Digital Commons Network^™

Reducing Disparites In Act Results According To Racial Identity: An Applied Research Study Into The Weact Program In Tinlake High School, Marcus Stewart

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

ABSTRACT The ACT provides opportunities for students of various socioeconomic backgrounds, racial identities, and family structures. Throughout the nation, there is a disparity that involves Black students scoring less than White students on the test by a margin of five points. The applied mixed methods research aimed to identify elements to help decrease the gap in student scores. The combined efforts of all the elements, tutorials, boot camps, ACT prep classes, and providing ACT resources in daily instruction formed the WeACT program. The students of Tinlake High School were exposed to this pilot program to assist in their ACT growth. …

"No Place In American History": Remembering And Forgetting The Sultana Disaster, Elias John Baker

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This project examines the historical memory of the Sultana steamboat disaster of April 27, 1865. The Sultana, ferrying recently-released federal prisoners, exploded north of Memphis, killing over 1,700 in the nation’s worst maritime disaster. Contemporaries interpreted the disaster through a variety of lenses, finding evidence of recalcitrant rebels, the heroism of Union soldiers, and critiques of Republican emancipationist wartime policy. Steamboat safety advocates deployed the disaster’s memory to successfully press Radical Republicans for the 1871 Steamboat Act, establishing the nation’s first maritime safety code. The disaster’s survivors gathered at reunions and published personal narratives to secure the Sultana, and the …

Interictal Avoidance Of Sensory Stimuli Among Individuals With Migraine, Daniel Rogers

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Migraine is the most debilitating neurological disorder worldwide and is associated with high economic and psychological costs. Common behavioral strategies for coping with migraine include avoidance of stimuli believed to precipitate an attack, though literature suggests that avoidance behaviors may serve to exacerbate migraine-symptoms and increase disability. Although the incorporation of trigger avoidance in modern conceptualizations of headache-related disability represents a more comprehensive understanding of disability occurring outside of migraine attacks (interictally), extant literature has emphasized trigger avoidance to the exclusion of other factors. Learning principles suggest stimuli that exacerbate migraine may take on similar eliciting properties as pain and …

Psychometric Evaluation Of Memory And Concentration Sections In The Standardized Assessment Of Concussion, Seungho Ryu

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to evaluate validate the memory and concentration sections of the Standardized Assessment of Concussion (SAC) from the SCAT5. Two studies were conducted. The first study examined item difficulty and discrimination using 10 new word lists of 3 versions in the immediate memory section using item analysis based on classical test theory and to equate scores earned on different versions of 10 word lists using test equating methods. The second evaluated the validity of digits backwards in the concentration section, and evaluated current and new scoring methods for the digit backwards. Two hundred young adults …

Turnover Intentions Of Self-Initiated Expatriates: The Role Of Servant Leadership And Organizational Embeddedness, Caleb W. Lugar

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The topic of this dissertation is turnover of self-initiated expatriates (SIEs). The significance of the SIE domain is evidenced by the exponential growth in SIE literature since the publication of the seminal research article authored by Inkson, Arthur, Pringle, and Barry (1997). Research in the SIE domain is also of interest to practitioners employed in multinational organizations who increasingly recognize that SIEs are an untapped source of global talent. To contribute to the SIE literature, in Essay One, of my three-essay dissertation, I first provide a systematic SIE literature review. Second, my unique contribution is a systematic review of the …

Coping With Pain And Health-Related Quality Of Life Among Adults With Sickle Cell Disease, Monika Salkar

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Objectives

The objectives of this dissertation are to: 1) to examine the psychometric properties of the CSQSCD among adult sickle cell disease (SCD) patients; 2) to identify psychosocial predictors of health-related quality (HRQOL) among adult SCD patients; and 3) to identify the distinct, multidimensional patterns of strategies for coping with SCD and their association with HRQOL among adult SCD patients in the United States.

