Digital Commons Network^™

Yoga As Occupational Therapy Intervention For Individuals With Upper Extremity Injuries, Dina Mu Nickoson

Occupational Therapy Capstones

Background: Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) are the leading cause of disability in the U. S. representing more than half of the chronic conditions of people over 50 years old (United States Bone and Joint Initiative, 2020), costly financially (Yelin, Weinstein, & King, 2016) and detrimental to the physical and psychosocial well-being of people (Andrawis, 2018). Most occupational therapy practitioners follow pre-set intervention protocols using repetitive rote exercise to treat individuals with upper extremity MSDs (Strohman, 2007). The treatment is not an optimal method because disability caused by upper extremity injuries is greatly associated with depression, catastrophic thinking, and decreased quality of …

The “Nature” Of Growth: A Virtual Education Platform For Caregivers Of Children With Trauma, Katelyn Rose Mclellan

Occupational Therapy Capstones

Title: The “Nature” of Growth: A Virtual Education Platform for Caregivers of Children with Trauma

Background: More than two thirds of all children report having been exposed to at least one traumatic event prior to the age of 16 (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration [SAMHSA], 2021). These children are considered at risk due to the previous trauma that they have been exposed to (Ryan, Jane, & Powers, 2017). Children exposed to trauma face significant barriers to engagement in meaningful tasks, delays in development, longterm health issues, and unpredictable emotions (Forkey et al., 2021). Caregivers of these children have …

Sex, Drugs, & Rockin’ Referrals: An Interprofessional Guide For Young Adults With Cancer, Nicole Cathryn Merchlewicz

Occupational Therapy Capstones

Title: Sex, Drugs, & Rockin’ Referrals: An Interprofessional Guide for Young Adults with Cancer

Introduction According to the National Cancer Institute (2020), about 89,000 adolescents and young adults (AYAs) ages 15-39 are diagnosed with cancer each year, accounting for about five percent of all cancer diagnoses in the United States. It is common for AYAs to be diagnosed with pediatric cancers yet receive treatment in a setting that is dedicated either children or older adults. Due to unique developmental milestones that occur during adolescence and young adulthood, the models of care for pediatric or older adult patients do not meet …

Building Life Skills And Reducing Recidivism, Kassandra Severson

Occupational Therapy Capstones

Purpose: In the United States, about two-thirds of incarcerated women who have been released back into the community after they have served time, are re-arrested (Gordon, 2018). This scholarly project was created to help decrease the recidivism rates amongst the female population. Even though there are still more males incarcerated than females, female prisons population have increased 700% both on the state side and locally (Cowan, 2019). The purpose of developing Putting Together the Puzzle of Life is to illustrate the role of occupational therapy in the treatment of incarcerated individuals to reduce recidivism rates amongst the female population.

Methods: …

Upper Extremity Evaluation & Intervention Through The Utilization Of Occupation-Based Activities Within The Model Of Human Occupation Perspective, Richard J. Seaman

Occupational Therapy Capstones

Title: Upper Extremity Evaluation & Intervention Through the Utilization of Occupation-based Activities within the Model of Human Occupation Perspective.

Background: The importance of upper extremity rehabilitation is vital for clients to be able to reengage in their valued occupations that were affected due to a recent injury, illness, or surgery. Upper extremity fractures make up approximately 590,000 fractures annually in the USA (Napora et al., 2020). Clients with these types of conditions seek therapy to help improve their ability to gain back function within their body and daily lives. Through this process, clients are asked to perform various exercises that …

Helping Students From Refugee Backgrounds Succeed In Higher Education Through Support Systems, Arinola Adebayo

Theses and Dissertations

Like every student enrolled in a higher education institution, students from refugee backgrounds are not only concerned about how to get into college, but how to connect with the support systems available to them on campus. The purpose of this research was to examine the social support systems available to college students from refugee backgrounds while on campus, the resources these students engaged in to keep them connected to college, and how they tapped into available resources to be successful in achieving their higher educational career and goals. Using qualitative methods, this research used an intrinsic-embedded, single-case design case study. …

Instructional Coach Professional Learning: Developing Reflective Practices, Cultural Competence, And Self-Efficacy In An Asynchronous Course, Mena Hill

Theses and Dissertations

Effective instructional coaching programs have the potential to promote the development of reflective practices, cultural competence, and self-efficacy of educators, but require intentional professional development for coaches. This research inquiry examines instructional coach participants’ reflective practices, cultural competence, and self-efficacy after participating in an eight-week asynchronous Coach-Teacher Partnership Toolkit (CTPT) professional development course and the effects of the CTPT course on their coaching practices (Hill, 2021c). This study also examines teacher perceptions of cultural competence and reflective practice development as related to organizational and instructional coaching supports.

