Digital Commons Network^™

Level Up Your Stay: How Energy-Saving Games Are Changing Green Hotel Loyalty, Aili Wu, Juhee Kang, David J. Kwun, Wei Wei

Rosen Research Review

The research by Wu, Kang, Kwun, and Wei reveals how gamification—specifically achievement-based energy-saving games—can transform hotel guests’ attitudes and behaviors toward sustainability. By integrating achievement-goal theory and the theory of planned behavior, the study shows that when guests feel challenged and motivated, they are more likely to engage in green practices and return to the hotel. Interestingly, perceived control over the game sometimes reduces revisit intentions, suggesting that too much ease can lead to boredom. Guests with prior green hotel experiences respond even more positively to gamified sustainability. This research offers a fresh perspective on how hotels can use game …

When Customers Collide Online: The Hidden Power Of Approval In Digital Service Failures, Wei Wei, Lu Zhang, Bobbie Rathjens, Sean Mcginley

Rosen Research Review

The research by Wei, Zhang, Rathjens, and McGinley reveals a surprising twist in how restaurant customers respond to online interactions after a service failure. When fellow customers chime in—either with support or mockery—their comments can dramatically shape how the original complainant feels, engages, and judges fairness. But the real game-changer? Whether the customer craves approval. Those with low need for approval react strongly to the tone of others’ comments, while high-approval seekers remain emotionally steady. This study uncovers the psychological undercurrents of electronic customerto- customer interaction (eCCI), offering fresh insights into empathy, justice, and digital engagement in hospitality.

Putting Humanity First In Service Robotics: For Me, Robotics Is About Giving Hospitality Teams The Breathing Room To Care More Deeply For People., Manuel Rivera, Cynthia Mejia

Rosen Research Review

In an engaging conversation with Juan Higueros, Co-Founder and COO of Bear Robotics, we explore his vision for human-centered robotics and how technology can empower hospitality teams to deliver deeper, more meaningful guest experiences.

Sky-High Expectations: How Drones And Emotions Are Reshaping Food Delivery In Africa, Frank Badu-Baiden, Weisheng Chiu, Eudora Hagan, Victor Anderson Hodibert

Rosen Research Review

The research by Badu-Baiden, Chiu, Hagan, and Hodibert unpacks the emotional, social, and psychological puzzle behind consumer acceptance of drone food delivery in Ghana. Using complexity theory and fsQCA, the study shows multiple adoption paths. Motivation, emotion, perceived risk, and social influence shape intention and willingness to pay. Positive emotions and usefulness drive interest, while privacy concerns and negative feelings hinder it. Trust and cultural context matter deeply.

Boarding By Biometrics: How Smart Technology Is Reshaping Passenger Experience, Xiaoting Chi, Frank Badu-Baiden, Seongseop (Sam) Kim, Junwei Cao, Elena-Nicoleta Untaru, Heekyoung Jung, Heesup Han

Rosen Research Review

The research by Chi, Badu-Baiden, Kim, Cao, Untaru, Jung, and Han explores how biometric boarding transforms airline travel. Using technology acceptance, agenda setting, and behavioral reasoning theories, the study reveals how ease of use, usefulness, media exposure, and attitudes shape adoption. Findings stress convenience, engagement, and targeted communication, with age and gender influencing responses. For airport managers and designers, the research offers practical strategies for secure, efficient, and passenger-centered boarding systems.

The Pleasure Principle: Why Enjoyment May Be The Missing Link In Ai Adoption, Arthur Huang, Ahmet Bulent Ozturk, Tingting Zhang, Efren De La Mora Velasco, Adam Haney

Rosen Research Review

The research by Huang, Ozturk, Zhang, de la Mora Velasco, and Haney reveals a compelling insight: enjoyment—not just efficiency—is a key driver of whether guests will continue using AI in hospitality and tourism. By expanding the expectation-confirmation model, the study shows that perceived enjoyment, alongside performance and satisfaction, plays a pivotal role in shaping future use intentions. This shift toward hedonic value reframes how hoteliers and tourism professionals should design and promote AI services. The findings suggest that delight, fun, and emotional resonance are just as important as functionality when it comes to long-term engagement with AI-powered experiences.

