Young Children In Child-Centered Classrooms, Elizabeth Alliene Vale

Dissertations and Theses

Development of moral sense is a fundamental part of human development and the earliest manifestations of moral sense are of particular interest because it may be important to foster these behaviors early in life. However, despite many important discoveries about these moral sense behaviors over the last several decades, no consensus exists as to how these behaviors emerge and differ as a function of age.

The primary goal of the current research was to explore the development of multiple behaviors that reflect moral sense in very young children, aged 4 to 36 months. More specifically, the goals were: (1) to …

Job Insecurity And Work-Family Conflict : The Organizational, Situational, And Individual Influences On The Job Strain Process, Khatera Sahibzada

Dissertations and Theses

Globalization, new technologies, downsizing, and a shift from manufacturing to service-based economies have led to an increase in job insecurity, resulting in deleterious effects on employee work attitudes and behaviors. However, the literature has failed to examine the impact of job insecurity on work-family outcomes. Therefore, the purpose of the present study was to examine the relationship between job insecurity and work-family conflict. The specific research questions addressed were: (a) does job strain mediate the relationship between job insecurity and work-family conflict? and (b) is the relationship between job insecurity and work-family conflict moderated by individual, situational and organizational perceptions? …

Is It Just Me? Felt Hiv -Related Stigma Among Adults With Hiv, Rebecca Gila Block

Dissertations and Theses

HIV carries a significant social stigma in the United States based on the virus being contagious, incurable, visually apparent, and still somewhat mysterious to the public. People who are HIV positive, people who love them and people who work with them may all experience HIV-related stigma. The effects of HIV-related stigma vary from individual to individual; from community to community. The magnitude of feeling stigmatized and experiencing stigmatizing behaviors such as discrimination and exclusion also vary among individuals. Individuals experience stigma differently and respond to the experience in diverse ways.

The objective of this study was to explore felt HIV-related …

From "Sit And Listen" Of "Shake It Out Yourself" : Helping Urban Middle School Students To Bridge Personal Knowledge To Scientific Knowledge Through A Collaborative Environmental Justice Curriculum, Shamu Fenyvesi Sadeh

Dissertations and Theses

Science education and environmental education are not meeting the needs of marginalized communities such as urban, minority, and poor communities (Seller, 2001; U.S. Environmental Protection Agency [EPA], 1996). There exists an equity gap characterized by the racial and socioeconomic disparities in: levels of participation in scientific and environmental careers and environmental organizations (Lewis & James, 1995; Sheppard, 1995), access to appropriate environmental education programs (U.S. EPA, 1996), exposure to environmental toxins (Bullard, 1993), access to environmental amenities and legal protections (Bullard, 1993), and in grades and standardized test scores in K-12 science (Jencks & Phillips, 1998; Johnston & Viadero, 2000). …

First Impressions : A Study Of The Relationship Between Presenting Problems And Clinical Perception, Holly Elizabeth Fussell

Dissertations and Theses

Processes involved in clinical perception typically result in tangible outcomes of interest to clients and practitioners (e.g., diagnoses). In developing an overall impression of clients, practitioners integrate information related to target problems clients present. Substance abuse counselors, in particular, are increasingly being asked to assess clients for co-occurring problems. Domestic violence has been identified as a particularly salient co-occurring problem associated with substance abuse.

This dissertation draws on theory by Solomon Asch (1946, 1952) to examine how presenting problems such as domestic violence shape clinical outcomes and processes in substance abuse assessment interviews. Most clinical interactions occur, however, under confidential …

The Interactions Between Carbon Regulation And Renewable Energy Policies In The United Kingdom, Hal Thomas Nelson

Dissertations and Theses

The power sector is experiencing profound changes worldwide as policies are enacted to address the linkages between energy use and environmental degradation, as well as improve energy security and local economic development outcomes. This research examines the carbon dioxide (CO2) cap and the renewable energy quota in the United Kingdom's power sector using a constrained optimization model of the U.K. electricity grid. Scenarios simulate the dynamic nature of the supply curve for CO2 mitigation based on the availability of nuclear technologies, energy efficiency investments, fossil fuel prices, and access to emissions reductions from the EU CO2 Cap.

