Digital Commons Network^™

Dsm-5 Based Algorithms For The Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised For Children Ages 4–17 Years, Linnea A. Lampinen, Shuting Zheng, Lindsay Olson, Vanessa H. Bal, Audrey E. Thurm, Amy N. Esler, Stephen M. Kanne, So Hyun Kim, Catherine Lord, China Pareneau, Kerri P. Nowell, Jane E. Roberts, Nicole Takahashi, Somer L. Bishop

Faculty Publications

Background: The Autism Diagnostic Interview, Revised (ADI-R) is a caregiver interview that is widely used as part ofthe diagnostic assessment for Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Few large-scale studies have reported the sensitivityand specificity of the ADI-R algorithms, which are based on DSM-IV Autistic Disorder criteria. Kim and Lord (Journalof Autism and Developmental Disorders, 2012, 42, 82) developed revised DSM-5-based toddler algorithms, which areonly applicable to children under 4 years. The current study developed DSM-5-based algorithms for children ages4–17 years and examined their performance compared to clinical diagnosis and to the original DSM-IV-basedalgorithms. Methods: Participants included 2,905 cases (2,144 ASD, 761 …

The Efficacy And Usability Of Motivational Interviewing Just-In-Time Trainings For Youth Mentors, Mackenzie J. Hart, Samuel Mcquillin, Aidyn Iachini, Daniel K. Cooper, Mark D. Weist

Faculty Publications

Using youth mentors to deliver evidence-based psychosocial services has been proposed to increase the reach of treatments, in part given the affordability and ubiquity of mentors in youth settings. Further, tests of mentor-delivered motivational interviewing (MI) have shown increases in youth mentees' academic performance and wellbeing. Yet, traditional methods of training mentors to use MI can be costly and time-consuming. Previous work has suggested the value of asynchronous, brief, just-in-time training (JITT) to help offset these challenges; however, MI JITT for mentors has not yet been formally evaluated. As such, here, we report on a preliminary study of MI JITT …

Root Exudates: The Rhizospheric Frontier For Advancing Sustainable Plant Protection, Muhammad Rahil Afzal, Misbah Naz, Youbo Yu, Lisha Yan, Peiyi Wang, Janaki Mohotti, Gefei Hao, Jing-Jiang Zhou, Zhou Chen, Libo Zhang, Qian Wang

Faculty Publications

Root exudates (REs), a diverse array of bioactive metabolites secreted by plant roots in response to environmental stimuli, serve as key mediators of rhizosphere ecology and plant defense responses, offering a promising avenue for sustainable pest management and eco-friendly plant protection. While earlier reviews primarily focus on root exudates in the context of general rhizosphere dynamics and plant-microbial interactions, critical knowledge gaps persist in REs-plant-pest tripartite interactions, the mechanistic basis of REs-mediated plant defense, and their practical integration with integrated pest management (IPM) frameworks. This review provides a synthesis of the latest literature on the biochemical diversity and functions of …

Monitoring Nutrition Security: Perspectives From A Workshop On Nutrition Security Measurement, Ximena Perez-Velazco, Edward A. Frongillo Jr. Ph.D., Joanne F. Guthrie, Alisha Coleman-Jensen, Mariah D. Ehmke, Christian Gregory, Hilary K. Seligman

Faculty Publications

Nutrition security, an emerging concept distinct from and complementary to food security, has gained increasing interest as a focus of efforts to reduce hunger, improve nutrition, and prevent diet-related health conditions. Yet, unlike food security, which has well-established measures, nutrition security lacks standardized measures for assessment. This gap hinders the ability to evaluate progress in improving nutrition security both in the United States and globally. In September 2024, a workshop to explore how to measure nutrition security was hosted by the United States Department of Agriculture Economic Research Service, in collaboration with the Southern University Agricultural Science Center of Excellence …

Sleep Quality, Emotional Moods, And Cognitive Outcomes Among People Living With Hiv: An Ecological Momentary Assessment Study, Shan Qiao Ph.D., Abhishek Aggarwal, Camryn Garrett, Arielle N’Diaye, Atena Pasha, Irene Esu, Chih Hsiang Yang Ph.D., Xiaoming Li Ph.D.

