Digital Commons Network^™

Fluctuating Asymmetry And Its Relationship To Established Indicators Of Environmental Stress., Matthew Stephen Shotwell

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Fluctuating asymmetry (FA) is commonly thought to be a predictor of environmental stress. However, the relationship between FA and established indicators for environmental stress has received little attention. In this study, 10-38 specimens of the freshwater fish Rhinichthys atratulus were collected from 15 natural populations under varying amounts of environmental stress. Asymmetry measurements in three bilateral characters of the specimens were used to investigate the relationship between FA and established indicators of environmental stress. Significant differences in the magnitude of FA were observed between sampling locations. However, the relationship between estimates of FA and established indicators produced varying results. The …

Bullying Behavior In Middle School: The Effects Of Gender, Grade Level, Family Relationships, And Vicarious Victimization On Self-Esteem And Attitudes Of Bullying., Jennifer Mongold

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This research was conducted to investigate the effects of gender, grade level, family relationships, and vicarious victimization on self-esteem and attitudes of bullying. A self-report questionnaire was administered to sixth and seventh graders at a middle school to 436 students of whom 209 were males and 224 were females. Each home base classroom was systematically sampled for a random sample. The survey consisted of several demographic questions as well as questions regarding the previously mentioned variables. The mean age was 11.8 with 80.7% indicating they were white and 19.3% indicating another race. In the overall regression equations, gender and family …

A Perceptual Study Of The Impact Of Athletic Programs In Selected Community Colleges In The State Of Tennessee., Lee Martin Cigliano

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of the study was to examine the economic, institutional, and human impact of athletic programs at community colleges in the Tennessee Board of Regents community college system to determine how the athletic programs affects the benefits, or lack of benefits, for students, the institutions, and the communities.

Sixteen participants were interviewed: two presidents, two athletic directors, four coaches, and eight student-athletes. The student-athletes represented four different sports and came from a variety of educational backgrounds and academic standing. The primary benefits perceived for the institutions and the student-athletes were the impact on missions, enrollment, educational and athletic opportunities, …

Physician Communication Behaviors That Elicit Patient Trust., Linda E. Bambino

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The general relationship between the physician and the patient is one where communication is used to establish and maintain what will likely become a long-term partnership. Health communication research indicates that physicians who have apt communication skills in the patient-physician relationship develop a platform of trust behaviors. The physician communication behaviors perceived to elicit trust reported by patients are; comfort/caring, agency, competence, compassion and honesty. The objective of the research project was to assess patient perceptions of previously determined physician communication behaviors that predict patient trust through individual surveys (N=162) between foreign-born international medical graduates and American-born non-IMG resident physicians. …

"Don't Believe The Hype": The Construction And Export Of African American Images In Hip-Hop Culture., John Ike Sewell Jr.

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study examines recurring motifs and personas in hip-hop.

Interviews with influential hip-hop scholars, writers and music industry personnel were conducted and analyzed using qualitative methods. Interview subjects were selected based on their insider knowledge as music critics, hip-hop scholars, ethnomusicologists, publicists, and music industry positions.

The vast majority of constructed imagery in hip-hop is based on a single persona, the gangsta. This qualitative analysis reveals why gangsta personas and motifs have become the de facto imagery of hip-hop. Gangsta imagery is repeatedly presented because it sells, it is the most readily-available role, and because of music industry pressures.

