Digital Commons Network^™

Best Practices To Reduce Math Anxiety, Karen Michelle Mitchell

Theses and Dissertations

The subjects of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) have grown in importance because they are fundamental to the future quality of life and the ability to compete in today's global society. The demand for STEM careers is increasing; however, the United States is having difficulty meeting this demand. Society needs students who can research and think critically, so they can be proficient in STEM education and become the next generation of mathematicians, technologists, and engineers. Mathematical proficiency is of particular concern because while it is required from STEM education success, individuals find it challenging. Both adults and children have …

Exploring The Resting State Neural Activity Of Monolinguals And Late And Early Bilinguals, Carrie Elizabeth Gold

Theses and Dissertations

Individuals who speak more than one language have been found to enjoy a number of benefits not directly associated with the use of the languages themselves. One of these benefits is that bilingual individuals appear to develop symptoms of dementia 4-5 years later than comparable individuals who speak just one language. Studies on this topic, however, do not consistently account for factors including if the individual learned their second language as a child or later in life, or their language proficiency. In an attempt to more carefully examine these variables, this study looks at structural and resting-state functional MRI scans …

Marketing Plan For Columbus State University, Kaylyn Cockrell

Theses and Dissertations

Marketing is an important tool for capturing customers and sales in business, and it’s equally as important to an institution like Columbus State University (CSU) aiming to capture student customers. The development of a marketing plan through extensive research and planning will contribute to the success of all involved marketing efforts. This marketing plan will include all the standard essential elements: business mission statement, situation (SWOT) analysis, objectives, marketing strategy, implementation, and evaluation control. For the mission statement, the current statement from the 2018-2023 Strategic Plan will be used. The situation analysis will include looking at the current strengths, weakness, …

Using Maximum Entropy To Model The Distribution Of An Endangered, Endemic Crayfish Cambarus Harti (Hobbs), James Kiourtsis

Theses and Dissertations

Cambarus harti is a state-listed endangered, endemic crayfish found only in three counties in mid-west Georgia. Several studies have attempted to characterize the biology and ecology of this crayfish, however data regarding the distribution of this rare, endemic crayfish remains limited. The International Union for Conservation of nature stated that in order to create an effective conservation plan, the known distribution must be expanded. Species distribution models are a cost-effective way to identify locations that have similar habitat characteristics to those with known populations. One species distribution model, Maximum Entropy (MaxEnt), is the preferred approach when modeling species, like C. …

Implementation Costs Of Spiking Versus Rate-Based Anns, Lacie Renee Stiffler

Theses and Dissertations

Artificial neural networks are an effective machine learning technique for a variety of data sets and domains, but exploiting the inherent parallelism in neural networks requires specialized hardware. Typically, computing the output of each neuron requires many multiplications, evaluation of a transcendental activation function, and transfer of its output to a large number of other neurons. These restrictions become more expensive when internal values are represented with increasingly higher data precision. A spiking neural network eliminates the limitations of typical rate-based neural networks by reducing neuron output and synapse weights to one-bit values, eliminating hardware multipliers, and simplifying the activation …

Measuring Agricultural Drought And Uncertainty In Future Drought Projections, Junyu Lu

Theses and Dissertations

Drought is a devastating, recurring, and widespread natural hazard that affects natural habitats, ecosystems, and economic and social sectors. Within the agricultural sector, droughts can reduce soil-water availability, affect water and soil quality, contribute to crop failures and pasture losses, and severely reduce crop yield. Effective drought quantification and early warning are critical for drought risk adaptation. Moreover, future drought risks could be exacerbated due to climate change. Modeling how climate change might influence future drought risks is of great importance in natural resources and water resources planning management. This dissertation has three parts. 1) The first part compares and …

Fundamental Aspects Of A Novel Technology For Abatement Of Indoor Allergens, Odell Lendor Glenn Jr.

Theses and Dissertations

The overall goal of this research was to develop a novel approach to reduce the potency of certain asthma triggers, namely, proteins produced by pests or pets in indoor environments. The broad hypothesis of the research was that naturally occurring essential oils will demonstrate enhanced denaturing ability. In any indoor environment, allergens are bound to dry dust particles. In this work, the effectiveness of using dry ice and CO2 with potential for essential oils on dry allergenic proteins through CFD modeling and ELISA methods were evaluated.

