Digital Commons Network^™

Pk-12 Sexual Minority Public School Employees’ Identity Management: Implications On Career Quality, Potential, And Advancement, Gordon Tod Larson

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

LGBTQ public PK-12 educators make decisions on their sexual identity disclosure management. This study sought the phenomenological aspects of how these management decisions and actions affect career path, promotion, and fulfillment to retirement. The purpose of this study was to raise awareness of LGBTQ PK-12 educators’ experiences with sexual identity management disclosure strategies and how these strategies impact their career. The sample was four educators from across the northern tier of the United States; the Northeast, the Northwest, and the Upper Midwest. Narrative inquiry produced thick, rich and descriptive stories of interactions with their students which gave meaning to their …

Student Perception On Flexible Seating And Their Engagement: A Descriptive Research Study, Christina Marie Castro

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

This descriptive study examines students’ perspectives of their engagement when seated in flexible seating with choice. The researcher analyzed interview and survey data to answer the following research questions: 1.) What are students’ perceptions of flexible seating with choice? 2.) What are students’ perceptions on their level of engagement with flexible seating with choice?

The purpose of this study was achieved by interviewing and surveying first grade students who have experienced flexible seating in their Title 1 school within Southern California. Using the data from the interviews, this study identified common themes around the perception of flexible seating

among randomly …

Dual Mechanisms Of Cognitive Control: An Eye Tracking Study, Kyle Mobly

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

The purpose of the present study was to attempt to provide an ocular signature for the dual mechanisms of cognitive control (proactivity and reactivity) by utilizing an eye tracker to record gaze patterns while participants were administered a modified version of the AX-CPT 40. Additionally, we sought to clarify whether context updating or maintenance was responsible for the higher Total Visit Duration (TVD) on the cue location during the ISI that was found in previous studies by providing both a short (1.5 seconds) and long (3 seconds) ISI length. This allowed us to disentangle context updating from maintenance by removing …

Demographic Differences In The Perceived Invasion Of Privacy When Social Media Is Used In Personnel Selection, Zayna Osborne

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

The use of social media in personnel selection is a growing phenomenon amongst many organizations (Roth et al., 2016). However, different social media types, both personal and professional, arise when organizations use personal social media in personnel selection. The information present on personal social media platforms is often not relevant to the applicant's job qualifications. An important issue that arises when personal social media is used is the applicant's perceived invasion of privacy. There is very little literature that examines any demographic differences in the perceived invasion of privacy when social media is used in personnel selection. Understanding if there …

Establishing The Public Library As An Out-Of-School Partner In Stem/Steam Education, Gwyneth Fernandez

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

The American public library is a unique community presence that positively influences the lives of families as an out-of-school partner in education. By examining the public library through a systems lens using Bronfenbrenner’s Bioecological Theory the impact of these institutions may be seen. A key characteristic of public library service is timely, relevant adaptations that meet the needs of the community served. In this project, a recent public library pilot program is evaluated. This program was created in response to the emerging trend in Science Technology Engineering Art and Math (STEAM) within schools and informal education opportunities. It was found …

Exploring The Rhetorical Power Of Speculative Fiction Through Jewelle Gomez’S The Gilda Stories And Octavia Butler’S Fledgling, Monique Dixon

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

There are apparent similarities between Jewelle Gomez’s The Gilda Stories and Octavia Butler’s Fledgling. However, this thesis will demonstrate that they share more than similar subject matter and yet differ in substantial ways. Utilizing Black feminist theory and alternative rhetoric this thesis examines how Gomez and Butler harness the potential of speculative fiction to critique the world around them and imagine an alternative world for those who are intersectionally marginalized.

Population Structure Of A Federally Endangered Plant (Astragalus Jaegerianus Munz, Fabaceae) With Limited Range Using Microsatellites, Sueann Neal

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Studies on population genetics examine the relationship and effects of population structure, migration, gene flow and demographic history, and are therefore important in the conservation of endangered species. Astragalus jaegerianus, a critically federally endangered species found in a geographically restricted range is investigated to determine population structure and genetic variation. Previous research on A. jaegerianus focused on DNA sequence data for cpDNA and nrDNA showed no variation. Further research on A. jaegerianus utilizing AFLP’s on the whole genome indicated substantial gene diversity and population structure consistent with geographically widespread species. AFLP research is a cost-effective process to identify levels …

The Relationship Between Automation Threat And Employee Related Outcomes Using Support As A Buffer And Moderated By Transformational And Transactional Leadership, Monica Garcia

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

The introduction of automation in the workforce has negative effects that go beyond technological job displacement. The process of introducing automated systems creates stress in employees, which may relate to lower performance. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between automation threat and employee-related outcomes such as self-efficacy, means efficacy, and employability and how social support, organizational support, and instrumental support can help buffer against this type of threat. Furthermore, transformational and transactional leadership styles of the manager/supervisor were examined, as they related to the various types of support. Two hundred sixty-nine working adults completed the study …

The Life Of An Elementary School Principal: An Autoethnography, Catherine Ruth Tamayo

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

This study was designed to provide insight into the daily life of administrators with the hope it would help to identify potential causes of principals leaving the profession within five years. Additionally, the study helps to prepare and inform educators and district leaders in how to support principals. It can also assist is preparing future principals for their administrative roles and what best supports participants to become successful administrators.