Results of the study indicate instructional coaches desire ongoing and purposeful professional development …

The Importance Of Inclusive Classrooms For Students With Disabilities: Research Leading To The Creation Of A Needs Assessment To Support Inclusive Classrooms, Tara Jensen

Theses and Dissertations

Inclusion of students with disabilities in the general classroom has many benefits for all students in the classroom, not just students with disabilities. Including students teaches all students kindness, compassion, and patience. For special education students, inclusion increases confidence, social skills, helps to create a sense of belonging, and makes learning more enjoyable. The purpose of this study was to see if students with disabilities make more progress being included in the general classroom with their peers or pulled into the resource room and placed on an alternate curriculum. Data was collected using progress monitoring scores and IEP goals. Results …

Iris Clubhouse: Experiences Of Community Integration, Rebecca J. Reeves

Occupational Therapy Capstones

The lived experience of community integration for those living with a serious mental illness (SMI) who are members of an unaccredited Clubhouse is an under investigated topic. The goal of this study is to better understand this phenomenon to inform the development of efficient and effective community integration programming for a local Clubhouse who is working toward becoming accredited. 15 active and inactive members of a local Clubhouse participated in a semi-structured interview to discuss their experiences of community integration while living with an SMI. The interviews were analyzed using a hermeneutic phenomenological approach (Dibley et al., 2020). Seven themes …

Interoception Toolkit: A Resource For Occupational Therapy Practitioners To Use With Children And Their Families, Heidi Lynn Janssen

Occupational Therapy Capstones

Purpose: Interoception refers to one’s ability to sense the internal condition of the body, including sensory messages from body parts and internal organs (Craig, 2002). In the past 30 years, scientists and researchers have discovered a powerful connection between interoceptive appraisal skills and self-regulation, emotional identification, emotional regulation, social skills, and nearly every task in daily life (Mahler, 2017). The purpose of this project is to provide practitioners with an educational platform that describes the sensorimotor skill of interoception applied throughout the occupational therapy process.

Methods: The development of this product was initiated with a thorough review of literature to …

Functional Cognition In Long-Term Care: Implementing Allen’S Cognitive Level Screen, Sarah Janean Schumacher

Occupational Therapy Capstones

Title: Functional Cognition in Long-Term Care: Implementing Allen’s Cognitive Level Screen

Purpose: It is motivating to many individuals to remain as independent as possible for as long as possible. As we age, there is a shift to balancing needed support while maintaining independence. According to Allen (1991), cognition is the number one factor affecting an individual’s ability to live independently. Within long-term care, specifically assisted living facilities, cognitive screening processes are in place to measure one’s cognition, however, often the tools in place do not measure functional cognition (Stewart, O’Riley, Edelstein, & Gould, 2012). The purpose of this scholarly project …

Efficient Distance Accuracy Estimation Of Real-World Environments In Virtual Reality Head-Mounted Displays, Fatima Kuehn

Theses and Dissertations

Virtual reality (VR) is a very promising technology with many compelling industrial applications. As many advancements have been made recently to deploy and use VR technology in virtual environments, they are still less mature to be used to render real environments. The current VR systems settings, which are developed for virtual environments rendering, fail to adequately address the challenges of capturing and displaying real-world virtual reality that these systems entail. Before these systems can be used in real life settings, their performance needs to be investigated, more specifically, depth perception and how distances to objects in the rendered scenes are …

Associations Between Handgrip Strength Asymmetry And Health Related Quality Of Life Among Canadian Adults: An Analysis Of The Canadian Health Measures Survey, Jessica Lembke

Theses and Dissertations

Background: Health related quality of life (HRQOL), a measure of perceived quality of health is significantly related to current and future health. Handgrip strength (HGS) asymmetry is an aspect of muscle function that can be measured using handheld dynamometry. While several studies have examined relationships between HGS asymmetry and HRQOL, few have used nationally-representative data, and none have used Canadian data. The aim of this study, therefore, was to examine the association between HGS asymmetry and HRQOL in a nationally-representative sample of Canadian adults.

