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Informatics Competency-Based Assessment: Evaluations And Determination Of Nursing Informatics Competency Gaps Among Practicing Nurse Informaticists, Leyla Pordeli

Dissertations

In today's transformed healthcare industry, nursing informatics has become an essential and fast growing specialty. While nursing informatics competencies (NI) have been identified and recommended by national organizations as an essential component of nursing education and practice, limited information is available on the skills and informatics competencies of practicing informaticists. This evidence-based DNP project implemented and evaluated an evidence-based professional development program to address informatics competency gaps among practicing informaticists at a Magnet-recognized hospital at Northeast Florida, to ensure informaticists possess the essential skills and knowledge to improve achieving the organizational informatics needs. Nursing Informatics Competency Assessment (NICA) L3/L4 tool …

Comparison Of The Completion Pathways Of Four Categories Of Doctoral Students From A Midwestern University, Laticia Garbarini

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine doctoral students’ reasoning for completing the required course work for their degree, but not completing their dissertation and thus the degree. There had not been formal research conducted on the students at Lindenwood that had not completed the doctoral program and the variables behind their not completing their degree. In order to gain a better understanding, the research looked at four categories of students: completed (achieved doctoral degrees); actively pursuing (on target to graduate in the allotted time); delayed completion (returned to the program or have needed extended time); failure to complete …

The Relationship Between Extracurricular Activities And Academic Achievement, Robert Freeman

Dissertations

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to determine if there is a relationship between extracurricular activity participation and academic achievement as measured by the composite score on the American College Test (ACT) and cumulative grade point average (GPA) throughout a student’s attendance in high school. Specifically, this study examined student participants and nonparticipants in extracurricular activities and their academic performance in one Midwestern suburban high school district. Archival data were collected on the 2009 senior classes from two consenting high schools within the district. Gender, race, ACT scores, GPA, lunch status, and extracurricular activities were collected from both schools. …

“How Short Is A Piece Of String?”: An Investigation Into The Impact Of Text Length On Short-Text Classification Accuracy, Austin Mccartney

Dissertations

The recent increase in the widespread use of short messages, for example micro-blogs or SMS communications, has created an opportunity to harvest a vast amount of information through machine-based classification. However, traditional classification methods have failed to produce accuracies comparable to those obtained from similar classification of longer texts. Several approaches have been employed to extend traditional methods to overcome this problem, including the enhancement of the original texts through the construction of associations with external data enrichment sources, ranging from thesauri and semantic nets such as Wordnet, to pre-built online taxonomies such as Wikipedia. Other avenues of investigation have …

The Mother's Experience : A Phenomenological Study Of Maternal Self-Efficacy Among Mothers Attending Outpatient Treatment For Substance Abuse, Lisa Witkowski

Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to better understand the perceptions of maternal self-efficacy among mothers in substance abuse recovery. A phenomenological research design using face-to-face, semi-structured interviews captured the lived experiences of mothers attending outpatient drug and alcohol treatment. For this study, the researcher distributed approved flyers to designated outpatient treatment centers to voluntarily recruit mothers for purposeful sampling. Eligibility requirements include women at least eighteen (18) years or older, at least one living child, attended prior rehabilitation services, and display good mental status after assessed by the researcher with the Mini Mental Status Exam. During the interview, the …

A Mixed-Methods Investigation Of Fms Shoulder Mobility And Reported Upper Body Injury In Collegiate Football Athletes At A Division Ii Midwestern University, Jessica L. Randolph

Dissertations

Since the introduction of the Functional Movement Screen (FMS), researchers explored how resulting scores related to injury incidence, often by utilizing the sum score of all seven patterns. This study isolated the shoulder mobility screen and upper body injury incidence for collegiate Division II football athletes at a private Midwestern university. The researcher was interested in determining if pain on the screen indicated by a score of 0, too much or too little mobility, left to right asymmetry, and general score of the screen were related to upper body and/or shoulder injuries for football athletes during the 2014- 2015 and …

Can A Strictly Defined Security Configuration For Iot Devices Mitigate The Risk Of Exploitation By Botnet Malware?, David Kennefick

Dissertations

The internet that we know and use every day is the internet of people, a collection of knowledge and data that can be accessed anywhere is the world anytime from many devices. The internet of the future is the Internet of Things. The Internet of Things is a collection of automated technology that is designed to be run autonomously, but on devices designed for humans to use. In 2016 the Mirai malware has shown there are underlying vulnerabilities in devices connected to the internet of things. Mirai is specifically designed to recognise and exploit IoT devices and it has been …