Faculty Publications

Introduction Although studies have explored the relationship between sleep quality, mood, and cognitive outcomes among people living with HIV (PLWH), few use ecological momentary assessment (EMA) techniques to evaluate within-person associations between sleep quality and emotional/cognitive outcomes among PLWH at the day level. This study investigated the association between previous night’s sleep quality and momentary psychological outcomes in participants’ natural setting. Methods Study participants were PLWH in South Carolina who were at least 18 years old, diagnosed with HIV for at least 2 years, and able to operate a cellphone. Participants were sampled using posters posted in AIDS Service organizations, …

An Evaluation Of A Multi-Level Lgbtq Bystander Intervention For College Athletics: A Pilot Study, Christi R. Mcgeorge, Russell B. Toomey, Ashley A. Walsdorf

Journal of Issues in Intercollegiate Athletics

This mixed methods pilot study explored the impact of a multi-level bystander intervention training for collegiate athletes, coaches, and athletic department staff. The trainings consisted of three components: 1) education about constructs relevant to being an ally to the LGBTQ community; 2) engagement in self-reflective activities to raise awareness and decrease the influence of prejudicial beliefs and biases about the LGBTQ community; and 3) training on preventative actions and bystander intervention strategies specific to stopping LGBTQ-related bias. Quantitative data were collected through online pretest and posttest surveys (prior to the intervention and 12 weeks following the intervention; N = 267 …

Achieving Empowerment In Transition: Advice From Former Female Athletes, Ashlyn Hardie, Molly Harry, Kristi Oshiro, Marlene A. Dixon

Journal of Issues in Intercollegiate Athletics

Scholars have highlighted the various challenges college athletes encounter in their transition from sport. Yet, the strategies athletes adopt to navigate this transitory period require further examination. Thus, we leveraged Zimmerman’s Psychological Empowerment Model and Schlossberg’s Transition Theory to explore these strategies and associated processes in-depth. The sample for this study consisted of 20 former female athletes from the U.S. who played a college sport. Data was collected through semi-structured interviews. Findings revealed numerous strategies current and future female college athletes implement to mitigate the challenges present in their transition, specifically: Finding Acceptance, Be Proactive, Don’t Stop 100%, Embrace the …

Sport Media Consumption In Ncaa Division І Fbs Subdivision: A Panel Regression Model Using X/Twitter, Seungbak Lee, Minsoo Kang, Wonson Lim, Ju-Pil Choe, Brennan K. Berg

Journal of Issues in Intercollegiate Athletics

Athletic departments in collegiate sports have increasingly focused on enhancing sport consumer interest through social media. As social media usage continues to grow in college sports, understanding audience behavior on these platforms has become essential for athletic departments. This study examines the factors influencing consumer interest in Division I football teams’ X (formerly Twitter) accounts, utilizing a panel dataset comprising 18,221 team-day observations. Key determinants of changes in X followers were identified, including teams’ social media activity, on-field performance, scheduling events, and timing effects, with a focus on fan interest across temporal patterns such as month-to-month and day-to-day variations. The …

Sport Employees And Resilience: An Examination Of Organizational Change With Ncaa Conference Realignment, Hailee Hernandez, Claire C. Zvosec, Brent D. Oja

Journal of Issues in Intercollegiate Athletics

NCAA conference membership is critically important to institutions as it is closely associated with revenue generation (i.e., conference-wide revenue distribution, ticket sales, fundraising, etc.) in addition to institutional visibility and prestige. Therefore, universities may pursue conference realignment opportunities based on higher potential revenue, institutional and athletics financial stability, and increased notoriety. Over the past 20 years, there have been at least 80 cases of schools moving conferences at the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) level. As universities move conferences, employees within the athletics department are exposed to rapid change in organizational structure and are forced to adapt to new institutional, athletics …

Name, Image, And Likeness: A Critical Exploration Through Self-Determination Theory, Molly Harry

Journal of Issues in Intercollegiate Athletics

Through Self-Determination Theory (SDT) and Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA), this study explored college athletes’ experiences with Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL). Analyzing congressional testimonies from 10 current and recently graduated college athletes, this research highlighted how NIL fostered/constrained athlete development within the broader power structures of college sport. Findings revealed while NIL enhances self-determination through autonomy, competence, and relatedness, institutional discourses and governance mechanisms continue to regulate athlete development. Through Fairclough’s (1995) CDA framework, this study demonstrated how language throughout the athletes’ testimonies maintained/disrupted power dynamics which reinforced/challenged authority of the National Collegiate Athletic Association. The integration of SDT and …

Editorial: Disclosure In Sexual And Reproductive Health, Pooja Chitneni, Shan Qiao Ph.D., Simon M. Manga, Janet M. Turan

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Two Decapod Crustaceans, Panopeus Herbstii And Petrolisthes Armatus, Stabilize Their Gaze Using Achromatic Visual Cues, But Not The Angle Of Linearly Polarized Light, M. Janakis, S. Guirges, A. C. Grant, I. Paris, E. F. Lopresti, Daniel Isaac Speiser