Methods: A secondary analysis of cross-sectional data from cycles 5 and 6 (2016–17 and 2018–19) of …

Engaging Undergraduate Students In Classroom Discussion: Exploring Impacts On Reflective Judgment Skills, Aubrey Mae Madler

Theses and Dissertations

Higher education institutions are to teach advanced thinking skills that help students process information, make judgments, and justify associated beliefs. Such skills are necessary for reflective judgment according to the reflective judgment model (RJM). The purpose of this study was to explore whether engaging undergraduate students in classroom discussion surrounding ill-structured problems impacted these advanced thinking skills. It implemented a quasi-experimental, posttest-only control-group design using the validated semi-structured Reflective Judgment Interview (RJI) protocol to score reflective judgment skills of sixteen undergraduate students. The RJM and its RJI protocol, developed by King and Kitchener (1994) categorizes thinking into three main areas: …

Traditional And Technology-Enhanced Learning: Faculty Perspectives And Student Experiences And Satisfaction In An Art & Design Program During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Cynthia Margaret Boehm

Theses and Dissertations

Digital skills are essential in today’s digital age, which means that students require technology-enhanced skills in higher education to succeed in their future careers. In this study, faculty and students in an Art & Design (A&D) program at a Midwestern university were surveyed regarding their perspectives and experiences. During the COVID-19 pandemic, this university changed its teaching and learning strategy by offering courses online during the Fall 2020 and Spring 2021 semesters, where quarantine was mandatory. Still, the A&D program did not provide all courses online. This study included online surveys based on three constructs of quality of studio learning, …

Nursing Home Decision Satisfaction For Family Caregivers Of Older Adults, Kara Bauer

Theses and Dissertations

Nursing Home Decision Satisfaction for family caregivers who have made nursing home decisions with and on behalf of older adults was examined through Self Determination Theory. Participants (n = 297) completed the study via Amazon Mechanical Turk during March 2021. Structural equation modeling was used to assess relationships between Autonomy Support, Multicultural Inclusiveness, Perceived Competence, COVID-19, and Nursing Home Decision Satisfaction. Specifically, the relationship between the exogenous variable of Autonomy Support and the endogenous variable of Nursing Home Decision Satisfaction was partially mediated by Perceived Competence and demonstrated acceptable fit. Results suggest that Self Determination Theory is a compelling and …

Impact Of Eyewitness Gender On Juror Perceptions Of Credibility, Shannon Hardy

Theses and Dissertations

While the influence of expert witness gender on juror perceptions of credibility has been widely researched, the effect of eyewitness gender has only begun to be investigated. Expert witness gender has been shown to have an impact on the perception of the credibility of testimony given, such that male expert witnesses are typically seen as more credible than female eyewitness. However, in some situations, such as a case that is considered feminine domain like child welfare, women may be seen as more credible. The purpose of the current study is to expand upon the existing literature on the impact of …

Beyond The Brick And Mortar: Examining Internal Selection Of Principals, Brittany Upton

Theses and Dissertations

Consistent growth, expansion, and construction in high enrollment North Dakota school districts and across the country lead to the addition of principal positions. This study closely examined the internal recruitment and selection of the building principal. Experienced principals who have led both a new and existing North Dakota public school with high enrollment served as field expert participants in a Delphi Study and qualitative document review. Ten Professional Standards for Educational Leaders (PSEL) were used by participants as competencies to first identify which have been more important when considering leading both a newly built school and an existing school. After …

Und Strategic Planning Focus Group Notes: Deans, University Of North Dakota

LEADS Development Documents

Notes from a 2022 UND strategic planning focus group with deans. The notes capture academic leadership perspectives on UND’s mission, institutional identity, student success, research, collaboration, college-level priorities, campus culture, and opportunities for strengthening UND’s future.