Methods

This cross-sectional study was conducted using a web-based self-administered survey. Adults with SCD were recruited with the help of Rare Patient Voice, a market research company that maintains a panel of SCD patients. Psychometric properties …

Effectiveness Of An Educational Intervention To Reduce Ageism In Undergraduate Students In An Entry-Level Nutrition Class, Ann Irvin Armstrong

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Although the older adult population continues to increase, ageism remains an issue in the healthcare system and is prevalent among nutrition-related professionals. The aim of our study is to is determine the effectiveness of an educational intervention to reduce ageism among pre-healthcare professionals including Nutrition major students. Undergraduate students enrolled in an entry-level nutrition class were recruited and randomized into an intervention (INT) group (n=30) and a control (CON) group (n=29). The online educational intervention consisted of pre-recorded lectures and videos regarding ageism and myths regarding aging for the INT group, and on cultural competency and biases (other than ageism) …

Traumatic Life Experiences And Their Impact On Factors Pertinent To Leadership Effectiveness In School Principals, Derrick D. Hardaway

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Many schools across the nation are not making adequate achievement or growth goals from year-to-year. This leads to high principal turnover rates and instability in the learning environment which profoundly impacts student achievement. Currently, most efforts in schools are aimed at raising student achievement, implementing equitable practices, and limiting barriers. While these are critical actions for closing the achievement gap, the principal’s role in this process is vitally important. Therefore, this quantitative study explored how trauma affects factors that are pertinent to leader success in school principals. To determine the impact trauma has on leadership qualities, this study examined the …

Decreasing Discipline Disparities Among African-American Males: An Applied Research Study On The Effects Of Developing Culturally Responsive Teaching Practices Among Teachers And Equipping Students With Added Supports, Reginald Maurice Herrington

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Schools and school leaders are charged to provide equitable educational opportunities and ensure the success for all students no matter their scholastic ability giving students access to an education that is culturally responsive. Despite this charge, African-American male students receive exclusionary punishment at disparaging rates which contributes to the widening achievement gap between white and black students. The purpose of this applied research study was to decrease the rate at which African-American males are referred to the office. This study analyzes the implementation of two elements: engaging teachers in a book study on culturally responsive teaching strategies and targeted counseling …

The Role Of Social Anxiety In Prosocial Behavior Following Exclusion, Hannah Friedman

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Social anxiety (SA) causes significant distress and impairment in several areas of daily life. Individuals with SA experience increased rates of exclusion and have more difficultly forming meaningful interpersonal relationships. Exclusion is associated with increased SA and motivations for social withdrawal in emerging adulthood. In non-SA individuals, the desire for compensatory social interaction following exclusion often produces prosocial behaviors (e.g., increased effort to help the group). Prosocial behavior levels following exclusion are not uniform, however, as an individual’s response may vary depending on the type of exclusion experienced. Although previous work has observed decreased levels of prosocial behavior in non-SA …

1.5 Generation Korean-American Young Adults' Bilingualism And Their Identity In The U.S., Hanna Kim

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Since the 20th century, particularly post-1965, there has been rapid growth in the Korean-American population in the U.S. The number of 1.5 generation Korean-Americans has also increased. 1.5 generation Korean-Americans can take advantage of learning both languages and cultures in the two countries which can help them become bilingual and bicultural individuals. However, previous studies about the language experience and identity of Korean-Americans have mainly focused on the first or second-generations (Kang, 2013; M. Park, 2005) rather than 1.5 generations. Some of these studies have focused more on children at an early age (E. S. Park, 2005; Zhou, 1997) instead …

The Influence Of Emotion Regulation And Family Involvement On Diabetes Distress Among Adults With Type 2 Diabetes, Patric Justin Leukel

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Adults with diabetes frequently experience diabetes related distress which is associated with negative health outcomes. Family members are commonly involved in patients’ diabetes self-management. However, family involvement can have harmful and/or helpful effects on patients’ diabetes outcomes. Difficulties in regulating emotions may play a role in patients’ interactions with family members and experience of diabetes distress. This study examined the role of emotion regulation and type of family involvement in diabetes distress among 370 adults with type 2 diabetes. Two separate three-step sequential linear regression models were used to test the main and interactive effects of harmful and helpful family …

