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Neuropsychological Profiles To Aid In Determining The Necessity For Neuroimaging Reviews: Providing Evidence For A Screener For Cerebrovascular Abnormalities, Kayla Blaire Miller

Theses and Dissertations

This study aimed to provide evidence for a white matter abnormality (WMA) screener by investigating whether commonly used neuropsychological measures of executive functioning and processing speed have predictive power for identifying high WMA burden.

Participants were administered a brief neuropsychological evaluation by a doctoral student under the direct supervision of a board-certified clinical neuropsychologist and underwent an MRI scan. A neurologist rated each participant’s MRI results using the Fazekas scale. A total of 178 participants were included, divided into two groups based on their Fazekas rating: low WMA burden (46%) and high WMA burden (54%).

A confirmatory factor analysis indicated …

The Effect Of Resilience: Exploring The Link Between Depression And Cognitive Performance In A Memory Disorder Clinic Population, Amanda Capriglione

Theses and Dissertations

Introduction: Research has consistently shown that depressive symptoms are associated with cognitive impairments, namely in memory, attention, and executive functioning (for a review, see Rock et al., 2014), particularly in individuals with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). As MCI is often a precursor to dementia, understanding and addressing modifiable factors that influence this trajectory is essential for prevention and intervention efforts. Resilience, defined as the capacity to adapt positively to adversity, has been identified as a potential protective factor against age-related cognitive decline. Prior studies (e.g., Laird et al., 2019b; Miller et al., 2023) suggest that resilience buffers against the cognitive …

Eritrean Refugees Between Securitization And Survival Along The Sahara Route To Egypt, Zeina Shoukry

Theses and Dissertations

Eritrea remains one of the largest refugee-producing countries in the world, with mandatory military conscription serving as a primary driver of displacement. This thesis examines the precarious journey of Eritrean refugees across the Sahara Desert en route to Egypt, situating this movement within the broader context of border securitization. It argues that the journey itself constitutes a critical and often overlooked phase of the migration process, as significant as both departure and destination.

Drawing on migration infrastructure theory and migrant network theory, this study foregrounds Eritrean refugees’ agency and resilience. It analyzes how refugees mobilize knowledge, digital technologies, social networks, …

Beyond The Legal Black Hole: Hyper-Legality, Deferral, And Detention In Northeast Syria, Grace T. Harmon

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines the detention of suspected ISIS affiliates and their family members held in facilities administered by the Kurdish-led authorities in North-East Syria. Thousands of foreign nationals remain detained without trial, without repatriation, and in conditions widely criticized as inhumane. Existing scholarship and political discourse often describe these facilities as legal voids, limbo, or black holes where law has broken down or ceased to apply. This thesis challenges that characterization. Rather than existing outside the law, the facilities are governed through overlapping frameworks of international humanitarian law, international human rights law, counterterrorism security resolutions, and domestic laws. I argue …

Topographies Of Being: World-Making And Ontological Formation In Modern Saint Catherine, South Sinai, Ahmad Mahana

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis is an exploration of the ecological and sociological processes involved in the production of the socionatural space of the contemporary town and natural protectorate of Saint Catherine, South Sinai. Revered by all Abrahamic religions as the site of the Great Theophany, the town has perpetually been considered an area of immense spiritual and natural significance. In recent decades, however, the town has undergone a series of modernizing campaigns that have not only threatened the region’s natural environment and indigenous lifeways but have also jeopardized the plurality of its extant lifeworlds. By relying on a variety of ethnographic methods, …

Between The Lens And The Gaze: Reflections Of Femininity In Film, Noureen Sakr

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis explores the male gaze’s construction of femininity through the use of glass and reflective surfaces, particularly mirrors, windows, glasses, and cameras in film. Reflections and depictions of women are recurring motifs in cinema, often symbolizing dynamics of perception and power. This thesis mobilizes related psychoanalytic and feminist conceptions to examine and compare the recurring visual motifs in the following films: Alfred Hitchcock’s Strangers on a Train (1951) and Rear Window (1954), Paul Verhoeven’s Basic Instinct (1992), & Darren Aronofsky’s Black Swan (2010). This thesis employs a qualitative, interdisciplinary methodology that integrates psychoanalytic theory, feminist film theory, literary criticism …

