Digital Commons Network^™

Language Barriers In Accessing Healthcare Services For Refugees In The United States, Sadaf Khuram

Communication & Theatre Arts Theses

Accessing healthcare is a pivotal aspect of refugees' integration into their host countries and significantly impacts their long-term health outcomes. The literature emphasizes the critical role of language proficiency in overcoming communication barriers within healthcare settings. This thesis, however, challenges the assumption that addressing language barriers alone is universally sufficient. It argues that the importance of language solutions is context-dependent, varying with the design of healthcare systems and the diverse needs and backgrounds of refugees. In some cases, focusing primarily on language barriers can divert resources from other critical areas, particularly when healthcare facilities have limited capacities or when services …

Literary Study In The Era Of Artificial Intelligence In China, Fen Gao, Pengfei Zhang

Kritika Kultura

In view of the salient characteristics of technological innovation and human-machine symbiosis in the era of artificial intelligence, Chinese literary circles have purveyed a productive exploration of “literary study in the era of artificial intelligence.” Chinese scholars’ innovation of literary theory consists of three characteristics. First, they have established the original theory of “brain text,” systematically analyzed the definition, formation mechanism, and relationship between “brain text” and literature, language, text, and cognition, and applied this theory to literary criticism. Second, on the basis of sorting out and summarizing the core viewpoints of Western digital humanities theory, Chinese scholars have carried …

Multimodal Poster Kampanye Antirokok Stivoro Dalam Upaya Mengurangi Prevalensi Merokok Di Belanda, Aurellia Virgie Andjani, Triaswarin Sutanarihesti

Multikultura

This study examines the multimodal elements in the campaigns of STIVORO (Stichting Volksgezondheid en Roken), the Netherlands' first national organization dedicated specifically to tobacco control. The objective of this research is to analyze and describe the roles of visual and verbal elements in STIVORO’s campaigns in conveying anti-smoking messages to the Dutch public. This research adopts a qualitative descriptive approach and applies the theory of multimodality developed by Kress and van Leeuwen (2006). The research objects consist of eight posters, classified based on their target audience: active smokers and passive smokers. The findings reveal that visual and verbal …

Generalizability Of Existing Ai Models For Automatic Disfluency Detection In Children's Speech, Caryn W. C. Iwakiri

Master's Theses

Achieving consensus in identifying disfluencies and diagnosing developmental stuttering has been a significant challenge for many clinicians, particularly in young bilingual children, who tend to show increased disfluencies. Artificial intelligence (AI) has the potential to recognize more complex yet systematic patterns that might not be easily observable by even trained clinicians. It also has the potential to bring consistency in the measurement of stuttered speech. This study compares the performance of four AI models, their performance on detecting disfluencies including both stutter-like-disfluencies (SLD) and typical disfluencies (TD) in monolingual and bilingual children's data, then explores whether increasing the quantity of …

Public Understanding Of And Engagement With Community Health Workers And Promotores De Salud: Findings From Two National Surveys, Elizabeth A. Rohan, Julie S. Townsend, Andrea Torres, Hope L. Thompson, Dawn M. Holman, Avid Reza, Felicia Solomon Tharpe, Erin Caple, Ashley Wennerstrom

School of Public Health Faculty Publications

INTRODUCTION: Community health workers (CHWs) can improve health by helping people navigate health care services and systems and connecting them to community services that address nonmedical factors such as food insecurity, housing, and transportation. While CHWs have long been part of the US public health system, there are no data, to our knowledge, on the public's familiarity and interactions with CHWs. METHODS: We analyzed data from the 2022 Porter Novelli FallStyles and Estilos surveys, online market research surveys of the general public delivered in English (FallStyles) or primarily Spanish (Estilos). Each survey asked the same 4 questions on familiarity and …

Investigating The Complexity Of Language Acquisition For Linguistically Diverse Children, Krittin Srisajjakul

Master's Theses

Understanding the natural productions of children's early expressive language development is important to support their development. These natural productions may also be especially complex in children with diverse linguistic backgrounds. A challenge for clinicians is how to assess these natural productions for children’s early expressive language milestones. For example, what does it mean for children to say the same word in two languages and refer to the same concept (e.g., “water” and “agua”)? Or refer to two different concepts, (e.g., “water” and “leche” (milk))? By understanding how children’s expressive language connects to conceptual understanding, clinicians can better support language learning. …

