Digital Commons Network^™

Program Curricula For Preparing Medical Professionals On Early Childhood Mental Health, Socio-Emotional Development, And Adverse Childhood Experiences In Primary Care Settings: A Phenomenological Study, Jesutomilola O. Olayemi

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Primary care settings serve as the frontline for addressing the holistic well-being of individuals and particularly for children, they play a pivotal role in shaping early childhood experiences. Pediatric primary care physicians are pivotal in addressing the scarcity of mental health resources for children aged zero to five. There is limited knowledge regarding the competence of pediatric primary care providers in providing developmentally appropriate mental health care in early childhood. Therefore, this phenomenological study examined how early childhood mental health, social-emotional development, and adverse childhood experiences and their related screening practices were integrated into the curricula for preparing prospective pediatric …

Regression Discontinuity Designs Within A Latent Variable Framework: Measurement Considerations For The Accuracy Of The Treatment Effect, Sarah Hammami

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Regression discontinuity designs are valuable quasi-experimental designs, especially when randomized control/clinical trials are ethically or practically challenging. Latent variables are prevalent in the social, behavioral, and educational (SBE) sciences—measurement assumptions have to be tested and met when using such variables. Not meeting those assumptions leads to biased results and (likely) erroneous inferential making. One way to minimize the impact of measurement assumption violation is to use latent variable modeling such as structural equation modeling (SEM). Soland, Johnson and Talbert (2022) conducted two simulation studies testing the effect of using a sum score (when the assumptions for using such a score …

Parental Child Rearing Beliefs And Children's Behavioral Problems: The Mediating Role Of Parental Involvement In Elementary School, Catalina Correa Ramirez

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The contributions that parents make to child development have been heavily investigated but the potential links between parents’ child rearing beliefs and school involvement levels have been overlooked. In this study, a model was proposed where parental involvement was examined as a potential mediator in the relationship between parents’ child-rearing beliefs and internalizing and externalizing outcomes in children. Using data from the NICHD SECCYD study, these constructs were examined in first, third, and fifth grade (N = 1128). SEM analyses supported our hypothesis regarding the mediating effect of parental involvement and it appeared to act as a potential mediator …

Stories Of Motivation And Values Of Small-Scale Farmers In Jamaica And The United States, Raquel Taylor

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Small-scale farmers add to global and local food systems through various means such as connecting communities to local food and support economies. Small-scale farms can address issues related to food and nutritional security. However, farming can be a challenging career to engage in, especially for those who are small-scale farmers. Matters related to succession, higher paying off-farm employment, policies, and more can make it challenging to engage in farming. Leaving the question of what would motivate someone to engage in small-scale farming. Motivation can be viewed through multiple lenses; this study chose to use self-determination theory to understand the motivations …

Spatial Hearing In Simulated Reverberant Classroom Environments, Gabriel Seth Evan Weeldreyer

Durham School of Architectural Engineering and Construction: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Spatial hearing provides access to auditory spatial cues that promote speech perception in noisy listening situations. However, reverberation degrades auditory spatial cues and limits listeners’ ability to utilize these cues for segregating target speech from competing babble. Hence, spatial unmasking—an intelligibility benefit from a spatial separation between a target and masker—is reduced in reverberant environments as compared to free field. This work tests the hypothesis that interaural decorrelation, the result of increasing reverberation, will broaden the perceived auditory source width with a cascading effect of reduced auditory spatial acuity and subsequently poorer spatial unmasking. To understand the perceptual consequences of …

Lessons In Persistence, Syble Heffernan

Department of English: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

LESSONS IN PERSISTENCE is a thesis that operates within the tradition of writing about trauma and resilience, taking up themes of mental illness, class, colonialism, loss of a parent, navigating queerness in a conservative Christian context, and reckoning with gender-based violence and expectations directed toward people socialized as women. The use of ecopoetics highlights the relationship between traumas to the earth brought about by climate change, war, and worldwide suffering, and those brought upon the human body (specifically marginalized bodies) by grief, illness, abuse, and the loss of self. The collection ultimately aims to establish explicit connections between internal and …