Pennies In The Bank: Building Background Knowledge, Brooke Lee Webster

Journal of English Learner Education

Abstract

Across the United States, teachers are met with stringent time requirements that may not align with the needs of the students inside the classroom. This paper explores the efforts of condensing and prioritizing in a diverse classroom. Through a reflective narrative of teaching comprehension to emerging bilingual students, this paper presents a structure that leverages morning meetings and discussion as prongs for maximizing the benefit of students within limited instructional minutes. Tasks that build competence, confidence, and connection cycle to foster the environment that students need to thrive. Additionally, this paper investigates the role of building background knowledge in …

Differentiated Instruction For Multilingual Learners: A Thematic Analysis Of Research And Practice, Mohsine Bensaid, Jiayuan Jiang

Journal of English Learner Education

Differentiated instruction (DI) is widely promoted as a means of supporting diverse learners, yet its enactment for multilingual learners (MLs) remains uneven and under-theorized in mainstream classrooms. This study examines how DI is conceptualized and implemented to support MLs by attending to learners’ linguistic, cultural, and academic profiles. Using reflexive thematic analysis, this qualitative synthesis examines 20 peer-reviewed empirical studies published between 2010 and 2024 in English-medium K–12 contexts in the United States, with particular attention to elementary settings when specified. Analytic interpretation was supported by practitioner-based reflection functioning as an interpretive lens rather than a separate data source. Four …

A Quasi-Experimental Study On The Effectiveness Of Achieve3000 On The Reading Comprehension Scores Of Ells With Ld, Paula P. Fields

Journal of English Learner Education

The purpose of this quasi-experimental pretest-posttest study was to determine if a significant difference existed in the comprehension scores of secondary English Language Learners with learning disabilities after treatment. The problem addressed is that a significant correlation exists between English language learners and learning-disabled students’ low reading proficiency scores and student achievement, leading to decreased graduation rates. Schema theory served as the theoretical foundation of this research because when the appropriate schema is activated, it helps increase comprehension. The research question guiding this study was: Is there a significant difference between the reading comprehension scores of high school English language …

Reading Comprehension Interventions For Multilingual Learners With Disabilities: A Systematic Review, Sariya Shabnam, Jennifer E. Smith, Samiratu Bashiru

Journal of English Learner Education

Multilingual learners with disabilities (MLWDs) face substantial barriers to reading comprehension given the intersecting challenges of language acquisition and disability (Artzi et al., 2022; Frates et al., 2024). Students with disabilities often need explicit, strategy-based instruction with modeling, guided practice, and scaffolding (Frates et al., 2024; Wawire et al., 2024; Moura, 2024). When learners are also multilingual, interventions must be linguistically accessible and responsive to diverse cognitive profiles (Moura, 2024; Sarisahin, 2020). MLWDs comprise 15.8% of English learners in U.S. public schools (NCES, 2024), yet research on effective comprehension interventions remains limited; most studies treat multilingual learners or students with …

Video-Based, Small Group, Synchronous Discussions (Vssd), Jeff Renfrow

Teaching Online Pedagogical Repository

The VSSD is a research-supported online discussion model that can produce significant increases in student perceptions of social presence, learning, and satisfaction as compared to the traditional text-based, asynchronous, whole-group discussion model. In the VSSD, students lead the discussion experience by scheduling a synchronous, remote video meeting with their small group, they engage in the discussion topic for 30 to 45 minutes, then individually record a privte reflection video that is submitted to the instructor for evaluation and feedback.

