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Rooted In The Earth: An Igbo Sacramental Nature Of The Universe, A Model For Igbo Christian Ecological Ethics, Kenneth Oguzie

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The contemporary Igbo society faces a lot of challenges. These include political, religious, and moral crises. These crises affect the environment in many ways. They threaten the peace and harmony of the Igbo society. As a result, it touches on faith. The Igbo society holds a holistic view of life. Whatever affects one aspect of life affects the other areas. Ecologically, various factors are responsible for the crises. These include changes in lifestyle from the traditional way of living to modern style of life with its penchant on consumerism. Also, colonialism and its lingering residues, civil unrests, politics, population growth, …

Stanley Hauerwas' Approach To Christian Marital And Sex Ethics: A Review And Speculative Expansion, Jeffrey A. Schooley

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Few places in congregational and denominational life are more fraught with tension and division than conversations about marital and sex ethics. Systemic abuses mingled together with individual failures on this issue has led to confusion, conflict, and chaos. Worse yet, the remedies proposed—and they are many—tend to either double down on “Traditional” values or seek massive reformation of Christian convictions in light of Modern philosophical, anthropological, and sociological presuppositions. Interlocutors quickly come to an impasse and fragmentation occurs. The catalyst for these conflicts is often debates over same-sex marriage, but one does not have to wade far into this conversation …

A Life Lived With Schizophrenia: When Mother’S Love Is Kept In The Dark Exploring Maternal Communication And Attachment Organization In Families With Schizophrenia, Myrsini Stefanidou Marini

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In recent years, research into the transgenerational transmission of attachment styles has shown that a mother’sattachment style often predicts the attachment style of her infant. Fearsome parental behavior has been found to predict disorganized attachment in infants, which is further associated with a range of mental health disturbances in adolescence. Furthermore, regular patterns of disturbed communication between mother and child have also been found to lead to ‘schizophrenic’ thinking and behavior in the child’s life. While acknowledging that genetic and other biological factors contribute to the emergence of schizophrenia, this study focused on disorganized attachment and disturbed communication between mother …

Teaching During Covid-19: The Lived Experiences Of Title I Educators Transitioning From Face-To-Face Instruction To Remote Instruction, Nicole Boykins

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate how school closures resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic impacted school educators who teach in Title I schools serving minority students located in a southern region of the United States. Due to the swift nature of the COVID-19 pandemic and the massive impact on many communities’ health and well-being, government officials moved quickly to close schools. Teachers, much like everyone else, had little voice in the launch of remote learning, expectations of remote teaching, or how to best support students and families during a global pandemic. Educators had to rely on their skills …

Western Christianity And The Origins Of Antiblackness, Eurocentrism, And White Supremacist Ideology., John Chenault

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative study investigates the cult(ural) and intellectual history of Western Christianity to address a significant gap in the literature pertaining to the origins of whiteness/antiblackness in the West and its subsequent socialization worldwide. Western Christianity’s seminal role in the social construction of the whiteness/antiblackness dichotomy has been undertheorized, neglected, and ignored. This study finds early Christian theologians categorically imposed conceptual metaphors about Blackness on African people that depicted them as the exemplars of evil to teach Christian doctrine about sin and salvation. It connects these original antiblack discourses directly to the theo-political arguments Western European Christians used centuries later …

Statistical Methods For Assessing Drug Interactions And Identifying Effect Modifiers Using Observational Data., Qian Xu

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation consists of three projects related to causal inference based on observational data. In the first project, we propose a double robust to identify the effect modifiers and estimate optimal treatment. Observational studies differ from experimental studies in that assignment of subjects to treatments is not randomized but rather occurs due to natural mechanisms, which are usually hidden from the researchers. Many statistical methods to identify the treatment effect and select the optimal personalized treatment for experimental studies may not be suitable for observational studies any more. In this project, we propose a exible outcome model to select the …

