Digital Commons Network^™

An Exploratory Study Of An Executive Team Leading Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, And Belonging (Deib), Tara Lashawn Cooper

Dissertations and Theses

With the increasing demographic diversity and critical focus on social justice in the United States, leaders are under significant pressure to integrate diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging (DEIB) strategies into their core operations and organizational culture. Challenged to think more critically about how to better prepare and support leaders in DEIB efforts, minimal research exists to provide insights on how executives should prepare, what they might expect, or the proven practices in DEIB. Driven by this lack of literature, this qualitative study explored how an executive team experienced and navigated the complexities of integrating and advancing DEIB in their organization. …

Social Media And The Technological Infrastructure Of Polarization In The United States: How Do We Move Forward?, Phoebe Cordova

Dissertations and Theses

The United States is currently experiencing extremely high levels of polarization that is unique to other times in history. One way to account for this historical difference is the fact that polarization is playing out under the novel conditions generated by technology and, specifically, social media. Thus far, work in the area of social media and polarization has primarily focused on proving a causal relationship between the two with contributions across disciplines remaining disparate without an integrative framework of understanding. Strikingly, there are few contributions from the field of conflict resolution, indicative of the more sweeping need for the field …

Effects Of Exogenous And Endogenous Variables On Efficiency And Productivity: Case Of Indian Banks, Aurobindh Kalathil Puthanpura

Dissertations and Theses

Financial intermediation is the process by which financial intermediaries facilitate the flow of funds between depositors and creditors. Financial intermediation is critical in facilitating economic growth and fostering technological innovation. An effective and robust financial intermediation is key for a well functioning financial sector and the overall economy. So, it is vital to study the efficiency and productivity of the financial sector to discover any inefficiencies in the intermediation process and to implement robust policies to improve efficiency.

Researchers have examined the banking sector's efficiency and productivity using parametric and non-parametric methods, incorporating diverse inputs and outputs. However, there is …

Social Reproduction On Campus: Quantitative Investigations Into The Reproduction Of Gender And Socioeconomic Inequality Through Higher Education, Ned William Tilbrook

Dissertations and Theses

This dissertation examines two key axes of inequality in higher education -- gender and socioeconomic status (SES) -- in terms of differences in college persistence and college major using the nationally-representative High School Longitudinal Study of 2009. While gender differences in terms of STEM majors has been oft-studied, this dissertation contributes to this body of literature by advancing Health & Social Sciences (HSS) majors as a separate category and examining the ways in which men and women may be sorted into these different types of major before and during college, despite the strong overlap in science and math related content. …

The Genetic Consequences Of Pollen And Seed Transport In The Wind, Elizabeth Hendrickson Scott

Dissertations and Theses

Dispersal is a crucial ecological and evolutionary process in plants. Seed dispersal is responsible for the colonization of novel locations and for range expansion in response to climate change, and pollen dispersal is important for the maintenance of genetic diversity in populations, particularly through long-distance dispersal events. Because plants are sessile, many species are dependent upon dispersal vectors to facilitate gene flow. Dispersal in the wind is a common vector in multiple plant families, as dispersal by abiotic vectors does not depend on community composition and is therefore more reliable than dispersal by biotic vectors. Despite prevalence among plant systems, …

Restoring, Protecting, And Expanding Abortion Access In The United States: Seeking Consensus Through The Delphi Method, Sarah Pickering

Dissertations and Theses

Background: The Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization Supreme Court decision exacerbated inequitable access to abortion in the US. Agreement is needed on which strategies should be prioritized to restore, protect, and expand abortion access.

Methods: We convened a multidisciplinary, geographically diverse Delphi panel of clinical, research, policy, legal, and advocacy experts to reach consensus (i.e., agreement >67%) on recommended actions. Using feedback from three rounds of surveys, and input from a select expert advisory group (N=10), we iteratively refined the statements and recommendations.

