Digital Commons Network^™

Shakespeare's Cultural Capital Conversion, Christopher S. Hults

Theses and Dissertations

Shakespeare's vast cultural capital does not often translate easily to financial capital.Whether those who invest in Shakespeare seek financial, educational, or cultural gain, anunderstanding of capital conversion as it relates to Shakespeare industries can inform decisionsand clarify goals. After clarifying and delineating what we have and know of Shakespeare before1616 and what has been created by culture regarding him after 1616, we label the latterShakesaltation, then seek the key to converting his cultural capital to financial capital. ApplyingPierre Bourdieu's states of cultural capital to the Shakespeare industry illustrates why manyinvestments fail, few succeed, and why: cultural capital must be in …

Identity Fluidity, Empowerment, And Engendered Poverty: Performing A Veteran-Latina-Online-Graduate Student, Maricela Burns

Theses and Dissertations

The goal of this project is to use critical race theory and gendered discourse to shed light on engendered poverty, cultural capital and resilience in efforts to identify how the American educational system affects marginalized groups when the systems of power and privilege were not created for them. It is through a poignant narrative of one of these students (myself) in the educational system that I reflect, recollect, write and interweave my lived curriculum with what the literature says about ethnic experiences like mine. The efforts here serve to analyze the processes of constructing and building social and gender identity …

Women In Law Enforcement: The Impacts And Obstacles They Face In A Hispanic- And Male-Dominated Culture, Lisa M. Seiser

Theses and Dissertations

Despite a lack of female law enforcement representation in police departments across the country and especially in the Border Patrol, there have been minimal studies performed that focus on the obstacles women face in these professions. The purpose of this study was to attempt to understand the lived experiences of female law enforcement officers/border patrol agents in this male-dominated profession, but also adding the aspect of them working in a Hispanic-dominated culture.

The findings revealed these women in law enforcement working in a Hispanic area face many of the same obstacles as women in other parts of the country - …

Non-Space: The Perception Of Reality, Carlos Limas

Theses and Dissertations

This is a formal study of real-world images that try to convey a clear approach to the way we look and relate to unexpected places that at first glance don’t exist in a metaphorical way or just don’t strike us as interesting or attractive. There’s no particular story to tell only the need to expose a different kind of beauty through my own personal subjective view and sensitivity expanding the criteria of my own esthetic values and context of a captured image in a particular scenario.

The perception of Non-Space relates directly to a well establish photography technique called Deadpan, …

Measuring Disaster Resiliency In The Rio Grande Valley, Alma R. Provencio

Theses and Dissertations

People are now becoming more conscious of the effects of climate change. They are seeking to understand how to manage their resources and prepare for when a disaster strikes. The growing studies of disaster resilience lend that opportunity. In this spatial and temporal study, disaster resilience was measured for each census tract within the four counties of the Rio Grande Valley. Utilizing GIS tools and methods, the study examines resilience patterns between 2010 and 2017.

Results showed that even though various census tracts from each of the four counties increased in resilience from 2010 to 2017, the overall total resilience …

Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory-Iv (Mcmi-Iv) Profile Patterns And Scale Score Correlates For Jail Inmates Referred For Mental Health Services, Lauren Ashley Price

Theses and Dissertations

Personality assessment measures have been heavily used and researched with criminal offender populations in the realms of clinical, forensic, and correctional psychology for reasons including assessing reoffending risk, informing predictions regarding future behavior, and treatment planning. The Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory (MCMI) features among the personality assessment measures widely used in evaluating criminal offenders. This current study compromised of adults male inmates (N=95) incarcerated in Brevard County, Florida examined scores from the recently released Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory-Fourth Edition (MCMI-IV). The study’s goals included (a) providing reference data based on a sample of jail inmates receiving mental health services, (b) …

Social Groups Characterization And Dynamics: A Network Science Approach, Josemar Faustino Da Cruz

Theses and Dissertations

Over the course of our lives, we tend to transition through many social groups. From an early age, our first social group is our family, then we have our schoolmates, later in life, our coworkers, and likely another family. As we move from one group to another, we embed ourselves in the dynamics of social groups’ losses and gains of new members. These dynamics are a complex system of interactions, which at scale, form the structural basis of our societies. In many years of sociological research, the details of social group interactions remained poorly understood. Certainly, not because of lack …

Evaluative Discourse As Community Identity Among Expatriates In Shenzhen, China, Karyn Harding