Rethinking The Mindfulness And Mindlessness In Media Evocation Of Human-Machine Communication: A Case Study On The In-Car Robot “Nomi”, Bing Wang, Longxiang Luo, Weizi Liu

Human-Machine Communication

The commonly used Media Equation framework in human-machine communication research exhibits limitations when explaining human-machine relationships in the AI era, giving rise to the Media Evocation paradigm. Based on the Media Evocation framework, this study employs in-depth interviews to investigate whether interactions between humans and the in-car robot Nomi are mindful or mindless, while also examining whether these interactions prompt reflections on the machine’s ontology. The findings indicate that most participants perceive Nomi as a human-like actor and interact with it mindfully. Highquality social cues, such as voice and facial expressions, can trigger mindful anthropomorphic responses in human-machine interaction, eliciting …

Human-Machine Communication: Complete Volume. Volume 12

Human-Machine Communication

This is the complete volume of HMC Volume 12.

Normalizing Ai: The Evanishing Effect And Rethinking The Machine Heuristic, Bumju Jung, Cameron W. Piercy, Patric R. Spence

Human-Machine Communication

This study examines how people evaluate factual claims attributed to human journalists versus artificial intelligence (AI) news bots, and how these evaluations are shaped by individual endorsement of the machine heuristic. An online experiment (N = 233) used a 2 (Agent: human vs. AI) × 2 (Information Veracity: accurate vs. inaccurate) design in which participants viewed a short tweet embedded in either a human or AI profile and then rated perceptions of source credibility, objectivity, bias, and accuracy. Endorsement of an AI-focused machine heuristic was significantly associated with higher source credibility, perceived objectivity, and perceived accuracy, and lower perceived bias, …

Ai Humanizers, Pragmatists, Skeptics: A Cluster Analysis Of Normative Attitudes For Ai’S Capabilities And Roles, Kate K. Mays, Ekaterina Novozhilova

Human-Machine Communication

This study explores people’s attitudes about artificial intelligence’s (AI) capabilities through a normative lens. Drawing from literature on phenomenological, ontological, and heuristic judgments about machines, we aim to better understand what capabilities people think AI should be able to have and how that relates to enthusiasm about having AI take certain roles in their lives. Survey participants (N = 601) were grouped via two-step clustering based on their attitudes, revealing three clusters: AI humanizers, who expect empathy and social interaction from AI; AI pragmatists, who expect cognitive capabilities; and AI skeptics, who prefer AI with limited human-like traits and emphasize …

The Epistemic Power Of Human-Machine Communication, Katrin Etzrodt, Autumn P. Edwards

Human-Machine Communication

This editorial introduces Volume 12 of Human–Machine Communication by positioning communicative machines as epistemic provocateurs that unsettle inherited distinctions among agency, meaning, and relation. Rather than treating these disruptions as anomalies to be resolved, the editorial argues that Human–Machine Communication (HMC) is distinctively equipped to register, analyze, and sustain such epistemological tensions. Drawing on philosophical traditions from Aristotle to Marx and Heidegger, the authors show how contemporary communicative machines simultaneously strain multiple historical settlements that once stabilized human–machine boundaries. The volume frames HMC as a “seismograph” for and as a “practice of” epistemological change, tracing how agency and meaning are …

Whole Earth Machines: Human-Machine Communication For A Green Transition, Klaus Bruhn Jensen

Human-Machine Communication

The climate crisis of the 21st century represents an existential risk to humanity and biodiversity, posing essential questions of how communication may serve to coordinate mitigation of and adaptation to climate change. One recent response has been massive investments by governments and corporations in systems providing feedback on the state of Earth— Whole Earth Machines (WEMs). For human-machine communication (HMC) studies, WEMs invite sustained engagement with communication infrastructures as a key constituent of research agendas, beyond the interface encounters at the center of many HMC studies to date. The article presents a conceptualization and operationalization of WEMs as critical infrastructures …

Music Interventions For Critically Ill Patients: Evaluating Effects Of Music On Psychoemotional Symptoms In Critically Ill Patients Receiving Respiratory Support, Allyson Crighton

