Digital Commons Network^™

Barriers To Family Planning For Women In West Africa, Emma Gunn

Ballard Brief

In West Africa, access to family planning remains a pressing issue with far-reaching implications for women's health, education, and economic empowerment. Despite global efforts to promote reproductive rights and expand contraceptive access, significant barriers persist, hindering women's ability to make informed choices about their reproductive health. According to recent data, only 13% of married women aged 15-49 in West Africa use any form of family planning method, These low utilization rates are compounded by an unmet need for family planning among 26% of women in the region. Factors contributing to these barriers include limited access to accurate information, fear of …

The Aridification Of The Great Salt Lake, David Thompson

Ballard Brief

Throughout Nepal, brick kilns employ thousands of families annually for the seasonal work of crafting and shipping bricks. As families migrate between work in brick factories and agricultural work at home, more factors block their children from a complete and quality education. The open invitation to begin working with their parents and to help provide for the family becomes a strong temptation that causes many children to give up on school. In addition, Nepal's lack of law enforcement frequently allows children to drop out of school early without consequence. Their parents do not attempt to stop them either, making little …

Characteristics Of Pyrolysis Products Of California Chaparral And Their Potential Effect On Wildland Fires, Mahsa Alizadeh, David R. Weise, Thomas H. Fletcher

Faculty Publications

The aim of this study was to investigate the pyrolysis of selected California foliage and estimate the energy content of the released volatiles to show the significance of the pyrolysis of foliage and its role during wildland fires. While the majority of the volatiles released during the pyrolysis of foliage later combust and promote fire propagation, studies on the energy released from combustion of these compounds are scarce. Samples of chamise (Adenostoma fasciculatum), Eastwood’s manzanita (Arctostaphylos glandulosa), scrub oak (Quercus berberidifolia), hoaryleaf ceanothus (Ceanothus crassifolius), all native to southern California, and sparkleberry …

Persevering Through Communication Challenges: A Qualitative Descriptive Exploration Of Communication Experiences In Aphasia, Tyson G. Harmon, Camille Williams, Garrett Cardon, William S. Evans

Faculty Publications

Background

People with aphasia often experience activity limitations and participation restrictions despite wanting to engage in communication activities that are satisfying and meaningful. Communication partner support, the complexity of the communication environment, and the thoughts and feelings of people with aphasia have important implications for both language processing and communicative participation. The perspectives of PWA about the role that environmental and personal factors (e.g. thoughts and feelings) play in their communication experiences could inform clinical practice.

Aims

To qualitatively explore the communication experiences of people with aphasia and how environmental demands and personal factors (especially emotional responses) affect these experiences. …

Cameras For Girls: Nonprofit Spotlight, Angie Holzer

Journal of Nonprofit Innovation

No abstract provided.

Full Issue: Artificial Intelligence And Data For Nonprofit Organizations, Angie Holzer

Journal of Nonprofit Innovation

No abstract provided.

Addressing Social Inequalities Using Ai, Big Data, And Machine Learning, Erica L. Jensen, Lakell Archer, Sumaya Ali

Journal of Nonprofit Innovation

No abstract provided.

A Blueprint For Future Achievements For Nonprofits, William B. Calder

Journal of Nonprofit Innovation

Nonprofit organizations hire strong leaders to articulate a vivid and persuasive picture of how the organization will be better, in a significant way, than what currently exists. Leaders should not underestimate the use of a powerful vision, as it is needed to help define the issues and challenges for stakeholders (inside and outside the organization). Leaders need to describe what success looks like and continue to task all stakeholders to assist in building the “dream.”

Operational and staffing challenges are more difficult for NPOs without an articulated, compelling, and concise vision statement. The resultant costs of not having this statement …

Research Summaries: Artificial Intelligence And Data For Nonprofits, Erica Jensen

Journal of Nonprofit Innovation

No abstract provided.

Trust In Information, Preparation, And Resource Adequacy In Coastal Louisiana, Elizabeth Long-Meek, Michael R. Cope, Scott Sanders, Carol Ward

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Natural disasters pose significant challenges to communities, affecting lives, properties, and infrastructure unpredictably. Coastal regions, like those in southern Louisiana, are particularly vulnerable due to their exposure to hurricanes, coastal erosion, and other chronic environmental hazards exacerbated by climate change. This study investigates the relationship between trust in government and social entities and perceptions of disaster preparedness among residents of Plaquemines and Lafourche parishes, Louisiana. Drawing on data collected via a multi-mode survey, including measures of trust and perceived preparedness, logistic regression models reveal that trust in information from federal, state, and local governments, as well as from community networks …

