Digital Commons Network^™

"Your Information Station": A Case Study Of Rural Radio In The 21st Century, William Jacob Amadeus Pinnock

Dissertations and Theses

The study examined how the introduction of high-speed internet into a rural community affected audience members' use of their local radio station. A qualitative case study was guided by uses and gratifications and niche theory. The author conducted interviews with KMMR FM audience members in Malta, Montana, to investigate how the introduction of high-speed internet impacted listener habits. Twenty participants who either listened to or produced content for KMMR FM were interviewed. The author performed a thematic analysis of different uses for the radio guided by typologies created by Rubin (1983), Palmgreen and Rayburn (1979), and Katz, Haas, and Gurevitch …

The Stories We Tell: A Qualitative Inquiry To Multiracial Family Storytelling, Mariko O. Thomas

Dissertations and Theses

A narrative inheritance is comprised of the stories told by family members that are received by a younger generation and used to help construct identity. According to the communication theory of identity, identity is formed through communication. Additionally, the storied resource perspective looks at narratives as a major method of creating and maintaining identity. This study looks at the kinds of narrative inheritance concerning race that people in multiracial families receive and possible ways it affects racial identity formation. Findings from 12 semi-structured interviews indicate that narratives of racism, cultural pride, and hardship are prevalent in multiracial families. Additionally, findings …

Latino Men Managing Hiv: An Appraisal Analysis Of Intersubjective Relations In The Discourse Of Five Research Interviews, Will Caston

Dissertations and Theses

Latino men, particularly those who have sex with other men, have been disproportionately affected by HIV/AIDS. Scholars have sought for nearly two decades to understand how various social and cultural factors in the Latino community exacerbate HIV risk among these men. Although following the advent of life-sustaining medications in 1996, HIV is often regarded as a manageable chronic illness, as opposed to a death sentence, scant attention has been devoted to how HIV-positive Latino men experience managing the illness. Among studies that have focused on HIV-positive persons' illness management, few Latino men have participated.

Using the Appraisal framework from Hallidayan …

The Effect Of Social Media On Public Awareness And Extra-Judicial Effects: The Gay Marriage Cases And Litigating For New Rights, Sarahfina Aubrey Peterson

Dissertations and Theses

When the Supreme Court grants new rights, public awareness is a crucial part of enforcement. Gerald N. Rosenberg and Michael J. Klarman famously criticized minority rights organizations for attempting to gain new rights through the judiciary. The crux of their argument relied heavily on the American media's scanty coverage of Court issues and subsequent low public awareness of Court cases. Using the 2013 United States v. Windsor and Hollingsworth v. Perry rulings as a case study, I suggest that the media environment has changed so much since Rosenberg and Klarman were writing that their theories warrant reconsideration. Minority rights groups …

"But There's A Black History Month": A Content Analysis Of Ideological Framing And Presentation In White Nationalist Publications, Dylan Tomas Waite

Dissertations and Theses

The political climate in America continues to become more polarized each year. The "left" and "right" political parties are locked in near-constant struggle and it is often the people whom they are meant to serve that suffer the harshest effects of this struggle. This mainstream political posturing and hostile behavior has allowed for the continued presence, and some say resurgence, of racially motivated right-wing nationalist groups. Groups such as the Ku Klux Klan, the Aryan Nations and racist Skinheads have seen periods of strength and decline throughout American history. In the late 20th and early 21st Centuries they have begun …

Dialogue In Identity-Based Conflict (Study Of Intergroup-Dialogue With University Students), Lisha Shrestha

Dissertations and Theses

An individual's struggle with "self," which consists of personal identity and social identity, can create both intra- and interpersonal conflict. In this study, I explored how such struggles inform identity-based conflict and how such conflicts are addressed by intergroup dialogue. A dialogue was conducted with University students, consisting of discussions about participants' struggles with "self" and social identity. These conversations were analyzed using a mixed methods and content analysis approach. The study revealed that identities such as gender play significant roles in creating conflict within "self" and with others. National origin, race, and ethnicity also affect personal identity; however, these …