The analysis shows …

Presidential Values : Implications For Foreign Policy, Jordan Katherine Durbin

Dissertations and Theses

Highlighting presidential values brings to center stage the leadership dimension of foreign policy. Because values play an instrumental role in the policy process, understanding the dominant values of powerful leaders is crucial to sustaining democracy at its most basic level. An empirical study of public statements on Iraq by Presidents Bush, Clinton, and W. Bush from August 2, 1990, the date Iraq invaded Kuwait, through March 19, 2003 provides the data for analysis. Combining Lasswell's theory of political values and dictionary construct based on the language of values provides an analytical tool to minimize influence of political ideology and researcher …

Interpersonal Sensitivity And Information Sharing During Layoffs : Implications For Job Seekers, Rainer Seitz

Dissertations and Theses

Layoffs have become an increasingly common cost reduction strategy implemented by organizations. In addition to affecting those who lose their jobs or remain with the organization after a reduction, layoffs may also affect individuals outside the organization. A systems perspective on layoffs takes into account the various stakeholders who are affected by such an action beyond those traditionally studied. Job applicants are one group of stakeholders for which research on the implications of layoffs is lacking. The purpose of this dissertation was to examine the specific organizational justice factors of interpersonal sensitivity and information sharing in a layoff and their …

Unfinished Journeys : Elder Learners In An Assisted Living Facility, Suzanne RenéE Simon

Dissertations and Theses

While multiple learning opportunities exist as the aging experience unfolds, elders facing some of the most complex physical and emotional challenges are often perceived as "too old to learn." For those living in long-term care facilities (LTC), lack of consideration as learners hinders numerous opportunities for growth. However, within the contexts of aging and learning, an attempt to understand elders as becoming and conceptualize them as learners might better serve their experience in long-term care.

The purpose of this study was to record notions about learning by capturing individual voices and shared meanings of a group of assisted living facility …

Social Regulatory Policy : A Challenge To Federalism, Kimberly Janet Russell

Dissertations and Theses

Access to assisted suicide has been the center of a federal standoff between Congress and the state of Oregon since 1998, but few academic papers on American federalism acknowledge this development. Through the initiative and referendum process, Oregonians gave themselves the right to assisted suicide in 1998. Congress reacted immediately, attempting to overturn the Oregon law with national legislation. By historical and constitutional precedent states control issues related to events of daily life such as birth, death, marriage, and healthcare issues. In reality, Congress has entered the arena of moral policymaking and protection under the Tenth Amendment is unreliable. The …

Examining The Effects Of Transit Service On Commuting Mode Choice And Residential Location Choice, Jaturapat Bhiromkaew

Dissertations and Theses

Empirical studies on the link between land use characteristics and travel behavior may generate biased estimates when the choice of residential locations is influenced by mode preference (i.e., residential self-selection). Without appropriately addressing this matter, the effects of land use characteristics on travel behavior may be overestimated. This study aims specifically to address the residential self-selection problem related to transit service. It also aims to take into account the effects of density and transit service at the origin and destination on mode choice because the level of transit service is often correlated with density. Mode choice effects associated with density …

Nonlinear Dynamics Derived From The Oxyhalogen Oxidation Of Selected Organosulfur Compounds, Edward Chickwana

Dissertations and Theses

Structure, stability, kinetics and mechanisms of oxidation of some physiologically important organosulfur compounds were studied and the results obtained show that oxidation occurs mainly at the reactive sulfur center of the molecules. These results not only display the usual S-oxygenation pathways that have been observed with most thiocarbamides, but also show dimerization and cyclization.

The oxidation of guanylthiourea, GTU, was studied in the presence of mildly acidic iodate and the strong oxidants bromate and bromine. The GTU reaction dynamics with iodate show clock reaction characteristics and oligooscillatory formation of iodine both in excess oxidant and reductant. The major oxidation product …

Oregon's Approach To Health Care Reform : An Analysis Of The Role Of The Business Community In The Evolution Of The Oregon Health Plan, Peter Chuka Olemgbe

Dissertations and Theses

On February 1, 1994, the state of Oregon implemented its landmark health reform legislation---the Oregon health plan. The plan was conceived as an insurance program which uses a prioritized list of treatment protocols to ration health care services to Oregon's poor residents.

During the planning and implementation process of the program, various groups (political stakeholders) participated to bring the program to fruition. Although it is commonly known that one of these stakeholders was the Oregon business community, it is not clear what form its participation took and the nature of its influence. While it is generally assumed that businesses are …