Theses and Dissertations

Expatriates are a modern-day community built by a rapid advance towards globalization. Expatriates are now likely to be self-initiated; that is, they chose to live in a foreign country rather than having been sent there by an employer, and they are changing the face of the global job market. However, their social interactions have not been the subject of much previous study. This paper delves into the ways that expatriates build and maintain their communities. In this case, participant observation and discourse analysis are used to study an expat community living in Shenzhen, China. As a group not defined by …

Integrated Perspective Of Low Self-Control And Lifestyle-Exposure: Gender Differences In Victimization Risk Among South Korean Youth, Hyounggon Kwak

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation examined the link between low self-control, risky lifestyles, and victimization, using data from 1,057 South Korean adolescents included in the Study on Childhood Delinquency. Specifically, this study explores a full mediation model to test whether risky lifestyles (unstructured activity, association with deviant peers, and delinquency) account for the effect of low self-control on victimization. The results indicated that low self-control only had an indirect effect on victimization primarily through unstructured time and one’s own delinquency. In addition, this study explored whether variations in the adolescent routine activities foster engagement in delinquency via association with deviant peers. Advancing prior …

The Tragedy Of Theresa Sturla: Murder, Insanity, And Womanhood On Trial In Nineteenth-Century Chicago, Jake Engelman

Theses and Dissertations

On the morning of July 10, 1882, a young prostitute named Theresa Sturla murdered her lover, Charles Stiles, on the sixth floor of the Palmer House in Chicago. During her trial four months later, Sturla’s attorney employed a dual argument of self-defense and insanity. He claimed that his client suffered from dysmenorrhea, or painful menstruation, and that she had gone temporarily insane at the time of the murder due to her defective reproductive system. According to the defense, Stiles’ abuse toward his mistress had exacerbated the disease and her only solution was to respond with violence. After a month-long trial, …

Rëndësia E Shesheve Urbane Si Hapësira Publike Në Jetën Shoqërore – Dizajnimi I Sheshit Të Ri Në Qytetin E Podujevës, Ermira Hoxha

Theses and Dissertations

Qëllimi i këtij punimi është të hulumtoj, krahasoj, grumbulloj dhe analizoj të dhëna rreth shesheve si hapësira publike, duke e bërë kështu krahasimin dhe evoluimin e arkitekturës së tyre si dhe rëndësinë e tyre në përmirësimin e jetës shoqërore.

Fillimisht do të përshkruaj evoluimin e arkitekturës së hapësirave publike, në fokus sheshet urbane. Pas kësaj do të trajtohen faktorët të cilët ndikojnë në arritjen e një dizajn të suksesshëm të një sheshi urban publik përmes disa rasteve të studimit dhe analizave në lokacion. Në fund do të bëhet një propozim i dizajnit të sheshit në qytetin e Podujevës në bazë …

Ndikimi I Pabarazisë Së Të Ardhurave (Gini Index) Në Lumturi- Rasti I Kosovës, Liridona Alushaj

Theses and Dissertations

Politikbërësit e çdo vendi duhet të kenë parasyshë dhe të iu kushtojnë vëmendje politikave të cilat kanë tendencë dhe qëllim të ulin pabarazinë e të ardhurave, pasi që konsiderohet si një kërcenim i vlerave të shoqërisë, sidomos shoqërisë së vendit tonë si shtet në tranzicion dhe në zhvillim e sipër. Në këtë periudhë, shtresa e varfër ka një rritje të ardhurave, dhe në të njejtën kohë po garantohet një rritje e shtresës së klasës së mesme, dhe këto të dhëna mund të konsiderohen si akt i rëndësishëm i zbatimit të politikave të qeverisjes, që mund të jap edhe rritje ekonomike …

Mediat Online Dhe Viktimat – Çështje Etike Dhe Profesionale, Flamur Gajtani

Theses and Dissertations

Qëllimi i këtij punimi është nxjerrja në pah e gabimeve dhe defekteve në raportim, që i bënë mediat online kur trajtuan rastet apo ngjarjet e veçanta gjatë vitit 2019 (periudha janar- tetor), në një fushë të veçantë të gazetarisë, që njihet si rubrika e Kronikës së Zezë. Me theks të veçantë, analizimi i shkrimeve apo artikujve specifikë,të cilët disa media në Kosovë i publikuan gjatë kësaj periudhe, si dhe shkeljet etike që bënë gjatë këtij procesi. Po ashtu, punimi përmban edhe rastet kur është dëmtuar personaliteti dhe integriteti i personave, është shkelur privatësia e tyre, si edhe kur ka pasur …

Public Policy And The Sustainability Of Tanzanian Private Universities, Simon Lucas Taabu

