Digital Commons Network^™

Compassion And Communication Experiences Of Fourth-Year Veterinarians-In-Training, Chelsey Leigh Hess-Holden

Theses and Dissertations

Veterinary medicine is an intense profession that begins with rigorous and demanding veterinary training. Within veterinary training, technical competencies generally receive more attention and emphasis than non-technical competencies, leaving many veterinarians at increased risk for compassion fatigue and other forms of mental illness. Two non-technical competencies that need further empirical investigation are communication and the influence of compassion on veterinarians. Communication is central to veterinary success; communication style was measured using the Communication Styles Inventory. Compassion has been recognized as having both positive effects (satisfaction) and negative effects (fatigue); compassion experiences were measured using a version of the Professional Quality …

Attitudes And Perceived Legitimacy Of Police: Crises, Responses, And How Race Influences Perceptions, Brigitte Bonaci

Theses and Dissertations

Public relations is a strategic field because an organization may need to structure a message with the intent of persuading the public and making it respond to a crisis and a message in a certain way. This study will help introduce the concept of a lingering crisis that is hardly present in research and could be put under the public relations umbrella. Using a survey of communications students, this study will compare the public attitudes and perceptions of perceived legitimacy of a police department after it experiences one of three crisis types, one of which being a lingering crisis. Attitudes …

Measuring The Longitudinal Communication Growth Of Learners Who Are Deafblind, Kristi M. Probst

Theses and Dissertations

The field of deafblind (DB) education has a long and rich history which includes a lack of qualified personnel to meet the needs of the population of learners. In addition, the literature base is small, lacking evidence for effective practices or methods of assessing and tracking growth with these learners. The ability to adequately track student growth is key when IEP teams are making educational decisions. Therefore, it is important to investigate the longitudinal growth of learners who are DB and the possible effects of service provision (number, type, and intensity) on communication growth. This research began the process of …

The Effects Of Therapeutic Horseback Riding On Communication In Children And Adolescents With Developmental Disorders, Shelby Anne Holm

Theses and Dissertations

This mixed-methods study examined the effects of participation in a 10-week therapeutic horseback riding program on communicative behaviors in participants diagnosed with Autism spectrum disorder or Down syndrome. Certified Therapeutic Riding Instructors utilized the Naples Equestrian Challenge Participant Initial Evaluation to complete a pre-evaluation prior to the first riding session and a post-evaluation during the last session. Following the post-evaluation, the researcher collected qualitative data through conducting parent interviews. The study included 16 participants (M = 12.62; age range 5-23 years old, 8 females and 8 males). Change scores for each participant were calculated and an aggregated mean for pre- …

What Should Be Included In A Measure Of Communicative Participation? Perspectives Of Speech-Language Pathologists, Natalie Kelly Graceffa

Theses and Dissertations

ABSTRACT

WHAT SHOULD BE INCLUDED IN A MEASURE OF COMMUNICATIVE PARTICIPATION? PERSPECTIVES OF SPEECH-LANGUAGE PATHOLOGISTS

by Natalie Graceffa

The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, 2017 Under the Supervision of Professor Dr. Shelley Lund

As the field has developed, speech-language pathologists (SLP) need to validate their therapies and prove, beyond clinical judgment, that their therapy is necessary and ethical. SLPs and other healthcare professionals must prove they are achieving positive outcomes with their treatment, and that the outcomes they set are appropriate for their patients and clients. To bring this validity to the treatment of health, the International Classification for Functioning, Disability, and …

Associations Between Parent-Child Relationship Quality, Parent Feeding Practices, And Child Weight Status In Preadolescent Children, Kristina Marie Duncombe

Theses and Dissertations

The present study evaluated associations between parent-child connectedness and communication, parent perceptions of child weight, parent feeding behaviors (restriction, pressure to eat, and monitoring), and child body mass index percentile among a sample of children aged 8-12 years. To evaluate these associations, this study used a cross-sectional design and maximum likelihood (ML) structural equation modeling to examine a mediation model with parental feeding behaviors mediating the associations between parent-child relationship quality and child body mass index. Furthermore, because of the known associations between parental perceptions of child weight and parent feeding practices, models examining the mediating effects of parent feeding …

