Digital Commons Network^™

An Evaluation Of The Advance Directives-Live Action Simulation Training (Ad-Last) Program, Alexandra Rosa Spinelli

Theses and Dissertations

Advance Care Planning (ACP) is a process that captures a patient’s wishes in the case of future circumstances in which they are unable to express them. Studies show that less than one third of the general population has completed some type of formal Advance Directive (AD). There are barriers to completing ADs, and these barriers operate on multiple levels, including, patient, provider and institutional. To improve providers’ capacity to help patients complete ACP, and overcome these barriers, a provider-focused intervention was conducted. The current study is an analysis of archival data collected from the Advance Directives-Live Action Simulation Training (AD-LAST) …

Analysis Of Teaching Styles, Adult Learning Theories, And Factors Influencing Teaching Style Preferences In Adult Education Instructors: Implication For Practice, Beatrice Chemaiyo Lele

Theses and Dissertations

The teacher is the most influential and important variable in the classroom for student achievement. Therefore, the need for teachers to identify and utilize best teaching practices is fundamental to a progressing society. Despite the literature advocating and proposing the student-centered approach as the preferred method of teaching in adult education, most empirical studies indicate that teachers employed the traditional teacher-centered approach. The purpose of this study was to examine the teaching style preferences of adult education instructors and the influence of gender, age, participation in professional development in adult education, years of teaching experience, teaching subject, and levels of …

Children’S Participation Rights In Child Welfare Systems: Identifying Opportunities For Implementation, Anna M. Cody

Theses and Dissertations

Children’s participation rights are critically important for supporting children’s well-being. Studies across the world consistently demonstrate that children and youth feel uninvolved, silenced and marginalized within the child welfare context which has a direct impact on their physical safety as well as their subjective well-being. There has been a shift in US policy and practice towards recognizing the value and importance of engaging youth, older youth in particular, in being involved with planning for their care and for their future. However, definitions of what meaningful “youth engagement” might look like within the child welfare context generally lack clarity. In addition, …

Analysis Of Stigmatic Content In State Mental Health Legislative Proposals, David L. Conley

Theses and Dissertations

Despite the proven effectiveness of mental health interventions, services remain limited across the country. Social workers have repeatedly advocated for increased funding, but mental healthcare gaps persist. Disparities could be addressed through the policy process, but critical proposals often do not pass. One of the biggest barriers is the concept of stigma, which could extend into legislatures and influence mental health-related policy outcomes as a form of structural stigma. Factors that influence legislator voting behavior are found in the literature, but studies have not explicitly focused on structural stigma or mental health-specific policy outcomes. Thus, the present study aimed to …

Predictors Of Professional Quality Of Life In Rural Nurses, Stephanie Deese

Theses and Dissertations

Worldwide nursing shortages have led to an increased burden on healthcare systems, and this is especially true in already underserved, remote, and rural areas, where access to healthcare is limited and the loss of highly-skilled nursing professionals is deeply-felt. Professional quality of life (ProQOL) has been studied as a major influence on nurses’ wellbeing, job satisfaction, burnout rates, turnover rates, and quality of care. While certain job-related factors that impact nurses’ ProQOL outcomes have been identified – excessive workload, exposure to trauma, financial strain due to low wages, lack of or over-emotional engagement in the workplace, individual disposition – certain …

A Critical Race Examination Of The Lived Experiences Of Persistent African American Students At A Predominantly White Community College, Elena Favela Naca

Theses and Dissertations

For well over a century, African Americans have fought for equal rights to employment, prosperity, political power and freedom. Earning an education was the way forward. Over time, legislative and institutional policies have created greater access to education for racialized individuals. Yet, African American students remain the most underserved population, and among the lowest in degree attainment across ethnic groups. Decades of research literature places blame on students and families, highlighting student deficiencies. Far fewer explanations in the literature point to institutional barriers that perpetuate practices that place African American students at a disadvantage. Critical Race Theory (CRT) offers a …

