Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Digital Commons Network™

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

2014

Discipline
Institution
Keyword
Publication
Publication Type
File Type

Articles 1081 - 1110 of 76988

Full-Text Articles in Entire DC Network

Simulation Based Evaluation Of Multiscale Small Area Health Models, Purbasha Dasgupta Dec 2014

Simulation Based Evaluation Of Multiscale Small Area Health Models, Purbasha Dasgupta

Theses and Dissertations

The effects of scale on the analysis of spatial data, often referred to as the modifiable areal unit problem in spatial studies, is one of the issues often encountered in small area health models. These spatial effects of scale are also seen in the areas of disease mapping where data are usually available in counts. Often there is a need to consider the different scales of aggregation that exist within count data, since inferences based on analyses can vary if we change the definition of the unit of analysis. This thesis provides a framework that describes the distribution of relative …

Go to article

Conflicted Union: Culture, Economics And European Union Media Policy, Daphney Pernola Barr Dec 2014

Conflicted Union: Culture, Economics And European Union Media Policy, Daphney Pernola Barr

Theses and Dissertations

The constant tension between internal market development and cultural preservation remain within European Union audiovisual media services regulatory policy. While market harmonization and liberalization are key to developing a formidable European media market, the preservation of and promotion of ‘European-ness’ depends upon the protection of cultural diversity, a necessity for a confederation of 27 sovereign nation-states with distinct cultures and languages. It may not currently be possible to reconcile the intrinsic duality of audiovisual media through EU regulatory policy mechanisms. However, a regulatory policy clearly that addresses the potential of cultural harmonization/economic liberalization conflict, that explicitly connects the EU’s audiovisual …

Go to article

Modeling Mussel Mortality: Investigating The Importance Of Swash And The Potential Implications Of Changing Wave Environments, Shadow Leigh Gulledge Dec 2014

Modeling Mussel Mortality: Investigating The Importance Of Swash And The Potential Implications Of Changing Wave Environments, Shadow Leigh Gulledge

Theses and Dissertations

Rising sea level and increases in temperature are causing biogeographic shifts in intertidal zones and can also lead to shifts in the local vertical zonation of organisms due to changes in body temperature during aerial exposure during low tide. Swash is an important determinant of aerial body temperatures, and vulnerability of intertidal zones to changes in climate could potentially depend on how much and how often animals are cooled by waves. While wave heights (and thus swash) are generally expected to increase with climate change, anthropogenic physical structures, such as breakwaters and wave energy converters, can decrease wave height and …

Go to article

Which Student Characteristics Correlate With Discipline Referrals? A Case Study Of A Diverse, High-Poverty Rural School District In The South, Jeannie Baltimore Monson Dec 2014

Which Student Characteristics Correlate With Discipline Referrals? A Case Study Of A Diverse, High-Poverty Rural School District In The South, Jeannie Baltimore Monson

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the correlates of discipline referrals in a diverse, high-poverty rural school district. The framework is based upon the Diamond (2004) study which, like this research, was built on the notion that socioeconomic inequality is a major factor for disproportionality in student discipline. This study identified the assets and deficits of the sample population and analyzed them in relationship to the referrals accrued. This study was conducted in a small, rural, southern school district. Of the population, approximately 78% are on free and reduced lunch and is made up of Caucasian students, 53%, …

Go to article

Success With Social Responsibility Local Retailers' Perspectives, Danielle Marie Razalan Dec 2014

Success With Social Responsibility Local Retailers' Perspectives, Danielle Marie Razalan

Theses and Dissertations

This research examines a specific sect of small business—the local retailer—in order to gauge owners’ understanding and implementation of corporate social responsibility (CSR). Guided by the Enlightened Self-Interest Model (ESIM), the purpose of this study is to gain further insight into how local retailers in Columbia determine what is socially responsible, and what CSR practices they are utilizing. Additionally, this research aims to understand why local retailers are motivated to act in a socially responsible way and the benefits they perceive from CSR. Results reveal that owners of local retailers are motivated to act in a socially responsible way by …