Results: The panel (N=85) developed 25 consensus statements and 32 recommendations for action by advocates, funders, …

A One Health Approach To Enhancing Sars-Cov-2 Surveillance, Lauren C. Cybulska

Dissertations and Theses

Background

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2), the virus that causes coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) in humans, can also infect domestic dogs (Canis lupus familiaris) and cats (Felis catus). Susceptibility and viral transmissibility in these species are concerns for public health due to the spillover risk to humans or other animals. This dissertation uses a One Health framework to explore key issues on this topic. We aim to identify gaps in understanding of SARS-CoV-2 in companion animals and investigate novel surveillance methods through human, animal, and environmental health perspectives.

Methods

Paper 1 provides an in-depth exploration of …

Characterizing The Role Of The Complement Receptor C3ar In Regulating Inflammatory Responses And Mitochondrial Function In Activated Macrophages, Jesse Alan Corcoran

Dissertations and Theses

The complement system is an integral part of the innate immune response, and consists of a series of proteins that are mostly (although not exclusively) synthesized in the liver that circulate in the plasma as inactive precursors, as well as receptors on the surface of immune cells. In immune cells such as macrophages, recognition of pathogens by Toll-like receptors (TLRs) leads to the initiation of inflammation and triggers complement activation through a coordinated sequential enzyme cascade that results in the production of bioactive C3a, which interacts with membrane-bound receptor C3aR to regulate innate immune cell function and outcome of bacterial …

Embodying Whole Community Preparedness: A Case Study Of Student-Facing Preparedness Initiatives At Institutions Of Higher Education In The State Of Oregon, Francis Pastorelle

Dissertations and Theses

Over the last two decades, there has been a dramatic increase in natural and manmade disasters. While no community is immune to the risks posed by these large-scale emergencies, colleges, and universities, which are home to numerous vulnerable populations, could be counted among those most at risk. In their current state of overall community preparedness, campuses are not equipped to weather impending dangers; consequently, the impact on students could be disastrous. This study examined preparedness practices at Oregon colleges and universities to better understand how institutions of higher education in the state prepare their students for large-scale emergencies, what challenges …

Dft Based Modeling Of The Heavy Atom Effect In Triplet Photosensitizers: From Fundamental Mechanics To Rational Design, Bret Andrew Steinkamp

Dissertations and Theses

Photochemistry is the study of how light interacts with molecules and includes both the absorption and release of light. This document focuses on triplet photosensitizers -- molecules that utilize the excited triplet state -- for a variety of applications including photodynamic therapy and photocatalysis. There are many factors that influence the design of triplet photosensitizers; in this work, we have developed and used a methodology for the rational design of triplet photosensitizers based on an approximation of the heavy atom effect (HAE) from density functional theory calculations and the experimentally measured singlet oxygen quantum yield (Ф_Δ).

As excited …

Application Of Methods To Population-Based Surveys To Reduce Bias In Estimates Of Sars-Cov-2 Infection Burden In The Population, Saba Qasmieh

Dissertations and Theses

BACKGROUND: Population-based surveys designed to randomly sample the population can be a critical and complementary tool to traditional surveillance approaches. Probability-based surveys enable the measurement of SARS-CoV-2 testing and outcomes that avoid issues around self-selection into testing, making them an effective approach to address ascertainment bias in passive surveillance. For surveys to be a useful and reliable surveillance tool for understanding the burden and distribution of SARS-CoV-2 infection, they need to capture prevalence estimates that are both valid and reliable to be optimally informative for public health measures. The dissertation was undertaken to address three main gaps that have implications …

Strengthening U.S. Jail Systems’ Response To Infectious Diseases: An Evaluation Of The Covid-19 Pandemic, Erinn Bacchus

Dissertations and Theses

Jails across the United States were struck with increased infections and deaths during the COVID-19 pandemic. Studies have shown the structural make up of jails, lack of preparedness plans, and overcrowding contributed to health risks and poor health outcomes both inside jails and local communities. Yet little research has been dedicated to strengthening jail responses to infectious disease outbreaks spanning prevention measures, data collection, and reentry planning. Gaps include information on the (1) myriad infectious disease mitigation strategies used in jails and adherence to CDC prevention guidelines, (2) development of a standardized epidemiologic surveillance system, and (3) experiences working at …

