Digital Commons Network^™

Development Of A Novel Measure To Assess For Alcohol Misuse In Older Adults: The Alcohol Misuse Scale For Older Adults (Amsoa), Nathan Jensen

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Alcohol is the most regularly used intoxicating substance in most geographic locations. Alcohol use in the United States specifically is well over global averages. While alcohol misuse is generally considered to be understood as a problem for younger adults, it is often unrecognized and understudied older adult populations. Currently, there is an absence of a comprehensive tool measuring for developmentally salient behaviors, symptoms, and features of alcohol misuse in older adulthood, which blocks researchers’ ability to measure alcohol misuse well. The purpose of this study is to develop a psychometrically valid and reliable assessment of alcohol misuse for older adult …

Psychotherapist Awareness And Competence Managing Social Media Concerns, Jing Wen Ong

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Social media use increased substantially in recent years, spurring the growth of research focused on its association with mental health. Previous research examined the relationship between positive and negative aspects of mental health and social media use. Other studies explored the relevance of social media to professional practice of psychologists including the use of social media to reach populations with limited access to mental health services and ethical dilemmas arising from social media use; however, there is limited understanding of the pertinence of social media to concerns that clients discuss in therapy and therapist competence in handling these discussions. The …

Feasibility Of Influencing Clinician Perceived Knowledge And Competence Of Human Trafficking Via A Continuing Education Workshop, Rachel Wakefield

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Previous research has examined the complex mental and social health deficits of those who were trafficked that clinicians have to treat therapeutically (Litam, 2017; Pascual-Leone et al., 2017). Other research has explored how continuing education workshops often change the knowledge, competence, and attitudes of attendees to use more effective and evidenced techniques and skills (Neimeyer et al., 2009; Raghavan et al., 2008). However, there is a lack of understanding about how a complex topic, specifically treatment considerations of those who were trafficked, changes the knowledge and competence of continuing education workshop attendees. The purpose of the current study is to …

Ethics In Literature: A Case Study Of Hades And Persephone, Mckenzie A. Howard

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

The increased ethical scrutiny on art in the modern era places an emphasis on how those art forms are being taught in the classroom. This thesis seeks to answer the question: how do we teach ethics, if we should at all, when we teach literature to a modern audience? This thesis explores this question by looking at how modern adaptations of an ancient text, the “Hymn to Demeter,” change the ethical issues in the original text, to show the relevance of these issues in the source text and the modern adaptations. Through an argument that the ethical concerns are often …

"Shut Down And Closed Off": A Routine Activity Approach To Investigating The Relationship Between Covid-19 School Closures And Child Sexual Abuse Report Characteristics In Georgia, Spencer E. Riner

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

The COVID-19 pandemic of 2020 created a public health crisis that led to an unprecedented number of school closures. A major concern raised by child advocates, law enforcement, and social service providers was the possible increase in undetected child abuse and maltreatment. Undergirding this concern was the belief that this mitigation effort might place child abuse victims and offenders within proximity for extended periods of time. While this was a significant concern, it has rarely been analyzed empirically. To address this gap in the literature, this thesis investigates how school closures impacted the characteristics of child sexual abuse (CSA) reports …

The Effects Of Cultural Responsiveness And Therapy Duration On Black Americans’ Therapy Preference, Katilyn M. Ashley Treem

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Marginalized groups are less likely to seek out mental health services than non-marginalized groups. There are various reasons why marginalized groups, such as Black Americans, are less likely to seek out mental health services, one of which is the cultural barriers between a clinician and client. Research suggests that Black Americans feel that clinicians struggle to overcome these cultural barriers. Therefore, it is important for clinicians to actively receive training on how to serve clients with diverse backgrounds. Cultural responsiveness, an extension from cultural competence, is the active application of the knowledge and skills obtained in training. Examining people’s therapy …

Encapsulating Scars, Ashley Smith

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

My work explores scars through encapsulation, a desire to enclose and express the emotional scars of memories or physical scars of the body. Life’s experiences impact the living, leaving behind scars that we feel the need to understand. Through the mediums of metal and mixed-media photography, I utilize found and created imagery, as well as a triality of text in order to preserve and remember these scars.