Internalized Racism Mediating The Effects Of Ethnic-Racial Socialization On Self-Esteem And Psychological Distress Among Asians And Asian Americans In The United States., Tianhong "Jojo" Yao

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Research has indicated ethnic-racial socialization can influence one’s ethnic identity development including ethnic identity and internalized racism. However, there is limited empirical research directly examining the relation among ethnic-racial socialization, internalized racism, and psychological outcomes including self-esteem and psychological distress among Asian populations in the U.S. The current research explored the influences of the three dimensions of ethnic-racial socialization (cultural socialization-pluralism, promotion of mistrust, and preparation for bias) on two outcomes (i.e., self-esteem and psychological distress) through internalized racism as a mediator in a sample of 245 participants identified as Asian and Asian American adults currently residing in the U.S. …

Burnout And Shared Trauma Rates Among Hospital Employees Due To Covid-19, Cassie Christian

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

COVID-19 has caused job stress and exhaustion across all areas of healthcare, and especially in hospitals as they have tried to cope with wave after wave of case surges. Two years into the pandemic, we have more treatments, and the development of vaccines has changed the risk and infection rates, so hospitals are not as overwhelmed. However, we are still seeing concerning staff shortages in healthcare, and it is being attributed to burnout caused by the effect COVID has had on work environments. This study measured rates of shared trauma, perceived organizational support, and burnout among rural healthcare workers in …

The Correlations Of Financial Exploitation On Senior Adults Over 65, Carmen Price

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

With the increase in people over the age of 65, the need for education about elder abuse and intervention in confirmed cases has become a priority for service providers, including social workers. The purpose of this study is to bring awareness to the different circumstances attributing to a senior adult over the age of 65 becoming a victim of elder abuse or financial exploitation. This exploratory descriptive study gathered data from the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services Open Data Portal and the 2020 U.S. Census Bureau. Various analyses were conducted to determine what may cause someone to be …

The Relationship Of Minority Stress With The Mental Health Of Lgbtq College Students On A Christian Campus With Non-Affirming Policies, Ethan Nicholas Smetana

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

One foundational concept of the Minority Stress Model (Meyer, 2003) is that the stress is based on persisting social processes and structures. Consequently, research to further the available pool of empirical evidence on how institutions based in the dominant culture affect minorities is needed and valuable. This study seeks to examine the effects of dimensions of minority stress on the mental health outcomes of LGBTQ students at a Christian university with a non-affirming school policy. Further, this study is interested in how gratitude affects the impact that minority stress has on mental health as a potential protective factor. Participants were …

Adults With Disabilities: What Factors Create A Successful Transition From Higher Education To The Workforce?, Tiffany Elaine Brown

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Individuals with disabilities face difficulties in both higher education and the workforce. While it would seem that they would be equipped to deal with these difficulties, high levels of college dropouts as well as pay gaps and high levels of underemployment suggest otherwise. Although there are many studies on disabilities and its relationship to singular factors, there is a lack of empirical study on the holistic relationship between disabilities and multiple factors. The purpose of this study is to explore how environmental factors, individual-external factors, and individual-internal factors are related to a successful transition from higher education to the workforce …

Stigma As A Barrier To Military Mental Health Services, Alicea Gray

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

A psychiatric disorder is perhaps an uncomfortable topic that isn’t discussed enough in the military. However, the nature of the profession (i.e., the possibility of combat exposure) increases the risk of mental health disorders in the military. Despite the increasing awareness of the effects of untreated mental health conditions, a treatment gap still exists within the military culture. The present study aims to describe the prevalence of stigma in the military, as well as examine related factors, such as leadership behaviors and the associations between endorsed and anticipated stigma and treatment seeking intentions. Utilizing a questionnaire, this study investigated the …

Perceived Benefits Of Upskilling And Reskilling By Persons Who Are Among The Employed, Underemployed, And Unemployed, Rosalind Marie Evans

