Digital Commons Network^™

Non-Psychiatric Registered Nurses' Perceptions Of Caring For Persons With Mental Illness In A Non-Psychiatric Healthcare Setting, Debra Sue Ollila

Dissertations

Patients with mental illness receive care in acute medical facilities for medical and acute psychiatric problems. Non-psychiatric nurses are responsible for the care of patients with mental illness regardless of their training in psychiatric nursing skills. The purpose of this study was to inform the nursing profession and nursing education of the needs of non-psychiatric nurses in caring for patients with mental illness. This study also sought to discover non-psychiatric nurses’ experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic. This research study used qualitative descriptive phenomenology to explore the research phenomenon. Eight participants were interviewed virtually using a semi-structured interview guide with interview …

The Experiences Of Mental Health Service Providers Adapting Counseling Treatments For Refugee Clients, Gurusewak Singh Khalsa

Dissertations

This study examined the perceptions of mental health professionals through their experiences of adapting counseling treatments to meet the cultural needs of their refugee clients. For this interpretative phenomenological study, 11 licensed clinicians participated in in-depth, semi-structured interviews that utilized multicultural counseling and vicarious trauma theories. Results were presented in superordinate and subordinate themes. This study added to the literature and exploration of the unique experiences of mental health providers culturally adapting their counseling approaches in order to provide more effective services to refugee communities. Participants discussed the influences of their cultural backgrounds, the challenges, supports, and areas of growth …

Social-Emotional Experiences For Young Male Adults Who Are Deaf Or Hard Of Hearing In The Eastern Province Of Saudi Arabia, Abdulrahman Khalid Alsayed

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to provide an in-depth understanding of the social-emotional experiences in connection with language and communication development for Saudi individuals who are deaf and hard of hearing (DHH) who use spoken language as their main method of communication. The following research questions guided this study: Q1 What are the perceptions of Saudi individuals who are DHH and use spoken language regarding their social-emotional experiences currently and during their (K-12) education? Q2 What educational practices did teachers deliver and how did those educational practices promote social-emotional experiences for Saudi individuals who are DHH and who use …

An Instrumental Case Study Of Teachers' Perceptions Of Mandatory Professional Development During Educational Reform Efforts, Jennifer Elaine Wakeman

Dissertations

This instrumental case study explored 12 public-school teachers’ perceptions of mandatory professional development (PD) during times of educational reform efforts in the state of Colorado. The participants in this study represented five unique school districts in suburban and semi-rural settings who had experienced 14 hours or more of mandated PD on a single topic in the past 24 months and had at least five years of classroom experience. Two research questions guided this case study: What are teachers’ perceptions of professional development that is mandated as part of a district-wide instructional improvement initiative? What do teachers say they need in …

Veteran Social Network: Peer Support Impact On Mental Health Service Utilization, Stacy A. Harris

Dissertations

Of the 20 million US Veterans, approximately 30% receive health care benefits from the Veterans Affairs system. Research confirms that these Veterans are less likely to seek professional mental health services as a result of a belief that mental illness equates with weakness. Research on peer support with Veterans suggests that Veteran social networks reduce stigma and facilitate help seeking behavior. Most studies on Veteran help seeking for mental health services use subjects who receive health care from the Veterans Health Administration or Department of Defense. The purpose of the current study is to gain an understanding of Veterans who …

Doing More With Less: A Quantitative Analysis Of Mindfulness, Meditation, Sustainable Consumption Awareness And Practice Among University Undergraduates, Teresa Van Horn

Dissertations

ABSTRACT

Climate change, overconsumption, air, and water pollution continue to be pressing issues for society. Given the significant impact of overconsumption, the search for strategies to promote more sustainable behavior has become a topic for investigation. Universities are uniquely positioned to help students work toward sustainable solutions. This research explored the role of mindfulness in university students' sustainable consumption awareness and practice as there are gaps in the literature concerning definitions, constructs, and research regarding mindfulness and sustainable consumption.