Programming Frameworks For Mobile Sensing, Hillol Debnath

Dissertations

The proliferation of smart mobile devices in people’s daily lives is making context-aware computing a reality. A plethora of sensors available in these devices can be utilized to understand users’ context better. Apps can provide more relevant data or services to the user based on improved understanding of user’s context. With the advent of cloud-assisted mobile platforms, apps can also perform collaborative computation over the sensing data collected from a group of users. However, there are still two main issues: (1) A lack of simple and effective personal sensing frameworks: existing frameworks do not provide support for real-time fusing of …

Estimating Vehicles Emissions At Signalized Intersections In The Highway Capacity Manual, Yuanyuan Fan

Dissertations

Over the past decades, motor vehicle volumes have continued to increase at a high rate. As a result, engineers in the transportation field not only need more robust knowledge of traffic operation control and transportation planning, but more attention is also needed to understand and estimate the influences that this increasing volume of vehicles has on the environment, especially the influence on air quality. The EPA has stated that reducing carbon monoxide (CO) from vehicle emissions is the most significant way to control air pollution from the transportation sector.

The Highway Capacity Manual is a national and international resource that …

Studies On Communication Exchange In Healthcare In Flanders, Belgium, Peter Vermeir

Dissertations

Health communication plays a significant role in patient care. Ever increasing importance is attached to health communication research. To offer top clinical and top referent care, effective and efficient communication between healthcare providers is required. As such, health communication may occur in multidisciplinary, interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary settings, dimensions that need to be addressed in research. Furthermore, communication impacts all six healthcare quality domains, as defined by the Institute of Medicine: safety, timeliness, effectiveness, equity, efficiency and patient-centeredness.

Transformational Learning Experiences Of Perioperative Registered Nurses Who Have Completed A Perioperative Training Program, Randolph William Schild

Dissertations

The purpose of this case study was to determine which activities factor into transformational learning that may occur as a result of completing a perioperative preparation program for registered nurses. Through the process of describing the lived experiences of the participants who have completed a perioperative nurse training program, it also assisted in informing pedagogical practice by helping to establish the extent of transformational learning that occurs. The role of a perioperative nurse is one that is demanding, knowledge intensive, and highly collaborative. Perioperative nurse educators need to understand the process of transformation in order to assist new perioperative nurses …

The Art Of Clinical Supervision Program For Registered Nurses, Kylie Patricia Russell

Dissertations

Nursing students' clinical placements should provide an environment in which they can apply their nursing education in the fast-paced world of health care and develop a framework for practice. Students rely on effective teaching and supportive clinical supervisors to provide a placement in which they are not only encouraged to practice, but also to learn from this practice. This is achieved through welcoming students into the health care team by valuing their input and contributions, and consolidating their clinical practice through activities such as critical thinking and reflection.

The role of the clinical supervisor is therefore complex and often constrained …

Pltw Female High-School Students' Supports And Barriers In Choosing A College Degree, Lisa Lubin Rubin

Dissertations

Purpose:The purpose of this mixed-methods research study is to identify and describe the barriers and supports that PLTW female students encounter when pursuing a non-traditional female STEM degree upon graduation from high school.

Methodology:A mixed-method (qualitative-quantitative) research design was chosen for this study to explore barriers and supports of female high-school seniors in PLTW. The qualitative portion of the study was phenomenology. This study explored the supports and barriers of female high-school seniors in PLTW courses when choosing a college degree. The quantitative portion of the study was conducted via a hard-copy survey containing closed-ended five-point Likert scale …

The Relationship Of Conscience And Ethical Climate Among Registered Nurses In The Acute Care Environment, Theresa A. Kyzar

Dissertations

Although there has been extensive research on factors contributing to moral distress, burnout, and turnover intentions in the nursing profession, there has been limited research on the relationship of conscience and ethical climate. Both the ethical climate theory and moral distress theory were utilized to guide the implementation of this study. A predictive correlational design was utilized to determine the relationship between the variables defined as perceptions of conscience, hospital ethical climate and stress of conscience. A purposive, non-probability-based sampling of 193 registered nurses throughout the state of Louisiana was surveyed using a web-based survey instrument.

An Exploration Of Registered Nurse Preparation For Safe Medication Management, Catherine Illman Sykes

Dissertations

This descriptive study examined the perceptions of new graduate registered nurses (RNs) about medication error identification, causes, and reporting; as well as the nursing education and workplace orientation experiences they believed prepared them to safely manage medications. The study also explored how prelicensure RN nursing education and hospital orientation programs in North Carolina (NC) prepared nurses to manage medications safely. The theory of situated cognition provided the organizing framework. Data were collected from the three participant groups (new graduate RNs, schools of nursing, and hospitals) using online surveys, and respondents included 131 new graduate RNs, 35 schools of nursing, and …

Health Literacy Competencies For Registered Nurses: An E-Delphi Study, Coleen E. Toronto

