Digital Commons Network^™

Digital Maturity In The Administrative Prosecution In Egypt, Asmaa A. Hassan

Theses and Dissertations

The growing deployment of information and communication technologies in public service delivery, in general, and in the judiciary in particular, underscores the need for an assessment tool to evaluate digital maturity. Understanding digital maturity, a state in which an organization has completed digital development, helps diagnose the status quo, identify enablers, and address challenges, and consequently provide a roadmap for efficient improvements. This study aims to examine key factors affecting digital maturity within the Administrative Prosecution (AP) in Egypt, a pillar of the judicial authority and mandated to investigate financial and administrative violations committed by public servants. A mixed-methods approach …

Policy Coherence And Private Sector Development In Egypt: Aligning Governance Reforms With Development Finance, Shereef El Tanahi

Theses and Dissertations

Despite record volumes of development finance flowing into Egypt, the private sector, particularly its micro, small, and medium enterprises, has yet to experience the broad-based growth these investments were designed to catalyze. Between 2020 and 2025, international development partners committed more than 15.6 billion dollars to Egypt's private sector, yet private investment remains a modest share of the national economy, and most domestic firms continue to face severe barriers to credit.

This thesis argues that the answer lies not in the volume of capital mobilized, but in the coherence of the policies that govern how that capital reaches firms. The …

A Policy Analysis Of Accountability And Governance In Journalism By Artificial Intelligence (Ai) In Egypt, Amira Ahmed Salama

Theses and Dissertations

The growing use of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) and AI-assisted tools in journalism raises governance questions concerning accountability, human oversight, transparency, verification, editorial responsibility, and implementation. In Egypt, these issues arise within an emerging but fragmented governance environment that includes national AI guidance, media regulation, professional self-regulation, and developing newsroom practices. This study examines how these arrangements can be integrated into a coherent national sector-specific policy framework for GenAI and AI-assisted journalism.

The study adopts a qualitative methodology combining a descriptive qualitative document analysis with stakeholder semi-structured interviews. Four governance instruments were analyzed: the Council of Europe’s Guidelines on the …

Correctional Officer Suicide: A Theory-Driven Investigation Of Acquired Capability And Suicide Behavior, Abigail R. Andersen

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

A growing body of research suggests that correctional officers (COs) die by suicide at a significantly higher rate compared to the general population and some other public safety personnel. Despite what is known about this phenomenon, an understanding of the risk factors driving the high rate of suicide among this population remains unclear. Specifically, little attention has been paid to specific risk factors for suicide among this population and there is an overall absence of theory-driven research investigating CO suicide. The present study sought to address the gap in this area of research by investigating potential risk factors for suicide …

Mind The Hazard: Modeling And Interpreting Comfort With Personalized Sensing, Yufei Zhang, Matteo Favero, Patrick Chwalek, Sailin Zhong, Denis Lalanne, A. Joseph Paradiso, Clayton Miller, Andrew Sonta

Research Collection College of Integrative Studies

Recent advances in personalized sensing and comfort feedback have spurred the development of data-driven comfort models tailored to individual needs. However, because current models treat sequential comfort feedback independently, they are subject to unstable predictions and limited interpretability, hindering their deployment in building management. This study introduces a dynamic modeling framework that utilizes a Neural Ordinary Differential Equations-based Continuous-time Markov Chain to model the transitions in comfort states over time. Our modeling approach, developed through a field study utilizing smart glasses and mobile app feedback, tracks occupants' comfort transitions across daily activities and contexts. The results demonstrate that this model …

The Impact Of Financial Depth Indicators On Economic Growth In Iraq For The Period 2004-2024, Fatima Latif Alwan, Diaa Hussein Saud

