Digital Commons Network^™

2025-05-01 Comments On Kentucky House Bill 424, Morehead State University. Faculty Senate.

Faculty Senate Records

Comments on Kentucky HB 424 from the Executive Council submitted to the Faculty Senate on May 1, 2025.

2025-05-01 Feedback On Proposed Uar On Emeriti Benefits, Morehead State University. Faculty Senate.

Faculty Senate Records

Feedback given on the proposed UAR on emeriti benefits submitted to the Faculty Senate on May 1, 2025.

2025-05-01 Pac-3 Emeritus Status For Faculty - Revisal, Morehead State University. Faculty Senate.

Faculty Senate Records

Another proposed revisal for PAC-3 Emeritus / Emeriti status for faculty, submitted to the Faculty Senate on May 1, 2025.

The Effects Of Hyper-Communication: A Quantitative Study On Workplace Productivity, David J. Olson

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Today's workforce is overwhelmed with information delivered by tools designed to make them more productive. In a milieu of distraction and overload, employees are disadvantaged in processing the tremendous volumes of information they receive. This is called hyper-communication, which is associated with stress, overload, communication misalignment, and, ultimately, distractedness that impairs an employee’s work efficiency. This quantitative study presents research conducted through surveys examining hyper-communication's effects on workplace productivity. A sample of 631 respondents, solicited through social media, participated in this study. The participants came from diverse occupational backgrounds, providing cross-sectional insights into how factors like employees' titles, roles, gender, …

The Challenges Small And Medium-Sized Businesses Face Adopting Digital Supply Chain Technologies: A Case Study Of Firms In Traditional Industries In The United States, Michael S. Stevens

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This research examined the digital transformation of supply chains within small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs), focusing on the challenges firms in traditional industries in the United States face in adopting these technologies to improve performance. Through a single case study qualitative approach, the study examined why some SMBs face these challenges, digital supply chain technologies affect business performance, and which technologies they contemplate to achieve their desired outcomes. Key findings indicate that most SMBs are between the digitization and digitalization phases of the digital transformation journey and are driven to adopt digital technologies that enable operational performance for scalable profitability. …

The Relationship Of Proximate-Peer Characteristics Of Seed Accelerator Participants To Member Firm Survival Outcomes, Matthew David Crowley

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This study examined how composite gender and ethnic heterogeneity present at three levels of proximate-peer groups of accelerators—firms, cohorts, and alumni—relate to firm survival within five years after program graduation. This research addresses the problem that accelerator membership alone does not guarantee firm success by examining the factor of heterogeneity on survival using a fixed-design, quantitative, correlational approach via a Cox proportional hazards model. Using archival data from Crunchbase on Y Combinator cohorts running from 2013 to 2017 augmented with demographic output from NamSor, the study investigated whether diversity at various levels of proximate-peer interactions related to the hazard of …

Faculty Perception Of Lean Thinking In Higher Education, Mikhail Shilov

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

There are many challenges that higher education institutions (HEI) are facing that include rising cost of education, reduction in student population, competition from other universities and alternative educational platforms, as well as reduction in public confidence. To stay competitive, HEIs could utilize performance improvement methods that have been proven to be advantageous in manufacturing and other industries, and one of these methodologies is Lean. Application of Lean in higher education is still in the early stages of development, the methods have been mostly used to improve administrative processes, but not as much in the core educational processes, teaching and research. …

Brand Loyalty And Repurchase Intention In The Face Of Opportunistic Recalls: The Moderating Role Of Perceived Dialogical Csr Communication, Shahid Hussain, Pi Shen Seet, Asim Qazi, Abdul Salam, Saalem Sadeque, Sanaullah Shar

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Product recalls, particularly when perceived as opportunistic, can trigger severe consumer backlash, undermining brand loyalty and escalating protest behaviors that threaten long-term consumer-brand relationships. This study integrates expectancy violation theory and situational crisis communication theory to understand the implications of opportunistic recalls for brand loyalty and repurchase intention. A survey with 425 responses from car owners in the United States was analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM). It found that opportunistic recalls significantly exacerbate negative brand personality and directly influence protest behavior and brand loyalty. A counterintuitive finding emerges with protest behavior positively impacting brand loyalty, an …

What Do Consumers Prioritise When Selecting Climate-Affected Produce And What Trumps Empathy Towards Farmers?, Liudmila Tarabashkina, Rajesh Rajaguru, Kenneth Kaysan Khayr (Fu Xian) Ho