This study utilized a qualitative inquiry model as an autoethnography and is able to shed light on real life experiences. Data collection consisted of a journal of daily occurrences, a reflective …

The Chinese In California: Archaeology And Railroads At The Turn Of The Century, Evelyn Hildebrand

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Research on Chinese sites in California have focused on ethnicity, ethnic relations, and the material expression of ethnicity all of which are key issues in overseas Chinese archaeology. Chinatown sites produced data that helped define Chinese culture and experience in historical California. One railroad construction work camp site identified in 2016 located in the Cajon Pass in the late 1800’s offers the potential for insight into the lives of the workers. Chinese occupation in San Bernardino is not well understood, and the site may offer information on the culture, traditions, and integrations of the workers. Thousands of Chinese men left …

The Impact Of Negative Affect On Psychological Well-Being Through Affective Commitment, Organizational Citizenship Behaviors, And Employee Burnout, Michelle Balesh

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Research focusing on organizational citizenship behaviors (OCBs) have highlighted how these behaviors support and aid the psychological and social environment within an organization. However, there is a gap within the literature that has not emphasized the negative consequences of engaging in OCBs. This study aims at examining the baleful consequences toward the individual, specifically, one’s psychological well-being. By examining one’s commitment to the organization, this study is interested if commitment will influence the likelihood of engaging in these discretionary behaviors. The aim of the present study is to understand the inimical effects of OCBs due to the investment of personal …

Removing The Fence?: A Mixed-Methods Study Of Corequisite Courses, Faculty Validation, And Equity For Men Of Color In Community College English, Daniel Hogan

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

The passage of California’s AB 705 in 2017 mandated that community colleges drastically reimagine their English course offerings in an effort to increase student throughput and eliminate equity gaps. This typically meant replacing traditional remedial coursework and placement with corequisite models of remediation, wherein students took transfer-level courses with built-in concurrent remedial support.

The purpose of this mixed-methods study was to explore the relationship between these structural changes and non-traditional relational success markers, namely faculty validation, especially for male Black and Latino students in English at a large urban California community college. The quantitative phase was a survey of over …

Online Strategies For Small Businesses Affected By Covid-19: A Social Media And Social Commerce Approach, Julianne Itliong

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

The Covid-19 pandemic has altered the way many US citizens work, live, and interact with one another. Many rules and regulations have been put in place by government officials to slow the spread of the virus because of how contagious it is in social settings. Because of these rules and regulations, many small businesses were forced to temporarily close their doors to the public in order to comply with the rules of social distancing and the ban on large gatherings. For some businesses, this shift from physical sales to digital sales has always been a part of their business models, …

The Importance Of Recess In The Lives Of Children, Kayla L. Villanueva

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Current research suggests that when children get the chance to play outdoors, they reap the benefits. However, in today’s society children aren’t outdoors very often. Children also don’t have very much time to play outdoors during recess time while in a school setting. The purpose of this project was to educate and inform elementary school principals about the importance and benefits that recess has on children, as well as help them become an advocate for recess. A video was created that focused on the benefits of outdoor play for children, the importance of recess for children, as well as ways …

How To Help Your Child Succeed In Elementary School A Parent Education Workshop, Lauren Rivera

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Over the last decade, research studies have demonstrated that academic success has a significant impact on a child’s long-term outcomes (e.g., Duncan et al., 2007). The purpose of this project was to provide parents with the information and skills to help their child succeed in elementary school. A 6-session workshop titled Helping Your Child Succeed in Elementary School was created which included the following topics: attachment, parenting style, positive discipline, and creating an enriched home environment. After attending the workshop, the four parent participants reported an increase in their knowledge of the importance of establishing a secure attachment with their …

