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Racial Trauma, Psychosis, And Double Consciousness, Brianna A. Baker

Publications and Research

Key Points

• Black distress is often misdiagnosed as psychosis instead of recognized as a response to racial trauma.
• Double consciousness may explain how racism causes cognitive and emotional strain in Black individuals.
• Racial discrimination is linked to paranoia, dissociation, and hallucinations in Black communities.

Investigating Child-Informed Considerations For Animated Picture Symbols Representing Emotion For Aac Use In Children With Asd, Hannah Kitsmiller

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Development of emotional competence is an important area of consideration when supporting individuals who use augmentative and alternative communication (AAC). Emotional competence includes skills related to identifying and communicating about one’s emotions. Individuals who use AAC may struggle to develop strong skills in emotional competence. One potential barrier to developing emotional competence may be access to symbols that facilitate understanding of the represented emotion. Emotions are abstract and challenging to represent in visual symbols. Additionally, evidence suggests individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) may have visual perceptual differences when viewing faces. Current emotion symbols are often depicted using isolated facial …

On The Provenance Of Software Systems: Automating Software Traceability With Knowledge Graph And Large Language Model Synergy, Tyler Procko

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

The present dissertation delineates a system that enables those engaged in software development to automatically generate and maintain project life cycle provenance. All projects are implemented and made manifest with the development of artifacts, e.g., papers, code files, etc. Tools exist to accelerate artifact creation, but little focus is paid to the processes that produce them. In terms of Ontology, or, from Ancient Greek, the study of being, the two most basic entities in reality are Continuant and Occurrent, or, roughly, “Artifact” and “Process”. This dissertation posits that for any created artifact, its process of creation, i.e., its life …

Ethical Ai Use And Classroom Integration Training Modules, Daniel Boudon

Open Educational Resources

This project focuses on developing comprehensive training modules to equip students and faculty with the knowledge and skills necessary to ethically and effectively use AI tools in academic settings. The training consists of interconnected modules that cover a wide range of topics, including the ethical use of AI, evaluating AI-generated content, integrating AI tools into curriculum design, and creating AI-enhanced classroom activities. Additional modules emphasize fostering digital literacy, staying updated with AI advancements, and collaborating on best practices for AI in education.

Designed for flexibility, the modules cater to diverse academic disciplines, making them suitable for undergraduate and graduate courses, …

Acculturation Experiences Of International Students In The U.S. Cacrep-Accredited Counselor Education Programs: Challenges, Support Systems, And Systemic Barriers, Nargiza Amirova

Counseling & Human Services Theses & Dissertations

International students significantly enrich U.S. counselor education and supervision programs by contributing diverse cultural perspectives that inspire teaching, research, and professional growth. Yet, these students often face complex challenges including cultural adjustment, language barriers, social isolation, and the academic demands of counseling academic programs that impact their educational outcome s and psychological well-being. Systemic barriers, such as visa restrictions and institutional unawareness, further complicate their experiences. This study explored acculturation experiences of international students enrolled in CACREP-accredited counselor education programs in the United States.

Using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA), in-depth interviews were conducted with seven international students on J1/F1 visas, …

Initial Reliability Of A Special Education Law Chatbot, J.T. Lacy Ph.D., Amy Drinnon Ed.S., Angie Howard Ed.S.

SACAD: Scholarly Activities

There is a shortage of school psychologists across the nation (National Association of School Psychologists, n.d.), resulting in a need for practitioners to perform all aspects of their jobs as efficiently as possible to avoid burnout while ensuring adequate service delivery. While school psychologists are trained in 10 Domains of practice, Domain 10: Legal, Ethical, and Professional Practice, permeates all aspects of school psychological practice. Specifically, school psychologists are “state actors,” meaning they are an extension of their state’s authority, supported by state and federal laws, to educate and serve school-aged children, who are among our most vulnerable populations (NASP, …

Ce Eligible Workshop: New Thinking In Ethical Decision-Making, Mark Leach Phd

Great Lakes Regional Counseling Psychology Conference

Dr. Leach's talk is one of two pre-conference CE workshops for the Great Lakes Conference. Please note that the CE workshops require a separate registration process that can found by visiting the main conference webpage.