Go to article

Impact Of Multi-Hospital System Organizational Structure On Financial Performance And Quality Of Care In Rural Hospitals, George Raul Audi Dec 2014

Impact Of Multi-Hospital System Organizational Structure On Financial Performance And Quality Of Care In Rural Hospitals, George Raul Audi

Theses and Dissertations

Considering the increasing challenge to providing access to affordable healthcare in the United States and its effect on the economy, it is critical for patients, healthcare organizations, financial institutions, and federal and state agencies to understand the impact of different organizational structures within affiliated hospitals. The objective of this study was to investigate the impact of different organizational structures within rural multi-hospital systems (MHS) on the hospitals’ financial performance and the quality of patient care. The data for this study were drawn by linking two national datasets: the 2011 American Hospital Association (AHA) Annual Survey and the 2012 American Hospital …

Go to article

Effect Of Primary Care Physician Density On Late Stage Cervical Cancer Diagnosis, Emily Haanschoten Dec 2014

Effect Of Primary Care Physician Density On Late Stage Cervical Cancer Diagnosis, Emily Haanschoten

Theses and Dissertations

INTRODUCTION: Late-stage cervical cancer diagnosis is an important contributing factor to the cervical cancer mortality rate. Screening for cervical cancer is a vital tool in reducing the number of late-stage cases, preventing incident cases and reducing mortality. Access to care is often a significant barrier to receiving these services. Women who have no usual source of care report significantly lower percentages of Pap tests than women who have a usual source. South Carolina ranks 13th in the US in cervical cancer incidence and 7th in cervical cancer mortality. South Carolina also struggles with a primary care physician shortage, ranking 39th …

Go to article

Examining The Influence Of Healthy Eating Identity On Shopping Behaviors, Jordan Brittingham Dec 2014

Examining The Influence Of Healthy Eating Identity On Shopping Behaviors, Jordan Brittingham

Theses and Dissertations

Eating identity is shown to be a promising measure capable of enhancing our understanding of nutrition behavior. Persons with healthy eating identities are less likely to consume the typical American diet and report healthier diets in general. While there are several studies linking healthy eating identity and diet, there is currently no research examining healthy eating identity in relation to food shopping behavior, an important aspect of nutritional intake. The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of healthy eating identity on shopping behaviors including supermarket utilization, supercenter utilization, likelihood of shopping at the nearest store, distance to …

Go to article

Remote Sensing Satellite Image Acquisition Planning: Framework, Methods And Application, Shufan Liu Dec 2014

Remote Sensing Satellite Image Acquisition Planning: Framework, Methods And Application, Shufan Liu

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation explores the theories and methods of satellite remote sensing image acquisition planning within a spatial temporal context. For many time sensitive applications, such as disaster emergency response, timely acquisition of critical information is the key to intelligent and effective decision making. Remote sensing plays an important role in information collection for these time sensitive applications. Imagery collected from hundreds of remote sensing satellite sensors offer accurate, frequent and almost instantaneous data covering the Earth in a relatively short time. However, determining which satellite sensors can provide an appropriated kind of imageries during a restricted collection window for the …

Go to article

Functionalized Graphitic Nanoreinforcement For Cement Composites, Nima Zohhadi Dec 2014

Functionalized Graphitic Nanoreinforcement For Cement Composites, Nima Zohhadi

Theses and Dissertations

Physical and mechanical properties of graphitic nanomaterials, in particular multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) and graphene nano-platelets (GNPs) make them promising candidates for nanoreinforcement of cement composites. The two key challenges associated with the incorporation of MWCNTs and GNPs are to attain uniform dispersion and interfacial bonding within the composite matrix. The effects of three main-stream dispersion techniques (namely, ultrasonication, acid-etching, and surfactant-coating) on the mechanical properties and microstructure of MWCNT- and GNP-cement composites were experimentally studied. Compressive strength tests and different characterization techniques including dynamic light scattering, Raman spectroscopy, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and transmission …

Go to article

Exploration Of Implicit Bias On Multidisciplinary Team Members When Referring African American Students For Special Education Services, Twana Romona Fletcher Dec 2014