An Analysis Of Enabling Techniques For Highly-Accessible Low-Cost Virtual Reality Hardware In The Collaborative Engineering Design Process, Joshua Q. Coburn

Theses and Dissertations

While there currently exists a great deal of research in the literature demonstrating various engineering applications for virtual reality (VR) and the benefits of these applications, VR adoption has been slow in part because of the high cost and resources required to setup and maintain the hardware for these applications. However, in the last 5 years, a new generation of VR hardware has emerged with cost and resource requirements which are a small fraction of previous hardware. This work begins with a survey of this newly available hardware summarizing recent advances for providing virtual input to all of the five …

An Analysis Of Enabling Techniques For Highly-Accessible Low-Cost Virtual Reality Hardware In The Collaborative Engineering Design Process, Joshua Q. Coburn

Theses and Dissertations

While there currently exists a great deal of research in the literature demonstrating various engineering applications for virtual reality (VR) and the benefits of these applications, VR adoption has been slow in part because of the high cost and resources required to setup and maintain the hardware for these applications. However, in the last 5 years, a new generation of VR hardware has emerged with cost and resource requirements which are a small fraction of previous hardware. This work begins with a survey of this newly available hardware summarizing recent advances for providing virtual input to all of the five …

Early Childhood Education: Stakeholders’ Perspectives About Kindergarten Readiness In Mississippi, Jeffrey L. Leffler

Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative study examined the perceptions and understandings of various stakeholders in the early childhood sector of Mississippi about kindergarten readiness in response to the implementation of more rigorous academic standards in kindergarten. The participants (N=20) in this study were parent/guardians and teachers at 2 elementary schools in Mississippi and various preschool programs that feed into them including public pre-K, private child care, and Head Start. These perceptions and understandings were compared with official documents including position statements of professional organizations and learning standards. The results of the study provide insight into the perceptions and understandings of the participants as …

Reading Others Well And Being Well Read, Nathan Louis Engel-Hawbecker

Theses and Dissertations

The conceptual problem of other minds is over how we can so much as form thoughts or beliefs about (let alone know) mental lives other than our own. What I call the conceptual problem of other conscious minds restricts this question to others’ phenomenally conscious experiences. Past appeals to an individual’s inferential, imaginative, or perceptual faculties all more plausibly presuppose than provide a solution to this problem: such faculties allow us to form thoughts about others’ experiences only if we already have some prior means of doing so (§§2-5). This is not the case with testimony, which I introduce and …

The Role Of The Speech-Language Pathologist When Working With Clients Who Are Transgender: A Guide Of Gender Identity And Cultural Competency, Brett Welch

Theses and Dissertations

It is within the scope of practice of a speech-language pathologist to work with a client who is transgender for voice. However, regardless of the setting, a speech-language pathologist is likely to encounter a person who is transgender on their caseload. The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association mandates that all of its members be culturally competent when working with clients from different cultural backgrounds, including those from the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer community.

This thesis pulls from sociological, linguistic, and queer theory literature to provide an in-depth understanding of identity, gender, and transgender identity formation. With this nuanced understanding of …

Good Game Well Played: An Esports Documentary, Gabriella Clare Devia-Allen

Theses and Dissertations

This film explores the operations and cultural practices of the esports community with an emphasis on Twitch as the dominant community platform. Explored sub-communities include Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, Duelyst, and League of Legends. A focus on Duelyst allows us to explore the characteristics of an accessible esports culture while also referencing League of Legends and Counter-Strike: Global Offensive offers an objective look at two of the industry’s most developed esports scenes. This documentary tracks the production of broadcast content, the lifestyles of professional players, and the narratives of the industry’s most involved employees. In doing so, the research draws conclusions …

Perceived Stress, Self-Compassion, And Emotional Variance In Parents Of Children With Communication Disorders: A Family Approach To Service Delivery In Speech-Language Pathology, Olivia Marie Arnos

