Digital Commons Network^™

Morpho-Physiological And Genetic Characterizations Of Rice Genotypes For Abiotic Stresses, Salah Hameed Jumaa

Theses and Dissertations

Holistic and growth stage-specific screening is needed for identifying tolerant genotypes and for formulating strategies to mitigate the negative effects of abiotic stresses on crops. The objectives of this study were to characterize the genetic variability of 100 rice lines for early-season vigor, growth and physiological plasticity, and drought and temperature tolerance. Five studies were conducted to accomplish these objectives. In study 1 and 2, 100 rice genotypes consisting of several cultivars and experimental breeding lines were characterized for early-season vigor using several shoot and root morphological, physiological, and yield related traits. In study 3, low- and high-temperature tolerance assessed …

Characterization Of Gene Products Associated With Reduced Aflatoxin Accumulation In Maize (Zea Mays), Dafne Alves Winders

Theses and Dissertations

The fungus Aspergillus flavus L. is an agricultural threat, particularly for maize (Zea mays L.). Its invasive growth and contamination before and after harvest can lead to the loss of the commodity and cause life threating consequences to humans and livestock that consume a contaminated product. The differential expression profile of two resistant maize inbred lines, Mp313E and Mp719, and two susceptible maize inbred lines, B73 and Va35, were evaluated in the mRNA and protein levels. The experimental designed used allowed to observe the responses of these maize lines to A. flavus inoculation and to the stress caused by wounding …

Understanding Cognitive Dissonance And Information Sources In Home Furniture Purchases, Toni-Rochelle S. Ford

Theses and Dissertations

The present research seeks to increase understanding of cognitive dissonance by exploring the various information sources that may influence the negative feelings that may arise during post-purchase evaluation. Specifically, the author focuses on the impact of consumer opinion seeking, traditional media search, internet search and social media search on cognitive dissonance by employing two studies. In Study 1, depth interviews are collected and analyzed in an effort to gain more insight into the search process and consumers perceptions of the helpfulness and credibility of different information sources. Categories of information sources, categories of which sources were deemed most helpful or …

Using Geospatial Techniques To Assess Responses Of Black Bear Populations To Anthropogenically Modified Landscapes: Conflict & Recolonization, Jamie Elizabeth Mcfadden

Theses and Dissertations

The convergence of three young scientific disciplines (ecology, geospatial sciences, and remote sensing) has generated unique advancements in wildlife research by connecting ecological data with remote sensing data through the application of geospatial techniques. Ecological datasets may contain spatial and sampling biases. By using geospatial techniques, datasets may be useful in revealing landscape scale (e.g., statewide) trends for wildlife populations, such as population recovery and human-wildlife interactions. Specifically, black bear populations across North America vary greatly in their degree of distribution stability. The black bear population in Michigan may be considered stable or secure, whereas the population in Missouri is …

Using The Unified Theory Of Acceptance And Use Technology To Determine Factors That Affect The Acceptance And Use Of Social Media To Advertise And Promote Agriproducts In Farmer' Communities In North Mississippi, Carlos Alberto Moreno-Ortiz

Theses and Dissertations

The present empirical study examined factors that affect the acceptance and use of social media platforms by farmers and vendors in farmers’ communities in North Mississippi for marketing their small farm businesses. Based on the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT), structural equations modeling was used to examine several relationships: (1) the influence of performance expectancy (PE) on behavioral intention (BI) to use social media; (2) the influence of effort expectancy (EE) on BI; (3) the influence of social influence (SI) on BI; (4) the influence of facilitating conditions (FC) on actual use (USE) of social media; …

Influence Of Winter Annual Cover Crops And Insect Management Strategies On Insect Pests Of Mississippi Soybean, Daniel Adam Whalen

Theses and Dissertations

An increasing cultural practice in soybean, Glycine max (L.), production is the use of winter annual cover crops before planting. Species of grasses, legumes, and forbs are planted for many agronomic purposes during the fall months. In the spring, cover crops are killed and soybean planted into the residue. When the termination of the cover crops is delayed for longer lasting benefits, insect pest issues can arise. The movement of insect pests from cover crops to subsequent cash crops happens through a connection known as the “Green Bridge”. Pests found in cover crops such as the pea leaf weevil, Sitona …

