Digital Commons Network^™

Elementary Teacher Experiences With English Language Learners With Special Education Needs In New York, Colleen Ann Cahill

Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative study aimed to understand teacher experiences working with English language learners (ELL) with or suspected of having a learning disability. This study also addressed the current problem of ELL students concurrently being under and over classified as needing special education services. This study explored the experiences of elementary school teachers in the state of New York. The participants were from different school districts within New York State. The participants all had experience teaching students who were designated ELL who were currently in the process of response to intervention (RTI) or had already been referred and classified as having …

Finding Neverland? Artificial Intelligence And The Jurisprudence Of Legal Certainty, Omar Zaky

Theses and Dissertations

The development of artificial intelligence (AI) models that are capable of predicting the decisions of prominent courts – most notably the European Court of Human Rights and United States Supreme Court – provides us with an opportunity to revisit important jurisprudential debates regarding the quest for legal certainty. Through providing clear distinctions within formalistic jurisprudence, and its, subsequent, realist critique; this thesis seeks to analyze legal decision-making and its relationship with artificial intelligence. I argue that, AI’s deterministic nature and its support for the law being an “entirely self-contained process” does lend some credence to certain jurisprudential arguments. However, this …

The Influence Of Comorbid Gad On Er Utilization In Urban Youth With Asthma, David A. Karpe

Theses and Dissertations

Current literature indicates a strong association between asthma and the early onset of comorbid generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) in minors and their primary caregivers. Studies show that asthma prevalence increases with certain demographic factors, such as ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and housing quality. Evidence also suggests that GAD influences decision-making, especially when deciding to utilize emergency room (ER) services for asthma-related concerns. This study analyzed the effect of comorbid GAD on minors with asthma and ER utilization. The data were provided by an earlier Stress & Justice Study (S&J) baseline survey, an investigation aimed at understanding the impact of parental criminal …

Brain Drain: A Study On The Life And Career Choices Of Texas A&M International University Students Post-Graduation, Martha Rodriguez

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the factors that influence(d) the life and career choices of Texas A&M International University (TAMIU) students post-graduation – in particular whether and why they decided to stay in Laredo, TX or leave after graduation. The investigation focused on TAMIU alumni who graduated within the last five (5) academic years (2015-2016 thru 2019-2020). To determine which factors were most influential in TAMIU alumni’s decision-making, this study used qualitative data, specifically, online in-depth interviews. By measuring place attachment, social capital, and human capital of TAMIU alumni, this study contributes to our understanding of how …

Better Safe Than Sorry? Examining The Effectiveness Of Defensive Impression Management And Supplication Techniques In Attracting Minority Applicants To Public Safety Careers, Temitayo Opeyemi Lawal

Theses and Dissertations

The recent media coverage of fatal interactions between police officers and unarmed Black citizens has led to increased calls for law enforcement agencies to diversify their departments. However, many agencies struggle to attract qualified minority candidates due to the negative history between law enforcement and minority communities. This study examined whether the use targeted defensive impression management techniques, such as apologizing for past transgressions, and supplicative recruiting messages can influence attraction and job pursuit intentions for minority applicants. This study also explored whether applicant perceptions of an organization’s sincerity and value of diversity mediates the relationship between diversity recruiting messages …

Intimate Partner Violence In The Rio Grande Valley: The Role Of Culture, Tania Diaz

Theses and Dissertations

Mexican culture along the border towns of the Rio Grande dominates views towards women and men experiencing violence in intimate relationships. However, there is a paucity of empirical studies relating to intimate partner violence in the Rio Grande Valley. This study addresses the dynamics of abusive relationship in a Hispanic community that can be influenced by cultural concepts such as familism and marianismo. The author utilized a mixed methods approach for this study that included a sample of (n = 513) surveys and (n = 13) interviews that were analyzed separately. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to assess …

Factors Affecting Irs Audit Rate Probability: Empirical Evidence From Rgv Region, Issack Guyo

Theses and Dissertations

IRS tax audits are intended to curb tax evasion; however, they are costly to conduct and have negative impacts on taxpayers. The purpose of this study is to find out factors that lead to high IRS audit rate in a region from the perspective of the Rio Grande Valley (RGV). Relationship between IRS tax audit rate and determinants of tax evasion identified by Davis, Cebula, & Boylan (2020) among others are studied. A regression analysis is conducted on the regions scores on poverty rate, demography, unemployment rate and general level of education with the IRS audit rate. The results suggest …