The Relationship Of Internship Setting To Internship Directors' Perspectives On Cultural Competence In Psychological Assessment, Micharra Joshua

Theses and Dissertations

Psychological assessment represents a core competency and a highly specialized skill in professional psychology that is central to the identity of many practicing psychologists. However, more research is needed on the quality of assessment training that psychology doctoral students receive, particularly in relation to developing competence in the assessment of diverse individuals and groups. Moreover, diversity-related considerations for assessment should be broad and incorporate dimensions that include age, gender, gender identity, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, disability, language, socioeconomic status, and other factors. This clinical dissertation consisted of an archival study that examined predoctoral internship directors' perspectives on their interns' preparation …

Development Of A Resilience-Oriented Stress Management Group Intervention For Mothers Experiencing Homelessness, Lily Danielle Rowland

Theses and Dissertations

Family homelessness, particularly of mothers and their children, continues to remain an unfortunate epidemic throughout the United States. Personal, relational, and systemic adversity and trauma leave this population at high risk for instability, physical and mental health challenges, and impaired wellbeing. However, despite these difficulties, research strongly suggests that positive functioning can remain in families experiencing homelessness and that many go on to leave shelters and maintain stability, particularly when mothers have effective strategies to manage stress in contexts of adversity. In addition to identifying the needs of mothers experiencing homelessness, the literature also has highlighted factors of individual and …

Talent Investment And Nonprofit Pay: A Study In The Arts Community, Sally E. Loftis

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to explore employee perceptions of pay as part of a talent investment strategy at Penland School of Craft, the largest non-academic craft school in the United States. The study outlines action research completed when funds from a transformational endowment gift were used for employee needs. Study data reflected that structural and pay changes increased employee engagement. Study findings also informed recommendations for a nonprofit strategy to pay living wages connected to costs of living and a pay raise framework that supports different levels of employee development.

Climate Change, Social Media, And Generation Z, Melanie Morris

Theses and Dissertations

Recent publications report that adults known as Generation Z, between the ages of 18 to 23, increasingly rely upon social media to gain knowledge of social issues. Given social media's embeddedness in Generation Z's life, this study sought to understand if or how social media has influenced and possibly empowered Generation Z to act on social issues, particularly global climate change. This study used a phenomenological research method, which focused on the commonality of Generation Z's lived experience. Emerging themes collected through a literature review and data portray Generation Z as maturing into adulthood as tech-savvy, diverse, and inclusive self-starters. …

Homeless With Breast Cancer On Skid Row, Los Angeles: A Review Of Services For Women, Eva Dittrich

Theses and Dissertations

This study reviews the literature on breast cancer in general and narrows to within the context of the homeless population of Skid Row, Los Angeles, positing that the experience of breast cancer while homeless is a compounded traumatic experience with complex and numerous practical challenges. It poses the following question: What services are available to homeless women on Skid Row, Los Angeles, the information about which can be found online? Which and how many services are dedicated to breast cancer screenings and treatment? Are other types of cancer screening and treatment services advertised on the included service organizations' websites? A …

Development Of A Strengths And Empowerment Focused Group Intervention For Marginalized Populations With A Focus On Women, Low-Income, And Racial-Ethnic Minorities, Kristin Goradietsky

Theses and Dissertations

Members of marginalized groups face numerous stressors, including racism, discrimination, and a lack of access to quality mental health and medical care. Members of marginalized groups are also at a higher risk of developing mental health issues such as posttraumatic stress disorder, depression, and anxiety. There is a lack of literature regarding effective mental health treatment for members of marginalized groups, including those who are homeless or low income; Black, indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC); and women. A literature review indicated interventions based in empowerment, positive psychology, mindfulness, and critical consciousness may be particularly applicable to vulnerable populations. Therefore, …

A Randomized Trial Of Cbt4cbt For Women In Residential Treatment For Substance Use Disorders, Sydney S. Kelpin

