Digital Commons Network^™

The Effects Of Dual Enrollment On An Institution: Student Persistence And Degree Attainment At The Community College, Stacey S. Irwin

Theses and Dissertations

The overall college enrollment rates for young adults have increased over the last several years. While this is promising, a notable amount of students do not attain a degree. This scenario can create major consequences for the United States as global competitiveness requires a workforce that possesses a postsecondary degree. Dual enrollment is a program that has been seen to answer the need for more postsecondary graduates. Despite the robust literature that suggests the positive effects for students who participate in dual enrollment, limited research exists on the effects of dual enrollment on the institution. Therefore, this study attempted to …

The Role Of Early Visual Cortex In Global Motion Processing, Marshall L. Green

Theses and Dissertations

Both visual area V1 and the medial temporal (MT) region of the human brain play a role in motion perception. V1 is thought to process "local motion," such as the movement of a single bird flying across a relatively small part of space, while MT is thought to process "global motion," such as the movement of an entire flock of birds flying across the sky. However, recent studies using fMRI to measure human brain activity have identified signals in V1 that appear to be global motion signals, although it is unclear whether these are related to global motion processing or …

Quantifying Pre-Industrial To Mid-Late 20th Century Anthropogenic Lead, Mercury And Cadmium Pollution In Caribbean Marine Environments Using Skeletonized Sea Turtle Remains, Felicia L. Pena

Theses and Dissertations

Various lines of evidence indicate that levels of anthropogenic pollutants, such as lead, mercury and cadmium, have increased in terrestrial and atmospheric environments since the early 19th century and the advent of industrialization. While the exposure to these three trace elements is a global concern, this study focused primarily on marine environments located throughout the Caribbean. Using ICP-MS, this study aimed to detect and quantify anthropogenic pollutants, specifically lead (Pb), mercury (Hg) and cadmium (Cd), using skeletonized remains of sea turtles as biological proxies for environmental quality. Archaeologically derived (n=5) and mid-late 20th century (n=6) Hawksbill and Green turtles were …

Social Inequality In The Early Bronze Age At Bab Edh-Dhra, Jordan, Natalie Patience

Theses and Dissertations

Bab edh-Dhra is the most extensively excavated cemetery from Early Bronze Age, Jordan. Despite thorough study, the social structure and existence of social inequality remain unclear. This was addressed using osteological evidence of physiological stress to compare between family tombs. In societies exhibiting social inequality, individuals of lower status experience higher levels of stress. Evidence of physiological stress (femoral length, LEH, metabolic disorders, periosteal reactions, cribra orbitalia, and porotic hyperostosis) was recorded using standard methods for 250 adults. The artifact counts in this study have been previously published. Differences in the frequency of stress indicators were compared using chi-square tests. …

Nostalgia And Forestalgia: Testing Construal Level Theory In Regard To Past-Focused And Future-Focused Marketing Appeals, Robert Wixel Barnwell

Theses and Dissertations

Marketing appeals often capitalize upon nostalgia. By highlighting periods of the past, practitioners hope to elicit positive associations in the minds of consumers between the past and desired responses, from purchases to donations to political support. Though less often, marketing appeals also draw upon the future as a way of making the featured good or service more appealing to potential consumers. Could these different temporal distances into the future or into the past impact the reaction of consumers? Could the context of a product being either hedonic or utilitarian have an influence on the outcome of these past or future …

Parent And Child Perceived Coping Socialization During Peer Conflict: A Qualitative Study, Janet W. Kwan

Theses and Dissertations

Despite budding research on parent-child discrepant perceptions of a child’s psychosocial functioning, the potential difference in individual perception of coping socialization is unclear. Further, literature suggests the onset of various impulse-control disorders occurs around middle childhood. Thus, the current study used a phenomenological approach and thematic analysis to examine perspectives of coping socialization, identify intended take away messages, and examine the perceived impact of inconsistent understanding of the interaction. Results indicated both parents and children use verbal and physical cues to understand one another during coping socialization and that their lab discussion was representative of their typical interactions. Themes emerged …

Who Does It Best? Towards Understanding Virtual Accountability Practices In Public, Nonprofit And Private Organizations, Asya Besova Cooley

Theses and Dissertations

The primary purpose of this dissertation is to comparatively review virtual accountability practices in public, private and nonprofit organizations, using the hospital industry as a case of analysis. Through the quantitative assessment of organizational websites, this study provides empirical evidence that there are statistically significant differences in how organizations conduct their virtual accountability practices. Nonprofits are leading the way in their overall virtual accountability practices. They are more likely to score higher on engagement, performance and mission dimensions of virtual accountability practices. Private organizations have the lowest scores on every dimension, except for accessibility. Public organizations have the strongest scores …