Hell Reimagined: Dante’S Inferno And The Secular Afterlives Of Divine Punishment, Yara Mohamed El Hashimi

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines contrapasso and how it changes across different media and different sources of moral authority. In Chapter One, I examine four different cantos of Dante’s Inferno and rely on Teodolinda Barolini’s work to examine textual contrapasso. Chapter One also discusses how Dante’s work shows the sinner’s moral condition and makes it visible through the punishment inflicted. Additionally, Dante’s Inferno presents punishment as part of a divinely authorized moral order, which becomes important in Chapter Two when I examine how William Blake visually interprets and questions that system. In Chapter Two, I examine the works of Blake that correspond …

The Smuggled Body: Embodied Experiences Of Sudanese Displacement Along The Sudan–Egypt Corridor, Marielys Padua Soto

Theses and Dissertations

The outbreak of conflict in Sudan in April 2023 triggered one of the world's largest displacement crises, forcing millions of Sudanese civilians to flee toward neighboring countries, particularly Egypt. As legal pathways became increasingly restricted following Egypt's tightening of visa policies, many asylum seekers relied on migrant smuggling networks to reach safety. This thesis examines how restrictive mobility regimes are materially experienced through the body by introducing the concept of the smuggled body, defined as the body through which the physical, emotional, and social consequences of border control, irregular mobility, and forced displacement are lived. Drawing on embodiment theory, border …

Unearthing Potential: Impact Investors’ Perspectives On Egypt’S Social Enterprise Market, Yousef Hesham Shoukry

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines impact investing in Egypt from the vantage point of the impact investors, revealing that Egypt's constraint is not the availability of capital but its direction, as the absence of legal recognition, coordinated intermediaries, and a shared impact-measurement standard keeps capital out of a market otherwise rich in social enterprise potential. The study employed a constructivist grounded theory approach, drawing on eleven semi-structured interviews with impact fund managers, ecosystem enablers, and public-sector policy advisors operating in or considering Egypt's social enterprise market. Data revealed that practitioners converge on the founding principles of impact investment (combined financial and social …

Adjudicating Technology Facilitated Violence Against Women In Egypt: Between The Text And The Application, Eman E. Zidan

Theses and Dissertations

Technology-facilitated violence against women (TFVAW) has surged on digital platforms, leading to a sharp rise in victimization rates among girls and women globally. Egypt’s pioneering cybercrime legislation, though comprehensive, remains gender-neutral and inadequate in judicial application. Community perceptions reveal systemic gaps that erode public trust and fuel demands for specialized protections. This study analyzes Egyptian judicial responses to TFVAW cases through comparative jurisprudence with jurisdictions that feature gender-specific norms. Findings demonstrate that textual provisions alone fail to arrest this escalating phenomenon, underscoring the need for integrated reforms: tailored legislation, heightened awareness campaigns, and collaborative education on rights, duties, and societal …

Effects Of Social Comparison Instructions On Affect, Motivation For Healthy Behavior, And Health Behavior Selections: Guidance To Identify Or Contrast, Raj Harsora

Theses and Dissertations

Engaging in healthy behaviors early in life is crucial for preventing noncommunicable diseases such as type 2 diabetes, cancer, and heart disease. College is an optimal period to establish these habits, yet students often engage in poor dietary and physical activity practices; thus, identifying effective health behavior change techniques for this population is essential. Social comparisons are known to influence health behaviors, yet no research has tested comparison instructions as a behavior change technique, particularly identification versus contrast with upward and downward targets. Using a preregistered protocol (https://osf.io/z29en), we tested whether guiding college students (N=664) to identify with or contrast …

Problematic Technology Use And Quality Of Life In College Students With Varying Levels Of Schizotypy, Joseph P. Skinner

Theses and Dissertations

Problematic Technology Use (PTU) has emerged as a growing concern with technology’s continual integration into daily living. Individuals higher in schizotypy may be particularly vulnerable to the negative consequences of digital environments. The present study cross-sectionally examined associations among schizotypy, PTU, and quality of life (QOL) in 533 college students using structural equation modeling. Consistent with hypotheses, greater total schizotypy was associated with higher PTU and lower QOL. Additionally, positive, negative, and disorganized schizotypy all uniquely predicted poor QOL with the negative domain demonstrating the strongest standardized association. Contrary to hypotheses, PTU did not significantly moderate the relation between total …

