Digital Commons Network^™

From Small Beginnings To Large-Scale Harm: On Demagoguery And Misogyny In The Classroom And Writing Center, Shannon Roberson

Theses and Dissertations

My project is grounded in the rhetorical concept of aretê—excellence or virtue—as it relates to education and educational spaces within demagogic and misogynist cultural forces. The problems of demagoguery and misogyny stem from small-scale perpetuation of agonistic norms that go unaddressed in U.S. culture, a culture that is deeply identity-driven. These forces persist on social media platforms and within patriarchal systems of education.

For my project, I suggest rhetorical media literacy education of small-scale demagoguery moments on social media as a way to bring awareness to larger-scale events. On a micro-scale, social media influencers cultivate behaviors that mimic demagogic …

Exploring Whether Contextual Factors Relate To The Hoped-For And Feared Possible Selves Of Latinx Youth, Stephanie M. Romo

Theses and Dissertations

Youth’s hopes and fears for their future (i.e., hoped-for and feared possible selves) are related to their academic and health behavior outcomes. Much of the literature on possible selves focuses on African-American and European-American youth. In a sample of 132 Latinx youth, the present cross-sectional study utilized widely-used measures (i.e., Possible Selves Questionnaire, Beliefs about Education, Youth Risk Surveillance Survey) to identify the content and characteristics (e.g., strategies, balance) of their possible selves; investigate the relationship between contextual factors (e.g., sex, immigrant status) and possible selves; and, explore whether possible selves predicted youth’s beliefs about education and sexual risk behaviors. …

Against The Eyes Of God And Man: The Suicide And Alcohol Intoxication Deaths Of Enslaved People In Alexandria And Henrico County, Virginia, 1805-1829, Peighton L. Young

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this thesis is to provide a compressive examination of suicide and self-destructive behaviors within specific enslaved populations in early republic Virginia localities. I use coroners’ inquests as the primary means for identifying notable causes of death and potential behavioral patterns amongst the enslaved people presented in this study. I focused my investigation on two causes of death, demographics, and localities respectively: the drowning suicides committed by enslaved women along the Potomac River waterfront in Alexandria between 1807 and 1824 and the alcohol intoxication-related deaths of enslaved men in Henrico County between 1805 and 1829. Stepping away from …

Orbiting Forward (Thoughts On The Nature Of Conflict - Sighs On The Struggles Of Change), Bushra A. Alsughayer

Theses and Dissertations

Today’s world is a wide open hyper-connected sphere where human societies worldwide exist in a complex crossroads of historical conditions, ideologies, and power structures. A pool of constant confrontations, minor or major, between the traditional and the progressive, the local and the international, the materialistic and the transcendent, the pragmatic and the idealistic, and countless layers of meaning. For an individual who exists in such an intense moment of history, it seems almost inescapable to be exposed to, affected by, or even involved in a major conflict. A situation that makes individuals always in a critical position where every role …

Port To World, Samuel M. Brown

Theses and Dissertations

Among those that are ill for long periods, there is often a mistrust created not only in one’s own body but in the institution that promises a cure to the malady. Often this stems naturally from the dogma of the institution paired with one’s desire for wellness, for the institution's goals are many besides the overall health of the patient. Even when a patient is cured of an ailment, this is often just the first step in the actual healing process. The body can quickly change, and the mind takes time to catch up with the body's condition. My work …

Legal Permanent Residents In The Us Labor Market: Occupational Mobility Of High-Skilled And Low-Skilled Immigrants, Larissa Ferreira Coelho

Theses and Dissertations

Despite the vast research concerning immigrants and occupational mobility, little is known if the patterns for high-skilled and low-skilled workers differ. In this project, I analyze the pre-to-post migration occupational mobility of legal permanent residents in the US by using occupation and migration histories from the New Immigrant Survey. I contrast the first occupation in the US to the last occupation abroad using descriptive statistics, hypothesis testing, and multinomial logistic regression models. Findings show different patterns of occupational mobility for low-skilled and high-skilled workers. High-skilled immigrants were less likely to experience downward occupational mobility than their low-skilled counterparts. The high-skilled …

Machine Girl, Yutong Liu

Theses and Dissertations

Machine girl is a character that mimics biology, labor, and humanity.