To address these disparities, this research used stepwise regression analysis to investigate the extent to which mindfulness and select demographic measures …

Personal Data Privacy And Protective Federal Legislation: An Exploration Of Constituent Position On The Need For Legislation To Control Data Reliant Organizations Collecting And Monetizing Internet-Obtained Personal Data, Giovanni De Meo

Dissertations

In the past twenty years, the business of online personal data collection has grown at the same rapid pace as the internet itself, fostering a multibillion-dollar personal data collection and commercialization industry. Unlike many other large industries, there has been no major federal legislation enacted to monitor or control the activities of organizations dealing in this flourishing industry. The combination of these factors together with the lack of prior research encouraged this research designed to understand how much voters know about this topic and whether there is interest in seeing legislation enacted to protect individual personal data privacy.

To address …

Reproducing The Status Quo In The Middle School English Classroom: A Critical Examination Of Literacy Learning Via Personalized Learning Technology, Michele Mcconnell

Dissertations

Personalized learning technology (PL Tech) is a growing educational reform movement supported by federal grant dollars. As a bourgeoning educational movement, no research has been conducted to explore the potential effects of such structures in supporting student literacy learning. Additionally, current education reform research often lacks the perspective of the students experiencing the reform. Therefore, this study sought to examine the lived experiences of middle school students using PL Tech to understand what structural and cultural arrangements influenced students’ literacy learning.

Portraiture, a qualitative methodology, was employed to conduct the study at a charter school in Fresno, California implementing PL …

A Qualitative Exploration Of The Patient Care Experience As Perceived By Hispanic Patients Receiving Care At A Safety-Net Facility, Silvinia Cuizon

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to understand how English- and Spanish-speaking Hispanic patients seeking kidney and liver transplant care at a safety-net facility perceive and interpret the care experience with the goal of generating a grounded theory model to guide care delivery and improve perception of care for this population.

Background/Rationale: The patient experience is the current federally mandated hospital quality indicator that measures the range of interactions patients have with their hospital admission, which has fiscal and clinical implications for the delivery of care. Many safety-net health care delivery systems, which primarily serve traditionally underserved populations, and …

Non-Affirmation As A Moderator Between Social Support And Quality Of Life For Transgender Populations, Michael Evitts

Dissertations

This research builds upon scholarship exploring the quality of life of transgender populations. Knowledge on quality-of-life (QOL) for transgender populations has been limited due to the fact that most studies have focused on gender affirming medical procedures as interventions (Nobili et al., 2018). Other protective factors, such as social support, have been identified in the literature but have been defined in broad terms. The purpose of the study was to better understand additional factors that promote QOL and psychological well-being, specifically social support. It is unclear how non-affirmation of gender identity affects the protective effects of social support for QOL. …

Exploring Generational Difference Of Acculturation, Ethnic Identity And Racial Identity In Liberian Immigrants And Their Children Living In The United States, Breezie J. Gibson

Dissertations

Prior literature on immigrants has focused on the impact of acculturation for groups such as Asians and Hispanic or Latinx immigrants (Orjiako & So, 2014; Sall, 2019). Compared to these two groups, the literature on Black immigrants’ experience of acculturation is scarce. In addition to the minimum visibility of Black immigrants in the acculturation literature, there is also limited knowledge relating to differences in the ethnic identity and racial identity of Black immigrants because these immigrants are often grouped monolithically with minimum attention to their diverse countries of origin. Understanding the influence of acculturation, ethnicity, and race is important because …

Racial Identity, Masculinity, And Academic Help-Seeking Behaviors In African American Male College Students, Walter T. Malone

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of Black racial identity attitudes, as measured by the Cross Racial Identity Scale (CRIS), and masculine norms, as measured by the Conformity to Masculinity Norms Index -46 (CMNI-46), in relation to men's academic helpseeking behavior. Participants were 120 African American undergraduate males at a historically White university in the Midwest region of the United States. Four hypotheses were designed to help guide the measure's influences on two academic help-seeking variables, avoidance and perceived benefits. The first and second hypotheses both focused on the effects of Black college men's racial attitudes. …

Three Essays On The Relationship Between Policy Uncertainty And Foreign Direct Investment, Chikezie Kenneth Okoli

Dissertations

Foreign direct investment (FDI) occurs when an entity in one country establishes a significant degree of ownership in an enterprise in another country. FDI is a critical component in ensuring the development of any economy. It often aids with the development of an industry or sector within an economy by bringing in capital, new technologies, manufacturing methodologies, and managing expertise to the receiving country. This dissertation examines the relationship between policy uncertainty and foreign direct investment (FDI) in developed economies.