Shared Culture In Intimate Relationships, Jackelyn Castaneda

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Almost everyone identifies with some kind of culture and the definition often varies among researchers and disciplines of the field. Culture has an influence on every aspect of one’s everyday life, including the role it plays in close relationships. Although intimate relationships and culture have been widely explored in psychological research, limited studies have explored how these two factors may go hand in hand in creating what may be a newer concept, a mini-culture (smaller, unique cultural groups that develop within larger societies or organizations). The purpose of this study was to explore how this awareness of culture sharing and …

The Effects Of Reading Comprehension Intervention For Dyslexia, Amber L. Coggin

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

A quantitative study was performed to determine if Lindamood-Bell Reading Intervention had an effect on the self-concept, anxiety levels, and depression levels of individuals diagnosed with dyslexia. This quantitative study was also conducted to determine if a person’s age had an effect on the ability to learn coping mechanisms for dyslexia. Thirty-three participants, ranging in age from 7 to17 years-old were selected to participate in the study. All participants had a formal diagnosis of dyslexia and had not obtained the Lindamood-Bell Reading Intervention prior to participating in the study. The participants were divided into three age groups. Each participant completed …

Mirrors For Pacific Islander Children: Teaching Resilience Through Culturally Adapted Bibliotherapy, Isabel Medina Hull, Elizabeth Cutrer, Paul H. Ricks, G. E. Kawika Allen, Kendra M. Hall-Kenyon, Lorena Seu, Kristopher J. Urbina, Melia Fonoimoana Garrett

Faculty Publications

Pacific Islander youth face disproportionately high rates of suicide and mental health challenges, yet culturally appropriate interventions remain scarce. This study investigated whether culturally adapted bibliotherapy could effectively promote resilience in American Samoan children by incorporating culturally relevant stories and coping strategies. Through collaboration with on-island Samoan cultural brokers, we developed and implemented culturally adapted stories and lessons designed to resonate with the experiences of children in American Samoa. The study employed a mixed-methods approach with 34 American Samoan children aged 5–13 years, using observations, adapted card sorts, and forced-choice procedures to measure responses to the intervention. The results demonstrated …

Classroom Teachers' Approaches To Values Education: Exploring Explicit And Implicit Strategies For Teaching And Modeling Values, Maria Ukamaka Clare Okeke

College of Education Theses and Dissertations

Abstract This study explores the approaches Nigerian secondary school teachers in Anambra State use to teach values through explicit and implicit methods. Recognizing the need to understand how values are effectively communicated in the classroom, this research delves into the dual strategies employed by educators and their impacts on student moral development. The research used a qualitative interview study approach, which included semi-structured interviews with ten experienced secondary school teachers and a document analysis of teaching resources. This method allows one to investigate the explicit instruction and implicit modeling strategies applied in values education in depth. Findings reveal that teachers …

Racialization Of Urban Black Middle School Students From The Perspective Of Middle School Teachers: A Phenomenological Study In Central And Southeast Michigan, Bryan L. Spencer

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Walden University College of Education and Human Sciences This is to certify that the doctoral dissertation by Bryan L. Spencer has been found to be complete and satisfactory in all respects, and that any and all revisions required by the review committee have been made. Review Committee Dr. Michael Langlais, Committee Chairperson, Psychology Faculty Dr. Matthew Hertenstein, Committee Member, Psychology Faculty Chief Academic Officer and Provost Sue Subocz, Ph.D. Walden University 2025   Racialization of Urban Black Middle School Students from the Perspective of Middle School Teachers: A Phenomenological Study in Central and Southeast Michigan by Bryan L. Spencer MPhil, Walden …

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 …

When Grief Comes To Court: Supporting Bereaved Court Involved Youth, Lane Pease, Erin Richter

National Youth Advocacy & Resilience Conference

Youth who are court involved have higher rates of bereavement than the general population. Learn how grief impacts youth involved in the Juvenile Court. This session will focus on how bringing together court stakeholders and partnering with outside experts to provide grief support can decrease further court involvement and lead to positive outcomes.

If You Were A Sesame Street Character, Which One Would You Be? Natural Language Processing And Personality With Big Bird And Friends, Joseph Uran Meyer

Doctoral Dissertations

This paper examined and compared several natural language processing and machine learning techniques in predicting self-reported Big Five personality traits from text responses. The models were validated on the open-source 2019 SIOP Machine Learning Competition dataset (N = 1,689). The techniques evaluated included bag-of-words, Empath dictionary, LSTM networks, fine-tuning Transformer models, and stacked generalization. Results indicated that the present study’s models had lower error in four of the five constructs analyzed. Limitations of the study include use of an MTurk sample and small sample size. Future research should explore similar techniques on larger applicant samples. Practical implications and contributions to …

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.

Examining Children's Verb Learning In The United States And Japan: Do Comparisons Help?, Jane B. Childers, Mutsumi Imai, Masato Ohba, Faith Perry, Leah Marsh

Psychology Faculty Research

Learning verbs is an important part of learning one's native language. Prior studies have shown that children younger than 5 years can have difficulty in learning and extending new verbs. The current study extended these studies by showing children multiple events that can be compared during learning, including Japanese- and English-speaking children. In the study, 2-, 3-, and 4-year-olds saw two similar events and then one varied (progressive alignment) or three varied (low alignable) events in a learning phase before test, and this was repeated for four sets. Children were asked to extend these novel verbs in easy (non-cross-mapping) and …

Examining The Dangers Of The Digital Age, A Book Review Of Online Child Sexual Grooming Discourse, Olivia L. Villeneuve

Dignity: A Journal of Analysis of Exploitation and Violence

No abstract provided.

