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Factors Involved In The Retention Of American Red Cross Disaster And Emergency Services Volunteers, Suzanne Marie Moravick

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

According to the Corporation for National and Community Service (2007), 33% of workers who volunteer in one year do not volunteer the next year. Retention of disaster and emergency services volunteers is a problem because permanent disaster volunteers save governments and society millions of dollars each year. The purpose of this quantitative, cross-sectional study was to address the problem of retention of American Red Cross disaster and emergency services volunteers. The primary research question for this study examined the predictive strength of positive emotions, resiliency, coping, and post-traumatic growth, in the retention of disaster and emergency services volunteers. The broaden-and-build …

Efficient Load Rating And Quantification Of Life-Cycle Damage Of Indiana Bridges Due To Overweight Loads, Hun Cha, Boyuan Liu, Arun Prakash, Amit H. Varma

JTRP Technical Reports

In this study, a computational approach for conducting durability analysis of bridges using detailed finite element models is developed. The underlying approach adopted is based on the hypothesis that the two main factors affecting the life of a bridge structure are the level of repetitive loading it sustains and the natural condition of the bridge that may be thought of as a combined effect of both, physical processes in the environment that cause deterioration and any maintenance activity undertaken to thwart such processes. Detailed finite element models of representative bridges are developed and subjected to a set of representative traffic …

Moisture-Strength-Constructability Guidelines For Subgrade Foundation Soils Found In Indiana, Eshan Ganju, Shahedur Rahman, Monica Prezzi, Rodrigo Salgado, Nayyarzia Siddiki

JTRP Technical Reports

Soil moisture is an important indicator of constructability in the field. Construction activities become difficult when the soil moisture content is excessive, especially in fine-grained soils. Change orders caused by excessive soil moisture during construction projects drive up construction costs for INDOT and cause unexpected delays. To alleviate these problems and minimize change order costs associated with having unexpectedly high soil moisture conditions at the time of construction, a methodology was developed to allow INDOT engineers to estimate in situ soil moisture conditions early in the design phases of projects. The soil moisture prediction methodology is based on results from …

Development Of A Cost-Effective Concrete Bridge Deck Preservation Program: Volume 1—Development And Implementation Of The Experimental Program, Robert J. Frosch, Michael E. Kreger, Emily A. Byl, John P. Lyrenmann, Andrew S. Pollastrini

JTRP Technical Reports

The deterioration of bridge decks has been identified as a major problem in Indiana. The primary cause of this deterioration is salt water ingress from the application of deicing salts during the winter. Deicing chemicals placed on the road mix with water and enter the deck through cracks and the pore structure of the concrete. This results in corrosion of the reinforcing steel and scaling of the surface, which leads to a shortened bridge deck life and costly deck replacement. The objective of this study is to investigate potentially effective and economic bridge deck preservation methods to significantly extend the …

Identifying Effects And Applications Of Fixed And Variable Speed Limits, Michelle M. Mekker, Stephen M. Remias, Margaret L. Mcnamara, Wayne A. Bunnell, Drake W. Krohn, Edward D. Cox, James R. Sturdevant, Darcy M. Bullock

JTRP Technical Reports

In Indiana, distracted driving and unexpected queues have led to an increase in the amount of back-of-queue crashes, particularly on approach to work zones. This report presents new strategies for the assessment of both transportation safety and traffic operations using crowd-sourced probe vehicle data and a speed laser vehicle re-identification scheme. This report concludes by recommending strategies for the placement of variable speed limits (VSL) adjacent to work zones and suggestions for future research.

Pre-Contract Scoping Processes Value Stream Mapping, Ted Boehm, Jim Handy

JTRP Technical Reports

The Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) is divided into six districts, with district offices located in LaPorte, Fort Wayne, Crawfordsville, Greenfield, Vincennes, and Seymour. Pre-contract scoping of INDOT projects is decentralized, with each district having responsibility (with support from INDOT Central Office staff) for scoping the projects being considered for their district. One month prior to the launch of this project, INDOT created a new Central Office position of Statewide Director of Scoping.