Out Of The Way And Out Of Place: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis Of The Experiences Of Social Interactions Of Bisexually Attracted Young People, A. Del Quest

Dissertations and Theses

Research addressing the concerns of bisexually attracted youth has markedly increased in the past few years, yet remains limited in comparison to that addressing the issues of lesbian and gay youth (Brewster & Moradi, 2010). Those few studies treating bisexual participants as distinct from lesbian and gay participants have findings indicating that some youth who identify as bisexual experience higher rates of depression, pregnancy, substance abuse, suicidal ideations, and suicide attempts compared to their lesbian and gay peers (Kennedy & Fisher, 2010; Lewis, Derlega, Brown, Rose, & Henson, 2009; Saewyc, Homma, Skay, Bearinger, Resnick, & Reis, 2009). Most commonly, however, …

Evaluation Of A High School Science Fair Program For Promoting Successful Inquiry-Based Learning, Julia Nykeah Betts

Dissertations and Theses

The success of inquiry-based learning (IBL) in supporting science literacy can be challenged when students encounter obstacles in the absence of proper support. This research is intended to evaluate the effectiveness of an Oregon public school district's regional science fair coaching program in promoting inquiry skills and positive attitudes toward science in participating high school students. The purpose of this study was to better understand students' perception of program support, obstacles or barriers faced by students, and potential benefits of IBL facilitated by the science fair program. Data included responses to informal and semi-structured interviews, an anonymous survey, a Skills …

Sleep Quality And Quantity Of Portland State University Intercollegiate Student-Athletes: A Case Study, Mara Elizabeth Birge

Dissertations and Theses

According to the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) rulebook, student-athletes are limited to 20 hours/week of official athletic activity. While this in and of itself is not a huge time commitment, when it is combined with the academic expectations that come with being a college student and athletic activities that are not included in the 20 hours/week, there isn't much time left in the week for student-athletes to get everything done. In addition to imposing daily stress, such time demands may negatively affect sleep. This study examined the sleep quality and quantity of student-athletes, as well as how much time …

Explorations Into The Psycholinguistic Validity Of Extended Collocations, J. Arianna Morgan

Dissertations and Theses

This study tests the hypothesis that frequency and collocational association make independent contributions to the processing time of English multiword collocational, phrases for L1 and L2 English speakers. The results suggest that these constructs do play a role in the processing of 4-word, corpus-extracted phrases. In this sample, L1 speakers demonstrated reduced processing time for both highly frequent and highly associated phrases, while L2 speakers demonstrated reduced processing time for highly frequent phrases. Evidence exists in the data that highly proficient L2 speakers may develop similar patterns of reduced processing time as L1 speakers. Additionally, some L1 speakers did not …

A Cross-Sectional Study Of Student-Athlete Needs Satisfaction And Well-Being, Abigail M. Gunnink

Dissertations and Theses

Grounded in self-determination theory (Deci & Ryan, 2000), the purpose of this study was to examine (a) the effects of the social environment, as defined by the divisions of the Department of Athletics, on student-athletes' perceptions of basic needs satisfaction, (b) the effects of basic needs satisfaction on well-being, and (c) the effects of time demands, during in-season and off-season, on well-being, among student-athletes at Portland State University (PSU). Participants were student-athletes at PSU (n = 118). The participants completed a multi-section survey assessing basic needs satisfaction and well-being. Cumulative mean scores highlighted the satisfaction of the basic psychological needs …

The Relationship Between Mindfulness And Burnout Among Master Of Social Work Students, Jolanta Maria Piatkowska

Dissertations and Theses

Social work students frequently endure elevated levels of prolonged stress and psychological affliction that might result in serious consequences, such as development of burnout. Some experts suggest that burnout originates in the exposure to chronic interpersonal stressors in the work environment. Yet, there is emerging evidence suggesting that mindfulness practice might be beneficial in alleviating stress. Thus, the purpose of this exploratory study was to examine the relationship between mindfulness and burnout among Master of Social Work students. Burnout, mindfulness, religiosity, spirituality and their potential relationship were discussed and related to previous scholarly literature. Specifically, this study focused on testing …

