Digital Commons Network^™

Conjoined Twins And Abortion Restrictions: Navigating 'Ban State' Challenges, A Case Report, Beau Morgan Nrp

Pursuit - The Journal of Undergraduate Research at The University of Tennessee

This case report highlights an unusual scenario of a conjoined twin pregnancy resulting from intrauterine insemination in a state with restrictive abortion laws. Despite a diagnosis deemed not compatible with life, the patient faced legal barriers preventing termination within their home state. Forced to seek care out-of-state, the patient underwent a successful termination at ten weeks and three days after lengthy and expensive travel. This case stresses the complex challenges posed by restrictive abortion laws, impacting patient access to essential medical interventions. The case demonstrates the critical intersections between medical care, medical ethics, legal constraints, and patient outcomes in managing …

The Human Rights Fulcrum: Using Environmental Rights As Leverage For Change, Rebecca Bratspies

Pace International Law Review

“Give me a lever long enough and a firm place on which to stand and I will move the earth." That is how Archimedes famously described the power of levers and the possibility they create for moving something that otherwise seems immovable. His point was that with the use of distance, a fulcrum, and a lever, nothing is really immovable. This same characterization has been applied to human rights law, and its attempts to disrupt patterns of structural dispossession, discrimination and oppression that bedevil human society. Indeed, the metaphor that human rights are a lever for change is relatively common …

Minimum Wages And Workplace Injuries, Michael Davies, R. Jisung Park, Anna Stansbury

Upjohn Institute Working Papers

How do minimum wage changes affect workplace amenities? Using the universe of claims from California, the US’ largest workers’ compensation system, over 2000-2019, we exploit geographic variation in state- and city-level minimum wages and local occupation-level variation in exposure to minimum wage changes to estimate whether minimum wage increases affect the rate of workplace injuries. We find a large adverse effect of raising minimum wages on injuries. A 10% increase in the minimum wage increases the injury rate by 7.2% in an occupation-metro area labor market which is fully exposed to the minimum wage increase. Our results imply an elasticity …

Executive Functioning In Schizophrenia Using A Novel Virtual Reality-Simulated Workplace: Validity, Test-Retest Reliability, And Links To Competitive Employment, Ernest Marek Tyburski, Ewa Zawadzka, Adrianna Bober, Ewa Karabanowicz, Piotr Podwalski, Jerzy Samochowiec, Anna Michalczyk, Shane T. Mueller, Michał Szelepajło, Błażej Misiak, Monika Folkierska-Żukowska, Monika Mak, Michał Harciarek, Krzysztof Wietrzyński, Ashok Jansari

Michigan Tech Publications

Virtual reality offers a promising avenue for the assessment of executive functioning in complex workplace environments. However, its use in schizophrenia remains limited. For that reason, we investigated the validity and test-retest reliability of the Jansari assessment of Executive Functions (JEF©) in individuals with schizophrenia and its associations with competitive employment. A total of 69 participants with schizophrenia and 67 healthy controls completed JEF© and standard tests. A subsample of 58 patients was retested after an 8-week interval. Individuals with schizophrenia performed more poorly than controls on JEF© (p <  0.001) and standard tests (p <  0.05). JEF© scores correlated with standard measures (p <  0.05), except inhibition tests, and with clinician-report of everyday problems (p <  0.001). Total score showed a good test-retest reliability and the practice adjusted RCI indicated 87.9% of patients remained stable over 8 weeks. In logistic regression, higher JEF© total score significantly predicted competitive employment after adjusting for age (p = 0.004) and remained significant when …

Quantifying And Integrating Community Hardship Into Two-Stage Stochastic Grid Reliability Optimization With Battery Storage, Fredrica Arthur

LSU Master's Theses

Traditional reliability planning for conventional distribution systems is largely utility-oriented, with a focus on collective system performance metrics like Expected Energy Not Supplied (EENS), where implicitly all unserved energy is considered of equal weight in terms of post-outage economic hardship. Yet, it is well understood that extended outage durations cause an uneven level of hardship to socioeconomically disadvantaged communities. This thesis proposes a community-informed reliability planning framework where the hardship caused by outages is explicitly considered in the battery energy storage system (BESS) location and sizing problem. First, a hardship-weighted Energy Not Supplied (WENS) measure is proposed, where income, education, …