The Nuanced Relationship Between Mindfulness, Racial Prejudice, And Policy Support, Jared Michael Cutler

Dissertations and Theses

Researchers have investigated the relationship between mindfulness and prejudice, although the findings have been somewhat inconsistent. Two broad factors may be responsible for these mixed findings: different conceptualizations of mindfulness across studies, and ideological differences among participants. Attention monitoring and acceptance, together, are proposed to be responsible for the psychological benefits of mindfulness, including reduced emotion rumination. Attention alone, however, strengthens rumination, which predicts prejudice. Additionally, prejudice hinders the endorsement of equitable policy. As such, mindfulness measures and interventions that capture attention alone, then, may be positively related to prejudice and negatively associated with support for equitable policy, whereas mindfulness …

Consequences Of Spatial Heterogeneity For Turbulent Wake Development, Ryan Scott

Dissertations and Theses

Spatial heterogeneity is an fundamental property of natural systems. In fluid dynamics subtle variations in fluid motion give rise to chaotic turbulent flows. When a fluid passes an object it retains an imprint of the object as a momentum deficit known as a wake. The resulting spatial structure of the wake is intrinsically linked to the object responsible for its creation. The coupling between geometric complexity in wake producing entities and turbulent wake evolution is considered in terms of spatial heterogeneity from individual wakes through turbulent canopy flows. First a novel Lacunarity-based method is developed for quantifying spatial heterogeneity in …

The Central Role Of Perceived Safety In Connecting Crash Risk Factors And Walking Behavior, Kyu Ri Kim

Dissertations and Theses

Despite advanced policies, plans, and facilities, many pedestrians are still injured and killed in traffic crashes in the United States. To improve pedestrian safety and the walking environment, the relationship between surrounding crash risk factors and perceived safety that influence people's behavior needs to be studied. This study aims to examine pedestrian crash risk factors, the relationship between crash risk factors and perceived safety, measured as threatened experiences and safety attitudes, and the relationship between safety attitudes and walking behavior.

The analysis used data from three primary sources: (1) an original survey of 551 residents in 10 neighborhoods in Oregon …

Three Essays On Communicative Planning: From The Perspective Of East Asians, Minji Cho

Dissertations and Theses

Communicative planning aims to strengthen the inclusiveness of planning by shifting the paradigm from the perception that the public is considered an object affected by the planning process to an active participant. In modern society, where people's values are more diverse, communicative planning can be an alternative way to reflect the opinions of people with diverse identities for decision-making. At the same time, however, it is criticized for its difficulty in universal application, particularly in non-Western countries. Scholars argue that since communicative planning theory is biased toward Anglo-Americans' context, it requires a specific contextual condition.

In this background, this dissertation …

Automatic Measurement Of Dialogue Engagingness In Multilingual Settings, Amila Ferron

Dissertations and Theses

Expansive use of large language models (LLMs) as dialogue systems brings increased importance to the evaluation of the responses they generate. Although evaluation of qualities such as coherence and fluency are readily possible with well-established automatic metrics, engagingness is often measured with human evaluation -- a process that can be costly and slows the pace of development. Existing automatic metrics for engagingness have low to moderate correlation with human annotations, evaluate the response without the conversation history, are complicated to implement, or are designed for a specific dataset. Moreover, they have been tested exclusively on English conversations. Given that dialogue …

Towards A New Discourse On Success In Alternative Education, Samuel Thomas Settelmeyer

Dissertations and Theses

Although researchers agree that Alternative Education (AE) within the United States is an essential set of schools and programs that do things beyond traditional education, they do not agree on the purpose for these efforts. To understand how researchers can connect between existing perspectives and consider new ways that they can discuss success in the future, I interviewed 16 students and 15 staff from three different AE schools within the same state. Through thematic analysis, I found students and staff to describe success as an amalgamation of individual and common conceptions, requiring individual effort and support, a commitment to daily …