There are three objectives central to this work. The first objective was to apply …

Determining The Subsidence Rate Of The Cascade Seamount Using Strontium Isotope Stratigraphy, Sarah L. Vorsanger

Theses and Dissertations

The Cascade Seamount is a wave-planated feature located on the microcontinent of the East Tasman Plateau (ETP). The minimum subsidence rate of the Seamount and the ETP can be estimated by dividing the present-day depth of the wave-cut surface (640 m) by the age of Cascade Seamount basalts as determined by potassium-argon (K-Ar) dating (33.4 and 36 Ma). This approach yields a subsidence rate of 18 m/Myr. However, a significantly more rapid subsidence rate of the ETP since the Eocene-Oligocene transition has been proposed based on sedimentological and biostratigraphic techniques. The late Eocene paleodepths determined by Stickley et al. (2004) …

Integrating Literacy Strategies In The Biology Classroom: Using A Generative Vocabulary Matrix To Improve Standardized Test Scores, Anna H. Morrison

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation focuses on the development and implementation of an action research study that seeks to determine the impact of integrating literacy strategies in the biology classroom on standardized test scores. The teacher-researcher identified the problem of practice in her classroom after four years of observation of ninth-grade biology students. These observations led the teacher-researcher to develop, research, and investigate the following question: What is the impact of Larson’s (2014b) Generative Vocabulary Matrix (GVM) in a high school biology course as demonstrated by students’ performance on the South Carolina End-of-Course Examination Program? This dissertation orients the research question from a …

Hydrothermal Carbonization Of Food Waste For Nutrient Recovery And Reuse, Ifeolu M. Idowu

Theses and Dissertations

Food waste represents a rather large and currently underutilized source of potentially available and reusable nutrients. Laboratory-scale experiments evaluating the hydrothermal carbonization of food wastes collected from restaurants were conducted to understand how changes in feedstock composition and carbonization process conditions influence primary and secondary nutrient fate. Results from this work indicate that at all evaluated reaction times and temperatures, the majority of nitrogen, calcium, and magnesium remain integrated within the solid-phase, while the majority of potassium and sodium reside in the liquid-phase. The fate of phosphorus is dependent on reaction times and temperatures, with solid-phase integration increasing with higher …

Emotion Regulation And Life Satisfaction Of Early Adolescents In The Face Of Stressful Life Events, Zi Jia Ng

Theses and Dissertations

In line with calls to define mental health as more than the mere absence of psychopathology, and based on the restorative model of well-being (Lent, 2004), this dissertation sought to elucidate the relationship between stressful life events and life satisfaction by exploring the mediating role of emotion regulation. Using a full Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) approach, this dissertation first determined the factor structure of the measurement model then evaluated the path analysis of the structural model. The first study examined the factor analytic structure and measurement invariance of the Brief Multidimensional Students’ Life Satisfaction Scale (BMSLSS). Results supported the one-factor …

The Effects Of Exercise Training On Cardiovascular-Related Circulating Micrornas, Jacob Luther Barber

Theses and Dissertations

PURPOSE: MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small regulatory RNAs that post transcriptionally modify mRNAs and control gene expression. Circulating miRNAs are significantly altered following a single session of exercise, however the effects of exercise training on the circulating miRNA profile is unclear. Therefore, the purpose of the present study was to determine the effects of endurance exercise training on the abundance of targeted circulating miRNAs and the association of changes in miRNA levels with concomitant changes in cardiometabolic traits, in a subsample of adults from the HERITAGE Family Study.

METHODS: This exploratory analysis examined 20 previously sedentary adults from the HERITAGE Family …

A Personal Approach To Landscape: Empathy, Sentiment, And The Environment's Representation In Tumultuous Times, Lauren Hensens

Theses and Dissertations

My work approaches the multitude of personal experience within the landscape, considering its cultural representation, aiming to give the environment agency within these tumultuous times. The following text is a personal narrative, realizing the many lenses through which a landscape can be experienced, including analyses of artists, writers, and musicians who have represented landscape through their own individuality.

Protective Factors For Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Among Second Generation Combat Veterans, Carlos J. Perez

Theses and Dissertations

Research has consistently examined the effects of intergenerational trauma among children of combat veterans and the negative impact this has on psychological functioning. The current study explored the relationship between attachment style, post-traumatic growth, and Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among second generation combat veterans. A sample of male combat veterans from Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) and Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) were included in the study (n = 6). The was an exploratory study that utilized a mixed-methods approach to explore lived experiences. Descriptive statistics, as well as correlation analysis were conducted to examine associations among quantitative variables. Results from qualitative …

Student Achievement And Parental Involvement In A Private School: Grades K-8 Learning Outcomes, Darcy Brent Calvillo

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was twofold: (a) To determine whether there is a relationship between parental involvement and test scores in a K-8 school; and (b) What parental methods and strategies surveyed show an effect on test scores based on research and parental surveys? Approximately 300 parents participated in a parental methods survey. Parents were surveyed and provided English and Math performance data. Data from this researcher’s survey adapted from the Ohio Department of Education (ODE; APPENDIX B) were analyzed using descriptive statistics, including the top 5 methods or strategies according to the parent survey that have an effect …

"The Mission Always Comes First": A Phenomenological Study Of Active Military Students In Online Community College Courses, Marilyn Brock