The first essay focuses on U.S. policy uncertainty and its effects on U.S. FDI inflows, while the second essay focuses …

Preclinical Behavioral Assessment Of Chronic, Intermittent Low-Dose Psilocybin In Rodent Models Of Depression And Anxiety, Harmony I. Risca

Dissertations

Recent studies have demonstrated the clinical efficacy of psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy for treatment-resistant depression and anxiety. Amidst the overall success of recent clinical trials using a single high dose of psilocybin, anecdotal reports indicate anxiolytic and antidepressant effects following a repeated low dose regimen. As therapeutic outcomes are often tightly intertwined with the individual’s subjective experience, animal models are used as objective measures to investigate the underlying mechanisms responsible for the putative antidepressant/anxiolytic effects of psychedelics. Three rodent models predictive of anxiolytic or antidepressant effects were used to evaluate effects of chronic intermittent low dose (CILD) psilocybin treatment; the Light/Dark conflict …

Understanding The Unique Role Of The Special Education Teacher And The Essence Of The Special Education Teacher’S Life In The Inclusive Setting, Evelyn C. Phillips

Dissertations

The drive for inclusive practices has required the special education teacher to become an integral part of the general education setting. Yet as the nation recovers from the ubiquitous COVID-19 virus, many schools are challenged to provide a learning environment that is conducive to all students while balancing the need to provide safety and an appropriate education. As schools find their way to a new normal, this study examines the unique role of the special education teacher engaged in inclusive practices. Using a phenomenological approach combined with the constant comparative method, this study explores what meaning special education teachers ascribe …

An Examination Of Types Of Health Insurance And The Reported Prevalence Of Autism In The United States, Jennifer L. Thompson

Dissertations

The prevalence of Autism Spectrum Disorders continues to rise despite barriers of changes to diagnostic criteria and lack of insurance coverage. Increases in prevalence affect costs associated with a disorder since cost of health care services are often estimated based on utilization of services. This can also affect an individual’s ability to access to health care services. To equitably distribute autism services to individuals an accurate estimation of the true prevalence of autism is needed.

Access to health care can be influenced by the type of insurance coverage a person holds. Other factors, such as socio-economic status, ethnicity, location of …

"Not In My Town": A Community's Response To Water And Soil Pollution, Karolina Staros

Dissertations

At the core of this dissertation is the acknowledgment that social movements are complex networks of people who face many obstacles in their efforts to achieve social change. One critique of social movements is that their goals and mission are limited to short term ideas and not long-term, systemic transformation. The lack of long term, systemic change can be observed when social movement groups mobilize for the same cause over and over again with what appears to be little progress over a period of time. The exact blueprint for a social movement’s success does not exist, but it is posited …

Workplace Microaggressions Experienced By Sexual Minorities: Relationships To Workplace Attitudes, Mental Health, And The Role Of Emotional Distress Tolerance, Dylan Richard

Dissertations

Overt discrimination against sexual minorities in the workplace has been a topic of research and current political debate. However, little is known about a more nuanced form of workplace discrimination against sexual minorities: microaggressions. However, research has established clear mental health consequences of everyday microaggressions (e.g., increased depressive and anxiety symptoms, suicidality, lower life satisfaction, and physical health symptoms) against racial and sexual minorities. The current study aimed to explore correlates of microaggressions in the workplace, specifically workplace attitudes (e.g., job satisfaction and job stress) and mental health symptoms (e.g., depression, anxiety, and stress). Further, emotional distress tolerance (EDT) was …