Blue Lives Matter: Public Perception In Texas, Nohely Karyme Lozano

Theses and Dissertations

In recent years, Blue Lives Matter, a pro-policing movement, was established across the United States. The movement sheds light on the attacks and killings of police officers while on the line of duty. Also, it raises awareness of the dangers and risks law enforcement agents face while on duty and off duty. Throughout the years, the movement has gained many supporters across the nation. However, it has been controversial, and many considered it as a countermovement to Black Lives Matter. To bridge the gap in the literature, the researcher investigated the perception of Texans towards the movement. Moreover, the research …

Say Her Name: The Narrative Afterlives Of Breonna Taylor, Tyler S. Smith

Theses and Dissertations

Within the growing literature and media coverage of police misconduct and brutality, Black women and girls are functionally invisible. Since the Black Lives Matter movement began the names of only two women have stood out among the Black male victims we know by name: Sandra Bland and Breonna Taylor. Here, I will explore through a Black feminist analytic framework, how the intersectionalities of gender and race contributed to a delay in awareness and accountability for the death of Breonna Taylor. This content analysis looked at the media coverage of Breonna Taylor for the one-year period (3/13/20-3/13/21) to uncover the reasons, …

Parental Understanding Of Special Education Legislation And Case Law, Advocacy, And Perceptions Of The Iep Process For Children With Autism, Rachel Treshan

Theses and Dissertations

Despite the legal statutes in place that mandate parental participation in the individualized education program (IEP) process, the decision-making process is mainly dominated by educators. In addition, information on parental perceptions of IEP meetings is limited, especially in regard to parents of children with autism. Parental understanding of special education legislation and case law, advocacy, and perceptions of the IEP process for children with autism was explored in this study. Using a generic qualitative approach, 11 parents of children ages 3 to 13 years old with autism were interviewed via Zoom to develop an understanding of their experiences. Data were …

Restorative Practices: Its Impact On Racial Inequity In Pk-12 Schools, Shelia Evonne Boozer

Theses and Dissertations

PagesThis research explores the relationship between Restorative Practices and race, specifically how Black students experience RP when race is not centered. It also explores the ways anti-Blackness influences the implementation of restorative practices and results in further racial inequities and racial oppression through the lens of Critical Race Theory. The central research questions are: In what ways, if any, does RP address racial inequities in PK-12 schools? In what ways do districts implement RP? In what ways, if any, does RP impact institutional racism in school systems? How does RP address the social and emotional issues of historically marginalized students …

The Spatial Variability Of Crime: A Review Of Methodological Choice, Proposed Models, And Methods For Illustrating The Phenomenon, Matthew D. Spencer

Theses and Dissertations

The spatial analysis of crime has occurred for nearly two centuries. Within criminology, research interests that have developed from the use of spatial methodologies seek to identify the spatial variability and concentration of crime. The first focus utilizes spatial statistics and mapping to describe and illustrate spatial variability. The second focus uses statistical techniques to describe levels of concentration such as the percentage of crime attributed to a unit. Due to the larger breadth of work and multiple analytical components the former will be the focus of this research.

This multi-study dissertation explores the methods currently used to study the …

The Criminalization Of Hiv And Hiv Stigma, Deanna Cann

Theses and Dissertations

In an effort to contain the HIV epidemic, lawmakers implemented various pieces of legislation across the United States, including laws that prohibit people living with HIV (PLHIV) from engaging in various behaviors without first disclosing their HIV-status. Public health scholars claim that this criminalization of HIV serves to increase stigma toward PLHIV, rather than prevent its transmission. Limited research has supported a connection between HIV exposure laws and increased stigma toward PLHIV. Still, researchers have yet to establish a causal relationship, and we know little regarding the mechanisms through which these laws serve to reproduce stigma. This study aims to …

Development Of A Correction For Defensiveness In The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-Second Edition-Restructured Form (Mmpi-2-Rf) Profiles Of Adult Male Sex Offenders, Katie Marie Glauner

Theses and Dissertations

Clinical and forensic psychologists often evaluate sex offenders to determine the level of risk they pose to the community and identify their treatment needs to reduce the risk of future recidivism. Personality assessments are administered in sex offender evaluations to aid in answering these referral questions, while also providing information regarding the evaluees’ response style to the test and descriptions of their personality functioning. The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) and its revisions have been the most widely used personality assessments in sex offender evaluations, with previous research demonstrating that sex offenders often respond defensively to the test by minimizing …

Against All Odds: Understanding African American Males’ Perspectives On The Path To Graduation At An Alternative School, Devin Randolph

Theses and Dissertations

The researcher completed a critical, descriptive, single case study about African American male students' experiences on the path to graduation at an alternative school in the southeast. Informed by scholarship on majoritarian narratives and counter narratives from Critical Race Theory (CRT), the researcher coded and analyzed data from individual interviews, a focus group, and an art-based project to answer three research questions: 1. How do African American males describe their perspectives on their placement at an alternative school? 2. How do African American male students describe their paths to graduation, including defining moments? 3. What and who do African American …