Investigating Ethical Dilemmas And Ethical Decision Making In The Field Of School Psychology Using The Multidimensional Scale For Ethics In School Psychology, Umbreen Iqbal

Theses and Dissertations

Ethical standards and principals are one of the most significant part of any professional field. Being an applied practice field, the application of ethical codes and conduct is a critical component for school psychologists. There have been numerous research studies on ethical decision making and ethical dilemmas in many applied fields to help update the ethics principles and codes, same is the case for the field of School Psychology (APA, 2017; NASP, 2010). The purpose of this study was to examine school psychologists’ professional characteristics with regards to managing critical incidents that pose potential ethical violations. An additional purpose was …

Making A Decision To Retreat, Relate, Or Retaliate: An Examination Of Theoretical Predictors Of Behavioral Responses To Bullying In A High School Setting, Megan Suzanne Stubbs-Richardson

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this dissertation is to extend General Strain Theory (GST) to examine prosocial, asocial, and antisocial behavior in response to bullying. In GST, Agnew (1992; 2001; 2013) asserted that negative emotions can lead to criminal or aggressive coping but there are a number of factors that increase or decrease the propensity to respond aggressively (Agnew, 1992; Richman & Leary, 2009). In this dissertation, I examine whether and how rejection (operationalized as bullying victimization) is associated with aggressive responding as opposed to prosocial (e.g., befriending others) or asocial (e.g., avoiding people and social events) responding. This dissertation consists of …

Implementation And Evaluation Of A School-Based Anti-Tobacco Program In Mauritius: A Pilot Study To Assess The Usefulness And Reliability Of A Tobacco Use Prevention Education Instrument, Shariah Hussenbocus

Theses and Dissertations

Tobacco use among Mauritian adolescents has increased steadily since 2008. Currently, Mauritius has not implemented any school-based anti-tobacco program and there is no instrument to assess the effectiveness of existing anti-tobacco school policies. Since the first cigarette can rapidly lead to nicotine dependence, targeted interventions must be assessed before established patterns of smoking appear. This study evaluated a tobacco use prevention education instrument to determine the effectiveness of a school-based anti-tobacco program. 26 male students completed a survey before and after receiving anti-tobacco lessons. Smoking initiation age could not predict likelihood of tobacco addiction (r(12)=0.320, p=0.311). However, after receiving the …

Examining The Impact Of Trauma On Reading Performance Among Elementary Students, Shelby Lynn Mcgrew

Theses and Dissertations

Beginning prior to the foundational study conducted by Felitti et al. (1998), individuals of all ages have been exposed to a variety of traumatic events that had the capacity to alter overall functioning in a variety of ways. Children and adolescents are a vulnerable subset of individuals who are often exposed to various types of trauma which has the capacity to impact academic, behavioral, and social/emotional functioning (Cohen, Berliner, & Mannarino, 2010). The adverse effects related to trauma exposure in children and adolescents have been correlated with externalizing and internalizing disorders, and decreased academic performance (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). An …

Examining The Stigma Of Sex Offending In The Media, The Community, And The Prison, Kristen Lynn Stives

Theses and Dissertations

The overarching goal of the current work was to explore sanctions experienced by sex offenders prior to incarceration, during incarceration, and after their release using three separate but interrelated studies. The first study analyzed how the media framed sex offenders, and how this compared to the media’s portrayal of murderers. The study used a content analysis of newspaper articles published in 2007, the year after the Adam Walsh Safety and Protection Act was passed, and 2017. Open coding (the identification of categories and concepts) and axial coding (the process of relating categories and concepts) strategies were used. Findings showed that …

How To Avoid Becoming The Accomplice To Your Own Murderers: Reading James Baldwin As A Critical Pedagogue, Breana Shrease Miller

Electronic Theses and Dissertations Archive

James Baldwin is a well-known author and activist in American literature. He had long been a champion of civil rights, using his platform to speak about the iniquities and issues affecting black people in America. Though his work is read often in literary circles, his writing could serve to supplement the field of critical pedagogy with Rhetoric and Composition. Paulo Freire, the conceiver of critical pedagogy through his foundational text Pedagogy of the Oppressed, identified the pitfalls of educational systems that see teachers as knowledge-givers and students as knowledge receptacles based on his experiences teaching illiterate adults in Brazil under …

The Changing Face Of Pester Power, Margaret-Anne Lawlor

Articles

No abstract provided.

