Digital Commons Network^™

Wellness Among Bipoc Counselors-In-Training: Mediation Impact On Stress And Burnout, Javier E. Ponce

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this research study was to gather data on stress, wellness, and burnout levels from counselors-in-training (CITs) who identify as Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) to compare them to norm groups and assess the mediating effect of wellness on the association between stress and burnout. The researcher conducted this study to aid counselor educators in incorporating wellness into interventions that can help BIPOC CITs not only reduce their stress and burnout levels but also augment their overall wellness. The final sample consisted of 118 BIPOC CITs who thoroughly completed a demographic questionnaire, Perceived Stress Scale-10, Five …

Beneficent Artificial Intelligence In The Age Of The Thing: A Case Study Of The Palm Beach County Library System, Philip J. Smith

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

With this thesis, I explore how Palm Beach County Library System administration and the broader county government are managing the advance of artificial intelligence and seeking actionable resolutions to the artificial intelligence dilemma. Due to power differentials, triangulation required me to adopt a humanist, perspectival approach. I collected data from participant observations, reflective fieldnotes, literature review, and transcription of an interview, all of which informed my interpretations. Albeit colored by past experiences, I relate my professional familiarity in a customer service training role and express the importance of engaging patron experience that is service-oriented, ongoing training intended to recenter the …

Naming Abilities In Aging Monolinguals And Bilinguals: Longitudinal Analyses Of The Multilingual Naming Test, Kyara Y. Velez

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Individuals who can speak more than one language may score lower than monolinguals on verbal naming tasks. The Multilingual Naming Task (MINT) is a 32-item assessment that is used at the Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center in the USA. This study looks at the impact of monolingualism and bilingualism on language abilities over three years in three clinical groups (cognitively normal, mild cognitive impairment, and dementia), using the MINT as a measure. The results show that bilingual individuals perform worse on the MINT than monolinguals at each time point, after controlling for demographic factors; however, there is no difference between language …

Mineralization, Characterization And Selective Degradation Of Lignocellulosic Biocomposite Materials, Steven A. Soini

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Developing novel functional materials, chemicals and biofuels from renewable plant sources has become a main area of focus within material science. The biosphere contains naturally occurring polymers that can be harvested to this end. Lignocellulosic materials are an important class of plant biomass consisting of three main components, cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin. Wood has an inherent 3D hierarchical structure ranging from the nano- to bulk levels of organization, thereby achieving excellent mechanical properties while maintaining high porosity and low specific density. It carries significant promise for the production of chemicals, refinement of biofuels, and the development of novel functional materials. …

Covid-19, Business Resilience, And Government Contracting: Did The Paycheck Protection Program (Ppp) Impact The Disaster Resilience Of Small Disadvantaged Businesses After Covid-19? The Case Of Government Contracting In The United States., Jean-Claude M. Ndongo

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation examines the disaster resilience of disadvantaged small businesses that have engaged in contracting activities with the U.S. federal government from 2018 to 2023. Federal government agencies procure goods and services from small businesses in the private sector through contracts that allow those businesses to be competitive in the market and overcome the impact of disasters on their activities. The notion of disaster resilience has traditionally focused on natural hazards like wildfires, earthquakes, tornadoes, or hurricanes; however, lately, it has been increasingly applied to diverse contexts. Business resilience to disasters refers to businesses' ability to return to their pre-disaster …

Meta’S Ai Bias To What Extent Do Meta's Algorithmic Processes For Classifying And Processing Information Related To Acts Of Racism Impact Fairness, Bias, And Social Justice Across Its Platforms?, Shanique Foster

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Algorithmic processing and classification of racism-related content have become increasingly prevalent across Meta's platforms. While these algorithms aim to create safer online environments, their effectiveness and impact on fairness remain understudied. This research examines how Meta's algorithmic processes for classifying racist content affect fairness, bias, and social justice across Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp.

Using qualitative research methodology, the study conducted focus groups with diverse platform users to understand their experiences with content moderation. The research also analyzed theoretical frameworks related to algorithmic bias, fairness metrics, and social justice in digital spaces.