At the time of the launch of this project, it was recognized that there was a need to improve the Pre-Contract Scoping Process because of inconsistency between …

The Economic Impact Of Implementing Nondestructive Testing Of Reinforced Concrete Bridge Decks In Indiana, Benjamin R. Taylor, Yu Qiao, Mark D. Bowman, Samuel Labi

JTRP Technical Reports

The deck is among the most expensive components of a bridge over its lifetime because of the frequent and costly maintenance and rehabilitation required. Currently, the Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) performs visual inspections of a bridge deck as the principal means of determining its condition, which enables the inspector to definitively document the surface condition while the unseen condition below the deck surface is left to the inspector’s expert judgement. To compensate for this lack of data, INDOT supplements visual inspections with programmatic scheduling for major work actions, which is very effective for INDOT but costly. In this continuing …

Guardrails For Use On Historic Bridges: Volume 2—Bridge Deck Overhang Design, Robert J. Frosch, Adam J. Morel

JTRP Technical Reports

Bridges that are designated historic present a special challenge to bridge engineers whenever rehabilitation work or improvements are made to the bridges. Federal and state laws protect historically significant bridges, and railings on these bridges can be subject to protection because of the role they play in aesthetics. Unfortunately, original railings on historic bridges do not typically meet current crash-test requirements and typically do not meet current standards for railing height and size of permitted openings. The primary objective of this study is to develop strategies that can be used to address existing railings on historic bridges and to develop …

Guardrails For Use On Historic Bridges: Volume 1—Replacement Strategies, Robert J. Frosch, Michael E. Kreger, Adam J. Clauss

JTRP Technical Reports

Bridges that are designated historic present a special challenge to bridge engineers whenever rehabilitation work or improvements are made to the bridges. Federal and state laws protect historically significant bridges, and railings on these bridges can be subject to protection because of the role they play in aesthetics. Unfortunately, original railings on historic bridges do not typically meet current crash-test requirements and typically do not meet current standards for railing height and size of permitted openings. The primary objective of this study is to develop strategies that can be used to address existing railings on historic bridges and to develop …

Compassion Fatigue In Emergency Department Nurses, Dionne Hutson Hendy

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Compassion fatigue (CF) is a problem seen within healthcare institutions worldwide, especially critical care units and emergency departments (EDs). The problem identified in this quality improvement (QI) project was CF, experienced by nurses in the ED. The effects of CF cross nurse-patient boundaries and negatively impact a patient's expectations of having a quality care experience. The Iowa model's evidence-based team approach was used to guide the development of the education initiative for nurses on recognizing, preventing, and identifying methods of coping with CF in the ED. The outcome products for the project included an extensive review of the literature, a …

Systematic Review: Barriers That Prevent Compliance With Hydroxyurea In Sickle Cell Disease, Uchechukwu Imegi

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a blood disorder that is inherited from both parents and affects millions of people globally. The symptoms of SCD may be debilitating and pose a significant challenge to nursing care. Hydroxyurea (HU), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved treatment for SCD in adults is reportedly effective, but its usage is still minimal among adolescents with SCD. The purpose of this systematic review was to evaluate existing literature on the barriers to HU use in adolescents with SCD. The Johns Hopkins Nursing Evidence-based Practice (JHNEBP) Rating Scales guided this study. An extensive electronic search of …

Education Program For Nurses Working In An Immigration Detention Facility, Dr. Tiney Elizabeth Ray

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Nursing response to medical emergencies has been an ongoing issue in immigration detention centers. Lack of teamwork and poor communication with medical and security staff have resulted in detainees sustaining injuries during medical emergencies. This project was developed to persuade Immigration and Customs Enforcement Health Service Corps (IHSC) leaders to consider piloting the TeamSTEPPS emergency response curriculum for nurses working in the immigration detention center. Tuckman and Jensen's model of group development will provide guidance to IHSC leaders in understanding the transformational stages of forming a successful team. TeamSTEPPS will address gaps in emergency health care competency by improving collaboration, …