A Re-Examination Of The Motivations For Using Substances Questionnaire: Motives For Alcohol And Simultaneous Alcohol And Marijuana Use, Taylor Altenberger

Dissertations

The growing body of research examining simultaneous alcohol and marijuana (SAM) use suggests motivations for alcohol-only, marijuana-only, and SAM use, especially among college-aged people, warrant further examination to ultimately tailor interventions to not only specific substances but also the underlying motivations for using those substances. Thus, the purpose of the present study was to test the measurement invariance of a novel broadband motives measure, the Motivations for Using Substances Questionnaire (MUSQ), across alcohol-only, marijuana-only, and SAM users and further test motivations’ relationships to use-related problems. However, due to insufficient sample sizes of marijuana-only users (n = 175), the MUSQ …

Predicting Parent Attendance For Group-Delivered Pcit Workshops In Head Start Centers, Jennifer Tannehill

Dissertations

Group PCIT was offered to parents of Head Start children as part of a larger study that investigated the Impact of a Preschool Obesity Prevention (IPOP) Program Enhanced with Positive Behavioral Supports. The dependent variable (DV) in this study was number of group PCIT sessions attended. The independent variables were marital status, income, education level, parenting practices measured by the Alabama Parenting Questionnaire-PR, and responses from the Caregiver Feeding Style Questionnaire. Predictions were made regarding the impact each of these variables had on attendance to group PCIT sessions. An ordinal logistic regression model was used to analyze the data. No …

Latent Variables Predicting Drug Use In Adolescents With High Versus Low Protective Factors, Jessica Jorgenson

Dissertations

The present study utilized archival data provided from the Minnesota Student Survey (2013). The study consisted of two levels of analysis. The first level involved the development of measurement models for various latent constructs (i.e., disaffiliation, normalized use, internalizing behaviors, and externalizing behaviors). Utilizing Structural Equation Modeling (SEM), the second level applied the observed (i.e., abuse) and measured latent variables to the prediction of the outcomes of interest (i.e., a latent variable estimate of substance use) for middle- and high school-aged youth. Models for adolescent girls and boys were examined separately based on sex and high vs low protective factors. …

Identifying Health Priorities For A Vulnerable Underserved Population In Uganda, Africa Using Community Base Participatory Research And The Photovoice Approach, Cheryl Wallin

Dissertations

The purpose of this descriptive phenomenological study was to give voice to an underserved and vulnerable population in Uganda, Africa to advocate for health priorities. Nineteen members of the village of Namagera, identified as a leper colony, were selected by community members and volunteered to participate in every element of this study. Descriptive phenomenology was the guiding philosophy and community-based participatory research methods and photovoice provided the lens for social action. Leininger's theory of culture care diversity and universality (Leininger & McFarland, 2006) anchored the study in cultural caring and the community nursing practice model (Parker et al., 2020) kept …

Using Education To Improve Medication Adherence In Hypertension, Chinyere Oghide

Dissertations

Antihypertensive medication non-adherence is a common problem in healthcare. Currently, the project site has no program to increase medication adherence (MA) in their hypertensive patients. Therefore, the purpose of this quantitative, quasi-experimental quality improvement project was to determine if the implementation of the Million Hearts program impacted the adherence to antihypertensive medication among adult patients, with known hypertension (HTN) in a primary care clinic setting in New York, over a four week period. Orem's self-care theory and Ajzen's theory of planned behavior were the project's theoretical foundation. Data on MA was measured using the Hill-Bone Medication Adherence Scale HB-MAS scale …

A Mixed Method Investigation Of Industry Recognized Credentials And Academic Achievement Among Urban Schools In The State Of Missouri, Christopher L. Mcneil

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to gather the effectiveness of the Industry Recognized Credentials in preparing Career and Technical Education students’ postsecondary opportunities. This study sought to explore if students’ exposure to Career and Technical Education (CTE) programing and attainment of Industry Recognized Credentials leads to positive postsecondary placement for Kansas City Public High School students. The researcher collected data from the 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021 school years.