Medication Assisted Treatment: Examining Enrollment And Demographic Factors Of Treatment, Antwana Letoya Drayton

Theses and Dissertations

Opioid Use Disorder (OUD) has been a long-standing epidemic concern related to the continuous growth of variations of the substance and its’ potency. Due to the versatility of the substance to be both an illicit drug and also a prescription medication, the interest in controlling and monitoring its’ use creates a greater public health concern. Treatment overtime has been revitalized to directly address the social, biological, and physiological difficulties of patients with OUDs. Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT) has been explored and has become one of the most widely used plans for treatment of Substance Use Disorders (SUDs) related to pain …

Misunderstood: A Phenomenological Study On Intersectionality And The Lived Experiences Of Black Millennial Student Affairs Professionals At Pwis, Emily P. Dixon

Theses and Dissertations

This applied dissertation was designed to further understand the lived experiences of Black millennial student affairs professionals navigating and advancing through a predominately white institution in the southern United States. This phenomenological study, framed by critical race theory and intersectionality, sought to ultimately use these lived experiences to advocate for change. A review of the literature highlighted the needs, values, and experiences of Black Millennials based on both identities, the experiences of working in student affairs/higher education with these experiences, and the need for intentional diversity efforts by higher educational institutions.

The researcher interviewed nine participants to learn more about …

The Experiences Of Cohort Membership In An Alternative Certification Program, Roxanne Marie Sanchez

Theses and Dissertations

Employing and retaining teachers has been a rising problem affecting employment at school districts. Nationwide school districts have noted high instances of teacher shortages and are finding it more difficult to fill positions with traditionally trained teachers. In the 2019-2020 school year, at a local district in South Florida, it was assessed that 56% of new teachers to the district were of a noneducation background or career changers.

Retention of this subgroup of teachers is pertinent to reducing teacher attrition, specifically within the school districts that most frequently employ them. Certificate expiration, due to not completing their certification requirements within …

Another Time, Another Place: The Truth Of Silence In J.M. Coetzee's Disgrace, Sara T. Murphy

Theses and Dissertations

Through Lucy’s rejection of the criminal justice system, Coetzee's Disgrace operates as an allegory for the failure of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission to provide individual justice and reparations to victims of Apartheid.

Early & Late Erp Responses To L1 & L2 Emotion Words, Brenda Lizeth Guerrero

Theses and Dissertations

The thesis aims to explore bilingual emotion word processing. Participants performed a lexical decision task and decided whether presented letter strings displayed on the computer screen were legal words or nonwords. Stimuli consisted of positive emotion (i.e., hope), negative emotion (i.e., sad), and neutral (i.e., umbrella) words, as well as emotion-laden words (e.g. death, puppy). Reaction time and participant accuracy were collected as behavioral measures. In addition, participants’ electrophysiological responses were recorded. Specifically, the early posterior negativity (EPN) and late positive complex (LPC) components were recorded. Participants’ language dominance was measured using the Bilingual Dominance Scale (BDS) (Dunn & Fox-Tree, …

Response Effort Attenuates Provoked Aggression In Men And Women, Michaela Patoilo

Theses and Dissertations

Previous efforts to manage aggressive behavior have generally focused on the emotion of anger, as opposed to aggressive behaviors. Several small-N studies have explored the promising approach of contingency-based interventions (e.g., the effort required to respond aggressively; Zhou et al., 2000), but have produced mixed results. Therefore, the present study aimed to determine whether experimentally-manipulated response effort effectively attenuates provoked aggressive responding using a modified version of the Taylor Aggression Paradigm (TAP; Berman et al., 2009). Participants included 123 (40 men; Mean age = 20.9, SD = 4.6) randomly assigned to either a low- or high-effort condition, crossed with a …

Secularism: A Measure Of Explicit Agreement With Assumptions Of Secularism (Meaas), Conner Douglas Jones

Theses and Dissertations

Values are inherent within cultures, relationships, and many other systems, however, little study has been done on the extent to which individuals may explicitly agree with the metaphysical assumptions that much of psychological science relies upon. Psychological science, which uses scientific methodology, is a trusted source of knowledge for many students. Scientific methodology is conceptually linked to assumptions of naturalism, which makes claims about the truth of reality. These naturalistic assumptions pertain to ideas of disenchantment, which describe the world as free from any transcendent quality. These same ideas have become popular among people of the Western world and are …

Religious-Based Programming And Reentry Success: An Examination Of Spirituality And Its Effects On Post-Release Engagement, Employment, And Recidivism, Allie C. Bosi

Theses and Dissertations

This study uses data from HopeWorks, a Christian, faith-based vocational program inside the Shelby County Division of Corrections in Memphis, Tennessee, to examine factors affecting reentry success. Specifically, this research examines how spirituality - using measures that assess both spirituality (measured at the end of the program) and change in spirituality (measured as the difference between pre- and post-program measures of spirituality) - affects released offenders' reengagement with the program, ability to obtain employment, and ability to refrain from reoffending.

