Education Commons^™

An Exploration Of Virtual Study Groups Used To Prepare Candidates For A Professional Certification Exam, Sharon Katherine Kayne Chaplock

Dissertations (1934 -)

Professional credentials earned through certification programs are becoming an important way to demonstrate competency within a given discipline. With the globalization of business enterprises and associations, these credentials are eagerly sought by people located throughout the world. Candidates for these credentials often study together using virtual environments to prepare for a certification exam. Through a qualitative analysis of interviews with persons participating in such virtual groups, this study investigates what influences their choices among web-enabled study groups, what perceptions characterize their conception of a good virtual study group, and what limitations are encountered in a virtual study environment. This dissertation …

The Challenge And Promise Of Catholic Higher Education: The Lay President And Catholic Identity, Kathy Ann Herrick

Dissertations (1934 -)

Twenty years after Ex Corde Ecclesiae, the papal proclamation that defined the relationship between the Catholic Church and Catholic institutions of higher education, these institutions continue to seek ways to strengthen their Catholic identities. As they do so they are faced with a decline number of religiously vowed men and women available to lead them. An institution's history is often linked to the mission of its founding congregation. As members of the congregation become less actively involved, the connection of the institution's mission to the founding congregation and their particular charism is likely less visibly evident. Additionally, the role …

Debating For Success: Academic Achievement, Self-Efficacy, Civic Empowerment And The Milwaukee Debate League, Thomas Noonan

Dissertations (1934 -)

Over the course of the past three decades Urban Debate Leagues have been established on the premise that they improve schooling for underserved students. Founded in predominantly urban areas, these leagues have been positioned as a recent educational reform effort intended to empower students and foster educational and personal growth. This dissertation focuses specifically on the ways in which students involved in a Milwaukee Urban Debate League participating school have been affected by the experience with respect to academic achievement, self-efficacy, and civic empowerment. Through focusing on student voice, this research project examines the ways in which students manifest change …

Is Institutional Sexual Misconduct Predictive Of Sexual Recidivism Amongst Male Sex Offenders?, Angela Marie Fleck

Dissertations (1934 -)

There has been a large body of research conducted on establishing a valid set of predictors of sexual offender recidivism in the past 20 years. However, despite findings that indicate that prior history of sexual offenses serves as a primary predictor of sexual offense recidivism, there has been little focus on the impact of institutional sexual misconduct on sexual offense recidivism rates. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between institutional sexual behavior and sexual offense recidivism rates amongst a sample of male offenders who received a sexual misconduct report while incarcerated and/or was convicted of a sexual offense. Additionally, …

The Impact Of Latino Family Variables On The Sexual Activity Of Latino Adolescents: A Mixed-Methods Study, Brittany Nicole Barber

Dissertations (1934 -)

Researchers' examination of Latino adolescents' cultural values and sexual activity has yielded questions regarding the cultural- and gender-specific attitudes and practices in this area (Deardorff, Tschann, & Flores, 2008). Cultural values include family-related variables such as different aspects of familism, parent-adolescent communication, and parental monitoring, which have been found to decrease adolescents' engagement in other negative activities such as aggressive behavior, (Dishion & McMahon, 1998), substance use (Estrada, Rabow, & Watts, 1982), and juvenile delinquency (Clark & Shields, 1997). Research investigating these risk behaviors has often implicated Latino adolescents' level of assimilation to White, mainstream society as a potential risk …

African American Men Facing Homelessness And Co-Occurring Disorders: A Qualitative Investigation Of Multiple Stigmas, Rebecca C. Mayor

Dissertations (1934 -)

Homelessness is a pervasive and problematic phenomenon, and programs designed to assist individuals experiencing homelessness and reduce homelessness face a number of challenges. One such challenge involves difficulty engaging and retaining clientele experiencing homelessness in supportive services (Bhui et al., 2006; Ng & McQuistion, 2004; Padgett et al., 2008). The literature suggests that one explanation for this difficulty may involve the stigmatization experiences that individuals facing homelessness accumulate over time; previous studies have indicated that holding a marginalized position in society may make individuals experiencing homelessness more reluctant to engage in services (because of social rejection fears) and/or more sensitive …

Relationship Between Psychiatric Diagnosis And Functional Outcome In Physical Therapy, Marc A. Silva

Dissertations (1934 -)

Preliminary research suggests that psychiatric illness is associated with poorer functional outcomes in physical therapy (PT), but there is scant research examining this relationship specifically. In this study, the impact of psychiatric diagnosis on functional outcome in PT was investigated. Study design was a retrospective review of medical records. Participants were 310 veterans (age: M = 72.05 years, SD = 11.86; 96% male, 74% White) admitted for inpatient rehabilitation and referred for PT. Statistical analyses included MANCOVA and ANCOVA. Independent variables were mood disorder diagnosis, substance use disorder diagnosis, and any psychiatric diagnosis. Dependent variables were the sum of Functional …

The Influences Of Acculturation, Marianismo And Ethnic Identity On Sexual Activity Among Latina Adolescents, Keyona M. Jarrett

Dissertations (1934 -)

This mixed methods study examined the influences of acculturation (e.g., assimilation and enculturation), marianismo, and ethnic identity on the sexual behaviors and attitudes of Latina adolescents. In the quantitative portion of the study, 204 Latina adolescents completed measures regarding acculturation, gender roles, ethnic identity, and sexual behaviors. In the qualitative portion of the study, three focus groups were conducted (with a total of 10 participants) in which Latina youth were asked questions regarding their ethnic group membership and its influence on their attitudes about sex.