Application And Development Of Ceragenins In Medical Device Coatings For Clinical Settings, Elliot E. Sherren

Theses and Dissertations

Hospital-acquired infections (HAIs) pose a significant and increasing threat to global health. One primary cause of this threat is increasing antibiotic resistance. As traditional antibiotics continue to grow less effective, there is an urgent need for novel antimicrobial strategies. This work explores the potential of ceragenins, also known as cationic steroid antimicrobials (CSAs), as a promising alternative to combat HAIs. Specifically, we investigated potential roles that CSAs can play in the context of multiple medical device coatings in healthcare settings. Ceragenins are synthetic mimic of antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) which exhibit broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity against many common pathogens that have been …

Exploring Seizure Signal Processing And Methods To Characterize Seizure-Like Activity In Mouse Brains, Benjamin Kearsley

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Status Epilepticus (SE) is a dangerous type of seizure that is difficult to treat and can have permanent or fatal consequences. Developing methods to properly process and classify SE in Local Field Potential (LFP) signals are important steps towards being able to predict SE in clinic and save lives. This thesis explores methods for the seizure data processing LFP data with the goal of gaining a deeper understanding of the effect of brain region and tissue preparation paradigm on power output in specific frequency ranges. The brain regions compared are the neocortex and hippocampus, and the preparation paradigms are 4AP …

Elucidating The Role Of Aging In Protein Misfolding And Amyloid Cascade In Transthyretin Amyloidosis, Chad Hyer

Undergraduate Honors Theses

This study attempts to provide the first comprehensive proteomic analysis of protein folding stability (PFS) in transthyretin amyloidosis (ATTR) across different age groups to shed light on the mechanisms of age-mediated protein misfolding and the amyloid cascade. Utilizing the Iodine Protein Stability Assay (IPSA), we characterize the PFS of proteins across the serum proteome in a cohort of 100 individuals (18-85 years old) to investigate the impact of aging on changes in protein folding across the proteome. Presented are preliminary data from 20 participants.

Our study overcomes limitations in previous studies of ATTR by providing a structural perspective on TTR …

Synthesis Of Streptococcus Pneumoniae Serotypes 6a And 6b Di- And Trisaccharides As Propargyl Glycosyl Antigens For Glycoconjugate Vaccines, Tianyao Meng

Theses and Dissertations

Streptococcus pneumoniae (Spn) is a globally prevalent Gram-positive pathogen responsible for invasive pneumococcal diseases (IPD). Among its over 90 serotypes, Spn serotypes 6A (Sp6A) and 6B (Sp6B) are two of the most common causes of IPD around the world and are more frequently isolated from infections than most of the other serotypes. Our group has previously developed a method for making immune responses to bacterial glycans T cell-dependent, involving attachment of short synthetic glycans to a virus-like nanoparticle (VLP), and in combination with a natural killer T cell (NKT cell) adjuvant. This strategy enhanced immune responses by facilitating T cell …

Women Gaze Back: Affect And Apparatic Disintegration In Funeral Parade Of Roses And Perfect Blue, Jessi Ivie

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis explores how films Funeral Parade of Roses (1969) by Toshio Matsumoto and Perfect Blue (1997) by Satoshi Kon subvert the male gaze of the camera by having the female main characters look back at the audience. The characters Mima (Perfect Blue) and Eddie (Funeral Parade) take control of the camera to subvert the hierarchical relationship between apparatus, audience, and characters. Through the lenses of apparatus and affect theory, these films show how the world of film includes the audience instead of precluding them. Experimental editing and heightened emotional situations unsettle the audience's voyeuristic position, bringing them closer to …

Jinetes De La Tormenta: The Invasive Influence Of Gender Constructs On The Journey Towards Selfhood And Societal Progress, Marissa Nicole Luquette

Theses and Dissertations

The novel Jinetes de la tormenta, written by Spanish author, Javier Castañeda de la Torre, presents gender as an obstacle to individuals in the ongoing process of self-discovery (as it relates to personal identity) and as the underlying source of human discontent in the technological age. Jinetes represents gender as a hindrance to the developing self through masculine and feminine binaries in European colonial languages and through the performative behavioral expectations tethered to the gendered body the theoretical works of Jacques Lacan and Hélène Cixous. The theoretical works of Jacques Lacan and Hélène Cixous establish the argument surrounding linguistic gender …

Chromosome-Scale Assemblies And A Pangenome Reveal Ltr Repeat Dynamics As A Major Driver Of Genome Evolution In Chenopodium, Kate E. Jaggi