She relates to machine sympathy and machine learning; She is updating and processing of big data. During the interaction between me and the machine, I found you --- Machine girl.

Machine girl is a brilliant girl. She is an excellent translator and communicator, which is determined by her ability for machine learning. The cyber living space gives her a fundamental learning gift with a mathematical algorithm. She uses this gift to mimic everything from the human brain. She is not reasonable but sensitive. There are many different versions of …

Transforming Trauma: Performing The Works Of William Shakespeare As Rehabilitation For Incarcerated Individuals, Elyssa Mersdorf

Theses and Dissertations

This paper is the summation of my research and exploration into the history, social ramifications, and individual psychological impact of incarceration and the use of theatre as a vehicle of rehabilitation. Throughout my studies, I encountered evidence in the forms of personal accounts from theatre practitioners, scholarly articles, inmate testimonials, and historical journals regarding the success of such carceral theatre programs in the reformation of the prisoners they serve. How have past prison procedures and strategies hindered or helped inmates in their preparation for their transition from life in a penitentiary to reintroduction into larger society? What are the financial …

Hidden Gem: Realizing The Value Of Community In Healthcare Environments, Nicole Lee

Theses and Dissertations

Holistic approaches in healthcare address a problem from its root causes. The American healthcare model – both its treatment and distribution methods – is among the many issues that divides the nation. We have found ourselves with millions of uninsured people among a growing population where chronic illness is on the rise among adults and children, especially within low-income demographics (Goodman & Conway, 2016). Though this is a widespread epidemic, only recently has there been any effort to question and reform traditional healthcare.

The way that wellness is assessed in America has been detrimental to patient outcomes …

Spooky Stuff, Petra A. Szilagyi

Theses and Dissertations

A real imaginal exploration of the aesthetics of the supernatural.

How Many Licks, Ashley Goodwin

Theses and Dissertations

Arts communities are currently reevaluating and restructuring power dynamics within their systems to accommodate a broader range of experience and subjectivity. However, the forces of control are still largely dictated by a broader patriarchal culture. This complicated, tangled dynamic is the focus of my research. Female artists who make work about men or about patriarchy more generally, are consistently subjected to its influence as the dominant cultural experience—the invisible “truth” that everything either is, or acts in reaction to its position. In reality, patriarchy is no longer gender specific. I will be addressing my relationship to it as well as …

The Role Of Patient Room-Type, Interruptions, And Intrapersonal Resources In Nurse Performance And Well-Being, Jennifer Early

Theses and Dissertations

Interruptions create a complex challenge in health care. Because some interruptions are necessary in health care, they cannot be completely eliminated. Thus, their effects must be appropriately mitigated. To better understand predictors and consequences of interruptions, as well as factors that may mitigate their negative effects, I employed Job Demands-Resources (JD-R) theory, supplemented by additional constructs from organizational behavior and psychology to develop a model of predictors and mitigators of interruptions. Twenty registered nurses providing care on a progressive acute care unit with single- and double-occupancy patient rooms volunteered to participate in this study. The study incorporated nurse-level questionnaires, event-level …

Understanding The Contributions Of Discrepant Parent-Adolescent Views Of Parenting Practices And Peer Deviance To Adolescent Problem Behavior: A Cross-Lagged Polynomial Regression Approach, Mallory Stephenson

Theses and Dissertations

The present study used autoregressive cross-lagged models to examine the processes through which peer deviance and discrepant parent-adolescent views of monitoring-related communication, involvement, and positive parenting influence one another and contribute to physical and relational aggression, substance use, and delinquency. Participants included 535 adolescents (64% male) who were identified as prone to aggression and socially influential by their sixth-grade teachers during the 2001-2002 and 2002-2003 school years; participants self-identified as African American (69%), Hispanic (14%), White (9%), Multiracial (5%), or another race (3%). Contrary to expectations, parent-adolescent reporting discrepancies were not related to peer deviance, physical aggression, substance use, and …