Theses and Dissertations

The amount of children born with developmental disorders in the United States is on the rise, increasing from 12.8% in 1998 to 15.04% in 2008 (Huang, Chang, Chi & Lai, 2013). Children with developmental disabilities often have chronic conditions that require additional support across their lifetime, ranging in deficits of attention, physical abilities, visual impairments, hearing impairments, learning disabilities, and communication disorders. Research has shown as dependency of a child on caretakers increases, there is an increase in parental stress and a decrease in perceived well-being. Hall and Graff (2011) found parents of children with developmental disorders are less likely …

Computer-Mediated Communication Usage And Perceptions Amongst Young Adults With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Laura A. Massier

Theses and Dissertations

This was a mixed methods study designed to examine the perceptions of young adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) regarding usage of computer-mediated communication (CMC), with a focus on benefits, challenges, and support needs. People with ASD are often prone to social and communication difficulties, making it difficult for them to maintain relationships, find and retain employment, and be active members of their communities. Deficits in these areas are particularly hard for young adults who may no longer have regular routines or opportunities for socializing because they have transitioned out of school-based activities. CMC is a relatively new form of …

Uses And Gratification Of Spiritual And Religious Music In Egypt: A Descriptive Analysis Study, Hend El-Taher

Theses and Dissertations

Media is one important constituent of the culture in a society. Its importance is reflected in the contents it presents especially in religion and music. The way both religion and music are blended and used as a medium to gratify certain needs is the interest of this study. In that sense, the relation between religions and music is examined, how music was perceived by religious figures, what disputes the music provoked, and how spiritual music is used as an intrapersonal, interpersonal, or a mass communication tool to influence the audience cognitively, behaviorally, and attitudinally. Accordingly, a descriptive survey is conducted …

Effect Of Negotiator Active Listening Skills On Crisis (Hostage) Negotiations, Karen Guszkowski

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of active listening skills on perpetrator response style in crisis negotiations. The extant literature boasts the utility of negotiations in crisis situations for law enforcement that came about in response to cataclysmic events such as the Attica Prison Riots (1971), Munich Massacre (1972), and the Williamsburg incident (1973). Various crisis negotiation models assert the importance of active listening skills in crisis negotiations; given the recent and voluminous media attention on police, this research aimed to provide further support for a cultural shift in police departments around the country to provide …

Association Of Provider Communication And Inpatient Hospital Readmissions, Jeremy Dean Faulkenburg

Theses and Dissertations

Introduction: Inpatient hospital readmission rates represent an important clinical and economic problem. Clinical interventions have shown significant decreases in preventable readmissions, but are costly to implement. Another approach is to better equip patients with the knowledge and resources to manage their care after discharge. Patients receive instruction from both nurses and physicians, as well as information pertaining to post-discharge care and instructions for care while at home. This study examines the association between provider communication and inpatient hospital readmissions.

Methods: This study used survey data from the 2013 and 2014 Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS). The …

Improving Leadership Communication In Nurse-Physician Dyad Teams, Lisa James

Theses and Dissertations

Background: Changes in the delivery of healthcare services in the United States have been driven by cost containment over the last 20 years. To have a thriving organization within the current healthcare environment, nurses and physicians need to closely collaborate. As healthcare organizations prepare for the value-based era, new leadership models need to be implemented. This project addressed collaboration between nurse and physician leaders with a focused communication strategy to improve team performance, engagement, and quality outcomes in the acute care setting.

Method: A quality improvement project was designed to improve communication between front line team members and …

Expert Perspectives On Using Mainstream Mobile Technology For School-Age Children Who Require Augmentative And Alternative Communcation (Aac): A Policy Delphi Study, Vinh-An Nguyen

Theses and Dissertations

Despite legislation in the U.S.A requiring the use of assistive technology in special education, there remains an underutilization of technology-based speech intervention for young students who require augmentative and alternative communication (AAC). The purpose of this Policy Delphi study was to address three guiding research questions that relate to the feasibility of using mainstream mobile technology, facilitative actions, and stakeholder roles for implementation and utilization of AAC in elementary school settings. Data were collected in two rounds of questionnaires given to experts in special education, assistive technology and speech and language pathology, with experience in AAC. Round 1 included 19 …