A Fish Out Of Water: An Examination Of Self-Identified Introverted Business Students' Perceptions Of Their Leadership Ability, Katie J. Jolicoeur

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Current American cultural and societal ideals favor personalities that are outgoing, positive, and talkative in nature, due to the rise of the Culture of Personality (Wilmot, 2019; Kim, 2012; Cain, 2013). Beginning with the industrial revolution and expanding rapidly midcentury, parents began to view children who are quiet as less favorable than those who are more gregarious, thus children and parents began forced socialization at an earlier age (Wilmot, 2019; Cain, 2013). Very little, if any, research has been conducted to understand the impact that the cultural ideal of favoring extraversion has upon undergraduate students seeking a degree in business, …

Vibratory Noise Impacts The Sensory Ecology Of A Funnel-Weaving Spider, Brandi June Pessman

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Animals experience their world through diverse sensory systems, leveraging information from prey, predators, and potential mates to inform behavioral decisions. Environmental noise disrupts information via spectral or amplitude masking, degradation, or distortion, potentially leading to costly errors in responses. Critically, urbanization has accelerated the proliferation of novel noise sources, triggering significant shifts in communication, foraging, and predator-prey dynamics among urban wildlife. While vertebrate studies have illuminated urban animals’ flexibility to anthropogenic acoustic noise, a comprehensive understanding requires broader investigations across diverse animal taxa and sensory modalities. To address these gaps, my dissertation explored the impacts of anthropogenic substrate-borne (vibratory) noise …

Healing In The Workplace: School Counselors, Trauma, And Growth, Judith L. Sigler

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

An autoethnographic study on the experience of a Midwest rural school counselor represents a personal and professional perspective on trauma, burnout, and posttraumatic growth. Content includes rural adversity, grief, and career progression. The research aimed to examine professional and private adversities to inform and improve the practice of professional school counselors.

The following research questions were addressed:

1. How did personal and secondary trauma impact a rural school counselor’s professional trajectory?
2. What insight can be offered to other school counselors or educators experiencing the challenges that come with this work and, sometimes, that come from sources that are not from work …

The Good White Guise: Rhetorical (Re)Constructions Of White Allies On U.S. Television, Dakota J. Sandras

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

In this dissertation, I observe how white allyship has been (re)constructed in media by analyzing its representations on mainstream television amidst peak moments of racial reckoning in the United States. In light of heightened demands for antiracist solidarity, I interrogate how such popular texts contribute to gaps between the theory and practice of allyship within the white imaginary. By attending to episodic samples from three distinct genres of American television, I dissect how various interactions and characters coded to signify white allyship rhetorically function to create meaning regarding its contested im/possibilities in both media and in the real world. In …

The Relationship Between Sex Education And Women’S Sexual Liberation And Exploration: A Phenomenological Study, Jessica Ann Boyles

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Sex education in schools is a pivotal yet contentious aspect of adolescent development, with enduring impacts on individuals' sexual exploration and liberation. However, the types of sex education offered have varied over time, often disseminating misinformation, and reinforcing traditional gender norms. Particularly for women, sex education can perpetuate harmful stereotypes, limit sexual agency, and contribute to disparities in sexual and reproductive health. This qualitative study aims to address the gap of intersecting sex education and sexual identity by examining the relationship between women's sexual liberation and exploration in adulthood and the sex education they received. Drawing from a phenomenological approach, …

The Role Of Family And Peer Social Support Against Bullying Involvement Among Sexual Minority Latine Young Adults, Guadalupe Gutierrez