The results of the quantitative portion of the study revealed that ethnic affirmation was negatively …

Predicting Graduation In High School Seniors From Protective And Other Factors, Ana Cristina Garcia

Dissertations (1934 -)

The purpose of the current study was to examine factors that discriminated between high school students who graduated from those who did not. High school graduation was chosen as a discriminating outcome for the comparisons groups due to the positive implications graduation has on students' future professional and emotional development. Data were collected from students enrolled in their fourth year of high school. Specifically, the Behavior Assessment System for Children (BASC-2) and the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) were used to assess students' internalizing and externalizing behaviors as they related to academic achievement. Seventy-eight fourth year high school students …

Becoming Culturally Competent: Clinical Service Learning In Physician Assistant Education, Pinna Rea Katz

Dissertations (1934 -)

Background: Even though the need for culturally accessible, acceptable, and appropriate medical care for diverse populations is well established, there is a lack of research on how cultural competencies are developed in physician assistant education. There are no studies that address the intersections among cultural, clinical, and psychosocial competencies from the viewpoint of the physician assistant student. Although accreditation standards for physician assistant educational programs provide general guidelines for inclusion of cultural competency in the curriculum, core competencies in physician assistant education focus primarily on biomedical content rather than address cultural competencies. Because experiential education, such as service learning, offers …

Current Practices And Optimal Futures For The Treatment Of Substance Use Disorders Through Client-Treatment Matching: A Delphi Study, Noah Elijah Adrians

Dissertations (1934 -)

While over 4 million people in the United States aged 12 and over are engaged in treatment for substance use disorders each year, much remains unknown about how clients can be optimally referred to available treatment services, settings, providers, and interventions. Historically, clients received treatment in uniform, high intensity settings. Research over recent decades, however, has shown increased cost effectiveness and sustained, if not improved, clinical outcomes associated with efforts to individualize care. This study utilized the Delphi research methodology to examine community experts' (N = 9) perspectives on the real world implementation of client-treatment matching principles within a major …

Content Development Of The Relationships With Alcohol Scale For Late-Adolescents, Rose Lucey Schroedl

Dissertations (1934 -)

Level of functioning is an important component of comprehensive assessments of adolescent alcohol use behavior. However, comprehensive adolescent substance use measures fail to provide a clear conceptual framework for understanding how alcohol use impacts functioning. Recent research (Lucey, 2009) suggests that alcohol use does negatively impact late-adolescent functioning and it is important to measure an adolescent's alcohol-use behavior and its consequences in conjunction with level of functioning. Thus, a biopsychosocial measure of the impact of alcohol use on late adolescent functioning entitled the Relationship with Alcohol Scale (RAS) was proposed. Items for the RAS were developed from a review of …

Historical Implications Of The Black Civil Rights Movement Prior To The Brown Decision On Legislation For The Disabled, Robert Michael Thomas

Dissertations (1934 -)

Black children achieved equal protection rights to attend K-12 public schools following the Brown v. Board of Education Supreme Court holding in 1954. Scholars claimed Brown was a catalyst for admittance of disabled students as well. They believed tactics of the Black Civil Rights Movement influenced advocates of disabled students during the Civil Rights Era (1954-68). Scholars assumed race and minority status were key to obtaining due process legislation for the disabled in the 1970's.

An historical analysis of primary sources including court cases, Congressional testimony, biographical and personal statements of disabled individuals, and secondary sources of authors and journal …

Language Outcome After Left Temporal Lobectomy In Patients With Discordant Fmri And Sodium Amobarbital Testing Results, Julie K. Janecek

Dissertations (1934 -)

The rationale for this study was to examine 1) language lateralization discordance rates between fMRI and the IAT in pre- surgical epilepsy patients and 2) naming outcome after left ATL in a group of patients for whom IAT and fMRI language LIs were discordant. Participants were 229 consecutive pre-surgical epilepsy patients who underwent the IAT and fMRI. IAT LIs (% correct inject right -% correct inject left condition) were calculated based on performance on comprehension, naming, repetition and reading language tasks. The fMRI LIs [(L-R)/(L+R) where L = number of activated left hemisphere voxels and R = number of activated …