Prediction Of Energy Expenditure From Accelerometers During Physical Activity In Adults With Down Syndrome: The Effect Of Accelerometer Placement, Anthony T. Allred

Theses and Dissertations

There is a need to examine the difference in the relationship between oxygen uptake (VO2) and output from hip- and wrist-worn accelerometers in adults with Down syndrome (DS). The purpose of this study is to identify if that relationship is different between adults with and without DS. Hip- and wrist-worn accelerometer accuracy was also assessed. The sample included 16 adults with DS (10 men; age 31±15 years) and 19 adults without DS (10 men; age 24±6 years). We measured VO2 with a portable spirometer and accelerometer output (Vector Magnitude [VM]) with a hip- and a wrist-worn accelerometer. VM and group …

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 …

Stress-Buffering Of Social Support On Depressive Problems: Moderation By Parental Depressive Problems, Erica Marie Szkody

Theses and Dissertations

The impact of parental depressive problems on children’s depressive symptoms has been widely studied. The Stress Buffering Hypothesis states that social support acts as a protective factor between the impacts of stress from negative life events on physical and psychological health. The current study examined the stress buffering hypothesis in terms of the relationship between parental depressive problems and emerging adult depressive problems. The differential buffering strength of both perceived social support and received social support between stress from negative life events and depressive problems were examined along with the moderating effects of parent and emerging adult gender. Neither perceived …

The Differences In Stress Levels For African-Americans Working In Technical Based Occupations And Non-Technical Based Occupations In Mississippi, Michelene Piege Brock

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine if there were any differences in stress levels for African-Americans working in technical and non-technical based occupations. In order to adequately address the differences in stress levels for African-Americans, this study examined the data from an existing study called the Jackson Heart Study. Based on the weekly stress of individuals when performing their occupations, information and data were collected from 3 questionnaires that were correlated with stress and occupations of African-Americans in Mississippi. These questionnaires were the Household Enumeration Form, Personal Data and Socioeconomic Form, and the Stress Form. The research design …

Improving Dropout Rates In Mississippi Schools: A Case Study Examining Effective Dropout Prevention Programs In Mississippi High Schools, Shevonda Williams Truman

Theses and Dissertations

The dropout rate for many Mississippi high schools has improved tremendously over the last decade. In 2017, the Mississippi Department of Education reported that the dropout rate for the State declined form 13.9% to 10%. This rate was only 4% higher than the national average. However, with all the research that pertains to student dropouts and the success many states are seeing, there are still school districts failing to show improvement. Many high schools have dropout rates in excess of 20%. This study explored the perceptions of district high school principals, counselors, and other administrators working in schools with students …

Individual Differences In Creative Cognition, Sarah K. Craig

Theses and Dissertations

Creativity is increasing in value worldwide, but the processes underlying various creative abilities remain ambiguous. The most frequently used assessments of creativity (i.e., divergent thinking tasks; creative problem-solving tasks) differ in surface features and are also rarely examined together. These inconsistencies, in addition to mixed findings in the literature, have caused considerable debate among creativity researchers concerning the particular roles of independent or dual processes that lead to success on different creativity tests. The present study expounded upon these mixed findings using a factor analytic method. The results indicated that individual differences in working memory and fluency ability impact performance …

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 …

Impact Of Walnuts On Blood Pressure In A Small Convenience Sample Of African Americans In Mississippi, Camille N. Barnes

Theses and Dissertations

Hypertension is the cause of about 7.5 million deaths per year, globally. More than 40% of African Americans are diagnosed with hypertension. The aim of this study was to examine the effects of walnut consumption on blood pressure in a small convenience sample of African Americans in Mississippi. Fifty subjects participated in the study. Blood pressure was measured once a week for three weeks prior to the initiation of the intervention for a baseline data of the subjects’ normal blood pressure. During the 6-week intervention, the participants consumed a package of walnuts, daily. Blood pressure was measured weekly. The results …

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 …

False Memories In Recognition Memory: Recollection Or Familiarity?, Alexis E. Payne

Theses and Dissertations

False recollection refers to the retrieval of contextual information associated with an event that has not occurred. For instance, during a recognition task, one might identify a nonstudied word presented at test as old because she remembers the font color of the word during study. Although instances such as this are rare and typically occur at a varying rate of 0-5%, current models of recognition such as the Complementary Learning Systems (CLS) model and the Dual-Process Signal-Detection (DPSD) model do not contain a mechanism to account for their occurrence. Although both the CLS and DPSD models have support from studies …