Key findings revealed significant variations in algorithmic effectiveness across …

Things Goin’ On: Hierarchical Order, Olivia Rachel Austin

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Things Goin' On: Hierarchical Order is a series of mixed media works examining power dynamics and structured relationships within human life. This body of work explores social class, gender roles, and systemic power structures through a combination of found textiles, altered objects, and diverse rendering techniques. Each piece investigates how individuals are positioned within broader social and natural systems. The works collectively encourage reflection on the universal and historical role of power dynamics in shaping human experiences and interactions.

“Ojala Que Llueva: Free Trade's Ripple Effect On Rice Farming In El Cibao, Dominican Republic", Arismendis Altagracia

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Globalization has had a tremendous effect on agricultural communities. This study aims to understand Dominican rice farmers' methods of production, their impact on the Dominican economy, and the public health of those involved in production. Some concerns are how mass rice production affects the environment, public health, and the state's economy. The rice industry in the Dominican Republic is one of the most essential sectors due to its cultural and dietary significance. Rice contributes a substantial amount to the diet of Dominicans; its production process and nutritional profile is associated with health problems that burden an already strained public health …

Paleoecological Trends In Costa Rica: Novel Records Of Vegetation, Fire, And Human Impacts From Holocene Lake Sediments, Taber Friedel

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation investigates late Holocene environmental change and human-environment interactions in Neotropical landscapes, focusing on two lake basins in Costa Rica: Laguna Carse in the southern Pacific lowlands and Laguna Arancibia in the Central Valley. Using high-resolution multi-proxy analyses, including pollen and both microscopic and macroscopic charcoal, we reconstructed vegetation dynamics, fire regimes, and basin processes over the past 1,500 years.

At Laguna Carse, a 400-year record reveals how regional population declines and colonial resettlement following the Spanish Conquest influenced land use, leading to delayed agricultural exploitation and subsequent vegetation disturbance. Pollen and microscopic charcoal analyses indicate periods of drought …

Geospatial Methods For Interpreting And Managing Coastal Landscape Dynamics, Nithish Manikkavasagam

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Coastal landscapes are dynamic interfaces shaped by natural forces and human activity, requiring precise, multiscale monitoring for effective conservation. This research investigates some of the coastal monitoring challenges related to shoreline erosion, terrain modeling, and mangrove species classification at the Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse Outstanding Natural Area (ONA), a 120-acre coastal preserve in southeast Florida. The first study applies conditional entropy and partial correlation to assess the relationship between shoreline retreat and environmental variables using UAS-derived shoreline data collected from 2017 to 2023. The second study enhances Digital Terrain Model (DTM) accuracy, a critical factor in erosion assessments, by applying RandLA-Net, …

Conversion Of Orange Waste To Chemically Modified Activated Carbon Adsorbent Materials For Aqueous Phase Phosphate Removal, Sierra Mugan

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Phosphorus pollution in surface waters drives harmful algal blooms, creating ecological, public health, and economic risks. This study examined citrus processing waste as a sustainable, low-cost precursor for producing chemically modified adsorbents for phosphorus removal. Orange waste was pyrolyzed, resulting in a carbon-rich material with low ash content, as confirmed by thermogravimetric analysis. The material was modified using lanthanum chloride, iron (III) chloride, and calcium chloride at varying mass ratios and screened under standard conditions (1 mg P/L, 1 g/L dosage, 24-hour contact time). Lanthanum- and iron-modified samples demonstrated the best removal efficiencies and underwent further evaluation. The lanthanum-modified sample …

Importance Of Social Support: Buffer To Social Identity Threat In Institutions, Kaylah J. Scott

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Due to the minority status non-white students face in higher education, they are susceptible to social identity threat (Steele & Aronson, 1996), which may lead to psychological distress. However, social support, particularly from in-groups, offsets related distress consequences, e.g., self-esteem, anxiety, and depression (Haslam et al., 2021). This study investigates social support, through collective racial socialization, as a buffer for social identity threats to minority college students. I investigated Hispanics and Black undergraduates' self-esteem, using the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (Rosenberg, 1979), before and after stereotype threat, with participants in minority-centered organizations as the moderator. Results revealed that there was a …

Clinical Validation Of Delivery Analysis Software For Patient-Specific Quality Assurance Of Radixact (Tomotherapy) Treatment, Gagandeep Pama

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The primary objective of this study was to evaluate the patient-specific quality assurance (PSQA) performance for various disease sites treated with the Radixact machine using Gamma (γ) passing rate analysis (%GP) as per AAPM TG-218.