Dissertations

In the United States, only 12% of adults possess proficient health literacy skills. Individuals with low health literacy skills experience poorer health outcomes. Failure of registered nurses to consider health literacy in communication with patients can significantly affect an individual's ability to understand and therefore, follow health advice. The Institute of Medicine's (IOM) Health Literacy: A Prescription to End Confusion (2004) landmark report recommends that health professionals be trained to effectively communicate with patients with limited health literacy. There is an absence of nurse competencies that explicitly address the needs of patients with low health literacy. Therefore the purpose of …

The Effectiveness Of Structured Educational Modules For Primary School Teachers On The Knowledge And Skills In Identification Of Common Mental Health Problems In Selected Schools Of Bangalore District, Esther Shirley Daniel

Dissertations

The teacher plays a significant role in the promotion of the health of the children. Teachers spend most of the school hours with children and are familiar with them. They can detect the signs and symptoms of common mental health problems at the earliest in the classroom setting. It is expected that out of 51 lakh children (6-11 years of age), approximately 5 lakh (9.8 %) children suffer from mental health problems in Karnataka. But there is no organized school mental health programme for teachers in Karnataka. There is no record of active participation of teachers in the school mental …

The Impact Of First-Line Nurse Managers Leadership Development Training Program On Workgroup Climate And Performance, Reem Mabrouk Abd El Rahman

Dissertations

The uncertainty in the health care industry, particularly in nursing, makes the next millennium an important time for nurses to develop leadership skills. One of the greatest challenges faced in the nursing profession is developing future nurse leaders. A better understanding of what transformational leadership is, can improve our ability to provide effective leadership training programs and interventions. To respond to changing technological and social forces, new managerial responsibilities are placed on the nursing services requiring nurse administrators who are knowledgeable, skilled and competent in all aspects of leadership. To confront these expanding responsibilities and demands, the leader's role must …

Knowledge And Practices Of Faculty At Nasm Accredited Institutions In The Southeast Region Regarding Standards-Based Instruction, Jonathan Leon Nelson

Dissertations

In 1993, Congress passed the mandate Goals 2000: Educate America Act, which established standards for K-12 education that outlined the core benchmarks of student achievement for individuals who have mastered the core curricula required to earn a high school diploma (Mark, 1995). Unfortunately, these curricular requirements did not include any criteria for music education, nor did they consider the curricular implications for higher education in providing NSME Standards based training for music educators.

The aim of this study was to determine if and to what extent music education faculty engage in NSME Standards-based instruction within the higher education classroom. Questionnaires …

Ethical Decision-Making Accounting Competencies: Practitioners’ Perspectives, Gwendolyn P. Meador

Dissertations

Recent accounting and corporate scandals call into question the ethicality of accounting practice, likewise accounting graduates. Advances in ethical accounting education are not emphasized in today’s business schools leaving accounting graduates lacking necessary ethical accounting competencies to make ethical accounting decisions (Abend, 2013; Mastracchio, Jiménez-Angueira, & Toth, 2015; Waples, Antes, Murphy, Connelly, & Mumford, 2009).

Cognitive moral development theory (Kohlberg & Hersh, 1977), stakeholder theory (Freeman, 2004), and organizational mindfulness theory (Ray, Baker, & Plowman, 2011) provide a theoretical framework supporting issues of accounting graduates’ ethicality, practitioner in the role of ethical decision-maker, and organizational awareness and performance of business …

The Effects Of Tax Increment Financing On Assessed Land Values, Burdette Edward Fullerton Ii

Dissertations

Public policy debate regarding the use of economic development incentives is active and growing with a focus on the costs and benefits to communities around the country. Communities grant economic development incentives that encourage real estate development, such as tax increment financing, without knowing if the growth of land value or building type valuation inside of tax increment areas accelerate faster than areas outside of tax increment districts. Without the knowledge of how tax increment financing influences land values, communities risk the misallocation of resources from public entities, such as schools and libraries to private entities. In an era of …

Strategies For Increasing Female Navy Officer Retention: Deploying Mothers’ Perspectives, Angela Holcombe Walker

Dissertations

The complexity of the global environment, driven by rapid and profound change, requires a globally dominant fighting force. To adequately protect and defend the security of the United States, the Department of Defense must maintain warfighting superiority through innovation and diversity of thought (SECNAV, 2016; Scoppio, 2012). More than five years have passed since the 2011 Military Leadership Diversity Commission reported to President Obama and members of Congress that “top military leaders are representative neither of the population they serve nor of the forces they lead” (p. xvi). Females are underrepresented among senior military leadership. Increasing the number of female …

An Exploration Of College Students’ Cooking Behavior And Factors That Influence That Behavior Using Social Cognitive Theory, Nichelle G. Harris

Dissertations

Patterns of weight gain and poor diets in young adulthood, along with associations between cooking involvement, frequency, and skills and improved dietary intake, suggest that exploration of cooking knowledge, attitudes, and behavior among college students is warranted. This research employed a concurrent parallel mixed methods design and a social cognitive theory framework to study cooking perceptions among college students at a public university in a southern state with obesity rates among the highest in the U.S.