Preventative And Therapeutic Effects Of Bmsc Exosome On Periodontal Disease, Jin Ha Kim

Theses and Dissertations

Periodontitis is an inflammatory disease caused by the imbalance between host immune response and bacterial infection. Strategies to manage the uncontrolled, excessive immune response and to promote tissue healing are in great demand. Therapies based on mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are promising and the clinical effects of MSCs are largely mediated by their secretome, especially exosomes. Previously, we isolated and purified exosomes secreted by human bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (hBMSC). These exosomes have proliferative, chemotactic, anti-inflammatory and anti-osteoclastic function in vitro. In this study, we had two hypotheses: 1) hBMSC exosomes would prevent periodontal inflammation and alveolar bone loss …

Relationships Among Parkinson’S Disease Symptoms, Stigma, And Mental Health: A Strengths-Based Perspective, Richard S. Henry

Theses and Dissertations

As rates of Parkinson’s disease (PD) increase, so does the need to examine some of the negative social consequences experienced by people with PD. Symptoms of PD have been linked to greater experiences of stigma, and the more visible symptoms of PD increase an individual’s likelihood for experiencing stigmatization and social rejection. Individuals who experience high levels of stigma generally have poorer mental health outcomes. While these relationships are well documented, little is known about whether stigma mediates the relationship between PD symptoms and mental health outcomes. Additionally, some past research suggests that the personal strengths of social support and …

A Randomized Trial Of Cbt4cbt For Women In Residential Treatment For Substance Use Disorders, Sydney S. Kelpin

Theses and Dissertations

Women with substance use disorders (SUD) face unique barriers to substance use treatment, and as a result, are less likely than their male counterparts to seek treatment for the disorder. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is an evidence-based treatment known to reduce relapse rates by teaching clients to recognize and respond to their cues for substance use. Recent research suggests CBT may be particularly of benefit to women. Despite the effectiveness of CBT, its dissemination in clinical practice is limited due to a range of barriers (e.g., time, cost). Computer-based training for cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT4CBT) offers an opportunity to improve …

A Meisner Warm-Up: Advancing The Technique, Andrew Bryce

Theses and Dissertations

Why is there no warm-up for the Meisner technique? Why do standard vocal warm-ups not actually prepare the actor for performance? This thesis seeks to remedy both of these issues in 21st century actor training. It does so by creating a warm-up for the Meisner technique that will also prepare actors’ voice, body, and presence. This warm-up was formed by combining Meisner repetition exercises and the Miller Voice Method. The final warm-up was presented as a workshop for actors at the 2020 Southeastern Theatre Conference.

Predictors Of Mental Health Need And Treatment In Safety Net Primary Care, Kristen O'Loughlin

Theses and Dissertations

Many mental health (MH) needs go unidentified in primary care, and certain patients appear to be at higher risk of needs going unidentified and subsequently untreated. Little is known about patterns of detection and treatment in clinics with integrated mental health services. The purpose of this study was to characterize the prevalence of MH needs and evaluate patient characteristics as predictors of both the presence of a MH need and type of MH services received. Subjects were patients receiving care at two safety net primary care clinics with integrated mental health services (N=816; 52.7% Latinx, 15.9% African American), …

Cyberbullying: School Administrators' Perceptions Of Law And Prevalence, And Their Roles In Prevention, Intervention And Discipline, Suzan Gragg Denby

Theses and Dissertations

This study was aimed at investigating secondary school administrators’ experiences with and their perceptions of cyberbullying, as well as their intervention and prevention procedures. As technology has become ubiquitous in our society, students’ use has increased and impacted the school environment. Given the potential for cyberbullying and the negative effects of such, schools harbor the responsibility to prevent and intervene in such occurrences. This can be a tricky process.

