Digital Commons Network^™

Frequent Father Miles: A Phenomenological Study Of Divorced Fathers' Perceived Roles In Their Child's Education, Rebecca Bowman

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to understand how divorced fathers perceive their role in the education of their middle or high school child. The central focus of this study was: How do divorced fathers describe the roles they play in their child's education? The following questions guided the study: (a) How do divorced fathers describe the role they play in their child's education? (b) What are the factors that influence a divorced father's role in his child's education? (c) What can schools do to facilitate involvement of divorced fathers in their child's education throughout secondary schools? The co-researchers …

Effect Of Ebooks On Reading Level, Reading Behaviors, And Attitude Of Second Grade Students, Annette Vanaken

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This study investigated the effect of ebooks as a tool for providing small group reading interventions and independent reading practice to second grade readers in the classroom. A quasi-experimental, pretest-posttest, non-equivalent control group design was used to compare whether instructional reading environments (ebooks only, traditional books only, or both ebooks and traditional books) affect reading level and attitudes towards reading, while a posttest only non-equivalent control group design was used to measure reading behaviors of second grade students. A convenience sample of 88 English-speaking students at a rural, public elementary school in Southern Michigan participated. Reading level was measured by …

Character Traits In Caldecott Award-Winning Literature From 2002-2012: A Content Analysis, Staci Wagner

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This study examined children's books that were honored with the Randolph Caldecott Medal for the most distinguished American picture book from 2002-2012, in an attempt to analyze examples of character elements in these books. Modeled after two previous dissertations in which Newbery books were analyzed, I used similar methodology to further their research to books honored with the Caldecott Medal. Therefore, content analysis was used to determine the presence of the sample character traits, following the acronym C.H.A.R.A.C.T.E.R., developed by researcher Bryant (2008). These elements included: (a) caring/compassionate, (b) helpfulness, (c) acceptance, (d) respect, (e) ambition, (f) citizenship, (g) trustworthiness, …

The Success Of Character Education In Relation To Religion In A Public School District, Joseph Johnson

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The history of the United States demonstrates a complicated relationship between civil or national religion and the formation of the common schools. This dissertation uses purposive sampling, survey methodology and description research of a local, public school district with noted high scores on character education. The research uses a Likert scale to document educators' perception of success or failure of character education in relation to religion. In the school district, four schools were chosen for their high scores in character education implementation. A purposive sample of 100 participants was provided an email link to a secure, anonymous, online survey. The …

Understanding The Times: A Causal/Comparative Study Of The Effectiveness Of A Christian Worldview Curriculum In Helping Students Develop A Christian Worldview, Donald Barrows

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Christian educators are concerned about the development of a Christian worldview in their students. They also desire that their students maintain that worldview after graduation. In this study, the author attempts to determine the effectiveness of the Understanding the Times Christian worldview curriculum in helping students develop a Christian worldview. To do this, a causal/comparative research design was used as participants took a worldview test to determine the extent to which their worldviews compared with biblical teachings. The researcher sampled a random sample of Christian high school graduates who have taken the yearlong Understanding the Times Christian worldview course at …

The Perceptions Of Caucasian Female Elementary Teachers And The Overrepresentation Of African-American Males In Special Education, Thomas Seaberry

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

There is a disproportionate amount of African-American males in special education programs. Several factors have been offered by researchers as to why this phenomenon continues to be a problem throughout the county. The purpose of this study was to understand how Caucasian female teachers' perceptions of African-American male students might influence their overrepresentation in special education. This qualitative study employed an ethnographic case study method, and relied primarily on a pilot study and teacher interviews to obtain data related to this phenomenon. Using this research design, the researcher established six themes related to the research phenomenon: (1) cultural discontinuity between …

Exploring Intrinsic Value Of Educating Military Planners In Design Thinking: A Case Study, John Mangold

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this qualitative single instrumental, exploratory, theory-building, holistic researcher case study was to explore a novel approach to military transformation; a prototype of a problem solving methodology that accounts for an inescapable reality in the current and future operational environment: complexity and uncertainty. Design thinking was used as an essential component supporting a theoretical framework to explore the process of solving complex, ill-structured problems. Fifteen participants from a senior U.S. military service college were studied using observations, interviews, and site documents. The data analyzed used the systematic, analytic procedures of Stake (1995, 2008) and Merriam, (1998, 2009) whereby …

An Evaluation Of The Penn Resiliency Program For Disruptive Preadolescents In An Elementary School Setting, Mildred Howard

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The primary purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the Penn Resiliency Program in decreasing disruptive behavior, modifying negative automatic thoughts and improving academic achievement. Forty-eight students from two Title I schools in Georgia participated in this study. The Behavior Assessment Scale for Children, Second Edition, Progress Monitor, The Children's Automatic Thoughts Scale and report card grades were used to evaluate program effectiveness. Research results suggest the program effectively reduced negative automatic thoughts and improved academic performance.

