Digital Commons Network^™

Adherence To Prescribing Restrictions For Her2-Positive Metastatic Breast Cancer In Australia: A National Population-Based Observational Study (2001-2016), Benjamin Daniels, Federico Girosi, Hanna Tervonen, Belinda E. Kiely, Sarah J. Lord, Nehmat Houssami, Sally-Anne Pearson

Medical Papers and Journal Articles

Background: Targeted cancer therapy is often complex, involving multiple agents and chemotherapeutic partners. In Australia, prescribing restrictions are put in place to reflect existing evidence of cost-effectiveness of these medicines. As therapeutic options continue to expand, these restrictions may not be perceived to align with best practice and it is not known if their use in the real-world clinic adheres to these restrictions. We examined the treatment of women receiving trastuzumab for HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer (HER2+MBC) to determine the extent to which treatment adhered to national prescribing restrictions.

Patients and methods: Our population-based, retrospective cohort study used dispensing records …

Improving Household Surveys And Use Of Data To Address Health Inequities In Three Asian Cities: Protocol For The Surveys For Urban Equity (Sue) Mixed Methods And Feasibility Study, Helen Elsey, Ak Narayan Poudel, Tim Ensor, Tolib Mirzoev, James Nicholas Newell, Joseph Paul Hicks, Christopher Cartwright, David Wong, Caroline Tait, Sushil Baral, Radheshyam Bhattarai, Sudeepa Khanal, Rajeev Dhungel, Subash Gajurel, Shraddha Manandhar, Saidur Mashreky, Junnatul Ferdoush, Rumana Huque, Tarana Ferdous, Shammi Nasreen, Hoang Van Minh, Duong Minh Duc, Bao Ngoc, Dana Thomson, Hilary Wallace

Medical Papers and Journal Articles

Introduction: As rapid urbanisation transforms the sociodemographic structures within cities, standard survey methods, which have remained unchanged for many years, under-represent the urban poorest. This leads to an overly positive picture of urban health, distorting appropriate allocation of resources between rural and urban and within urban areas. Here, we present a protocol for our study which (i) tests novel methods to improve representation of urban populations in household surveys and measure mental health and injuries, (ii) explores urban poverty and compares measures of poverty and ‘slumness’ and (iii) works with city authorities to understand, and potentially improve, utilisation of …

Contextualizing Social Power Research Within Organizational Behavior, Michael Schaerer, Alice J. Lee, Adam D. Galinsky, Stefan Thau

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Although there has been tremendous scientific interest in social power, much of this recent research has relied on experiments in context-poor settings. However, organizations – a context in which power differences emerge naturally – are more complex and dynamic. The current review discusses whether and how defining organizational features at the intrapersonal level (multiple dimensions of hierarchy, dynamics over time, attentional demands), interpersonal level (interdependence, repeated interactions), and organizational level (accountability, culture, virtual work) moderate the effects of power. We also discuss ways to systematically incorporate organizational complexities into the study of social power and recommend fruitful avenues for future …

We’Re Less Likely To Collaborate In Bad Economic Times, Nina Sirola

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

In the fall of 1930, the U.S. economy was on a path to recovery following a contraction that occurred the year before. However, worries about the state of the economy, and the banking system in particular, prompted an increasing number of bank customers to attempt to withdraw their funds, an event known as a bank run. Because banks normally keep only a small proportion of deposits in cash, bank runs create a self-fulfilling prophecy such that initial concerns about banks’ possible insolvency ultimately cause insolvency. The bank run of 1930 resulted in the worst economic downturn in the modern history, …

The Management Of Natural Resources: An Overview And Research Agenda, Gerard George, Simon J.D. Schillebeeckx, Teng Lit Liak

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Natural resources underpin the foundation of human activity. Individuals and organizations consume vast amounts of natural resources as a matter of routine without much cognizance of their continued availability in the future or the true cost of a depleting natural resource. Over the past decades of industrial activity, organizations, communities, and nations have acted to protect their interests by investing in and securing their supplies of natural resources that support economic growth. An industrial complex, now variously termed as extractive industries, supplies crucial non-renewable natural resources such as oil and coal for energy or iron and aluminum for construction. Our …