Muthanna Journal of Administrative and Economics Sciences

This research aims to highlight the impact of financial depth indicators on economic growth in Iraq during the period (2004-2024). It employs a quantitative approach to measure the relationship between the variables under investigation using the Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) model. The study concludes that the increase in the deposit index and broad money supply does not necessarily reflect genuine development in financial intermediation. Rather, it largely stems from increased cash liquidity outside the banking system and weak confidence in the financial system. Furthermore, the expansion of bank credit has not effectively translated into economic growth because a significant portion …

Indigenous Religion And Community Order: Crime Prevention Strategies Among Worshippers Of Igbe Orhe In Nigeria, Onoseme Fortune Afatakpa Dr

African Journal of Criminology and Justice Studies

This ethnographic study examines crime prevention strategies within Igbe Orhe, an indigenous African religious tradition practiced in Delta State, Nigeria. While existing security studies primarily emphasize formal and direct approaches to crime prevention, this research foregrounds the less explored structural mechanisms embedded in cultural spirituality. Data were collected through in-depth interviews with purposively selected participants, including the Uku Supreme (global leader), High Priests (Uku), High Priestess (Omote Uku), Chief Priests (Inori), Chief Priestesses (Ini Igbe), and Votary Singers (Akpine). Two focus group discussions were also conducted with female and youth members of selected …

Alternative Dispute Resolution And Legal Pluralism In Practice: Grassroots Mediation In The Akamba Counties Of Kenya, Victoria M. Time, Daniel K. Pryce

African Journal of Criminology and Justice Studies

Abstract

Alternative dispute resolution (ADR), the process of employing a third party, outside of the state apparatus, to help resolve disputes between opposing parties, has been used on the African continent for hundreds of years. In Kenya, the focus of the current study, ADRs have included mediation, negotiation, and arbitration. To have a better understanding of why Kenyans are embracing mediation instead of the formal courts to resolve disputes, the study relies on the legal pluralism theoretical framework and the results of a study that employed two ethnographic techniques – interviews and participant observation – from three Kenyan counties: Makueni, …

Language As A Strategic Security Resource: Criminological Perspectives On Collective Efficacy, Cultural Security, And Community Resilience, Declan Onwudiwe

African Journal of Criminology and Justice Studies

Language is typically examined as a medium of communication, identity formation, cultural transmission, and education. This article advances a broader argument: language should also be understood as a strategic security resource and a significant criminological variable. Drawing on collective efficacy theory, societal security scholarship, linguistic relativity, decolonial language theory, and ethnolinguistic vitality theory, the article argues that language can facilitate social cohesion, informal social control, intelligence gathering, conflict resolution, procedural legitimacy, and community resilience. Indigenous African languages serve as repositories of historical memory, customary law, social norms, and security-relevant knowledge that may contribute to public safety and social order. The …

Impact Of Employment Status And Housing Stability On Tuberculosis Treatment Adherence In Virginia, Samuel Deapeh Worgee

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Tuberculosis (TB) cases have resurged in Virginia, yet the structural determinants shaping treatment completion among socioeconomically marginalized populations remain unquantified locally, leaving public health programs without state-specific predictive evidence. Grounded in the World Health Organization's social determinants of health framework, this quantitative, ex post facto study examined how employment status, housing stability, and social risk factors predicted TB treatment completion. De-identified surveillance records for N = 898 adult TB cases reported from 2020 through 2024 were extracted from the Virginia Electronic Disease Surveillance System and analyzed using a multivariable binary logistic regression, controlling for age, sex, race/ethnicity, and radiographic severity …

Visoka, Gëzim. The Derecognition Of States. Ann Arbor: University Of Michigan Press, 2024., Aidan Hehir

Journal of Peace, Conflict, and Security Studies

Gëzim Visoka describes the derecognition of states as “a puzzling feature in world politics” (p. 114). This is certainly true. For many decades derecognition was a peripheral concern given it was rarely practiced after the UN was established in 1945; one notable exception being the derecognition of Taiwan, which has been ongoing since the 1950s. In recent years, however, it has become of significantly greater interest as it has become more common; of the five cases Visoka examines – Taiwan, Western Sahara, Abkhazia, South Ossetia, and Kosovo – four are very definitely products of the post-Cold War era. Despite this, …