This study analyzed 22 PSQA plans executed on a Radixact machine using ArcCheck phantom and delivery analysis (DA) software. The %GP was calculated using a 3% dose difference (DD), a 2 mm distance-to-agreement (DTA), and a 10% threshold. A passing criterion of ≥95% was applied for PSQA evaluation.

The %GP was analyzed for all sites. The %GP (2D) on the ArcCheck phantom mean γ passing …

Fictional Prophecies: How Kazuo Ishiguro’S Never Let Me Go And Olivia Wilde’S Don’T Worry Darling Foreshadow The Threats Of Biotech And Metaverse Realities, Taylor Pack

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis intends to embrace conversations about technological advancements and create space for examining the ways in which popular technologies of the 2020s are the beginning of a dangerous future for marginalized bodies if gone unchecked and under-regulated. This paper investigates the ways in which modern forms of technology are at risk of mimicking the novel Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro and the film Don’t Worry Darling, directed by Olivia Wilde dystopias and argues the need for more conscious consumerism of technology and media alike to acknowledge the ways in which the control of women’s bodies is a …

Examining Relationships Between Sediment Nutrients And Halodule Wrightii In The Southern Indian River Lagoon, Sarah Newton

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In the Indian River Lagoon (IRL), FL, seagrasses have declined 58% since 2009, largely due to eutrophication. Efforts to improve IRL water quality are ongoing, but there has been a lag in seagrass recovery, with Halodule wrightii being the focus of restoration efforts. Because seagrasses uptake nutrients through their rhizomes and blades, this lag may be associated with undocumented pore water nutrient pollution. Thus, deciphering relationships between sediment nutrients and H. wrightii is necessary. In this study, sampling at nine sites in the southern IRL (SIRL) was conducted in spring and summer 2024 during which H. wrightii tissue, sediment, and …

Oasis, Parinaz Moghadampour

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This exhibition is about the media, the mesmerizing effects of tech-driven advertisements and their impact on consumerism, and global disasters as the consequences of this phenomenon. This is a critique of technology's immense expansion of advertising's reach. With the advent of the Internet, social media, and mobile devices, advertisers reach a global audience instantly. Using algorithms, digital advertising platforms allow precise targeting based on demographics, interests, and online behavior. This means that advertisements can be tailored to specific audiences, increasing the chances of reaching the right consumers with the right message. Michel Foucault, the prominent French philosopher and social theorist, …

Human-Ai Interaction In Driving Behavior Analysis: Machine Learning And Pattern Mining For The Unobtrusive Cognitive Assessment, Sonia Moshfeghi

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Creating unobtrusive, intelligent sensing systems that can be embedded into daily life and assess changes in the physical and cognitive functions of people has garnered significant attention. This dissertation presents a data-driven pattern recognition framework that integrates human-AI interaction and machine learning to analyze and quantify cognitive decline in older drivers based on the data stream of their driving data. This study harnesses real in-vehicle sensing data collected from +65 older drivers. Various AI-enabled data analytics modeling techniques are developed and tested to understand the driving patterns of older drivers, the relations between driving data and their cognitive functions, and …

“This Generation Of Women Is Finished”: Misogyny As Social Bonding On Social Media And Patriarchal Constructions Of Femininity, Emma Mierzejewski