Theses and Dissertations

Women with substance use disorders (SUD) face unique barriers to substance use treatment, and as a result, are less likely than their male counterparts to seek treatment for the disorder. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is an evidence-based treatment known to reduce relapse rates by teaching clients to recognize and respond to their cues for substance use. Recent research suggests CBT may be particularly of benefit to women. Despite the effectiveness of CBT, its dissemination in clinical practice is limited due to a range of barriers (e.g., time, cost). Computer-based training for cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT4CBT) offers an opportunity to improve …

A Cost-Effectiveness Analysis Of Early Literacy Growth In Public Pre-Kindergarten Programs, Bruce A. Fillman

Theses and Dissertations

Student early literacy readiness is predictive of later academic success and pre-k programs are a proven intervention to develop early literacy; however, the cost of pre-k programs differs greatly. These differences in cost are related to the opportunities and services included within each program. This study examined four pre-k programs offered within a large school system in Virginia to determine if there were differences in students’ early literacy growth by program attended and evaluated the ratio of cost to achievement of each pre-k program to determine their cost-effectiveness. To do this, two one-way analyses of variances (ANOVAs) were conducted to …

Education Support For Foster Care Youth: The Impact Of Federal Spending On Employment Outcomes, Carlisle C. Bates

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the extent to which supportive services funded through the federal John H. Chafee Foster Care Independence Program (CFCP) are associated with academic success and employment in foster care youth. Studies suggest that this group experiences poorer employment outcomes (Gypen, Vanderfaeillie, De Maeyer, Belenger, & Van Holen, 2017; Okpych & Courtney, 2014) and earn less money annually (Gypen et al., 2017; Okpych & Courtney, 2014; Pecora, 2012). Despite a 29.4-billion-dollar annual budget for foster care services, individuals with a foster care history struggle after they transition out of care.

The CFCP is intended to help states improve education …

It’S Funny Because It’S True: The Transmission Of Explicit And Implicit Racism In Internet Memes, Tabitha Fairchild

Theses and Dissertations

Video games are traditionally seen as the domain of heteronormative white males. The purpose of this study is to explore how racism is transmitted and reproduced within digital communities, and how humor is being used to frame racist discourse in virtual spaces. Digitally, internet memes are widely used rhetorical vehicles, reaching large and broad audiences. The roles these artifacts play in the reproduction and transmission of racist ideology is often obfuscated by the perception that internet memes are "just jokes." This study analyzes internet memes collected from 16 months of communication between members of Discord servers that self-identify as communities …

A Longitudinal Test Of Mexican Teen Mothers’ Cultural Characteristics And Children’S Language Skills Via Mothers’ Language, Arlenis A. Santana

Theses and Dissertations

The current study includes 204 Mexican teen mothers and their children from a larger study who were interviewed when children were 3 years old (Wave 4; W4), 4 years old (W5), and 5 years old (W6). The current study is guided by the integrative model of developmental competencies (García Coll et al., 1996), which suggests that parents’ adaptive cultural characteristics and exchanges with their children inform children’s developmental competencies. Thus, the current study examined whether teen mothers’ adaptive cultural characteristics (i.e., familism values, language competency pressures, and involvement in Mexican culture and U.S. mainstream culture) at W4 informed mothers’ Spanish …

Intimate Partner Violence And Revictimization: Factors Involved In Occurrence And Severity, Dunia Sarwary

Theses and Dissertations

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a growing, complex, and silent social problem across the United States. Victims of IPV are known to be at a greater risk for revictimization. However, the relationship between revictimization and IPV has not been extensively studied. There have been few attempts to synthesize, compare, and contrast findings regarding the factors involved in IPV victimization and revictimization. This study utilized data from existing research involving 250 females seeking civil legal services from Iowa Legal Aid. The archival data explored the long-term influence of civil legal services on female victims of IPV. This study identified the relationships …

A Mixed Method Study: West African Women And Intimate Partner Violence, Fleur Amanda Daphnet Anna Williams