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Bullying is a significant risk factor for healthy youth development and functioning. Research on bullying has provided evidence that bullying involvement is linked to negative mental health outcomes for young adults; however, researchers have yet to fully explore the relationship between the different bullying statuses (victims, perpetrators, bully-victims) and internalized problems (anxiety and depression), and whether peer/friend and family support serves as a protective factor. In addition, a significant amount of research on bullying has been conducted in Europe and the United States but it remains limited in Latin American countries. The current research demonstrates that bullying is a significant …

The Experiences Of Multiracial Intimate Partner Violence Survivors: A Phenomenological Study, Hali J. Santiago

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a major public and social issue in the United States and is highly prevalent among multiracial individuals. This phenomenological study explored the experiences of multiracial IPV survivors. More specifically, utilizing an intersectional theoretical framework, this study explored the experiences during and after an abusive relationship, including the impact from trauma multiracial IPV survivors experienced and their healing processes. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 6 multiracial individuals that experienced IPV more than two years prior. Participants were asked questions around their experiences of abuse, leaving the relationship, how their multiracial identity or other social identities impacted …

American Perspectives On The Legitimacy Of Transgender Identities, Sethe Zachman

Department of Sociology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This mixed-method project examines how Americans’ and Nebraskans’ perceptions of the validity of transgender identities varies by the demographic characteristics of respondents, and how these perceptions are justified. Two representative surveys are used to examine demographic associations with opinion on the cisgender and transgender binary: the 2023 American Values Atlas (AVA) from the Public Religion Research Institute (N=4,788) and the 2022 Nebraska Annual Social Indicators Survey (NASIS) (N=934) from the Bureau of Sociological Research. A measure from the AVA data examines the degree to which respondents believe there are only two genders versus a range of gender identities. The NASIS …

Make America(N Cinema) Great Again: The Rhetoric Of Nostalgia In Trump Era Cinematic Multiplicities, Courtney J. Dreyer

Department of Communication Studies: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This dissertation investigates the rhetoric of nostalgia in politics and popular Hollywood cinema during the Trump era. I argue that MAGA Cinema, the contemporary trend of reboots, remakes, and sequels related to properties from the late 1970s to early 1990s, both respond to and strengthen attachments to an imagined version of the 1980s. However, this illusory golden age more closely reflects the world as depicted in the cinema of the 1980s rather than the reality of American in the years of Ronald Reagan’s presidency. Through a close analysis of David Gordon Green’s Halloween Reboot series, Top Gun: Maverick, and …

Coarse-Work: An Investigation Into The Impact Of Materiality In The Interior Educational Setting, Isabel G. Robb

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

Education design in modern suburban America curates learning environments that are cold and impersonal, being used more as a place to keep youth during the day than as a place where they can truly learn about and understand the world around them. This learning environment does not suit all students, especially those with learning disabilities, and it leaves little room for flexibility in classroom usage.

Focusing on creating a learning environment where all students feel welcome and are able to effectively learn, this projective design research project aims to provide a comprehensive intervention through the built environment and interior design, …

A Grim End For Europe's First Civilization: The Fall Of Minoan Crete, Ashley Arp

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

Early popular theories about the collapse of the Minoan civilization center around natural disasters, but geoarchaeological research from the past few decades has disproved these earlier theories. It is evident that the Minoan civilization continued to thrive for around a century after the volcanic eruption and subsequent tsunami that had previously been credited as the cause for the collapse. Evidence of manmade destruction has been uncovered across the island of Crete c. 1450 BCE and this period was quickly followed by a drastic cultural shift that included more Mycenaean elements than had been found on the island previously. These destructions, …

A Comparative Analysis Of Hiv/Aids In France And The United States: Historical Context And Preventative Actions, Rebecca A. Liebsack

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

The HIV/AIDS pandemic is the result of transmission of a zoonotic disease known as simian immunodeficiency virus. The pandemic has had profound social and economic consequences and continues to be present today. France and the United States’ response to the discovery of HIV will be compared and the impact that HIV/AIDS had on their countries and future responses. They had rather similar responses, however, the United States had a slower initial response compared to France. Both had similar takeaways such as aiming at improving prevention and utilizing tactics developed during the start of the pandemic like frequent testing and vaccines.