Interlibrary Loan: From Basics To Current Issues, Jennifer K. Lloyd

Library Faculty Publications

While interlibrary loan has been a core service for health science libraries for decades, changes in policies, software, and workflow are accelerating. This webinar will explain some basics of ILL and its platforms while also focusing on current issues and changes that are confronting libraries.

How Do Minimum Wages Affect Workplace Injuries?, Michael Davies, R. Jisung Park, Anna Stansbury

Upjohn Institute Policy and Research Briefs

No abstract provided.

Social Education In Disruption – From Pressure To Proactive Solutions, Aoife Prendergast

Journal of Social Care

In November 2025, FESET members gathered at the European Parliament in Strasbourg for our seminar, “Under Pressure – Social Education in Disruption.” The choice of venue was a deliberate statement of intent. By anchoring our discussions within the heart of European democracy, we underscored a fundamental truth: social education is not merely a domestic or peripheral concern. It is a vital pillar of social cohesion and the democratic fabric of the European project.

As President of FESET, it is an honour to introduce this collection of insights and research to the readers of the Journal of Social Care, reflecting …

Social Care Workers’ Perspectives About Their Work, Qualifications And Career Progression Opportunities., Shirley Boyle

Journal of Social Care

Delivering high‑quality, person‑centred social care depends on a stable, skilled, and experienced workforce that is appropriately valued. In Northern Ireland, policy rhetoric over the past decade has consistently highlighted the need for sustained investment in the social care workforce. Against this backdrop, the Northern Ireland Social Care Council commissioned this study to ensure that the perspectives of social care workers are central to workforce development initiatives. The study involved a cross‑sectional, population‑based survey of 586 social care workers. The survey explored participants’ experiences of working in social care, their views about qualifications and training, exploring barriers and enablers to qualification …

How To Train Social Intervention Professionals In A Polarised World?, Bruno Michon

Journal of Social Care

This article examines the challenges of training social intervention professionals in an increasingly polarised society. Drawing on theoretical perspectives on political and affective polarisation, it explores how contemporary social divisions shape social work practice. The analysis includes findings from a five-year qualitative study on radicalisation prevention in France, highlighting tensions between security imperatives and the ethical foundations of social work. These tensions often generate mistrust and professional dilemmas for practitioners. The article argues that social work education must address polarisation directly. It proposes three key responses: reaffirming human rights as the ethical foundation of the profession, adopting professional stances that …

Strengthening Emotional Self-Regulation Through Play: An Innovative Simulation Game For Resilience In Health And Social Professions, Amelie Büchler, Bettina Flaiz, Sabine Münzenmay

Journal of Social Care

Healthcare and social work professionals are currently facing a crisis characterised by chronic stress, burnout, and high attrition rates. While the root causes of these issues are often systemic, the emotional burden falls heavily on individual professionals, often leading to maladaptive coping mechanisms such as "cool-out" strategies or withdrawal. This article introduces the Erasmus+ project Simply4Emotions, which addresses this challenge by developing a digital-physical simulation game designed to foster emotional self-regulation and resilience. Grounded in the Transactional Model of Stress and Coping and the Process Model of Emotion Regulation, the game utilises a mountaineering metaphor to create a safe …

How Art You Today? Art, Aesthetics And Creativity In Social Educational Care Work Curricula Under Pressure., Bart Vanhoenacker

Journal of Social Care

Curricula in Social Educational Care Work increasingly face structural pressures shaped by neoliberal logics, managerial priorities and cost-efficiency paradigms. Creative and artistic components, traditionally central in the curricula, are particularly targeted, despite a growing consensus in research and professional practice regarding the indispensable role of art and creativity for personal development, well-being, social connection and inclusion. This article analyses institutional pressures, shifting curriculum priorities and the risks associated with diminished artistic courses and outlines pathways for strengthening art‑based and creative pedagogies in the current challenging context.