Straddling The Boundary Of Misleading Information Group: Exploring The Association Between Network Brokerage And Morality Expressions, Yiqi Li, Marina Mitiaeva, Ximeng Deng, Una Joh, Yafei Zhang

iSchool - All Scholarship

Existing misleading information studies mostly focus on either the message content or social network structures, overlooking the association between the content and structural factors. This research examines the role of brokers, the key network actors straddling between misleading and true/regular information groups. Content-wise, morality expressions are examined, which signal social media users’ expressions toward what is right and wrong. This research provides insights into the understudied relationship between network brokerage and moral expressions and identifies connections between moral foundation and network brokerage theories. Findings suggest that binding morality (i.e., authority and loyalty) is dominant among network brokers. Practical strategies are …

Using Artificial Intelligence To Improve Customer Engagement: User Experience With Chatbot Technology, Aicha Zemmouri, Salma Choufari

Journal of Marketing and Consumer Behaviour in Emerging Markets

This study examines the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on improving customer loyalty through the use of chatbot technology, with a specific focus on the user experience of Moroccan consumers. The increasing integration of AI into customer service, especially through chatbots, represents a significant shift in how companies interact with their customers. Given Morocco’s growing digitalization and the strategic importance of customer loyalty, it is critical to understand how consumers perceive and interact with these technologies. To achieve this, the study used a qualitative research method of semi-structured interviews to investigate consumers’ perceptions, interaction behaviours, and challenges with chatbot usage. …

Effects Of Political Predispositions, Media Use, And Media Evaluation On Policy Malaise Among Indonesian And German People, Irma Garnesia

JURNAL KOMUNIKASI INDONESIA

This study explores a comparative analysis of Germany and Indonesia in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic, emphasizing the importance of addressing cross-cultural dimensions in global health crises—a field that remains underexplored. By enhancing preparedness for future emergencies, the research critically examines whether theoretical assumptions developed in Global North contexts can be meaningfully extended to Global South settings. Specifically, this study hypothesizes that political predispositions, media use, and media evaluation are associated with policy malaise, and investigates these associations in light of cross-cultural differences. Using data from Germany (n = 1,458) and Indonesia (n = 1,043), the findings reveal significant …

Everyday Life In The U.S.: An Intersectional Approach To A North Korean Refugee Woman’S Identities, And Experiences, Lyounghee Kim

Communication ETDs

This dissertation examines everyday experiences of a North Korean refugee woman in the U.S., centering her narratives as sites of critique, resistance, and meaning-making. Grounded in Critical Refugee Studies, Asian American Studies, and Critical Intercultural Communication and framed by intersectionality, it explores how interlocking structures of power shape and are shaped by her life. Rather than focusing solely on trauma or assimilation, this study highlights her digital storytelling, faith, and mutual aid practices as acts of survival, dignity, and moral agency. Using a qualitative, narrative inquiry approach grounded in critical reflexivity, it thematically analyzes her stories to reveal how she …

Mediating The Exquisite: Aesthetic Affordances Of The Network Arts, Seth Adams

Journal of Network Music and Arts

This paper argues that the Network Arts afford uniquely nuanced aesthetic interactions among humans and between humans and machines. After defining these moments under a new concept I call exquisite musicking, I investigate how distributed networks of human and nonhuman actors create experiences that challenge or complicate traditional notions of agency, ensemble, aesthetics, and synchrony. Using Actor-Network Theory as a lens of inquiry, I explore the exquisite affordances of network-based musicking, discussing how pitch, timbre, and texture are co-created in networked performances. I also examine how exquisite musicking could serve as a fruitful concept in music education, particularly in pedagogical …

External Challenges For Individuals Who Need Or Use Aac Who Are Learning Language: Lived Experiences, Key Research Findings, And Future Directions, Christine Holyfield, Janice Light, Dana Nieder, Jamie Preece

Communication Disorders and Occupational Therapy Faculty Publications and Presentations