Junior High School Teachers' Perceptions Of Math Instruction For African American Students, Sandra Denise Richardson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

A mathematics achievement gap exists between 8th grade African American students and other ethnic groups. Guided by the conceptual framework of constructivism, the purpose of this case study was to examine 8, Grade 8 math teachers' perceptions of factors contributing to mathematical performance gap in their African American students and what instructional strategies can be used to help reduce the achievement gap in southwest Georgia. Data were obtained through interviews and classroom observations and were coded and analyzed using typological analysis, followed by inductive analysis. The results of the data revealed teachers perceived recruiting and retaining African American teachers and …

Tscan: Stationary Lidar For Traffic And Safety Studies—Object Detection And Tracking, Andrew P. Tarko, Kartik B. Ariyur, Mario A. Romero, Vamsi K. Bandaru, Cristhian G. Lizarazo

JTRP Technical Reports

The ability to accurately measure and cost-effectively collect traffic data at road intersections is needed to improve their safety and operations. This study investigates the feasibility of using laser ranging technology (LiDAR) for this purpose. The proposed technology does not experience some of the problems of the current video-based technology but less expensive low-end sensors have limited density of points where measurements are collected that may bring new challenges. A novel LiDAR-based portable traffic scanner (TScan) is introduced in this report to detect and track various types of road users (e.g., trucks, cars, pedestrians, and bicycles). The scope of this …

Financial Distress In The Health Care Business, Firas Fathi Musmar

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Sixty-four United States hospitals closed for poor organizational performance during 2010 through 2016. Because of hospital closures, community members experienced delays in obtaining needed care, reduced access to specialty care, and increased travel distances. Based on the balanced scorecard model theory, the purpose of this qualitative single case study was to explore strategies that 10 health care leaders used at a healthcare organization in central Texas to prevent financial distress. Semistructured interviews were conducted and archival organizational accounting records were reviewed, including company surveys with employees and patients. Data were thematically analyzed and triangulated to ensure the trustworthiness of interpretations. …

Strategies For Increasing Employee Engagement In The Service Industry, Tonia Ann Walker

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The annual loss to U.S. organizations consequential to a lack of employee engagement was approximately $300 billion in 2013. Employee engagement is vital to the business sustainability of an organization. The purpose of this qualitative single case study was to explore successful strategies that business leaders of a service organization used to increase employee engagement. The conceptual framework guiding this study was the behavior engineering model theory developed by Gilbert. A purposeful sample of 6 engineering managers was selected based on their success in creating strategies resulting in increased employee workplace engagement in a monopoly service organization in Connecticut. Semistructured …

Effect Of Vocabulary Test Preparation On Low-Income Black Middle School Students' Reading Scores, Ingrid Nadia Mitchell

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Black middle school students in the United States perform poorly on standardized reading achievement tests in comparison to other racial and ethnic groups. The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of a vocabulary-focused test preparation program for underachieving Black middle school students. Thorndike's concept of test-wiseness, a test-taking capacity, provided the theoretical foundation for the study. Research questions investigated the difference in reading test scores on the Discovery Education Assessment of underachieving Black middle school students who participated in a key vocabulary test preparation program and those who did not. An intact-group comparison was used in which …

Improving Communication Between Cancer Patients And Providers During A 15-Minute Office Visit: A Systematic Review Of The Literature, Dr. Tammy Elizabeth Manganelli

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Patients undergoing chemotherapy treatments for cancer often experience adverse side effects, including cognitive deficits. These deficits impact the patient's ability to communicate effectively with their oncology provider. Ineffective communication can adversely affect patient outcomes and decrease patient-provider satisfaction. The resulting poor communication can contribute to poor patient outcomes. This systematic literature review focused on assistive communication tools that could be used in an outpatient oncology setting to improve patient-provider communication. The literature review findings led to the development of a resource for providers that includes 15 communication tools that can be used to assess and improve communication in cancer care. …

