Digital Commons Network^™

Next-Generation Self-Organizing Communications Networks: Synergistic Application Of Machine Learning And User-Centric Technologies, Chetana V. Murudkar

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The telecommunications industry is going through a metamorphic journey where the 5G and 6G technologies will be deeply rooted in the society forever altering how people access and use information. In support of this transformation, this dissertation proposes a fundamental paradigm shift in the design, performance assessment, and optimization of wireless communications networks developing the next-generation self-organizing communications networks with the synergistic application of machine learning and user-centric technologies.

This dissertation gives an overview of the concept of self-organizing networks (SONs), provides insight into the “hot” technology of machine learning (ML), and offers an intuitive understanding of the user-centric (UC) …

There Is No I In Team: A Case Study Exploring Co-Teaching Relationships In Preschool Classrooms, Stefanie Claire Lynch

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Co-teaching is a highly complex phenomenon where two teachers work together in some capacity. Co-teaching is an accepted practice in preschools across the United States to meet state licensing standards and state ratios. There is a paucity of research done on this topic in preschool classrooms in the United States. The purpose of this study is to explore co- teaching relationships in preschool classrooms. This study was guided by three research questions: What are teachers’ notions about co-teaching? What are co-teachers’ experiences working in preschool classrooms? How does care manifest in co-teaching relationships? This study delves into the ways in …

Evaluation Of The Effects Of Video Modeling Types And Technologies, Laura J. Whitman

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This paper aims to explore the literature available on video modeling. Video modeling teaches a variety of skills, including play skills, social skills, and daily living skills. Delivery of the video model varies based on researcher preference and available technology of the time. The paper provides descriptions and examples of different types of video modeling including, video self-modeling, simultaneous video modeling, video priming, interactive video modeling, and treatment packages. The paper concludes with suggestions for future research including the use of modern technologies with video modeling.

Evaluating The Effects Of Reinforcement Delay On Acquisition During Discrete Trial Training: A Literature Review, Theresa Barhold

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This review of literature analyzes the use of immediate and delayed reinforcement within discrete trial training (DTT). Criteria for inclusion in this review consisted of articles published in English, human participants, single subject design, targeting skill acquisition in a DTT format, and inclusion of at least one delay to reinforcement condition. Four articles, with a total of 18 participants and 23 datasets, were identified in this review. Data on participants’ characteristics and procedural modifications (i.e., target response, type of prompt, delivery of praise, use of an error correction procedure, type of reinforcer, and delay to reinforcement) were extracted. Results indicate …

Eppm And Its Effectiveness In Advertisements Of Colorectal Cancer Screening Among Young Adults, Anh T. Nguyen

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Colorectal cancer is one of the deadliest types of cancer around the world and in the United States, yet it could be highly preventable by following the recommended guidelines of getting screened by the age of 50 and above. The focus of this study was on the Extended Parallel Process Model and sought to understand the efficacy and threat components in the fear appeal messages in the context of colorectal cancer screenings. Specifically, the study examined how young adults react when being exposed to those messages and whether they intended to discuss with their parents about it. The study also …

Horror’S Aesthetic Exchange: Immersion, Abstraction And Annihilation, Ashley Morgan Steinbach

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This thesis uncovers a remote entanglement of phenomenological experience and abstract aesthetics in postmodern horror, a space that historically celebrates the former and critically undervalues the latter. Framed as a case study, I mobilize close readings of Alex Garland’s science fiction horror film, Annihilation (2018), to complicate the immersion/abstraction binary that implicitly structures much of contemporary horror scholarship. By recovering horror’s distanced and decentered forms and aesthetics I point to the interdependent faculty of a composite aesthetic collaboration.

These collaborations, which I refer to as aesthetic exchanges, place pressure on the localized emphasis of horror’s situated assaultive and reactive positions. …

Examining Role Breadth, Efficacy, And Attitudes Toward Trauma-Informed Care In Elementary School Educators, Mikayla J. Drymond

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Children growing up below the poverty line are at heightened risk for developing complex symptoms of trauma caused by repeated exposures to a variety of traumatic events. The detrimental effects of repeated traumatic exposures on developing children living in low-income environments are now considered a public health concern (APA Presidential Task Force on Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and Trauma in Children and Adolescents, 2008; Crosby, Howell, & Thomas, 2018). Increased awareness of the negative effects of trauma early in life and the need for combative care has accelerated the movement for educators to become trauma-informed, which can be demonstrated through altered …

Intensive Longitudinal Data Analyses And Sample Size Considerations In Intervention Studies With Dynamic Structural Equation Modeling, Zhiyao Yi

