Digital Commons Network^™

Latent Profiles Of Couples' Marital Power And Gender Ideologies: Associations With Physical Intimate Partner Violence, Rylie Speirs

Theses and Dissertations

This study aims to identify couple typologies regarding gender ideologies and marital power, and investigate how couple typologies relate to sociodemographic characteristics as well as rates of physical intimate partner violence (IPV). Several theoretical approaches connect marital power and gender ideologies to IPV but emphasize different couple typologies. For example, family violence perspectives suggest gender ideology mismatch is a stressor that increases the likelihood of either spouse reporting low power or engaging in physical IPV. Feminist theories add that men may use IPV to maintain patriarchal power dynamics when women deviate from traditional gender norms, emphasizing the risk of IPV …

Unseen Burdens: Exploring Gender Disparities In Infertility Experience And Depressive Symptoms, Khiara Cardoza Brown

Theses and Dissertations

This study examines how experiences with infertility relate to mental health outcomes among newly married U.S. couples, emphasizing gender differences and the potential moderating role of gender attitudes. Using data from 3,137 individuals in a nationally representative sample, three Actor-Partner Interdependence Models were estimated: first assessing actor and partner effects of infertility on depressive symptoms and subsequently incorporating gender attitudes as moderators. Results indicated a significant actor effect for wives, where infertility was associated with higher levels of depressive symptoms, and this association was significantly stronger for wives than for husbands. No significant effects were found for husbands' infertility and …

Understanding The Perceptions Of Campus Racial Climate Of Black Undergraduate Students At A Pwi, Solana Reyes

Theses and Dissertations

The study explores the perceptions of Black undergraduate students regarding the racial climate at a predominantly white institution (PWI). Utilizing quantitative methodologies, the research examines how Black students experience and interpret interactions, institutional policies, and campus culture as they navigate spaces often characterized by racial homogeneity. Key areas of focus include feelings of belonging, exposure to microaggressions, access to culturally relevant resources, and the role of peer and faculty support in shaping these experiences. Findings reveal a complex interplay of support and alienation, with participants reporting both affirming and discriminatory experiences. Many students highlighted the significance of student-led cultural organizations …

Structural Covariance And Episodic Memory: Sex Differences In Schizophrenia, Delaina Brooke Cimmino

Theses and Dissertations

Schizophrenia (SCZ) is a chronic brain disease characterized by patterns of positive, negative, and cognitive symptoms that interfere with daily functioning and persist throughout the lifespan. Clinical and cognitive symptoms differ between males and females with the disease, suggesting neurobiological abnormalities that vary on the basis of biological sex. The present study used high-dimensional brain mapping and network analysis procedures of cortical and limbic regions known to be involved in memory formation to investigate sex differences in brain correlates of episodic memory among patients with schizophrenia. This study analyzed multi-site archival data from 363 male (M) and 108 female (F) …

“Sometimes The World Don’T Give You What You Need”: Black Motherhood And Kinship As Resistance To Necropolitics In Jesmyn Ward’S Bois Sauvage, Hailey N. Reeder

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis explores how Black motherhood and kinship serve as subversive forces within necropolitical landscapes in Jesmyn Ward’s Where the Line Bleeds, Salvage the Bones, and Sing, Unburied, Sing. Drawing on Achille Mbembe’s theory of necropolitics, this study examines how the economic and social constraints of these environments disrupt Black family structures, emphasizing the necessity of kinship for survival. In Where the Line Bleeds, Cille’s absence disrupts traditional family roles, yet kinship networks allow the family to endure. In Salvage the Bones, Esch’s journey redefines the “bad” Black teen mother stereotype, highlighting how kinship offers support amidst stigma. In Sing, …

Empowering Patients With Health Insights: Development And Utilization Of Knowledge Graphs For Comprehensive Patient Medical Journey Mapping And Analytics, Hassan Saadeddine Al Khatib