Language skills are essential to effective communication, but learning language is by no means a simple process for individuals with developmental disabilities who cannot rely on speech alone to be heard and understood. Research demonstrates that augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) interventions positively impact development across language domains (e.g., pragmatics, semantics, morphosyntax) and may also benefit speech production. However, these gains can only be realized if people have timely access to effective AAC and have meaningful opportunities to interact with others. This paper integrates the lived experiences of individuals who need or use AAC and their families with key research …

Socio-Economic Dynamics Of Engagement And Incentivization In Emerging Digital Platforms, Danyang Song

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

The rapid advancement of digital technology—particularly mobile and blockchain technologies—has fueled the unprecedented growth of online platforms. Among these, live commerce and blockchain-based social media have emerged as two distinct business models that profoundly shape both commercial and social aspects of people’s lives. E-commerce livestreaming integrates live video streaming with e-commerce, offering consumers real-time product information and interactive shopping experiences. Different from traditional social media platforms that rely on either voluntary contributions or ad revenue sharing to incentivize user participation, blockchain-based social media platforms often use cryptocurrency or tokens to reward users for creating and curating content. This dissertation investigates …

Pilipinong Komunikasyon: Dekolonisasyon Ng Pag-Aaral Ng Komunikasyon Sa Pilipinas, Jeffrey Rosario Ancheta

Dalumat: Multikultural at Multidisiplinaryong E-Journal sa Araling Filipino

Ang papel na ito ay pagtatangkang itaguyod ang Pilipinong Komunikasyon bilang isang mahalagang hakbang sa dekolonisasyon ng larangan ng komunikasyon sa Pilipinas. Sa loob ng mahabang panahon, ang teorya at praktika ng komunikasyon sa bansa ay nakaangkla sa Kanluraning modelo na hindi ganap na nagpapaliwanag sa natatanging paraan ng pakikipagtalastasan ng mga Pilipino. Upang matugunan ang puwang na ito, sinuri ang iba't ibang lokal na pananaw tulad ng Pilipinolohiya, Pantayong Pananaw, Sikolohiyang Pilipino, Pilosopiyang Pilipino, Filipino Communicative Behaviour, at Pilipinong Sosyolohiya. Ang pagsusuri sa mga pananaw na ito ay nagbigay-daan sa pagbubuo ng isang diskurso na nakaugat sa sariling wika, …

Book Review: Maricel Guiao Santos, Rachel Showstack, Glenn A. Martínez, Drew Colcher, Dalia Magaña. (2024). Health Disparities And The Applied Linguist. Routledge, Pp. 148, David Sanchez-Jimenez

Publications and Research

No abstract provided.

Cinematic Abuse: A Critical Analysis Of Disney’S “Happily Ever After” In The Little Mermaid, Aladdin, And The Princess And The Frog, Erin Michelle Gough

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation examines the manner in which three animated Disney princess films cultivate stereotypes and gendered behaviors consistent with domestic violence and thereby encourages viewers to accept and tolerate abuse against women. I argue that due to the dangerous, constricting, and sexist gender roles encouraged by the Walt Disney Corporation, films prime young girls and boys to react to social situations and encounters in a way that mirror the characters’ reactions. Because of the films’ entertainment value, most of the characters’ inappropriate, stereotypical, and often violent behaviors either go unnoticed or are passively accepted. The violence does not have to …

The Effects Of Study Abroad Programs On Second Language Acquisition (Sla), Isabel Odewald

NEXUS: The Liberty Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies

As study abroad programs have increased annually by 10%, numerous researchers have examined how participation in study abroad programs have affected second language acquisition (SLA) in students (Isabelli-Garcia, et. al, 2018). Reviewing previous literature evaluating the relationship between study abroad programs and undergraduate students overall academic achievement, personal growth, and career preparation, it has been found that study abroad programs impact students academically, emotionally, and cognitively. Specifically focusing on factors such as the duration of study abroad programs, personality of students, students’ motivations, and engagement with peers abroad, the current literature review provides explanations of relevant SLA theoretical frameworks and …

Creating And Re-Energizing Communities Of Meaning Throughout A Course, Nancy A. Heise, Anum Ahmed