African American High School Graduates' Perceived Academic Success Factors, Paula Williams Harris

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

A large number of African American students attending a low performing, urban high school in Tennessee demonstrated a lack of understanding in reading/language arts by scoring below proficient on the end of course (EOC) exam in reading/language arts. The purpose of this case study was to examine the perceptions of 10 African American graduates who scored proficient on the reading/language arts EOC exam to seek factors they associated with their academic success. This study was guided by Deci and Ryan's self-determination theory. The research question addressed the perceived factors that African American graduates associated with their academic success. Purposeful sampling …

Teachers' Perceptions Of African American Middle School Girls' Interest In Mathematics And Science, Bonnie Marie Best

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Research into African American female underrepresentation in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields has become an area of interest due to the fact that a majority of African American middle school females do not possess the high levels of mathematics and science knowledge because of social and cultural barriers both inside and outside school that challenge their academic success. The purpose of this qualitative interpretative phenomenological study was to explore teachers' shared, lived experiences of teaching mathematics and science to African American middle school girls. Delgado and Stefancic's critical race theory, Pratt-Clarke's critical race feminism, and Baker-Miller's relational-cultural theory …

Senior Army Women's Leader Behaviors And Their Civilian Career Transition, Sharon R. Hamilton

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Female retired Army colonels (FRACs) have significant potential to contribute to civilian organizations. To take advantage of that talent, it is important to have a better understanding of their behaviors based on their dual identities as women and leaders. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to understand the under researched factors accounting for the development of FRACs' leader behaviors and the transfer of those behaviors to civilian careers. The 4 underlying meta categories of leadership behavior formed the conceptual framework. The theory of planned behavior was used to explore potential influences on FRAC leader behavior development. The 3 …

The Joondalup Story : A City And A University Campus In The Making, John Renner, Sybe Jongeling

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

'The Joondalup Story' is a record of creative planning and urban development of the City of Joondalup and within it Edith Cowan University's northern campus at Joondalup. It's a remarkable story of urban planning initiated by Professor Gordon Stephenson and the evolution of a planned urban community in its first decade, 1987 to 1996. Finally, in the last two chapters, 'Joondalup Story' profiles the challenges and impressive achievements of the Joondalup community, city and campus, two decades later in 2015.

Integrated Groundwater Management: An Overview Of Concepts And Challenges, Anthony J. Jakeman, Olivier Barreteau, Randall G. Hunt, Jean-Daniel Rinaudo, Andrew Ross, Muhammad Arshad, Serena H. Hamilton

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

Managing water is a grand challenge problem and has become one of humanity’s foremost priorities. Surface water resources are typically societally managed and relatively well understood; groundwater resources, however, are often hidden and more difficult to conceptualize. Replenishment rates of groundwater cannot match past and current rates of depletion in many parts of the world. In addition, declining quality of the remaining groundwater commonly cannot support all agricultural, industrial and urban demands and ecosystem functioning, especially in the developed world. In the developing world, it can fail to even meet essential human needs. The issue is: how do we manage …

First Year Business Students' Perceptions Of Academic Support Through Embedding. A Practice Report, Carmela De Maio, Anibeth Desierto

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

This paper explores the perceptions of first year Business students to embedding sessions and additional support workshops offered through a collaboration between learning advisors and lecturers in a first year foundational unit. Through a social constructivist lens and utilising action research methods, questionnaires (n = 42) were administered to two cohorts of students at the conclusion of the unit in 2011 and 2012 to explore firstly, whether or not they perceived the embedding sessions to be of benefit and, secondly, whether having the learning advisor in the class made them more likely to utilise additional support outside class time. In …