Sum Of Cubes Of The First N Integers, Obiamaka L. Agu

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

In Calculus we learned that 􏰅Sum^{n}_{k=1} k = [n(n+1)]/2 , that Sum^{􏰅n}_{k=1} k^2 = [n(n+1)(2n+1)]/6 , and that Sum^{n}_{k=1} k^{3} = (n(n+1)/2)^{2}. These formulas are useful when solving for the area below quadratic or cubic function over an interval [a, b]. This tedious process, solving for areas under a quadratic or a cubic, served as motivation for the introduction of Riemman integrals. For the overzealous math student, these steps were replaced by a simpler method of evaluating antiderivatives at the endpoints a and b. From my recollection, a former instructor informed us to do the value of memorizing these formulas. …

A Four-Session Workshop For Parents Of Children With Autism: Understanding And Managing Challenging Behaviors, And Supporting The Development Of Children With Asd, Vanessa Huizar

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Research studies continue to show that being a parent of a child with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) presents unique challenges for many families including understanding ASD deficits and behaviors, and identifying effective ways to manage these behaviors. Because ASD interventions generally take a behaviorally-based approach, parents tend to lack an understanding of child development, positive child guidance practices, ways to build strong parent-child relationships, and methods to engage in enrichment activities that will support their child’s overall development. The purpose of the current project was to create a parent workshop to help parents of children with ASD: 1) understand the …

Educators’ Perspectives Regarding The Inclusion Of Students With Mild To Moderate Disabilities Into The General Education Classroom, Rebecca Lynn Parres

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

ABSTRACT

This quantitative study examined the perspectives of educators related to the inclusion of students with mild to moderate disabilities in general education classrooms. General education teachers, special education providers (e.g. education specialists, speech pathologists, occupational and physical therapists, and school psychologists, etc.), and administrators were surveyed to obtain their perspectives regarding the inclusion of students with mild to moderate disabilities; into the general education classroom. The Inclusive School Program Survey (McLewesky, et al., 2012) was used with permission from James McLeskey who conducted similar research in 2001. The five-point Likert scale survey was utilized to obtain data from the …

Docs_On_Blocks – A Defense In Depth Strategy For E-Healthcare, Saad Mohammed

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

With the increase in the data breaches and cyber hacks, organizations have come to realize that cyber security alone would not help as the attacks are becoming more sophisticated and complex than ever. E-Healthcare industry has shown a promising improvement in terms of security over the past, but the threat remains. Thus, the E-Healthcare industries are aiming towards a Defense in Depth Strategy approach.

The project here describes how a Defense in Depth Strategy for E-Healthcare system can provide an environment for better security of the data and peer-to-peer interaction with stakeholders. The legacy systems have at some point failed …

The Importance Of Nutrition For Development In Early Childhood, Kaitlyn Sue Suha

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Understanding which foods contain the necessary vitamins and nutrients for a child’s health, and which ones are lacking, can decrease the likelihood of children developing nutritional deficiencies and promote their overall developmental health. It is important for parents of young children to have an understanding of nutrition and the effect that poor nutrition can have. this project presented information sessions to parents to educate them further about these important topics through four weekly online workshops. Participants were asked to complete a pre- and post-session survey. Survey results scores indicated that participants reported an increase in knowledge and understanding in regards …

The Relationship Between Subtle Sexism And Women's Careers Explained By Cognitive Processes And Moderated By Attachment Styles, Patricia Carolina Rivera

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

The present study investigated how experiences of subtle sexism related to women’s career outcomes. Prior research has focused on attitudes and impacts of subtle sexism, whereas this study focused on personal experiences of subtle sexism. Due to its normative nature, subtle sexism occurs often and can be difficult to classify as sexism. The study found that participants who encountered more subtle sexism reported lower levels of advancement perceptions and work engagement was indirectly impacted by subtle sexism. Interestingly, although it was expected that rumination would cause cognitive overload, participants in this study exhibited resilience which indirectly impacted their advancement perceptions. …

Retirement Planning Motivation From A Reinforcement Sensitivity Theory (Rst) Perspective, Luke Poulter

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Retirement planning is a complex issue. There are plenty of challenges that individuals and governments confront regarding retirement planning. Understanding what motivates retirement planning is a critical element for individuals and governments to understand. Therefore, the primary goal of the current study was to extend the literature on retirement planning by expanding knowledge of what influences retirement planning by incorporating Reinforcement Sensitivity Theory (RST). RST is a neuroscientific theory of emotion, motivation, and learning, extended to personality psychology. It suggests three systems, the Behavioral Approach System (BAS), Fight–Flight–Freeze system (FFFS), and the Behavioral Inhibition System (BIS). The BAS mediates responses …

Teacher Demoralization: Neoliberal Influence On The Complex Education System And Teacher Morale, Dionne Elvira