The Role Of Diversity In Peer Influences On Students' Academic Engagement, Hyuny Clark-Shim

Dissertations and Theses

Children's classroom engagement is important for their learning and academic achievement. Extending Kindermann's (2007) study of peer influence on adolescents' engagement to an ethnically homogeneous sample, the current study examined how different aspects of diversity affect the peer influence process. Three types of diversity were considered: ethnic diversity existing at the school level, relational diversity at the peer network level, and motivational diversity at the group level. Ethnic diversity was observed in the student body as well as among school teachers and staff. Relational diversity was measured by z-scores resulting from binomial tests reflecting how closely two pair of individuals …

Socio-Spatial Transformation And Contested Space At The Street Level In Latin America: The Case Of Cali, Colombia, Maria Janeth Mosquera Becerra

Dissertations and Theses

Since 2008, more than 50% of the world's population has lived in cities and it is projected that by 2050 around 87% will do so. Designing infrastructure in urban spaces has become increasingly critical for achieving human well-being. This dissertation examines socio-spatial transformation processes related to urbanization, economic development and the marginalization of utilitarian cycling in Cali, Colombia, as a particular expression of the struggle for transportation space occurring in urban areas. The research analyzes (a) the socio-spatial processes that have restricted the use of bicycles as a means of transportation in the city of Cali, Colombia; and (b) the …

Using Music-Related Concepts To Teach High School Math, Vytas Nagisetty

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this research was to test a strategy which uses music-related concepts to teach math. A quasi-experimental study of two high school remedial geometry sections was conducted during a review lesson of ratio, proportion, and cross multiplication. A pretest was given to both groups. Then, Group A received normal textbook instruction while Group B received the treatment, Get the Math in Music, which is an online activity involving proportional reasoning in a music-related context. Afterwards, a posttest was given to both groups. Pretest and posttest scores were used to compare gains in subject knowledge between the groups. Then …

Gender And Prescription Painkiller Misuse: Findings From The 2011 National Survey On Drug Use And Health, Robin Jo Clough

Dissertations and Theses

This study examines the effects of gender and social bonds on the experience of prescription painkiller misuse for men and women. The theoretical framework for the project is Travis Hirschi's social control theory (1969), and the social bond elements of attachment, commitment, involvement, and belief, which emphasizes the importance of these bonds in creating a "stake in conformity" for the individual, leading to acceptance of social norms and desistence from deviance. This theory, however, is relatively silent with regard to gender differences and was developed to examine delinquency in an all male sample of adolescents. The elements of this theory …

Cross-Cutting Concerns: The Varying Effects Of Partisan Cues In The Context Of Social Networks, Benjamin King Smith

Dissertations and Theses

The theory of motivated reasoning predicts that partisan cues in the media will affect political attitudes, by encouraging individuals to align their views with those of their party's elites. The effect has primarily been tested by looking at issues which have pre-established partisan positions (e.g. immigration reform, gay rights, etc.). This study looks at the effects of partisan cues in the media on attitudes toward a non-partisan issue, the NSA's collection of American's meta-data. Additionally, the study extends research on partisan cues by exploring the moderating role of an individual's political communication network and, specifically, exposure to cross-cutting political communication. …

Determinants Of Recent Mover Non-Work Travel Mode Choice, Arlie Steven Adkins

Dissertations and Theses

Active transportation modes of walking and bicycling have the potential to help mitigate environmental and health concerns ranging from growing greenhouse gas emissions to increasing rates of obesity. This dissertation investigates how new movers make decisions about active transportation, particularly non-work utilitarian walking, in the context of a new home and neighborhood. New movers are an important, yet often overlooked, population in travel behavior research because they provide an opportunity to observe behavior adoption in new contexts, but also because the roughly one-in-ten Americans who move each year are more likely to consider changes to daily routines, including travel behavior, …

Synthesizing The Vertical And The Horizontal: A World-Ecological Analysis Of 'The Industrial Revolution', Part I, Christopher R. Cox