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Dynamic structural equation modeling (DSEM) has been proposed to analyze intensive longitudinal data (ILD). This dissertation provided a tutorial for the DSEM model specification practices in the context of intervention designs. Specifically, I illustrated using equations, verbal descriptions, and figures three two-level DSEM models based on three common intervention designs, including a single-arm trial with repeated measurements before and during intervention, randomized control trial (RCT) with repeated measurements during intervention, and RCT with repeated measurements before and during intervention. Mplus syntax and results from the analysis were also provided for each model along with the interpretations and inferences of parameter …

Digital Stories Students Tell: An Exploration Of Doctoral Sla Students’ Beliefs About Storytelling And Educational Technology, Patrick Mannion

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Educational technology (ET) plays a major role in second/foreign (L2) language teaching and learning. Some factors influencing the ways in which teachers employ ET in L2 education are the teachers’ personal beliefs about how teachers and students should use ET to learn target languages. To develop a better understanding of influences on L2 teachers’ ET-related subjective positions, a need exists to explore the ET-related perceptions and beliefs of current and future teacher educators who are, or will be, responsible for the design and implementation of curricula and learning activities in teacher education programs. In these teacher education programs, future teachers …

Biological And Proteomic Characterization Of Cornus Officinalis On Human 1.1b4 Pancreatic Β Cells: Exploring Use For T1d Interventional Application, Arielle E. Tawfik

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Type 1 diabetes (T1D) is an autoimmune disease resulting in the loss of pancreatic β cells and subsequent loss of insulin production. Exogenous insulin coupled with continuous glucose monitoring is the only treatment for T1D. Therefore, novel interventional therapies are needed that can inhibit the autoimmune destruction and increase β cell proliferation and function. Based on initial in vitro studies, traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) extract, Cornus officinalis, may be able to serve in this function. CO has been used for 2 millennia for its glucose regulating potential and has shown efficacy in animal models but rarely studied in the context …

Recurring Scream: Trauma In Wes Craven's Slasher, Ben Muntananuchat

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This thesis investigates trauma representation in the horror film trilogy Scream, by director Wes Craven and based on the story and characters by screenwriter Kevin Williamson. The franchise is a satirical body of work that uproots the formulaic narrative aspects of the slasher film subgenre, of which it belongs to. Craven and Williamson’s method of critiquing the subgenre employs the usage of its cinematic tropes, though elevating them to a level of postmodern parody. I analyze traumatic representation within the franchise’s layers of mediation and postmodern narrative elements, which are often highlighted in academic discussion. The trauma observed revolves around …

An Experimental Investigation Into The Impact Of Crisis Response Strategies And Relationship Management In The Pharmaceutical Industry, Nikoletta Pappas

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study investigates how millennials view their relationship with the pharmaceutical industry and if that relationship changes when exposed to different crisis messaging strategies. The pharmaceutical industry is currently dealing with a preventable crisis because of companies in the industry, such as opioid companies, causing death, distrust, and lawsuits. Coombs suggests the rebuild message strategies will result in a stronger relationship between the industry and their publics. This study will test that theory. The millennial participants that contributed to this study were all born between 1980-1996. Their relationships were measured through the variables of trust, satisfaction, control mutuality, commitment, communal …

“Placing Our Breasts On A Hot Kerosene Lantern”: A Critical Study Of Microfinancialization In The Lives Of Women Entrepreneurs In The Informal Economic Sector In Ibadan, Nigeria, Olubukola Olayiwola

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study uses an anthropological perspective to investigate everyday lived experience of women borrowers and entrepreneurs (in the informal economic sector in Ibadan, Nigeria) relating to microfinancialization. Study such as this becomes important given the popular Yoruba metaphor “owo komulelanta” (“Placing our breasts on a hot kerosene lantern”) women borrowers use to express their experience particularly in their attempts to make repayments of MFB loans. Hence, there is a need to pay close attention and listen more carefully to operators of the informal sector and borrowers of MFB loans. This study employs ethnographic mixed methods to generate data in various …

Managing Off-Grid Power Use For Solar Fueled Residences With Smart Appliances, Prices-To-Devices And Iot, Donnelle L. January

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Electricity availability has a profound impact in day to day life. Activities such as lighting homes, charging cellphones, and running appliances all depend on electricity use. Around 1 billion people around the world do not have access to electricity, and the majority of these people hail from developing countries in remote areas. Moreover, many of these remote areas lack utility grid access due to the infeasible cost of extending the grid to remote communities. To combat this, various projects on microgrids have been implemented in order to distribute power to these off-grid areas. Nanogrids are defined as “a single domain …

Procedural Variations Of Rird: A Systematic Review Of The Literature, Stephanie Almendarez

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this paper was to summarize and synthesize the current literature on RIRD. Specifically, the aim of this review was to determine proportion of cases in which RIRD was effective in reducing stereotypy as well as to identify RIRD procedural variations that appear to be correlated with an increased probability of positive outcomes. Researchers synthesized the results of 21 articles according to the following categories: (a) participant characteristics (e.g., sex, age, diagnosis, communication repertoire, and topography of stereotypy), (b) RIRD procedural variations (e.g., form of RIRD, type of task, response requirement, number of tasks, and intervention), and (c) …