The researcher conducted a t-Test for difference in proportions, and the data revealed that the percentage of graduates attaining IRC for 2020-2021 was significantly higher than the previous years. The …

Identification Of Primary Care Nurse Practitioner Clinical Procedural Skills Used In Practice: Examination Of Frequency Of Use, Importance Of Skill, And Training For Skill, David R. Want

Dissertations

With primary care NPs functioning in varied settings and roles requiring additional CPS knowledge and skills, NPs have expressed lack of preparedness regarding CPS. Although some evidence identified those CPS considered important to and frequently performed by NPs, the literature provides insufficient evidence to identify the CPS performed most frequently and rated as most important by primary care NPs in practice, and existing curricular standards lack clarity regarding which CPS to include in program curricula. This project aimed to conduct a practice analysis of the most frequently performed and most important CPS to primary care NPs in one region of …

Evaluating The Effectiveness Of Training Used For The Implementation Of A Peer Support Program To Support Second Victims, Karen Adamouski-Marion

Dissertations

In many health care organizations, the needed support for second victims, or care of the caregiver, is lacking or unavailable. This was true of the Inova health system organization at the conception of this project. This paper describes the process of establishing the need for a peer support program and evaluating the effectiveness of the selected peer support training program to meet the needs of the peer supporters, the team members they serve, and the organization. Unfortunately, unanticipated and tragic events will happen to excellent health care team members; the results are often anxiety, depression, guilt, and fear. The effects …

The Role Of Self-Efficacy And Academic Mindset On Middle School Math Achievement For At Promise Youth: An Explanatory Study, Michael Lockwood Mansfield

Dissertations

California’s accountability system has blended its focus on noncognitive factors of achievement as well as evidence of academic growth. School districts are becoming increasingly interested in developing noncognitive factors in their students to help increase student achievement. With the wide variety of mandates and responsibilities schools are shouldering, it will be important to continue developing methods to increase all school accountability metrics in relation with each other. This research aims to explore the relationship between noncognitive factors and mathematics achievement as measured by the Northwest Evaluation Association’s Measure of Academic Progress assessment (MAP). This study surveyed 8th graders throughout a …

The Criteria For Developing A Tk-12 Ethnic Studies Model Curriculum, Taunya Marie Jaco

Dissertations

Over the past five decades, educators have been working to develop authentic Ethnic Studies courses that can be implemented in both higher education and K-12 schools. Ethnic Studies has been documented to be effective in growth in several metrics used to assess student "achievement." Despite its results, there is much debate as to whether or not Ethnic Studies should be a high school graduation requirement in California K-12 schools. This study explores key policies on Ethnic Studies in California, particularly the legislative mandate to develop a K-12 Ethnic Studies model curriculum. Through an exploratory documentary film study, this dissertation investigates …

Exploring The Deleterious Connection Between Tradional School Discipline Practices And Male Latino Students Who Have Endured Adverse Childhood Experiences: An Exploratory Study In Northern California., Sonia Vargas

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to critically evaluate the deleterious connection between traditional school discipline practices and male Latino students who have endured adverse childhood experiences. This study examined Latino male students’ testimonials and understanding of their educational trajectories as they encounter adverse childhood experiences as well as their perceptions towards punitive disciplinary practices. This exploratory research utilized a documentary film design methodology and examined the perceptions of Latino male students, counselors, administrators and district official in an urban school district located in northern California. The study drew upon qualitative data collected in video format through student participants’ and …

Hipaa Applied To Jigsaw: A Collaborative Communication Improvement Project, Margaret P. Smallwood

Dissertations

Purpose: To translate the Jigsaw Method of Cooperative Learning into a strategy to improve collaboration in healthcare education through formal online discussions. The Jigsaw Method concept will be utilized to identify any enhancements in collaborative communication among healthcare professionals.

Significance: Communication failures lead to increased healthcare costs, patient care errors, and greater inefficiency in healthcare delivery. This project can improve collaborative communication that can help to eliminate these failures.

Design: The design is a mixed method, using quantitative and qualitative strategies for data collection and analysis.

Method: Online discussions were reformatted into constructive segments using the Jigsaw Technique and implemented …