Digital Commons Network^™

Education System Of Tajikistan During The Civil War: Student Perspectives Of Hardships, Muhabbat Makhbudovna Yakubova

Sociology and Anthropology

Civil wars have devastating consequences for people who witness them. Wars collapse states' economies, ruin infrastructures, and result in death of people. The goal of this study is to examine the multiple perspectives of students about the effects of the civil war in Tajikistan on the education system. The study uses secondary data collected by the "Oral History of Independent Tajikistan Project" of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Academy. 107 interviews with participants representing all regions of the country, who were in school or university during war in Tajikistan, were selected translated, transcribed and coded. Coding …

Healing Garden For Survivors Of Domestic Violence And Sexual Assault, Audrey June Putz

Sociology and Anthropology

The development and impacts of participation in a healing garden group for survivors of interpersonal violence were studied. The healing garden group focused on reconnection with self, others, and community as outlined in Judith Herman’s Trauma and Recovery. Using Feminist Participatory Action Research (FPAR) methodology, a healing garden group was developed with four survivors, including the author as a participant-researcher. The participants met weekly throughout the summer of 2012 with meetings audio recorded and field notes kept. Data was analyzed using constant comparison analysis (CCA). The gardening group was found to be beneficial to the participants as survivor group for …

Understanding Grower And Producer Motivations For Participation In Farm To School Programs, Jennie Annabel Lazarus

Sociology and Anthropology

This thesis examined small-crop producers’ motivations for current and future participation in Farm-to-School programs within the region of Becker, Clay, Otter Tail, and Wilkin counties in Western Minnesota and Cass County in North Dakota. A quantitative approach was employed and utilized secondary data from the Growers’ Motivation Survey of 2013. The purpose of this study was to identify possible contextual characteristics that influence motivations; determine whether there were significant differences in the motivations of farmers who identified as currently participating; and to investigate significant differences in the motivations of farmers who identified as being at least somewhat likely to participate …

The Use Of Sediment Removal To Reduce Phosphorus Levels In Wetland Soils And The Distribution Of Plant-Available Phosphorus In Wetland Soils And Its Potential Use As A Metric In Wetland Assessment Methods, Skye Gabel

Soil Science

Plant-available phosphorus (P) in wetland soils and its relationship with wetland communities and condition is somewhat unknown in the Prairie Pothole Region (PPR) in North America. Research objectives were to determine if 1) sediment removal reduced P in seasonal wetlands; 2) P could be used as an indicator in wetland condition assessments; 3) a gradient in P amount and wetland elevation existed; and 4) differences of sampling and extraction methods change Olsen P results as a metric in assessments. Soil samples from North Dakota wetlands were collected from two depths (0-15 and 15-30 cm) and analyzed for pH, electrical conductivity …

Mother–Infant Interactions In Free-Ranging Rhesus Macaques: Relationships Between Physiological And Behavioral Variables, Dario Maestripieri, Christy L. Hoffman, George M. Anderson, C. Sue Carter, J. Dee Higley

Faculty Publications

Studies of mother–infant relationships in nonhuman primates have increasingly attempted to understand the neuroendocrine bases of interindividual variation in mothering styles and the mechanisms through which early exposure to variable mothering styles affects infant behavioral development. In this study of free-ranging rhesus macaques on Cayo Santiago, Puerto Rico, we aimed to: 1) compare lactating and nonlactating females to investigate whether lactation is associated with changes in plasma cortisol, prolactin and oxytocin, as well as changes in CSF levels of serotonin and dopamine metabolites (5-HIAA and HVA); 2) examine the extent to which interindividual variation in maternal physiology is associated with …

Gem: Global Entrepreneurship Monitor, Leticia Camacho

Faculty Publications

GEM houses the results of research conducted by the Global Entrepreneurship Research Association (GERA) on the level of entrepreneurship around the world. This research, which involves annual surveys and interviews, was initiated in 1999 by Babson College and the London Business School. Data are collected and harmonized by GERA staff. The project started with 10 participating countries and has expanded to include more than 69 countries.

Ds-Optimal Design For Model Discrimination In A Probit Model, Ruifeng Liu

Statistics

In toxicology studies, dose response functions with a downturn at higher doses are often observed. For such response functions, researchers often want to see if the downturn of the response is signifcant. A probit model with a quadratic term is adopted to demonstrate the dose response with a downturn. Under the probit model, we obtain optimal designs to study the signifcance of the downturn and their efficiencies are compared. Our approach identites the upper bound of the number of optimal design points and searches for the optimal design numerically based on the upper bound.