Les programmes d'études en travail social éducatif sont soumis à une pression structurelle croissante, …

Is Authentic Assessment Our Only Hope? Exploring The Potential Of The Integrative Framework For Social Care To Address Challenges Posed By Generative Ai., Jennifer Mcgarr, Dr. Margaret Fingleton

Journal of Social Care

Social Care education in Ireland is experiencing rapid change, driven by technological advancements and the growing influence of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI). While these developments create new learning opportunities, they also raise concerns about academic integrity and the erosion of critical thinking. Educators must simultaneously ensure graduates meet CORU’s regulatory standards and can adapt to the evolving scope of social care practice. CORU is Ireland’s multi-professional state regulatory of health and social care professions. Traditional assessment methods are increasingly questioned for their ability to foster professional competence, prompting interest in authentic assessment approaches that emphasise real-world application and the development …

Editorial Feset Conference Special Edition, Martin Power Dr

Journal of Social Care

No abstract provided.

The Perspectives Of Mental Health Providers Concerning Public Personnel Management And Staffing Shortages In The Navy: A Qualitative Multiple-Case Study, Shauna L. Turner

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The federal government's public personnel management policies, established over a century ago, may now be ineffective in addressing twenty-first-century problems. The Navy faces an unprecedented global staffing shortage in the mental health career field. To address the problem, the Navy implemented human resource strategies to improve personnel quality of life and invested in improving service members' mental health. The problem is that the Navy’s existing personnel management policies may be ineffective at retaining clinical counselors at Fleet and Family Support Centers (FFSCs), contributing to persistent staffing shortages that undermine service delivery and warrant an evaluation of alternative retention strategies. This …

The Lived Experiences Of Higher Education Leaders Participating In Leadership Training Programs: A Hermeneutic Phenomenology Study, Rashida Dunn

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this hermeneutic phenomenological study was to interpret the experiences of higher education leaders who participated in cohort leadership development training programs in the United States. The theory guiding this study was Mezirow’s transformative learning theory as it was used to explore higher education leaders’ lived experiences of leaders participating in a cohort training program. Transformative learning theory posits concepts by comparing and connecting them to individuals understanding existing principles. The central research question was what are the lived experiences of higher education leaders participating in leadership training programs. The qualitative hermeneutic phenomenology research introduced by van Manen …

Counseling Satisfaction In Lgbtq Clients: The Roles Of Perceived Counselor Religiosity And Perceived Discrimination, Karen Cain Culbertson

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

LGBTQ individuals experience mental health issues more frequently than the heterosexual population (Benz et al., 2019; Hinton et al., 2024; Nakamura & Logie, 2020). It appears that they often face unique challenges when seeking mental health care (Makadon et al., 2015). These may become complex when working with Christian counselors when there are conflicting beliefs between their religious views and their counseling standards (Lane, 2021). Although previous research has identified barriers to care for the LGBTQ community and the psychological impact of non-affirming religious settings, there is little research on how these dynamics unfold specifically within a Christian counseling relationship …

Examining The Relationship Between Burnout And Emotional Intelligence In Ministry Leaders Of Start-Up Churches, Jacquelyn Steidel-Santiago

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to utilize Emotional Intelligence (EI) and burnout models to examine the relationship between perceived EI and firsthand experiences of burnout in ministry leaders of start-up churches to establish a unique connection and offer valuable insights for participants and other ministry leaders facing similar circumstances. Personal characteristics were divided into demographic information about the participants (i.e., age, race, years in ministry, congregation size, etc.) and information about the participants’ experience with specific features of burnout. The demographic information was used to identify possible factors related to various levels of EI, with the expectation …

Expanding The Role Of Law Enforcement Chaplains: Fostering Holistic Wellbeing Through Comprehensive Pastoral Care, Jacqueline Turner

