Digital Commons Network^™

Tiered Clinician Vaccine Communication Strategy To Improve Childhood Vaccine Uptake: A Cluster Randomized Clinical Trial., Douglas J. Opel, Jeffrey D. Robinson, Chuan Zhou, Kathryn Colborn, Heather Spielvogle, Anna Furniss, Christine Spina, Cathryn Perreira, Sean T. O'Leary

Communication Faculty Publications and Presentations

No experimental studies to date have tested the effectiveness of clinician communication strategies to improve vaccine uptake among children of parents with negative vaccine attitudes.

Communication During Perimmigration: A Life-Line Interview Method Study, Giada Roberta Rossi

Communication & Theatre Arts Theses

This thesis examines the communication challenges faced by migrants and their impact on acculturation using a new approach. The study analyzed autobiographical memories of immigrants’ communication to explore both positive and negative experiences over time. The study extends previous intercultural communication research by using the Life-Line Interview Method (LIM) (Assink & Schroots, 2010) to collect autobiographical narratives from twelve participants about their communication journeys. The findings reveal consistencies with past intercultural communication research insofar as uncertainty and identity problems were pervasive, but also positively extends past research arguing that supportive environments, characterized by culturally responsive educators and peer networks, play …

Unveiling Risk Strategies In The Online Food Delivery Platforms: Evidence From Risk Disclosures And Reprisk Index, Maryam Mahdikhani, Jiyoon An, Arim Park

Atlantic Marketing Journal

Online Food Delivery Platforms (OFDPs) have faced unique challenges related to uncertainty and global risk in recent decades. To address these risks, this study utilized machine learning (ML) techniques, including Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA) and Word2Vec, to extract and cluster OFDP-related risk factors. The analysis was conducted using unstructured text data from the annual reports of two prominent OFDP companies—Delivery Hero (DH) and Grubhub (GH)—from 2017 to 2020. We also examined the multidimensional RepRisk Index (RRI) for these companies and developed a two-dimensional matrix to evaluate preparedness and responsiveness across various risk categories in the OFDP sector. The results indicate …

Empowering The Future: The Role Of Women Landowner Networks In Succession Planning, Charlotte Brockman, Andrea Basche Dr., Brooke Mcwherter Dr.

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

Women non-operating landowners play a critical yet often overlooked role in agricultural land management and decision-making. This study examines the intersection of emotional, economic, and social factors influencing their land tenure decisions, particularly in the context of succession planning and tenant relationships. Through qualitative analysis, findings reveal that women landowners navigate unique challenges, including limited access to tailored resources, legal and financial barriers, and gendered dynamics in agricultural advising. Participants expressed strong emotional attachments to their land, influencing their stewardship goals and interest in conservation practices. Additionally, the study highlights the need for increased support structures, such as legal guidance, …

Fratelli Tutti And Social Media: Solidarity And Social Networks Among Locals And Urban Refugees In Kampala, Uganda, Augustine Bahemuka

The Journal of Social Encounters

Fratelli Tutti, Pope Francis’ social encyclical, exhorts all Christians and people of good will to cultivate a spirit of fraternity and solidarity with all people in need, regardless of socio-cultural or creedal or racial differences. He challenges us to broaden our perception of “neighbour” to even include those people whose plight we encounter via social media – our digital neighbours. This paper shows how the Association of Refugee Women in Uganda (AORW- U) has used social media to amplify the voices of urban refugees living in Kampala, thereby raising public awareness; attracting global and local partnerships; and creating healthy social …

Cultural Relativism In Global Pr Ethics: A Thematic Analysis Of Pr Ethics Codes And Development Of A Cultural Assessment Tool, Amaia Ham

Master of Arts in Media and Communication Plan II Graduate Projects

As public relations becomes increasingly more global, it is valuable to learn whether the regulations and codes proposed by international organizations address cultural differences. Presently, there is a division within international public relations research on whether ethical codes can be universal or require a relativist framework. This study contributes to the conversation in two phases. Phase One consists of a thematic analysis of a leading global public relations network, the International Public Relations Association, to study its ability to balance collectivist and individualistic values within the code of ethics it provides to its global members. Additionally, codes from four associations …

The Cowl - V. 88 N. 17 - March 27, 2025

The Cowl

The Cowl - student newspaper of Providence College. Vol. 88 No. 17 - March 27, 2025. 16 pages.