Theses and Dissertations

There has been a surge of universities in general and private universities in particular in the last three decades throughout the world. This expansion has been unanticipated in some countries, but in others especilly in SSA expansion came as a result of public policy change. The current globalization movement can be attributed to most of the reforms taking place in higher education institutions although unique features have been observed in different contries and regions. This expansion has not been paired with resource increase and hence putting quality of education, accessibility, equality and quality issues into question. Scholars have expressed doubts …

Exploring The Relationship Between Members Of Lifelong Learning Institutes And Host Institutions, Jon Charles Neidy

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between an individual’s involvement in Lifelong Learning Institutes (LLIs) and his or her propensity for philanthropic giving to the institute or its hosting college or university. The dataset was acquired through a survey administered to eleven Osher Lifelong Learning Institutes (OLLIs) in the United States. Data analysis was conducted on seven research questions which explored how the length, type, and frequency of participation, as well as the level satisfaction, commitment, and feelings of community may relate to an LLI participant’s inclination to donate. The findings of this study reveal these …

The Conversational Dynamic In American Public Life, Hannah Goff Spicher

Theses and Dissertations

A confluence of factors has sparked a sustained, public preoccupation with conversation. Brewing since the fifteenth century and overtly public since the middle of the nineteenth century, the explosion of public models of conversation that emerged in the European and American rhetorical traditions is significant—without precedent—in the history of rhetoric. This interest in conversation is so pronounced as to penetrate not just public speaking practices, but subtler interpretations of law, philosophy, commerce, and government. I identify this as the conversational turn. The extent to which this saturation was truly conversational is the subject of much debate. However, the contours …

Emerging Populations: An Analysis Of Twenty-First Century Caribbean Short Stories, Jeremy Patterson

Theses and Dissertations

The Caribbean has always been a contested space, a space difficult to define, and the literary genre of the short story has always been difficult to define as well. As a region and as a genre, what they share is less prestige, and less development, than other regions and genres. This dissertation brings both of these elements together in a comparative literature study of three twenty-first century Caribbean short story anthologies from the three major linguistic traditions of the Caribbean (English, French, and Spanish). The distinguishing characteristic of these short stories, and the overarching framework for this study, is that …

The Association Of Reimbursement Methods With The Tendency Of Primary Care Physicians To Apply The American Diabetic Association’S Recommendations And Make Referrals To Specialists Among Ambulatory Care Patients In Us Outpatient Settings., Abdullah Alharbi

Theses and Dissertations

We report on a study of the comparison of two reimbursement methods, capitation (CAP) and fee for service (FFS), as well as mixed payment, with respect to the implementation of the ADA recommendations for Diabetes Type 2 (DM2) management and referral rates for specialist health care in the outpatient setting of the United States.

Our purpose in examining these specific topics is to determine whether there is any difference in the implementation of the ADA recommendations or the frequency of referral between visits paid under CAP vs under FFS because both quality and cost of healthcare is affected by these …

The Continuum Of Support For Building Intimacy Knowledge In College For Students With Intellectual And Developmental Disability, Chelsea Vanhorn Stinnett

Theses and Dissertations

Adults with intellectual disability report the same relational and sexual intimacy needs as those without disability, yet experience barriers in accessing intimacy education and engaging in intimacy. Postsecondary education (PSE) programs for students with intellectual disability allow for college students to experience a higher level of autonomy in choice-making they may not have experienced in their family home. The Continuum of Support for Intimacy Knowledge in College Survey (CoSIK-C) was used to examine how PSE programs support college students in building their intimacy knowledge, intimacy education professional development opportunities for PSE staff members, and staff perceptions on factors that could …

“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 …

Laying A Foundation For Computing In Outdoor Recreation, Zann Benjamin Anderson

Theses and Dissertations

Mobile computing allows individuals to bring computing with them into the outdoors. This creates a new situation in which individuals can stay connected even when trying to "get away from it all." Questions arise from this juxtaposition regarding whether the inclusion of computing in these activities is a positive or a negative. Evidence exists supporting both conclusions. We posit that computing can contribute positively to outdoor recreation without distracting. This dissertation details work undertaken in two phases which explores how computing can accomplish this goal. Phase 1 explored how individuals are already using computing technology in hiking, and culminated with …

The Rohingya: Ethnic Nationalism, Domestic Diversionary Targets, And Burmese Post-Colonial Nation Building, Ibrahim Abd-El-Barr