Theses and Dissertations

The genus Chenopodium, which comprises around 150 species globally, is characterized by its wide geographic distribution and ecological adaptability, particularly in temperate regions. Some species, such as Chenopodium quinoa and Chenopodium pallidicaule, have served as domesticated staple crops in the Andean region of South America for centuries, valued for their robust nutritional profile and adaptability to adverse environmental conditions. In contrast, wild Chenopodium species exhibit broad geographic distributions and diverse niche adaptations, functioning as reservoirs for beneficial traits, including disease resistance and climate hardiness, essential for enhancing domesticated crops through introgression and breeding efforts. However, taxonomic classification within the genus …

Parent Involvement Programs And Latinx Families: An Evaluation Of The Parents + Schools = Successful Children Program, Katherine Woods Hancey

Theses and Dissertations

Parent's active involvement in their children's educational experience has been shown to have a positive impact on student outcomes, including academic achievement, attitude toward school, and improved skill-development. There is limited research, however, that explores how best to help parents become more involved in their children's schooling, especially across cultural groups. Currently, there are more than 14.4 million Latinx students in public elementary and secondary schools. Due to the recent increase in Latinx students within the U.S., there is a need to better understand and support Latinx parent involvement in schools. This study evaluated the effectiveness of the Parents + …

A Grounded Theory Analysis Of Honesty And Deception In Intimate Relationships, Lyndsey Kunzler Gerring

Theses and Dissertations

Although honesty is valued in intimate relationships, there has not been significant research on the range and different types of honesty and deception and their impacts on couples. The purpose of this study was to explore and define the role honesty plays in intimate relationships by examining the spectrum of honest and deceptive behaviors as described by participants. The study utilized qualitative methods to examine how romantic partners describe various types of honesty and deception in their relationships and the influence these have. The data was taken from part of a larger project on healthy and unhealthy relationships where semi-structured …

Does Suicide Prevention Knowledge Predict Suicide Prevention Behaviors Among Hope Squad Members?, Angie S. Bledsoe

Theses and Dissertations

This was one of the first studies that looked at the effect that suicide prevention knowledge acquired through suicide prevention training (QPR training and Hope Squad curriculum) may have on suicide prevention behaviors (gatekeeping behaviors) in an adolescent population (Hope Squad members). Additionally, this study looked at how Hope Squad members' intent to intervene may mediate the relationship between suicide prevention knowledge and suicide prevention behaviors. The current study found that on average Hope Squad members' suicide prevention knowledge, gatekeeping behaviors, and intent to intervene increased from prior to starting the Hope Squad program's curriculum to the end of the …

Using Video Modeling To Improve Hygiene Practices For Students With Significant Cognitive Disabilities, Allison Hovey

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of instruction delivered by video to teach hygiene skills to students with significant cognitive disabilities. The independent variable in this study is personal hygiene instruction delivered by a video model. The dependent variable in this study is the ability of a participant to complete a multi-step hygiene task. The dependent variable will be measured during each data session of intervention by two scorers using the same measures and procedures across phases. Visual analysis demonstrated a functional relationship between the hygiene skill video model intervention and an increase in the percentage …

Differential Effects Of Social Media On Body Esteem: An Ecological Momentary Assessment On Weight Satisfaction And Muscularity Importance, Megan Van Alfen Brown

Theses and Dissertations

This study investigated how social media use is related to body esteem (particularly weight satisfaction and muscularity importance) in adolescents. We conducted a 17-day Ecological Momentary Assessment study among 183 adolescents (12–17 years, 58% girls). Each adolescent reported on his/her social media use, weight satisfaction, and muscularity importance four times per day (68 assessments per participant; 6,863 completed in total). Using a person-specific, N=1 method of analysis (Dynamic Structural Equation Modeling), we found that at the between-person level, social media use is not associated with lower satisfaction with one’s weight and greater importance of looking masculine. At the within-person level, …

Self-Determination Towards Regular Exercise Relates To Quality Of Life In Female College Students With At Least One Child, Toby Khung Chilai Roylance

Theses and Dissertations

Inspired by one of my daughters, Rachel Tam, and her journeys through motherhood while pursuing an MBA at Brigham Young University, this study was conceived from observing her struggle to balance academic responsibilities, motherhood, being a wife, and prenatal care. Her experience highlighted the significance of self-directed physical activity (PA) for young mothers pursuing higher education in a religious institution. This study explores the dynamics of PA, motivation, and well-being among 264 college-attending mothers from Brigham Young University Provo and BYU-Pathway Worldwide. These participants were selected from an online survey pool of over 1,500 female student respondents. All mothers in …