Applications Of Predictive And Generative Ai Algorithms: Regression Modeling, Customized Large Language Models, And Text-To-Image Generative Diffusion Models, Suhaima Jamal

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

The integration of Machine Learning (ML) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) algorithms has radically changed predictive modeling and classification tasks, enhancing a multitude of domains with unprecedented analytical capabilities. Predictive modeling leverages ML and AI to forecast future trends or behaviors based on historical data, while classification tasks categorize data into distinct classes, from email filtering to medical diagnosis. Concurrently, text-to-image generation has emerged as a transformative potential, allowing visual content creation directly from textual descriptions. These advancements are pivotal in design, art, entertainment, and visual communication, as well as enhancing creativity and productivity. This work explores three significant studies in …

Numerical Analysis Of A Multi-Stage Elastohydrodynamic Seal For Aircraft Engines, Md Wasif Hasan

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

At present, both governmental and private aviation enterprises are trying to develop aircraft that are swifter, more lightweight, and more cost-effective in order to maintain competitiveness on both the domestic and global stage. Continuous innovation and sustainability efforts are necessary to achieve advancements in aviation systems, such as fans, compressors, combustors, and turbines, as well as sub-systems, like engine seals. Advanced engine seals exhibit considerable potential in enhancing the engine's pressure ratio and cycle temperatures, leading to reduced engine weight, increased thrust, and improved fuel economy. In this study, a novel multistage seal idea has been proposed for the supercritical …

Religious Iconography, Expressionist Lighting, And The Antihero's Spiritual Journey In Marvel's Daredevil, Savannah L. Pruett

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

In Marvel’s Daredevil (2015), Matthew Murdock undergoes different phases of an antiheroic spiritual journey as his faith in the judicial system and his Maker is tested by evil in Hell’s Kitchen, New York City. This thesis will dig deeper to reveal how the Daredevil series uses purposefully designed religious iconography and expressionist lighting to tell the story of Matthew Murdock’s antiheroic spiritual journey across three seasons. This thesis aims to prove that Daredevil is a complex and thought-provoking franchise that analyzes what it means to be an antihero, including the moral and ethical lines one is willing to cross to …

The Relation Between Disordered Eating And Perceived Stress, Tori E. Byars

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Disordered eating behavior encompasses a spectrum of maladaptive eating patterns, including emotional eating, binging, restricting, and other similar behaviors. Perceived stress is the extent that an individual perceives their demands exceed their ability to cope. Existing research has demonstrated a positive relation between high ratings of perceived stress and disordered eating behaviors (King et al., 2009; Skead et al., 2018). The current study aimed to expand this research by examining the relation between disordered eating and stress in students, workers, and those who partake in both commitments. Utilizing a single survey, participants completed assessments including the Perceived Stress Scale, the …

Exploring The Relationships Among Adhd, Generalized Anxiety Disorder, And Emotion Regulation, Anna S. Hall

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

This study investigated the relationships among Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) symptoms and common comorbid struggles for clients, including Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) symptoms, and executive functions, especially emotion regulation. ADHD and GAD are prevalent mental health conditions, are commonly comorbid with each other, and are both correlated with relative deficits in executive functions. Executive functions comprise higher-order cognitive processes like planning, inhibition, initiation, and monitoring, as well as emotion regulation. Prior research established connections among ADHD symptoms, GAD symptoms, and emotion regulation but did not examine which specific facets of emotion regulation were most relevant. The current study aimed to …

Self-Authorship Among First-Generation Learners: A Qualitative Study, Issac C. Taylor

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

In the realm of higher education, an increasingly important concern is the intellectual capacity of first-generation learners. To improve their cognitive, intrapersonal, and interpersonal development in contemporary society, it is essential for institutions to gain a comprehensive understanding of these students' unique challenges. The existing body of literature on first-generation students has predominantly centered on the personal challenges and institutional barriers that impede their pursuit of higher education. However, promoting self-authorship among this student population presents a unique opportunity for faculty, staff, and administrators to facilitate and reinforce the developmental needs of students who are the first in their families …

Computer Cravings In 20th Century Schools: From Creativity To Capitalism, Keely E. Amos

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

This dissertation examines the push for computers in education from the early 1980s to the early 2000s. During that time, computers were introduced into schools across America with big promises, in turn creating big dreams. Instead of the cognition, creativity, and collaboration that was envisioned with computers in the classroom, the shifting motivations regarding computers have exacerbated the datafication and standardization of our students (Cuban, 2001). The problems associated with the corporation of computers into the curriculum are widespread (Pinar et. al, 1995/2004). Following the methodology of Historiography, this paper provides a critical examination about what was promised, and by …

Chronic Training Load And Dorsiflexion Range Of Motion Throughout A Season In Professional American Soccer, Tristan L. Young

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Soccer has an incredibly complex movement profile. Players experience various types of strains on their body from the requirement to land in awkward positions while maintaining the ability to quickly accelerate and decelerate. Dorsiflexion range of motion (DFROM) is of concern due to the movement profile and ball control that requires constant eccentric and concentric actions at the talocrural joint. With an American soccer season spanning across nine months these demands can contribute to overuse, which has been linked to restricted range of motion. Restricted DFROM and asymmetries have been identified as injury predictors, but their relationship to performance has …