Theses and Dissertations

Healthcare advancements require advanced solutions to process and understand complex patient data. This dissertation outlines a detailed framework for mapping patient journeys with knowledge graphs (KGs), which begins by analyzing existing Patient-Centric Knowledge Graphs (PCKGs) literature to identify current research gaps in the representation and analysis of patient journeys. Our research proposes solutions to these gaps through three main contributions. First, we introduce the Patient Journey Ontology (PJO), which enables systematic encoding of patient encounters, diagnoses, treatments, and outcomes into a semantic knowledge structure designed for interoperability. The construction of patient journey knowledge graphs (PJKGs) is based on this foundational …

In Search Of Educational Justice: Lived Experiences Of Community College Presidents And Their Authentic Critical Leadership, Juan Felipe Arzola

Theses and Dissertations

There are several gaps in research related to the fields of study of community college leadership and its influence on shared governance discussions and decision-making. The purpose of the current study is to address the gap in the study of community college leadership and its influence on shared governance discussions and decision-making through a critical, intersectional investigation of authentic critical leadership and its potential to influence shared governance group discussions and decision-making in distinctively different ways than those advocated by mainstream leadership theories. Participants participated in semi-structured interviews and were observed in a shared governance group meeting to identify evidence …

The Teaching Experiences Of Black Women Faculty In Educator Preparation Providers Licensure Programs At Predominantly White Institutions, Tiffiney M. Atterberry

Theses and Dissertations

Understanding the experiences that Black women faculty encounter in instructional spaces of Educator Preparation Providers licensure programs (hereafter referred to as EPPs) at predominantly White institutions are important for institutional change and reform to occur. In spaces of EPPs, Black women faculty are forced to cope and deal with racialized issues such as feelings of social isolation, a lack of inclusion, acts of microaggression from students, disrespectful acts, and students challenging their knowledge and credentials. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore how Black women faculty narrate their teaching experiences in EPPs at PWIs. The use of Collins’ …

Just Do Something: Framing A Movement To Fight Fascism, Heather-Ann Layth

Theses and Dissertations

This study seeks to better understand antifascist activism, in part to add sociological perspectives to the antifascist movement and better understand a group publicly maligned by negative portrayals by politicians and the media. This study is important because fascism is already doing real damage to marginalized Americans and represents a real threat of further identitarian and authoritarian oppression. Yet, the movement against growing fascism has been painted as a boogeyman in the public eye. Efforts to stop neo-Nazis and white supremacists from gathering are not discussed in terms of fighting fascism but rather in terms which criminalize and demonize antifascists. …

“Here For Everyone” (?): How Intimate Partner Violence Service Organizations Address Community Needs And Transgender Inclusion In The Deep South, Brian Tesch

Theses and Dissertations

Transgender individuals face disproportionately high rates of intimate partner violence (also known as IPV) when compared to other sociodemographic groups. Despite this prevalence, IPV service organizations in the Deep South (e.g., Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, and South Carolina), a region of the U.S. encompassing several rural communities and characterized by traditional gender norms and conservative Christian religious values, may have difficulties meeting the unique needs of transgender IPV survivors. This dissertation explores two key areas: (1) the perceptions of IPV service organization staff members in the Deep South concerning how their agencies assist members of the transgender community, and (2) …

The Role Of K-12 Educators In Shaping Stem Pathways: Examining Social Capital And Self-Efficacy In Stem Education, Holly Trisch

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation examines the impact of K-12 educators on students’ pathways in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) by focusing on two main factors: the social capital of K-12 and elementary school teachers and the self-efficacy of preservice teachers in STEM education instruction. The first study investigates the social capital of first year engineering students, emphasizing the relationships and resources they gained during their K-12 education that influenced their decision to major in engineering. A quantitative study using survey data collected from first-year undergraduate engineering students indicates that K-12 educators play a crucial role by providing mentorship and resources that …

The Evolution And Impact Of Blog Analysis Tools: A Study Of Blogtracker's Comprehensive Approach To Digital Discourse Analysis, Oyindamola Koleoso