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

ABSTRACT The purpose of this research study is to explore the perceived influence, potential impact, and benefits that upskilling, and reskilling have on the employed, underemployed, and unemployed worker. In addition, this study seeks to explore whether the perceived benefits of upskilling and reskilling include moving above the poverty line and therefore, out of poverty in real and sustainable ways. This resulting new position and potential increase in pay could have the positive impact of moving them and their families above the poverty line. The results of this study indicate that participants perceive upskilling and reskilling to be an option …

Creation Care, Human Wellness, And Sustainability, Omoike Eric Aizenofe

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In this thesis, I argue that creation care contributes to human wellness and to sustainable living on earth. Within contemporary contexts, humans are suffering spiritually, mentally, and emotionally. This distress impairs wellness and reduces peoples’ capacity to contribute to sustainable solutions and earth-positive impacts. Creation care entails conscious and intentional activities that are carried out for the health of the created world. Creation care contributes to human wellness, spiritually, mentally, and emotionally by offering spaces, environments, co-habitations, and interdependency among its components that support human wellness and sustainable living. Creation care helps fight spiritual, mental, and emotional distress so that …

Behavioral Effects And Neurobiological Mechanisms Of 3-Aminobenzimide In A Rodent Model Of Chronic Psychological Stress, Liza Wills

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a leading cause of disability worldwide, with a lifetime prevalence rate of approximately 20%. Inadequate pharmacological treatment methods for MDD are a significant debilitating factor. Patient estimates suggest that the treatment resistance rate for pharmacological interventions is over 30%. Postmortem analyses of human tissue of individuals diagnosed with MDD have shown an increase in Poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase 1 (PARP-1) mRNA gene expression in prefrontal cortical white matter when compared to psychiatrically normal brain tissue. In order to further investigate this issue, the present study used the social defeat stress/chronic unpredictable stress (SDS + CUS) rodent …

The Effects Of Previous Traumatic Experiences On Learning Outcomes: Perceptions Of Black Men Who Are Attending Community College, Willie Thomas

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Academic underachievement among Black students, particularly Black male students, is a troubling trend that has long attracted scholarly attention. The prevailing consensus is that the shortcomings of some Black male students in academic achievement may be attributable to traumatic experiences arising from environments of violent, inner-city poverty that disproportionately affect Black men. Traumatic experiences have been shown to negatively affect Black men’s self-perception, emotions, self-image, and social and cognitive skills, with consequences in the form of measured shortfalls in retention and graduation rates. My qualitative, phenomenological study sought to explore how previous traumatic experiences of Black men affected their academic …

Examining Diversity And The Role And Influence Of Post-Secondary Faculty At A Predominantly White Institution In Tennessee: A Critical Race Case Analysis, Lanell Smith

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this qualitative, critical race analysis study is to explore how White faculty conceptualize and apply critical race theory (CRT) and culturally responsive pedagogy (CRP) to curricula within a college of education and how the perceptions of their students’ identities influence specific pedagogical decisions. The researcher sought to extend the research on CRT in education by analyzing specific, detailed cases and incorporating purposeful sampling by selecting participants who match specific study criteria, i.e. graduate-level White faculty located in Tennessee who teach in programs of education.

This study was limited to six faculty in a college of education (in …

The Role Of Emotion Dysregulation In The Relationship Between Anhedonia And Opioid Craving, Rachelle Kromash

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Research on factors that predict opioid cravings is lacking. Anhedonia may be a predictor of cravings and particularly relevant to cravings when people struggle to regulate emotions but has yet to be examined among justice-involved populations. This study aimed to examine the relationship between anhedonia, opioid cravings, and emotion dysregulation (ED) in this population. Participants completed several measures. The results showed that anhedonia and opioid cravings were significantly related at the bivariate level, but not in moderation models. The DERS-36 total score and ‘DERS Impulse’ subscale had a significant, positive effect on cravings in moderation models. In a higher severity …

Organizational Communication In Community Colleges: Staff Members’ Perspectives, Sinthea Reynolds

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this research was to determine if there was a significant relationship between scores on the Communication Satisfaction Questionnaire (CSQ) scale of effective managerial communication and scores on the Job Descriptive Index (JDI) scale of job satisfaction for non-faculty staff members at the participating community college.