Association Between Parental Psychopathology And Suicidal Behavior Among Adult Offspring: Results From The Cross-Sectional South African Stress And Health Survey, Lukoye Atwoli, Matthew K. Nock, David R. Williams, Dan J. Stein

Internal Medicine, East Africa

Background: Prior studies have demonstrated a link between parental psychopathology and offspring suicidal behavior. However, it remains unclear what aspects of suicidal behavior among adult offspring are predicted by specific parental mental disorders, especially in Africa. This study set out to investigate the association between parental psychopathology and suicidal behavior among their adult offspring in a South African general population sample.

Method: Parental psychopathology and suicidal behavior in offspring were assessed using structured interviews among 4,315 respondents from across South Africa. The WHO CIDI was used to collect data on suicidal behavior, while the Family History Research Diagnostic Criteria Interview …

Response To The Law Of The Body By Meredith M. Render, E. Richard Gold

Emory Law Journal Online

In her article, Professor Render does a great service by proposing to unify legal rules relating to the human body through the concept of the "law of the body."

A Reasonable Belief: In Support Of Lgbt Plaintiffs' Title Vii Retaliation Claims, Erin E. Buzuvis

Faculty Scholarship

When an LGBT employee is punished for complaining about discrimination in the workplace, he or she has two potential causes of action under Title VII: first, a challenge to the underlying discrimination, and second, a challenge to the resulting retaliation. The first claim is vulnerable to dismissal under courts’ narrow interpretation of Title VII’s prohibition of discrimination “because of sex” as applied to LGBT plaintiffs. But such an outcome need not determine the fate of the second claim. Faithful application of retaliation law’s “reasonable belief” standard, which protects a plaintiff from reprisal so long as she reasonably believed that she …

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 …

Homeoviscous Response Of Clostridium Pasteurianum To Butanol Toxicity During Glycerol Fermentation, Keerthi P. Venkataramanan, Yogi Kurniawan, Judy J. Boatman, Cassandra H. Haynes, Katherine A. Taconi, Lenore M. Martin, Geoffrey D. Bothun, Carmen Scholz

Cell and Molecular Biology Faculty Publications

Clostridium pasteurianum ATCC 6013 achieves high n-butanol production when glycerol is used as the sole carbon source. In this study, the homeoviscous membrane response of C. pasteurianum ATCC 6013 has been examined through n-butanol challenge experiments. Homeoviscous response is a critical aspect of n-butanol tolerance and has not been examined in detail for C. pasteurianum. Lipid membrane compositions were examined for glycerol fermentations with n-butanol production, and during cell growth in the absence of n-butanol production, using gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) and proton nuclear magnetic resonance (¹H-NMR). Membrane stabilization due to homeoviscous …

Illuminating The Physiology And Ecology Of The Wound-Induced Macroalgal Oxidative Burst, Ruth Ellen Mcdowell

All ETDs from UAB

The role of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in the macroalgal wound response was investigated with emphasis on their occurrence, source, and ecological role. In a survey of Antarctic macroalgae, an oxidative response to wounding was common and ROS in seawater decreased the feeding rate of sympatric amphipod grazers. The macroalgal oxidative response was also sensitive to light. In contrast to the current understanding of the macroalgal oxidative burst, initial wound-induced ROS from the temperate kelp Saccharina latissima were light-dependent and arose from disrupted photosynthetic electron transport rather than from a defense-related enzyme such as an NADPH-oxidase. Furthermore, the light-dependence of …

Hormonal Contraceptives Alter The Immune Function And Structural Integrity Of The Female Genital Tract: Implications For Hiv-1 Infection, Katherine Gisella Michel

All ETDs from UAB

The potential effect of hormonal contraception on HIV-1 acquisition and transmission represents an important public health issue. Several observational studies have suggested an association between the use of hormonal contraception, in particular injectable depot medroxyprogesterone acetate (DMPA), and an increased risk of HIV-1 acquisition and transmission. To delineate the biological mechanisms behind this phenomenon, we have recruited healthy, HIV-negative women using either DMPA, NuvaRing, or combined oral contraceptives for a vaginal biopsy and cervicovaginal lavage (CVL). Analysis of the functional capacity of circulating plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs), distribution of vaginal immune cell populations, and systemic and genital levels of immune …

Compression, Bethany Anne Mitchell

All ETDs from UAB

Compression , a nonfiction novel-in-progress, examines the author's twisting relationship with her father in the context of her exploration into the traditional archery world. A proud new owner of a 72-inch English longbow, the author's dependence on archery increases as her father's sudden onset of paranoid schizophrenia pushes the two of them widely off target. This novel-in-progress incorporates humor into the real story of a teen coming of age just as her father begins to drift away, a period of years swirling with doubt, confusion, anger, and loss as the author attempts to find a new normal and establish her …

