Digital Commons Network^™

Decision-Making Culture And Change: Toward Democratic Equity And Inclusion, Dale Francis

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation is a study of challenges to the development of democratic equity and inclusion in administration. It examines Woodrow Wilson’s and the 1968 Minnowbrook Conference participants’ thoughts about public administration in environments of political constraint and crisis. The study consists of four essays. Essay 1 is an overview of Wilson’s concerns for the development of administration and thoughts on a prescribed role for the study. Essay 2 presents an overview of the Minnowbrook Conference concerns, including the traditional political rationality. Essay 3 surveys contemporary equity and inclusion literature and assesses the linkages to the ideas of Wilson and the …

Integrating Cultural Knowledge Into Artificially Intelligent Systems: Human Experiments And Computational Implementations, Anurag Acharya

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

With the advancement of Artificial Intelligence, it seems as if every aspect of our lives is impacted by AI in one way or the other. As AI is used for everything from driving vehicles to criminal justice, it becomes crucial that it overcome any biases that might hinder its fair application. We are constantly trying to make AI be more like humans. But most AI systems so far fail to address one of the main aspects of humanity: our culture and the differences between cultures. We cannot truly consider AI to have understood human reasoning without understanding culture. So it …

Communicating With Culture: How Humans And Machines Detect Narrative Elements, Wolfgang Victor H. Yarlott

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

To understand how people communicate, we must understand how they leverage shared stories and all the knowledge, information, and associations contained within those stories. I examine three classes of narrative elements that convey a wealth of cultural knowledge: Propp's morphology, motifs, and discourse structure. Propp's morphology communicates how roles and actions drive a narrative forward; motifs fill those roles and actions with specific, remarkable events; discourse groups these into a coherent structure to convey a point.

My thesis has three aims: first, to demonstrate that people can reliably detect and identify all three of these narrative elements; second, to develop …

Examining The Role Of Knowledge And Cultural Values On Utilization Of Mammograms Among A Sample Of Saudi Women, Afrah Saif

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Breast cancer is the most frequent malignant tumor that threatens the lives of women globally. In Saudi Arabia, breast cancer incidence was observed among younger and premenopausal women due to diagnosis at advanced stages. The late diagnosis results in poor prognosis and poor outcomes. The survival rates in Saudi women with breast cancer are low. This can be attributed to several reasons such as lack of knowledge and barriers embedded in cultural values. However, low rates of breast cancer screening account for the increasing number of breast cancer detected at much higher stages in Saudi Arabia and resulting deaths, making …

Drivers Of Extracellular Polysaccharide Production By A Mat-Forming Diatom, Kaitlin A. Stansbury

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Microbial biofilms are held together by extracellular polymeric substances (EPS), which can be secreted by many organisms. EPS production can facilitate intercellular communication and inter-guild microbial mutualisms, intraspecific gamete exchange, nutrient sequestration, and desiccation resistance. Benthic microbial mats (periphyton) of the Florida Everglades and other karstic wetlands contain abundant EPS generated by mat-producing filamentous blue-green algae and many other species of mat-dwelling algae, cyanobacteria, and bacteria, including the most abundant Everglades diatom, Mastagloia calcarea. The benthic diatom genus Mastogloia is characterized by several morphological and physiological features that foster production of a ‘halo’ of EPS around the frustule, but the …

Culture And Context's Influence On Hispanic Undergraduates' Perceptions Of Their Persistence Toward Stem Degree Attainment, Elsa I. Bravo

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation examines the influences of context and culture on Hispanic undergraduate’s in the STEM pipeline. Study one utilized systematic review methods to assess the effectiveness of STEM intervention programs on Hispanic undergraduates. A total of 45 STEM related databases were searched from March-September 2020 with no limitations. Although a total of 259 studies were identified, only one study was actually found to specifically focus on Hispanic populations and include empirically based evaluations. The one remaining study did not find a statistically significant intervention effect for four- year graduation rates. The lack of evidence highlights a gap in research or …

Understanding The Cultural Factors To Build Innovation In Organizations, Ranjeet Deshmukh Fiu