A total of 75 non-faculty staff members from three separate community colleges in East Tennessee participated in the study. A modified version of the Communication Satisfaction Questionnaire (CSQ) developed by Downs and Hazen (1977) was used to collect data. The instrument used a Likert-type scale with a 7-point scale with eight dimensions …

Virginia High Schools: Academic And Social Climate Performance Measures And Black Public Secondary School Administrators, Tim Duncan

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Data have consistently revealed a major problem with disproportionality in several academic and social climate measures for African American students compared to their White counterparts. Black students tend to have lower end-of-course (EOC) testing scores in mathematics and reading, a greater tendency to be suspended from school, lower average on-time graduation rates, and higher rates of absenteeism. The current investigative study examined the role of same race administrators and performance indicators among African American students.

The findings demonstrated that significant differences between Black and White students existed in end-of-course testing in reading and math. The research also indicated significant relationships …

The Lived Experiences Of Introverts And Their Extracurricular Involvement In A Four-Year University Environment, Maigan Wipfli

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative, phenomenological study explores the lived experiences of introverts who were involved in two or more passive or active extracurricular involvement opportunities during their undergraduate experience at a four-year college or university. Eleven semi-structured interviews were conducted via Zoom video conferencing with self-identified introverts who attended public, four-year universities in the South, West, and Midwest regions of the United States. Participants represented both medium and large institutions. The analysis of the data indicated common themes from the participants including personality traits and common misconceptions of introversion, cultural focus of extraversion, personal and professional development, opportunities granted, and individual preferences …

Perceptions, Knowledge, And Attitudes About Long-Acting Reversible Contraceptives (Larcs) Among Women In Appalachian Tennessee, Fenose Osedeme

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In Tennessee (TN), the rate of unintended pregnancies remains higher than the national rate (32.4% vs. 30.3%). Although long-acting reversible contraceptives (LARCs) are 99% effective in preventing undesired pregnancies; uptake remains low in rural and underserved communities. Previous research has provided some insight into women’s perceptions of LARCs; however, those guided by conceptual frameworks to understand the multiple influences that impact perceptions towards LARCs, especially among rural regions, are scarce. This multimethod qualitative study explored multiple influences that impact northeast Tennessee women’s perceptions and attitudes toward LARCs using the Socio-ecological Model (SEM) as a guiding framework.

The study comprised six …

Student Experiences Leaving Health Profession Interest Areas, Megan Roberts

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The undergraduate major change or declaration process can be cumbersome for students who find themselves in unknown territories when making decisions or seeking help during this transition. One of the most challenging groups of students to assist through this transition are those who are denied access to their intended program of study. These students are often pursuing selective degree programs with limited enrollment and competitive admission requirements. Research on students pursuing selective degree programs is largely outdated, with most studies being older than ten years. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore how undergraduate students experience leaving selective …

Relationships Between Dual Enrollment Parameters, College Completion, And Time To Completion At Tennessee Community Colleges, Victoria N. Mellons

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this non-experimental quantitative study was to evaluate the relationships between completion of high school dual enrollment courses and subsequent success of first-time, full-time community college students as measured by completion of an associate degree and the time it took to complete the degree. In addition to comparing dual and non-dual enrollment student performance, the effects of the number of dual enrollment courses completed and the subject areas of those courses was evaluated. Student subgroups reviewed included gender, race, socioeconomic status, and prior academic preparation (ACT score). The focus of this study was all first-time, full-time students at …

Loving The Mountains, Leaving The Mountains: The Appalachian Dilemma And Jim Wayne Miller’S The Brier Poems, Madeline Dawson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