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Despite the prevalence of extreme weather events (e.g., droughts), little is known about factors that would prompt consumer to choose climate-affected (suboptimal) produce over climate-unaffected (“normal”) food, and how much they would pay for it. This study has examined if empathy towards farmers: 1) outweighs the importance of the intrinsic attributes typically affected by extreme weather events (aesthetic look, taste, firmness, and size), and 2) enhances the effectiveness of extrinsic attributes controlled by marketers (price, retail setting, resilience marketing message). Two discrete choice experiments were carried out – one with a sample of Australian students (Study 1, N = 358) …

Successful Commercialisation In Startup Accelerator Programmes: How Different Startup Ecosystems Matter, Farzaneh Eslamloo, Kerry Brown, Zahra Amrollahi Biyouki

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

This study examined the influence of the Western Australian and Iranian startup ecosystem contexts, including the powers and liabilities that determine startups’ commercialisation outcomes. By utilising a theoretical framework based on programme evaluation, explanatory theory building, and critical realism, a cross-contextual comparison study was conducted. The study showed that the context of startup accelerator programmes and the startup ecosystem is an important determinant of commercialisation outcomes. The study revealed factors that impede startup accelerator programme success, including low follow-on investment, ecosystem immaturity, the ineffective agency of the Western Australian and Iranian governments, low levels of talent among startup agents, and …

Empirical Evidence Of Factors To Improve Student Engagement From Experiential Learning Activities, Lara Molendijk, Ross H. Taplin, Andrew J. Brennan

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Experiential learning activities (ELAs) are student-centered activities, such as case studies, that have benefits derived by students being active. Although the literature contains advice on which characteristics enhance ELAs, empirical evidence measuring the impact of these characteristics on engagement is scarce. This paper aims to fill this gap by comparing student engagement from 34 ELAs with varying levels of six characteristics the literature claims are beneficial. Data from a student questionnaire are analyzed with regression and content analyses. The results suggest engagement is most effectively improved when ELAs are authentic and contain the right level of detail and, to a …

Hope Experience Essentials: The Next Generation Of Service Standards At Mayo Clinic, Jennifer Packard, Richard M. Elias, Thomas J. (Tripp) Welch, Karee A. Munson, Jonathan A. Leighton

Patient Experience Journal

Engaging employees in providing exemplary patient experience has been challenging for healthcare leaders in recent years given the pressures of the regulatory environment, increases in staff burnout and rising patient expectations. Amid these challenges, addressing patient experience remains a top priority for healthcare organizations. A novel intervention has been applied at Mayo Clinic with the goal of improving both employee engagement and patient experience. Previous efforts to teach service excellence involved customer service trainings, sometimes purchased through outside vendors. This new initiative is based on our organizational culture and values, input from our employees and patients, and considers the changing …

What Makes A Hospital Gown Functional? A Comparative Case Study Of Effective Patient-Centered Design Practices In Four (N = 4) Hospital Gowns, Robmarie Lopez

Patient Experience Journal

A hospital gown is essentially a patient uniform. Yet, the typical ``tie in the back'' hospital gown, standard garb for routine medical procedure, can have great influence over key intervention factors like receptiveness to treatment and patient self-esteem. Thus, the goals of this study are two-fold: 1) To understand patient perceptions of the standard hospital gown, and 2) To understand which principles and elements of design underpin effectively functional hospital gown redesign. Aim 1 was assessed via a comprehensive literature review of n = 5 qualitative or mixed-methods studies which surveyed or interviewed patients on their experience with the standard …

Adolescents With Cystic Fibrosis Expressing Their Possible Selves Through Photovoice: A Longitudinal Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis To Prepare A Peer Support Intervention For Healthcare Transition, Maxime Morsa, Adélaïde Vincent-Lardy, Julie Haesebaert, Catherine Llerena, Lucie Pelz, Philippe Reix, Rémi Gagnayre, Quitterie Reynaud

Patient Experience Journal

While the transition from pediatric to adult care has become a field of study and practice focused on preparing the adolescent to ``become an adult with a chronic condition'', we are conducting participatory research to develop, implement, and evaluate a peer-support intervention aimed at supporting transition from pediatric to adult care for adolescents living with cystic fibrosis within two hospital centers in France. In preparation for this intervention, we would like to better understand how peer support could support identity self-determination of the adolescents. We conducted a longitudinal qualitative research using photovoice technique. For one year, 8 French adolescents (15–18 …