Structural Implications Of P22 Bacteriophage Coat Protein A-Domain Modifications, David Samuel Morris

All ETDs from UAB

Modification of virus capsids as target-specific delivery devices has become highly popularized in recent years and P22 bacteriophage has been proposed as a potential candidate for development of a targeting drug delivery system. As a proof of concept for our system, we hypothesized that the A-domain of P22 coat protein could be utilized to alter the binding affinity of virus-like procapsids for biological targets. Addition of acidic residues to the A-domain revealed that this could be accomplished through the quarternary localization of charged residues in three-dimensional space without interrogating procapsid assembly. Further manipulations implemented in vivo were performed to examine …

Modeling Of Pollutant Transport In The Nile Delta, Egypt, Mohamed Khaled Elsayed Mostafa

All ETDs from UAB

Poor water quality is one of the biggest problems faced by most countries and especially by developing countries such as Egypt. The mismanagement of potable water resources constitutes one of the main reasons for the depletion of water. This research was carried out in the Nile River delta, a region in which toxic dumping and water quality degradation exist. The Nile delta receives pollution loads from industrial, agricultural, and domestic activities located along its path leading to the spread of water-related diseases such as hepatitis, typhoid, cholera, and kidney failure [Safe Drinking Water Foundation, 2009]. The main objective of this …

Intrinsic And Extrinsic Brain Activity In Children With Autism Before And After A Visualization Language Intervention, Donna Murdaugh

All ETDs from UAB

Deficits in language comprehension have been widely reported in children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Recent evidence from neuroimaging research has found that individuals with ASD tend to recruit visuospatial imagery to comprehend language (Kana et al., 2006). The theory of cortical underconnectivity in autism suggests that in tasks that can be interpreted either visually or verbally, brain regions associated with language and visuospatial processing will be substantially less functionally integrated (especially between frontal and more posterior regions) than healthy-matched controls (Just et al., 2004). Indeed, cortical underconnectivity in individuals with ASD has been documented, not only in extrinsic brain …

Quantum Computation Approach To Information Theoretic Modeling And Analysis Of Systems, Luai Najim

All ETDs from UAB

The modeling of systems has been addressed in the physical sciences from the perspective of Energy and matter. The 3rd original idea of Communication as a means of modeling systems has been established and applied. In this study, we apply the 3rd original idea of communication to systems on a quantum level. By marrying Shannon's noisy communication channel to Feynman QED and Quantum Computing, we realize a visual model for the representation of the entropy of a noisy communication channel on a quantum scale. We also use that visual representation concept to define a geometric view into the superposition of …

Proposing The Affect-Trust Infusion Model (Atim) To Explain And Predict The Influence Of High- And Low-Affect Infusion On Web-Vendor Trust, Paul Benjamin Lowry, Nathan Twyman, Matthew Pickard, Jeffrey L. Jenkins, Son Ngoc Bui

Faculty Publications

Trust is just as essential to online business as it is to offline transactions but can be more difficult to achieve—especially for newer Web sites associated with unknown Web vendors. Research explains that Web vendor trust can be created by cognitive and affective influences. But under what circumstances will emotion more powerfully impact trust and when will cognition be more powerful? Theory-based answers to these questions can help online Web vendors design better Web sites that account for unleveraged factors that will increase trust in the Web vendor.

We adapt the Affect Infusion Model to propose the Affect-Trust Infusion Model …

You Said What? Assessing The Impact Of Collaboration Technologies And Message Characteristics Using Physiological Measures, Taylor M. Wells, Alan R. Dennis

Faculty Publications

Collaboration technologies often are effective but sometimes they can distort messages, especially in emotional communication. We propose and test a theoretical model to explain how different technologies and message characteristics influence the emotional responses of recipients and how recipients evaluate the emotional content of the messages. Two collaboration technologies—email and voicemail—were examined because they differ in richness and naturalness. As some individuals are more capable in interpreting and understanding emotion, we also examined the role of emotional intelligence. The results show that a message sent via email was likely to trigger a different immediate psychophysiological emotional response and be evaluated …

Role Of Nicotine Dependence On The Relationship Between Variants In The Nicotinic Receptor Genes And Risk Of Lung Adenocarcinoma, Tung-Sung Tseng, Jong Y. Park, Jovanny Zabaleta, Sarah Moody-Thomas, Melinda S. Sothern, Ted Chen, David E. Evans, Hui-Yi Lin

School of Public Health Faculty Publications

Several variations in the nicotinic receptor genes have been identified to be associated with both lung cancer risk and smoking in the genome-wide association (GWA) studies. However, the relationships among these three factors (genetic variants, nicotine dependence, and lung cancer) remain unclear. In an attempt to elucidate these relationships, we applied mediation analysis to quantify the impact of nicotine dependence on the association between the nicotinic receptor genetic variants and lung adenocarcinoma risk. We evaluated 23 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the five nicotinic receptor related genes (CHRNB3, CHRNA6, and CHRNA5/A3/B4) previously reported to be associated with lung cancer risk …