"Very Important Stuff For The Ladies": Examining Gender Differences In Celebrity Journalism, Payton E. Pingree

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis explores gender differences in celebrity journalism by analyzing 44 YouTube video interviews from the Oscars red carpet between 2014 and 2024. Using framing theory and feminist theory, the study examines how interviewers interact with male and female celebrities, focusing on four key behaviors: infantilizing, ambivalence, sexualization, and heteronormativity. Through qualitative thematic analysis of interview transcripts, the research reveals that female celebrities are often sexualized through questions about their appearance and subjected to heteronormative expectations when discussing their fashion choices and familial roles. These patterns suggest persistent sexism in celebrity journalism, potentially influencing public perceptions of women in the …

Evaluating The Role Of Traditional And Nontraditional Educational Resources In Point-Of-Care Ultrasound Training: A Cross-Sectional Survey Of Educator Preferences And Practices, Arthur Broadstock, Annahieta Kalantari, Almaz S. Dessie, Al'ai Alvarez, Resa E. Lewiss, Josie Acuna, Anthony Weekes, Kaylah Maloney, Uwe Stolz, Lori Stolz, Aalap Shah

Department of Emergency Medicine Faculty Papers

BACKGROUND: Recently, nontraditional educational resources like podcasts, blogs, and online media have gained prominence in medical education and are abundant within the field of point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS). However, the extent to which POCUS educators utilize online resources compared to traditional resources, like textbooks, journal articles, and in-person workshops, is unknown. We aim to define which types of educational resources are used and preferred by POCUS educators to teach trainees.

METHODS: An expert working group developed a survey aimed to characterize the types of materials used by POCUS educators and their perceived importance on a 6-point forced ranking scale. We administered …

Inside A Youth Participatory Action Research (Ypar) Process: A Practitioner’S Communicative Experience Navigating Processual And Relational Power Dynamics Within Ypar, Lacey Nicole Stein

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation examines the communicative dimensions of Youth Participatory Action Research (YPAR), with particular attention to the power dynamics embedded in the processual and relational aspects of the research process. Through a meta-level examination of a nearly two-year YPAR project, this study illuminates how communication can function for YPAR practitioners as they navigate YPAR's complex power structures, thereby addressing a significant gap in existing literature. The study employs Braun and Clarke's thematic analysis to reveal nuanced findings in two key areas. First, it identifies the communicative complexities of enacting multiple adult roles within YPAR, including those of "superior" adult, facilitator, …

Research In Indigenous Historiographies: Oral History As Evidence For Federal Recognition Of Indian Tribes, Colette Haworth

Graduate Research Conference (GSIS)

Significant to the field of cultural studies is the identification of cultural artifacts, which enable scholars to analyze the complexities of societies, comprehend cultural dynamics, and investigate the ways in which individuals and communities construct meaning and identity in cultural contexts. Oral history, an intangible cultural artifact, has been an important cultural identifier, particularly for marginalized individuals and communities. The development of critical oral history (COH) methodology has alleviated some of the criticism toward oral history as a valid methodology. In fact, some scholars contend that COH has moved beyond the realm of academic research to “provide a policy relevant …

Modeling The Impact Of Nato Policy Actions On Taliban Disinformation Campaigns With Lotka-Volterra Models, Timothy Tarter, Bella Santos

Graduate Research Conference (GSIS)