Additive Manufactured And Laser Enhanced Optical Fiber On Flexible Kapton Substrate, Dianhao Hou

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This thesis mainly focuses on the realization of laser enhancing additive manufactured optical fibers on the flexible substrate based on previous work on the rigid surface, and the exploration of their loss at different bend status by optical transmission test. Optical fibers are successfully fabricated using polymethyl methacrylate by fused deposition modeling technology within Norland Optical Adhesive 1369 which is chosen as the cladding material and micro-dispensed on the Kapton substrate. The Laser cutting technology and scanning electron microscope have been used to enhance and characterize the flatness of two end facets of samples, respectively. The optical adhesive and PMMA …

A Case Study On Black Twitter’S Reactions To The Framing Of Blacks In Dove’S 2017 Facebook Advertisement, Shereena Farrington

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Insensitivity to racial issues has long been one of the main causes of controversy in the marketing field. Among many brands to have caused outrage across social media, is the notable brand, Dove. The criticism that the veteran brand received has shown that even experienced marketers can still find themselves being accused of insensitivity or even racism (Ma, 2018). The gaffe of an advertisement released by Dove in 2017, serves as the impetus for the need for diversity in brands. Given today’s complex society, the purpose of this study is to identify themes that emerged in Black Twitter’s responses to …

An Analytical Approach To Information And Communication Technologies, Sahir Hismiogullari

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The twentieth century was a century of scientific and technological development. Especially the fact of information and communication technologies, beyond being a technological leap, has led to different levels of development and changes / transformations. Therefore, developments, possibilities, changes and problems emerging in the Internet and other digital contexts have attracted the attention of communication scientists, sociologists, historians and philosophers, and have become a field of research that leads to interdisciplinary studies. Along with the mass media developed for the last two centuries (from the spread of newspapers to the invention of the internet), every social development or transformation is …

Potential Roles Of Speech-Language Pathologists In Advancing Early Intervention And Prevention Within A Multi-Tiered System Of Supports (Mtss) Framework, Meaghan A. Mckenna

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Multi-tiered system of supports (MTSS) is a framework that promotes school improvement through tiered deployment of research-based academic and behavioral practices. MTSS employs a systems approach whereby data-based problem solving integrates effective assessment and instruction designed to meet the academic, behavioral, and social emotional needs of all students. Many speech-language pathologists (SLPs) are interested in better understanding their role within MTSS and others have a desire to lead efforts at their school site or the district level, but are unsure of where to begin. This dissertation includes three papers that explore potential roles and responsibilities of SLPs within a multi-tiered …

How Can I Help My Anxious Child With Autism Spectrum Disorder? Understanding Parental Perspectives And Treatment Preferences, Sandra L. Cepeda

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Despite the high prevalence of co-occurring anxiety in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), little is known about parental preferences for treatment in addressing these anxiety concerns. Understanding parents’ preferences for treatment is an important factor to consider for ensuring quality care, as it can guide clinical decisions with regard to implementation of care, strategies for optimizing engagement and treatment adherence, and is associated with treatment outcome. To date, limited studies have examined parental preferences in treatment for childhood anxiety or ASD; but no study has investigated preferences for treatment in children with comorbid symptoms. Thus, the present study sought …

A Review Of Training Interventions To Teach Safety Skills To Children With Autism, Gabrielle Mondello

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Teaching safety skills to children with autism is a serious responsibility for caregivers, siblings, teachers, and other important people in the children’s lives. Finding the effective and most efficient way to teach these skills is important. Behavioral skills training (BST), in situ training (IST), video modeling, virtual reality, and the use of simulation training have all been evaluated for teaching safety skills. This paper discusses the safety threats faced by children with autism and reviews these various approaches to teaching safety skills.

Bayesian Reliability Analysis For Optical Media Using Accelerated Degradation Test Data, Kun Bu

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

ISO (the International Organization for Standardization) 10995:2011 is the inter-national standard providing guidelines for assessing the reliability and service life of optical media, which is designed to be highly reliable and possesses a long lifetime. A well-known challenge of reliability analysis for highly reliable devices is that it is hard to obtain sufficient failure data under their normal use conditions. Accelerated degradation tests (ADTs) are commonly used to quickly obtain physical degradation data under elevated stress conditions, which are then extrapolated to predict reliability under the normal use condition. This standard achieves the estimation of the lifetime of recordable media, …

Enhancing Intergenerational Conversation Using Visual Cues: Effects Of A Historical Timeline, Allyson Lindsay

