Digital Commons Network^™

Transformational School Leadership And Students' Gaokao Performance In China: A Multilevel Mediation Analysis, Yanzheng Li

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine how teachers’ psychological contract fulfillment (PCF) and organizational commitment (OC) mediated the effects of principals’ transformational school leadership (TSL) on students’ Gaokao performance in China by testing a hypothesized multilevel model. Survey data were collected online from 893 teachers at 10 public senior high schools in a city located in Northern China. The first city-wide mock Gaokao exam results were used as the indicator of students’ Gaokao performance. Data analysis techniques included correlational analysis, multiple regression analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, structural equation modeling analysis, and multilevel mediation analysis. Results indicated a relatively …

Digital Identity: A Human-Centered Risk Awareness Study, Toufic N. Chebib

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Cybersecurity threats and compromises have been at the epicenter of media attention; their risk and effect on people’s digital identity is something not to be taken lightly. Though cyber threats have affected a great number of people in all age groups, this study focuses on 55 to 75-year-olds, as this age group is close to retirement or already retired. Therefore, a notable compromise impacting their digital identity can have a major impact on their life.

To help guide this study, the following research question was formulated, “What are the risk perceptions of individuals, between the ages of 55 and 75 …

Chinese International Students’ Narratives Of Their Experiences In A Graduate Pathway Program: An Exploratory Study, Lu Norstrand

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Because of the tremendous growth of Chinese international students’ enrollment in American higher education and the rapid rise and development of Pathway programs in American universities, I determined the main purpose of this research was to determine the experiences of three Chinese international students in a Graduate Pathway program at a public four-year university in the Southeastern U.S. Three research questions were addressed:

1. How do three Chinese international students describe their academic experiences in a Graduate Pathway program in the U.S.?
2. How do these students describe differences in their learning experiences between the U.S. and China?
3. How do these students …

The Efficiency And Accuracy Of Yolo For Neonate Face Detection In The Clinical Setting, Jacqueline Hausmann

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

There are many face detection classification models available for download and use in the modern technological world. Based in the field of deep neural networks, these off-the-shelf solutions are generally inadequate to solve real world challenges. This work presents how current approaches biased towards detecting adult human faces must be modified in order to better accommodate face detection of the neonate in a NICU setting.

YOLO is a powerful object detection algorithm. Due to optimizations such as Cross mini-batch Normalization, Modified Spatial Attention Modules, Modified Path Aggregation Networks, Self-Adversarial Training, Mosaic Data Augmentation, DropBox Regularization, Multi-Input Weighted Residual Connections and …

Using The Cipp Evaluation Model To Examine A Bachelor Of Science In Health Systems Management Program, Somer Goad Burke

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this formative evaluation was to explore the effectiveness of a Bachelor of Science in Health Systems Management (BS HSMT) program in supporting student success through gathering information that led to recommendations for program improvement. The evaluation setting was a public university in the southeastern United States that began enrolling students in the BS HSMT in the fall semester 2017. The BS HSMT was developed to meet the local workforce need for professionals trained in health management and to offer a non-clinical bachelor’s degree for students not competitive or not admitted to their first-choice selective major (described in …

Identifying The Academic And Emotional Risk And Resource Factors Of Underrepresented Students In Accelerated Coursework, Jasmine L. Gray

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

There are many benefits of student participation in accelerated curricula in high school such as the International Baccalaureate Diploma Program (IBD) or Advanced Placement (AP) coursework. Benefits include skipping introductory coursework in college, being better prepared to deal with the stressors of college, and positive impacts on peer relationships, self-image, and the development of the concept of success (The International Baccalaureate Organization [IBO], 2019). However, the extent to which all students, regardless of demographic background, are able to participate in and benefit from such programs is a little less known. Previous research indicates that the IBD tends to enroll high-achieving …

Motivation To Volunteer, Lendi N. Joy

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The rate of volunteering in the U.S. remains low in spite of the many positive benefits that volunteering yields. Prior research has suggested various theories to help explain motivation to volunteer. Nonetheless, none of the theories have been both comprehensive and specific enough to allow for their practical application in recruitment efforts or campaigns to increase motivations to volunteer. The purpose of the current study was to test a comprehensive model of volunteer motivation by integrating the Volunteering Functions Inventory into the Theory of Planned Behavior as behavioral and normative beliefs that influence attitudes and subjective norms. The hypothesized model …

Latino/A Student Success In Higher Education: A Study In Persistence, Ronald K. Maccammon

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this qualitative study was to provide a detailed accounting of the experiences of Latinos students who persist in higher education. The supports and barriers they encountered, as well as their recommendations for educational stakeholders looking to effect persistence were examined. The grand tour question guiding this research was: “What do some Latino students and their institutions do to enable decisions to persist and how do they do it?” Sub-Questions providing depth for the research were: (a) how do the participants make meaning of their experiences to persist to graduate; (b) what are the participants’ perceptions of the …