Modeling Pedestrian And Bicyclist Crash Exposure With Location-Based Service Data, Yunwoo Nam, Jason Hawkins, Don Butler, Nicholas Aldridge, Mohammad Elayan, Kwant Il (Jason) Yoo

Nebraska Department of Transportation: Research Reports

The rising popularity of non-motorized transportation has brought about safety risks. The inclusion of accurate traffic volume information is one of the key elements to produce robust outcomes when researching safety. The project investigates and enhances transportation safety for pedestrians and bicyclists, emphasizing the integration of Location-Based Services (LBS) data, particularly StreetLight data, to analyze traffic volume and associated risks. The calibration process demonstrates the significance of traffic volume as a key variable influencing prediction accuracy across pedestrian, bicyclist, and vehicle models. The crash analysis reveals a strong correlation between crash counts and traffic activity, with noteworthy findings emerging at …

Big Fish, The Musical: Lighting Through A Legacy, Kennedy N. Wilcher

Johnny Carson School of Theatre and Film: Theses, Student Research, and Creative Work

This thesis describes the complete production process of the lighting design for the musical Big Fish by John August with music/lyrics by Andrew Lippa, which was produced by Nebraska Repertory Theatre in partnership with the Glenn Korff School of Music and performed in Howell Theatre on April 25th through May 4th, 2024. This production of the musical was conceived and crafted by the collaborative team: Direction by Ann Marie Pollard, musical direction by Suna Gunther, scenic design by Anna Schwartz, costume design by Hunter Rock, technical direction provided by Ashley Faulkner, Projection Design by Anna Henson, and the head electrician …

An Analysis Of Child Valence Bias Trajectories As A Result Of Parental Factors: A Longitudinal Perspective, Kaylee Brooke Donner

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

Valence bias is an important part of how individuals perceive the world around them, and this is especially influential in terms of children’s development. This study used data from longitudinal data collection surveys consisting of 197 participants, ages 6-17, to investigate correlations between valence bias, puberty, parental conflict, emotion regulation, temperament, interpersonal regulation, trait anxiety, and personality. This research provides much sought-after knowledge in terms of how parental factors impact children’s development, specifically children's valence bias development. Previous research has shown that emotion regulation in parents, along with different parenting styles with equal levels of discipline and loving support largely …

Increasing Nursing Aide Knowledge On Benefits Of Light For Sundowning Syndrome, Grace Hilfiker, Julie Masters

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

In this study, the knowledge of nursing aides on the benefits of light for sundowning syndrome was investigated. While dementia and sundowning syndrome is discussed during nursing aide training in the state of Nebraska, there is no discourse focused on how light plays beneficial role in lessening the symptoms of sundowning syndrome for those who are afflicted with dementia. This study asked what the current knowledge base surrounding dementia and sundowning syndrome is of nursing aides in the state of Nebraska. The aim was to justify adding a focus on concrete methods to use when caring for patients with dementia …

Implementation And Effectiveness Of Stress Management Strategies Among Stem Students At The University Of Nebraska-Lincoln, Dylan Hiser

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

High-stakes exams often induce significant stress among STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) students, impacting their academic performance and overall well-being. As the opportunity for careers in STEM grows rapidly, understanding the stressors that students face remains critical in mitigating the effects of this stress and ensuring the success of these students. The objective of this study is to determine how well STEM students respond to recommended interventions that mitigate exam stress and to identify trends in these students’ exam scores. To accomplish this, a set of surveys was sent to undergraduate STEM students at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. The …

The Stigma Of Deaf: Managing A Stigmatized Identity And Well-Being, Renca Dunn

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

The Deaf identity encompasses cultural, linguistic, and social dimensions that significantly influence the lives of Deaf individuals. The World Health Organization predicts that by 2050, nearly 2.5 billion people worldwide will be living with some degree of hearing loss (2021). While there may be a growing number of people who have some type of hearing loss, there is a distinct group who identify their hearing loss as part of a culture and community. The Deaf community has a rich history, culture, language, and linguistic heritage. The development of the Deaf identity is influenced by factors such as family, education, and …