Gathered Vessels, Marguerite E. Mccoy

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

My journey with ceramics is a path paved with the memories of my mother's kitchen, travels across Europe, and a deep love for creating spaces where people can come together. From the warmth of a mug that fits just right in your hands, to the gentle sounds of water playing in a fountain I've crafted, my work is about making those little moments of connection feel extra special. I create ceramics that are meant to be picked up, used, and loved - pieces that carry a bit of my story to join in with yours. Whether it's joining in your …

Exploring Police K-9 Deaths, Their Causes, And Possible Remedies, John Wise

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Police K-9s face daily dangers due to their work. Data collected by the Officer Down Memorial Page from 2000-2023 on K-9 deaths (N = 405) shows that of K-9s that die in the line of duty, many fall victim to heat stroke. Research was conducted comparing heat stroke to all other causes of death. Through an exploration into the history of mankind’s use of working dogs, the unique capabilities of both dogs and K-9 specific dog breeds and applying Routine Activity Theory and Lifestyle Routine Activity Theory to police K-9s, this study’s objective is to bring awareness to, and …

Variation In The Fear Response Of Atlantic Sand Fiddler Crabs (Leptuca Pugilator) To Anthropogenic Disturbance, Katrina L. Buttram

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Leptuca pugilator is a common inhabitant of southeast Georgia salt marshes. This study examined the boldness of Leptuca pugilator across environmental conditions and human impacts. Here, boldness was defined as time taken to reemerge from a burrow after a fear stimulus. I hypothesized that crabs would vary in their boldness based on their surroundings, reproductive timing, and sex. Field and experimental trials were conducted to isolate which factors most influence boldness. Field trials were conducted at four sites varying in human influence throughout the breeding season. During each survey, vegetation height, substrate temperature, average burrow width, burrow count, and distance …

Bringing Gans To Medieval Times: Manuscript Translation Models, Tonilynn M. Holtz

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

The Generative Adversarial Networks (GAN) recently emerged as a powerful framework for producing new knowledge from existing knowledge. These models aim to learn patterns from input data then use that knowledge to generate output data samples that plausibly appear to belong to the same set as the input data. Medieval manuscripts study has been an important research area in the humanities field for many decades. These rare manuscripts are often times inaccessible to the general public, including students in scholars, and it is of a great interest to provide digital support (including, but not limited to translation and search) for …

Assessing Performance Optimization Strategies In Cloud-Native Environments Through Containerization And Orchestration Analysis, Daniel E. Ukene

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

This thesis comprises three distinct, yet interconnected studies addressing critical aspects of web infrastructure management. We begin by studying containerization via Docker and its impact on web server performance, focusing on Apache and Nginx hosted on virtualized environments. Through meticulous load testing and analysis, we provide insights into the comparative performance of these servers, adding users of this technology know which webservers to leverage when hosting their webservice along alongside the infrastructure to host it on. Next, we expand our focus to examine the performance of caching systems, namely Redis and Memcached, across traditional VMs and Docker containers. By comparing …

The U.S. Southern Mothers Perspective On Affection, Destiny M. Rose

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

This qualitative research study utilizes Murray Bowen’s Family Systems Theory and Kimberlé Crenshaw’s Intersectionality Theory to examine how ten mothers residing in what is identified as the U.S. Deep South (Georgia, Alabama, and South Carolina) perceive affection shown to their children by adults outside of their nuclear family. Additionally, this study considers the influence social class plays in how parents in the Deep South navigate and negotiate social and cultural norms when it comes to affection displays shown to their children. Data was collected using thematic analysis to describe how parents in parts of the Deep South perceive affection shown …

Integration Of Infrared Thermography And Deep Learning For Real-Time In-Situ Defect Detection And Rapid Elimination Of Defect Propagation In Material Extrusion, Asef Ishraq Sadaf

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

This study presents a novel approach to overcoming process reliability challenges in Material Extrusion (ME), a prominent additive manufacturing (AM) technique. Despite ME's advantages in cost, versatility, and rapid prototyping, it faces significant barriers to commercial-scale production, primarily due to quality issues such as overextrusion and underextrusion, which compromise final part performance. Traditional manual monitoring methods severely lack the capability to efficiently detect these defects and highlight the necessity for an efficient and real-time monitoring solution. Considering these challenges, an innovative and field-deployable infrared thermography-based in-situ real-time defect detection and feedback control system is proposed in this thesis. A novel …

Training Underrepresented Minority Students For Careers In Public Health Leadership – Public Health Leaders Fellowship Program, Jigsa Tola

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Background: Shortage and lack of diversity in the United States public health workforce is well documented and remains a challenge to meaningfully improving the health of the population. Although the diversity of the public health workforce has implications for access, care quality, and career opportunities in low-income communities, there is no strong mechanism by which minorities are trained to replenish the workforce. Morehouse College’s Public Health Leaders Fellowship Program (MC-PHLFP) is a cooperative program with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to train undergraduate students for careers in public health leadership.