This study included 12 administrators of secondary schools across eight school divisions in Virginia. Through an interview process, administrators spoke of their experiences with technology and cyberbullying incidents, and how they …

Teachers' Perceptions Of The Broad Validity Of A High Stakes English Language Proficiency Test, Carolyn N. Waters

Theses and Dissertations

The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 mandated that the English acquisition of all students identified as English learners be assessed annually using high-stakes standardized English language proficiency tests, and the Every Student Succeeds Act of 2015 continues this testing mandate. The WIDA ACCESS for ELLs® has been used for this and other purposes since 2005, and has been adopted by 40 State Education Agencies, including the Virginia Department of Education. However, despite the long-standing and widespread use of this assessment, no comprehensive independent evaluations of the test have been conducted. This mixed-methods study is a conceptual replication of …

The Effects Of Ingroup Threat On The Anchoring And Adjustment Heuristic, Mattie V. Hedgebeth

Theses and Dissertations

Since its introduction in 1974, the anchoring and adjustment heuristic has been a topic of interest within the field of decision making. Although much work has examined factors that affect the process of the anchoring and adjustment heuristic, very little has been studied about the self-processes that may influence how individuals anchor. More specifically, self and ingroup motivations have yet to be explored. This research sought to identify whether an individual’s magnitude of adjustment from an anchor can be affected by either an enhancement or threat of the individual’s ingroup. I hypothesized that ingroup enhancing information would induce a smaller …

Evaluation Of Smear Layer Dissolution By Alternative Chelating Solutions, Raymond Pandez

Theses and Dissertations

Purpose: To evaluate in vitro smear layer dissolution using alternative chelating solutions in comparison to EDTA.

Methods: Nine extracted human anterior teeth were sectioned into dentin discs. Test solutions included: peracetic acid (PAA) at various concentrations (0.1%, 0.2%, 0.3%, 1%, 2%) for 60sec, 17% EDTA for 60sec, 18% 1-hydroxyethane 1,1-diphosphonic acid (HEDP)+NaOCl for 5min, HEDP alone for 5min and QMix for 60sec. SEM and a 4-point scale were used to evaluate smear layer removal.

Results: EDTA for 60sec had significantly better scores in dissolving the smear layer than all other groups. There was no significant difference between HEDP and HEDP+NaOCl …

Impact Of Student’S Gender And Perceived Skin Tone On Educators’ Disciplinary Decisions, Kierstyn K. Johnson-Wigfall

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this proposed dissertation is to examine the relationship of students’ skin color and gender to school disciplinary decisions for African American children. While skin tone bias or colorism is frequently studied, limited research has been completed about its prevalence in American public schools during the discipline process. For example, school suspension leads to higher rates of absenteeism, lower academic achievement and higher chances of incarceration. Even students who receive an office referral and return to c lass minutes later miss pertinent instruction time. This study aims to: 1) add to the body of literature about this topic, …

Exploring The Use Of A Mindfulness Based Yoga Intervention For Children With Severe Asthma, Sharon Lack

Theses and Dissertations

Introduction: A diagnosis of severe asthma greatly impacts the physical and psychological health of children. Often experiencing increased stress, decreased physical activity, and increased exacerbations, children with severe asthma frequently exhibit poor health outcomes. Mindful yoga is a complementary health approach that may improve the physical and psychological well-being of children with severe asthma. The aims of this research were to evaluate the tolerability, feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary effects of a mindful yoga intervention in children with severe asthma. A novel theoretical framework encompassing concepts from three vulnerability nursing theories guided the research.

Methods: A mixed methods pilot …

Analysis Of Teaching Styles, Adult Learning Theories, And Factors Influencing Teaching Style Preferences In Adult Education Instructors: Implication For Practice, Beatrice Chemaiyo Lele

Theses and Dissertations

The teacher is the most influential and important variable in the classroom for student achievement. Therefore, the need for teachers to identify and utilize best teaching practices is fundamental to a progressing society. Despite the literature advocating and proposing the student-centered approach as the preferred method of teaching in adult education, most empirical studies indicate that teachers employed the traditional teacher-centered approach. The purpose of this study was to examine the teaching style preferences of adult education instructors and the influence of gender, age, participation in professional development in adult education, years of teaching experience, teaching subject, and levels of …