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis explores online discourse between users on social media platforms, specifically Instagram, in an effort to better understand the patriarchal influence on American social culture. Users on the platform regularly write off misogynistic comments as simply “dark humor” or an extreme expression of one’s “freedom of speech.” At the same time, supportive comments are also influenced by those same misogynistic expectations. I argue that misogynistic thinking in comments and a willingness to uphold them for social bonding provides deeper insights into our society’s attitudes towards women, their roles, and conceptions of femininity in general. I conducted a content analysis …

The Changing Roles Of Elementary School Principals, Ernie Lozano

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The role of the elementary school principal has changed throughout its history. The role has shifted from primarily a managerial role to an instructional leadership role, to the more current role of a multi-faceted operational leader. Recent events, from the Covid-19 pandemic to highly publicized school shootings, has added additional responsibilities to the current role of the principal. The current high-stakes accountability to ensure all students are learning has also added an increased amount of pressure on elementary school principals. The ability to effectively manage both the operational and instructional roles has created stress and anxiety on elementary school principals. …

Integrating Lidar Point Cloud And Imagery Based Building Footprint For 3d Lod Building Reconstruction, Lasithasree Lakshmanan

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

3D Building reconstruction is crucial for urban planning, enabling stakeholders to make informed decisions on critical issues such as flood risk assessment, urban heat island effects and sustainable infrastructure development. Accurate classification of LiDAR point cloud data is fundamental for identifying building structures and separating them from other elements in complex urban environments. In this study, a deep learning-based approach, RandLA-Net, is employed to classify building points from airborne LiDAR data. This classification process serves as a foundation for generating reliable 3D building models. To enhance classification accuracy, this research integrates building footprints as a reference layer, refining the detection …

Ai-Assisted Radio Frequency Fingerprinting For Identification Of User Devices In 5g Networks, Aishwarya Jawne

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

As 5G networks expand, ensuring secure identification and authentication of user devices is critical. This paper explores machine learning-based Radio Frequency Fingerprinting (RFF) to identify and distinguish trusted and rogue devices in 5G networks. We evaluate ResNet, Transformer, and LSTM architectures using channel-isolated (CI) spectrogram and raw IQ slice inputs across varying packet sizes. Results show that ResNet with CI spectrogram inputs achieves the highest device classification accuracy and scalability while mitigating the Next-Day Effect, while the same architecture with IQ Slices is best for rogue device detection. Unlike related works, we emphasize the role of spectrograms in accurately capturing …

Joy In Teaching: Examining Teachers’ Perceived Experiences Of Choice, Self-Efficacy, And Sense Of Belonging, Shellie Hennings-Donow

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Teacher joy is a critical yet often overlooked factor influencing teacher retention, instructional effectiveness, and student outcomes. This study explores how teachers describe their experiences of joy in the workplace, focusing on the roles of choice, self-efficacy, and belonging. Grounded in Self-Determination Theory and Attribution Theory, this research examines the extent to which teachers’ perceived autonomy, competence, and relational support contribute to teachers’ professional fulfillment. Through qualitative methods, including in-depth interviews and thematic analysis, this study captures the perceptions of educators across diverse school settings. Findings reveal that teachers experience the highest levels of joy when they have meaningful autonomy …

A Legacy Of Fire: Alma Bridwell White, The Second Wave Klan And Complexities Of Religion, Race And Feminism, Ellis Hall

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In the shadow of the KKK stood an unexpected force: women. At the crossroads of religious fundamentalism and racial extremism was Alma Bridwell White, a pioneering yet controversial figure whose religious leadership intertwined with her avid support for the Klan. This research examines how White used both pulpit and platform to advance the Klan’s image of ‘Americanism’ defined by racial purity and religious intolerance, and promote early feminist ideals, whilst still being reliant on male figures. This research enables an exploration of how female members of the KKK were able to leverage their social, political and religious influence to promote …

Exploring Emotional Awareness Through Interactive Design, Mona Gandomkar

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This research was inspired by my emotional journey after relocating to the United States. Navigating a new culture, language barriers, and unfamiliar routines brought a complex mix of emotions. These experiences led me to begin to better understand and manage my emotional responses. That process revealed the importance of emotional awareness and became the foundation for my exploration into how design can help individuals recognize and engage with their emotions more meaningfully.