The Impact Of Stigma On The Mmpi-3 Scores Of An Indo-Caribbean Community Sample, Julia Persaud-Naipaul

Theses and Dissertations

Evaluation of personality and psychological disorders is accomplished through the use of psychometric measures. However, tests require interpretation of test responses using a normative criterion based on a particular population that may not fully consider the effect of cultural influences on an individual’s level of willingness to report psychological difficulties. For example, individuals in collectivistic cultures may not be as willing to self-report problems because mental illness is often perceived as a source of embarrassment and shame. One culturally unique population that has been overlooked in psychological assessment is the Indo-Caribbean population. Their specific cultural values, beliefs, attitudes, and practices …

"Tithing Is An Insurance Premium": A Framing Analysis Of Speaker Innovation And Diachronic Trends In Latter-Day Saint Religious Discourse, Reid Empey

Theses and Dissertations

Religious language relies on shared metaphor and frames that contextualize religious experience and practice. Current approaches to frame semantics (Fillmore 1982) and cognitive metaphor (Lakoff & Johnson 1980) lend important insight into religious language, particularly in describing the role that figurative language serves in a religious speech community. However, a vital component of many religious speech communities is the presence of and engagement with a scriptural canon, which often contains metaphorical and framing language that religious speakers can directly reference. Yet, past conceptualizations of speech communities have not accounted for this engagement with a shared canon. To illustrate the role …

Family Religious Socialization Index: Development And Preliminary Validation, Kaelie Rene Crockett

Theses and Dissertations

A key area of interest for religious scholars is how religious beliefs are passed across generations, or religious socialization. To expand this field of study, a theoretically grounded, validated measure of this construct is needed. This article describes the development and validation of the Family Religious Socialization Index (FRSI), a multi-informant, multidimensional assessment of the processes through which parents socialize religion and faith in their children. Based on Social Cognitive Theory and through a rigorous development and validation process, three subscales were developed to represent the primary processes of religious socialization. The FRSI consists of two parallel scales, a parent …

Identifying The Brain Circuits Involved In Religious Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, Kiana Bunnell

Theses and Dissertations

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is an often-debilitating psychiatric disorder involving a pattern of obsessive thoughts and compensatory compulsions. Symptoms tend to be chronic, leading to substantial emotional burden and significant impairment across multiple domains of daily functioning. Previous research has identified some consistency in the brain regions implicated in OCD. In particular, cortico-striato-thalamo-cortical (CSTC) circuitry has been linked to behavioral features commonly observed in OCD. Moreover, some studies suggest that distinct patterns of brain activation and functional connectivity may be associated with different OCD symptom dimensions, though findings have not been consistent. One symptom dimension of OCD (scrupulosity) is characterized by …

Is “No Change” Really No Change?: A Qualitative Analysis Of Clients With “No Change” On Routine Outcome Monitoring Who Report Improving In Therapy, Audrey Louise Stewart Parker

Theses and Dissertations

Routine outcome monitoring (ROM), the practice of tracking client progress in therapy by administering regular questionnaires to assess functioning, has demonstrated a significant positive effect on psychotherapy outcomes, especially for clients are who not improving as expected. However, some researchers argue the symptom-based measures and outcome classification criteria commonly used in ROM may not represent a complete picture of client change. A recent body of mixed-methods research has investigated these ROM-determined outcome categories to gain insight into client experiences and whether the category and client perception of therapy outcome align. In this investigation, researchers have found significant variety within outcome …

Behavioral Effects Of Novel Treatments For Pain Management Using Combinatorial Methods, Rohit Rajeev Nambiar

Theses and Dissertations

Pain, despite being an uncomfortable feeling to experience, is a necessary protective mechanism for the body1. Understanding that pain results from several different mechanisms within the body is important to discovering the optimal way to treat and manage a person’s pain. Modern medicine has seen numerous advancements in treating or managing acute and chronic pain, particularly with opioid drugs. However, these treatments come with potential side effects, including opioid use disorder (OUD) and fatal overdose. Finding new treatment methods, or improving existing methods, is crucial for patients with pain. This thesis explores two projects looking to develop safer analgesia using …