La Tierra Que Pisamos: El Tercer Espacio En La Narrativa De Jesús Carrasco, Christina Ahmed

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Este estudio explora las diferentes manifestaciones del tercer espacio en la novela de Jesús Carrasco, La tierra que pisamos (2016), para mostrar cómo la narrativa es capaz de generar empatía en el lector. Un ejemplo de Historia alternativa, la novela narra la colonización de España por un Imperio imperialista. Los eventos se sitúan en un pueblo en Extremadura donde un indígena llamado Leva aparece en la finca de Eva, la esposa de un militar del Imperio. La interacción entre los dos personajes principales provoca un cambio en la mentalidad de Eva, ya que se hace consciente de cómo su país …

Higher Sense Of Control Predicts Long-Term Well-Being After Depression, Andrew R. Devendorf

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Excellent outcomes after major depression, including the possibility of optimal well-being (OWB), are understudied. In a previous investigation, nearly 10% of initially depressed adults met OWB criteria 10-years later, yet little is known about factors that explain OWB after depression. This study examined whether sense of control (SOC) beliefs and coping behaviors, specifically, reappraisal and seeking social support, predict OWB after depression. Secondary data analyses were conducted on Waves 1 and 2 of the Midlife Development in the United States (1995–1996; 2004–2006; MIDUS) study, which includes a nationally representative sample of middle-aged adults. Participants in the present analyses met DSM-III …

Neo-Colonial Elites’ Linguistic Violence And Monolingual Haitian Creole Speakers: Language Ideology, The Politics Of Linguistic Pluralism, The Crisis Of National Identity And Culture In Haiti, Frantzso Marcelin

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Language is a very complex matter in Haiti. One of the most pressing issues related to language in Haiti is the aspect of violence. The violence that exists through linguistic means in Haiti today has for its basis the same mechanism that existed during the colonial era in Haiti. The same western concept of colonial social dualities, and unequal distribution of esteemed associates to African and European cultures are still at the forefront of linguistic violence. The only difference being that those ideas of colonial superiority, which informed those recurring acts of violence, are now self-imposed.

In Haiti, the nature …

Transfat Representation, Jessica "Fyn" Asay

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study defines and analyzes representation of transfats, those who are both transgender and fat, through the examination of two popular media texts, Jabba the Hutt from The Return of the Jedi and Pat from the Saturday Night Live tv program in the 1990’s. I analyze these two texts using a queer feminist media studies lens to reveal the media construction of a transfat representation that is rooted in racism, transnormativity, and fatphobia and that positions the transfat body as non-normative and grotesque through the use of abject horror and fear. My analysis reveals how racism, transnormativity, and fatphobia shape …

'Golden Spike': Examining Atlanta United Fc Communications During The Launch Of The Team, Maria Tsyruleva

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Atlanta United FC is a unique example of a U.S. soccer club that had set a record in the number of season tickets sold even before the team played its first game in Major League Soccer (MLS). This research constitutes a thematic analysis of the press releases created by Atlanta United during the period between the launch of the club in April 2014 through its first official game in MLS in March 2017, examining what communication strategies Atlanta United adopted as well as what brand attributes the team communicated to its audience, and how the organization did that.

The study …

Students' Perceptions Of Career And Academic Advising In College Learning Communities, Kelly M. Hallas

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine if community college students in differing learning communities had different perceptions of their career and academic needs and whether students in different learning communities perceived their career and academic advisor as meeting these needs (i.e. are they satisfied with their advising). In addition, this study examined the variables of gender, ethnicity, and enrollment status and their relation to students’ needs and satisfaction across learning communities.

The Community College that provides the backdrop for the inquiry has recently transitioned to Academic and Career Learning Communities. This institution defines its communities as similar majors …

Distributed Leadership: Leadership Teams And Implementing Multi-Tiered Systems Of Support, Joseph D. Latimer

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Contemporary educational legislation in the last 30 years has reflected the age of accountability in which positive student academic outcomes and yearly student progress are the main goals of the school system. In addition to accountability legislation, schools are mandated to implement multi-tiered systems of support (MTSS) to provide a continuum of services for all students. To implement MTSS and the necessary system changes, many schools are using distributed leadership models and practices such as leadership teams to maximize the human and material resources available. This study examined the conceptualization and enactment of distributed leadership in a school that is …

Constructing A Neoliberal Youth Culture In Postcolonial Bangladeshi Advertising, Md Khorshed Alam

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

My dissertation examines the role of advertising in producing cultural narratives within the contemporary neoliberal economy and the historical context of Bangladesh. More specifically, based on thematic analysis of data collected from 73 in-depth interviews with Bangladeshi advertising practitioners, this study aims to understand the discursive production of youth culture in the country. The dialectical tensions between the global and local, universal, and particular inform this study. Using a postcolonial and cultural studies approach, this study investigates how Bangladeshi advertisers reconfigure, replace, or reinforce the notion of youth culture in Bangladesh. This study is significant because it: a) introduces a …

