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A Trauma-Informed Socially Just Approach To Working With Juvenile Justice-Involved Youth Utilizing Expressive Arts Therapy, Ciara Carr

Expressive Therapies Capstone Theses

Youth involved with the juvenile justice system often have a history of trauma and oppression resulting from their positionality and circumstances. Most juvenile justice-involved youth are boys, youth of color, low-income, LGBTQIA2S+, disabled, and traumatized. This literature review explores the history of the juvenile justice system, issues with the present-day model, and trauma-informed and transformative justice approaches to practice. The implementation of socially just, trauma-informed expressive arts therapy programs is proposed as a more equitable practice to replace commonly used punitive practices across the United States. More research is needed to understand the impact of such programs on this population …

“Bad Hombres”: Trump Era Politics And Media In Shaping The Perceptions Of The Mexican Diaspora In The United States, Angelica Soria

Master's Theses

My research delves into the anti-Mexican immigrant rhetoric spread throughout the United States under Donald Trump’s presidency by himself, mainstream media news outlet Fox News, and the U.S. government. Furthermore, examining the social identity of ethnic Mexicans in the United States in response to and as a consequence of the negative rhetoric. This thesis analyzes discourse including the harmful rhetoric and its impact on policy formulation, public perception, and the lived experiences of Mexican immigrants and ethnic Mexican communities. By looking at existing discourse, this research provides a critical discourse analysis of political speeches, media coverage, and ethnic Mexican testimonios. …

Taking The Bang Out Of The Gang: The Impact Of Catholic Schools On Gang Homicides In El Salvador, Ann Jillian Villanueva Adona

Master's Theses

This study explores the impact of Catholic presence on homicide rates in El Salvador, specifically focusing on the role of Catholic schools in reducing violence in gang-afflicted municipalities. Analyzing municipality-level data from various years, I used Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) and Instrumental Variable (IV) regressions to study the association between school enrollment and homicide rates. Results show that higher enrollment in Catholic schools is linked to a reduction in homicide rates in gang-affected areas, contrasting with an increase in homicides for non-religious schools. This research sheds light on the importance of investing in Catholic education as a strategy for violence …

Exploring The Relationship Between Load Shedding And Crime In Gauteng, Bhavesh Ram

Master's Theses

This study investigates the impact of load shedding, a recurring power outage phenomenon in South Africa, on crime rates in the densely populated Gauteng province. Using a novel dataset that combines Eskom's load shedding schedules with detailed crime statistics from 2015 to 2022, a fixed-effects regression model is employed to examine the relationship between blackout hours and various crime categories. Findings reveal that while load shedding does not significantly affect overall crime rates, it significantly increases the incidence of contact crimes and sexual offenses, particularly during daylight hours. Additionally, our results provide evidence that load shedding diminishes the ability of …

Impact Of Leadership Decisions On Police Officer Well-Being: A Covid-19 Response, Jason N. Spencer

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this qualitative dissertation research project is to determine the impact that law enforcement leaders, their leadership styles, and decision-making processes have on the well-being of police officers. This study sought to understand this impact by focusing on the perspectives of frontline police officers, detectives, and first-line supervisors from various law enforcement organizations in the Central Virginia Region and within the context of leadership decisions made in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Using the constructivist grounded theory approach to research design, 12 participants responded to an initial qualitative questionnaire, followed by a semi-structured interview to gain the rich, …

“Minimal-Impact” Las Vegas Spaceport, Joshua Bombala

Hospitality Design Graduate Student Capstones

The development of a Minimal-Impact spaceport stands as a pivotal stride in the pursuit of sustainable aerospace initiatives, bridging the gap between human progress and environmental care. This thesis seeks to explore the emotional impact of architecture on guests, drawing parallels from the world of aerospace to examine how the design of spaces, such as those in Las Vegas, significantly influences the emotions of visitors. By conceptualizing a Minimal-Impact spaceport that minimizes ecological footprint, optimizes resource efficiency using local resources, and seamlessly blends with its natural environment, this thesis contends that a spaceport should adhere to a new set standard …