Facial Expression Recognition By De-Expression Residue Learning, Huiyuan Yang, Umur Ciftci, Lijun Yin

Computer Science Faculty Research & Creative Works

A facial expression is a combination of an expressive component and a neutral component of a person. In this paper, we propose to recognize facial expressions by extracting information of the expressive component through a de-expression learning procedure, called De-expression Residue Learning (DeRL). First, a generative model is trained by cGAN. This model generates the corresponding neutral face image for any input face image. We call this procedure de-expression because the expressive information is filtered out by the generative model; however, the expressive information is still recorded in the intermediate layers. Given the neutral face image, unlike previous works using …

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 …

Afterschool Educators' Teaching Practices Through Tinkering: Nurturing Student Collaboration, Engagement, And Development Of Self-Confidence, Lianna Kali

Master's Theses

Since the early 2000s constructionist pedagogy has become an increasingly popular trend in both formal and informal science, technology, engineering, art, and math (STEAM) learning environments to support transformative educational outcomes through the making of personally meaningful objects and artifacts. But with this rise in popularity comes a challenge for educators: understanding what are the teaching practices that are most effective in a maker-centered learning environment to support student learning. Through an ethnographic case study of the teaching practices in a tinkering afterschool program, this study examines the core pedagogical facilitation moves of tinkering educators and investigates how those moves …

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 …

Influence Of External Peer Reviewer Scores For Funding Applications On Funding Board Decisions: A Retrospective Analysis Of 1561 Reviews, Lexy Sorrell, Nicola Mcardle, Taeko Becque, Helen Payne, Beth Stuart, Sheila Turner, Jeremy C. Wyatt

Peninsula Medical School

ObjectivesTo evaluate the influence of external peer reviewer scores on the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) research funding board decisions by the number of reviewers and type of reviewer expertise.DesignRetrospective analysis of external peer review scores for shortlisted full applications for funding (280 funding applications, 1236 individual reviewers, 1561 review scores).SettingFour applied health research funding programmes of NIHR, UK.Main outcome measuresBoard decision to fund or not fund research applications.ResultsThe mean score of reviewers predicted funding decisions better than individual reviewer scores (area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve 0.75, 95% CI 0.69 to 0.81 compared with 0.62, CI …

The Impact Of The Dual-Enrollment Modality On Subsequent Collegiate Performance, Daniel Archer

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Dual-enrollment College Algebra is offered in three modalities: at the college, at the high school, and online. The purpose of this study was to examine if the dual-enrollment College Algebra modality impacts early collegiate performance. A program evaluation was conducted using a causal-comparative design to explore potential cause-and-effect relationships between the dual-enrollment College Algebra modalities and five outcomes. The population included Oklahoma State System of Higher Education students who completed dual-enrollment College Algebra and subsequently earned freshman College Algebra postrequisite math grades, freshman College Algebra postrequisite science grades, or college credit in the fall semester after high school graduation. One-way …

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, …

Anxiety, A Growing Social Problem: A Systematic Review Of The Literature, Adela Robinson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Anxiety disorders as a stand-alone diagnosis are not recognized as a treatable mental health issue within the social services mental health realm. There are mixed results regarding if anxiety disorders are linked to suicide ideation and suicide attempts. The aim of this systematic review was to discover if there is a link between anxiety disorders and suicide ideation and suicide attempts within the current literature. All anxiety disorders were looked at, except for selective mutism and separation anxiety disorder due to these both typically only affecting those in very young childhood. The rest of the anxiety disorders affect those from …

Influence Of Demographic Characteristics On Utilisation Of Eirs By Postgraduate Students In Three Selected Universities In South-West Nigeria, Olubukola Basirat Diyaolu Mrs, Basirat Olubukola Diyaolu Mrs

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

Abstract

Electronic information resources (EIRs) referred to information that are available in electronic format. These resources are very useful in postgraduate education, but it was observed that some factors determined the use of these resources among the postgraduate students who are expected to use EIRs that are provided in libraries. In line with this, this study investigated influence of demographic characteristics on utilisation of EIRs by postgraduate students in three selected universities in south-west Nigeria. Descriptive survey research design was adopted for this study. 362 respondents represented the sample size for the study. Statistical Package for Social sciences (SPSS) was …

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 …