Dissertations and Theses

'The Industrial Revolution' is simultaneously one of the most under-examined and overly-simplified concepts in all of social science. One of the ways it is highly under-examined is in the arena of the ecological, particularly through the lens of critical world-history. This paper attempts to analyze the phenomenon through the lens of the world-ecology synthesis, in three distinct phases: First, the history of the conceptualization of the Industrial Revolution is examined at length, paying special attention to the knowledge foundations that determine these conceptualizations. Secondly, I sift out what I believe is the dominant model throughout most of modern …

The Impact Of The Tax Revolt And School Reform On Oregon Schools During The 1990s, Beth Cookler

Dissertations and Theses

When Oregon voters passed the property tax limitation initiative, Measure 5, and the state legislature enacted school reform under the Oregon Educational Act for the 21st Century during the 1990-91 school year, the trajectory of public schooling in the state changed significantly. After Oregon's tax revolt, the state legislature also enacted legislation that equalized school funding throughout the state. The combination of equalization and the Measure 5 step-down to the $5 per $1000 tax limitation led to a decrease in statewide school funding over the decade. Many wealthy urban districts experienced years of budget cuts, while rural districts received additional …

Social Networks Of Intimate Partner Violence Perpetrators, Wendy Elaine Viola

Dissertations and Theses

Empirical research in the areas of substance abuse (Beattie & Longabaugh, 1997; Beattie & Longabaugh, 1999; Falkin & Strauss, 2002; Gordon & Zrull, 1991; Humphreys & Noke, 1997; Mohr et al., 2001; Zywiak, Longabaugh & Wirtz, 2002) and general antisocial behavior (Browning, 2002; Capaldi, Dishion, Stoolmiller & Yoerger, 2001; Dishion, Patterson & Griesler, 1994) and a theoretical model of sexual assault perpetration (DeKeseredy & Schwartz, 1993; DeKeseredy, 1990a; DeKeseredy, 1988; Schwartz & DeKeseredy, 1997) highlight the role of peer groups' attitudes and behaviors in shaping those of their members. Intimate partner violence (IPV) among men's parents (Arriaga & Foshee, 2004; …

Understanding Male Nursing Student Perceptions Of The Influence Of Gender: A Qualitative Case Study Approach Of Students, Faculty, And Administration In A Pacific Northwest Nursing Program, Jennifer Anne Anderson

Dissertations and Theses

In contemporary American society, the nursing profession is predominantly made up of white women. Currently, males make up only 6.8 percent of the three million nursing professionals in the U.S. and they are considered gender minorities within the nursing profession and within nursing education. As gender minorities, male students are identified as experiencing nursing programs and the practice of nursing differently than their female counterparts. The purpose of this single instrumental, within site case study was to explore the learning environment for male nursing students and to investigate the nature of the interactions between nursing faculty and male undergraduate students …

Racism, Heterosexism, Depression, And Hiv Risk Behaviors Of Native Men Who Have Sex With Men: Findings From The Honor Project, Matthew Alan Town

Dissertations and Theses

Racial minority men who have sex with men (MSM) experience greater levels of discrimination and higher rates of HIV infection. However, little is known about the associations between racial and heterosexist discrimination and HIV risk behavior. Further, little is known about the mechanisms of the association between racial and heterosexist discrimination and HIV risk behavior. There is some evidence to suggest that depression may be a mechanism that mediates the relationship between racial and heterosexist discrimination and HIV risk behavior. Thus, one purpose of this study was to investigate the extent to which discrimination based on both race and sexual …

Benevolent Racism? : The Impact Of Race And Sexual Subtype On Ambivalent Sexism, Jean Marie Mcmahon

Dissertations and Theses

How does a woman's race influence perceptions of her sexual behavior? This study investigated how race and sexual behavior intersect within an ambivalent sexism framework. Benevolent sexism characterizes women as pure and defenseless, which contrasts with the cultural stereotype of Black women as aggressive and hypersexual. Gender and racial stereotypes may combine to produce different outcomes for women who behave according to negative (promiscuous) or positive (chaste) sexual subtypes. According to shifting standards theory, evaluations and treatment of these women should vary depending on whether the measured behavior is non-zero sum (limitless) or zero sum (finite). To test this hypothesis, …