This …

Improving Parent And Teen Conflict Resolution Skills: Evaluating The Effectiveness Of The "Family Reunion" Crisis Intervention Program., Carrie Davis Marchant

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Parent and teen communication combined with relationship skills, and their ability to resolve conflict, need extensive research to help understand if effective intervention can lead to short-term and long-term success in terms of continued crime and delinquency prevention and relationship endurance. This researcher conducted a short-term study by holding a parent and teen communication and conflict resolution intervention program for teens and parents in crisis called Family Reunion. Five classes were held with 102 research subjects. Pre and post treatment questionnaire surveys were administered containing both fixed responses and open-ended questions. Quantitative analysis of the fixed response items indicated positive …

Perceived Teacher Self-Efficacy In Early Childhood Settings: Differences Between Early Childhood And Elementary Education Candidates., Bradley Carroll Billheimer

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the degree of perceived teacher self-efficacy between early childhood preservice teachers and elementary education pre-service teachers. There were 88 participants: 44 elementary education pre-service teachers and 40 early childhood pre-service teachers. Participants were mostly white, female pre-service teachers enrolled at East Tennessee State University. Using Bandura's 30-item "Teacher Self-Efficacy Scale" pre-service teachers rated their perceived self-efficacy on 7 subscales: decision-making, influence on school resources, instructional efficacy, disciplinary efficacy, enlisting parent involvement, enlisting community involvement, and creating a positive school climate. Significant differences were found between groups for 3 of the 7 subscales. Early childhood education pre-service teachers …

Using The Theory Of Reasoned Action To Examine The Gambling Behaviors Of College Athletes And Other Students., Robert Gene Thrasher

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Legal and illegal gambling opportunities are readily available to students on college campuses and surrounding areas (Saum, 1999). College students are at an age that is highly impressionable, experimental, and prime to taking risks while ignoring the potential consequences (Oster, 1992). Because of their desire for competition, college student athletes may be highly susceptible to the lure of gambling. While the rates of pathological gambling are high for college students, the rates for the subpopulation of college student athletes are posited to be even higher (Rockey, Beason, Lee, Stewart, & Gilbert, 1997). The general purpose of the current study was …

Nourishing The Relationship : An Actress And Her Craft., Pacey Lizette Walker

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis is divided into six chapters covering my evolution as an artist. The introduction features the growth and awareness I have attained, spanning the past three years, since I arrived at graduate school. Chapter One discusses my approach to the character of Anna while Chapter Two focuses on my research of Aphasia and Astronomy as they relate to the script of Night Sky. Chapter Three explores the audition and rehearsal processes and the outcome of those processes as experienced in the performance. In Chapter Four, I reflect on the experience of Night Sky and examine ways I could have …

Creating The Environment For "In The Blood"., Benjamin Ray Mays

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

From the moment the audience enters the auditorium the play is a mystery. They are looking for clues as to the nature of the story in which they are about to participate. The designer's job is to select what these clues are. How does the designer decide what the audience will see or won't see? The audience sees only the final product which is a culmination of the process of creation. It is this process that is important and will lead to the creation of a successful theatrical environment, one which goes beyond the 4th wall to create a living, …

Effects Of Training On Postprandial Flow Mediated Dilation., Kevin David Ballard

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine if training has a protective effect on endothelial function following the consumption of a high-fat meal. Twenty young males classified as trained or untrained underwent vascular and blood lipid testing pre and post (two- and four-hours) a high-fat meal. Flow mediated dilation was significantly decreased at two- (p < 0.001) and fourhours (p < 0.001) in both groups, with no differences between groups (p = 0.119). Serum TG increased at two- (p < 0.001) and four-hours (p < 0.001) in both groups. LDL-C was reduced at four-hours (p = 0.050) in trained subjects, and two- and four-hours (piÜ 0.01) in untrained subjects. Two-hour HDL-C was reduced compared to baseline (p = 0.024) and four-hours (p = 0.014) in both groups. This study demonstrates that a high-fat meal induces endothelial dysfunction for up to four hours in males, independent of training status.