Barriers To Nigerian Community Members In The United States Seeking Mental Health Treatment, Chinwendu Ejekwu

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Nigerian immigrants in the United States face significant challenges in accessing mental health care due to various cultural and systemic barriers. This generic qualitative study, guided by Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory, was conducted to explore the barriers encountered by Nigerian community members in seeking mental health treatment in the United States. Data were obtained through semistructured interviews where nine Nigerian immigrants presented their perceptions and experiences concerning barriers to Nigerian community members seeking mental health treatment in the United States. Thematic analysis followed the six-step data analysis method, leading to three themes. The themes identified are: (a) mental health is a …

Nature-Based Education As A Learning Tool: Unleashing The Power Of Nature-Based Education In Egyptian Primary Schools. "The Effects Of Outdoor Learning And Open-Air Classrooms On Primary School Students In Egypt.", Nermeen Bekhiet

Theses and Dissertations

When learning modalities are tailored to each student's preferences and needs, academic success follows. This effect is contingent upon both individual and surrounding factors. Many schools in Egypt and the Middle East do not concentrate on how exposure to nature and nature-based learning can affect how the learner perceives his or her learning area. Most schools in Egypt have no exposure to nature to allow students to explore the world in their way; there is no room for diverse students to excel. Therefore, this exploratory research aims to reestablish a connection between private primary school students and the natural world …

Twitter Politics: The Effect Of Language Style And Source Type On Credibility Judgments, Grace M. Wasinger, Haley Moon, Brooke Mann

Academic Leadership Journal in Student Research

Politicians can harness social media to influence public perception and shape narratives about current events. Twitter is a social media site that many users engage with for information-seeking purposes. This study investigates how language style and source type influences media viewers’ perceptions on Twitter. In an experiment, participants were presented with tweets that varied by the formality of language used and the type of account used varied by political or personal accounts. Findings suggest a difference in source credibility judgments on the account type and language style used. Specifically, participants viewed formal language and professional accounts as more competent, while …

Trauma-Informed Bilingual Counselor Education: Factors To Guide Professional Mental Health Training With Spanish-Speaking Students, Fernando Estrada, Miguel A. Arana

Journal of Counselor Preparation and Supervision

Latine immigrants confront various forms of violence that increases their risk for traumatic stress and post-traumatic stress disorder. There is a need to advance the training of counselors who can work with Spanish-speaking clients exposed to trauma. The goal of this study was to articulate a literature-based conceptualization of trauma-informed bilingual counselor education. The results of a content analysis facilitated a synthesis of the relevant scholarship that highlighted four main facets: (i) integrative translanguage pedagogy, (ii) immigrant trauma exposure and reaction, (iii) culturally responsive socio-emotional interventions, and (iv) bilingual supervisory alliance. These factors can help guide professional graduate training. Implications …

Verbal And Numeric Eyewitness Confidence Differentially Affect Decision-Making, Pia Pennekamp

Psychological Science Faculty Publications and Presentations

Eyewitness confidence is typically communicated verbally (e.g., certain). Interpretations for verbal confidence statements are variable which could affect decision-making. I explored the extent to which confidence format (i.e., verbal vs. numeric) influences juror decision-making. Participants (N = 468) read a trial vignette in which an expert witness draws attention to the eyewitness's confidence in their suspect identification (uncertain, or certain, or 28%, or 88%). Participants rated the expert's recommendation, rendered a conviction decision, and provided confidence in their decision on a scale of 0 = Not at all confident to 10 = Completely confident. Mock-jurors were more likely to convict …

Learning From Sesame Street: A Qualitative Analysis Of Acceptance, Inclusion, And Cultural Diversity, Justin M. Polette

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Sesame Street first aired on public television in 1968. Sesame Street was developed by television producer Joan Ganz Cooney in partnership with educational and developmental psychologists to bridge the achievement gap in school readiness, specifically in underserved and underrepresented urban communities. This achievement gap was credited to societal racism and a lack of acculturation and racial diversity. Sesame Street was one of the first television programs, and the first children’s program, to feature an urban setting and a culturally diverse cast. During the 1940s, television programming was an almost exclusively white, Caucasian medium. The roles written for minority characters were …

Response To Intervention: Educator Perception Of A Systematic Framework To Support Reading Achievement And Improve Efficacy, Sarah Christine Ducko