Online Parent Group Intervention For Executive Function Skills For Autistic Children And Adolescents, Kathleen Clark

Theses and Dissertations

Executive functioning (EF) skills deficits are prevalent among children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (autism) that impacts their academic functioning, social relationships, and families' quality of life. This study aimed to explore an online parent group intervention, to test effectiveness of a 6-week parenting intervention on parenting stress and child's executive functioning (EF) among autism families in rural Utah with limited access to traditional intervention resources. The participants were eight parents from six families of children and adolescents (8-15 years) with clinical diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder and appropriate language abilities for their age. The parents participated in weekly …

Media Emotion Regulation And Executive Function In Childhood: Associations With Respiratory Sinus Arrhythmia, Lara M. Almeida

Theses and Dissertations

Media emotion regulation (MER), or the use of media to help children manage emotions, may influence children's development by shaping opportunities for practicing self-regulatory skills. Guided by the Dynamic, Relational, Ecological Approach to Media Effects Research (DREAMER) model, this study examined longitudinal associations between MER and executive functioning (EF) in early childhood and explored whether respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA), a physiological index of regulation, predicted developmental changes. Participants included 175 parent-child dyads assessed across two annual waves when children were approximately 4 and 5 years old. Structural equation modeling was used to test bidirectional associations between MER and EF while …

Physical Activity, Trauma, And Posttraumatic Stress: The Indirect Role Of Exercise Addiction, Anastasiia Rozumna

Theses and Dissertations

Exercise is often conceptualized as a protective factor for mental health, including for individuals exposed to trauma. However, less is known about whether exercise may relate to posttraumatic stress symptoms differently when it is accompanied by compulsive or addictive features. The present study examined whether volume and intensity of physical activity were associated with posttraumatic stress symptom severity indirectly through exercise addiction symptoms. This secondary cross-sectional analysis included 557 adults living in the United States who reported regular participation in sport or physical activity. Participants completed self-report measures of physical activity behavior, exercise addiction symptoms, trauma exposure, and posttraumatic stress …

A Systematic Review Of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Among Hispanic Immigrants In The United States, Rashel Acireale

Theses and Dissertations

This study systematically reviews the literature on posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among Hispanic immigrants in the United States, a population exposed to cumulative trauma across the migration process. Stressors may occur before, during, and after migration and include violence, family separation, dangerous travel conditions, discrimination, and fear of deportation. Despite these risks, findings on PTSD prevalence remain mixed, and Hispanic immigrants are underrepresented in clinical research and culturally informed interventions. This review examines sample representation, types and timing of trauma, PTSD measurement approaches, and the inclusion of cultural and contextual factors such as acculturation and immigration-related stress. It also evaluates …

College Sports Clubs: Engines Of Emotional And Social Development, Robert Robinson

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines the relationship between structured campus involvement and the development of campus connectedness among students at Rowan University. While the transition to university life is a critical period marked by social, emotional, and academic adjustments, this study highlights how sport clubs serve as a primary social anchor to facilitate successful integration. Utilizing a qualitative thematic analysis of focus group data across diverse campus organizations, this research clarifies how these spaces foster identity formation and resilience. Findings reveal that participation in sport clubs significantly enhances student wellbeing by providing support networks that mitigate early feelings of isolation. A key …

Depictions Of Girls With Adhd In Contemporary Picturebooks: A Critical Content Analysis, Madison Briann Smith

Theses and Dissertations

This study examines how girls with ADHD are depicted in contemporary picturebooks through the theoretical framework of critical disability studies (CDS). While research has increasingly explored disability representation in children's literature, depictions of girls with ADHD remain underexamined despite the ways in which ADHD manifests in female populations and the historical underdiagnosis of females with the condition. Using critical content analysis (CCA), six contemporary picturebooks featuring female protagonists with ADHD were analyzed for their visual and textual representations of neurodiversity. Findings were organized into two overarching themes: strength-based and deficit-based depictions. Strength-based portrayals emphasized creativity, identity formation through adult mentors, …