Purpose: The purpose of this research is …

The Effect Of First-Person Testimonial Versus Didactic Video Interventions On Attitudes And Behavioral Intentions Toward Buprenorphine, Tristan S. Fletcher

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Emerging adults exhibit disproportionately elevated levels of substance use disorders (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration [SAMHSA], 2021), opioid misuse (SAMHSA, 2021), and opioid use (Hu et al., 2017; Jones et al., 2015) compared to other age cohorts. If left untreated, opioid misuse and opioid use disorder can lead to various negative consequences, including premature death (Strang et al., 2020). Prior research indicates emerging adults have higher opioid-related mortality rates compared to other age groups in the United States (Gomes et al., 2018). Buprenorphine, an opioid partial agonist medication, is an effective intervention for opioid use disorder (Mattick et …

Railroad Condition Monitoring Using Distributed Acoustic Sensing And Deep Learning Techniques, Md Arifur Rahman

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Proper condition monitoring has been a major issue among railroad administrations since it might cause catastrophic dilemmas that lead to fatalities or damage to the infrastructure. Although various aspects of train safety have been conducted by scholars, in-motion monitoring detection of defect occurrence, cause, and severity is still a big concern. Hence extensive studies are still required to enhance the accuracy of inspection methods for railroad condition monitoring (CM). Distributed acoustic sensing (DAS) has been recognized as a promising method because of its sensing capabilities over long distances and for massive structures. As DAS produces large datasets, algorithms for precise …

Social And Structural Determinants Of Health As Predictors Of Covid-19 Vaccine Hesitancy Among Older Adults In The United States, Kingsley Kalu

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Background: Although vaccination is one of the greatest accomplishments in public health, some people, especially older adults, are reluctant to take vaccines. This study examined the association between the social and structural determinants of health and COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy among older adults in the United States.

Methods: Secondary data from the Health and Retirement Study (HRS) was used. The HRS participants were 65 years and older, and the sample size was 2311. Multinomial multivariable logistic regression models were conducted for this study.

Results: The study shows that social determinants of health (marital status, educational level) and structural determinants of health …

Cybercrime Victimization: Online Routine Behaviors, Guardianship, And Identity Theft Victimization In A Nationally Reflective Sample, Ifeoluwa Stella Elegbe

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

In this digital era, cybercrime victimization has emerged as a significant issue, with identity theft being one of the most prevalent forms. This study examines the relationship between online routine behaviors, guardianship, demographics, and identity theft victimization in a nationally representative sample of U.S. adults utilizing routine activities theory (RAT) as a conceptual

framework. The research applies statistical methods such as descriptive statistics, correlation analysis, and logistic regression models to examine theoretically oriented hypotheses. The

hypotheses suggest connections between different online habitual behaviors, steps taken to

protect oneself, demographic characteristics, and the extent to which one has been a victim …

What Does It Mean To Be The Goat: A Narrative Study On Retired White Male Elite Individual Sport Athletes?, Tyler Behrmann

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

The greatest of all time (GOAT) is a topic commonly discussed in sports today (Lundberg & Rosenberg, 2020). Despite this increased use of the term, there is a lack of research on the topic of the GOAT which could serve to benefit individuals in performance domains. The purpose of this qualitative exploratory study was to investigate characteristics that describe a GOAT and the impact these characteristics of the GOAT have on individuals. Two participants were included in this study. The participants were white male, retired, and individual sport athletes who competed in multiple World Championships. Participants were interviewed using semi-structured …

Letters To Myself ~ Reflections Of A New Teacher ~ A Curriculum Of Self, Sarah Brittany S. Greneker

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

This is a nontraditional, very creative approach to dissertation writing. Using reflective poetic inquiry, I reflect on my experiences transitioning from pre-service to in-service teacher in the early childhood classroom. I taught for 7 years and encountered many situations that would have been beneficial to know prior to becoming a certified teacher. I explore overarching themes of coworker relationships, undergraduate program preparation, the various responsibilities, classroom environment, teacher evaluation, teacher perspective, and teacher mental health and well-being and how they each impact a teacher’s experience in the classroom. This is accomplished through the epistolary genre and letters to myself as …

There And Back Again: Nick Adams' Masculine Journey From 'Indian Camp' To 'Fathers And Sons.', Michael F. Basista

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

In the following paper, I discuss how Ernest Hemingway’s hyper-masculine persona influences how his male characters are interpreted by some readers. More specifically, I take the character of Nick Adams and look at him as being a representation of one of Hemingway’s male characters that diverges from the hyper-masculine persona that Hemingway had created for himself. To do so, I focus on eight of Hemingway’s short stories, with those being “Indian Camp,” “The Doctor and the Doctor’s Wife,” “Ten Indians,” “The End of Something,” “The Three-Day Blow,” “The Battler,” “Cross-Country Snow,” and “Fathers and Sons.” The development of Nick Adams …