From The Workshop To The Classroom - Examining Apprentice Perceptions, Anne Marie Mccarrick, Audrey Mccann, Odran Reid

Conference Papers

From the Workplace to the Classroom – Examining Apprentice Perceptions

The Irish government has reiterated its commitment to apprenticeships and how these form a central plank of the Further Education and Training Strategy. One of the main goals of the Action Plan for Education is to ‘create a greater diversity of learning opportunities beyond school’. Indeed, an increase of 19% in apprenticeship registrations took place between 2015 and 2016, and it is planned that this will grow by more than 30% by the year 2020.

This paper aims to identify both positive and negative perceptions of apprentices’ experiences as they …

Identification Of Taxonomic And Functional Ichthyofaunal Zones Within The James River Basin, Virginia, Joseph L. Noel

Theses and Dissertations

Environmental gradients structure ichthyofaunal communities longitudinally along river networks via the selective filtering of species’ traits. In many instances, these environmental influences have created distinct zones of co-occurring fish species. Zonation studies have most often been conducted with taxonomic data (species x site matrices), but the increasing availability of functional trait data creates an opportunity to build more rigorous understanding of species’ co-occurrence patterns. Notably, zonation studies that use taxonomic data may not reveal the same patterns as studies based on trait data. In this study, we tested for distinct ichthyofaunal zonation in James River Basin, VA using a combination …

Association Between Warfarin Adherence Trajectories, Hospitalization Risk, And Healthcare Utilization Among Medicare Patients With Atrial Fibrillation: A Group-Based Trajectory Modelling Approach, Mai Alhazami

Theses and Dissertations

Introduction: Warfarin is the most commonly prescribed drug for stroke prevention among Atrial Fibrillation (AF) patients, especially in older adult populations, but medication nonadherence reduces its effectiveness in clinical practice. Group Based Trajectory Models (GBTM) have been used to identify distinct patterns of adherence behavior related to various medications and understand the patient characteristics associated with each trajectory. The objectives of the study were: 1) Describe trajectories of warfarin adherence among Medicare AF patients, 2) Assess impact of adherence trajectories on AF-related hospitalization, 3) Estimate the AF-related direct costs for each adherence trajectory group.

Methods: We identified elderly AF patients …

Examining The Confirmatory Tetrad Analysis (Cta) As A Solution Of The Inadequacy Of Traditional Structural Equation Modeling (Sem) Fit Indices, Hangcheng Liu

Theses and Dissertations

Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) is a framework of statistical methods that allows us to represent complex relationships between variables. SEM is widely used in economics, genetics and the behavioral sciences (e.g. psychology, psychobiology, sociology and medicine). Model complexity is defined as a model’s ability to fit different data patterns and it plays an important role in model selection when applying SEM. As in linear regression, the number of free model parameters is typically used in traditional SEM model fit indices as a measure of the model complexity. However, only using number of free model parameters to indicate SEM model complexity …

Prosecution As The "Soul Crushing Job:" Complexities Of Campus Sexual Assault Cases, Tammi L. Slovinsky

Theses and Dissertations

On April 4, 2011, the U.S. Department of Education issued a Dear Colleague Letter on campus sexual assault reaffirming the intent of Title IX, the 1972 law that prohibits discrimination sex-based under any education program or activity receiving federal financial assistance. In response to growing concern over due process rights for defendants, in September 2017 the guidance was rescinded. Public policy continues to evolve, leading to potentially lasting institutional changes on many college campuses. These developments include the formalization of campus investigations and adjudications, the development of campus coordinating committees and expanded support mechanisms for victims. In Virginia, laws passed …

An Exploration Of Identity Negotiation In Adult English Learners’ Communities Of Practice, Kathleen D. Rolander

Theses and Dissertations

This study utilizes Lave and Wenger’s (1991) communities of practice (COP) model to explore how ELLs navigate their positions within and between their many language learning communities. Drawing on Norton’s (1995, 2013) work on ELLs’ identity negotiation and Wenger’s 1998 work on the reinforcing impacts of identities between multiple COPs, this study explores what adults consider to be their COPs, how they perceive themselves within and between them, and how past, current, and imagined or possible COPs impact each other.