Personal Property Servitudes On The Internet Of Things, Christina Mulligan

Georgia Law Review

Small appliances such as thermostats, watches, jewelry, and eyewear are now being made available with networking capability. These networked objects make up the growing Internet of Things-pieces of personal property that run software and connect to the global Internet. These products are typically governed by terms of service or end-user license agreements that create restrictions on how products can be used or transferred- restrictions which would be unenforceable if the inside of the product consisted of gears rather than processing chips. This Article explores the question of when use and transfer restrictions should be enforceable on networked appliances and other …

Underwriting Sustainable Homeownership: The Federal Housing Administration And The Low Down Payment Loan, David Reiss

Georgia Law Review

The United States Federal Housing Administration (FHA) has been a versatile tool of government since it was created during the Great Depression. The FHA was created in large part to inject liquidity into a moribund mortgage market. It succeeded wonderfully, with rapid growth during the late 1930s. The federal government repositioned it a number of times over the following decades to achieve a variety of additional social goals. These goals included supporting civilian mobilization during World War II; helping veterans returning from that war; stabilizing urban housing markets during the 1960s; and expanding minority homeownership rates during the 1990s. It …

The Influence Of Urban Development Dynamics On Community Resilience Practice In New York City After Superstorm Sandy: Experiences From The Lower East Side And The Rockaways, Leigh Graham, Wim Debucquoy, Isabelle Anguelovski

Publications and Research

While (urban) resilience has become an increasingly popular concept, especially in the areas of disaster risk reduction (DRR) and climate change adaptation (CCA), it is often still used as an abstract metaphor, with much debate centered on definitions, differences in approaches, and epistemological consider- ations. Empirical studies examining how community-based organizations (CBOs) “practice” resilience on the ground and what enables these CBOs to organize and mobilize around resilience are lacking. Moreover, in the growing context of competitive and entrepreneurial urbanism and conflicting priorities about urban (re)development, it is unclear how urban development dynamics influence community- based resilience actions. Through empirical …

Greater New York: The Sports Capital Of Depression Era America, Jeffrey A. Kroessler

Publications and Research

Any history of the Great Depression is incomplete if it neglects sports, and New York City was the unrivaled sports capital of America. From professional baseball to college basketball to boxing, the most important sporting events took place in New York's legendary venues: Yankee Stadium, the Polo Grounds, Madison Square Garden, Forest Hills, and Belmont Park. Sports also mirrored social issues. Joe Louis's boxing matches against white opponents represented more than a simple athletic contest and stimulated racial and ethnic pride, especially in his bouts with Max Schmeling. Long Island University's dominant basketball team boycotted the 1936 Olympic trials to …

The Amino Terminal Region Of Cardiac Myosin Binding Protein-C Is Necessary For Cardiac Function, Thomas Lawrence Lynch

Dissertations

Cardiac myosin binding protein-C (cMyBP-C) is a thick filament-associated protein that has been suggested to regulate cardiac contraction via its amino terminal (N’) region. Following ischemic injury to the heart, cMyBP-C is cleaved into a predominant N’ fragment consisting of domains C0 through C1 and the first 17 residues of the M-domain that is referred to as C0-C1f. However, the necessity of the N’-C0-C1f region of cMyBP-C in regulating cardiac function in vivo has not been elucidated. I hypothesized that the N’-C0-C1f region of cMyBP-C is critical for normal cardiac function in vivo. To test this hypothesis, transgenic (TG) mice …

The Utilization Of Liquid Chromatography Tandem Mass Spectrometry And Related Techniques For The Analysis And Identification Of Emerging Contaminants In Aqueous Matrices, Matthew Reichert

Dissertations

Environmental pollutants can be found in many ecosystems and cover many different compound classes. The Environmental Protection Agency is responsible for monitoring and regulating several of these classes of compounds which daily enter the environment. However, there are still hundreds, if not thousands, of compounds present in the environment which have yet to be regulated or even identified. The discovery and identification of these unknown emerging pollutants is crucial for the prevention of potential human health risks and irreversible ecological damage.

The research presented is divided into two projects. The first part of this research investigates the disinfectant 3-Bromo-1-chloro-5,5-dimethylhydantoin, which …