Cost-Comparison Of Prostate Cancer Screening Versus Not Screening., Bill Fell 1951-

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Prostate cancer is a common form of cancer in men. In fact, prostate cancer has the highest incidence of any cancer in men. Prostate cancer is not only common, it carries a significant financial burden. The cost of prostate cancer is 11.3% of all cancer expenditures. If after a DRE the prostate is enlarged, or if the PSA is elevated, then a biopsy of the prostate would be recommended. Under the best of circumstances, cancer diagnoses will be missed and many will undergo unnecessary biopsy, etc. The focus of this paper was the cost-utility of screening with the PSA test. …

Identity Theft And Routine Activities : A Test Of Victimization Using College Students., Brian Dean Fell

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines the link between routine activity theory and identity theft victimization using college students. Using data collected from 308 undergraduate students attending a southeastern university, this study seeks to present the likelihood that college students will become a victim to identity theft in the future. In doing so, the study also seeks to present the college student's perception that they could become a victim of identity theft in the future. Overall, this study has the main objective of determining if a link exists between college student's routine activities and the risk of them becoming victims of identity theft. …

Text Mining Comorbidity Codes In The Analysis Of Cardiopulmonary Rehabilitation Data., Jennifer Ferrell 1982-

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this paper is to examine the process of text mining and using the results to show the possible benefits of cardiopulmonary rehabilitation. The 555 patients enrolled in the study were receiving inpatient cardiopulmonary rehabilitation. Each patient had comorbidity codes associated with them. These codes are secondary diagnoses to the cardiac or pulmonary event that resulted in their hospitalization. The patients had secondary conditions ranging in number from 1 to 10. The patients were assessed at admission and discharge for functional independence. Since there are numerous comorbidity codes for each patient, it would be difficult to analyze each …

Mechanistic Studies Of Guanine-Rich Oligonucleotides., Allicia C. Girvan 1978-

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Guanine-rich oligonucleotides (GROs) are being developed as a novel anticancer agents. GROs exhibit potent antiproliferative properties against several malignant cell lines and in established in vivo tumor models. In a recent Phase I clinical trial for patients with advanced cancer, one of these GROs was found to have promising signs of clinical activity with no serious side effects. It has been shown that the activity of GROs requires the formation of a G-quartet structure, and their activity correlates with its ability to bind to a specific complex of proteins. One important GRO-binding protein that has been previously identified is nucleolin, …

Individual And Situational Factors Affecting Transfer Of Training In A Call Center Environment., Eric Travis Hicks

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In the past 35 years, the average U.S. corporation expenditure per employee on training has increased over ten-fold, yet research studies covering the same time period estimate that only 10-15% of skills and knowledge acquired during training actually transfer to the job. A study was conducted using Mathieu and Martineau's model of training motivation to better understand which factors predicted for motivation to transfer learning on the job in a call center environment. Participants from a large mid-western insurance company call center (n = 195) participated in a longitudinal study to determine the relationship of individual factors, situational factors, and …

The Acute Effects Of Dynamic And Ballistic Stretching On Vertical Jump Height, Force, And Power., Jason Reed Jaggers

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to compare the differences between 2 sets of ballistic stretching and 2 sets of a dynamic stretching routine on vertical jump performance. The intraclass reliability coefficients for maximum jump height, force, and power were also assessed using the Kistler Quattro Jump® force plate. METHODS: Ten healthy male college students, ages 22 to 34 years, volunteered to participate in this study. All subjects completed three individual testing sessions on three non-consecutive days. On each day the subjects completed one of three treatments (no stretch, ballistic stretch, and dynamic stretch). A paired samples t-test was used …

Motivational Interviewing : Does It Increase Alcohol And Other Drug Addicted Clients' Retention In Outpatient Treatment?, David Allen Patterson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation is a post-test only comparison group study. It tests the effects of additional Motivational Interviewing sessions during the first two weeks in an intensive outpatient clinic. The object is to learn whether these additional sessions will help to increase rates of treatment retention and completion with alcohol and other drug addicted individuals as well as those who are dually diagnosed with HIV/AIDS infection and addiction. It begins with the problems associated with alcohol and other drugs followed by problems related to HIV/AIDS and treatments for both illnesses. It uses Transtheoretical Stages of Change Model as a guide for …