A constructivist, multiple case study design was used to focus on participants’ perceptions of their identity negotiation processes through their …

Police Officer Perceptions Of Organizational Justice And Body-Worn Cameras: A Civilizing Effect?, Carolyn Naoroz Ph.D.

Theses and Dissertations

This research sought to understand the potential association between officer perceptions of organizational justiceand officer perceptions of body-worn cameras (BWCs). A questionnaire was administered to a convenience sample of 362 officersfrom the 750 sworn personnel from the Richmond Police Department in Richmond, VA, yielding a response rate of 91% and representing 44% of the Richmond Police Department’s sworn employees. This study extends prior work by partially replicating a previous BWC survey conducted by leading body-worn camera scholars, utilizing a large sample from an urban mid-Atlantic police department. This study also extends prior work on officer perceptions of organizational justice …

I Am An Author: Performing Authorship In Literary Culture, Justin R. Greene

Theses and Dissertations

Authorship is not merely an act of putting pen to paper or fingers to keyboard; it is a social identity performance that includes the use of multiple media. Authors must be hyper- visible to cut through the dearth of information, entertainment options, and personae vying for attention in our supersaturated media environment. As they enter the literary world, writers consciously create characters and narratives around themselves, and through the consistent and believable enactment of these features, authors are born. In this dissertation, I analyze the performance of authorship in U.S. literary culture through an interdisciplinary framework. My work pulls from …

Small Town Capital In Community, Christin Hardy

Theses and Dissertations

Rural towns often do not see community developments geared towards creating public spaces for multi-cultural experiences, the arts and recreation. Instead small towns are more exposed to commercial properties coming in and out the area. Introducing public spaces that offer various community activities and events will benefit people’s human and social capital. Human capital meaning skills and knowledge. Social capital meaning advantages and skills that come from interpersonal engagements (Anderson, 2004). Community centers designed for the unique needs of small towns can house programming to introduce new and rewarding opportunities for community engagement and personal development. Existing buildings within the …

The Mall: A World-Building Speculation On The Future Of Privacy, Hazem Asif

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis is a science fiction exploration of a future dystopian world where privacy becomes a dominant currency that is distributed according to social class and ranking mechanisms. It utilizes speculative world-building to study the unanticipated implications of technology on personal privacy, surveillance and social inequality on future societies. The project introduces The Mall, as a highly efficient and hyper-connected world, but also exposes its downfall as a society with heightened cultural and socio-political disparities. Inspired by past civilizations, the development of the modern nation-state as well as contemporary society, the design adapts, appropriates and reformulates existing cultures into new …

Ultrasound—Re:Viewing Bodies, Minjee Jeon

Theses and Dissertations

A medical evaluation of physical impairment imposes the additional burden of “labeling” the patient with the condition. The binary nature of the normal versus abnormal label emphasizes difference and can lead to trauma. Understanding differences, however, can lead to the generation of new forms and thus, more sensitive differentiation and representation. Tension is created by exploring different bodily forms—a dialectic between form and essence. I am designing a space that visualizes and illuminates difference as a source of trauma and amplifying the tension by comparing figures that represent varying degrees of normalcy. This forms a critique of idealized form and …

Enhancing Adherence To Prescribed Opioids Using A Mobile-Base Application: A Pilot Study Of Feasibility In Chronic Non-Cancer Pain, Daniel M. Sop

Theses and Dissertations

In this study we present feasibility of a mobile monitoring and reporting system that would provide an accurate unbiased screening tool to systematically analyze opioid adherence in Sickle cell disease patients. In addition, the software simultaneously measures pain. The Mobile Applications Rating Scale: a new and validated tool for assessing the quality of health mobile apps for engagement, functionality, aesthetics, information quality, subjective quality, relevance and overall impact was administered post usage to evaluate the application.