The Rhetoric Of Missions Reporting, Bailey Cate

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Missions, especially short-term trips, are becoming more and more controversial. As short-term missionaries interact in the field, they take pictures depicting the poverty, lack of resources, and overall sense of destitution around them. These photos have helped generate income, as many Christians who see the photos as part of updates on mission work they supported come to see themselves in a position of “savior” because they have resources to give to “those in need.” Evangelism is a critical component of Christianity; however, how people evangelize and how they communicate about that evangelism is equally critical. By analyzing both the church …

Finding And Making Home: Poems And Reflections Of Undergraduate Children Of Immigrants, Gladys Perez

Master's Theses

The number of children of immigrants within the United States has grown over the past few decades and more so we are seeing a greater number of these children pursuing a higher education. With a growing number of undergraduate children of immigrants growing, there is a need to understand how they see themselves as a part of the United States. Previous studies take into consideration how these students navigate higher education, however, there is a lack of research on these students’ larger understanding of belonging within the overall nation. Poetry as data and a process was the grounding methodology that …

Catholic School Teachers' Attitudinal Beliefs About Linguistic Diversity, Katie Trautman

Master's Theses

As the population of young Catholics becomes increasingly culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD), Catholic schools must work to become more responsive to the needs of CLD students in order to uphold the tenets of Catholic social teaching and to sustain enrollment in Catholic schools. Catholic school teachers need to become more prepared to serve students from various linguistic backgrounds. As a component of this preparation, teachers must demonstrate positive beliefs toward linguistic diversity and students’ backgrounds as teachers’ attitudes toward students greatly impacts students’ learning and identity development. Using Catholic social teaching as a lens, this study investigated Catholic school …

Now Hiring: Exploring Deportee Transnational Identities And Socio-Economic Reintegration In Baja California, Mexico’S Call Center Industry, Brenda Vargas

Master's Theses

The anti-immigrant rhetoric in the U.S. intensified deportation, including that of Mexican and Salvadorian migrants with some having served in the U.S. military. Despite weak social connections and explicit/structural barriers in Mexico, many deportees make the decision to stay in Mexico. The focus of this thesis is male deportees belonging to the “1.5 generation,” aged late 20’s-early 60’s, who, after spending their childhood and adulthood in the U.S., have undergone deportation and are faced with social and economic reintegration in the northern border area of Baja California, Mexico. Through 15 in-depth semi-structured interviews, I explore transnational identity negotiations that impact …

Non State Sovereignty: A Case Of The European Union, Natalie Murphy

Master's Theses

This paper uses the European Union as a case study to look at sovereignty and the formation of a new type of sovereignty which both diverges and interacts with existing state sovereignty. The European Union is developing a new form of non-state sovereignty which diverges from traditional conceptions in three ways: The EU is a non-state actor; unlike in the past, a body is operating with and exercising sovereign rights outside of the nation-state formation. Secondly, the sovereignty of both the European Union and its member states overlaps. Both maintain exclusive responsibilities often tied to the state, but with the …

The Avenues Of Social And Economic Empowerment For Women In Ghana's Poor Urban Settlements, Comfort Amoah

Master's Theses

Poor urban settlements have over the years and in the present been described as places of despair and destitution with its inhabitants especially women referred to as the most poor and vulnerable of the society. This research however attempts to provide a complete elevation of the Avenues of Social and Economic Empowerment for Women in Ghana’s Poor Urban Settlements by using three contextual framework such as the social networks available to women and the political opportunities available to them in their communities and the role of men and women in achieving this agenda and how it has reshaped the status …

Garrett's Past Helps Him Build Toward The Future, Georgia Southern University

Athletics: News & Publications

• Garrett's Past Helps Him Build Toward the Future

The Effects Of Social Proof Through Social Media On Perceptions Of Responsibility, Taylor Powers

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Situational crisis communication theory, also referred to as SCCT, is a central and very well-developed theory in the field of crisis communication. The goal of SCCT is to create a response strategy based on stakeholders’ levels of attributions of responsibility. SCCT states there are two main factors stakeholders take into consideration when attributing responsibility to an organization in crisis: crisis type and performance history. While the previously stated factors are very important, the progressive development of social media is not taken into consideration in this theory, specifically the use of social proof through social media channels. According to the principle …