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Critically ill adults receiving respiratory support in intensive care units (ICUs) frequently experience psychoemotional disturbances such as agitation, anxiety, and delirium, which contribute to prolonged ventilation, increased sedative use, and adverse patient outcomes. While pharmacologic management remains standard practice, associated risks including oversedation and delirium highlight the need for safe, complementary interventions. Emerging evidence suggests that music-based interventions may offer a non-invasive, cost-effective strategy to reduce psychological or emotional distress in this vulnerable population. This integrative literature review examined the effects of music interventions, including passive music listening and structured music therapy, on agitation and related psychoemotional outcomes in critically …

Parenting Stress And Its Association With Parental Technoference: An Integrative Literature Review, Emily S. Machuca

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Introduction: Today, digital devices are a part of daily life, but can serve as a distraction that interrupts important relationships, a process referred to as technoference. In the context of parenting, device use during child interactions may reduce parental attentiveness and engagement, with potential implications for child development and behavior. Parenting stress may influence how and why parents engage with digital devices in the presence of their children. However, the association between parenting stress and parental technoference remains unclear in the current literature. This integrative literature review aimed to synthesize existing evidence examining the relationship between parenting stress and parental …

Examining The Effectiveness Of Icu Diaries In Reducing Post–Intensive Care Syndrome (Pics) Psychological Symptoms: A Rapid Review Of United States–Based Studies, Lananh Tran

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Background: The growing recognition of Post-Intensive Care Syndrome (PICS) has prompted investigation into interventions, such as ICU diaries, to mitigate the long-term psychological effects of PICS. Intensive care unit (ICU) diaries – journals written by clinicians and loved ones during an ICU admission – are a tool that can help patients reconstruct the events of their critical care experience. Entries in the diary may include clinical updates, explanation of treatments, and encouraging words from loved ones or staff. Previous research in European countries found ICU diaries may be effective in reducing psychological effects post ICU admission.

Research question: The aim …

University Of Central Florida Graduate Catalog, 2025-2026, University Of Central Florida

UCF Catalogs

No abstract provided.

Hope Walks Here: Raising Funds And Awareness For Suicide Prevention At Ucf, Tobey Smith

High Impact Practices Student Showcase Spring 2026

Student organizations Active Minds UCF Chapter and HOPE at UCF teamed up with the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) to host an Out of the Darkness Campus Walk. These campus walks are AFSP’s signature student fundraising series which are designed to engage youth and young adults in the fight to prevent suicide, a leading cause of death. This event's purpose was to raise awareness, promote resources, and support those affected by saving lives and bringing hope. As a community, this walk raised over $20,000 for AFSP and reached over 400 participants. This student-led initiative brought the UCF campus together …

Social Media, Fitness, Gender, And Rhetoric, Emily M. Potts

High Impact Practices Student Showcase Spring 2026

The goal for this study was to find how TikTok uses rhetoric to argue about effective workout routines for males versus females and what values or ideologies does this rhetoric help to promote. People tend to take health and fitness advice from social media although it is not the most creditable place. Understanding how people on TikTok use rhetoric to argue about effective workouts for males versus females and what values and ideologies this rhetoric helps to promote is a gap, although it affects a significant amount of people in today's society.

To discover how rhetoric is used in this …

Harvesting Hope In Central Florida With Second Harvest Food Bank, Shayna Caddell, Lucia Hernandez, Correna Bartow, Jonathan Lungstrum, Kevin Wechsler

High Impact Practices Student Showcase Spring 2026

We conducted a culture audit on Second Harvest Food Bank, where we examined the organization and its enacted and espoused values. We used the Social Change Model and the 7Cs to evaluate our observations.

We completed this by individually volunteering for 15 hours. We did many tasks including but not limited to, examining donations, packaging meat, and boxing up meals. Throughout our time, our group learned about the different processes this organization uses. Based on concepts from our Intermediate Foundations of Leadership class and our interview with Sarah Heath, Volunteer Lead, we were able to reflect on how Second Harvest …

Perceptions Of Social Mobility And Their Impact On Attitudes Toward Universal Basic Income, Casey S. Courtright

High Impact Practices Student Showcase Spring 2026

Despite the fact that social mobility has been declining in recent generations, meritocratic beliefs and a desire to maintain the status quo remain high among Americans. This may be in part due to Americans' tendency to be overoptimistic about their economic prospects. Could these inaccurate beliefs about social mobility be related to a lack of support for policies that address income inequality?