The Impact Of Learners On Patient Satisfaction In The Orthopedic Setting, Sydney Boike, Kevin Hodge, Lynsey Malin, Timothy Nyangacha, Rebekah Kleinsmith, Megan Reams, Julia Stumpf, Bradley Nelson

Patient Experience Journal

This investigation evaluates the impact of learners and their post-graduate year (PGY) levels on patient satisfaction in the orthopedic outpatient clinic, an area with limited prior research. A retrospective cohort study was conducted using data from July 2020 to December 2022, involving 2,484 patients, with a 39% response rate. Satisfaction was measured via NRC Health surveys, focusing on the likelihood of recommending the provider or clinic based on the presence of learners, categorized as none, present in the clinic, or involved in patient care. Non-parametric statistical analysis revealed significant reductions in satisfaction when learners were involved in care, with top-box …

A Qualitative Study: Patients' Expectation Of Private Hospitals, Sarah Jada, Jessy Jacob, Ahmad Nasrallah

Patient Experience Journal

Objectives: This study was conducted to explore patients' expectations and perceptions of private healthcare facilities, understand the key factors influencing their choice of such facilities, also identify elements that enhance patient satisfaction and loyalty, enabling the development of actionable recommendations to improve patient-centered care in private healthcare settings. Method: A qualitative study using thematic analysis was conducted with 29 patients from various nationalities and backgrounds who received services in private hospitals in Kuwait, including Dar Al Shifa Hospital. Insights were gathered through semi-structured interviews. Results: The study delved into the significant correlation between patients' experience of their healthcare encounters and …

Patient Perspectives On Health Care Utilization At Two Free Clinics – A Qualitative Study, Patrick Fagan, Danny Guillen Perez, Roberta D. Baer, John Petrilli

Patient Experience Journal

Millions of uninsured Americans access health care through free clinics, but their experience with the medical system is understudied. This study sought to understand patterns in free clinic patients' experience with healthcare utilization through qualitative and descriptive analyses. Data were collected through face-to-face, open-ended interviews at two free clinics in an urban Florida community. The clinics included one student-run free clinic and one community-based free clinic. Survey questions were developed based on prior literature and validated through expert consensus and pilot interviews. The interviewers conducted 74 interviews between May 7 and June 10, 2022. Responses were coded by the authors, …

The Patient Ombudsperson's Experience Of Patient Partnership And Mutual Understanding Of Rights, Sanna Ryynänen

Patient Experience Journal

Mutual understanding between the patient and the healthcare professional can be considered a key factor of a positive patient experience in the care relationship. Mutual understanding can be promoted through patient partnership, which, in this personal and professional narrative, the author (a patient ombudsperson, known as patient ombudsman, and researcher of patient experience) describes as participation through patient rights during care. In the relationship between the patient and the healthcare professional (i.e., who acts as a care provider in the patient's care), medical treatment decisions and related patient rights go hand in hand. Even in difficult care situations of mutual …

Beyond The White Coat: Mental Health In The Life Of A Junior Doctor, Araya Gautam

Patient Experience Journal

This article underscores the profound need for a culture that prioritises mental health, especially among doctors navigating their early careers. This personal narrative also highlights the importance of overcoming this and the challenges one can face while trying to do so. A journey of a 30-year-old doctor, as she hurdled along life with the passing of her grandparents and studying for the exam, it looked like a task that was achievable at first, but as time went by anxiety and self-doubts were not easy to navigate. This piece outlines why it is of utmost importance that we as doctor realise …

Escuchame: A Story Of Patient Resilience, Daniel Murillo Armenta, John Paul Braun

Patient Experience Journal

This article is a narrative following a patient's experience through the American Healthcare system. This article is written by a second-year medical student. During this time the individual repeatedly engaged in different specialties of medicine such as neurology, neurosurgery, oncology, emergency medicine, gynecology, and primary care. This narrative demonstrates how certain issues such as healthcare access, patient demographics, defective communication, and general mistrust of the healthcare system negatively impact patient outcomes. As an uninsured immigrant, the patient was in a disadvantaged position when her health problems first began. Due to her lack of insurance, she did not have an established …

Re-Recruitment: An Essential Aspect Of Human Experience, Thom Mayer, David Fessell, Amy Young