Comparison Of Classification Rates Among Logistic Regression, Neural Network And Support Vector Machines In The Presence Of Missing Data, Sudhi Upadhyaya

Statistics

Statistical models such as Logistic Regression (LR), Neural Network (NN) and Support Vector Machines (SVM) often use datasets with missing values while making inferences regarding the population. When inferences are made based on the data set used, the presence of missing data can severely skew the results and distort the efficiency of the model. Our objective was to identify a robust model among LR, NN, SVM in the presence of missing data. The study was conducted by simulating observations based on Monte Carlo methods and missing data was introduced randomly at 10% level. Single mode imputation was used to impute …

Analysis Of Salary For Major League Baseball Players, Michael Glenn Hoffman

Statistics

This thesis examines the salary of Major League Baseball (MLB) players and whether players are paid based on their on-the-field performance. Each salary was examined on both the yearly production and the overall career production of the player. Several different production statistics were collected for the 2010-2012 MLB seasons. A random sample of players was selected from each season and separate models were created for position players and pitchers. Significant production statistics that were helpful in predicting salary were selected for each different model. These models were deemed to be good models having a predictive r-squared value of at least …

An Online High School “Shepherding” Program: Teacher Roles And Experiences Mentoring Online Students, Jeffrey S. Drysdale, Charles R. Graham, Jered Borup

Faculty Publications

Several online programs use on-site facilitators to create a stronger sense of community and reduce student dropout. However, little research addresses how programs that are fully online can provide their students with comparable support. This case study analyzed a “shepherding program” at Mountain Heights Academy, a fully online high school. We found that the shepherding program enabled fully online teachers to provide their students with many of the services typical of on-site facilitators. The roles of the shepherding program included building caring relationships, facilitating content interaction, and providing students with the communication links they needed to be successful. In addition, …

Trust And Financial Reporting Quality, Jace Garrett, Rani Hoitash, Douglas F. Prawitt

Faculty Publications

Using unique survey data from Great Place to Work R Institute, we investigate the association of intraorganizational trust (i.e., employees’ trust in management) with three aspects of financial reporting: accruals quality, misstatements, and internal control quality. We find that trust is associated with better accrual quality, lower likelihood of financial statement misstatements, and lower likelihood of internal control material weakness disclosures. However, these effects are not uniform across all companies. Consistent with trust improving financial reporting quality through improved information production and information sharing, we find that trust is significantly associated with financial reporting quality in relatively decentralized firms, but …

A Critical Examination Of Couple Leisure And The Application Of The Core And Balance Model, Peter J. Ward, Keith W. Barney, Neil R. Lundberg, Ramon Zabriskie

Faculty Publications

This study further clarified the relationship between couple leisure involvement, couple leisure satisfaction, and marital satisfaction through examining the core and balance framework as it has been applied to the relationship between couple leisure and marital satisfaction. The sample consisted of 1,187 couples across the United States (N = 2,374). SEM analyses supported previous findings, indicating satisfaction with couple leisure involvement was far more important when predicting marital satisfaction than the amount of leisure involvement. Furthermore, while core marital leisure satisfaction was the driving force in the explanation of variance in marital satisfaction, findings suggested before that can happen there …

Development Of An Algorithm For Adolescent Bariatric Surgery, Nichole Roller

Nursing

Childhood obesity has become a national epidemic and children are diagnosed with co-morbidities once only associated with adults. Despite current interventions, children continue to exude poor diet and physical activity outcomes. The final project is an adolescent weight management algorithm to include bariatric surgery for select adolescents who meet the criteria. The algorithm developed was in congruence with a regional healthcare facility mission and goals. A literature review was conducted by searching databases EBSCO, CINAHL, Bing, Google Scholar and Academic Search Premier. The algorithm was developed by reviewing current literature and evidence on adolescent bariatric surgery. Experts in the field …

Maternal Breastfeeding Satisfaction: Attendance Or Non-Attendance At A Nurse-Led Breastfeeding Support Group, Collette Christoffers

Nursing

The benefits of breastfeeding for mothers and infants are well documented in the literature. This study compared maternal breastfeeding satisfaction between mothers who attended a nurse-led breastfeeding support group (n=27) and mothers who did not attend the group (n=26). No statistical difference in maternal satisfaction was identified between the groups of mothers. While the sample size was small, qualitative data collection indicated mothers who attended the group may not have had as high of breastfeeding satisfaction scores if the support group was not available for them to attend. Breastfeeding mothers indicated their husband/significant other was their primary source of support …

Development Of Interprofessional Education Modules For Implementation Into The Doctor Of Nursing Practice Curriculum, Ashley Grace Huot