Theses and Dissertations

This study presents BlogTracker, a comprehensive web-based platform designed to address the growing complexities of analyzing the modern blogosphere. We detail BlogTracker's evolution from earlier blog analysis tools, highlighting its innovative integration of features including real-time data collection, advanced content analysis, sentiment analysis, influence tracking, and narrative analysis. At the core of our contribution is a robust content extraction system that achieves 91.33% accuracy across diverse blog formats, providing a reliable foundation for all analytical functions. This extraction system effectively distinguishes between primary content and peripheral elements, ensuring high-quality inputs for downstream analysis regardless of source blog structure. The platform's …

Decoding Symbolic Influence On Youtube Engagement, Emotion Resonance And Trust In Information Campaigns, Diwash Poudel

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined how symbolic images in YouTube videos influences viewers’ emotions, trust, and engagement with political content online. Approximately 2,000 videos were collected and analyzed, with a focus on both thumbnails and standout frames. The findings revealed that cultural symbols were particularly effective at capturing attention and evoking strong emotional reactions—especially anger and disgust. Notably, these same symbols also enhanced viewer trust, making audiences less susceptible to misinformation. Statistical tests confirmed that these effects were consistent and significant. To ensure the validity of these results, additional analyses were conducted to assess potential biases in YouTube’s recommendation algorithm, as well …

Inherited Fervor: Maternal Archive, Maria Angela Talavera Tejeda

Theses and Dissertations

Inherited Fervor: Maternal Archive investigates the deconstruction of the non-verbal language of Catholic ecstasy rituals to develop a choreographic language. Through the piece Doves Don’t Fly at Night, it explores the expansion of dancers’ physical range, positioning the body as an archive that embodies memories and mirrors the audience’s humanity.

Rewriting The Frontier: The Impact Of Collective Memory On The Mythos Of Western Settlement, Kelly E. Kooper

Theses and Dissertations

Using Paul Cohen’s methodological approach in History in Three Keys, this thesis examines the construction and debunking of the myths of manifest destiny, the rugged individual frontiersman, and the “noble savage” Native American in the writing about, experience of, and representation of the settlement American West. First, it analyzes the evolution of the historiography from Frederick Jackson Turner to William Cronon. Then it examines the experiences of four families (the Grices, Grahams, Deems, and McCormicks) who settled in Iowa and Nebraska from 1850 to 1880. Lastly, it surveys various popular cultural celebrations of the West. Through this triple lens, this …

The Imposition Of A Narrative Line: The Bildungsroman As Form In Contemporary Art, Brianne Chapelle

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines the work of contemporary American artists and writers Moyra Davey, Chris Kraus, Frances Stark, and Martine Syms within the context of feminist art history, theory, and practice in the post-1970s artworld. While often read as autobiographical or self-referential, their work across media uses personal narrative as a means of engaging broader theoretical and institutional concerns. Through the literary form of the bildungsroman, these artists employ narrative, fiction, and memoir—often through new and time-based media, but also through interdisciplinary modes rooted in writing—to reflect on their ongoing education as artists within an increasingly globalized Euro-American artworld. By …

Intersections: Gastro-Politics Aesthetic And Contemporary Chinese Art, Fan Du

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines how contemporary Chinese artists use food as a medium to explore ritual, trade, politics, and cultural identity. Centering on The Note of Food, an exhibition I curated, it draws on Arjun Appadurai’s concept of gastro-politics and Lu Xun’s nalaizhuyi (“grabbing doctrine”) to analyze how artists strategically appropriate cultural resources amid tensions between East and West, and tradition and modernity. Merging curatorial practice with food and visual anthropology, the project uses exhibition-making as both method and object of inquiry. As a native anthropologist working as both curator and researcher, I propose a model of curatorial anthropology that …

Who Are Singer-Songwriters In The 21st Century? A Case Study On The Role Of Digital Communications In Socio-Musical Activity., Miranda Commisso

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis follows ten self-identified, singer-songwriters from diverse musical and cultural backgrounds to identify commonalities, with special attention given to the ways they invest power and meaning in their music through use of social media. While these musicians are seeking capital gains through use of social media, they do it as a way to make music their livelihood, not out of a desire for excessive wealth or fame, which reflects this musical category more broadly.