Impact Of Co2 Storage On The Geomechanical And Geophysical Properties Of Bakken Formation, Ogochukwu Ozotta

Theses and Dissertations

The world is currently experiencing a higher demand for low-carbon technologies, and carbon capture utilization and storage (CCUS) is an important CO₂ emissions reduction technology. Studies have shown the potential for CCUS in shale formations either as a caprock or as a reservoir storage unit. However, there is limited knowledge of the changes in shale reservoirs after long-term exposure to CO₂, and the resulting impacts on storage permanence. This study coupled experimental and numerical modeling methods to investigate how long-term CO₂ storage in shale formations might alter pore structure and minerals, which might cause a resultant …

A Systematic Review And Meta-Analysis Of Motivational Interviewing Training Effectiveness Among Students-In-Training, Amy K. Maslowski

Theses and Dissertations

Effectively using motivational interviewing (MI) in practice can be difficult. However, there are a number of studies that examine training students across helping professions with the goal of facilitating students use MI more effectively. Although there is no standardized training manual, students often learn specific MI skills (e.g., open-ended questions, reflections) and knowledge (e.g., MI spirit) in hopes that they will apply those techniques to encounters with clients. The purpose of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to quantify the effectiveness of teaching students motivational interviewing. In total, 15 randomized and non-randomized studies met inclusion criteria and were examined in …

Role Of Aurora Kinase A, Rab4a, And Endolysosomes In The Development Of Alzheimer’S Disease-Like Pathology, Zahra Afghah

Theses and Dissertations

Endosomes and lysosomes (endolysosomes) are organelles that play key roles in cell survival and cell death. These acidic intracellular organelles are the principal sites for intracellular hydrolytic activity required for the maintenance of cellular homeostasis. Endolysosomes are involved in the degradation of plasma membrane components, extracellular macromolecules, as well as intracellular macromolecules and cellular fragments. Understanding the physiological significance and pathological relevance of endolysosomes is now complicated by relatively recent findings of physical and functional interactions between endolysosomes and other intracellular organelles including endoplasmic reticulum, mitochondria, plasma membranes, and peroxisomes. Indeed, evidence clearly indicates that endolysosome dysfunction and inter-organellar signaling …

The Experience Of Saudi Students Writing Academic English In Sex-Separated Classrooms, Rana Alsaadi

Theses and Dissertations

This is a qualitative research that investigates the experiences of undergraduate Saudi female and male students majoring in English at Taif University, Saudi Arabia. These students were part of different sections of a course that teaches academic English writing and research in an English as a Foreign Language context. These Saudi female and male students draw on their perceptions of three main points; First, how they experienced the academic English writing course in sex-separated classrooms. Second, how the current sex-separated classrooms influence their learning of English and how if this hypothetically change to mixed-sex classrooms their experiences in learning English …

Energy Harvesting & Wing Morphing Design Using Piezoelectric Macro Fiber Composites, Md Saifuddin Ahmed Atique

Theses and Dissertations

Energy harvesting from vibration sources was a very promising field of research throughout the last few decades among the engineers and scientist as considering the necessity of renewable/green energy for the welfare of mankind. Unused vibration energy exists in the surrounding or machineries was always tried to be utilized. Since then, by using piezoelectric transduction, researchers started to harvest the vibration energy. However, after the invention of piezo ceramics Macro Fiber Composites (MFC) by NASA, the research in this field augmented a lot due to its high efficiency to convert mechanical strain or vibration to useful electrical power and vice …

They May Not Believe You Remembered That Nose: Juror Perceptions Of Eyewitness' Featural Justifications, Mary Cops

Theses and Dissertations

The featural justification effect occurs when an eyewitness provides a confidence statement at the time of lineup identification that includes reference to a facial feature or component that aided them in their identification (Dodson & Dobolyi, 2015, 2017, 2018; Slane & Dodson, 2019). The result of the effect, found across several manipulations, is that jurors tend to discredit the confidence of an eyewitness that references a facial feature (such as eyes, nose, chin) in the identification statement. The current studies examined featural justification, along with eyewitness viewing conditions and legal safeguards. Participants were presented with either expert testimony (study 1) …

An Exploratory Analysis Of A Time Synchronization Protocol For Uas, Marcos Fernandez-Tous

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation provides a numerical analysis of a Receiver Only Synchronization (ROS) protocol which is proposed for use by Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) in Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) operations. The use of ROS protocols could reinforce current technologies that enable transmission over 5G cell networks, decreasing latency issues and enabling the incorporation of an increased number of UAS to the network, without loss of accuracy. A minimum squared error (MSE)-based accuracy of clock offset and clock skew estimations was obtained using the number of iterations and number of observations as independent parameters. Although the model converged after only …

Relationships Between Handgrip Strength Asymmetry And Multimorbidity In Canadian Adults Aged 40 Years And Older: Results From The Canadian Health Measures Survey, Morgan Ann Flann