Regulatory Control Of Palatogenesis And Odontogenesis By Specificity Protein 7, John Christopher Clarke

All ETDs from UAB

Runx2 and its downstream target Specificity Protein 7 (Sp7) are essential for skeletogenesis. In humans, mutations in Sp7 gene are associated with osteogenesis imperfecta. Unlike Runx2, the role of Sp7 in palatogenesis, tooth development or differentiation of ameloblasts and odontoblasts remains unknown. The main goal of this research was to identify the functional requirement of Sp7 transcription factor during tooth development and palatogenesis. Molecular, biochemical, and histological approaches were employed to answer this question. We established Sp7-null mice that are completely void of mineralized tissue, exhibit craniofacial dysmorphogenesis and die shortly after birth. Surprisingly, Sp7 homozygous mutants exhibited normal tooth …

Actions Of Grape Seed Extract In Rodent Brain And Differences In Metabolism Of Its Polyphenols In A Rodent Model Of Menopause, John Kenneth Cutts

All ETDs from UAB

Grape seed extract (GSE), a dietary supplement, has potential in the treatment and prevention of human chronic age-related diseases including cancers, cardiovascular diseases, and neurodegenerative diseases. GSE and adult hippocampal neurogenesis, independently, have enhanced learning and memory in rodents. We hypothesized that GSE enhances learning and memory, at least partially, by enhancing hippocampal neurogenesis. However, adult mice given GSE did not exhibit increased number of progenitor cells or new neurons, established markers of neurogenesis, in the dentate gyrus (DG). Also, 26-day-old pups whose mother was given GSE only while nursing had fewer new neurons in the DG compared to control …

Parent And Child Factors In Relation To Mealtime Problem Behavior Of Children With And Without Autism Spectrum Disorder, Eva Trinh

All ETDs from UAB

environmental temperatures on TSD by again using the red-eared slider as a laboratory

Analysis Of Debris From Implant Prostheses, Mehran Varedi

All ETDs from UAB

Objectives: The specific aim of this study was to analyze any entrapped debris in implant abutment screw threads from post processed constructs from dental laboratories. Materials and Methods: Forty implant screws were used to collect debris where screws were removed from the implant prosthesis as received from dental laboratories. In all samples, laboratory procedures including fabrication of the custom abutment, definitive prosthesis and finishing/polishing were completed prior to sampling. Twenty-nine screws were from titanium and eleven screws were from zirconia abutments. Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) analyses of collected particulate products from abutment screws were done for all specimens. Results: The …

Integrated Functioning Of The Mirror Neuron System And Its Role In Imitation Deficits In Autism, Heather Wadsworth

All ETDs from UAB

Deficits in imitation have been widely reported in children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). A proposed dysfunction of the mirror neuron system (MNS), the neural network underlying imitation, has been the subject of recent debate in ASD literature. However, while some research has found evidence of MNS abnormalities in ASD, recent studies have cast doubt onto the mirror neuron hypothesis of ASD as it is currently depicted. There is also behavioral evidence that the imitation deficit is not unitary, and therefore may not have one-to-ne correspondence with a malfunction of all aspects of MNS. Since functional imitation involves …

Syndecan Knockdown In The Insulin Producing Cells Of Drosophila Melanogaster Affects Energy Metabolism And Life Span, Jonathan Lund Warren

All ETDs from UAB

Drosophila melanogaster is a powerful model organism for studying human metabolic disease due to the conservation of various signaling processes and pathways. The insulin producing cells (IPCs) in the brain of adult flies sense circulating nutrients and respond by producing three insulin-like peptides (dILP2, dILP3, and dILP5). Several studies have shown that dILPs play a major role in Drosophila reproduction, metabolism, growth, and longevity. Previous data showed that flies homozygous for a hypomorphic mutation in the Drosophila syndecan (dSdc) gene had defects in energy metabolism and lower expression of brain dilp2-3 and dilp5 genes. Syndecan is a transmembrane proteoglycan that …

Corrosion Prevention And Control Training In An Immersive Virtual Learning Environment, Rustin Deane Webster

All ETDs from UAB

The majority of military education and training has not veered far from the days of chalk and talk instruction. Often with technological breakthroughs comes the proposal of the next revolution in multimedia instruction. Motion pictures to radios to educational television programs have all seemed to come and gone. The next wave of multimedia learning may involve more than a PowerPoint® presentation and lecture. Researchers continue to propose that Virtual Reality (VR) will find its true application and/or market in education and training. The objective of the project was to develop and provide a low-cost, scalable, and portable VR system containing …