“Part Of My Internal Landscape”: Religious Ideology As A Construction Of Place In Randall Kenan’S Let The Dead Bury Their Dead And Crystal Wilkinson’S Water Street, Frances Abbott

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis explores the contributions of contemporary authors Randall Kenan and Crystal Wilkinson to the construction of place in the traditions of Southern literature and African-American literature. These two traditions have generally operated exclusively, and writers who create texts that speak to both black identity and Southern identity have often been cataloged as members of either one tradition or the other. While Kenan and Wilkinson speak to both traditions through many narrative devices, the creation of a religious landscape of the contemporary southern black community emerges as a significant commonality. Their depiction of spirituality in this context embraces two spheres …

The Unknown Struggle : A Comparative Analysis Of Women In The Black Power Movement., Elizabeth Michele Jones

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis comparatively analyzes the experiences and roles of women in the United States and Caribbean Black Power Movements. Using the Black Panther Party and Trinidadian National Joint Action Committee as case studies, the researcher isolates similarities and differences among women in these two regions of the African Diaspora. Black Feminist and Caribbean Feminist theoretical perspectives aide in understanding how the interlocking social forces of race, class, and gender impacted women participating in the Black Nationalist movement of the late 1960's and early 1970's.

A Proposed Evolution Of Immigration Model Applied To The United States, Germany, And Russia., Amy C. Cappiccie

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This exploratory study proposes a model for examining the evolutionary nature of immigration policy, the Cappiccie Lawson Evolution Immigration Model (CLEIM). The model was applied to the United States, Germany, and Russia to provide a broad variety of immigration policy history. CLEIM, as applied to the United States, examined policy from 1882 to the present. CLEIM, as applied to German policy, examined policy from World War II to the present and Russian policy from post-Communism to present. Section I of this paper presents the proposed Cappiccie Lawson Evolution of Immigration Model (CLEIM). Sections II, III, and IV apply CLEIM to …

On Secure Communication In Integrated Internet And Heterogeneous Multi-Hop Wireless Networks., Bin Xie 1970-

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Integration of the Internet with a Cellular Network, WMAN, WLAN, and MANET presents an exceptional promise by having co-existence of conventional WWANs/WMANs/WLANs with wireless ad hoc networks to provide ubiquitous communication. We call such integrated networks providing internet accessibility for mobile users as heterogeneous multi-hop wireless networks where the Internet and wireless infrastructure such as WLAN access points (APs) and base stations (BSs) constitute the backbone for various emerging wireless networks (e.g., multi-hop WLAN and ad hoc networks. Earlier approaches for the Internet connectivity either provide only unidirectional connectivity for ad hoc hosts or cause high overhead as well as …

Analysis Of Landfills C-746-S And C-746-T At The Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant., Paul Jacob Cooper 1981-

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Contamination can be very difficult to remove from water. Once this water seeps into the ground, the difficulty grows exponentially. The Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant, located in Paducah, Kentucky, has contaminated the groundwater. The contaminants that pose an environmental threat are Trichloroethylene and Technetium-99. Trichloroethylene is used as a degreasing solvent, while Technetium-99 is a by-product of enriching uranium. This study involves investigating potential sources of Trichloroethylene and Technetium-99. The potential sources are two landfills, the C-746-S landfill and the C-746-T landfill. Data from monitoring wells located around the two landfills were analyzed to determine if the two landfills are …

Arf : An Automated Real-Time Fuzzy Logic Threat Evaluation System., Jeremy D. Gray

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Intrusion Detection has emerged as a powerful component of network security systems. A wide range of hardware and software components exist to meet most basic security needs on all platforms. These systems log system usage that could be considered as a breach of security in many networks. However, signature based intrusion detection systems have one catastrophic downfall, in that the number of alerts being logged can quickly outgrow the amount of resources necessary to investigate this anomalous behavior. This thesis explores the use of a fuzzy logic based analysis engine that gives an overall threat level of an intrusion detection …