Theses and Dissertations

Background: Hand-grip strength (HGS) is a convenient, valid, and reliable measure of overall muscle strength that is significantly related to current and future health. HGS asymmetry is an additional aspect of muscle function that can also be measured using handheld dynamometry. The aim of this study was to examine associations between HGS asymmetry and multimorbidity in a nationally representative sample of Canadian adults aged 40 years or older. Methods: A secondary analysis of cross-sectional data was performed on adults aged 40-79 years from six cycles (2007- 2017) of the Canadian Health Measures Survey (CHMS). HGS was assessed using handheld dynamometry, …

Multi-Wavelength Analysis Of Star Formation In Galaxy Clusters, Gihan Lakmal Gamage

Theses and Dissertations

Galaxy clusters are one of the most massive structures in the Universe, consisting of hundreds to thousands of galaxies bound together by gravity. They are important laboratories for the study of the formation and evolution of galaxies over the age of the Universe. The high-density cluster environment affects the physical and morphological properties of cluster galaxies. The main goal of this dissertation is to study the effect of the cluster environment on galaxy evolution using the star-formation rate (SFR) of cluster galaxies. Multi-wavelength data at ultraviolet, u-band, and infrared wavelengths for a sample of 74 low-redshift (0.022 < z < 0.184 ) galaxy clusters were used for the analysis of this study. WIYN 0.9m+HDI telescope/detector at the Kitt Peak National Observatory was used to obtain u-band measurements of 14 galaxy clusters. This dataset was supplemented by 18 clusters from the study of Barkhouse et al. (2007), 10 clusters from Omizzolo et al. (2014), 13 clusters from Rude et al. (2020), and 19 clusters from Valentinuzzi et al. (2011). Archival data from the GALaxy Evolution EXplorer (GALEX) and the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) satellites were used for ultraviolet and IR analysis, respectively. Redshifts of galaxies were obtained from SDSS spectroscopy data and were used to select cluster galaxies. The dispersion of the background-corrected red-sequence was used to separate cluster galaxies based on color into red and blue systems. A dynamical radius, r200, was calculated for each cluster using the cluster velocity dispersion, and used as a normalization factor to compare cluster characteristics. For each passband, the radial dependence (0.0 < r/r200 < 1.0) of the SFR was measured for all cluster galaxies. Evidence for the quenching of star formation towards the cluster center was found for both red and blue galaxies, with the blue galaxy SFR decreasing more than for the red galaxies. The cluster galaxy sample was divided into giant (high-mass) and dwarf (low-mass) galaxies using their absolute r-band magnitude. It was found that dwarfs are more susceptible to environmental effects compared to giant systems. These results are consistent for all multi-wavelength data used in this study. While ram pressure stripping plays a more important role in quenching star formation towards the cluster core, other mechanisms, such as galaxy harassment and starvation, were found to be more effective in the cluster outskirts.

Analysis Of Safety Event Reporting Behaviors And Attitudes Amongst Uscg Aviators, Kevan Patrick Hanson

Theses and Dissertations

Safety event reporting is an essential component of Safety Management Systems (SMS) that helps organizations identify and address hazards. USCG aviation has a robust safety reporting process, however subject matter expert review and academic studies suggest that underreporting occurs in the USCG and in similar organizations, and that certain barriers to reporting may exist. A survey was designed and distributed to active duty USCG aviators (151 valid responses received) to identify historical reporting behaviors, attitudes towards pre-identified barriers, qualitative perceptions of reporting barriers, and attitudes towards potential new reporting policy and processes. Statistical analysis of the results found that lack …

Machine Learning Based Specular Highlight Detection Techniques To Enhanced Uav Indoor Navigation Through Slam, Ramtin Kardan

Theses and Dissertations

Unmanned aerial vehicle technology is advancing to the point where it has a lot of potential for use in various applications. While global navigation satellite systems (GPS) enable autonomous flight in outdoor contexts, dedicated, accurate wireless localization is a prospective contender for enabling indoor navigation and associated applications. This thesis represents ongoing research in Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (SLAM) to improve mapping solely through a camera to remove map noises resulting from glass reflections. This research aims to investigate Machine Learning (ML) approaches that detect glass specularity in direct and two-step approaches. We used YOLOv4, YOLOv4-tiny, and Deeplabv3 to detect …