Properties Of Enjoyable Mathematical Contexts From The Student Perspective, Emilie Nadine Hendrickson

Theses and Dissertations

Researchers continue to grapple with how to meaningfully engage students in mathematical content. Many students report disengagement due to perceptions that mathematics is difficult, irrelevant, boring, or anxiety-inducing. This study sought to understand how students interpret and respond to different mathematical problem contexts, with particular attention to the reasons students describe certain problems as enjoyable or unenjoyable. Using semi-structured interviews, this research examined student responses to a variety of mathematical problem types primarily across affective engagement. Students reflected on specific problem contexts and explained which features supported or hindered their enjoyment and engagement. Students described that contexts were enjoyable have …

Recognition Of Autism Characteristics In Females: An Examination Of Stakeholders, Laurel Lyn Bishop

Theses and Dissertations

Autism is a neurodevelopmental communication disorder, characterized by differences in social communication, attention, interests, and sensory perception. Diagnostic criteria have historically applied to males, but clinical diagnostic criteria beginning in 2022 now include slight differences in traits comprising the female phenotype. Until recently, autistic females may be missed by the professional and education community or diagnosed later than males. Like their autistic male counterparts, they face an increased risk of suicidal ideation, but they also face more difficulties in peer relationships, academic problems, and increased anxiety and depressive symptoms, but may not get supports. School-age girls spend their days with …

Tubuh Yang Mengingat (The Body Remembers): Ecology, Ritual, And Embodied Memory In Contemporary Cirebon Mask Performance, Prameswari Mrajabwana

Theses and Dissertations

Tubuh yang Mengingat (The Body Remembers) is a single-channel, site-specific performance film set across coastal and extractive landscapes in Cirebon, West Java, Indonesia. Reinterpreting the five transformations of Cirebonese mask dance—Panji, Pamindo, Rumyang, Tumenggung, and Kelana—the project examines how colonial extraction, ecological deterioration, and systems of social regulation continue to shape embodied experience materially and somatically. Drawing from Karen Barad’s concept of intra-action and Stacy Alaimo’s notion of trans-corporeality, the work approaches body, land, technology, and history as relationally entangled rather than separate entities. Through live biodata sonification generated from environmental sensors and bodily movement, the film establishes …

Behavioral Indicators Of Stress In Wild Savanna-Dwelling Chimpanzees (Pan Troglodytes) In Fongoli, Senegal, Leah T. Williams

Theses and Dissertations

Stress influences health, reproduction, social relationships, and survival in primates. I identified behavioral indicators of stress in wild chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) and determined whether coping strategies varied between behavioral contexts. Coping behavior differed significantly across contexts and behaviors, indicating that coping behaviors are strategically utilized in different contexts and provide insight into the emotional regulation of chimpanzees.

Queer Postsecular Conocimiento: Anzaldúan Readings Of Time, Spirituality, And Transformation In Nugent, Vuong, And Herrera, Joshua A. Swem

Theses and Dissertations

An overreliance on secularism within the field of queer theory and a denial of spiritual epistemologies prevent deep, alternative, and transformative strategies of analyzing literature. It can regurgitate oppressive ideology in academia. In this work, I synthesize Gloria Anzaldúa’s theoretical concepts of mestiza consciousness, nepantla, la facultad, and el cenote with José Esteban Muñoz’s queer temporality and futurity as a framework to engage with literary texts in queer, postsecular ways, freeing up fresh insights and polysemic perspectives. I argue that in  "Smoke, Lilies, and Jade" by Richard Bruce Nugent, Signs Preceding the End of the World by Yuri …

Understanding The Correlation Between Prediction Performance And Trust In Ai Through Scenario-Based Tasks, Likhitha Kammara

Theses and Dissertations

Trust in artificial intelligence is commonly assessed through self-reported scales or behavioral reliance, yet behavioral reliance is retrospective and can only be observed after a decision has already been made. This thesis examines whether prediction accuracy — a user's ability to predict what an AI system will recommend before its output is revealed — can serve as a prospective correlate of trust in the same empirical sense as behavioral reliance. The study was conducted in two phases using scenario-based AI decision tasks across disaster response, healthcare, and infrastructure restoration contexts, employing a between-group design in which participants either predicted AI …