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Nitrogen Fertilizer Equivalence Of Red Clover When Inter-Seeded Into Corn, Hannah R. Francis, Ting Fung Ma, Rodrigo Werle, Chelsea H. Zegler, Daniel H. Smith, Douglas J. Soldat, Erika Marin-Spiotta, Matthew D. Ruark

Faculty Publications

Inter-seeding red clover (Trifolium pratense L.) provides an alternative method toincorporate cover crops into continuous corn (Zea mays L.) in the Upper US Midwest. Red clover is a leguminous cover crop that can grow in low-radiation environments and is winter hardy. Systems with red clover have demonstrated improved corn yield and a fertilizer N equivalence but understanding these effects with inter-seeding war-rants further investigation. The objectives of this study were to determine the effect of inter-seeding red clover on (i) plant-available N during and after red clover decomposition, (ii) optimum N rates for corn, and (iii) corn yields. The …

Nitrogen Fertilizer Equivalence Of Red Clover When Inter-Seeded Into Corn, Hannah R. Francis, Ting Fung Ma, Rodrigo Werle, Chelsea H. Zegler, Daniel H. Smith, Douglas J. Soldat, Erika Marin-Spiotta, Matthew D. Ruark

Faculty Publications

Inter-seeding red clover (Trifolium pratense L.) provides an alternative method to incorporate cover crops into continuous corn (Zea mays L.) in the Upper US Midwest. Red clover is a leguminous cover crop that can grow in low-radiation environments and is winter hardy. Systems with red clover have demonstrated improved corn yield and a fertilizer N equivalence but understanding these effects with inter-seeding warrants further investigation. The objectives of this study were to determine the effect of inter-seeding red clover on (i) plant-available N during and after red clover decomposition, (ii) optimum N rates for corn, and (iii) corn …

Expanding Functionalities Of Immune Receptors Through Simultaneous Transfer Of Sensor And Helper Nlrs, Dongjiao Wang, Qibin Wu, Daowen Wang, Youxiong Que, Zheng Qing Fu

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Expanding Functionalities Of Immune Receptors Through Simultaneous Transfer Of Sensor And Helper Nlrs, Dongjiao Wang, Qibin Wu, Daowen Wang, Youxiong Que, Zheng Qing Fu

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

South Carolina Alternative Route Teacher Pipeline Report For 2023–24, Svetlana Dmitrieva, Brian Cartiff, Angela Starrett

Reports

This report presents a detailed analysis of South Carolina’s alternative route teacher workforce for the 2023–24 academic year, with a focus on preparation and retention. As part of SC TEACHER’s ongoing commitment to providing statewide educator workforce profiles, this publication, along with SC TEACHER’s broader research, offers timely, actionable data to inform educators, policymakers, and other stakeholders.

The findings presented here are based on educator-level data provided by the South Carolina Department of Education (SCDE) for 2023–24, along with longitudinal data from the 2019–20 through 2022–23 academic years. The 2023–24 analyses reflect a sample of 5,079 educators affiliated with state-approved …

Growth Of Cylindrical Micelles And Their Use To Prepare Porous Materials With Tailored Dimensions And Alignment, Mengxue Zhang, Xiaomeng Li, Chuanbing Tang, Morgan Stefik

Faculty Publications

Materials with cylindrical pores are optimal for electrochemical devices and filtration due to their straight paths with minimal tortuosity when aligned. Polymer templates have led to many individual cylindrical architectures however the independent tailoring of pore and wall dimensions has remained elusive. Here short cylindrical micelle templates (PEO-b-PS) with glassy cores enabled the fabrication of sample series with constant cylindrical pore diameter (∼63 nm) and tailored wall thickness (TiO₂, ∼45–100 nm). This ShortCyl series (aspect ratio 4.25) had modest alignment that was attributed to the low free-energy cost for misalignment. Though the plasticized micelles (DCM present) …

Changes In Mental Health Care Utilisation Before And During The Covid-19 Pandemic Among People Living With Hiv In The Usa: A Retrospective Cohort Study Using The All Of Us Dataset, Atena Pasha, Shan Qiao, Jiajia Zhang Ph.D., Ruilie Cai, Buwei He, Xueying Yang, Chen Liang Ph.D., Sharon Weissman, Xiaoming Li Ph.D.