Failed Gay Rights Amendment To Mankato's Human Rights Ordinance In Mankato, Minnesota In 1987, Kellian Clink

Library Services Publications

In 1987, small but passionate people urged the city to pass an amendment to Mankato’s existing human rights ordinance to protect LGBTQ+ communities.   Advocates argued that gays were entitled to the same rights as straight people and were looking for protection in housing and employment, particularly. They demonstrated that people had lost jobs, housing, and access to dance venues. Some opponents equated gays with promiscuity, child molestation, solicitation, sin, and AIDS; some were convinced it was not needed; some pinned their arguments on the existence of laws already on the books.  This narrative is based on articles from the local …

Editorial, Julia Coffman

The Foundation Review

No abstract provided.

Front And Back Matter

The Foundation Review

No abstract provided.

Climate Change Evidence: Driving Value-Added Use For Better Decisions, Tim Larson, Marina Lahowin, Sarah Hanck

The Foundation Review

This article examines the evolving ecosystem of climate solution evidence tools and distinguishes the different functions they serve, including evidence aggregation, assessment of evidence strength, comparison of solution options, spatial targeting, policy benchmarking, and adaptive management.

Drawing from research on evidence-informed policymaking and climate decision science, the authors identify persistent barriers to evidence use, including misalignment with decision needs, deep uncertainty, institutional incentives, and limited capacity for collective sensemaking.

The article argues philanthropy’s greatest leverage lies not in increasing the supply of evidence alone, but in strengthening the systems through which evidence is interpreted, governed, and embedded in decision processes. …

Evidence And Learning Amid A Climate Crisis: Six Promising Frontiers For Advancing Practice, Tim Larson, Shawna Hoffman, Marina Lahowin

The Foundation Review

The effects of the climate crisis are intensifying each year, just as the global context for mitigation, adaptation, and resilience efforts grows increasingly complex. Against a backdrop of urgency, resource scarcity, high uncertainty, and politicization, evidence is arguably more crucial than ever for informing climate action.

The potential of evidence for climate action has not been fully realized, leaving tremendous value on the table. This article argues that the challenge is not driven by a shortage of evidence, but rather by a mismatch between dominant evidence and learning practices and what decision-makers need.

In response to the question “how can …

Full Issue

The Foundation Review

No abstract provided.

Feedback Loops In Practice: A Case Study On Evaluating A Climate Collaborative, Mansi Shah, Amy Sherwood, Abbie Turiansky, Drew Koleros, Axum Teferra

The Foundation Review

Philanthropic support to address the climate crisis has grown substantially, yet it remains unclear how effectively philanthropies are learning from their investments, from each other, and from other actors about what generates meaningful impact. Evaluations have come under scrutiny, as conventional approaches often struggle to account for complexity and provide the timely insights needed for adaptive management.

In this article, the authors present the learning journey of a complex, systems-focused climate philanthropy initiative that uses structured feedback loops as an evaluation design. They describe how these loops were implemented over a two-year evaluation; discuss the choice of complexity-aware methods; and …

Spend-Down To Scale Up: Limited-Life Giving In The Climate Crisis, Madeleine C. Mckinnon, Samuel Rogers, David Gunsberg, Emma Mcintosh

The Foundation Review

This article shares first-hand experiences of a charitable foundation operating under a spend-down model, illustrating how a fixed time horizon shapes philanthropic and programmatic behavior. The authors discuss three conditions that a spend-down horizon reliably forces: the imperative to fund quickly, collaboratively, and boldly on shared goals; the discipline to concentrate capital with strategic focus; and the emphasis on learning and collaboration as both a means to optimize for impact now and to sustain and scale impact over the long term.