A total of 28 patients were recruited to review and test the software at one sitting. The majority of the population found the application …

Skin-Tone And Academic Achievement Among 5-Year-Old Mexican Children, Selamawit Hailu

Theses and Dissertations

Skin-tone based social stratification has been characterized as an enduring part of the U.S. racial landscape (Hunter, 2002). Despite the plethora of research that examines the racial disparities in education (e.g., Reardon & Portilla, 2015), and an emerging literature finding that lighter skin-tones are associated with higher educational attainment among adults (Hunter, 2002) few studies have examined whether similar processes emerge during early childhood. Thus, grounded in Garcia Coll and colleagues’ (1996) integrative model, we tested whether skin-tone predicted children’s academic achievement, and whether these relations were modified by children’s ethnic-racial identification (i.e., positive ethnic-racial attitudes and centrality). Consistent with …

Special Issue: Protestantism In The Balkans (Macedonia, Serbia, And Albania), Ruzhica Cacanoska

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

This issue of Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe is published as part of the celebration of the 500-years of the Protestant Reformation. In fact, this issue contains the works presented by its authors at the scientific gathering organized within the anniversary by the Institute for Sociological, Political and Juridical Research, a branch of “St. Cyril and Methodius University” in Skopje, Macedonia). The program, Scientific Wednesday, was held on November 1 , 2017. The scholarly gathering was titled Protestantism in the Balkans. Prof. Ruzica Cacanoska, as a member of the advisory editorial board of this journal, and also as …

Protestantism In Macedonia Today, Ruzhica Cacanoska

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

Protestantism arrived in Macedonia in the second half of the nineteenth century. Since then, a number of Protestant communities were established and their current membership is relatively small. The United Methodist Church in the Republic of Macedonia is considered to be traditional and is listed as such in the Constitution of the Republic of Macedonia. The contemporary Protestant structure is composed of 12 Evangelical-Protestant churches. The subject matter of this paper is a sociological research on the Protestant communities in Macedonia and it will focus on key issues related to the structure and functioning of their communities, their mutual cooperation, …

Protestantization Of The Roma From Southeastern Serbia, Dragan Todorović

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

The Protestantization of the Roma refers to the recent process of mass involvement of Serbian Roma in small religious communities of Protestant provenance.

The research was conducted using the deep interview method on the basis of a structured questionnaire with baptized believers of Roma nationality belonging to the Christian Baptist Church, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Christian Adventist Church, and Evangelical Pentecostal Church in the territory of Southeastern Serbia. The sample included both Roma and non-Roma high clergy of the abovementioned religious communities, as well as religious leaders of major religions of the region (Serbian Orthodox Church and Islamic Community).

This paper describes …

Climate Science Literacy: A Study Of Climate Programs' Usability, Amber Rochelle Williams

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Literacy is an important facet of understanding how undergraduate college students comprehend climate science. This research, conducted at West Virginia University, examines the usability of climate data in three commonly used climate programs to reduce the prominent knowledge gap in climate science literacy about college students.

The objective of this research is to investigate the knowledge gap in climate science literacy by conducting focus group surveys to examine the usability of programs that use climate datasets. The three programs used in this research were the NOAA online tool, NASA’s Panoply data viewer, and GrADS programmable tool. The NOAA tool is …

Reliability And Validity Of The Humboldt Food Addiction Questionnaire, Sarah R. Taylor

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Current research shows that foods high in sugar, salt, and fat can illicit addictive responses (Pursey, Stanwell, Gearhardt, Collins, & Burrows, 2014). Although measures of overeating pathology exist, only a few are dedicated to food addiction. Two of these measures are the Yale Food Addiction Scale (YFAS; Gearhardt, Corbin, & Brownell, 2009b) and the Eating Behaviors Questionnaire (EBQ; Merlo, Klingman, Malasanos, & Silverstein, 2009). Given the shortage of food addiction measures, the Humboldt Food Addiction Questionnaire (HFAQ) was developed to supplement the need for additional tools. Recruited from both a university and online, 626 participants completed this study. Reliability of …