Perceptions Of Developmental Disability Service Providers, On How The Judicial System Responses To Persons With Developmental Disabilities., Donna Whilby

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The situation or issue that prompted me to search the literature was observing the persons with developmental disabilities circling the judicial system due to multiple encounters with law enforcement. The purpose of this qualitative study was to understand how the Northeast Florida judicial system could improve the outcomes of persons with developmental disabilities by reducing and preventing multiple encounters. The empowerment theory was the most appropriate theory for my study. Empowerment theory indicates that it is imperative to encourage people, especially those who have a psychological deficit, to lean into their resources to gain and utilize their power in society. …

استخدام أجهزة الشرطة للطائرات دون طيار, Hassanein Tawfik Ibrahim Ali

All Works

شَهِدَ العالمُ، خلال السنوات الأخيرة، طفرةً هائلةً في صناعةِ الطائرات دون طيار، التي تُطْلَقُ عليها أسماءٌ عديدةٌ، مثل: الطائرات المُسَيَّرَة، والدرونز (Drones)، والمركبات الجوية غير المأهولة (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles). وتتجلى هذه الطفرة في ظهور أنواع عديدة وأجيال جديدة من هذه الطائرات، وانتشارها على نطاق عالمي واسع مع تعدد وتنوع استخداماتها. فهي تُستخدم حاليًّا من قِبَلِ أجهزة الشرطة والأمن لأداء مهام تتعلق بالأمن والسلامة في العشرات من دول العالم. كما أصبحت هذه الطائراتُ تُشَكِّلُ مكونًا مُهِمًّا ضمن المنظومات التسليحية للعديد من الدول، وخاصة في ظل تنوع استخداماتها في المجال العسكري. ولذلك فقد برز دورها كأحد الأسلحة الرئيسة في الحروب الحديثة، سواء …

Law Enforcement Public Administrators’ Emotional Intelligence And Transformational Leadership Behaviors, Larry Allen Jacobs

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Policing needs public administrators willing to implement the strategies and objectives of transformational leadership (TL) and emotional intelligence (EI) to integrate and effectively incorporate elements of the presidential Executive Order 14074 to address the public policy issues of policing in communities. This qualitative study aimed to explore the EI and TL behaviors of law enforcement public administrators through the lens of six subordinate personnel. The foundational constructs for this dissertation were TL theory, trait EI theory, and process theory. The research questions sought the experiences of subordinate personnel regarding law enforcement public administrators’ EI and TL behaviors. The study also …

Effects Of Mckinney Vento Act Of 1987 With Homeless Students In Mississippi, Denetra Jackson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Services for students who are homeless allows students and their families to deal with their living situation psychologically and offer them resources need to succeed educationally. The purpose of this research was to examine how services to homeless students in one area of Mississippi inform policy makers of the needs that are addressed with the McKinney Vento Act. The McKinney Vento Act was passed to benefit homeless students because they deserve the same quality of education, transportation to and from school, access to meals as well as various needed academic support as those that are not homeless. Being homeless places …

Strategic Succession Planning - Executive-Level Leadership In A Government Agency, Tajah Adams

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The Candidate Development Program (CDP) is responsible for the training, development, and succession planning of government senior executive service (SES) members. While not all SES must go through this program, the CDP initiative is operational in 10 out of 24 federal agencies governed by the Chief Financial Officer Act. In this quantitative study, the client organization wanted to know the strategies a government agency may use to increase executive-level employee development to prepare them for executive appointments. In the current study, a self-administered web-based survey was distributed to CDP Current Trainees, CDP Graduates, and CDP Agency Representatives. The findings led …

Using A Digital Entertainment Tax To Strengthen Local Information Infrastructure In The United States: A Conceptual Exploration, Lee Shaker, Antoine Haywood

Communication Faculty Publications and Presentations

As traditional local media decline, how might state and local governments provide support for local information infrastructure? We offer a proposal for states (or communities) to tax digital entertainment and then leverage existing community media centers (CMCs) to facilitate the distribution of the proceeds to local media outlets. Compared to other public subsidy plans, this approach is viable nationwide without federal action and offers several advantages that could lead to more immediate and durable support for local information infrastructure. To contextualize our proposal, we model both the possible revenue generation and distribution of funding that would result from its implementation.