Civic Engagement Amid Civil Unrest: Haitian Social Scientists Working At Home, Nadège Nau

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Unlike many of the autoethnographic accounts in world anthropologies discourse, this study employs critical educational ethnography to both address the geopolitics of Haitian anthropology while also spotlighting an understudied group: university faculty. This study addresses: What are the conditions of academic labor for anthropology professors working in Haiti? Moreover, what is the price of being an anthropology professor at the School of Ethnology at the State University of Haiti (UEH), and how do professors add meaningful value to their labor through sacrifice, ingenuity, and civic engagement? Despite professors’ work-related challenges and Haiti’s severe “brain drain” levels, for many professors, their …

Super Bowl Ads And The Donald Trump Culture War, Jessica Barron

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

There have been studies that have looked at how television commercials represent or portray minorities such as gender or race. Very few have tried to look at how commercials compare to the culture, specifically in regards to a presidential term and the culture they promote. This present study examines Super Bowl commercials during the culture war led by the Donald Trump administration and looks to discover if these advertisements are becoming more diverse in comparison to the previous presidency. Using content analysis, the researcher analyzed and compared 50 commercials from three different time periods 2009-2010, 2013-2014, and 2017-2018. The categories …

Using A Systems Thinking Approach And Health Risk Assessment To Analyze The Food-Energy-Water System Nexus Of Seaweed Farming In Belize, Estenia J. Ortiz Carabantes

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Certain macroalgae, commonly referred to as seaweed, have traditionally been used as a food source for many coastal communities around the world. In Belize, residents of the Placencia Peninsula cultivate two seaweed types, Eucheuma isiforme and Gracilaria spp. at Little Water Caye located 19 miles offshore. The dried seaweed is sold at the Placencia Producers Cooperative Society Limited (PPCSL) where community members process it into a variety of value-added products such as soaps, cosmetics, hair products, and food additives.

The overall goal of this research was to understand the existing food-energy-water system (FEWS) infrastructure landscape for seaweed production in Placencia, …

Roots Of Coded Metaphor In John Dee's Monas Hieroglyphica, Joshua Michael Zintel

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

An enormous amount of research on John Dee has materialized within the last forty years. Contrary to research published earlier in the twentieth century, such relatively recent studies have considered Dee’s idiosyncratic plurality of parallel traditions instead of trying to pigeonhole his activities into one of several discrete camps. That research (much of which is listed in the Bibliography) has been helpful hypothesizing what his Monas Hieroglyphica (1564) may mean for several fields of study in an interstitial capacity. Students of Early Modern mathematics, neoplatonism, and the histories of alchemy, chemistry, Christian kabbalah, and astronomy are among the many diverse …

Sustainable Nutrient Management Through Technology-Level Evaluation And System-Level Optimization, Xiaofan Xu

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The need for wastewater and stormwater quality control, especially the control of nutrients, has been recognized due to the widespread problem of water eutrophication. Sustainable nutrient management is essential to reduce nutrient-related impacts and supply the growing nutrient demands.

This research focused on the nutrients (nitrogen and phosphorus) in the urban water environment with nitrogen as the nutrient of interest since nitrogen is the primary nutrient responsible for eutrophication in the coastal areas. It aimed to enhance the sustainability of urban nutrient management through technology-level evaluation and system-level optimization of technology implementation with consideration of life cycle environmental impacts and …

The Participation Of Children With Multiple Disabilities In The Florida State Alternate Assessment: Parent Perspectives, Lora Reese

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The perspectives of parents of children with multiple disabilities regarding their understanding and involvement in their child’s participation in the Florida State Alternate Assessment (FSAA) Performance Task and Datafolio are explored in this study. In the United States, federal policies require all students to participate in state-wide formal assessments, including students with multiple disabilities. Current research literature examines the perspectives of teachers and other education professionals regarding the many facets of formalized assessment. However, the perspective of parents of children with multiple disabilities and their child’s participation in formal alternate assessment is scant. Throughout this study, the reflections of six …

In Post-Extubated Patients What Are The Preferred Methods Of Communication During Their Experience Of Endotracheal Intubation With Mechanical Ventilation, Lanette Dumas

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

To date, communication between mechanically intubated patients and nurses is laden with negative psychological and physiological impacts. Research has focused more on what patients want to communicate, and how nurses communicate with intubated patients. There is limited research identifying the communication methods preferred by these patients. The purpose of this study was to identify communication preferences of mechanically intubated patients using a phenomenological approach.