Faculty Publications

Introduction Despite the profound impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on people living with HIV (PLWH) mental health, large-scale, real-world data on mental healthcare utilisation and associated factors among PLWH remain limited. This study explores mental healthcare utilisation and associated factors among PLWH during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods Using a retrospective cohort design, we identified and included 4575 PLWH through computational phenotyping based on relevant Observational Medical Outcomes Partnership Common Data Model concept sets from the All of Us programme between March 2018 and March 2022. Mental healthcare utilisation was measured using the yearly count of mental healthcare visits and compared …

Mental Distress And Resource Insecurity In The Kingdom Of Tonga After The 2022 Volcanic Eruption: Associations Of Water And Food Insecurity With Mental Distress, Hilary J. Bethanancourt, Indira Bose, Lupe Moala Tupou, Melissa Meinhart, Edward A. Frongillo Jr. Ph.D., Amelia Greaves, Sera L. Young

Faculty Publications

Background Water and food insecurity can harm mental health; all 3 may, in turn, be exacerbated by humanitarian crises. The linkages between food insecurity, water insecurity, and mental health are gaining attention but have not been investigated after a natural disaster.

Objective To investigate the associations between food insecurity, water insecurity, and mental distress, and how these relationships may differ between women and men, in the aftermath of the January 15, 2022, volcanic eruption in the Kingdom of Tonga.

Design Secondary analysis of nationally representative cross-sectional data from the Equality Insights Rapid survey collected 4 to 5 months after the …

Low-Tech Seed Enhancement Technology Could Improve Seedling Establishment Of Longleaf Pine Understory Perennial Forbs, Madeline E. Schmuck, Michael C. Disilvestro, Danny J. Gustafson

Journal of the South Carolina Academy of Science

Reintroducing native plants into restoration and revegetation projects could increase plant species diversity, increase floral resources for pollinators, and positively affect trophic-level interactions in the community. Direct seeding in restoration projects has generally had poor success rates due to biotic and abiotic factors, leading to significant seed wastage of the already insufficient native seed supply. Seed balls (aka seed aggregates, seed bombs, and seed pellets) are a low-cost, low-tech seed enhancement technology. The seeds are encased in a soil and clay matrix, providing good seed-soil contact, controlling seed planting depth, nutrients, and protection from seed predators. We conducted a greenhouse …

An Analysis Of Potential Factors Influencing College Sport Communicators Feels Of Being Overworked And Underappreciated, Kelly P. Elliott, Natalie Bunch, Tyler Williams

Journal of Issues in Intercollegiate Athletics

CSCs play pivotal roles, balancing the preservation of student-athlete narratives with the real-time demands of media-driven communication. However, a persistent challenge has emerged: many CSCs experience a pronounced sense of being overworked and undervalued. This study aims to explore predictors contributing to CSCs' feelings of being overworked and underappreciated, investigating factors like years of experience, career motivations, reasons for institutional selection, and tenure plans to understand their impact on CSCs' perceptions before employment. Researchers sent a survey instrument that included Likert scale, closed-ended items related to feelings over being overworked and underappreciated to CSCs. The primary analysis involved an independent …

“I Want To Continue Athletics And I Also Want To Study”: Exploring International Student Athletes’ Transition Experiences To The Naia Affiliated Colleges, Kibaek Kim, Karina Jolly, Chris Corr, Jinwook Han

Journal of Issues in Intercollegiate Athletics

There are over a million international students pursuing their degrees in U.S. universities. Among them are 25,000 international student-athletes (ISAs) who are enrolled in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) affiliated Universities. While studies have been striving to foster and support this population’s successful transition to the U.S., few studies are available that deal with international student-athletes competing in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) affiliated universities. Hence, based on the transition theory, this study utilized focus group interviews to explore the transition experiences of ISAs competing in NAIA. Based on previous studies that explored the transition experiences of ISAs …

Do They Belong? Inquiries Into The Perceptions Of The Black Male College Athlete Identity In Higher Education, Marcis Fennell, Kayla Martinez, C.Keith Harrison, Whitney Griffin, Nick Kopka

Journal of Issues in Intercollegiate Athletics

This qualitative study examined attitudes about Black male college athletes (BMCA)in predominantly White higher education institutions. To investigate the experience in the classroom, the purpose of this study was to inquire into the perception of the BMCA identity from the identity of the non-college athletes (NCA). Using the social identity complexity model, we sought to understand the perceptions that influence group formation among college students. The present study employed the film elicitation technique to examine the NCAs’ perceptions of the legitimacy of the BMCA identity in higher education during faculty interactions and its correlation to ingroup formation. The findings from …