Survey respondents (N=159) scored 9.3+1.1/10 on cooking knowledge, and mean ratings on SCT-related cooking constructs were 39.2+7.4/48 (skill); 8.1+3.2, 9.3+3.4, and 10.1+4.2 out of …

The Role Of Personality Using The Millon College Counseling Inventory In Explaining A Variety Of Career Decision-Making Variables, Carly Chadick

Dissertations

In vocational research, the Five Factor Model (FFM) is one of the most popular theories of personality used when evaluating the role of personality in career development. However, thus far, few other personality theories have been used in vocational research, such as Millon’s theory. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine how Millon’s theory, operationalized using the Millon College Counseling Inventory (MCCI), may explain career development constructs, above the FFM traits, in a college student sample. Results indicated that the MCCI explained additional variance beyond FFM traits in several different career variables (i.e., profile elevation, negative career thinking, …

“A Leap Of Faith”: Student To Professional, Lisa Sandman Zenoni

Dissertations

This qualitative, phenomenological study sought to answer the question: How do new graduates view their baccalaureate educational experiences in relation to their transition to professional practice? Eight new graduate nurses from a private nursing school in the western United States participated in this study. Participants wrote reflections describing their transition from student role to professional nurse and reviewed these reflections with the researcher at the end of face-to-face interviews. In-depth interviews using open-ended questions were conducted, recorded, and transcribed by the researcher. The results of the interview and reflections were analyzed by the researcher using Colaizzi’s (1978) method to identify …

The Impacts Of Sexual Minority Stress On Degree Of Perceived Burdensomeness, Thwarted Belongingness, And Suicidal Ideation, Caroline J. Hicks

Dissertations

As rates of suicidal ideation, suicide attempts, and completed suicides within the sexual minority population have surpassed those of heterosexuals, it has become crucial for researchers and counseling psychologists to better understand the unique stress that sexual minority individuals experience. The present study examined the impact that sexual minority stress had on two constructs of the interpersonal theory of suicide, thwarted belongingness and perceived burdensomeness, as well as on suicidal ideation among a sample of sexual minority adults (n = 197). Three multiple linear regressions were conducted to assess if the sexual minority stress constructs of sexual orientation victimization, rejection …

Case Study Of Distance Learning At University Of Najran, Mahdi Mohammed Saleh Alqotami Alzamanan

Dissertations

In the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the need for distance-learning programs in the universities has been gaining importance. Najran, the area in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, which this study addressed, has been the target of serious attacks against both the government and the civilian population in a recent conflict with Yemen. Because all areas of Najran have been targeted, including educational institutions, the ability for students to attend the university in recent years has been severely curtailed. While conflict prompted the study, there were, and are, other reasons for promoting distance learning in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The …

Gifted Students’ Perceptions Of Empowerment Within High School Classrooms, Amy Karol Graefe

Dissertations

Past research has indicated that teachers’ use of power directly influences students’ sense of empowerment and that students who feel empowered are more likely to be motivated. Research has also indicated that gifted students who are motivated achieve at a level commensurate with their ability. Lack of teacher training regarding giftedness likely influences teachers’ use of power, thereby impacting gifted high school students’ perceptions of empowerment and motivation. The relationship between teacher power and student empowerment and motivation, however, has not been thoroughly investigated in gifted education literature. This phenomenological study explored classroom situations in which gifted high school students …

Actions Taken By Special Education Directors In Preventing And Mitigating The Bullying Of And By Students With Disabilities, Tiffany Lynn Dobler

Dissertations

Students with disabilities are at greater risk for both being bullied and bullying others. Victims of bullying and those that engage in such behaviors are at risk for immediate and long-term mental and physical health issues. With an increased focus on anti-bullying legislation at the state and federal level and specific guidance provided by the Office of Civil Rights (OCR) and the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) regarding anti-bullying efforts specific to students with disabilities, it is critical that districts work to prevent and proactively address the bullying of and by students with disabilities. As leaders in …

Fluid Manipulations Using A Piezo Electric Transformer For Sensing And Spray Generation Applications, Zeinab Ramshani

Dissertations

A steady effort has been made on the development of fluid manipulation techniques for sensing and actuating systems. Conventional techniques of fluid manipulation for sensing and spray generation purposes, often need trained staff or high input power and they are complicated, time consuming and expensive. Therefore, it is necessary to develop new systems which can overcome these drawbacks.

In this dissertation, the author has developed piezoelectric-based systems for fluid manipulation. The focus of this dissertation involves novel approaches of enhancing the sensing and actuating systems using the piezoelectric devices. This includes designing a system, which theoretically can overcome the limitations …