Exploration Of Implicit Bias On Multidisciplinary Team Members When Referring African American Students For Special Education Services, Twana Romona Fletcher

Theses and Dissertations

The disproportionality or overrepresentation of African American students in special education is a longstanding problem that continues to be prevalent today. There are numerous reasons why this phenomenon continues to persist including but not limited to implicit bias among multidisciplinary team members (MDT). One function of the MDT is to decide if a student needs to be referred for special education services. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine the decision making processes of the MDT members to determine if implicit bias impacted their decision to refer an African American student for special education services. This qualitative study …

Go to article

Periodontal Microorganisms, Obesity, Chronic Inflammation, And Type 1 Diabetes, Georges Joseph Nahhas Dec 2014

Periodontal Microorganisms, Obesity, Chronic Inflammation, And Type 1 Diabetes, Georges Joseph Nahhas

Theses and Dissertations

Periodontal disease is a low-grade chronic inflammation in the tissues surrounding the teeth caused by multiple, mostly gram-negative pathogens. It is associated with diabetes, obesity, and chronic inflammation. The specific roles that periodontal microorganism play in these conditions are not well-studied. Hereby, we explored how periodontal bacteria from sub gingival plaque clustered in youth with and without type 1 diabetes, and how such patterns related to body-mass-index percentile (BMI percentile), C-reactive protein (CRP) and adiponectin. Cross-sectional data were collected from 105 youth with type 1 diabetes and 71 without diabetes. Participants were between 12 and 19 years of age receiving …

Go to article

Influence Of Defects In Epitaxial Graphene Towards Material Growth And Device Performances, Shamaita Shithi Shetu Dec 2014

Influence Of Defects In Epitaxial Graphene Towards Material Growth And Device Performances, Shamaita Shithi Shetu

Theses and Dissertations

Since its invention in 2004, Graphene, a two dimensional array of SP2 bonded carbon atoms has received significant interest by the scientific community due to its unique electrical, optical and mechanical properties. A promising route to the synthesis of large-area graphene, is epitaxial graphene formed by sublimation of silicon atoms from Silicon carbide at elevated temperatures (>1200oC). Although the electronic and mechanical properties of graphene with perfect atomic lattice are outstanding, the structural defects, which may appear during graphene growth, can influence the growth mechanism and material properties. However, deviations from perfection, i.e. introducing dopants in semiconductors often considered …

Go to article

Building Sanity: The Rise And Fall Of Architectural Treatment At The South Carolina Lunatic Asylum, Kimberly Jean Campbell Dec 2014

Building Sanity: The Rise And Fall Of Architectural Treatment At The South Carolina Lunatic Asylum, Kimberly Jean Campbell

Theses and Dissertations

Although many historians have acknowledged the importance of architecture in the treatment of the mentally ill during the nineteenth century, no historian has ever examined the rise and fall of the importance of architecture to the treatment of patients at the South Carolina Lunatic Asylum. By the late eighteenth century, physicians and laymen alike accepted the ideology of environmental determinism – that one’s environment exercised a direct influence over his or her behavior. In other words, mental illness was both caused and cured by the environment; thus, architecture played a key role in the treatment of mental illness. The South …

Go to article

Bibimbap: Identity Construction In Korean Third Culture Kids During Higher Education, Megan I. Beard Dec 2014

Bibimbap: Identity Construction In Korean Third Culture Kids During Higher Education, Megan I. Beard

Theses and Dissertations

Amidst increasing interconnectedness and transmigration of the 21st century, a number of families are leaving South Korea for business, work, or education; their children are raised as Third Culture Kids (TCKs)—children who accompany their parents abroad. This study used the lens of cultural globalization to examine how Korean TCKs used their life experiences to inform their identity construction, especially during higher education. Participants were Korean students and recent alumni from universities in Korea, the United States, and abroad who had spent at least three childhood years living outside Korea with their families. Data were collected through a series of unstructured …

Go to article

Determining The Change Styles Preferences Of Principals In South Carolina's Secondary Schools With A Background In The Fine Arts, Sterling Bernard Harris Dec 2014