The Role Of Alcohol Use, Drinking Context, And Alcohol Expectancies In Sexual Assault Perpetration Among College Men, Joseph D. Censor

Theses and Dissertations

Sexual assault is a major public health and criminal justice problem in our society. The high prevalence rate of sexual assault victimization and perpetration among college students is even more disturbing. Additionally, the prevalence of alcohol use among college students is higher than in the general population, and alcohol use is associated with more than half of sexual assaults. The goal of the present study was to gain a deeper understanding of the role of various alcohol related factors in sexual assault perpetration among college men. Specifically, this study assessed the association of perpetration with general problematic alcohol use, general …

Why Can't We Be Friends: The Legitimization Of Police Violence In The Buddy-Cop Film Genre, Briah Baker

Theses and Dissertations

This study investigates the legitimization of police violence through the use of humor in the buddy-cop-action-comedy film. Following the development of the judicial system and federal, local, and state governments in the militarization of urban police forces between the 1960s and the early 2000s in the U.S. in order to present a picture of how the buddy-cop film genre grew in popularity over the course of the 1980s and onwards. Through an industrial and contextual analysis of two buddy-cop films that attempt to ‘subvert’ the traditional tropes of a buddy-cop film by casting two Black actors in Bad Boys II …

How Are Police Lineups Represented In Popular Crime Shows In The U.S.A? An Examination Of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Luis Fernando Chavarria

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this thesis is to explore police lineups as portrayed in crime-related TV shows in the U.S.A, such as Law & Order: SUV. The data used is from 25 episodes of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. The methodology used for this study is grounded theory and content analysis. results of the study by themes which are: DNA evidence, police lineups, and lineups used in court. From these themes codes were further highlighted and noted. Based on the episodes for the show and real-life lineup procedure practices, there were inconsistencies about clothing, physical characteristics of suspects, incorrect lineup …

Attachment And Intimate Partner Violence In Predominantly Hispanic Young Adult Couples, Deanna Pollard

Theses and Dissertations

Some research suggests that conflicting insecure attachment needs between romantic partners exacerbate the association between insecure attachment dimensions and physical intimate partner violence (IPV) perpetration in men and women. However, the current literature examining this association are not without their limitations (i.e., small sample sizes, collapsing both partners' reports together to create their IPV variables, predominantly White samples, and utilizing attachment instruments that do not assess attachment dimensions directly). The present study aimed to address some of the limitations in previous research by examining the association between partners' opposing insecure attachment dimensions and male and female-perpetrated physical IPV in a …

The Impact Of Social Networks On Juvenile Delinquency, Lesly Elizabeth Hernandez

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines the role of social networks as an interaction factor in the relationship between negative emotions and juvenile delinquency by applying General Strain theory to study the differences in non-violent delinquency, violent delinquency, and status offenses among Hispanic females. Data were acquired from the Drug Use and Cultural Factors Among Hispanic Adolescents and Emerging Adults, Los Angeles (2006-2016), a restricted longitudinal survey file from Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research (ICPSR). This study is a cross-sectional secondary data analysis in which the population studied is composed of Hispanic female ranging in ages from 14 to 17. Two …

Do Patrol Beat And Police Officer Attributes Predict Citizen Complaint?, Eduardo Guajardo

Theses and Dissertations

Citizen complaints against police officers have been the highlight of national news media and outlets. Complaints of use of force are not the only ones that arise from citizens’ complaints; other complaints such as discourtesy and demeanor are issues that police officers face and answer to their internal affair’s investigative units. The aim of this study is to examine what ascribed (e.g., age, gender, and marital status) and career-related achieved (e.g., certification, education, experience, and training) characteristics of police officers influence citizens’ complaints in terms of type, frequency, and severity. Contextual factors such as patrol beat, used as a moderating …

Community Needs Assessment For Mclean County, Hannah Lynn Curry

Theses and Dissertations

A community needs assessment was conducted for McLean County, Illinois assessing the community level resources that are in place for ex-offenders reintegrating into the community and further resources that are needed. The purposive sample included 7 local agencies that provided a range of reentry services. Intensive interviewing was conducted with respondents of local agencies. Audio-recordings of interviews were transcribed, coded through software and analyzed. Results indicated that boundary spanners and mental health services are the common types of resources in place for ex-offenders in McLean County. Further resources that are needed include housing, employment and mental health services.