Theses and Dissertations

There has been a great amount of research conducted on women around the world, but limited focus has been placed on the countries of West Africa. The purpose of this mixed-method study was to gain insight into first-generation women of West African descent living in the United States and identify the key risk factors for victimization. The focus of this study was first-generation American women of West African descent. The study was conducted to identify the cultural/social norms and differences (e.g., lack of language skills, dependence on their spouse, etc.) that shape their experience with Intimate Partner Violence (IPV). The …

Exploring United Methodist Adults’ Racial Attitudes And Beliefs From A Critical Race Framework To Inform Outreach Efforts With Low-Income, Black Youth In Mississippi, Brittany Radford

Theses and Dissertations

Extensive literature has documented The United Methodist Church’s’ (UMC) commitment to social justice. A current focus in the church is working with economically marginalized populations, including the 231,170 Black children and youth in Mississippi. To better understand adults that serve this population, I conducted an exploratory study to gather baseline data about UMC adults’ contemporary attitudes and beliefs about race, racism, and discrimination. A cross-sectional survey was administered at the 2017 Mississippi Annual Conference of The UMC. Using a critical race lens, I found that most of the attendees espoused moderate color-blind racial attitudes and beliefs about the frequency that …

An Evaluation Of The Utility Of The Performance Diagnostic Checklist - Human Services (Pdc-Hs): A Comparison Of Formal And Informal Assessment Strategies, Cherish Chalk

Theses and Dissertations

The PDC-HS is a performance assessment tool that assists in the identification of variables contributing to performance problems among human service employees. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the utility of the PDC-HS as a formal assessment strategy. Specifically, the PDC-HS was compared to an informal assessment strategy consisting of a single open-ended interview question and a single structured interview question. Participants included 40 supervisors in varying positions in the human services industry. Descriptive statistics were used to compare participant responses to the open-ended and structured questions to the results indicated by the PDC-HS. Results suggest that the …

Achievement Motivation In Emerging Adulthood: An Examination Of Overparenting, Need Satisfaction And Frustration, And Goal Complexes, Erin D. Turner Carson

Theses and Dissertations

In recent years, helicopter parenting, or overparenting, has become an increasing concern on college campuses. Research has linked overparenting to a variety of maladaptive characteristics and outcomes among emerging adults, but little is known about how overparenting predicts achievement goals. This study used an integrated framework of self-determination theory (SDT) and the hierarchical model of achievement motivation from the achievement goal approach (AGA) to examine how overparenting and the basic psychological needs of autonomy, competence, and relatedness predict the endorsement of achievement goal complexes. Participants were 176 emerging adult college students who completed an online survey. Data were analyzed using …

“We Need Dawgs!”: Narrative Construction Of Athletic Identity Among Black High School Football Players, Victor Dion Kidd

Theses and Dissertations

Previous empirical inquiry of athletic identity (Brewer, Van Raalte, Linder, 1993) and participation has failed to examine how such identities and roles are developed at the high school level of competition. While focusing on salient athletic identities or role sets are important, research literature should target how devotion to athletic identities, roles, and responsibilities are developed and communicated to adolescent athletes by social interactions. Therefore, while adopting Narrative Identity Theory (Loseke, 2007; McAdams & McLean, 2013; Polkinghorne, 1991; Smith 2010) as an appropriate lens, the current study investigated how athletic identity, roles, and responsibilities are developed through complex interaction and …

Younger Residents Through The Looking Glass: Perceptions Of The Residential Experience Of Non-Traditionally Aged Residents Living In The Long Term Care Setting, Sara J. English

Theses and Dissertations

This embedded case study describes perceptions of the residential experience of non- traditionally aged persons (between the ages of 18-64), living in the Long Term Care (LTC) setting. Prior research identifies non-traditionally aged persons as the fastest growing group admitting to residential LTC care. Due to the complexity of need, younger residents may potentially languish in LTC for twenty, thirty, or more years. Non-traditionally aged residents currently comprise about 15% of the total residential LTC population; yet, little is known about this burgeoning group of younger persons, including how they perceive themselves as residents in LTC settings and how they …