In this paper, we use an adaptation of the Lotka-Volterra Predator-Prey framework (via Affilit Et. Al.) to model the relationship between Taliban disinformation campaigns and NATO’s attempts to counter them. We find that aggression is a significantly preferred strategy over stagnation; this result should prompt decisionmakers to take strong stances against disinformation campaigns while maintaining a healthy defense against retribution. This leads us to propose the NATO Afghan Youth for Change program, which provides scholarships to individuals throughout the Afghan diaspora to become NATO influencers - a role which will both advance their personal goals and mitigate the spread of …

Quiet Quitting Out Loud: A Qualitative Study Of Digital Communication Through Public Discourse On Youtube Regarding An Evolving Work Behavior Trend, Jessica R. Koch

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This dissertation examines the phenomenon of online discourse surrounding quiet quitting, a trending movement that has gone viral on social media. This trend encourages individuals to set work-life boundaries and reject excessive labor demands by contributing only what is required at work. The study aims to explore how news sources and users alike engage with this concept, particularly using YouTube as a platform for advocacy and community-building. A qualitative content analysis was conducted to analyze a sample of news segment videos published on YouTube on the topic of quiet quitting, focusing on emerging themes within those conversations and the role …

The Confidence Trap In Pr Academia: Barriers And Solutions For Female Professors, Kailey R. Thompson

Theses and Dissertations

This study examines the career barriers female public relations professors face through the lens of Brubaker et al.'s (2025) theoretical model of "The Confidence Trap." While existing research has explored gender disparities in the PR industry, limited scholarship has investigated the challenges faced by women in PR academia. This qualitative study utilizes in-depth, semi-structured interviews with 22 female public relations professors currently on the tenure track or who have earned tenure at R1 and R2 research institutions in the United States. Thematic analysis of interview transcripts revealed that traditional barriers--such as the glass ceiling, sticky floors, maternal walls, and sexism--manifest …

Recovering Palestinian Lives: Qudsiyya Khurshid From Mandate Palestine To Postwar Pennsylvania, Andrea L. Stanton

Religious Studies: Faculty Scholarship

This article works to recover the life story of Qudsiyya Khurshid, a once well-known Mandate Palestinian intellectual and educator, who wrote essays for publication and for broadcasting on the Palestine Broadcasting Service, while working as a principal at girls’ schools in al-Bireh and Jerusalem. One of a number of educated women active in the Mandate public sphere, she disappeared from public consciousness after the Nakba. But in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, where she had moved with her husband, a naturalized U.S. citizen, she became a prominent figure in civic work and as a community speaker on Palestinian and Middle Eastern life …

Competitive Language Use: A Linguistic Analysis Of Speech And Debate, Gina Iberri-Shea

Studies in Debate and Oratory

This study explores linguistic variation in competitive debate and prepared speech. A corpus of competitive public speech was collected and the situational characteristics of two contexts were analyzed. The linguistic characteristics of texts in each category were calculated along five dimensions of variation found across texts in English, and placed among other types of texts. Results show that three of the dimensions were able to distinguish between the two registers. The results indicate a clear direction for future work and implications for English for Academic Purposes instruction.

Do Universities Choose The Right Strategies For X Engagement? The Case Of Six Universities In Thailand, Mathupayas Thongmak

Higher Learning Research Communications

Objective: The purpose of this study is to understand how Thai public universities engage their stakeholders on X (the social media platform previously known as Twitter). This article answers the following research questions: 1) What are the X message strategies of six public universities? 2) Do they choose the most effective strategies to drive X engagement in terms of favorites and reposts?

Method: Data was automatically collected using anX analytic tool, and the potential variables were extracted semi-automatically using tools appropriate to text mining, sentiment analysis, word cloud, and so on. Posts from six universities in Thailand were investigated.