Public Lands And Capitalism: The Case Of The Adirondack Park, Weston (Trent) Fenner

Dissertations - ALL

This dissertation examines the tensions that surround land management in the Adirondack Park of New York State (NYS), while paying special attention to how the market intrudes into these conflicts. To look at these tensions, this project explores contests over the regulation of public and private land, conflicts over how wilderness is imagined and managed, and the controversies that flow from efforts to alleviate high-use problems in the Adirondack Park. These contests are the basis of the following research questions which reveal the impact of land management conflict in the Adirondack Park, and expose how the market influences park management …

Moral Arguments For Water Justice And The Jackson Water Crisis, Benjamin Oliver

Honors Theses

Across the United States, residents of towns and cities find themselves increasingly concerned with their water supply. In 2022, attention shifted to Jackson, Mississippi, as over 150,000 residents of the majority Black capital city were left without clean water. In this thesis, I discuss this case study as well as cases in Baltimore, Maryland, Flint, Michigan, and Newark, New Jersey, finding that across these cities, there exist patterns of environmental racism and divestment in public resources. Crisis is soon to follow when these patterns compound with the climate change consequences of more intense weather and pollution. To discuss this pattern …

“If We Don't Get The Help That We Need, What Does That Say About The Future For Americans?”: A Rhetorical Analysis Of Public Responses To Ohio Environmental Disasters, Kaitlin M. Gold

Masters Theses, 2020-current

This thesis examines three case studies surrounding various Ohio environmental disasters and controversies. In particular, I explore how the public has resisted and asserted themselves through advocacy measures to ensure that their homes and communities are safe. The case studies examine how the state of Ohio has evaded responsibility and not taken action, and thus how the public has attempted to resist those efforts through various means. While Olson and Goodnight’s (1994) conception of oppositional arguments acts as a methodological backbone to the thesis, each case study employs other specific tools of rhetorical analysis to better understand each chapter and …

Recidivism In Mississippi: Causes, Impacts, And Solutions, Grace E. Brian

Honors Theses

Because the United States is home to the largest prison population in the world, finding solutions to reduce the rate at which prisoners return to prison is paramount to helping reduce crime. Assessments of how Mississippi, the state with the highest incarceration rate, engages with access to prison education, barriers to employment, and youth incarceration compared to the national, Southern, and non-southern averages will be explored to direct recidivism reduction solutions. Results showed that Mississippi had a slightly higher recidivism rate than the national average, had fewer barriers to employment, and a lower youth incarceration rate than the national average …

Dimensions Of Emotional Intelligence As Predictors Of Emotional Labor Strategies Among Ems Professionals, Joseph Mctaggart

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Emergency medical service professionals face frequent demands of emotional labor, requiring them to regulate their emotions to best provide patient care in critical situations and handle emotional upset in the public they serve. Surface acting (faking emotions to meet work expectations) is associated with outcomes like burnout, increased turnover intent, and reduced job satisfaction. Emotional intelligence has been identified as a factor influencing emotional labor strategies; however, more research is needed. This research examined the extent to which dimensions of emotional intelligence (self-emotion appraisal, others’ emotion appraisal, use of emotion, and regulation of emotion) predict emotional labor strategies among emergency …

Lindenwood Digest, May 8, 2024, Lindenwood University

Lindenwood Digest

The Lindenwood Digest has been a digital employee newsletter since 2009.