The proposed study aims to explore how people perceive social mobility in the United States and the impact those perceptions have on their attitudes toward universal basic income (UBI) policies. To test this, I developed a cross-sectional, quantitative …

What Truly Drives Graduate Earnings?, Aiden Akbarov

High Impact Practices Student Showcase Spring 2026

The goal of my project, Predicting the Paycheck: What Factors Truly Influence Graduate Earnings?, was to see if we could actually predict a college graduate's starting salary using data instead of just guessing. I used a dataset of 172 majors from the American Community Survey to look at how a student's field of study, the gender balance of their major, and the current job market all impact their first paycheck. I wanted to create a tool that helps students understand the financial reality of their degree before they even graduate.

To get my results, I used a Multiple Linear Regression …

The Effects Of Stress-Related Hormones On Excitatory Synapse Formation, Autumn C. Garvey

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Stress profoundly influences brain function through neuromodulatory hormones that regulate synaptic plasticity, yet how temporal patterns of hormone exposure shape excitatory synapse formation remains poorly understood. This study investigates how exposure to stress hormones, norepinephrine and cortisol, affects excitatory synapse development. While existing research primarily compares concentration models, real-world stress occurs in variable patterns that may produce distinct neural outcomes. To address this gap, differentiated Neuro2A neuronal cells are exposed to norepinephrine or cortisol under a continuous treatment paradigm designed to model chronic stress conditions. Following treatment, immunofluorescence imaging is utilized to quantify excitatory synapse formation through analysis of presynaptic …

The Impact Of Gastric Sleeve And Roux-En-Y Gastric Bypass On Chief Cell Function And Protein Digestion In Obese Patients, Garikoitz Mikel Gainza

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Obesity has become one of the largest global health concerns of the 21^st century, correlating with numerous associated diseases. To help address the growing prevalence and burden of obesity, sleeve gastrectomy and Roux-en-Y gastric bypass have become two commonly performed surgical procedures done to promote weight loss by altering the anatomical structure of the stomach and surrounding organs of the gastrointestinal system. Although the benefits of improved metabolism linked to these surgical procedures are well studied, their impact on the physiology of gastric cells, and more specifically chief cells as they relate to protein digestion post-surgery, is yet to …

Associations Between Oral Hormonal Contraceptive Use, Digestive And Other Health Symptoms In Young Women, Silviana E. Buzatu

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Oral hormonal contraceptives (OHCs) are widely used among reproductive-age women; however, their gastrointestinal (GI) side effects remain understudied. The present study examined associations between OHC use, GI, physical, and psychological symptom burden in a large sample of undergraduate women. Participants (N = 669) aged 18 to 25 years were recruited from UCF’s SONA system and classified into three groups based on self-reported contraceptive status: no birth control, combined estrogen–progestin OHC, and progestin-only OHC. Participants completed GI questionnaires, as well as physical and mental health symptoms ones.

Multivariate analyses indicated that overall GI symptom profiles did not differ significantly by birth …

Self-Reported Psychological Effects Of Rock Climbing In Adults On The Autism Spectrum, Brennan Gleason

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Background: Prior research has shown rock climbing to have considerable therapeutic potential through such mechanisms as boosting self-esteem, promoting mindfulness, and creating a supportive social community. (Liu et al., 2022, Osborne et al., 2025). Meanwhile, autistic adults experience mood disorders at a significantly higher rate than the general population; upwards of 54% are diagnosed with a psychiatric condition (Croen et al., 2015). Many of the issues negatively affecting autistic adults align with the benefits of rock climbing, including low self-esteem, inadequate social support, and anxiety.

Objective: This study aimed to find differences in mental health outcomes between autistic adults who …