Feminist Pedagogy

We propose a feminist course approach wherein instructors build what Amie Macdonald (2002) called "communities of meaning" in their classrooms (p.120). Through an intentional focus on supporting students' 1) individual identities, 2) holistic well-being, and 3) epistemic "buy-in" to classroom content, students will connect more deeply not only to themselves and their classmates, but also to the course material. We suggest four community-building touchpoints as a starting point for instructors looking to integrate this course approach. We start with an activity to lessen awkwardness around first-day name pronunciation. We emphasize the importance of creating collaborative classroom expectations with students, and …

La « Novlangue » Managériale Dans Le Discours Institutionnel De L’Éducation Et De La Formation Professionnelle À L’Ère De La Bonne Gouvernance – Analyse Pluridisciplinaire, Youssef Aboudi

Al-Kīmiyā

Today’s globalization imposes, more than ever, exchanges between peoples and states. Consequently, the need for openness to others, which translates into listening and communicating, justifies, in many cases, the learning of languages spoken by foreign peoples. As a result, several languages with different statuses can coexist in the same country. Aligning with this general trend of globalization, Saudi Arabia has gradually integrated the learning of French into its educational and university system, even opening departments dedicated to the translation of this language. This study questions the correlation between the status conferred to French and the learning of translation. In other …

Stratégies Discursives De Lutte Contre Le Terrorisme Dans Les Discours Royaux Au Maroc, Badreddine El-Kacimi

Al-Kīmiyā

Morocco is confronted with terrorist threats stemming from its strategic geographical position and ongoing geopolitical conflicts, exacerbated by the Salafist movement. In response, the regime has taken measures such as suppressing Islamist groups and integrating them into the political process. King Mohammed VI has adopted a holistic approach, combining security measures, human development, and the promotion of tolerance values to counter terrorism and ensure national stability. These discourses firmly denounce terrorism and jihadism, highlighting their threat to Morocco’s security and cohesion. The royal metadiscourse aims to promote principles of tolerance and fraternity, rejecting extremism and racism, with the objective of …

Handbook Of Communication In The Legal Sphere, Elissar Gebrael Saad

Al-Kīmiyā

Visconti, J. (Ed.). (2018). Handbook of communication in the legal sphere. De Gruyter Mouton.

Edited by Jacqueline Visconti, The Handbook of Communication in the Legal Sphere is a seminal interdisciplinary volume that explores how language functions within legal systems across various socio-political, linguistic, and cultural contexts. Drawing from applied linguistics, discourse analysis, legal theory, translation studies, and computational linguistics, the book examines the role of legal communication in shaping institutions, regulating behavior, and reflecting power dynamics. Its contributors represent diverse legal traditions and linguistic expertise, providing both theoretical insights and empirical grounding [...]

Planches, Cases, Bulles Entre Les Langues : Représentations Des Langues Dans Le Roman Graphique « Le Piano Oriental » De Zeina Abirached, Chiara Denti

Al-Kīmiyā

Published in France by Casterman in 2015, Le piano oriental is the fifth graphic novel by French Lebanese comic artist Zeina Abirached. Like her previous graphic works, this book is part of the autobiographical comics movement, although it takes a slightly different perspective. The author is no longer dealing with the facts of collective history, recounting the Beirut of her childhood ravaged by civil war, but she explores her linguistic biography, reflecting on her bilingualism and her dual heritage. Combining images and words, Le piano oriental retraces the author’s linguistic journey and the experience of a mother tongue that is …

S’Approprier L’Objet De Son Transfert Ou Quand Un Poète Traduit Un Poète : Baudelaire Par Giorgio Caproni, Gianluca Leoncini

Al-Kīmiyā

Without being iconoclastic, Giorgio Caproni, a poet who translates the reverse journey of another poet, appropriates the object of his transfer as much as he reports on it. In the rewriting of this pre-set universe recalling elsewhere outside history, the individual who wishes to appease his troubles may seek to forget, through the use of the almost hypnotic power of the reflections of meridian lights, marine sounds and delectable smells, that Evil is everywhere and that the human being participates in its cruelty and absurdity.