Nursing

In today’s health care system, professionals must work together to achieve a common goal of improving patient care. Studies have shown that patients and families report lack of care coordination that result in repeat tests and procedures, unnecessary hospitalizations and difficult transitions from hospitals to home (Reinhard & Hassmiller, 2010). Interprofessional education (IPE) is an important approach for preparing health professional students to provide care that is patient centered and based in a collaborative team environment. Interprofessional education “occurs when two or more professions learn about, from and with each other to enable effective collaboration and improve health outcomes” (World …

1st Place Research Paper: Conflicting Definitions Of Relief: Life In Refugee Camps After The San Francisco Earthquake Of 1906, Emily Neis

Kevin and Tam Ross Undergraduate Research Prize

The 1906 San Francisco Earthquake is infamous for decimating the city and leaving a quarter of a million people homeless. Afterwards, the American Red Cross redefined "relief" in its efforts to help San Francisco's refugees, and it tested its progressive new relief methods within the refugee camps. Previously, the charity organization advocated personal involvement and more evaluation of disaster victims; relief was viewed as feminine and subjective. After the earthquake, officials sought to make relief more efficient, masculine, and objective through favoring victims who were already self-supporting. Refugees who contested progressive views were derided as socialists. Ultimately, conflicting definitions of …

2nd Place Research Paper: Effects Of Cognitive Interventions On The Cognition Of Patients Diagnosed With Dementia, Kiersten Kelly

Kevin and Tam Ross Undergraduate Research Prize

The aim of this literature review was to test the hypothesis: If a patient diagnosed with dementia participates in a cognitive intervention, then they will develop fewer cognitive deficits than a patient diagnosed with dementia who does not participate in a cognitive intervention.

Recent literature was systematically searched using several databases. A total of 20 empirical articles were included in this review. Inclusion criteria consisted of a diagnosis of dementia for each participating patient. Each study includes an experimental group of patients who participated in a cognitive intervention and a control group of patients who did not participate in a …

Effects Of Age And Syntactic Complexity On Speech Motor Performance, Christopher Dromey, Kelsey Boyce, Ron Channell

Faculty Publications

Purpose: This study investigated the effect of age on articulatory movement and stability in young, middle-aged, and older adults. It also examined the potential influence of linguistic complexity on speech motor control across utterances that differed in their length and grammatical complexity.
Method: There were 60 participants in three age groups: 20-30 years, 40-50 years, and 60-70 years, with equal numbers of men and women in each group. The speakers produced 10 repetitions of five different stimuli, each of which included the same bilabial-loaded phrase in different grammatical contexts, while their lip movements were recorded.
Results: Participants from the 60 …

Selling The System, Andrew Herzog

Landscape Architecture Theses

No abstract provided.

Healing Heights, Bailey Krause

Landscape Architecture Theses

This thesis examines reasons why the Children’s Hospital Minneapolis campus is a location that benefits from a therapeutic green roof. Healing Heights will bring meaning and life to an otherwise conventional roof that is advantageous for people and the environment. Researching critical factors that influence green infrastructure help determine elements that are included in the design to improve the users’ mental and physical health, as well as the building’s environmental impacts. Looking at urban healing gardens, there is a list of criteria that need to be met to design a properly constructed vegetated roof.

The Influence Of Faith On Marital Commitment, Michael A. Goodman

Faculty Publications

Religion significantly influences many American marriages. Ninetyfive percent of married couples in the United States report a religious affiliation (Mahoney, Pargament, Tarakeshwar, & Swank, 2001). Not only is a religious affiliation almost universal, but around 60% of Americans report that religion is important or very important to them (McCullough, Larson, Hoyt, Koenig, & Thoresen, 2000). Over half of American married couples say they attend religious services at least monthly (Heaton & Pratt, 1990, p. 196). Even with a tendency to exaggerate religious participation, these statistics indicate that religious involvement is an important part of American marriage and family life (Christiano, …

The One World / One Health Concept Applied In The Field, Laboratory, And Hospital, Lee Michael Kiedrowski

Microbiological Sciences

New infectious disease outbreaks demand new approaches for control and prevention of disease. The world’s health organizations have adopted the One World/One Health (OWOH) concept to meet this demand. The previous approach was for the health specialist with expertise of the organism or system most effected to attempt to solve the outbreak problem. The aim of OWOH is to go beyond the isolated health specialist approach and open a dialogue to understand the nature of contemporary infectious disease outbreaks. The premise is that if diverse health professionals bring their unique perspectives together, the weak areas of previous approaches would be …