From Injustice To Social Justice Education: The Journey Of Formerly Incarcerated Women Of Color In Community College, Hossna Sadat Ahadi

Dissertations

There is a growing rate of women of color in the U.S. prison system—their intersectional identities are hypercriminalized surrounding the nexus of oppressive barriers they experience (Annamma, 2017). The lack of awareness, understanding, and advocacy for carceral-impacted women of color in higher education has engendered an erasure. This qualitative research study explored and elevated the lived experiences and intersectional identities of formerly incarcerated women of color in postsecondary education. Through the lens of Latino critical race theory (LatCrit) and Chicana feminism, four methods of data collection took place—surveys, cajitas, testimonios, and reflective journaling. Formerly incarcerated women of color experienced the …

Police Officers’ Coping Styles And Occupational Stressors Impacting Self-Regulation In Adult Offspring, Dannie Analese Garcia

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Police work, a high stress occupation with increased risks and adverse events, often leads to strain between work and family. Work-family conflict (WFC) has been shown to mediate coping with stress. In addition, offspring of law enforcement officers (LEOs) may learn self-regulation by observing parental stress coping and attempting to alleviate stress for their parent. Three theoretical frameworks were used in this study: WFC, spill-over cross-over model, and family systems theory. Using a quantitative design, surveys were completed by 35 parent-adult offspring pairs, with more LEO parent respondents (N = 71) than adult offspring respondents (N = 43). Linear regression …

State-Sanctioned Violence Against Civilian Protests, Mariyam Syed

COD Library Student Research and Award Symposium

State-sanctioned violence to suppress political dissidents and minorities, especially during protests, is a pertinent issue across both democratic and authoritarian nations. International governing bodies and human rights organizations examine the causes and dynamics of state violence, the primary governmental actors, the civilian victims, and seek worldwide solutions, such as disarmament.

Faculty Sponsor: David Goldberg

Boundaries Of Autonomy: Exploring Parallels Between Mental Hospitals And Prisons In The United States, Benjamin J. Boldt

The Agora

Within the United States, a prevailing perception emerges that mental health facilities and prisons are unfavorably similar. This societal sentiment is quite concerning if true, as the prison system is known for its many societal failures within the U.S. Furthermore, mental hospitals aim to help individuals; thus, a comparison to a faulty system highlights a possible issue worthy of exploration. Unfortunately, little analysis exists, within academic research, comparing both institutions. The following comparative analysis looks at available research between mental hospitals and prisons to validate this issue and explore implications. Findings indicate a shared pattern between mental hospitals and prisons …

An Expressive Arts-Based Community Well-Being Initiative For Intensive Care Unit Staff: Fostering Self-Compassion And Peer Support Through Patchwork Murals, Megan Bell

Expressive Therapies Capstone Theses

This community engagement project, conducted at a large hospital complex in Northeast Pennsylvania, focused on Intensive Care Unit (ICU) staff well-being. A brief literature review explored the multidimensional challenges experienced by healthcare professionals, particularly amidst the aftershocks of the COVID-19 pandemic, citing an urgent need for integrated support systems. Supported by the Center for Professionalism and Well-Being (CPW), the initiative aimed to co-design and co-create an arts-based well-being initiative that met the direct needs of ICU staff. Through meetings with the Nursing Operations Manager (NOM) and staff interactions, specific concerns and preferences were identified, informing program design. Participants created individual …

Recidivism In South Dakota, Allison L. Young

Honors Thesis

The South Dakota Criminal Justice System suffers from a high recidivism rate across the state. There are few resocialization methods used within state facilities, and the existing ones have not adequately addressed what is causing the high rate. People who are either incarcerated or were formerly incarcerated have a myriad of systematic barriers that prevent them from finding a stable footing before and after release. This literature analysis aims to compare existing resocialization methods among various countries and states to South Dakota’s techniques to identify which would be most successful for the state. Using a grounded-theory structure for the analysis …