Authors explore the influence of these conditions in a series of case studies working towards a clean energy transition …

Editorial Note: Navigating Institutional Complexity Across State, Civil, And Market Sectors, Muhammad Ramaditya, Rijal Ramdhani

BISNIS & BIROKRASI: Jurnal Ilmu Administrasi dan Organisasi

No abstract provided.

An Evaluation Of Southern Nevada’S Pediatric Care Ecosystem, David Damore, Tina Quigley, Nick Fiore

Policy Briefs and Reports

In 2024, The Lincy Institute and the Nevada Health and Bioscience Corporation released a report prepared by the consulting firm Tripp Umbach detailing the case for a stand-alone children’s hospital in Southern Nevada. Shortly thereafter, Intermountain Health announced it would build Nevada’s first such facility in Las Vegas, expected to open in 2030. To complement the hospital’s development, The Lincy Institute undertook an independent evaluation of the regional pediatric care landscape. The analysis draws on secondary data and discussions with advocates, health system administrators, practitioners, and providers. The report examines:

• Fiscal, resource, and workforce challenges underlying Nevada’s poor population-level pediatric …

Arms Proliferation And Its Control Mechanism In Nigeria: An Assessment, Mubarak Sulaiman Jamiu, Seyid Ishola Hassan, Adedoyin John Towoju

Journal of Peace, Conflict, and Security Studies

The proliferation of small arms and light weapons (SALWs) in Nigeria has emerged as a critical threat to national security and political stability. Despite the enactment of various legislative frameworks, including the Firearms Act of 1959, the circulation of illicit firearms continues unabated, exacerbating terrorism, militancy, and organized crime across the country. This study critically examines the causes, implications, and potential solutions to SALW proliferation in Nigeria, focusing on governance failures, legal inefficiencies, and institutional weaknesses. Utilizing State Fragility Theory and Failed State Theory, the research identifies how poor governance, corruption, and the lack of effective enforcement have contributed to …

Ai-Based Environmental Code Checking Tool For Sustainability Best Management Practices Of Infrastructure Construction Projects, Joseph J. Kim, Pooja D. Chavan

Mineta Transportation Institute

Infrastructure construction and operation are major contributors to global greenhouse gas emissions, which account for approximately one-third of global CO₂ emissions and add to long-term environmental and air quality challenges. Sustainability rating systems such as Envision for infrastructure construction projects provide structured guidance to help teams reduce these impacts, but verifying compliance requires reviewing large volumes of project documents by hand, making the process time consuming and difficult to scale. Therefore, this research develops an AI-based environmental code checking tool that automates the interpretation of project documents and evaluates compliance on lifecycle GHG assessment under Credit CR1.2 of Envision—in other …

Hands-On Ransomware: An Experiential Wannacry Case Study For Undergraduate Cybersecurity Education, Eli Creek Richmond, Thomas R. Devine

Military Cyber Affairs

Ransomware represents one of the most disruptive threats in the cyber landscape, yet hands-on malware analysis remains rare in undergraduate cybersecurity curricula. This paper presents the design, implementation, and evaluation of an experiential learning module centered on the WannaCry ransomware case study, deployed in a senior-level course at West Virginia University. Students performed static and dynamic analysis using industry-standard tools. Pre- and post-module assessments demonstrated measurable gains in self-reported competency across seven technical dimensions. The module's competencies align directly with DoD Cyber Workforce Framework Work Role 212, Cyber Defense Forensics Analyst, supporting education-to-workforce pipeline development.