Service Oriented Architecture For Real Time Data Fusion., Derek Ray Massey

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This project will provide a service-oriented architecture to handle sensor data in real time as the information comes in. There are two types of sensors we're implementing into our project, mobile sensors and stationary sensors. These sensors attach unto motes to gather data about temperature, light and acoustics. The fusion part of the topic is taking both types of sensors, bringing the data together and storing the data in a SQL Database. This project will focus on the gathering, storing and preprocessing of the data. The data from the sensors is stored every three minutes using the BULK INSERT command. …

Childhood Reflections Of Adult Male Incarcerated Child Sexual Abusers., Linda H. Garrett

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Child sexual abuse has existed since earliest recorded history. It is believed that one in three females and one in five males are sexually abused before their 18^th birthday, and many researchers believe this is a gross underestimation of the problem. Child sexual abuse has been studied extensively from the perspective of the victim. Child sexual abusers have been studied over the last few decades but with inconsistent definitions and methods applied among studies. This qualitative study explored the childhood reflections of 8 incarcerated child sexual abusers in a southern Appalachian prison. One-on-one in-depth interviews were conducted at the …

The Influence Om Mentoring On Goal Attainment And Role Satisfaction For Registered Nurses In Acute Care., Christine Benz Smith

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Mentoring has been suggested as a means to assist with role transition, career planning, and retention in the profession by providing opportunities for personal and professional growth lead to satisfaction. Satisfaction is especially crucial for the retention of Registered Nurses in a time when the profession has been experiencing a critical shortage. This quantitative study examined the influence of mentoring for RNs who have been employed in acute care facilities for the first time for less than 2 years. Using Bouquillon's mentoring instrument and based in the frameworks of King and Kram, the study suggests mentoring is occurring among new …

An Examination Of Student Performance In Reading/Language And Mathematics After Two Years Of Thinking Maps® Implementation In Three Tennessee Schools., Katharine Mabie Hickie

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine what, if any, association exists between Thinking Maps^® instruction and student achievement in fifth grade students in Reading/Language and Mathematics as reported by the State NCE scores of the criterion referenced portion of the Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program (TCAP) Achievement Test in 3 Title I elementary schools in northeast Tennessee. The association was examined after 2 years of Thinking Maps^® implementation and instruction. Using a quantitative design, the quasiexperimental study included fifth grade students' State NCE scores from 2005 and the same students' State NCE scores from 2003. Scores obtained …

The Relationship Between Resiliency In Rural African American Male Youth And Their Awareness Of Citizenship Practices, Karen Judd

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Effective citizenship practice in the United States has several important characteristics, which can provide the foundation for young people to access opportunity in employment and education. A continuum of policies, programs, and strategies meant to alleviate poverty have central themes of providing education and vocational opportunities, and yet large numbers of young minority people remain disenfranchised with no chance to succeed. There is even greater loss in the population of African American males who otherwise could achieve stable and strong economic life styles. Large unemployment and under-employment of African American males is documented through U.S. data sources where declining rates …

Expression Of Heterologous Proteins In Transgenic Tobacco Chloroplasts To Produce A Biopharmaceutical And Biopolymer, Andrew Leon Devine

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The chloroplast has been demonstrated to be an ideal compartment to accumulate certain proteins or their biosynthetic products that would be harmful if they were accumulated in the cytoplasm. Hyper-expression of foreign proteins in chloroplast transgenics has accumulated up to 46% total soluble protein, this is possible due to the ~100 chloroplast genomes per chloroplast and ~100 chloroplasts per cell which can therefore, contain up to 10,000 copies of the transgene. Maternal gene inheritance of plastids in most crop plants results in natural gene containment. Chloroplast transformation also eliminates positional effects that are frequently observed with nuclear transformation and no …