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Response to Intervention, a multi-tiered system of supports, utilizes data-based decision making for early identification and intervention, and when implemented with fidelity, results in positive outcomes for student achievement. While RtI has been studied, continued societal changes and individual needs necessitate further research to shed light on current educator perspectives. This qualitative phenomenological study sought to explore educators’ lived experiences of RtI in reading with regard to their knowledge, training received, strengths, and challenges of implementation. An anonymous online survey was distributed to elementary educators in four school districts within Chester County, PA. Data was analyzed to identify significant statements …

Reflections On Using A Strength-Based Culturally Sensitive Community Psychology Approach To Promoting Sexual Health Of Egyptian Women And Girls, Salma Elhabashi, Farida Elrefaie, Zeina M. Shahine

The Undergraduate Research Journal

Navigating the intricate landscape of sexual and reproductive health (SRH) poses considerable challenges, especially within societies where the discourse is shaped by deeply rooted traditions and cultural norms. This paper examines a research project aimed at addressing the critical gap in dialogue surrounding women's SRH in Egypt. Adopting a community psychology framework, this project has two components: a mother-daughter communication guidebook and a comprehensive needs assessment survey. The guidebook was designed to facilitate discussions during the critical transitional phase of puberty, and the needs assessment survey aimed to understand the distinct needs of Egyptian women using a strengths-based approach. By …

Culture And Attachment Preference Among Young Adults In Egypt And The United States, Musheera Anis Abdellatif

School of Education Faculty Publications

We explored the relationship between cultural values, recollected early caregiving experiences and young adult attachment preference. Young adults in Egypt (N = 209) and the United States (N = 554) ranked their current attachment preference, rated their collectivist and individualist beliefs, and recalled the relative contributions of their early caregivers. Egyptian students scored higher than US students on collectivism and recalled more involvement from non-parental caregivers. Most participants reported a preference hierarchy (82% Egypt & 84% US). Surprisingly, individualism was negatively associated with maternal attachment ratings and with having a clear principal attachment relationship, whereas higher collectivism predicted …

The Role Of Acculturative Stress, Discrimination In Healthcare Settings, And Migration-Related Trauma On Hiv Prevention And Mental Health Among Immigrant Hispanic Sexual Minority Men: An Integrated Model Of Acculturation And Minority Stress, Jonathan Lopez Matos

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This dissertation expands Minority Stress Theory (MST) by integrating the Fourfold Acculturation Model (FAM) to examine the impact of psycho-sociocultural stressors on health outcomes among immigrant Hispanic sexual minority men (HSMM) in the U.S. The study explored how language proficiency, acculturative stress, discrimination in healthcare, migration-related trauma, and stress-related growth influence HIV prevention behaviors and mental health. Survey data from 194 Spanish-speaking immigrant HSMM revealed that monolingual Spanish speakers experienced significantly higher acculturative stress than bilinguals. Acculturative stress significantly mediated the association between stressors and health outcomes, such as HIV testing and mental health symptoms. Discrimination and trauma were directly …

Speech And Language Assessment Practices For Bilingual Children In The School Setting: Where Do We Go From Here?, Seijra Toogood, Raul Prezas

Journal of Human Services: Training, Research, and Practice

Abstract

The field of speech-language pathology has demonstrated growth in bilingual assessment and evaluations. However, many questions remain regarding formal and informal assessment practices, intervention recommendations, and cultural competency or responsiveness. Sixty-one SLPs in Virginia completed a survey on demographics, bilingual assessment practices, cultural competence, and language development of ELL students. Seven SLPs who work with bilingual and/or ELL students were also interviewed to ascertain bilingual assessment practices, cultural competence, and language development knowledge. Areas of concern included assessment of bilingual students, lack of developmental norms and standardized assessment tools in languages other than English, and lack of knowledge of …

A Study On The Psychometric Properties Of The Chinese Version Of The Parent Tic Questionnaire, Qiang Ding, Douglas W. Woods, Kathryn E. Barber, Wen Xu, Ying Zhao, Shuqin Shen, Jinhua Sun

Psychology Faculty Research and Publications

Introduction

The Parent Tic Questionnaire (PTQ) is a tool for parents to assess their child’s tic severity, but its effectiveness in non-Western contexts like China has not been thoroughly examined. This study aimed to evaluate the psychometric properties of the PTQ in assessing motor and vocal tic severity among Chinese children diagnosed with tic disorders.

Method

Parents of 268 Chinese children and adolescents aged 6–17 years, diagnosed with tic disorders, completed the PTQ. The study assessed tic severity using the Yale Global Tic Severity Scale (YGTSS) and PTQ. Additionally, obsessive-compulsive symptoms were measured using the Children Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale …