Digital Commons Network^™

Elementary Charter School Teachers' Perceptions Of Student Discipline On Academic Achievement, Simone Elloie Shelton

Theses and Dissertations

Many teachers leave the field altogether after a few years of teaching. Research showed that teachers consistently rate the behavior problems of their students as one of the primary reasons for them to quit teaching. Among teachers who have left the field over the past 10 years, some 80% stated that discipline problems caused by students was one of the primary reasons for their departure. Student discipline has been reported as a factor associated with high rates of teachers leaving the teaching profession. Two studies of teacher attrition rates found that problems with students’ discipline issues and classroom management issues …

Evaluation Of An Adaptive Reading Program At A Title I Public Elementary School, Monica M. Gordon

Theses and Dissertations

This applied dissertation was designed to evaluate the I-station adaptive reading program and determine its impact on reading proficiency of third-grade students. The school of study was a Title I school with proficiency rates for third-grade students of about 40% annually. The district recommendation for student usage mirrored the recommended minutes per week established by Imagination Station, the I-station parent company.

The program evaluation utilized the context-input-process-product model components, measuring process and product. There were two research questions underpinning the study: 1. Process: Is the I-station program being used with fidelity at the school of study to achieve program intended …

Faculty And Staff Perceptions About Concealed Carry Initiatives And Their Effect On Campus Safety: A Multi-State Examination, Heidi Marie Ahl-Quanbeck

Theses and Dissertations

Concealed carry on campus is a polarizing debate affecting higher education today. Concealed carry refers to the carrying of a weapon in public while concealed from view. Prompted by isolated instances of gun violence as well as the changing gun culture within our society, ten states now permit weapons on campus as a result of legislation or institutional policy. Yet, little is known about faculty and staff perspectives on concealed carry on campus initiatives or how weapons could affect perceptions about campus safety. The purpose of this study is to better understand faculty and staff perspectives on concealed carry, to …

The Predictive Validity Of The Static-99r And Stable-2007 In A Community Sample Of Sex Offenders, Amy Veith

Theses and Dissertations

The current study explored the accuracy of Static-99R and STABLE-2007 risk evaluations in predicting sex offender recidivism (n = 136) over an average 7.8 year follow-up period. These protocols are differentiated on the basis of their reliance on actuarial versus

dynamic risk factors respectively. The present analysis tested their predictive validity both independently and in combination with one another. It was hypothesized that the Static-99R and the STABLE-2007 would provide moderate predictive accuracy that would be enhanced by their combination. Support was not found for either hypothesis in regard to sexual recidivism, but the Static-99-R did show fair accuracy (AUC …

"Representative Bureaucracy" In Police Hiring Practices: A Case Study Of A Diverse Police Agency, Sara Franceen Edel

Theses and Dissertations

Diverse police agencies that are reflective of communities they serve are vital to community-oriented and problem-oriented policing, and in repairing fractured relationships by establishing trust and a partnership with communities. Agencies that engage in community-oriented and problem-oriented policing also attract more female officers and officers of color. The purpose of this study is to describe how one police agency in the Midwest recruits, hires, and retains a representative agency, and to describe what factors are important in this process. It is a descriptive, single case study that uses triangulation of multiple methods, including quantitative and qualitative methods, and multiple data …

Alcohol-Related Regret Among Undergraduate Students, Samantha Jo Feroni

Theses and Dissertations

College alcohol use remains a major public health concern, particularly on campuses in the Midwest. Heavy drinking has been linked to a number of deleterious consequences, ranging from poor academic performance and early school exit to injury or death. Many of the negative consequences linked to alcohol use carry with the possibility of regret. The purpose of this study is to explore the types of alcohol-related regret, any gender and class level differences in regret, and whether students become hesitant to drink alcohol after such a regret occurs. Data used for the study came from semi structured interviews with undergraduates …

A Confucian Theory Of Crime, Nicholas Lassi

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation is an analysis of pre-Qin Confucian philosophy as it pertains to crime and the crime related issues of personal control and social control. From this analysis of pre-Qin Confucian philosophy, a wholly new and distinct theory of crime is developed. Material relating to crime, and the crime related issues involving personal control and social control, is filtered out of an assortment of prominent pre-Qin Confucian texts (namely those of Confucius, Mencius, and Xunzi), dissected and juxtaposed with historical and modern Western criminological thought, and ultimately systematized into a unified Confucian theory of crime. This endeavor works to enrich …