Theses and Dissertations

The focus of this study was to develop greater understanding about the unique experiences of active-duty military soldiers who are taking online courses. The qualitative phenomenological study was comprised of online active military (OAM) students taking undergraduate college level courses offered by the Distance Learning Military Programs at a Californian community college. Six participants volunteered while taking online courses from various locations around the world, including sites that were located in an increased zone of conflict. The study’s results provided information that may assist with improving future military students’ learning experiences while they are facing the conflicts associated with military …

Descriptive Study On Digital Content Copyright Ownership, Cruz Daniel Ibarrondo

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this dissertation was to study perceptions of faculty and administrators at institutions of higher education on copyright ownership of faculty-created digital course content. The central question for this study was: Who had copyright ownership rights of faculty-created digital content and in what manner was copyright ownership developed, implemented, and asserted at institutions of higher education. The five research questions were: (a) How were copyright ownership policies of faculty-created digital content developed and implemented at institutions of higher education?; (b) How were faculty involved in the development of copyright ownership agreements?; (c) What institutional policy and contractual documents …

Understanding The Hybrid High School Student Experience, Riley Leary

Theses and Dissertations

Hybrid High School education is a disruptive innovation that has begun to replace traditional brick and mortar schools for many students world-wide. In addition to a traditional school model are the traditional metrics by which schools are compared. These metrics have been achievement data, success rates, and funding analyses. These metrics do not account for the lived experience of the high school students, in the same way that the traditional model of education does not account for the changing methods available for learning. This study is a phenomenological analysis of the lived experience of high school students who have attended …

Adolescent Perceptions Of Addiction: A Mixed-Methods Exploration Of Instagram Hashtags And Adolescent Interviews, Colleen Marie Brazill-Murray

Theses and Dissertations

Addictive disorders are a public health crisis that affects our society by draining our workforce, health care, judicial, education, and law enforcement, resources. Adolescents are particularly susceptible to social influence - for better and for worse - and addiction. Through social media, today’s youth experience a whole new way of communicating. Not enough is known about adolescent perceptions of addiction, and messages of addiction they are exposed to on social media. Social Learning Theory and the Learning Theory of Addiction provided the framework for understanding how adolescents are at risk for developing unhealthy practices that create numerous psychological, social and …

Training Manual For Clinicians: The Conversations With Latino Parents After An Asd Diagnosis, Nancy E. Guardado

Theses and Dissertations

This pilot study developed a training manual and presentation for clinicians (i.e. Service Coordinators and Psychologists) in the Los Angeles area working in community agencies, specifically Westside Regional Center, that is on the front line of diagnosis of Latino children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). The aim of this pilot study was to inform and educate clinicians on how to assist families and their child after age 3 who have been newly diagnosed with ASD. By training clinicians to be culturally responsive when engaging with families they can better assist in empowering parents over their child’s ASD diagnosis. Empowered parents …

Worry And Rumination: A Rationale For A Transdiagnostic Approach To Treatment, Katya Naman

Theses and Dissertations

Worry and rumination are implicated in various disorders and are believed to contribute to the symptoms that create and maintain psychopathology. The current critical review will examine worry and rumination in the context of depression, Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD), Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), and Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD). The review will focus on these two types of repetitive negative thinking more specifically the (a) definition, (b) process, (c) theories, and (d) maintenance of psychopathology; as well as similarities and differences between these two processes. A second emphasis will be on the importance of cultural considerations when …

Studying The Phenomenon Of Expressive Arts With Male Survivors Of Childhood Sexual Abuse, Megan Hogg

Theses and Dissertations

Male childhood sexual abuse (CSA) is a traumatic experience that is prevalent, under-reported, and under-treated. CSA leaves males with feelings of shame, low self-esteem, and interpersonal problems, which put them at risk of developing mental health disorders that persist into adulthood. Although expressive arts therapy has been used as a treatment for trauma in children and adolescents, existing literature on the use of expressive arts with adult CSA survivors is limited to female survivors. The current study aims to explore the experiences of male CSA survivors who have participated in expressive arts therapy, including the effects that expressive arts has …

Work-Life Balance: Organizational Leadership And Individual Strategies Among Successful Women Real Estate Brokers, Kerri Jones

Theses and Dissertations

This study defined and utilized the qualitative method of phenomenology to focus on the lack of work-life balance, consequences, and the negative impact on a culture of 15 female real estate brokers who were interviewed. The study examined the participants' experiences, insights, perspectives, and understanding of the female real estate brokers based on data collected from semi-structured interviews to create a remedy for the unresolved issues. Therefore, a compelling, dynamic work-life balance is necessary in order to create successful women in leadership roles who are real estate brokers. Female real estate brokers who are leaders facing unlimited demands predominantly in …