It's Complicated: The Role Of Facebook In Romantic Relationships Concerning Relational Certainty, Attachment, And Self-Esteem, Jenna Rae Tucker

Dissertations and Theses

Facebook is among the top used websites in the world, and research has shown that Facebook use is related to individual personality characteristics such as well-being and self-esteem. This study builds on previous research, expanding to investigate attachment-related anxiety and avoidance and relational certainty. The current study examined relationships between Facebook use (both general and for surveillance) and relational certainty, attachment-related anxiety and avoidance, and self-esteem in undergraduate students (N = 261). Online methods were used for data collection, and individuals with their relationship displayed on Facebook reported more relational certainty; however, the more time they spent on the site, …

Automatic Calibration Of Water Quality And Hydrodynamic Model (Ce-Qual-W2), Nasim Shojaei

Dissertations and Theses

One of the most important purposes of surface water resource management is to develop predictive models to assist in identifying and evaluating operational and structural measures for improving water quality. To better understand the effects of external and internal nutrient and organic loading and the effects of reservoir operation, a model is often developed, calibrated, and used for sensitivity and management simulations. The importance of modeling and simulation in the scientific community has drawn interest towards methods for automated calibration. This study addresses using an automatic technique to calibrate the water quality model CE-QUAL-W2 (Cole and Wells, 2013). CE-QUAL-W2 is …

Equality, Trust And Universalism In Europe, Canada And The United States: Implications For Health Care Policy, P. Christopher Palmedo

Dissertations and Theses

A number of theoretical explanations seek to describe the factors that have led to the position of the United States as the last industrialized Western nation without a universal health care program. Theories focus on institutional arrangement, historic precedent, and the influence of the private sector and market forces. This study explores another factor: the role of underlying social values. The research examines differences in values among ten European countries, the United States and Canada, and analyzes the associations between the values that have been seen to contribute the individualism-collectivism dynamic in the United States. The hypothesis that equality and …

"Vitalité": Race Science And Jews In France 1850-1914, Kendra Beth Hendrickson

Dissertations and Theses

Race science is built on ideas of division and categorization. In the historian's quest to tell the story of race science, certain frameworks have been used that can greatly inhibit our understanding of this fraught topic. The impulse to study race science in the framework of the nation-state has led to certain misconceptions and lends itself to a historical narrative wherein racist concepts stop at artificially imposed borders. In addition, the national framework detracts from the individual's contributions and instead lumps these contributions together on the level of the nation-state, thus opening the door for judgments about whole nations being …

Bumps Along The Long And Winding Road: Factors Related To Truck Driver Turnover And Job-Induced Tension, Layla Rhiannon Mansfield

Dissertations and Theses

Voluntary turnover rates among truckload carriers are extremely high, ranging from 50% to more than 100% annually (Griffin & Kalnbach, 2002), furthermore, long-haul truck drivers operate in a stressor-filled environment, which exerts enormous adverse influence not only their well-being but also on their intent to quit. This study explores the relational aspects of the driver's work environment to highlight how the relationships that a driver has with their organization, supervisor, and dispatcher can explain turnover and job-induced tension. Drawing on Social Exchange Theory, Conservation of Resources Theory, and concepts from Hirschman's (1970) theoretical framework of Exit, Voice, and Loyalty, this …

Trauma-Informed Research And Planning: Understanding Government And Urban Native Community Partnerships To Addressing Substance-Exposed Pregnancies In Portland, Or, Amanda Mercier

Dissertations and Theses

In 2011, representatives from the Multnomah County Health Departments and several Native-serving organizations came together to address substance-exposed pregnancies among urban Native Americans in Portland, Oregon. From these partnerships, the Future Generations Collaborative was formed representing a significant shift toward community-led maternal child health research and planning. Additionally, the Future Generations Collaborative adopted a historical trauma-informed community based participatory research and planning process. This is particularly significant considering government agencies' role in colonization within Native communities. The purpose of this case study is to explore partnerships between government agencies and the Portland Native community within the Future Generations Collaborative. Given …