Increasing Reading Achievement: An Applied Research Study On The Effects Of Implementing An Independent Reading Time At Lester Elementary School, Sherna Jones

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Reading proficiency is an important skill and demonstrated proficiency is required by the Mississippi’s Literacy Based Promotion Act of 2013 for third graders to be promoted to fourth grade. Reading proficiency at third grade also has serious implications for lifelong outcomes. The purpose of this applied research project was to increase reading achievement for the second and third grade students of Lester Elementary, specifically by exploring the effects of increased time spent reading, access and self-selection of books, and motivation to read on reading proficiency. The analysis of pre- and post- STAR data was used to determine if proficiency rates …

Academic Support Systems And College Readiness For Black Male Student Athletes, Derek Lovell King

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

High school athletics is a major aspect of today’s educational landscape. Sports generate revenue, galvanize communities, and provide opportunities for widespread exposure. For the black athlete, sports generally represent an opportunity to go to college. With the pressure of academic accountability, increased athletic competitiveness, and the impact of future prospects, high schools have to be innovative in order to optimize the academic experience, particularly for Black male athletes.

The impact of high school academic support systems, particularly their capacity to increase the college readiness of Black male athletes, has not been adequately examined. College GPA, college persistence rate, and college …

Effects Of Nonnative Phonotactic Constraints On The Perception Of Nasal-Initial Consonant Clusters, Msafiri Otonya

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study examines the effects of non-native phonotactic constraints on the perception of nasal-initial consonant clusters (NICC), specifically whether native English speakers can perceive NICC as accurately as native Swahili speakers. The ABX task was conducted over Zoom to test L1 English speakers (N=12) and L1 Swahili speakers (N=12). Stimuli with four conditions were used: 1) The stimuli had one of the three nasal sounds (/m/, /n/, and /?/) in word-initial consonant clusters; 2) The stimuli had NICC composed of a nasal sound followed by either a voiced or voiceless consonant; 3) The consonant clusters were composed of sounds that …

Equity, Social Justice, And Ethical Responsibility In Higher Education: Voices Of Business Students At A Pervasivley Sectarian University, Van Brooks Poole

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This proposed study explores the perceptions and experiences of business students who attend a pervasively sectarian university in the South (MPSU) regarding their perceptions of equity, social justice, and ethical responsibility through their experiences on campus and in their academic program. This study will discuss socio-political influences at the national, state, and local levels and examine existing university policies and practices to identify recommendations for organizational change using Lewin’s unfreezing model as a theoretical framework.

The Trajectory Of Resilience, Meaning In Life, Social Support, Posttraumatic Growth, And Posttraumatic Stress For Emerging Adult Trauma Survivors, Marcela C. Weber

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

BACKGROUND: The literature suggests the relationship between posttraumatic growth (PTG) and posttraumatic stress (PTS) is curvilinear, and that type or severity of trauma may affect this relationship. The relationship between depression, anxiety, and PTG is understudied. It is well established that meaning in life predicts PTG, PTS, and resilience, yet most of the research has measured general perceived meaning rather than meaning beyond-the-self, specifically, which was initially theorized by mid-century Humanistic psychologists. Mixed findings about whether searching for meaning is beneficial or harmful suggests potential moderators of search for meaning should be explored. METHOD: Participants (N = 628) were emerging …

Ceramic Analysis Of The 2019 Excavations Of Ely (44le12) Mound Site, Lee County, Virginia, Shannon Medah Wooten

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Mississippian frontier in southwestern Virginia is a relatively unexplored area. This area was occupied by Mississippian and Radford locals, creating a crossroads between the two groups. The Ely Mound site is a Mississippian frontier site that can help understand the influence of Mississippian and Radford cultures on the development of chiefdoms. This thesis will analyze the ceramics from the mound test unit and shovel test survey of the 2019 excavation at Ely located in Lee County, Virginia. The temper patterns were used to understand the date and use of the site. The purpose of this thesis is to analyze …

The Perceptions That Um First-Generation College Students Have Regarding The Impact Of Campus Engagement On Their Success At The Institution, Martin B. Fisher

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

First-generation students are often underprepared for college and have lower persistence rates (Balemian & Feng, 2013), and they face a unique set of challenges in their transition to college that many of their peers do not (Pelco, Bell, & Lockeman, 2014). Consistent with national statistics, data obtained from UM’s Office of Institutional Research, Effectiveness, and Planning indicate first-generation students at UM persist and graduate at lower rates than their peers whose parents have a bachelor’s degree.