Design And Fabrication Of Passive Microfluidic Devices For Enhancing Membrane-Based Biosensors, Tanner N. Wells

Theses and Dissertations

Microfluidic devices and systems have demonstrated wide applicability in sample processing and analysis. The ability to integrate sample processing and analysis into a single platform is a key benefit of microfluidic technologies. This dissertation describes the design and fabrication two types of microfluidic devices developed to enhance membrane-based biosensors. First is a device for collecting particles into a highly confined region, locally enhancing their concentration. Second is a device for size-based particle separation capable of separating differently sized particles into separate streams. Both types of devices are fabricated with a thin top layer, providing a platform for synthetic membrane-based technologies. …

The Design, Prototyping, And Validation Of A New Wearable Sensor System For Monitoring Lumbar Spinal Motion In Daily Activities, Brianna Bischoff

Theses and Dissertations

Lower back pain is a widespread problem affecting millions worldwide, because understanding its development and effective treatment remains challenging. Current treatment success is often evaluated using patient-reported outcomes, which tend to be qualitative and subjective in nature, making objective success measurement difficult. Wearable sensors can provide quantitative measurements, thereby helping physicians improve care for countless individuals around the world. These sensors also have the potential to provide longitudinal data on daily motion patterns, aiding in monitoring the progress of treatment plans for lower back pain. In this work it was hypothesized that a new wearable sensor garment that makes use …

"I Just Have Big Emotions, Okay?!": Exploring Emotional Literacy Through Picture Books, Amie L. Bigelow

Theses and Dissertations

Many children in the United States struggle with mental health issues. The increase in mental health difficulties for children and adolescents has increased so greatly after the COVID19 pandemic that it has been declared a national mental health emergency by the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and the Children’s Hospital Association (AAP et al., 2021). The burden to provide children with socialemotional learning, opportunities, access, and support often falls on teachers, and this burden can be particularly acute in rural communities, stemming from the limited availability of resources. Using picturebooks through means such …

Reactivity To Environmental And Social Demands In Autistic And Neurotypical Adults: More Alike Than Different?, Mackenzie Marjorie Hyde

Theses and Dissertations

Lack of mutual understanding between autistic and neurotypical individuals contributes to the marginalization of the autistic community. This study aimed to investigate similarities in reactivity to environmental and social pressures between autistic and neurotypical adults in order to facility empathy between the communities. Participants were 328 young adults aged 18-26 years old. Twenty-eight young adults (14 female) reported a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and 300 young adults (150 female) comprised a complimentary group of neurotypical individuals. Participants completed multiple standardized tests to measure autistic trait expression and an original survey that measured their reactivity to eight scenarios that …

Speech-Language Pathologists' Perspectives On Working With Couples Impacted By Aphasia, Jannelyse Allred

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis explores speech-language pathologists' (SLPs) perceptions of, experiences with, and perceived barriers to providing psychosocial support to couples impacted by aphasia. A survey was conducted, with 50 responses analyzed. All participants were licensed SLPs who work in the United States and have people with aphasia (PWA) on their caseload. Participants responded to a portion of survey questions, viewed five short videos of Relationship-Centered Communication Partner Training (RC-CPT), then answered a portion of repeated questions to measure the change in perceived confidence, comfort, knowledge, and experience. Results indicate that SLPs perceive counseling to be within their scope of practice and …

Parent Perspectives Of A Dialogic Book Reading Workshop, Camille Slocum

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to identify how parents perceive dialogic book reading workshops that they participate in, and how cultural backgrounds affect these perspectives. Four native English-speaking mothers, and one Spanish-speaking mother with preschool-age children participated in this study. After two dialogic book reading workshops, parents participated in focus groups to discuss their perceptions. Participants noted three positive themes including motivators like incentives and childcare, positive influences, and effective adaptations in their reading routines with their children, and how the workshops were structured with helpful facilitators, supplemental materials, and content. Participants suggested various ideas for improvement. The Spanish-speaking …

Factors Surrounding Mental Health Well-Being For Male Adolescent Pacific Islanders, Melia Fonoimoana Garrett

Theses and Dissertations

Despite increasing mental health concerns, individuals from the Pacific Islands largely do not utilize the resources available to them (National Survey of Drug Use and Health, 2020). This is of particular concern among male adolescents within the population who are more at risk of mental health concerns. An interpretative phenomenological analysis focus group study was conducted in person with male adolescent Pacific Islanders (PI; ages 14–16) residing in one Western state (n = 3). Male adolescents reported that admitting to mental health concerns would greatly limit their academic, career, and personal ambitions due to the stigma attached. They also discussed …