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Radical innovation is the key for organizations to reinvent themselves and becoming successful in competitive international markets. Compared to other types of innovation such as incremental which focuses on customers’ immediate needs, radical innovation offers a company unprecedented customer benefits and the ability to create new businesses and markets. Research from literature has shown that cultural factors play an important role in the successful integration of radical innovation efforts. Using the Adhocracy and Market Orientation components within the Competing Values Framework, I developed a testable model of the relationship between cultural factors and radical innovation. The study involved 4 constructs …

French Muslim Youth’S Perception Of Their Cultural Identity In A Post-Charlie Hebdo Reality In The 19th Arrondissement., Gaelle Flora Bernard

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

On January 7, 2015, the headquarters of Charlie Hebdo, a satirical newspaper in France, was attacked by two armed men, Chérif and Saïd Kouachi, who shot and killed 12 staff members and injured another 11. The motive of the gunmen was the defense of their Muslim religion, in response to the newspaper’s history of publishing caricatures of the prophet Mohammed (AFP, 2015). This terrorist attack of January 7, 2015 continues to have a lasting impact on the lives of French people, most particularly French Muslims.

The purpose of this case study was to investigate the negotiation of Muslim youth identity …

Considering Culture And Context: A Mixed-Methods Approach To Examining Adolescent Engagement And Parent Satisfaction In Urban Out-Of-School-Time Programs, Jacqueline Oluwakemi Moses

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Adolescents of color living in poverty are at elevated risk for mental health problems with limited access to quality care, and 21% of youth in poverty are diagnosed with mental health disorders that, left untreated, lead to significant long-term consequences. Positive future orientation – optimistic expectations for graduation, gainful employment, and healthy relationships – among vulnerable adolescents has been identified as a unique protective factor associated with positive mental health trajectories. Out-of-school-time (OST) programs in neighborhood settings can promote positive future orientation and maximize benefits for adolescents, but we know little about cultural and contextual influences on youth enrollment and …

School Climate In The School Choice Era: A Comparative Analysis Of District-Run Public Schools And Charter Schools, Christopher Damian Duszka

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Comparative analyses of district-run public schools and charter schools are limited to performance outcomes. There is a dearth of research on how the school-types vary on factors consequential to performance such as school climate. Public-private distinctions, such as in organizational autonomy, value orientations, funding structures, and management practices, could result in school climate dissimilarities between district-run public schools and charter schools.

The aim of this dissertation is to assess the influence organizational factors have on school climate and determine if school-type affects school climate. Student and staff school climate survey data from the Miami-Dade school district were utilized for this …

The Effect Of Institutional Dimensions And Cultural Dimensions On The Level Of Entrepreneurial Activity Across Countries, Jung Hoon Kim

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Entrepreneurship research is becoming more critical to policymakers and scholars around the world. However, few scholars have explored the effect of national culture or institutions on the entrepreneurial activity using cross-national data. Furthermore, most previous scholars have been limited to formal institutions as a theoretical structure to explore the entrepreneurial activity across countries. It is crucial to include formal, informal institutions and culture to better understand about how much or why entrepreneurial activity differs across countries.

To fill this gap, this study investigates how national culture and institutions impact the level of entrepreneurial activity across 30 countries using cross-national dataset …

The Room You Just Left, Bertha I. Crombet

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

THE ROOM YOU JUST LEFT is a poetry collection written from the perspective of a female speaker as she navigates relationships, culture, and identity via the lens of the Cuban-American experience. The collection is divided into three sections: Paleotempestology, Machete, and Saturn Returning. The first illustrates the often turbulent nature of romantic relationships, the second highlights the speaker’s culture, and the third is a singular long poem offering both insights and questions about what it means to arrive at the age of twenty-seven.

The collection is composed of free verse, prose, experimental, and formal poetry, and includes code-switching to illuminate …

Exploring Breast Health Perceptions, Behaviors, And Social Cohesion Among Ethnically Diverse Black Women, Sheila Y. Mckinney

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Purpose

Study explored the relationships of ethnic identity, culture, and social cohesion to mammography, cancer screening, and preventive medical visits among African-American and Afro-Caribbean women in Broward County, FL. Purpose was to understand non-compliance to screening recommendations for breast cancer among disadvantaged Black women in an area of high prevalence.