Efficient And Chemoselective Access To Highly Functionalized Arenes By C-H Deprotonative Generation Of Aryne Intermediates, Bryan Edward Metze

Dissertations and Theses

Arenes are a ubiquitous structural motif occurring in numerous organic pharmaceuticals, agrochemicals, secondary metabolites, and functional materials. As such, studies on the characterization, functionalization, and properties of arenes have been a central pillar of organic chemistry since its inception. Early methods to synthesize complex benzenoid rings focused on ring functionalization rather than ring construction due to the high accessibility of very simple arenes and the wide range of aromatic substitution reactions discovered in the late 19th century. As the importance of arenes was recognized more methods of building complex arenes emerged. Both classical and modern approaches are still somewhat limited, …

Experiences Of Community College Stem Students In Transferring And Adapting To A Four-Year Urban University, Mackenzie Jade Gray

Dissertations and Theses

Ensuring that the bachelor's degree pathway that begins at a community college is a robust option for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) students will be key for addressing the calls to increase and diversify the future STEM workforce. Yet, students on this pathway currently face many structural barriers that can lead to attrition. In this work, we aim to understand the experiences of community college students as they transfer, adapt, and persist to graduation at an urban four-year university.

First, we used the Model for Analyzing Human Adaptation to Transition to explore the experiences of community college STEM students …

Primary Care In The University Setting After Covid-19: A Multiple Case Study Of Student Health Services In Oregon, D. Chad Johnson

Dissertations and Theses

In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted operations across the settings of primary care and higher education institutions (HEI). HEIs faced sudden decreases in revenue because of reduced enrollments and external pressures to rapidly adapt delivery methods to accommodate the inability to provide in-person classes. Similarly, most primary care settings experienced major reductions to in-person visits and fee-for-service revenues. Student health services (SHS) exist within both primary care and higher education settings and are a unique and poorly understood aspect of primary care. This research set out to explore this under-studied primary care setting by answering the question: "How has COVID-19 …

Design And Test Of Asynchronous Systems Using The Link And Joint Model, Ebelechukwu Esimai

Dissertations and Theses

Asynchronous circuits offer numerous advantages, including low energy consumption and good composability and scalability. However, they remain meagerly adopted in the mainstream semiconductor industry. One reason is the limited number of design tools available to help designers navigate design complexity, particularly the myriad of asynchronous implementation styles.

This dissertation focuses on managing the myriad of asynchronous implementation styles by utilizing a circuit-neutral model, called Links and Joints, and embedding this Link-Joint approach into a design flow. Although years of past work have already laid the groundwork, the work in this dissertation identifies and addresses key missing pieces.

First, the …

Feeling Otherwise: A Hermeneutic Phenomenological Study Of Queer And Trans Youth Of Color Who Create And Embody Fursonas, Hazel Ali Zaman

Dissertations and Theses

Queer and trans youth of color are often the target of surveillance, bullying, discrimination, and abuse. However, in an attempt to navigate such violent and discriminatory circumstances, the queer and trans youth of color in this dissertation found refuge in furry art and performances, both online and offline, where they were able to express themselves freely and thus acquire a sense of belonging among others with similar experiences. In this dissertation, "a furry" is used to refer to an individual who self-identifies as one who has an affinity for anthropomorphic animal characters. A common practice among furries is creating a …

Some Hypergeometric Identities And Related Leonard Pairs, Taiyo Summers Terada

Dissertations and Theses

The notion of a Leonard pair was introduced by Terwilliger in 2001 to simplify Leonard's theorem, which classifies the orthogonal polynomials in the terminating branch of the Askey-Wilson scheme. In the same year, Kresch and Tamvakis made a conjecture about a certain ₄F₃ hypergeometric series while studying the arithmetic analogues of the standard conjectures for the Grassmanian G(2,n). The ₄F₃ series appearing in their conjecture is closely related to a family of orthogonal polynomials in the Askey-Wilson scheme. Consequently, the theory of Leonard pairs provides a useful framework for understanding their conjecture.