Social Identity Theory In Emergency Response Organizations, Erik J. Litzenberg

Health, Exercise, and Sports Sciences ETDs

Emergency response organizations operate in an increasingly complex environment and could benefit from further understanding of culture. While there is not a single measure of culture, Social Identity Theory (SIT) examines the effect of group informed identities on individual perceptions and group participation. The purpose of this study was to explore SIT as it relates to emergency response organizations. A survey was shared with responders across the United States; a total of 397 responses were collected and analyzed. Social identification and groupness scores were relatively high (Mean = 5.40 on a scale of 1-7; Mean = 7.29 on a scale …

Spectacles Of Security: Deconstructing Visual Narratives Of Operation Lone Star, Terry Kincer

Theses & Dissertations

Operation Lone Star was a border security initiative launched by Texas Governor Greg Abbott in March 2021. Serving as the intermediary between the military and the public, the Texas Military Department's YouTube channel, TMD Operation Lone Star, produced news-style short digital videos aimed at documenting and promoting increased security along the U.S.-Mexican border. Drawing on Peter Andreas's (2022) concept of the border as a symbolically manipulated site, this study deconstructed these videos to analyze the visual strategies employed in depicting the migrant crisis as a threat to the United States. Through an examination of thematic categories such as massification, …

Reimaging Safety After Sexual Violence: A Qualitative Exploration Of Survivors' Experiences With Formal And Informal Crisis Response Networks., Hallie Ruth Decker

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Sexual violence (SV) is a highly prevalent public health and human rights concern impacting communities across the United States. SV is associated with a myriad of adverse physical, reproductive, sexual, mental, behavioral, financial, and social health outcomes which may be acute or chronic. Health challenges associated with post-traumatic stress and post-traumatic stress disorder are particularly common among victims and survivors of SV. Engagement in early psychological/psychosocial intervention strategies may prevent or reduce PTSD-related symptomatology after experiencing an SV encounter. Despite the availability of crisis response and support options to support individuals who have experienced SV, significant barriers exist across social …

The Development Of A Convenient And Consistent Methodology For Flight Proficiency To Certify Multi-Rotor Uas Pilots For State Departments Of Transportation, Colin Dees

All Dissertations

To fly an unmanned aircraft system (UAS), commonly referred to as a “drone,” the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) requires pilots to pass a knowledge test. There is no requirement at the state or federal level for drone operators to demonstrate the ability to operate a UAS. The National Institute of Science and Technology (NIST) has created an exam for public and private entities to assess basic UAS flight proficiency. It is the only nationally recognized flight proficiency protocol. NIST does not provide a scoring recommendation and leaves it to the user to determine the minimum criteria to pass. There is …

A Systematic Review On The Effectiveness Of The Gun Violence Restraining Order, Bonnie Galloway, Yasmeen Gonzalez-Ayala

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Background: Gun Violence Restraining Order (GVRO) is a type of restraining order that prevents individuals, who pose a significant risk to themselves or others from having, owning, and buying firearms, firearms parts, ammunition, or magazines. This gun law was enacted in January 2016, in response to the many mass shootings that had occurred prior to this legislation. Objective: This study systematically reviewed published articles to examine the effectiveness of GVRO. Methods: We used the following databases to identify articles: OneSearch, Google Scholar, and Google. The search terms used included “gun violence restraining orders” and its abbreviation “GVRO,” combined with other …

There Is No More New Frontier: Analyzing Wildfire Management Efforts In The United States, Morgan D. Gafford

Journal of Legislation

Congress needs to address the major wildfire problem by enacting more legislation that works alongside state governments and their own fire management goals. It is time for Congress to take wildfire suppression legislation more seriously and move it beyond the introductory phase. It is time for Congress and the other branches of the federal government to work together. It is time for everyone—but especially Congress—to fully comprehend the detrimental effects the most severe fires have on the environment, society, and the economy.