English title
Appropriating the Object of One’s Transfer or When a Poet Translates a Poet: …

Introduction, La Rédaction De « Al-Kīmiyā »

Al-Kīmiyā

Ce numéro propose une exploration de différentes formes de médiation du langage. À la croisée de la bande dessinée, de la traduction poétique et de l’enseignement, les articles réunis interrogent la manière dont la langue façonne les identités, touche à la fois les cœurs et les esprits, mais exerce aussi un pouvoir déterminant en imposant des normes éducatives et juridiques […]

Le Discours Éducatif « Expert » Dans L’Enseignement Supérieur À L’Épreuve Du Néolibéralisme, Youssef Aboudi

Al-Kīmiyā

This article aims to examine the main linguistic mechanisms employed by the “expert” educational discourse in higher education to reinforce its legitimacy and authority. The central hypothesis of this study posits that the “expert” educational discourse uses pseudo-technical/scientific rhetorical strategies to create an illusion of rationality and performance, with the aim of neutralizing critical and reflective thinking (Denault, 2016; Gobin, 2011). Theoretically, the study adopts a critical multidisciplinary approach that integrates socio-pragmatics, linguistic anthropology, political philosophy, and critical sociology of organizations. Methodologically, the study is based on a “hermeneutic” approach (Charaudeau, 2018) that seeks to explore the various discursive mechanisms …

Les Interactions Didactiques : Cadrage Épistémologique, Abdeladim Erradi

Al-Kīmiyā

In an educational context, communication can be thought of as “didactic interactions”. This type of interaction is undertaken and constructed jointly. They are complex systems on the modal and semiotic levels. They are observed in situ using tools and techniques to detect, transcribe, and analyze them to understand the communicative and didactic issues and interpret them. This article presents an overview of sociolinguistic currents that study didactic interactions in linguistic, sociolinguistic, and pragmatic dimensions. These currents could serve as models of analysis in the field of sociodidactics.

English title
Didactic Interactions: Epistemological Framing

Résumé
Quand on évoque la communication dans …

The Colors Of Good And Evil: A Quantitative Study On The Effect Of Disney Animated Feature Films On Audience Color Association, Grace Mallory Hayes

Masters Theses

The purpose of this quantitative research study was to determine what impact Disney animated feature films have on audience color association. The problem is that Disney assigns colors to certain movie roles that are in contrast to what color theory posits or would assume. This study sought to determine if audiences that are highly saturated in Disney animated feature films receive a different message from colors than someone who does not regularly consume Disney films. This research examines the impact of Disney habitually assigning colors to characters in contrast to their traditional meaning on the emotional association of viewers through …

A Quantitative Study Of Ai-Voice Based Assistant Users That Anthropomorphize Technology As Social Actors, Brandon Alton Bassett

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The problem was that there were limited studies that acknowledged how voice-based assistant users perceive the intelligence of voice-based assistants and the different variation levels of trust towards it. The purpose of this quantitative research was to investigate how demographic variables such as generation, ethnicity, gender and education level influence perceptions of trust and perceive intelligence towards AI-voice based assistants. The rationale for this research was that voice-based assistants have garnered 46% of the human-technology interaction. It is pivotal that voice-assistant applications listen to the need of its users’ as it pertains to the user experience. Voice-based assistants users’ perception …

Enhancing Multi-Step Stock Price Forecasting With Social Media Sentiment And Engagement Metrics, Damilare Olaniyan

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis investigates whether social media sentiment can improve the accuracy of stock price prediction beyond traditional historical data. While financial markets have long relied on structured numerical indicators, the growing influence of public discourse on platforms like Twitter has introduced new opportunities for extracting market-relevant signals from unstructured text. The study focuses on four major technology firms and combines sentiment features derived from Twitter with historical stock prices in a hybrid machine learning framework. Engagement-weighted sentiment, linguistic complexity, and polarity intensity were extracted using natural language processing techniques and incorporated into classification and regression models. Results show that including …

Analyzing The Intention To Volunteer Through The Integrated Model Of Behavioral Prediction, Sage Mendre

University Honors Theses

Nationwide, a significant portion of adults lack basic, functional literacy skills. To combat functional illiteracy in the United States, non-profit organizations who focus on literacy require the services of volunteers. In Portland, Oregon, the Portland Literacy Council (PLC) is responsible for training volunteer tutors to help people learning English as a second language (ESL) and native English speakers who want to improve their literacy skills. The integrated model of behavioral prediction (IMBP) is a communication theory that identifies the core factors that can lead to the intention to perform a behavior. The connection between volunteering in literacy environments and IMBP …