A Spectrum Of Treatments For Autism Spectrum Disorder, Megan Lawson

Theses and Dissertations

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), a spectrum of neurodevelopmental disorders with varying severity, presents in early childhood as repetitive or stereotyped behaviors affecting social and emotional functioning, is a complex disorder often misunderstood as a single illness, resulting in suboptimal evaluations and overly-general treatment. However, new research suggests more comprehensive evaluations and targeted treatments. This manual aims to combine the best available research on ASD and attachment to guide practitioners in evaluating and treating children with ASD (a) by clarifying what a comprehensive ASD evaluation looks like, (b) linking assessment results to DSM-5 severity levels, and (c) providing targeted optimal treatment …

Qualitative Analysis Of Emotion Regulation As Seen In Middle Eastern American Psychotherapy Clients, Jennifer Nehme

Theses and Dissertations

Middle Eastern individuals represent a heterogeneous group comprised of different nationalities, languages, and religious identifications. Yet, Middle Eastern Americans are widely underrepresented in the psychotherapy literature. Extant literature appears to focus on professional opinions about what psychotherapists should do when working with this population, including understanding cultural factors, such as incorporating family in treatment and acculturation status. Considering cultural communication patterns among this population, emotion in generally understood to be inhibited or suppressed, as disclosing personal problems and expressing emotion outside the family sphere can be viewed as disloyal and/or shaming. Thus, one of the many areas mental health clinicians …

Mindfulness And The Toxic Triangle: Reducing The Negative Impact Of Toxic Leadership In Organizations, Gary Cheng

Theses and Dissertations

Toxic leadership costs organizations millions at a time in lost employees, lost customers, lost productivity, and even lost health. The literature shows toxic leadership extends beyond just leaders into an interconnected "toxic triangle" of destructive leaders, conducive environments, and susceptible followers. This study explored, "Can a free, online mindfulness-based stress reduction course reduce the negative impact of toxic leadership on the organization?" Ten volunteers self-identified as currently working under a toxic leader. The study used an explanatory sequential mixed methods design to measure resistance, compliance, and core self-evaluation along with interviews and journals. The results indicated mindfulness did reduce the …

Principals' Perceptions Of Parent Involvement In Catholic And Protestant Schools In Southern California, Jacqueline Estella Davis

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined principals’ perceptions of faith-based schools in Southern California. A 6-item survey was distributed by hard copy to 217 Catholic principals affiliated with the Archdiocese of Los Angeles and by e-mail to 218 Protestant school principals affiliated with the Association of Christian School International. The survey was completed by 148 principals (101 from Catholic schools and 47 from Protestant schools, 34% of population), suggesting that hand-delivered surveys yielded a higher return. However, the Protestant principals who responded exclusively online completed significantly more comprehensive written comments or transcripts to the survey. Both groups of principals revealed high parent engagement …

Developing A Framework For Open Innovation, Taylor Pile

Theses and Dissertations

High tech companies face continual pressures to innovate, differentiate, and be first to market. Open innovation allows organizations to focus on their core competencies while developing strategic alliances that create win-win relationships and competitive advantages for all parties involved. However, open innovation introduces certain risks and challenges and a consistent framework for open innovation is lacking. This study developed a high-level framework for planning and executing open innovation within the high tech industry. A convenience sample of nine managers experienced in the high tech industry experience and open innovation were interviewed about their perspectives, experiences, and approaches related to open …

Reclaiming Empowerment, Agency, And Collective Healing (R.E.A.C.H.) For Youth: An Adaptation Of Emotional Emancipation Circles For Adolescent Males Of African Ancestry, Marlene Angela Garza

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation identifies the relevant literature and methods that were used to develop a facilitator's handbook for a culturally-specific intervention for adolescent males of African ancestry. The handbook, 'Reclaiming Empowerment, Agency, and Collective Healing for Youth' (R.E.A.C.H.-Youth) provides curriculum for a culturally-centered and social justice-oriented group intervention for adolescent males of African ancestry. The resource developed will serve to provide empowerment for healing for young adolescents who have experienced historical discrimination and the negative effects of racism and discrimination in the United States. Adolescent young men of African ancestry are one of the many groups within the US that have …

Development And Evaluation Of An Introductory Child Sexual Abuse Webinar Training Module On Sexual Exploitation Of Minors: A Strengths-Based Sociocultural Perspective, Adriana Janicic

Theses and Dissertations

The aim of this dissertation was to synthesize information from the empirical literature, existing organizations related to sexually exploited minors (SEMs), and information collected through feedback from mental health professionals (MHPs) on their child sexual abuse (CSA) and commercial sexual exploitation (CSE) training experiences, gaps, and needs in order to produce an introductory training webinar module introducing MHPs to the foundational sociocultural and strengths-based treatment considerations while working with SEMs. The thirst for specific and evidence-based interventions from MHPs speaks to the lack of training, established standards of care, and best practices for working with SEMs. Further, the limited strengths-based …