There are many reasons why first-generation students have lower success rates, and, for some students, a lack of engagement is one of them (Pascarella, …

Come As You Are: Islamic Religiousness As A Context For Mental Illness Beliefs And Treatment, Elijah Phoenix Mudryk

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The United States is home to approximately three million Muslim-Americans, a diverse and growing demographic group that has woven itself into the fabric of American life. Hailing from many regions around the world, Muslims in the U.S. are varied in racial and ethnic backgrounds and not dominated by any particular race or ethnicity. National pride and a strong religious identity are shared aspects among U.S. born Muslims and immigrants alike (Pew, 2018). In addition to the typical challenges of daily life, Muslim-Americans have experienced high levels of religious and ethnic discrimination. Post-9/11, Muslim-Americans suffered a 1600% increase in reported hate …

Quality And Cost Associated With Cancer Care, Yiqiao Zhang

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Cancer has been one of the leading causes of death for decades in the United States. It poses a significant burden to patients, stakeholders, and society in both economic (e.g., healthcare costs) and human (e.g., health-related quality of life) terms. This dissertation aimed at filling gaps in the literature on the cost and quality associated with cancer care.

First, a retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted to evaluate the effect of an alternative payment model - accountable care organizations (ACOs) - on health-related quality of life (HRQOL) and healthcare cost among patients with cancer. Findings from this study indicate that although …

Effect Of Chronic Pain On Prospective Memory Performance, Alexander Joseph Kuka

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Chronic pain is among the most widespread and disabling conditions worldwide. In the United States, approximately 50 million people suffer from chronic pain, and nearly half that number experience daily chronic pain. Diagnostic testing, treatments, and operations related to chronic pain cost Americans over $600 billion annually. Prospective memory, the process by which people remember to perform an action in the future after a delay, appears to be affected by the experience of pain, especially when a prospective memory task is more cognitively demanding. While self-report studies of individuals with chronic pain suggest that pain adversely affects both their retrospective …

The Accuracy Of Subjective Load Parameters In Comparison To Analytical Load Measurments In Ncaa Division I Women’S Volleyball, Katherine Pierce

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Monitoring the work load of athletes in both an individual and team setting has become a commonplace practice in today’s age of sports. However, this practice can look different depending on the physical demands of the sport. Specifically, in volleyball, an inertial measurement unit, known as Vert, can be utilized to track the number of jumps performed by players, in addition to other jump related variables. While Vert serves as an effective way of objectively measuring jump frequency among players, other ways in which jump frequency can be estimated are needed for teams and players without Vert. Therefore, this study …

Sleep And Health-Related Quality Of Life Among Persons With Parkinson’S Disease And Their Caregiverssleep And Health-Related Quality Of Life Among Persons With Parkinson’S Disease And Their Caregivers, Sushmitha Inguva

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation aimed at filling gaps in the body of Parkinson’s disease (PD) and sleep literature by synthesizing and appraising current knowledge on the influence of sleep on health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in persons with Parkinson’s (PWP) and their caregivers, conducting a psychometric evaluation of a HRQoL instrument among PWP, and applying a novel method to assess the dyadic relationship between sleep and HRQoL in PWP and their caregivers. First, the systematic literature review results showed that nocturnal and diurnal sleep problems among PWP are strong predictors of their HRQoL. Additionally, studies that focused on caregiver outcomes showed that …

The Role Of Acetylcholine In Attention And Lapses In Attention In Rats Using The Mode And Deviation From Mode Of Reaction Time Latency, Scott Lee Mitchell