Racial Identity Development Of Somali Refugees In The Midwest, Nnenna Lindsay

Theses and Dissertations

The number of Somali refugees in the United States continue s to increase, yet research on their racial identity development, racialization experiences, and strategies used to cope with racism and discrimination is lacking. This qualitative study was conducted to explore the unique racial narratives of Somali refugees. In order to better understand how Somalis make meaning of their racial identity and adjust to the contemporary racial climate of the Midwest, in-depth interviews were conducted with seven Somali refugees and a narrative methodology was used to analyze the results. The overarching narrative highlighted the journey to becoming Black for Somali refugees …

Claims Of Sexual Assault On College Campuses: Impact Of Educational Evidence & Victim Prototypicality On Attributions Of Blame, Heather J. O'Brien

Theses and Dissertations

Sexual assault is one of the most prevalent but under-reported crimes in the United States and sexual assaults are even more common on college campuses (RAINN, 2016). Although both laws and campus student policies may be violated, very few perpetrators are ultimately punished (Lonsway & Archambault, 2012). Lack of investigation and prosecution of these cases may in part arise out of myths surrounding sexual assault. These myths may be challenged when scientific evidence is presented. Whether such evidence can undermine myths and prototypical notions of a sexual assault victim remains equivocal. To this end, the current study employed a 2 …

Examining Rural To Urban Migration, Crime And Characteristics Of Rural Migrants Offenders -- An Exploratory Study On The Relationship Between Rural Migration And Criminal Offenses Utilizing The Online Judicial Dataset In Guangdong Province, Ziwei Qi

Theses and Dissertations

China has experienced massive internal migration in the past three decades. The rapidly growing urban population, especially the rural to urban migrant population, is the primary social concern with respect to public health and social stability that China is facing in recent decades. Both the public and private sectors have hastened to respond to the emerging needs of this socially, economically and politically marginalized group. In the current dissertation, the author utilizes judicial decisions from the Intermediate Level Courts in the Guangdong province, China, in order to examine the characteristics of rural migrant offenders, and to explore the relationship between …

Collective Efficacy And Police Homicides: Evidence From California In The 1990s, Jayme Reynolds

Theses and Dissertations

This paper examines certain factors relating to collective efficacy; loosely defined as the strength of a community, and the effect those factors have on police homicides in the respective communities. More specifically, this study analyzes three components that contribute to collective efficacy: linguistic isolation, residential stability, and educational attainment. Data utilized in this study include U.S. Census data as well as data from a unique dataset containing California state-wide homicides during the 1990s. Using a negative binomial regression on pooled zip code data shows that, in relation to the factors mentioned above, educational attainment is the most influential characteristic analyzed …

The Effects Of The First Year Of Implementation Of Positive Behavioral Intervention Supports, Rosalind Flanigan Operton

Theses and Dissertations

Disciplinary practices and protocols in schools have been a notable concern over the past 30 years. The traditional punitive punishment-based tactics have not proven to be effective in changing student behavior. Positive Behavior Intervention Supports (PBIS) is a proactive alternative that puts whole school systems in a place wherein students and teachers share in the responsibility of building a culture and climate of behaviors that produce positive outcomes. Research based on the implementation of PBIS in schools has concluded that problem behaviors decrease, students and staff feel safe, and attendance improves. There is a body of research that concludes that …

Race, Drugs, And Sentencing: A Quantitative Analysis Of Sentencing Outcomes For Federal Cocaine And Methamphetamine Drug Offenses, Makeela Johari Wells

Theses and Dissertations

For decades, the United States has fought a “War on Drugs” with no success. This war has led to substantial increases in the number of individuals incarcerated in the United States prison system. The following dissertation investigates the impact of the Fair Sentencing Act of 2010 (FSA 2010) on sentencing decisions for crack and powder cocaine offenders sentenced in the federal system. The FSA 2010 is a federal policy that reduced the crack-to-powder cocaine quantity from 100-to1 to 18-to-1 in an effort to reduce racial/ethnic disparity in sentencing associated with harsh penalties. Specifically, I examined federal crack cocaine and powder …

Does A Criminal Justice Degree Produce Law Enforcement Officers?, Bryan Keith Murray

Theses and Dissertations

Police departments are being asked to diversify their ranks in a job field dominated by White males. Hispanics are predicted to be the majority-minority by 2043, few studies were conducted to explore whether Hispanic students majoring in criminal justice will pursue a career in law enforcement agencies upon graduation. Therefore, it is necessary and important to investigate the willingness of Hispanic students perusing a career in law enforcement agencies and what kind of factors behind this pursuit. This research anonymously surveyed 203 students currently enrolled in a four-year Hispanic university. Gender and the liberalizing effect served as the independent variables. …