In …

Computational Tools For Exploring Eigenvector Localization, Robyn Ashley Markee Reid

Dissertations and Theses

We develop computational tools for exploring eigenvector localization for a class of selfadjoint, elliptic eigenvalue problems regardless of the cause for localization. The user inputs a desired region R (not necessarily connected), a tolerance for the amount localization in R, and the desired energy range [a,b]. The tool outputs eigenvectors concentrated within the tolerance inside R and within [a, b]. We develop ample theory that justifies our algorithm, which involves a complex, compact perturbation of the operator L, Ls = L+isχR, for some (small) s > 0. Our central idea can be summarized as follows: if (λ,ψ) is an eigenpair of …

Social Justice In Social Work: A Critical Discourse Analysis, Erica Fonseca

Dissertations and Theses

Social justice is central to social work and guides the profession's ethics, educational standards, and practices. It is aspirational and actionable, ideological and practical, and is simultaneously shaped by, and shapes in turn, social work. Consequently, this study understands social justice to be a discourse. Despite its ubiquity throughout the profession, what constitutes social justice, how it should (or could) be practiced, and what epistemologies orient social work to the concept continue to be debated. Given social work's express promotion of social justice and the myriad ideas and practices that follow from this critical value, the concept and the foundational …

Atmospheric Circulation, Climate Change, And Related Impacts Over The Western United States, Graham Patrick Taylor

Dissertations and Theses

This dissertation characterizes the range of atmospheric circulation patterns and select associated meteorology impacting the northwest United States, the onset timing of rain and wind relevant to wildfire across the western United States, and how these may respond to global warming. The ability of a suite of models contributing to the sixth phase of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP6) to simulate observed large-scale atmospheric circulation patterns over the Pacific Northwest of North America is evaluated. Climate model projections of atmospheric circulation patterns, their frequency, and associated temperature and precipitation anomalies under a high-end global warming scenario are assessed over …

Urgent Care Program Influences On An Integrated Health Care System, Craig H. Carter

Dissertations and Theses

The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) is the most extensive integrated health care delivery system in the world with over 20,000 physicians, 1,600 facilities, and more than 400,000 employees, caring for nine million veterans. The health care provided covers traditional outpatient and hospital-based services such as primary care, surgery, critical care, mental health, orthopedics, pharmacy, radiology, and physical therapy. Most VHA facilities offer additional medical and surgical specialties such as audiology, speech pathology, dermatology, dental, geriatrics, urology, oncology, podiatry, prosthetics, and vision care. Some of the more extensive VHA facilities offer advanced health care services, such as organ transplants and plastic …

Geochemistry And Geochronology Of The Steens And Monument Dike Swarm: Implications And Relationships To Magmatic Storage And To Lava Flows Of The Picture Gorge And Steens Basalt, Rachel Anne Sweeten

Dissertations and Theses

The Columbia River Basalt Group (CRBG) is the youngest and best-preserved example of a continental flood basalt province. Vents and dikes for the four main eruptive units (Steens, Imnaha, Grande Ronde, and Picture Gorge Basalt) are the Monument, Steens and Chief Joseph Dike Swarms located in eastern Oregon, southeastern Washington, and northern Nevada.

Here we report on the compositions and timing of the dikes and sills of the Monument Dike Swarm (MDS), as well as their relationship to the subaerial lava flows of the Picture Gorge Basalt (PGB) with implications for crustal storage of these magmas. We evaluate data from …

The Exploration Of Latino Bip Participants' Experiences Of Oppression And Expressions Of Critical Consciousness, Adrian Luis Manriquez

Dissertations and Theses

According to Freire (1970), individuals and groups who are systemically oppressed in society often develop and struggle with a sense of internalized oppression, and those who fail to address their own oppression will likely engage in the oppression of others. Conceivably, this is the state of affairs for Latino males who perpetrate intimate partner violence (IPV). However, Latinos who use IPV behaviors are often viewed solely as "villains" or oppressors (Corvo & Johnson, 2003), omitting the various contexts in which this subgroup of males might be subjected to oppressive conditions outside of their intimate relationships. This contributes to an absence …