From Framework To Toolchain: Implementing Zero Trust Architecture In Cloud-Native Environments For Dow Compliance, Shelby C. Snyder

Military Cyber Affairs

Federal agencies face a fiscal year 2027 target for enterprise-wide Zero Trust deployment, but NIST SP 800-207A defines logical components without identifying the Kubernetes technologies that implement them. This paper proposes a three-tier mapping of the Policy Engine, Policy Administrator, and Policy Enforcement Point to service mesh, microsegmentation, and perimeter tooling, stating the criteria by which each component is classified. It then applies a defined rubric to six Zero Trust vendors across component alignment, Kubernetes capability, federal authorization posture, and evidence quality, finding that no single vendor covers all three tiers. The mapping is a testable architectural proposition; a Stage …

Strength Of No-Cash Bail Policies And Jail Population Outcomes: A Quantitative Study, Charles Lincoln Tucker

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This quantitative study assessed the impact of no-cash bail reforms on local jail populations in various U.S. states. The no-cash bail policies, also known as "cashless bail," are criminal justice reforms that reduce or eliminate the need for defendants to pay money to secure release from jail while awaiting trial. The goal is to base pretrial detention on safety risks, not financial status. These systems use non-monetary conditions to ensure court appearances instead of wealth-based detention. This study aimed to address a critical gap in scholarly understanding of statewide implementation policies carried out at the local level. The data were …

The Impact Of Direct Democracy On Policy Formation, Tricia Smith

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

As political polarization and distrust in elected representatives increases in American politics, voters are turning to direct democracy as a mechanism to drive policy making. Proponents of both legislative mechanisms and the use of direct democracy argue that their means of policy making is the most democratic. The Founding Fathers chose a representative system to limit the influence of faction and try and prevent Tocqueville’s tyranny of the majority. This study examines both direct democracy and legislative outcomes at the state level through the lens of adult use cannabis sales policy. Adult use cannabis sales were first legalized in the …

The Effect Of Mental Health Check-Ins On Stigma And Symptoms Of Anxiety, Depression, And Post-Traumatic Stress, Benjamin Joseph Boeke

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This applied quantitative study examined whether participation in structured mental health check-ins was associated with self-stigma toward seeking psychological help and reported symptoms of anxiety, post-traumatic stress, and depression among law enforcement officers. Using a cross-sectional, nonexperimental comparative design, anonymous survey data were collected from 130 active sworn officers across 10 small and mid-sized Iowa law enforcement agencies. The agencies included those with and without mandatory check-in policies; primary comparisons were based on officers’ reported participation in at least one check-in. Measures included the Self-Stigma of Seeking Help Scale, Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7, PTSD Checklist for DSM-5, and Patient Health Questionnaire-9. …

Refereed Research - Indispensable Yet Not Fully Legitimate: Street Markets As Invisible Subsistence Infrastructure, Raji Srinivasan, Maria C. Merino

Subsistence Marketplaces

Street markets are key provisioning systems across the Global South, supplying fresh food, employment, and retail access absent formal infrastructure. Yet despite street markets’ functional indispensability to millions of low-income consumers, their legitimacy is chronically contested, affirmed by vendors and communities yet challenged by planners, developers, and state authorities who apply formal-economy criteria in evaluating them. We theorize this as a legitimacy paradox and ask what structural mechanisms sustain it? Using composite vignettes grounded in fieldwork, we theorize three mechanisms. First, visibility without recognition: street markets are hyper-visible yet excluded from cognitive templates of legitimate, formal retail. Second, asymmetric essentiality: …

Book Review: “Review Essay On Three Works About The Ukraine War”, John A. Nagl

Parameters Bookshelf – Online Book Reviews

• The Russian Invasion of Ukraine: February–December 2022: Destroying the Myth of Russian Invincibility, by John S. Harrel

• Black Sea Battleground: The Road to Ukraine, edited by Glen E. Howard

• Beyond Ukraine: Debating the Future of War, edited by Tim Sweijs and Jeffrey H. Michaels

Reviewed by: John A. Nagl, General John J. Pershing Professor of Warfighting Studies, Department of Military Strategy, Planning, and Operations, US Army War College

A sweeping review of contemporary conflict, this review essay shows how the war in Ukraine is reshaping global security thinking and forcing strategists to confront hard …