Identifying Inclusive Practices On U.S. University Campuses That Create Engagement For Diverse Populations, Brandon Tatum

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Interactions between diversity and inclusion have been incompletely studied on U.S. college campuses. Previous researchers have also demonstrated an incomplete understanding of these two constructs, resulting in uneven attempts to create inclusion on college campuses. Diversity and inclusion research on college life is needed because inclusion is relatively new and unexplored, student diversity in U.S. higher education is increasing, and practical models and programs for enhancing campus inclusion are lacking. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to identify best practices and student attitudes regarding inclusion and group memberships with Generation Z and Millennial college students in the United States, …

The Organizational Structures Of Instructional Design Teams In Higher Education: A Multiple Case Study, Jason Drysdale

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study investigated how organizational structures influence leadership over online learning initiatives for dedicated instructional designers in higher education. A qualitative research method was used for within-case analyses for 3 individual universities and a comparative case analysis of all 3 studied institutions. Purposive sampling was used to identify each university that participated and operated within 1 of 3 organizational structure profiles. Data were collected through document analysis and semistructured interviews with participants in 3 key roles at each institution: dedicated instructional designer, online faculty member, and online learning administrator. The organizational structure that most positively influenced the ability for dedicated …

Staff Council Meeting Minutes, Georgia Southern University, Staff Council

Staff Council Meeting Minutes & Agendas

No abstract provided.

Questioning The Dogma Of Banned Books Week, Elliott Kuecker

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

This article examines the dogmatic celebration of Banned Books Week in libraries in the United States through Foucault's notion of the speaker's benefit and the repressive hypothesis. Given that the books featured during Banned Books Week are not legally banned, but actually widely available, it appears this celebration does more for the identity of the field of librarianship than it does to fight censorship.

Users’ Perception Of Information Sources And Services At Vardhaman College Of Engineering (Autonomous) Library, Hyderabad: A Case Study, Srinivasulu Palikiti, Srinivasulu P

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

Currently, Engineering College Libraries in South India is in various stages of advancement with regard to sources, services and facilities. The VCE Central Library subscribes to a number of print periodicals (national & international), electronic resources (e-journals and e-books) and multiple volumes of books to satisfy the information needs of its users. VCE is renowned and as well as one of the leading institutions of Engineering Education in Telangana State. This paper describes the offering of the Information Sources and Services to the faculty members of Central Library, Vardhaman College of Engineering (Autonomous), Hyderabad and the purpose of this study …

Advancement, Marketing And Alumni Affairs Committee Agenda, December 13, 2018, Coastal Carolina University

Board of Trustees Agendas

No abstract provided.

Quantifying The Effects Of Transporting Psats On The Swimming Performance Of Juvenile Mahi-Mahi (Coryphaena Hippurus), Charles James Mcguigan

Open Access Theses

Various types of tags are used across a wide range of teleost and elasmobranch species to collect valuable information on life-history, behavior, migration, and habitat utilization. However, a limited number of studies have been conducted to investigate the costs associated with transporting these tags. Young-adult mahi-mahi (25-35 cm fork length) were tagged with miniature pop-up satellite archival tags (PSATs) to assess the impacts of tagging on various movement parameters in a two- part experiment. Using swim tunnel respirometry, this study revealed significant reductions in the critical and optimal swimming speeds of 10% and 24%, respectively (p0.05) between any of the …

Natural Stability Of Pollutants And Their Ability To Decompose Inecological Conditions, H. B. Yunusov, V. S. Kolodey

Bulletin of the Agrarian Science of Uzbekistan

In the given paper, we analyze various factors of pollution of the ecological environment by pollutants and toxicants. The concepts of the lifetime of pollutants in the natural environment (air, water, soil and organism) are determined, and the results of experimental data are presented. The problems of distribution of pollutants at local, regional and global scales are considered. On the basis of the literature analysis, they need to continue research into the study of ingredient contamination of the habitat which has been identified. The stability and duration of the presence of pollutants in the natural environment is an important problem, …

Academic Affairs And Assessment Committee, December 13, 2018, Coastal Carolina University

Board of Trustees Committee Minutes

No abstract provided.