Body Of Light, Lucy C. Adams

Theses and Dissertations

Body of Light is a two channel video installation, incorporating a combination of archival material and present day footage to explore and speculate upon the traces of Audrey Munson’s life that remain, a ghostly presence creeping into our current world.

Fugitive Colors, Natalie Rose Eddings

Theses and Dissertations

My objects are meditations on intertwining themes of labor, rest, and interiority and their shadow sides—power, subjugation and the gaze. I couple materials that have millenia-long histories such as metals, glass, paper and clay with found objects and plat materials to illustrate narratives and exhume memories. Drawn from nature and technologies of land, plant stewardship and the domestic realm, I imagine my sculptures as life supporting vessels or magical enclosures.

Through sculpture, photography and printmaking, I build structures that are space of quiet to be filled with thought, healing and development. Like incubators and seed pods, my work is protective …

Examining The Connections Between Gender, Identity, And Land In Leslie Marmon Silko’S Ceremony And Rudolfo Anaya’S Bless Me, Ultima, Denise Perez

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis explores the representation of gender, identity, and land in the novels Ceremony by Leslie Marmon Silko and Bless Me, Ultima by Rudolfo Anaya. To understand the role of gender in the novels, women are analyzed as sources of salvation and refuge for men. The male protagonists seek a “cure” or an understanding of themselves, and they are only able to achieve this through the nurturing of the women in their lives. This thesis also examines how the male protagonists develop their masculinity through the formation of a bond with the Earth, their homeland, and nature. In Ceremony and …

Exploratory Study On Factors That Impact Job Embeddedness For Northeast Government And Commercial Aerospace Procurement Specialists, Nicholas Alaimo

Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative study examined job embeddedness theory and its impact on commercial and government aerospace procurement professionals in the Northeast United States. The research sought to understand the factors that influence why these professionals remain in their positions and what elements contribute to improved job performance. Job embeddedness theory explains employee retention through three key factors: perceived fit within their role, perceived links to organizational culture, and perceived sacrifices that would result from leaving.

The study identified six main themes. First, the research found both similarities and differences in how aerospace procurement specialists connect with aerospace culture in government subcontracting …

Perceptions Of Special Education Teachers On The Transition Planning Process: Examining Practices That Predict A Positive Post-Secondary Outcome For Students With Disabilities In The Lower Rio Grande Valley School Districts, Mayra Lorena Martinez

Theses and Dissertations

This study explored the significance of the transition planning process for students with disabilities, particularly from the perspectives of the special education teachers. Grounded in Social Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT), this research examined the role of the student, parent, work related experiences and teacher involvement in the transition process, and the relationship between these factors and College, Career, and Military Readiness (CCMR) measures. Using a quantitative approach, that included special education teachers’ responses to the Secondary Education Transition Questionnaire adapted version and a cross analysis with 2022-2023 Texas Academic Performance Report (TAPR) CCMR indicators, the study identified critical gaps between …

¿Puedo Decirlo En Español?: Teacher Views On Utilizing Translanguaging Pedagogies To Bridge The Language Gap In Secondary Classrooms, Luis Carlos Bocanegra

Theses and Dissertations

Translanguaging disrupts the notion of language as a fixed, separate system, offering a deeper insight into how individuals fluidly navigate and construct meaning across linguistic boundaries. This research study uses narrative research and participatory action research to employ translanguaging as a pedagogical framework to create inclusive spaces where emergent bilinguals could fully utilize their linguistic repertoire in secondary schools in the borderlands of the Rio Grande Vally in deep South Texas.