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Since the 1980s, neoliberal influence has slowly taken over our education system’s vision and purpose. Presently, marketization in schooling has drawn the attention and influence of those of monetary and political power (Bartlett et al., 2002). Accountability measures set in place by the strings attached to school funding and sanctions encompass blanket demands on classroom instruction not equitably designed to support our diverse student populations (Ravitch, 2013; Reigeluth, 2014; Tsang, 2019). The school system, as it presently stands, is managed and maintained under systematic models that do not align to the complex needs of each unique school within its unique …

Biological Siblings: Can You Trust Them With Your Mate?, Elisha Barron

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Recent studies suggest that genes may influence human mate preferences. What would this mean for same-sex siblings who share genes? Might they also share mate preferences and engage in mate poaching or would social norms and strong sibling bonds discourage such behaviors? We hypothesized that siblings would perceive their mate preferences to be more similar to their sibling’s than to an average person of their same gender. It was also hypothesized that the association between perceived sibling mate preferences and sibling mate poaching would be moderated by sibling closeness and sibling competition. Additionally, it was hypothesized that sibling mate competition …

R&B Song Lyrics As A Pedagogical Tool: Toward A Pedagogy For Twenty-First Century Multicultural Students, Shelly Jackson

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

This thesis posits that treating lyrics (particularly R&B lyrics) as texts in a literature analysis or first-year composition class is one-way teachers can integrate the works of marginalized writers into their lesson plans. That is, I assert that as higher education continues to take action toward academic equity and inclusion, current and future teachers must do so as well. I explain how examining and analyzing the different textual features of song lyrics can be used to illustrate different approaches to writing. This transformative pedagogical practice would foster a more inclusive and diverse classroom experience for minority students. When teachers consistently …

An Analysis Of Policies And Practices For The Inclusion Of Students With Disabilities In Public Universities In Mexico, Lilia G. Lopez Arriaga

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to analyze the laws and regulations regarding the inclusion of students with disabilities in selected Mexican universities. Seven public autonomous universities on the northern border of Mexico were selected for participation. Official documents were reviewed and administrators were surveyed to determine the extent to which federal legislation requiring inclusion was implemented at their respective institutions. Faculty members of psychology were also surveyed regarding the guarantees and accommodations provided by their institutions and the effectiveness of those efforts. Principal findings were that the commitment to serve students with disabilities was high, however the existing plans …

Understanding Why Individuals Use Club Drugs At Raves And Electronic Dance Music Events: A Peer Cluster Theory Approach, Brandi N. Burns

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Raves and Electronic Dance Music (EDM) events are part of a growing culture of entertainment for young people around the world. The dangers of these events include fatalities related to drug use, overheating, dehydration and lack of harm reduction services. This study explores drug use at rave events through a survey examining EDM attendee experiences. Using a binary logistic regression model, this investigation examines the relative importance of five factors: (1) peer group drug use and (2) peer influence on behavior, drawn from peer cluster theory, (3) presence of security features that may dissuade drug use controls for rational choices, …

Helping Young Girls Build A Positive Body Image: A Training Workshop For Parents, Jennifer Richardson

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Research over the years continue to show a rising number of young girls who develop body image dissatisfaction. Research studies have clearly outlined the negative impact of body image dissatisfaction in females, including its adverse effects on self-worth, mental health, and increasing one’s risk of substance abuse. It was expected that as a result of the 4-session workshop, parents will have a better understanding of the negative impact of body image dissatisfaction, causes of body image dissatisfaction, and how to develop a positive body image in young girls.

Parents attended four two-hour sessions held twice a week for two weeks. …

Correlations Between Soil Redness And Soil Properties That Affect Non-Native Annual Plant Distribution In Chaparral And California Sage Scrub, Madeline Blua

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Non-native annual plant species have degraded California Sage Scrub and chaparral and present obstacles to shrubland restoration. Red soil patches in chaparral and California Sage Scrub of San Bernardino and Riverside counties appear to support fewer non-native annual plants than non-red soils. The purpose of this study was to confirm differences in vegetation cover between red and non-red soils in shrublands and to use soil analyses to determine possible causes. During vegetation surveys conducted in April of 2018, it was confirmed that red soil sites had lower cover of non-native plants and higher cover of native plant species than the …

Tile Based Self-Assembly Of The Rook's Graph, Ernesto Gonzalez

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

The properties of DNA make it a useful tool for designing self-assembling nanostructures. Branched junction molecules provide the molecular building blocks for creating target complexes. We model the underlying structure of a DNA complex with a graph and we use tools from linear algebra to optimize the self-assembling process. Some standard classes of graphs have been studied in the context of DNA self-assembly, but there are many open questions about other families of graphs. In this work, we study the rook's graph and its related design strategies.