Illusionary Success: Modern Failures In Child Welfare, Courtney Harris

Theses and Dissertations

Child welfare is constantly labeled as “failure- riddled” and “scandalous” with high rates of children who are in an endless cycle of removal, reunification, and removal. Some children have lifelong abuse ramifications due to a longstanding history of childhood abuse. Other children, unfortunately, pay the ultimate price and die. State Child Welfare entities are working within their confines and become bound by federal and state statutes and laws. While media and citizen onlookers criticize and blame the state, workers, and families, the field suffers from a lack of better offers. This dissertation seeks to use the state of Tennessee as …

Measurement Implementation In Youth Psychotherapy: An Examination Of Barriers And Facilitators Of Y-Oq And Tsm Implementation, Tess Janeen Collett

Theses and Dissertations

Studies have shown a concerning and disproportionate amount of treatment failure and premature termination in youth populations. Routine measurement feedback has been proposed as a means to prevent treatment failure and premature termination for adults and may also improve youth mental health services. However, studies examining helpfulness of measurement feedback systems in youth populations have demonstrated a lack of effects more likely due to poor measurement implementation than to the measurement feedback system itself. Because contexts within the service settings are such crucial factors in whether an innovation is successfully implemented, examining barriers and facilitators in said contexts is a …

The Effect Of Inconsistent Therapy Attendance By Client And Therapist On Therapeutic Outcomes, Elyssa Louise Zimmerman

Theses and Dissertations

Inconsistent therapy attendance is a problem for clients and clinicians. Clients who don’t attend therapy consistently, whether because of their own actions or therapist reasons, may experience difficulty making therapy work effectively for them. Most of the literature regarding inconsistent therapy attendance has examined the demographics of those who are inconsistent and some of the reasons that may contribute to inconsistency. There are only two known studies (Defife et al., 2010; Erekson et al., 2015) that have attempted to examine the impact of inconsistent therapy attendance on therapy outcomes. This study investigated whether inconsistent therapy attendance patterns had a significant …

Teen Dating Violence In A Sample Of High School Students In The Rio Grande Valley, Gabriela Ontiveros

Theses and Dissertations

This study analyzes the extent of teenage dating violence (TDV) perpetration and victimization among a sample of high school students in the Rio Grande Valley and its relationship with the occurrence of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and exposure to interparental violence. Two hundred and twenty participants out of 426 were eligible for analyses. Rates of male and female physical abuse perpetration and victimization were similar although females reported significantly higher perpetration and males higher victimization rates. Regression analyses indicated that females exposed to interparental violence reported higher rates of overall TDV perpetration and physical abuse perpetration.

Females with higher occurrences …

Muzeu Kontemporan, Sanelina Sadiki Xhota

Theses and Dissertations

Muzeu, si objekt kulti dhe reprezentues social, meriton të trajtohet e të kultivohen hapësira të dedikuara për të çdo herë. Në lokalitetet tona, përveq që këto godina nuk janë ikonike sa i përket dukjes, dhe ka mungesë të hapësirave të dedikuara apo të ndërtuara enkas me këtë karakter, por në këtë rast edhe unë po kerkoja një shembull të një objekti egzistues, që sipas mendimit tim, më së shumti i përafrohet konceptit dhe karakterit te objektit “Muze”, duke qenë se fasada dhe organizimi brenda, së bashku me karakteristikat e ndriqimit dhe pozita urbane e objektit e cila është leht e …

A Content Analysis Of Ethnic Minorities In The Professional Discipline Of Clinical Psychology, Pedro L. Perez Aquino

Theses and Dissertations

A more diverse population in the United States calls for the inclusion of REC minority populations in research to improve treatment and clinician cultural awareness. A content analysis is proposed to analyze the inclusion level of REC minority groups in the Journal of Clinical Psychology. Five questions are explored to organize and present the findings of the content analysis. Results demonstrate the low level of inclusion of REC minority groups as well as congruence between most studied topics and each REC minority group in the Journal of Clinical Psychology. These results should encourage researchers and clinicians to push for more …