Eco-Anxiety Effects College Students, Alexa Edmundson

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

A survey was conducted on the UNL student population to evaluate whether college students, 18-25 year olds who are currently attending an accredited post-secondary school, are experiencing eco-anxiety and if eco-anxiety affects their pro-environmental behaviors. Climate change is taking a toll not only physically on us but also mentally. The mental health of people, especially college students, is not often studied in relation to climate change, but if we are to understand how to create change in this issue then we need to be looking at the whole picture. The hypothesis is that if college students are experiencing eco-anxiety, then …

The Effects Of Partisanship On Legislative Support For Environmental Policies In The United States, Rachel Summers

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

This study investigates the relationship between political partisanship and support for environmental policies at the state level in the United States from the years 2017-2022. To do this, the study focused on two policy areas, water and land, for the average proposed, enacted, and failed bills for all 50 states in the timeframe, with the states categorized as Democratic, swing, or Republican based on the 2016 and 2020 elections. While the study did find that Democratic states were more likely to introduce environmental bills than Republican states, the study also found that there was no statistical difference in the enactment …

How Gender Affirming Care Affects The Current Sex Estimation Standards In Forensic Anthropology: A Preliminary Study, Dakota Taylor

Department of Anthropology: Theses and Student Research

Current sex estimation standards in forensic anthropology are based on individuals whose gender matches their biological/osteological sex, also known as Cisgendered individuals. Recently, transgender individuals have started to become more common in the forensic context due to the increase in hate crimes and violence. This research builds upon past research done on how facial feminization surgery can affect both visual and metric methods, where it was found that forensic anthropologists should rely on the visual methods if they suspect someone to be transgender due to it being more accurate and being able to clearly state the scars left on the …

The Kruger Collection Reimagined: A Case Study In 3d Scanning And Interactive Exhibit Design, Annissa Davis

Department of Anthropology: Theses and Student Research

This thesis examines the use of 3D modeling in museum exhibition to create exploratory exhibits that facilitate unique relationships between the visitors and the collection beyond what is provided by the collection’s in person counterparts. Typical use of 3D modeling in museums is currently often representative rather than exploratory. By employing a Digital Humanities lens to approach the development of a digital exhibition utilizing 3D technology and interactive elements created in a video game engine (Unity), this thesis project evaluates these potential new relationships. Using the Eloise Kruger Collection of Miniatures as a case study, the following text details the …

Iraqi Education Past And Present: The Role Of Policymakers And Their Ideological Background, Hadi T. Pir

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

The history of Iraqi education unmistakably illustrates how policymakers have consistently operated within the same worldview since 1920. Despite apparent differences among Iraqis in terms of race, religion, sect, geography, and social and tribal norms, a shared worldview has emerged, which I term the Traditional Iraqi Paradigm (TIP). This shared worldview comprises a set of interconnected postulates. The divergence among Iraqi groups lies not in the postulates themselves but in how they translate these postulates into actions and behaviors. These translations have become historical, institutional, and psychological aspects of reality contributing to the political, social, and educational differences, conflicts, and …

Longhand Versus Laptop Note Taking And Lecture Rate Influence, Junrong Lu

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Most college students take lecture notes to prepare for tests. With technology development, more students are recording notes on laptops rather than writing them longhand. Previous studies comparing laptop and longhand note taking mediums yielded mixed results, highlighting the need to identify influencing factors. The present study investigated a potential factor, lecture rate, through two experiments. Experiment 1 examined whether lecture rate differentially influences longhand and laptop note taking without note review. Experiment 2 investigated lecture rate effects before and after note review. Dependent measures pertained to various note-taking indices (e.g., verbatim overlap with lecture transcripts and numbers of words, …