Negative Urgency As A Risk Factor For Intimate Partner Aggression: The Untold Story Of Maladaptive Interpersonal Emotion Regulation, Alexandra M. Martelli

Theses and Dissertations

Interpersonal conflict frequently occurs in daily life, especially within intimate relationship contexts. The strategies people use to respond to conflict can either bring couples together or push them further apart. Furthermore, impulsive traits, such as negative urgency, leave individuals vulnerable to conflict. Individuals high in negative urgency have difficulty regulating their emotional reactions to negative experiences, often failing to employ adaptive interpersonal emotion regulation (IER) strategies. No research to date has examined the link between negative urgency and the use of negative IER. Fifty-four couples completed self-report measures of negative urgency, effective interpersonal regulation of negative affect, and intimate partner …

Effects Of (R,S)-Ketamine And (2r,6r)-Hydroxynorketamine: A Preclinical Study, Remington Rice

Theses and Dissertations

In 2017, 7.1% of US adults were diagnosed with depression, and 50% of patients received medication to treat their depression. Depression can cause severe interruptions in an individual's cognitive functioning and behaviors like sleeping, eating, working, and socializing. Unfortunately, approximately 40% of patients do not respond to treatment with monoaminergic medications (e.g. Prozac) and therapeutic effects may be delayed 2-8 weeks. Due to these therapeutic shortcomings, faster acting and more efficacious treatments are needed. Recent preclinical findings indicate potential for glutamatergic drugs like (R,S)-ketamine and (2R,6R) hydroxynorketamine to produce more rapid and longer-acting therapeutic effects. The antidepressant effectiveness of (R,S)-ketamine …

Molecular And Behavioral Mechanisms Mediated Paclitaxel-Induced Changes In Affect-Like Behavior In Mice, Julia Meade

Theses and Dissertations

Paclitaxel and oxaliplatin are two chemotherapeutics that cause acute neurotoxicity and chemotherapy-induce peripheral neuropathy (CIPN) in 70-90% of cancer patients. Chemotherapy-induced sensory changes are correlated with depression and anxiety. We characterized the effects of these drugs on sensation and various mood-related behaviors in mice, to determine if changes in sensation are associated with depression-like behavior, to explore putative mechanisms of chemotherapy-induced depression-like behavior (Aim 1), and to develop a mouse model of chemotherapy-induced operant responding deficit (Aim 2). In Aim 1, we observed that a cumulative dose of 32 mg/kg paclitaxel induced mechanical hypersensitivity and transiently reduced preference for sucrose …

The Correlation Between Maternal Postpartum Depression And Child Psychopathology, T'Keyah I. Vaughan

Theses and Dissertations

Background: Postpartum depression (PPD) is a phenomenon that affects nearly 10-15% of pregnancies in the US. It is characterized by depressed mood or anhedonia and lasting for more than 2 weeks. PPD changes how moms interact with family members and child-rearing behavior. Depression is a phenomenon that is also known to affect the psychopathology of children. However, the specifics of how postpartum depression impacts children remains controversial. Many studies do not control for major depressive disorder which makes it difficult to disentangle the impact depression has within the first year of life. Furthermore, other PPD risk factors may be confounding …

Repeat Full Mouth Dental Rehabilitation Under General Anesthesia For Medicaid Eligible Healthy Children Who Are High Caries Risk, Lajoi E. Wiggins

Theses and Dissertations

Purpose: To evaluate the treatment of healthy children who are high caries risk and of low socioeconomic status and who require repeat full mouth dental rehabilitation (FMDR) under general anesthesia (GA).

Methods: A retrospective chart review was performed on healthy Medicaid eligible patients who were initially between 18 months - 6 years of age who underwent FMDR under GA in the OR more than once at the Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) School of Dentistry, Department of Pediatric Dentistry from January 2008 to December 2018. Biographical information for each patient was gathered into a REDCap™ Survey. Statistical analysis, chi-squared test with …