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Attention Deficit-Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is currently the neurodevelopmental disorder most commonly diagnosed in children in the United States, and one of the defining characteristics of ADHD is inattention. Inattention is marked by increased lapses in attention, and when assessed clinically, it has been highly correlated with reaction-time variability (RTV). Evidence from the human/clinical literature has shown an inherently higher RTV to be the primary quantitative indicator of an ADHD diagnosis. Reaction-time distributions are characterized by an asymmetrical rightward skew, and because of the prevalence of this presentation, it has been theorized that the distribution peak and skew represent separate phenomena, …

The Biggest Winner: How Loss Aversion And Negativity Bias Can Increase Affective Polarization, Austin Cutler

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Affective polarization is on the rise, which makes understanding the origins of it increasingly important. Some work finds that partisan sorting is associated with increased polarization, due to a lack of exposure to conflicting opinions as well as the ease of making generalizations about the opposing side (Iyengar2019-zg). Individuals with more closely aligned ideological and partisan identities are more likely to exhibit hostility towards the other party, and react more emotionally to information that threatens their party or issue stance (Mason2015). The aim of this paper is to analyze how contextual factors, specifically the partisan distribution of an area, can …

The Plight Of Valinor: A Historically Informed Perspective On The Future Development Of Space Law And Potential Exercise Of Self-Determination By Human Settlements On Mars, Marshall David Mckellar

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Breathable air, water, food, shelter, sleep: these are the five basic requirements for human survival. Providing these basics to a single person living on Earth is a challenge; providing them to 1,200 people living in the harsh Martian environment is a different matter entirely. Nonetheless, in 2047, SpaceX successfully constructed Valinor—the first human inhabited scientific settlement on Mars—by transporting hundreds of scientists and engineers, along with countless scientific experiments and technologically advanced survival equipment, to the red planet. Each year saw more successful missions to Valinor and the world community grew more excited about the reali-zation of humanity’s expansion into …

Effects Of Acute Exercise Intensity On Source Episodic Memory: Considerations By Cardiorespiratory Fitness, Brandon Thomas Rigdon

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Prior research suggests that behavioral (e.g., acute exercise) and psychological factors (e.g., metamemory; monitoring and control of one’s memory processes) may influence memory function. However, there is conflicting results on the optimal intensity of acute exercise to enhance memory and whether acute exercise can also enhance metamemory. Further, very limited research has evaluated whether acute exercise can influence source episodic memory. The primary objective of this study was to evaluate whether there is an intensity-specific effect of acute aerobic exercise on source episodic memory and metamemory accuracy. A secondary objective was to evaluate if cardiorespiratory fitness moderates this potential relationship. …

Pharmacological Manipulation Of Nmda Receptor Activation And Synaptic Norepinephrine Levels: Effects On Sustained Attention In Male Rats, Zach V. Redding

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Impaired attention is common in many neurological disorders. Normal attention promotes the selective processing of important sensory information. This selective processing relies on neurotransmitters, like glutamate, and neuromodulators, like norepinephrine, acting in frontal, parietal, and visual cortices. We tested treatments targeting the glutamatergic and noradrenergic systems using a rat model of attentional lapses.Rats were trained to respond quickly to stimuli in a two-choice reaction time task (2CRTT). Response times were split into initiation time (IT) and movement time (MT). Performance measures were derived from IT and MT distributions. IT mode represents sensorimotor processing speed when rats are attentive. IT deviation …

African American College Students First Experiences In Counseling, Melissa Denise Spencer

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

African Americans have experienced mistreatment at the hands of the medical community. Knowledge of the Tuskegee Experiment and the travesties done by J. Marion Sims to slave women have been passed down through the generations causing cultural skepticism of the medical field, subsequently hindering African Americans from seeking medical services. This historical legacy of maltreatment has caused African Americans to seek medical help at a lower rate than their majority counterparts. African American college students seek out mental health services at a much lower rate than White students while experiencing mental health symptoms at the same or sometimes higher rate. …