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This phenomenological study aimed to understand the interplay between the mental well-being of law enforcement personnel and the potential for pastoral care provided by law enforcement chaplains. Mental well-being is defined as one’s ability to cope with the stresses of life, recognize one’s abilities, learn effectively, work efficiently, and contribute to one’s community (World Health Organization, 2022). The study was guided by Grossoehme et al.’s “Listening Presence” theory, which involves chaplains actively listening to an officer’s story of trauma and fostering a sense of emotional well-being in the officer, thereby shedding light on the interplay between law enforcement officers’ mental …

Crude Oil Production And Nigeria’S Reliance On Foreign Refineries: Implications For Trade Dependencies And Energy Security In Foreign Policy, Tomiloba Olaniyi-Quadri

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This study investigates the paradox of Nigeria’s position as a major oil-producing nation that remains heavily dependent on imported refined petroleum. The central purpose of the research is to examine how governance failures, including policy misalignment, corruption, and regulatory inefficiencies, contribute to the persistent underperformance of Nigeria’s refineries, reinforcing trade dependencies and energy insecurity. Using a qualitative comparative case study approach, this research analyzes Nigeria alongside Brazil and Venezuela to explore how different governance frameworks shape refinery efficiency and international trade dynamics. The study is grounded in Dependency Theory and Energy Security Theory, illustrating how internal governance deficiencies perpetuate economic …

The Lived Experiences Of Individuals With Intellectual And Developmental Disabilities (Idd) On Work Success Within Organizations In North Carolina: A Phenomenological Study, Yvonne D. Wright

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) continue to experience substantially lower employment rates than individuals without disabilities. The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study is to explore the lived experiences of individuals with IDD with regard to their work success within organizations in North Carolina. This study is guided by the Self-Determination Theory (SDT and the Social Model of Disability Theory (SMDT). This study also explores the perspectives and roles of the caregivers in supporting inclusion and work success for this population. Semi-structured interviews were used to collect data from nine individuals with IDD and seven caregivers. The thematic …

Exploring The Lived Experiences Of Unfaithful Partners: Perceptions Of Forgiveness And Commitment To Rebuilding Trust After Infidelity, Ana De La Cruz Arciniega

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Infidelity has significant emotional and relational consequences; however, limited research has examined the lived experiences of unfaithful partners, particularly their perceptions of forgiveness and commitment to rebuilding trust. This phenomenological study described the lived experiences of unfaithful partners and explored how they understood forgiveness and engaged in trust-rebuilding efforts following infidelity. Thirteen participants (seven males and six females), aged 30 to 65, who had engaged in emotional, physical, virtual, or paid sexual affairs were recruited through social media, private therapeutic practices, affair recovery programs, and church networks. Participants completed individual 45-minute semi-structured interviews conducted via Zoom. Interviews were transcribed, member-checked, …

Understanding The Impact Of Job Satisfaction Among Public Sector Employees: An Analysis Of The U.S. Federal Government, Ardelia Deneen Speed-Johnson

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This quantitative, non-experimental, correlational study examined the relationship between job satisfaction and Herzberg’s motivation-hygiene factors among public sector employees. Herzberg’s two-factor theory provides the foundation for exploring how motivation factors (achievement/meaningful work, recognition, advancement/career growth) and hygiene factors (job security, salary/pay satisfaction, supervision) were independent variables to job satisfaction outcomes, while controlling for agency and gender. The researcher used secondary data obtained from the FY 2022 US Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey (FEVS), which includes responses from 2,522 actively employed OPM federal employees. Job satisfaction was operationalized using FEVS and recoded into a binary variable (satisfied …

The Schizophrenia Effect: Families Facing Schizophrenia-Spectrum Disorders, Ginger A. Christmas

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Schizophrenia is primarily known for its bizarre psychosis, as the brain struggles to distinguish between what is real and what is not. This qualitative study employed constructive, interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) to explore the idea that families with a family member diagnosed with a schizophrenia-spectrum disorder (SSD) in the United States have specific needs, which may include social and spiritual support and integration into treatment. While the needs of families facing SSD have been studied in non-Western countries, the schizophrenia effect on families in the U.S. remains less understood. A purposive sample of 11 individuals, representing 15 family members with …