Patient Experience Journal

Healthcare staffing is a major issue facing leaders at all levels and is affected by turnover rates in ``The Great Resignation,'' as well as the issue of burnout, moral injury, and turnover. In seeking to deal with defining and making human experience as reality, these factors affect every level, from patient experience to workforce experience to community experience, all of which are related to not just adequate staffing and preventing turnover but doing so with our highest performing ``A Team'' members. Using the tool of re-recruitment of these high-level professionals and team members can be critical to retaining talent, while …

Leading In Turbulent Times: Why Experience Is Essential To Healthcare's Future, Jason A. Wolf

Patient Experience Journal

Healthcare systems around the world and throughout our community are being buffeted from all sides, with higher acuity patients, a vulnerable and stressed workforce, unsure finances and support structures, and even challenges to long-held medical truths. For as much as we traversed a once in a lifetime moment through the pandemic years, the residual effects and social and political sways that followed have woven their ways into healthcare overall. There is great uncertainty. There are rapidly emerging innovations. There are greater tensions in our society which show up in behaviors that impact how we provide care. These issues and more …

Ua12/2/2 Talisman: Connection, Wku Student Affairs

WKU Administration Documents

Spring 2025 Talisman:

• Alali, Cecilia & Ragan Harrington. Connection
• Hardesty, Emma. On a Roll – Dungeons & Dragons
• Muscutt, Carson. Grinding Through Life – Molotov Skateshop
• Cox, Kate. Stopwatch
• Harrington, Ragan. 1 Campus, 7 Strangers – Logan Hesse, Nicholas Basile, Spencer Winterbottom, Alliyah Jones, Alex Gehring, Annie McClurg, Rowan Finley
• Vickers, Abigail. Forged in Combat – Mixed Martial Arts
• Wood-Morris, Oli. Survivors to Neighbors – Bosnian Refugees
• Jordan, Shylin. Severed Roots
• Bivens, Emily. Behind the Screen – Social Media
• Dean, Clarissa. Shear Talent – Shake Rag Barbershop
• Sutton, Avery. For the Love of the Old – Thrift Shopping
• Phelps, Maggie. …

Strategies For Integrating Data Analytics In Accounting, Alisa C. Disalvo

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The increased need for data analytics proficiency requires accounting program directors and faculty to explore strategies to reduce the technology skills gap between education and professional requirements. Grounded in the technology acceptance model, the purpose of this qualitative pragmatic inquiry was to explore strategies that program directors use to integrate data analytics into the accounting program curriculum. The participants were 8 program directors and 2 faculty with over 2 years of program change experience in the accounting department. Data were collected through semi structure interviews with 10 participants and comparative data analysis with the AICPA & NASBA report. Through a …

Mobilizing Discord On The United States’ Many Borders: Critical Social Science And Geopolitical Complexity, Margath Walker

Midwest Social Sciences Journal

Attention to the political landscape connecting the United States, Mexico, and Central America has returned with glaring intensity, highlighting the visibly geostrategic elements of bordering practice. Scholars have focused on how state power materializes at multiple scales while at the same time being attentive to the contestable and mutable nature of myriad agentic forces. This talk operates similarly by considering prospects for a frictional and at times ambiguous spatial politics. I extend the notion of discord as a productive lens through which to consider securitization, mobility, and migration. I use two short examples—the border-industrial complex and migrant caravans—to illustrate my …

Editorial History

Midwest Social Sciences Journal

No abstract provided.

George C. Roberts Award Recipients

Midwest Social Sciences Journal

No abstract provided.

Mortgage Default Classification Modeling For Variable Analysis, Brendan R. Goggins

Honors College Theses

The financial crisis of the early 2000’s is a prime example of the severe consequences that mortgage default and borrower insolvency can have on economies at large. Mortgage default specifically is a prime case with the popularization of mortgage backed securities and the commonality of this loan structure. Multiple hypotheses and models have been formed to understand the reasons, causes, and consequences of mortgage default. This paper uses both machine learning and statistical classification models to inform an understanding of the variables most significant and impactful to the default outcome of mortgages. Consideration is given to both loan-level microeconomic variables …

96th Annual Iass Conference Call For Papers

Midwest Social Sciences Journal

No abstract provided.

Volume 27, Issue 2 Full Contents

Midwest Social Sciences Journal

No abstract provided.