Public Perceptions Of Homelessness In Humboldt County, John Thomas Krapf

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Homelessness is a social and political issue of great importance in the United States. For every 10,000 people in the U.S. 17 are experiencing homelessness (Bishop et al. 2017). Despite being a consequence of structural factors in the economy such as a lack of affordable housing and livable wages, the news media often frames the issue as an outcome of individualistic factors such as deviant characteristics, criminality, and personal flaws like drug addiction and mental illness. This study examines public perceptions of homelessness in Humboldt County. To explore this question, I conducted a content analysis of 94 articles on homelessness …

Stormwater Management In Philadelphia: The Importance Of Green Stormwater Infrastructure And Community Involvement In Greater Citywide Sustainability, Julie Groff

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

In 2000, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) found the City of Philadelphia to be in violation of the Clean Water Act (CWA) of 1972 due to insufficient stormwater infrastructure. In 2011, Philadelphia initiated a 25-year, citywide plan called Green City, Clean Waters to reduce stormwater runoff by implementing green stormwater infrastructure (GSI). The plan promised significant community involvement in the process. I conducted semi-structured interviews with City employees and individuals in the community that have partnered with the City to administer GSI and participant observation of community meetings and used them to explore different neighborhoods’ experiences with Green City, Clean …

Words To Cook By: Changing Meanings Of Eating Local In Humboldt County, Nora E. Mounce

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Humboldt County has an active food system of small, sustainable farms and a vibrant cottage food industry. Yet, this system fails to address the needs of a diverse population that struggles with a disproportionate degree of poor health outcomes. In order to understand the unique challenges facing the region’s food system – and how local government and advocacy groups should begin to address healthy food policy - this research thesis analyzes key texts about food, which illustrate the language and ideologies of eating local in Humboldt County. This research thesis found that the concept of eating local – consuming foodstuffs …

Community-Based Initiatives For Neighborhood And Community Rehabilitation: A Case Study Of The Mission District, San Francisco, California, Francesca Monique Gallardo

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Through the case study of San Francisco, CA’s Mission District, this research project addresses how community-based affordable housing development is operationalized to rehabilitate communities and neighborhoods experiencing effects of gentrification, mass displacement, and cultural dilution. My goals were to identify how the processes of building a sense of community, trust, and cohesion- rehabilitating and critical to affordable housing development efforts in the Mission District? And, how are nonprofit community development organizations engaging with these processes in collaboration with citizen and community partners? The final objective is to provide evidence-based strategies to assist other at-risk minority communities and neighborhoods in the …

Addicts Speak: An Exploratory Ethnographic Study Of Opioid Addiction, James A. Hamm

Honors Theses

This thesis explores the experiences of people in recovery from opioid addiction in order to better understand the many process of recovery. Employing both participant observation and focused life history interview, and utilizing a grounded theory approach to data analysis, this research emphasizes data-driven conclusions. The research provides numerous insights into the process of recovery from opioid addiction, as well as factors that help to facilitate and sustain the process, the role that services play, and how services can be developed to better meet the needs of those in recovery.

Targeting Collection Assessment Data To The Intended Audience, Kimberly S. Westbrooks, Paula Barnett-Ellis

Research, Publications & Creative Work

At Jacksonville State University, additions of new degree programs have added greater importance to collection assessments as a guide for future budget planning and the accreditation process. Collection assessments give librarians and administrators an overview of the library’s collections, justification for expenditures, and disclosure of areas in need of strengthening. Assessments highlight resources and their access points, while justifying the resources’ presence to faculty stakeholders. An approachable assessment can be a valuable tool to introduce or reacquaint faculty with the collection development process and with classroom and research resources.

Evaluation Of Wvuteach: Enrollment, Retention, And Students' Intentions, Catherine Garner

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Background/Purpose: Mathematics and science achievement of K-12 students in the United States is lagging the achievement of students in other developed countries. A shortage of highly qualified teachers in the areas of science, technology, mathematics, and engineering (STEM) is a contributing factor to lower achievement. One solution is to provide an efficient means for STEM students to earn a teaching certification without adding time to their current four-year degree programs. In 2015, West Virginia University introduced WVUteach, a program designed to encourage students in STEM majors to earn their teaching certifications while they are earning their degrees in their major …