Results: …

Transmedia Edutainment For Sustainable Advocacy: How Narrative Engagement And Counterarguments Influence Generation Z’S Response To Sustainable Development Messages, Aya Shata, Michelle Seelig, Nick Carcioppolo

Hank Greenspun School of Journalism and Media Studies Faculty Research

Media convergence has created new forms of storytelling, such as transmedia edutainment (TE-E), which can serve as an innovative communication strategy for promoting pro-environmental attitudes and behaviors. Because of the limited evidence about the persuasive outcomes of narrative TE-E, this research investigates the role of TE-E as a novel communication approach that advocates for sustainable development among Generation Z. Drawing on narrative persuasion theories, we conducted an experiment (N = 441) that examined the narrative mechanisms of TE-E, focusing on narrative engagement and counterargument, and assessed the narrative outcomes of different single formats—including video, game, and comic—compared with TE-E. Findings …

How Insider-Led Processes Lead To Localization: The Case Of Digital Technology And Humanitarian Protection, Oliver Kaplan, Emily Paddon Rhoads

Global and Public Affairs: Faculty Scholarship

The humanitarian sector has been increasingly concerned with localizing its activities—devolving capacity, power, and decision-making authority to the local communities and organizations that are the frequent recipients of its assistance. However, the mere “outsider-led” provision of assistance to local actors is not itself sufficient to empower them. In- stead, we argue that “insider-led,” locally initiated processes can be an effective approach to localization. We identify how such shifts can occur and distinguish three different configurations of “insider-led” processes: Autonomous Adopters, Balanced Partners, and Exporting Entrepreneurs. We examine “insider-led” localization in the context of the use of Information and Communication Technologies …

The Cowl - V. 88 N. 16 - March 6, 2025

The Cowl

The Cowl - student newspaper of Providence College. Vol. 88 No. 16 - March 6, 2025. 16 pages.

Personal Pronoun Comprehension In Addressed And Non-Addressed Situations In Autistic And Nonautistic Preschoolers, Jonet Artis, Rhiannon Luyster, Lily Carroll, Angela Xiaoxue He, Sudha Arunachalam

Emerson Authors, Researchers, & Creators

This research paper explores the role of speaker, listener and real-time social attention for pronoun comprehension in autistic and nonautistic children in the northeast United States. We assessed the pronoun comprehension of 22 autistic children (average age of 62 months, range 46–80 months) and 22 nonautistic children (average age 44 months, range 30–57 months) matched on expressive vocabulary scores. We evaluated the first- and second-person possessive pronoun comprehension (“my” and “your”) using a game in which two experimenters hid stickers and provided clues to their location by providing a verbal clue (e.g. “It’s in your box”) with accompanying gaze to …

Following The Mission Leader: The Value Of Imitational Learning In The Training Of Apostolic Church Planting Teams At Memorial Lutheran Church In Katy, Texas, John F. Davis Jr

Doctor of Ministry Major Applied Project

Davis, Jr., John F. “Following the Mission Leader: The Value of Imitational Learning in the Training of Apostolic Church Planting Teams at Memorial Lutheran Church in Katy, TX.” Doctor of Ministry. Major Applied Project, Concordia Seminary, 2025. pp. 272

Reaching the unchurched and unbaptized in our communities with the Gospel of Jesus Christ is a huge challenge for most of our churches. In The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod, the number of adults being baptized in the churches (a measure of our effectiveness in carrying out the Missio Dei) is less than one per year. To reach people who have no …

Only Skin Deep Ai Lifestyle Accounts Influencing Political Discourse, Leland Fecher, Patrick Warren, Kylie Gilbert, Ella Murray, Miles Rockow, Jonathan Joon-Hyung Yoo

Media Forensics Hub Creative Inquiry Reports

Inauthentic political influence in American politics has been a prominent topic since the 2016 presidential election, and its features have shifted over time in response to platform countermeasures, feature adoption, and technological change. In this report we explore a small network of AI-empowered accounts posing as models, jewelry sellers, and artists that are espousing a particular partisan view, likely in an effort to engage specific online communities. This report includes a detailed description of the network and the topics in which the network regularly engages. We then discuss the possible effects this has on the American zeitgeist in the moments …

Factors Associated With Student Engagement In Online Learning During Covid-19 Pandemic: A Systematic Review, Yam B. Limbu, Christopher Mckinley