Essays On Financial Decision Making, Corey A. Shank

Theses and Dissertations

Individuals make financial decisions daily, yet the literature on the mechanisms that drive financial decisions is limited. This dissertation looks to examine how physical characteristics, and personality subconsciously influence financial decision making by conducting an experiment. Furthermore, this dissertation examines biased decision making in the betting market by using data from covers.com. First, this dissertation finds that the cognitive impairments associated with having a higher body mass index is positively related to poor financial decision making and being more likely to commit the present bias, and distorting probabilities. Second, this dissertation finds that business students are more apt to fit …

Substance Abuse And Other Factors That Influence Recidivism For Mental Health Court Graduates, Justine Maria Swanson

Theses and Dissertations

Mental health courts (MHC) were designed to divert the overwhelming number of individuals with mental illness involved in the criminal justice system from incarceration through specialty court proceedings intended to meet their unique needs. Individuals who have both mental health problems and substance use are at a disadvantage. For them, this combination contributes to more severe mental health symptoms, physical health issues, interpersonal challenges, and legal problems. The co-occurrence of mental illness and substance use is increasing in prevalence within both the community and justice system settings; however, few studies have explored the effectiveness of MHCs for this specific population …

The Growth, Structure, And Dynamics Of Crime In Cities, Marcos Oliveira

Theses and Dissertations

Crime is ubiquitous in cities but lacks a statistical characterization that could lead to uncovering its underlying mechanisms. Cities are, however, in a constant process of organization making difficult to analyze urban phenomena. Yet, to understand urbanization and its consequences, we need to approach cities as evolving processes, instead of static objects. With this perspective, we examined regularities in crime regarding its growth, structure, and dynamics. We developed frameworks to examine the spatial, temporal, and periodic variations of crime in cities. Though thefts increase super-linearly with the population, we found burglaries showing a linear increase. Our analyses also confirmed crime …

Faculty Experiences With Instructional Innovations: A Phenomenological Study Of Faculty Use Of Instructional Video, Timothy Patrick Oneal

Theses and Dissertations

Colleges and universities create learning environments that strive to optimize strengths and minimize weaknesses of learners. Media rich environments have changed the current generation of learners just as it is now changing higher education. There is currently a need to examine the experiences and perceptions of instructors when adopting innovations such as instructional videos for use in their media enriched curriculum delivery. This study used a phenomenological approach to discover why and how faculty at a 4-year public university use the innovation of instructional video in their classrooms. The phenomenon studied was the adoption process and the motivation of the …

Serving Their Country And Their Communities? An Exploratory Study Of The Impact Of Military Presence On County-Level Crime Rates, Rocio A. Paez

Theses and Dissertations

Criminologists have long established an association between social disorganization factors and crime. The majority of criminological literature on social disorganization, however, has overlooked the role that certain social institutions play into the equation. Specifically, the degree to which military presence, manifested by the exposure to the military institution and its personnel, influences local areas has yet to be examined from a criminological perspective. This dissertation was designed to extend this body of research by envisioning the military as a social institution salient in understanding variation in the of crime and delinquency across communities. To accomplish this, I relied on data …

Adolescent Networks: An Exploratory Study Assessing Bullying Victimization And Outcomes Of Social Capital On School Avoidance, Kristen Nicole Sobba

Theses and Dissertations

Bullying victimization has been found to lead to several detrimental effects including depression, anxiety, poor academic achievement, and, in extreme cases, suicidal tendencies. One consequence that has not been studied as extensively is school avoidance. School avoidance can lead to further emotional problems and school dropout, therefore, addressing ways to deter this problem is imperative for future research. The purpose of this dissertation was to identify correlates of school avoidance in addition to understanding the moderating relationship of bullying victimization and social capital on school avoidance. It was expected that social capital would serve as a buffer to bullying victimization, …

Addressing Mental Health, Substance Abuse, And Recidivism In The Juvenile Justice System, Danielle N. Gieschen

Theses and Dissertations

Research has shown links between mental health concerns, substance abuse concerns, and recidivism for youth. However, the vast majority of studies have not examined the impact that receiving services or treatment compliance has on this relationship. In this study, mental health concerns, mental health treatment, alcohol and substance abuse concerns, alcohol and substance abuse treatment and recidivism within the juvenile justice system were examined. The electronic and paper probation files and the paper court files for 77 youth were examined to determine the impact that receiving mental health or substance abuse services has on reducing the likelihood of recidivism. Furthermore, …

Faculty And Student Perceptions Of Teaching Presence In Distance Education Courses: A Mixed Methods Examination, Judith Slapak-Barski

Theses and Dissertations

This applied dissertation was designed to provide deeper insight to current knowledge about establishing teaching presence (TP) in online courses. Distance education environments are considered more convenient than traditional learning environments, as they provide more opportunities for learning that occurs in various settings. In distance education environments, effective learning should focus on the interaction between e-learning technologies and educational practice in higher education. Online courses are typically devoid of the visual cues and interaction of the traditional classroom. Online learners may experience an isolation effect as a result of learning in the perceived absence of their peers and instructor. Feelings …

