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Age, Gender, Race, And Culture In The Er: A Content Analysis Of End-Of-Life Issues In The Television Drama, Katrina Wilson Burtt

Dissertations

Within one of the most popular television dramas on American television, hundreds of depictions of end-of-life (EOL) care and decision-making conveyed impressions of how death and dying occurred in a hospital. This content analysis of EOL incidents that appeared in every episode of the television drama ER indicated that viewers got powerful messages about EOL. The long-playing, popular television drama exaggerated the role of physician within the EOL scenes and minimized the roles of women, racial minorities and ethnic groups. Notably lacking from the EOL content were accurate or positive representations of racial, ethnic or cultural differences in death and …

Examining The Impact Of Motivation, Service Quality, And Value On Satisfaction And Loyalty Among Golf Tourists To Rural Areas, Chad William Maas

Dissertations

Economic development in rural areas has undergone a fundamental change over the past several years as the dependence on agriculture continues to decline in rural economies and rural areas experience depopulation along with an increase of outmigration of educated youth. As a result, tourism has emerged as an alternative economic revitalization strategy in many rural areas. One strategy rural areas have begun to implement to attract visitors to a region is attempting to entice individuals interested in participating in sport and recreation. Sport tourism is one of the fastest growing segments of the tourism industry as more and more destinations …

Conflict And Controversy In The Confederate High Command: Johnston, Davis, Hood, And The Atlanta Campaign Of 1864, Dennis Blair Conklin Ii

Dissertations

The Union capture of Atlanta on September 2, 1864 all but assured Abraham Lincoln's reelection in November and the ultimate collapse of the Confederacy. This dissertation argues that Jefferson Davis's failure as commander-in-chief played the principal role in Confederate defeat in the war's most pivotal campaign. Davis had not learned three important lessons prior to the campaign season in 1864. First, the president failed to appreciate the benefit of a centralized command, opting instead for a departmental structure that promoted parochialism. Indeed, Joseph E. Johnston, in charge of the Army of Tennessee, was unable to secure assistance from neighboring departmental …

Effects Of United States Domestic Agricultural Grain Subsidies On Mexican Migrant Flows, Pat Robert O'Brien

Dissertations

United States national, domestic feed grain subsidies have little effect on rural Mexican migration to the United States. This research shows the effect of the United States domestic feed grain subsidies on unbalanced trade with Mexico, the effect of unbalanced feed grain trade on poverty in rural Mexico, and the effect of Mexican rural poverty on Mexican migration to the United States.

The United States domestic agricultural infrastructure, including the United States General Services Support Estimate of subsidies, predict increased exports of corn to Mexico, but producer support subsidies to United States farmers do not.

Mexican estimates of poverty are …

Learning To Parent Again: An Investigation Of The Role Of Adult Education In The Phenomenon Of Grandparents Raising Grandchildren, Deborah Annette Stover

Dissertations

This study examined the readiness for self-direct learning of parenting grandmothers. The researcher investigated whether parental self-efficacy beliefs and addiction beliefs were significantly correlated to parenting grandmothers’ readiness for self-directed learning as measured by the Oddi Continuing Learning Instrument. Parental self-efficacy beliefs were investigated using the Parental Self-Efficacy Scale. Using the Addiction Belief Instrument, the researcher investigated the overall correlation of addiction belief to readiness for self-directed learning. The research also investigated whether the following beliefs significantly correlated to parenting grandmothers’ readiness for self-directed: people with substance abuse disorders are unable to control their using and are responsible for their …

An Implementation Evaluation Of An Actuarial Risk Assessment Instrument, James Robert Johnson

Dissertations

As a result of years of legislation aimed at getting tough on crime, the United States now boasts some remarkable and unenviable statistics. Today, one in every 45 adults in the United States is under some form of community supervision (Pew Center, 2009). At a time when states are facing budget crises that have not been seen in decades, state leaders have an opportunity to both cut costs and improve public safety by focusing community supervision resources on higher-risk offenders through evidence-based practices (Austin, 2007; Latessa, 2003; MacKenzie, 2000; Pew Center, 2009).

Risk assessment is the critical first step …

Toward A Model For Predicting Depression Among Veterans, Nita Aurora Magee-Cornelius

Dissertations

Major depression, identified as a leading cause of disability in the United States, is often first diagnosed by primary care providers. This disability is associated with increased morbidity, mortality, and a lower quality of life. With approximately one in every three veteran diagnosed with depression and the rate of suicide increasing in the United States military (Department of Veterans Affairs, 2009), the Patient Health Questionnaire-2 items (PHQ-2) can be instrumental in identification and monitoring of depressive symptoms. The purposes of this retrospective study were to determine the prevalence of depression, as measured by the federally mandated PHQ-2 in the VA, …

The Effects Of Race And Gender On The Satisfaction Levels Of Entering And Advanced Level Doctoral Students, Tiffany Nicole Labon

Dissertations

Doctoral education is an aspect of higher education that can be both rewarding and challenging for anyone who attempts the journey. Thelin (2004) stated many graduate students obtain the necessary skills that their individual fields of study require in their master’s and doctoral programs of study. Levine (2005), however, has found that the levels of satisfaction between what students expect and what they receive are at odds at many colleges and universities around the country. Thus, the need to assess graduate programs and services regarding satisfaction is warranted.

The purpose of this study was to compare the relationship of overall …

The Impact Of Technology Attitudes And Skills Of Rural Health Clinic Nurses On The Level Of Adoption Of Electronic Health Records In Mississippi, Jennifer Lynn Styron

Dissertations

The evolution of health information technology continues to reform the delivery of efficient, safe, and equitable healthcare in the United States. One such example is the emergence of electronic health records (EHRs) and the discerning emphasis placed on using this technology in meaningful ways. While the integration of EHRs into daily practice impacts all healthcare professionals, nurses remain a prominent driver in the successful adoption and usage of these systems. It is therefore imperative to understand the impact of nurses’ technology attitudes and skills on the level of EHR adoption in Mississippi.

This quantitative study examined the technology attitudes and …