Methods

A bounded convenience sample of 117 women (49% African-American and 51% Afro-Caribbean) completed a cross-sectional survey and a subset (n=87) participated in semi-structured discussion groups. Both measured perceptions related to breast cancer, defined ethnic identity or culture, and suggested social and cultural factors influence of ethnic identity, culture, and …

Exploring The Dynamics Of Sexuality Conversations Between Haitian And Jamaican Parents And Their Adolescents, Kemesha Gabbidon

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Parent-teen sex conversations reduce Black adolescents’ HIV/STI risk. Nationally, most studies about Black teens’ sexual risk behaviors omit Afro-Caribbean groups whom are disproportionately burdened by HIV/STIs. Therefore, this exploratory study guided by the PEN-3 model (a) characterized the nature, perceptions, enablers, and nurturers of sexuality conversations between Haitian and Jamaican parents and adolescents and (b) explained the relationship between sexuality conversations and adolescent sexual activity.

Using narrative inquiry, 6 Haitian and 8 Jamaican mother-teen dyads’ and triads’ (N=31) experiences were used to characterize the nature, perceptions, enablers, and nurturers of parent-teen sex conversations. Thematic content analysis generated common themes. In …

The Effect Of Social Capital On Organizational Performance In Different Cultures: A Cross-National Comparison Of The United States And South Korea, Jung Hyun Song

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The main purpose of this study is to analyze the effects of social capital on organizational performance of local government and whether the effect varies across national cultures. The study hypothesized that organizational level social capital in a public sector organization has a positive influence on organizational performance. To investigate the relationship, surveys were sent to public officials of local government organizations in the city of Omaha in the United States and Wonju city in South Korea. Based on Hofstede’s definition of national culture, these two countries contrast strongly on important cultural characteristics. The two cities were selected as typical …

Romantic Relationships And Adjustment In Early Adulthood: The Role Of Cross-Sex Experience In The Context Of Social Norms And Support, Hod Tamir

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Attachment and interpersonal theory suggest a sequential pattern of relationships beginning in the earliest stage of development and progressing to social and eventually romantic relationships. Theoretically, cross-sex experiences have an important role in the progression of interpersonal relationships. Despite the prevalence of these theories about the nature of romantic relationship development, the linkage of cross-sex experience (CSE) to romantic relationships has not been established. Indeed, it is an intuitive assumption, especially within Western society and these theories do not consider socio-cultural factors that may influence CSE and relationship satisfaction. This study addresses the varying contextual factors that may contribute to …

Death Rituals In The New Diaspora: Funerals In The Lives Of Ghanaians In South Florida, Evelyn E. Arhin-Sam

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis addresses the lack of attention to practices that take place in settings not considered primarily religious, such as life-cycle rituals in the growing body of literature on religious practices of recently emerging African diaspora communities in the West. It argues that these practices are not only filters for indigenous African religious beliefs but also furnish for African migrants contexts that perform functions similar to those performed by the formal African diaspora religious institutions. Using ethnography, the study investigated the role of death rituals in the lives of Ghanaian members of the United Ghanaians Association of South Florida. …

The (Ab)Use Of Politics And Eroticism In The Culture Of The Spanish Transition To Democracy (1975-1982), Wenceslao Gil

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation analyzes the (ab)use of politics and eroticism within the framework of the Transition to democracy in Spain, its social and cultural impact—on literature, film, music, and popular media—, and its consequences. After a period of nearly four decades, when the country was subjected to a totalitarian regime, Spanish society underwent a process of democratic restoration. As a result, the two topics considered taboo during almost forty years of repression—i.e., politics and sexuality/eroticism—, gushed out fiercely. Every aspect of culture was influenced by and intrinsically linked to them. However, while we have been offered a more or less global …

Environment, Culture, And Medicinal Plant Knowledge In An Indigenous Amazonian Community, Christine Labriola

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Diminishing cultural and biological diversity is a current global crisis. Tropical forests and indigenous peoples are adversely affected by social and environmental changes caused by global political and economic systems. The purpose of this thesis was to investigate environmental and livelihood challenges as well as medicinal plant knowledge in a Yagua village in the Peruvian Amazon. Indigenous peoples’ relationships with the environment is an important topic in environmental anthropology, and traditional botanical knowledge is an integral component of ethnobotany. Political ecology provides a useful theoretical perspective for understanding the economic and political dimensions of environmental and social conditions. This research …