Determining The Change Styles Preferences Of Principals In South Carolina's Secondary Schools With A Background In The Fine Arts, Sterling Bernard Harris

Theses and Dissertations

Very little research has been published regarding the change style preferences and leadership styles of secondary principals in South Carolina who have a common background. The purpose of this mixed methods study was to identify the preferred change style preference of principals in South Carolina that have an arts background and the change style preferences of principals without an arts background. This study would also determine if these styles were the same or different. Quantitative data were gathered from online administration of the Change Style Indicator (CSI), the South Carolina Department of Education, and the South Carolina Association of School …

Go to article

When Do Political Ideologies Affect Brand Extension Evaluation? The Role Of Analytic Versus Holistic Mindsets, Cristobal Barra Dec 2014

When Do Political Ideologies Affect Brand Extension Evaluation? The Role Of Analytic Versus Holistic Mindsets, Cristobal Barra

Theses and Dissertations

Political ideologies are becoming an important focus of attention in the marketing literature. This research examines the impact of political ideologies on consumers’ evaluation of brand extensions. In a series of six studies, this work shows how, and under what conditions, liberals evaluate brand extensions differently than conservatives. Because liberals are more open to new experiences, and tend to seek novelty, while conservatives show stronger preferences for order, structure, and conventional things, liberals are expected to react more favorably to new stimuli, as in the case of dissimilar brand extensions. However, the effects of political ideologies are dependent on some …

Go to article

An Analysis Of The Cultural Invariance Of A Visual-Motor Integration Measure, Emma Kate C. Wright Dec 2014

An Analysis Of The Cultural Invariance Of A Visual-Motor Integration Measure, Emma Kate C. Wright

Theses and Dissertations

As diverse populations within schools increase, the need for culturally-sensitive assessment is essential; however, test of ability vary in their degree of influence from culture. No test is “culture free,” but the low-linguistic demands on test of visual-motor integration (VMI) make them appropriate for use with diverse populations. Variation in VMI test performance due to cultural factors has negative implications for test interpretation and use with diverse populations because of VMI’s significant association with school readiness, academic achievement, social-emotional functioning, and neuropsychological assessment. The current study explored the cultural invariance of the Bender Motor Gestalt Test, Second Edition (BG-II), a …

Go to article

Application Of Various Adsorbents To Remove Micro-Pollutants In Aquatic System, Chanil Jung Dec 2014

Application Of Various Adsorbents To Remove Micro-Pollutants In Aquatic System, Chanil Jung

Theses and Dissertations

Untreated or insufficiently treated pharmaceuticals and endocrine disrupting compounds (EDCs) as well as heavy metals have influenced the ecosystem and their exposures in the water system have threatened human health; causing cancers and adverse health effect to immune system. While various water treatment techniques have been applied to solve this problem, adsorption has been considered as one of the most efficient and manageable water purification techniques. Advanced analysis methods for aqueous contaminants have improved comprehension, allowing proficiency about the fate of trace leveled emerging contaminants, thus allowed to reveal the adsorption mechanisms of each pollutant. This dissertation focuses on the …

Go to article

Young, Southern Women's Perceptions Of Stem Careers: Examining Science, Technology, Engineering And Mathematics As A Gendered Construct, Jessica Elizabeth Quinton Dec 2014

Young, Southern Women's Perceptions Of Stem Careers: Examining Science, Technology, Engineering And Mathematics As A Gendered Construct, Jessica Elizabeth Quinton

Theses and Dissertations

Career interests develop over a lifetime and tend to solidify during late adolescence and early adulthood (Lent, Brown, and Hackett, 2002). The primary purpose of the present qualitative study, which is framed in Feminist Standpoint Theory (Haraway, 1988; Harding, 2007; Naples, 2007; Richardson, 2007), is to understand how eighthgrade, young women in a suburban, public, southern, middle school the South Carolina County School District (CCSD) (pseudonym) perceive their accessibility to Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) courses and careers. The secondary purpose is to understand these young women’s “perceptions and unconscious beliefs about gender in science and mathematics” and how …