The Impact Of Hip-Hop Culture On Freshman Student Identity, David Shanks

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this investigation is to explore the impact that hip-hop has on the identity of freshman students at Rowan University during the spring 2017 semester. The survey questions were geared toward answering the primary focus. The survey has 34 items, the first five questions were used to collect demographic information from the students including Gender, GPA, Ethnicity, Class rank, and Age. The next 29 questions divided into three factor groupings, these groups were used to investigate the identity of select freshman, what students believe about their knowledge of hip-hop culture, how committed these students are to hip-hop culture, …

Impact Of Sexual Violence Prevention Programming At Rowan University, Emily Kofman

Theses and Dissertations

The primary purpose of this study was to explore the impact of sexual violence prevention programming on the main Rowan University campus. This study focused primarily on the Take Back the Night event on April 4, 2017. The study evaluated the impact of the event on those who attended as well as looking at Social Norm Theory. A total population of 167 Rowan students were surveyed at the event with the instrument Take Back the Night Survey. Results of the data revealed that students positively benefitted from attending the event and were able to increase their knowledge of the subject. …

Pre -Service And Novice Teacher Perceptions Of Behavior Management Preparation And Practice In Physical Education, Shane Turpen

Theses and Dissertations

If students are not engaged, they cannot be learning (Stright & Supplee, 2002). Student engagement relies heavily on the environment of a classroom, as well as the management of behaviors before and during a lesson (Him & Scott, 2014). Student engagement refers to the degree of attention, curiosity, interest, optimism, and passion that students show when they are learning or being taught, which extends to the level of motivation they have to learn and progress in their education. (George Lucas Educational, 2011 In many cases, a lack of student engagement can be attributed to a discrepancy in behavior management competence …

Teacher Perceptions Of Response To Intervention And Its Core Components, And Its Implementation In Reading In The Primary Grades, Kelsey Hillard Davis

Theses and Dissertations

Since the reauthorization of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA 2004), Response to Intervention (RTI) had been implemented in varied degrees due to lack of a national definition and framework. RTI was a general education initiative, however few studies focused on general education teachers and their perceptions of RTI. This was a qualitative descriptive study that utilized individual interviews and a focus group. First, individual interviews were conducted using a semi-structured interview protocol. Interview data was coded for prominent themes using NVivo. The individual interview data was then used to write a semi-structured interview protocol for a focus group. …

Civil Liberties V. National Security: A Study Of Hispanic Students' Public Opinion, Carlos Alvarez

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to understand Hispanic students’ public opinion on whether they want to protect their civil liberties or prefer more national security to respond to terrorism. I sent an electronic survey to 900 students attending a South Texas university with 193 completed surveys returned. I replicated eight individual counter-terrorism measures from Welch (2015), and derived a component dependent variable using a data reduction technique called principal component analysis. In this study, my independent variables are measures of nationalism, ethnocentrism, and political affiliation. Political affiliation was significantly related to the support for counter-terrorism policy, and the gender …

Hopelessness And Youth Violent Behavior: A Longitudinal Study, Janie Demetropoulos

Theses and Dissertations

This study examines how hopelessness impacts youth engagement in violent behavior over time. The data are from waves I and II of The National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health). Poisson regression was used to analyze contributors to violence in just wave I, and then again across time in wave II using explanatory and control variables from wave I. Results indicate that hopelessness is positively associated with violent behavior. Furthermore, while hopelessness and most of the other explanatory variables predicted violent behavior in wave I, almost all the variables became non-significant or negative except hopelessness and a measure of …

Strategic Advantages Of Visual Violence, Roxanne Brook Vigil

Theses and Dissertations

This research discusses the role of visual violence as it relates to non-state actors within asymmetric warfare as a form of indirect coercion, siting the logic of Thomas Schelling. It argues that irrationality, as a perception from the state actor toward the non-state actor is a rational approach in order to produce the desired fear and publicity. The amount of fear and publicity is measured by the amount of inhumanity that is presented within the visual narration and the amount of irrational hysteria that comes from the audience. In using a comparative and visual analysis, two non-state actors who utilized …

Examining The Involvement Patterns Of International Graduate Students At Rowan University, Amanjot Kaur

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the involvement patterns of selected international graduate students at Rowan University. This study focused on the involvement patterns of international graduate students associated with their overall college experience, interactions with students and faculty, and the use of campus services designed to promote student satisfaction. This was a total population study since there were 39 international graduate students enrolled at the Rowan University Glassboro, NJ campus during the spring 2017 semester. Quantitative research, through the use of an online survey, was used to collect data. Quantitative data analysis confirmed findings from previous studies …