Emotions are significant in human life, from social relationships to decision-making. However, many people fail to understand their emotions or how to control them. Individuals experience emotions differently, …

Ethnozoological Insights For Wildlife Conservation: Exploring Past & Present Uses Of Wild Animals Among Kenya’S Ethnic Groups, Anita Zahra Field

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Kenya’s conservation efforts lack adequate involvement of local communities, who play a vital role as people who use the natural resources. These communities also have limited access to, and benefits from, these resources, highlighting the need for greater inclusivity. Therefore, I used ethnographic interviews to elicit relational values that can potentially increase understanding between all stakeholders. My objective was to explore the historical and contemporary uses of wild animals among diverse ethnic groups, examining any changes over time and identifying the catalysts driving these shifts. I interviewed 30 individuals from 10 ethnic groups in Laikipia, Samburu, Marsabit, and Kwale counties, …

Predictive And Generative Modeling For Biomedical Data Analytics, Magdalyn E. Elkin

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Biomedical data analytics is a broad interdisciplinary field that has seen vast amounts of data collected with recent technological advancements. Computational studies are required for time and cost-efficient methods to characterize, summarize, and interpret these datasets to advance public health. This thesis presents research studies done with predictive and generative models with regards to subdomains in clinical research, healthcare and bioinformatics. Our research with predictive modeling presents (1) extensive feature engineering methods, ensemble models and feature selection ranking in order to provide data-driven models to evaluate relevant evidence for clinical decision making; and (2) network analysis and unsupervised link prediction …

Assessing Repetitive Loss Factors In Miami-Dade And Broward Counties, Fl, Rebecca Clark

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation examines repetitive loss factors in Miami-Dade and Broward Counties, Florida. It focuses on physical building characteristics and socioeconomic characteristics in an historic analysis of claims data from 1977 through 2014. Later, the focus is on predicted areas, or “hotspots” where climate-change induced sea level rise in conjunction with increased storm activity may cause increased flooding in the future. The study employs various statistical models, including Poisson and negative binomial regression modeling, spatial regression modeling and hot spot analysis to analyze FEMA property claims data and socioeconomic indicators.

The first part investigates the relationship between building characteristics and flooding …

The Single Vote: The Senators Who Acquitted Andrew Johnson, Benjamin Maxwell Cohen

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

On February 24th, 1868, the House of Representatives impeached Andrew Johnson, and in May of that same year, he would be acquitted in the United States Senate by one vote. At the center of these events were the seven Republican Senators who defected from their party and found the President not guilty. This thesis examines the conflicts between Johnson and the Radical Republicans, framing this within the broader political context of the era as the key to understanding the political nature of Johnson’s 1868 trial. This politicization culminated in the Tenure of Office Act, which was both protectionist and antagonistic …

Impact Of Data Security Breach On Long-Term Firm Performance, Tim Brown

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Data security breaches continue to be a primary concern for businesses. The possibility of losing sensitive customer data and how that might impact their firm is part of what keeps executives up at night. Past research has largely centered around how a data security breach might impact firm performance as measured by cumulative abnormal returns (CAR), or from an investor’s perspective. This research has produced inconsistent results, with some research efforts showing large negative impacts on market value while others show no impact at all. Through this research effort, I explore possible reasons for these inconsistent findings. Under Interpersonal Gossip …

Maternal Stress And Infant Anxiety: Examining The Link Through Fear Temperament, Melissa Ayala

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study explored the relationship between maternal stress and infant fear temperament. Infant temperament is important because it allows the caregiver to understand the individual variation in the emotional and social needs of the child. Due to previous research, it can be inferred that maternal stress can influence the development of infant fear temperament. The current study looks at the relationship between maternal stress and infant behavioral fear temperament. In this study there was no relationship between maternal stress and infant behavioral fear when collapsing the across conditions and emotions expressed during the Lab-TAB. However, infants varied in their fear …