A Phenomenological Study Exploring How African American Adult Sons Describe Caring For A Parent With Dementia, Donald Eric German

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to understand the coping strategies of African American adult sons who are the primary caregivers to a parent with dementia. The participants were only African American adult sons who are the primary caregivers to an aging parent. This researcher conducted semi-structured interviews and followed a systematical data collection process during the interview process; close attention was paid to analyzing and uncovering significant themes that emerged from the participants’ experiences. The findings show that African American adult sons feel a strong sense of duty that grows from obligation into a Christ-centered commitment to honor …

A Multimethod Study Of The Barriers Of Women In The General Schedule 15 Grade And Senior Executive Staff Experience In Promotion At The Department Of Veterans Affairs, Terry Michael Acie

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this research study was to discover why the female executive employee population is experiencing a gap in representation in senior management at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). The scholarly literature addressing federal disparities across the gender demographic identified several issues such as underrepresentation, social equity, pay equity, turnover intention, job satisfaction, and diversity as primary barrier drivers preventing or slowing female promotion. The issues are rarely investigated in an intersecting manner which plausibly could create several hurdles women must navigate to obtain a promotion and decrease their representation in executive service. The theoretical approach used is …

The Benefits Of A Holistic Biblical Approach To Adolescent Substance Use Treatment And Prevention, Amberlin D. Salas

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Adolescent addiction is increasingly problematic in the United States, including substance use and other addictive behaviors that carry a risk of continued adult addiction if not resolved effectively. Current treatment models are primarily limited to meeting the mental, emotional, and physical needs, but have gaps in treating areas such as spirituality and healthy parental relationships. From a biblical standpoint, Christian principles are relevant to all areas of need in the addicted individual, and considering a holistic biblical approach to address all areas of life could fill the gaps left by conventional addiction interventions. To understand the possible implications of a …

The Shared Experiences Of High Functioning Autistic Adults Receiving Mental Health Care In The Texas Metroplex: A Phenomenological Study, Katherine Ivey Marie Vaughan

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of the study is to describe the lived experiences of high functioning autistic adults who have engaged in mental health services in mental health services in Texas. Individuals with autism often face unique challenges, such as heightened sensory intake and cognitive inflexibility, which may complicate traditional therapeutic interventions. The theories that guided the study were the biopsychosocial model, social cognitive theory, the neurodiversity paradigm, and cognitive-behavioral theory, all exploring how cognitive processes influence emotions and behaviors in neurodiverse populations. Using a qualitative phenomenological design, semi-structured interviews were done with adults with high functioning autistic adults. Analysis of the …

A Phenomenology Of Sexual Assaults On College Campuses, Karon R. Williams

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The rate of sexual assaults for women, lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) individuals on college campuses is reported at a higher rate compared to males and is continuing to rise at a staggering rate, causing this to become a national issue. The purpose of this phenomenological study is to understand the subjective experience, campus culture, psychological disorders, and changes in students' religious beliefs after a sexual assault. Victims’ perceptions and campus norms reporting sexual violence and assault incidents help to explain institutional support systems, the afterlife, and long-term outcomes of victims, prevention programs, and services. The frameworks for this …

Navigating Recovery From Toxic Leadership In The Pentecostal Church: A Qualitative Study, Traci Sumner Daniels

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The research examined the ways in which Pentecostal Church members experience toxic leadership and their process of healing from such experiences. The research included interviews with thirteen people who experienced spiritual abuse or manipulation. The analysis of data produced four main themes, which included spiritual betrayal and disillusionment, emotional and psychological trauma, rebuilding trust in God and community, and rediscovering authentic servant leadership. The research defines toxic leadership as a form of leadership characterized by maladjusted, malcontent, and malevolent behavior that inflicts severe and enduring harm on individuals, groups, organizations, and communities through destructive behavior and dysfunctional characteristics (Semedo et …