Go to article

Relationships Between Prior Experiences, Current Teaching Contexts, And Novice Teachers' Use Of Concrete Representation For Mathematics Instruction, Elizabeth Lee Johnson Dec 2014

Relationships Between Prior Experiences, Current Teaching Contexts, And Novice Teachers' Use Of Concrete Representation For Mathematics Instruction, Elizabeth Lee Johnson

Theses and Dissertations

This case study documents the perceived influences on three novice elementary teachers’ use of concrete representations for teaching mathematics. In order to develop mathematical proficiency, students need access to a variety of representations (i.e. pictures, words, symbols, concrete materials, and real world contexts) to make sense of mathematical ideas. Three sources of data were collected: video-recorded lessons, interviews, and a focus group. Analyses indicated that although concrete representations were accessible to all three teachers, they were least used among the available representations. Verbal expression was most prominent, followed closely by abstract written symbols. Technology, which was not one of the …

Go to article

A Legal Analysis Of Court Cases And Administrative Investigations Related To Violations Of The Clery Act: Getting Good From The Bad And The Ugly, Tiffany Nichole Richardson Dec 2014

A Legal Analysis Of Court Cases And Administrative Investigations Related To Violations Of The Clery Act: Getting Good From The Bad And The Ugly, Tiffany Nichole Richardson

Theses and Dissertations

College brochures paint pictures of beautiful campuses, diverse student populations, renowned professors, and the best educational programs. What colleges never include in those brochures are the ugly crime statistics. In 2012, higher education institutions reported 41,708 liquor arrests, 20,486 burglaries, 4,837 forcible sex offenses, 951 hate crimes, and 31 murders. The reporting requirement, along with other regulations, has been required of institutions of higher education since 1990 under the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act, yet so many colleges and universities are facing lawsuits, investigations, settlements, and fines for failing to comply. This legal …

Go to article

Quality Improvement Project: A Comparison Of Daily Routine Chest Radiography Versus Clinically-Indicated Chest Radiography In Preventing Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia In Adult Icu Patients On Ventilators: An Evidenced Based Practice Project, Kimberly Mckenney Dec 2014

Quality Improvement Project: A Comparison Of Daily Routine Chest Radiography Versus Clinically-Indicated Chest Radiography In Preventing Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia In Adult Icu Patients On Ventilators: An Evidenced Based Practice Project, Kimberly Mckenney

Theses and Dissertations

Ventilator-associated pneumonia is one of the critical complications identified by a chest x-ray (CXR). However, there is a controversy about the use of CXRs. Overuse of the CXR has also identified concern among the ICU patient population. The purpose of this evidenced-based practice project was to determine if there were differences in patient outcomes when receiving daily routine CXRs as compared to clinically-indicated CXRs. Patient outcomes measured were: ICU length of stay, complications while on the ventilator and ICU mortality, number of ventilator days, diagnostic efficacy, therapeutic efficacy, costs, and radiation exposure The author identified 30 articles in the search …

Go to article

Determinants Of Product Upgrading In The Argentine Wine Industry, Lucas Marc Cyr Dec 2014

Determinants Of Product Upgrading In The Argentine Wine Industry, Lucas Marc Cyr

Theses and Dissertations

In this thesis, I examine the impact that a firm's connections and internal resources has on the firm's ability to develop new products. The capability to make improvements to products is crucial to the long term success and growth of a firm. By using structural equation modeling, I take a different approach to network analysis to analyze data from the Argentine wine industry. While I did not find strong evidence to support the hypothesis that the combination of external networks and internal knowledge are key drivers to product upgrading, there was strong evidence to support each individual determinant’s impact on …

Go to article

Product And Consumer Characteristics As Moderators Of Consumer Response To Sustainable Products, Kealy Carter Dec 2014

Product And Consumer Characteristics As Moderators Of Consumer Response To Sustainable Products, Kealy Carter

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation consists of two essays. In both, product sustainability is broadly focused on the environmental and social performance (Luchs et al. 2010) of a product. The first essay explores the role of firm sustainability reputation in behavioral intentions for sustainable products. Additionally, this essay applies construal level theory (Liberman and Trope 1998; Vallacher and Wegner 1985, 1987) and addresses the situation that exists wherein sales of sustainable products produced by firms founded under sustainability principles are more stable than those produced by traditional firms (Clifford and Martin 2011). The second essay introduces a measure of consumer perceived product sustainability …