College of Communication and Media Scholarship and Creative Works

While extant literature reveals various factors associated with student engagement in online learning during the COVID-19 pandemic, the findings are inconsistent. A systematic review of the factors influencing student engagement in online learning during the pandemic will provide state-of-the-art knowledge of existing literature and offer future research directions. This study systematically reviews factors driving college student engagement in online learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. Performed in accordance with the guidelines of Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses, a systematic search of four databases identified 50 eligible studies. The most prevalent factors associated with student engagement were student-related factors …

A Word From The Writing Team (March 2025), Pam Walter, Mfa, Hemma Murali, Ms

A Word From the Writing Team (Newsletter)

This issue includes:

• Publication Spotlight
• Jefferson is on Newsweek’s List of Top 250 Hospitals Worldwide!
• Sign up for the March 7th Writing Retreat (Online)
• Write that Baby in 9 Weeks Workshop Series – March 6th Online
• Generative AI Acknowledgement in Publishing
• Check out the OPWPC’s Streamlined Webpage
• The OPWPC Canvas Page Offers Helpful Tools
• Looking for Your Next Fun Podcast?

Investigating The Effect Of Full And Partial Social Media Abstinence On Fear Of Missing Out And Well-Being Outcomes: A Daily Diary Experimental Approach, Andree Hartanto, K Tennakoon Appuhamillage Sandeeshwara Kasturiratna, Meenakshi Kothari, A. Y. H. Goh, Frosch Yi Xuan Quek, Nadyanna M. Majeed

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

With social media deeply embedded in our daily lives, there is an ongoing debate about its potential negative impact on well-being outcomes. Several lines of correlational research suggest that social media use is associated with reduced well-being. However, these findings are preliminary, heavily relying on cross-sectional data. To address this limitation, our study implemented an experimental paradigm that manipulated varying degrees of social media abstinence and assessed fear of missing out, as well as multiple well-being outcomes, including anxiety, depressive symptoms, life satisfaction, perceived stress, affective states, loneliness, sleep quality, and cognitive failures. A total of 280 regular social media …

Cognitive Warfare In The South China Sea: Analyzing Media Influence And Public Opinion In Taiwan, Wyatt F. Blatti

Theses and Dissertations

In a time where conflict extends beyond traditional battlefields, cognitive warfare emerges as a powerful tool to influence perceptions and gain strategic advantages. This study investigates China’s cognitive warfare strategies against Taiwan through trend analysis, topic modeling, and sentiment analysis of news media articles from March 2013 to August 2024 to uncover evolving techniques and mitigation efforts. The findings highlight the potential for tracking cognitive campaigns overtime but will require more than news media alone and suggests future research to better understand indicators of cognitive warfare.

Are Emojis The New Words? A Sentiment Analysis Of Social Media Brand Conversations, Yashodhan Karulkar, Dev T. Vora, Siddharth Vaddepalli, Yash Thakur

Journal of International Technology and Information Management

Emojis have become an increasingly important aspect of consumer-brand interactions in the Indian subcontinent. However, the impact of emoji use on brand image and mental health remains underexplored, particularly in emerging economies like India, where structured research on this topic is limited. To address this gap, the present study analyzes over 4,600 consumer tweets related to 19 prominent brands across eleven industries. Using VADER sentiment analysis, the research develops a metric to assess consumer sentiment and brand engagement in relation to emoji usage. The findings indicate that effective integration of emojis contributes to positive consumer sentiment and enhanced brand engagement. …

Maximizing Benefits For Our Local Authors, Joanne Romano

Library Staff Publications

Our library's publishing benefits include TA's, instructional LibGuides, predatory publisher data and other resources to share with six academic stakeholders. Keeping our authors informed of these benefits requires creative thinking. In this presentation, our resource management team shares ideas for maximizing benefits for local authors at reasonable and sustainable costs.

The Cowl - V. 88 N. 15 - February 27, 2025

The Cowl

The Cowl - student newspaper of Providence College. Vol. 88 No. 15 - February 27, 2025. 16 pages