Meet The Fars: An Examination Of The Background, Roles, And Appointment Of Faculty Athletic Representatives At National Collegiate Athletic Association Member Institutions, Chris Corr, Christopher Atwater, Mark S. Nagel, Richard Southall, Rick Eckstein, Marek Taškár

Journal of Issues in Intercollegiate Athletics

As many National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) member institutions continue to engage in athletic centric decision-making processes, academic integrity and the campus experience for college athletes is often marginalized. Mandated by the NCAA to represent athletes’ academic interests, the faculty athletics representative (FAR) position is designed to occupy a central role in maintaining the primacy of academia among college athletes. FARs, however, exist within an institutional setting muddled by competing and contradictory logics. Accordingly, given the inherent juxtaposition between the operation of collegiate athletics and the stated role of FARs, the present study sought to examine the characteristics and positional …

Assessing College Athletic Departments’ Ability To Implement The Ncaa Mental Health Best Practices, Grace O. Louis, Shaine Henert

Journal of Issues in Intercollegiate Athletics

Student-athletes endure rigorous schedules, intense pressure, and significant physical and mental strain, all while being expected to show no signs of weakness. This high-stakes environment can exacerbate mental health challenges (Harris & Maher, 2023; Rice et al, 2016 & Brown, 2021). To address these concerns, the NCAA’s Sport Science Institute developed mental health best practices to support college student-athletes. However, FBS Division I non-autonomous athletic programs often struggle to fully implement these guidelines due to resource limitations, despite their commitment to student-athlete well-being (2021; Beebe & Petrie, 2024). This study employs an Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) approach to explore the …

October 7 And International Police Cooperation: The Silence Of Interpol, Mathieu Deflem

Faculty Publications

Aim: The aim of this study is to explore the background and interpretation of Interpol’s silence following the terrorist attacks committed by Hamas against Israel on October 7, 2023. The author examines the international policing im-plications of the events, with special attention to why the world’s largest police organization failed to issue any substantive response.

Methodology: The research is based on asociological analysis combining ahistorical and institutional overview of Interpol’s counterterrorism activities with the examination of the organization’s communications and institutional decisions. It relies on qualitative sources and an interpretive, case study-based approach using public documents, records, and statements.

Findings: …

Backing Away From Esg? The Effect Of Sovereign Rating Downgrades On Corporate Sustainability, Periklis Boumparis, Chris Florackis, Omrane Guedhami, Sushil Sainani

Faculty Publications

We examine how sovereign rating downgrades affect firms' environmental, social, and governance (ESG) policies, leveraging the sovereign “ceiling” rule as a quasi-natural experiment that generates exogenous variation in corporate credit ratings. Under this rule, firms originally rated at or above the sovereign rating (bound firms) face a higher likelihood of downgrade following a sovereign downgrade. Using a difference-in-differences (DiD) setting, we find that bound firms experience a decline in ESG performance following a sovereign downgrade. This decline occurs only after the downgrade, not before, validating the parallel trends assumption. Our analysis further indicates that this effect is not driven by …

“I Laughed Along For Years But Hated It Inside:” Understanding Nuance In Peer Teasing Experiences Using A Thematic Analysis, Naomi C.Z. Andrews, Molly Dawes Ph.D.

Faculty Publications

Introduction

Peer teasing is ubiquitous, yet ambiguous in nature. Despite recent attempts to delineate and clarify differences in teasing experienced as playful versus harmful, there remains overlap and complexity in these interactions. In the current study, we present a conceptual model of teasing, which includes many nested features that dynamically interact within a teasing episode. Using this conceptual model to guide our work, the goal of the current study was to use qualitative inquiry to bring further conceptual clarity to the overlap between teasing that is experienced as playful versus harmful.

Method

Using semi-structured interviews, we asked university students ( …

Examining The Effects Of Firearm Lethality And Aggressors’ Intentions To Kill On Injurious Firearm Violence At American Schools: A Research Note, Brent R. Klein, Cory Schnell, Steven M. Chermak, Joshua D. Freilich

Faculty Publications

This study examined firearm lethality and aggressors’ lethal intent on injurious fatal and nonfatal school shootings using data from The American School Shooting Study, which covers 329 school shootings in the United States from 1990 to 2016. We developed a new multidimensional construct for measuring shooters’ determination to kill and examined firearm characteristics while considering confounding factors. We identified 11 distinct categories of shooters’ intent, with most showing a strong desire to kill. Both intent and weapon lethality significantly impacted school shooting homicides. Overall, we recommend that prevention and theoretical models should address both factors.