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Interacting with individuals with expressive aphasia can be particularly challenging not only because of the language impairments, but also because of the frequent age difference between the clients with aphasia and student clinicians. Although students learn a variety of strategies to support language impairments, there remains a need to bridge the age gap in historical knowledge to enhance conversation. The current study explored the use of a timeline as written and pictorial cue to support conversations between individuals with aphasia and students. This study consisted of Two Experiments. The purpose of Experiment 1 was to identify the differences in knowledge …

Assessing Teacher Data Use: A Validation Study Of The Teacher Data Use Survey (Tdus), Alice Renee Foran

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Student achievement data have been the cornerstone of state and national accountability efforts for decades, and the focus on data-based decision making and evidence-based practices in education from policymakers, the public, and researchers continues to increase. Underlying the various pressures and incentives on educators to use data is a basic logic model: if teachers use data, their practice will change, and those changes will lead to improved student outcomes. The simplicity of the model belies the complexity of the practice of data use. Many individual- and organizational-level factors, such as attitudes and beliefs, competence, supports, and context play a role. …

Water Quality And Sustainability Assessment Of Rural Water Systems In The Comarca Ngäbe-Buglé, Panama, Corbyn Cools

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Over the last four decades significant progress has been made on providing people access to improved drinking water. The Joint Monitoring Program (JMP) estimates that 6.7 billion people have access to at least basic drinking water services. In spite of this great achievement 785 million people still lack even basic services and eighty percent of which live in rural areas. To further complicate matters, those with access to services experience interruptions or non-functionality for handpumps and piped system long before the intended design life of the system. In the Comarca Ngäbe-Buglé province in Panama there is very little information on …

Development Of An Organic Processor Assembly (Opa) For Sustainable Resource Recovery To Enable Long-Duration, Deep-Space Human Exploration (Loddshe), Talon James Bullard

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Long-Duration, Deep-Space Human Exploration (LoDDSHE) missions demand robust and reliable technologies to ensure crew health, safety, and mission success. In situ food production will become essential for these missions for crew nutrition, morale, and in the event of delays or failures. At a current estimated cost $10,000/lb, mass and volume limitations will restrict necessary resources. For an anticipated thirty-month mission to Mars, these costs will increase due to more frequent resupply shipments and lengthened transit times, creating additional financial and logistical challenges (Pickett et al., 2019). Increased resource and waste recovery to achieve nearly closed-loop systems will mitigate many of …

Rhetorical Roundhouse Kicks: Tae Kwon Do Pumsae Practice And Non-Western Embodied Topoi, Spencer Todd Bennington

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study examines Tae Kwon Do practitioner manuals as sites for better understanding the way diverse rhetorics can become embodied through technique. This dissertation understands martial arts in a Foucauldian sense as rhetorical institutions which discipline practitioners both physically and ideologically. A theory of “embodied topoi,” a term coined here to describe the process by which cultural commonplaces are incorporated into a material, carnal, or performed identity is presented alongside a review of how athletic or martial bodies have been previously studied. Seven popular Tae Kwon Do technical manuals are analyzed for moments when 1. Commonplaces are described, 2. “Daoist …

Evaluating Small-Scale Simulation For Teaching Abduction Prevention Skills, Jessica E. Ritzmann

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Approximately 1,600 attempted kidnappings occurred within 2018 (National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, 2019). In a 2016 report by Wolak, Finkelhor, and Sedlak, of the 105 stereotypical kidnappings that occurred in 2011, many resulted in sexual assault, the children are never found, or death. These dangerous circumstances warrant a method of teaching safety skills to children to avoid abduction. Research has shown that small-scale simulation is effective for teaching firearm safety to 3- to 5-year-olds children (Maxfield, Miltenberger, & Novotny, 2019). This research has not been applied to abduction prevention safety. The current study aimed to address this research …

Developing Design Elements For A Parkinson’S Disease Informative Website: A Social Marketing Approach, Emilie R. Madsen

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Parkinson’s disease is a neurodegenerative disease with no known cause or cure. No two cases are identical, meaning that every individual will present different symptoms and will have a different progression of the disease. Me Over PD is an initiative created to aid newly diagnosed PD patients and care partners in navigating the complexities surrounding the disease and live a more informed life with PD. Considering Me Over PD, the present research works to understand the experiences of PD patients and care partners upon diagnosis and after, and gauge what elements and information would be most beneficial to these individuals …

Aligning Voice And Communication With Identity – A Survey On Transgender And Gender Diverse Populations, Rachel T. Chalom

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Purpose: This research has two goals. The first goal is to examine transgender (TG) and gender diverse (GD) voice and communication functioning and the impact of voice on their everyday lives. The second goal is to examine the knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs speech-language pathologists (SLP) have about the TG and GD community and to investigate the relationship between self- and listener-perception and its correspondence to quality of life (QoL).

Methods: A total of 59 participants took part in this research. The research was separated into two parts, the first included 24 TG and GD individuals who participated in a Qualtrics …