Semi-structured interviews were conducted with participants in their hospital rooms. The interview questions focused on the period of mechanical intubation when the participants were unable to speak. A total of 27 participants were interviewed at a …

Facilitators And Barriers To Treatment Engagement In A Behavioral Parent Training Program, Holland Hayford

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This quantitative study sought to analyze caregivers’ perspectives regarding facilitators of, and barriers to, attending the behavioral parent training programs (BPTs) known as Helping Our Toddlers, Developing Our Children’s Skills (HOT DOCS) and Developing Our Children’s Skills K-5 (DOCS K-5). Participants included 43 caregivers who successfully completed their respective DOCS program. These caregivers answered two questionnaires which contained items addressing demographic variables (i.e., gender, race, ethnicity, household income, level of education, number of children, and program attendance) and logistic factors of the DOCS programs (i.e., course location, class length, time of day, course duration, availability of transportation, availability of childcare). …

Glamour In Contemporary American Cinema, Shauna A. Maragh

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

American cinematic glamour shapes hegemonic notions of femininity, beauty, performativity, sensuality, and sexuality for both female actresses and viewers. In addition, glamour has an economic component in encouraging women to buy products, such as clothing and makeup, to help them emulate their idols from cinema. Glamour is more than beauty and notoriety: it is achieved through careful stylization of tangible aspects—hair, clothes, makeup—and intangible, cinematic elements—performance, dialog, lighting, and camera techniques. In Classical Hollywood, traditionally white standards of beauty were often exalted as glamorous, and many leading roles were played by racialized white actresses; however, actresses of color were frequently …

Beyond The Hype: Challenges Of Neural Networks As Applied To Social Networks, Anthony Hernandez

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Recent advances in neural network-based machine learning algorithms promise a rev-olution in prediction tasks across a variety of domains. Of these, forecasting user activity insocial media is particularly relevant for problems such as modeling and predicting informa-tion diffusion and designing intervention techniques to mitigate disinformation campaigns.Another potential task is anonymizing social network datasets to facilitate their distributionand promote research. Given the success of deep generative models, it may be possible touse them for anonymization. Social media seems an ideal context for applying neural net-work techniques, as they provide large data sets and challenging prediction objectives. Yet,our experiments find a number …

Changing The Culture Of Consent: Teaching Young Children Personal Boundaries, Marlesha C. Bell

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Currently, eight states and Washington D.C. mention consent education in their sex education standards (Naide, 2020). Most school-based consent education curricula focus on teaching pre-teens through adults consent within the context of sexual contact (Planned Parenthood, 2016). However, consent may be relevant for behavior outside the context of sexual contact. Young children could develop a repertoire for consent skills and use it to set and respect boundaries. Furthermore, behavior analysis has teaching technologies that could be used to inform a curriculum for teaching consent, such as behavioral skills training (Johnson et al., 2006) and video modeling (Charlop & Milstein, 1989). …

Temporal Discounting And The Assessment And Treatment Of Academic Procrastination, Anthony Concepcion

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Many individuals engage in procrastination at some point in their lifetime. Although procrastination is usually not detrimental, for college students, academic procrastination is correlated with adverse health effects (e.g., anxiety, depression, sleep hygiene) and poor academic performance (Akinsola, et al., 2007; Ferrari, et al., 1995). Furthermore, the prevalence of academic procrastination is high with reports of up to 95% of college students engaging in detrimental amounts of procrastination (Hussain & Sultan, 2010). Notably, students enrolled in online courses are likely to be at greater risk to experience adverse consequences associated with procrastination (Elvers, et al, 2003). Previous studies have focused …

Exploring Refugee Students’ Second Language (L2) Motivational Selves Through Digital Visual Representations, Nhu Le

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

While the ‘travel ban’ immigration executive order, ‘build a wall’ proposal, and ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) raids under the Trump administration are still hot-button issues, the United States (US) is urged to maintain its leadership in addressing a rising global refugee crisis with over 65 million (70.8 million updated from United Nations High Commissioner on Refugees (UNHCR)’s website, https://www.unhcr.org/en-us/figures-at-a-glance.html, as of April 2020) individuals displaced all over the world (Khurma, 2017). Millions of refugee families have fled from life-threatening conditions in their homelands, making perilous journeys to reach host countries in search of a better life. While settling into …

Socio-Technical Transitions In The Water Sector: Emerging Boundaries For Utility Resilience In Barbados, Wainella N. Isaacs

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Resilience is gaining popularity in the water sector where it described as contributing to reduced vulnerability to water-related risks and hazards including climate change. Unfortunately, literature in this area, contributed mainly from North America and Europe, is fragmented with a concentration on engineering resilience in water supply infrastructure. The absence of any scholarship on resilience for a small island nation, coupled with the absence of sociological contributors to building resilience in this sector motivated this research.

The goal of this research was to understand and evaluate how resilience is characterized and operationalized in the Barbados water and wastewater infrastructure system, …