The findings of this study are organized into two overarching themes: cultural relevance and inclusivity in borderland schools, which brings to light the importance of culture, inclusivity, and supportive …

Are You Patronizing Me? Understanding And Identifying The Implications For Benevolent Racism On Inclusion In The Workplace, Nisha Quraishi

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the construct of benevolent racism. The purpose of this study was to address the following areas. First, to distinguish benevolent racism in the racism, benevolence, and sexism literature. Second, to examine how minorities experienced benevolent racism in the workplace. Third, to use that data to conduct a quantitative analysis that examined the impact of benevolent racism on work group identification and inclusion. To do so, two studies were conducted. The first study was a qualitative study that conducted interviews which examined how benevolent racism impacted minorities in the workplace. The second study was a quantitative study that …

Thematic Geo-Inquiry In Seventh Grade Geography, Rebekah Driscoll Austing

Theses and Dissertations

With the growth of globalization, geography is an important subject for students of the 21^st Century to understand. Being adept in geography will aid our future generations to be able to use geographic skills to answer complex world issues. Unfortunately, geography has been a long-neglected subject of social studies; often considered boring and not worthwhile with teachers using teacher-centered curriculum methods and memorization. A teacher’s job is to provide appropriate experiences, materials, and context for students to construct and connect knowledge that is useful and beneficial to them. Through a constructivist lens, inquiry-based thematic units can be used by …

Cultivating Cultural Competence To Inspire Social Responsibility In Middle School Students, Jamie Shapiro Blau

Theses and Dissertations

In World Language education, teachers pair linguistic and cultural instruction to prepare students to engage effectively with speakers of the target language. In my French classes, where most students enjoyed dominant racial and socioeconomic identities, I noticed limited cultural competency skills in students, as well as a lack of readiness to engage with diverse cultures. This was unsurprising, as pervasive White eurocentrism permeates American schools, covertly impacting students' social and curricular experiences. Specifically, curricula of World Language courses where the language of study originates in a country with colonial history, such as French, cloud and ignore the linguistic and cultural …

“A Threat To The Family”: Phyllis Schlafly And The Construction Of Negative Group Identity, Christopher Howell

Theses and Dissertations

In this dissertation, I argue that Phyllis Schlafly’s fight against the proposed Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) from 1972 to 1976 helped construct the “pro-family” political identity that opposed the ERA and came to define social conservatism in American politics. She did this through the creation and elaboration of a negative group identity: individuals defined by their desire for an imagined past of traditional, stable hierarchies. By taking an anodyne piece of legislation and framing its supporters as direct threats to the status quo, Schlafly effectively mobilized a group of previously apolitical actors towards political activism. In the process, she helped …

Mental Health Courts: An Assessment Of Eligibility Criteria, Service Characteristics, And Public Opinion, Emily Suiter

Theses and Dissertations

Mental health courts, a type of specialty court targeting justice-involved persons with mental illness, have become prominent across the United States. Using a therapeutic jurisprudence approach, these courts largely operate independently with no guiding framework, leading to varied practices. Additionally, public opinion on mental health courts is unknown, causing potential problems as these courts are rapidly expanding and funded, at least partially, through taxpayer dollars. Chapter One of this dissertation provides a framework for the remainder of the dissertation. Chapter Two is a detailed literature review of relevant theories and past research regarding mental health courts. Chapters Three and Four …

Creating Systems Of Professional Learning To Encourage Deep Thinking In Social Studies: A Qualitative Study, Elizabeth Poda King

Theses and Dissertations

This paper describes a problem that developed due to a lack of systems in place to provide professional learning for teachers in social studies. This problem was ignited when revised standards were adopted which shifted from heavy content focus to skills and content. Standards requiring both skills and content encourage student inquiry and promote deep thinking by students through the use of historical evidence. Therefore, the purpose of the improvement science plan-do-study-act (PDSA) cycles was to develop a system of job-embedded professional learning to assist teachers with teaching strategies that use historical evidence to promote deep thinking in social studies …