For decades now, the Appalachian community has been internally combatting two equally strong feelings—an inherently rich love of the mountains and a conflicting urge to leave the mountains. In recent years, Appalachian writers have produced a new literary tradition of identifying, discussing, and remedying this dilemma. Jim Wayne Miller’s 1997 The Brier Poems unapologetically explores the Appalachian community’s complicated relationship to its region. bell hooks’ 2012 Appalachian Elegy: Poetry and Place and Savannah Sipple’s 2019 WWJD and Other Poems then expand Miller’s exploration as both hooks and Sipple collectively represent voices that have often been left out of the stereotypical …

Dental Students' Perceptions Of Dental Hygienists' Education And Scope Of Practice, Cynthia Metzger

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Oral health is strongly correlated to systemic health in the United States. Dental professionals play a significant role in addressing the oral health and prevention of disease for populations in the United States. Because many areas in the United States lack access to dental care, the federal government considers dental hygienists part of the solution. It is now paying attention to restrictive dental hygiene scope of practice rules in each state. State dental boards, comprised mainly of dentists, make these rules based on their perception of dental hygienists' lack of education. This study explored fourth-year dental students' perceptions of the …

Examining How Black Administrator Employment Decisions Are Impacted By The Behaviors Of Supervisors, Annie Wilson Whitaker

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to understand how Black, public school administrator employment decisions are impacted by the behaviors of supervisors in Virginia. Commonalities among the lived experiences of Black, public school administrators were examined in order to identify specific behaviors which impact employment decisions.

Transcendental phenomenological qualitative research design was utilized. Participants were identified through gatekeeper introductions and then narrowed through snow-ball sampling. Data was collected through open-ended face-to-face interviews with 12 Black, public school administrators in Virginia via a secure online platform. The data was analyzed in order to identify emergent themes which represent the lived …

Cyberspace Vs Green Space: Nature’S Psychological Influence In Neuromancer, Blade Runner 2049, And The Stone Gods, Zackery Castle

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Cyberpunk science fiction is often set in dystopian futures where capitalism and rapid technological growth have rendered the planet ecologically devastated. The people of these worlds are host to numerous mental illnesses that many attempt to cure with drugs, entertainment, or other aspects of their fast-paced existences, but these solutions are rarely successful. When characters come to embrace the remnants of the natural world, however, they typically show signs of mental healing as the result of exposure to nature. This thesis analyzes William Gibson’s Neuromancer, Denis Villeneuve’s Blade Runner 2049, and Jeanette Winterson’s The Stone Gods alongside research …

A Quantitative Study To Examine The Relationship Between School Administrators’ Path-Goal Approach And Teachers’ Perceived Working Conditions, Tierra Stark

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this quantitative study was to examine the relationship between school administrators' path-goal approach to leadership and their teachers' perceptions of working conditions. Findings from this research may help school administrators and leadership preparation programs to understand better the application of theories related to motivation, leveraging power, and goal attainment. The conceptual framework behind this study was the inherent inclinations of school administrators in approaching leadership decisions from four pathways; directive, supportive, participative, and/or achievement-oriented.

For use in statistical analysis through the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS), data were collected via a questionnaire to currently practicing …

A Lesson In Mourning: The Evolution Of The English Anti-Elegy, K. Matthew Bennett

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis analyzes the evolution of the anti-elegy originating with Thomas Hardy’s elegiac sequence in memory of his wife Emma; Poems of 1912-1913. Using French post-structuralist Georges Bataille’s The Accursed Share as a theoretical lens, Hardy’s anti-elegies are analyzed and rhetorically connected to English war poet Siegfried Sassoon’s anti-elegies. Hardy’s anti-sentimentality, fatalistic outlook on death, and rejection of the Christian afterlife seeps into the language of Sassoon’s war poems which serve as a protest to the dehumanizing effects of late capitalism witnessed during the First World War. Hardy and Sassoon’s anti-elegies, with their hyper-focus on the elegized body, are …