Go to article

Advanced Digital Signal Processing Based Redefined Power Quality Indices, And Their Applications To Wind Power, Md Moinul Islam Dec 2014

Advanced Digital Signal Processing Based Redefined Power Quality Indices, And Their Applications To Wind Power, Md Moinul Islam

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation proposes a time-frequency distribution (TFD) based new method to redefine the power quality (PQ) indices for the assessment of PQ disturbances typically present in electric power systems. The redefined PQ indices are applied to various types of synthetic and real-world PQ disturbances in order to verify the efficacy and applicability of the proposed method. The case studies show that the proposed method provides actual results with respect to the existing TFD-based transient PQ indices, and provides much more accurate results than the traditional fast Fourier transform (FFT) based PQ indices under stationary and nonstationary PQ disturbances. In addition, …

Go to article

High-Performance Meta-Genomic Gene Identification, Ibrahim Savran Dec 2014

High-Performance Meta-Genomic Gene Identification, Ibrahim Savran

Theses and Dissertations

Computational Genomics, or Computational Genetics, refers to the use of computational and statistical analysis for understanding the structure and the function of genetic material in organisms. The primary focus of research in computational genomics in the past three decades has been the understanding of genomes and their functional elements by analyzing biological sequence data. The high demand for low-cost sequencing has driven the development of highthroughput sequencing technologies, next-generation sequencing (NGS), that parallelize the sequencing process, producing thousands or millions of sequences concurrently. Moore’s Law is the observation that the number of transistors on integrated circuits doubles approximately every two …

Go to article

Leadership Perspectives On International Education For Public School Students In South Carolina: Two Case Studies, Frederick Eugene Brown Dec 2014

Leadership Perspectives On International Education For Public School Students In South Carolina: Two Case Studies, Frederick Eugene Brown

Theses and Dissertations

This study explores how two rural public school districts in South Carolina conceptualize and implement an international education, according to the perspectives of administrators and teachers. This comparative case study of two public school districts spans the districts’ elementary, middle, high and career center schools and seeks to understand how the presence of a major multinational corporation influences school internationalization. The data on their perspectives on internationalization were drawn from interviews. I interviewed the school principal and teachers involved in internationalizing the curriculum, policy and practice in each of the ten schools. In addition to school level personnel, I interviewed …

Go to article

Exploring The Association Between Depression And Obesity Among Alzheimer's Patients, Stephanie Clugstone Dec 2014

Exploring The Association Between Depression And Obesity Among Alzheimer's Patients, Stephanie Clugstone

Theses and Dissertations

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a neurological disorder that affects elderly individuals, and is becoming an increasing concern among the aging population of the world. Due to the projected increase in incidence of AD, modifiable risk factors such as depression and obesity should be evaluated, as prevention is the only current option. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of obesity and depression among AD patients, and to evaluate the association between depression and obesity. Patients were chosen from a subset of the South Carolina Alzheimer’s disease registry, which included information about weight status and depression, as well as several other …

Go to article

Surface Modification Of Nanoplatelets In Polymer Nanocomposites, Shailesh K. Shori Dec 2014

Surface Modification Of Nanoplatelets In Polymer Nanocomposites, Shailesh K. Shori

Theses and Dissertations

In polymer nanocomposites (PNCs), it is very important that the nanofiller (typically an inorganic) is well-dispersed in an organic polymer matrix. Optimal compatibility results in end-use products such as packaging materials with enhanced properties. In practice, however, this is challenging to achieve because “ideal” dispersions require the complete uniform separation, termed exfoliation, of the nanofiller within the matrix. As a result, different nanofillers including calcium niobate (CN) and montmorillonite (MMT) are first studied for their ability to exfoliate in aqueous suspensions by measuring the organic cation uptake. The cation exchange capacity, or CEC, determined that CN needs further work before …

Go to article

First Prev Next Last