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation explores the question of whether recurring episodes of violence, forced displacement, and other forms of repression against the ethno-religious sub-nationalist identity group, the Rohingya, across Burma's (Myanmar) modern history, are rooted in the implications of post-colonial nation-building or represent independent and self-contained incidents of communal/ethnic violence. The sub-question of whether the modern construct of the Burmese state accurately fits the description of a modern nation-state or whether other paradigms or ideal types better capture the development of the post-colonial Burmese state, is also explored. By revisiting the main events/national framework which have amounted to the Rohingya's exclusion from …

Sistemi Zgjedhor, Donika Shala

Theses and Dissertations

Përzgjedhja e sistemit të zgjedhjeve është një nga vendimet institucionale më të rëndësishme për çdo demokraci. Megjithatë, nuk është e lehtë që të përzgjidhet një sistem ideal zgjedhor. Shpesh përzgjedhja është e rastit, rezultat i kombinimit jo të zakonshëm të rrethanave, të një trendi kalimtar, ose të historisë së huaj.

Përkundër shumë përkufizimeve për sistem zgjedhor, ndoshta në lidhje me temën që shqyrtohet këtu do të ishte që sistemi zgjedhor është sistem që mundëson zgjedhje demokratike për qytetarët, duke u lejuar votuesve të zgjedhin mes alternativave të ndryshme në garë të subjekteve politike për funksione të ndashme publike. Meqenëse tema …

An Examination Of Impaired Driving: The Integral Role Of Cognitive And Behavioral Predictors, Andrew Tatch

Theses and Dissertations

Despite modest reductions over previous decades, improvements in impaired driving prevalence have stalled at problematic levels in recent years. Recent self-report data indicate that 20 percent of driving age individuals acknowledge operating a vehicle within two hours of alcohol consumption within the previous year and there are approximately 121 million episodes of impaired driving annually. Extant research has consistently identified specific subgroups, including men, young adults, and individuals with less education, as being high risk for driving under the influence. Additionally, researchers of impaired driving have discerned certain impaired driving-related attitudes and behaviors as important predictors of impaired driving. Despite …

Investigating The Impact Of Stereotype Threat On Undergraduate Engineering Students, Carla Grimes

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this dissertation is to explore how stereotype threat impacts women and minorities within the College of Engineering. Within this study, I present a mixed-methods study that begins with an exploratory qualitative study into an sequential explanatory study. The purpose of the first study, Manuscript 1, was to identify common barriers present to women in engineering that negatively impact their motivations within engineering. During the analysis of this data, stereotype threat emerged as a common theme which lead to a literature review and subsequent explanatory study. A quantitative study, using Picho and Brown’s Social Identities and Attitudes Scale, …

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 …

Describing Therapeutic Relationship Change And Failure In Group Psychotherapy, Harold Thomas Svien

Theses and Dissertations

Objectives. This study reanalyzed data from Burlingame and colleagues’ (2018) randomized controlled trial on the effect of adding Group Questionnaire (GQ) to Outcome Questionnaire (OQ-45) feedback. These data were assessed for the feedback effect using the amount of GQ alerts in one session reported by the group member to track change in GQ subscales as a measure of reversing therapeutic relationship failure.Methods. 374 participants engaged in 58 psychotherapy groups. Every participant provided GQ measurements after every group session. These GQ measurements formed ‘person-session units’ representing whether or not each type of alert was present following each group meeting. Person-session units …

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 …

"Camouflaging" In Women With Autistic Traits: Measures, Mechanisms, And Mental Health Implications, Jonathan S. Beck

Theses and Dissertations

Autistic traits are associated with frequent psychological distress and everyday functional challenges. Some individuals with autistic traits “camouflage” these traits during social interactions by effortfully engaging in “typical” social behaviors. Camouflaging seems to be especially common in autistic girls and women. Emerging evidence proposes a role for camouflaging behaviors in poorer mental health and daily functioning. Furthermore, camouflaging efforts may delay receipt of a proper diagnosis and access to appropriate mental health care. Despite their clinical significance, camouflaging efforts remain difficult to quantify, and the mechanisms and impacts of camouflaging are poorly understood. This study aimed to compare multiple methods …

A Methodology To Measure The Impact Of Diversity On Cybersecurity Team Effectiveness, Caralea May Cornel

Theses and Dissertations

In recent years, the definition of cybersecurity professional has been diluted to include more individuals, particularly women, to be included. Depending on the definition used, women currently comprise between 11% and 25% of the cybersecurity workforce. While multiple studies have indicated the benefits to diverse teams, research in the cybersecurity area is lacking.This research proposes a framework that uses a modified escape-the-room gamified scenario to measure the effectiveness of cybersecurity teams in technical problem-solving. The framework presents two routes, incident response and penetration testing, the participants can choose. In a preliminary study, this framework is used to show the combination …