Digital Commons Network^™

Development Of A Text Message Stress Management Intervention And Its Impact On Perceived Stress And Coping Self-Efficacy Among Student Nurses, Kristin Jaye Henderson

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of the two studies was to develop a text message intervention and examine its effects on lowering perceived stress and increasing coping self-efficacy among nursing students. We also explored stress perceptions and investigated student satisfaction with the text message stress management program. Methods: For the first study, twenty three students participated in the focus groups for intervention development. Sample messages were presented to participants and feedback was requested. The messages were modified based on student feedback. The second study utilized an experimental pre/post design with a convenience sample (N=101) to examine the effects of the text message …

Turn That Frown Upside-Down! The Effectiveness Of Opposite Action In Changing Emotion, Kaitlyn Diane Chamberlain

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

While research demonstrates that opposite action (OA) impacts emotion (Rizvi & Linehan, 2005), we lack an understanding of the mechanisms by which it produces opposite emotions. The current study dismantled emotion regulation skill components by comparing tasks with different combinations of cognitive, emotive and behavioral components. I predicted that the OA condition would be the most effective in altering negative emotion. University students (n = 194) completed a sadness induction and were randomly assigned to either a (1) control, (2) low arousal positive imagery (3) high arousal positive imagery, or (4) OA plus high arousal positive imagery condition. The control …

Effects Of Traditional Scheduling Versus Flexible Modular Scheduling On Academic Achievement, Kenny Val Holland

College of Education Dissertations

The purpose of this dissertation was to determine the effects of gender and traditional or flexible modular scheduling participation on academic performance as measured by ACT Aspire Summative Assessment scores. Scores chosen for this study were from the 2018 10th-grade students in four Arkansas high schools. The samples were chosen from two schools participating in traditional scheduling and two schools participating in flexible modular scheduling. ACT Aspire Summative Assessment scores were used to provide the academic performance data for the dependent variable used in each hypothesis. During the spring semesters of 2018, the ACT Aspire Summative Assessment was administered to …

A Heavy Burden: Associations Between Sexual Minority Status, Mental Health, And Bmi In Women, Alison E. A. Goldblatt

Graduate Masters Theses

Sexual minority women (SMW) are at increased risk of elevated body mass index (BMI) compared to heterosexual women, which increases their vulnerability to a variety of chronic diseases. This increased risk of elevated BMI is likely due to unique minority stressors faced by sexual minority individuals, such as internalized heterosexism and discrimination. Minority stressors are associated with poorer mental and physical health among SMW, and SMW may engage in unhealthy coping strategies, like binge eating, to cope with these minority stressors. Research suggests that bisexual women, and other women with non-monosexual orientations, face elevated risks to their physical and psychological …

Human Rights And Justice Rights Approaches To Gender-Based Violence (Gbv): The Case Of Kenya’S Sexual Offenses Act (Ksoa), Maryanne W. Kamunya

Graduate Masters Theses

Sexual violence produces detrimental and long-lasting physical and psychological trauma that deters a victim’s ability to fully participate in the economic, political and social development of their community and nation-state (Legal Action Worldwide, 2014). To fight this crime, the UNDP has developed an International Sexual Violence Protocol. This Protocol recommends consolidation of sexual violence legislation into one document called the Sexual Offense Act. These laws tend to use a justice through rights approach to effectively criminalize and prosecute sexual violence within a comprehensive human rights-based model. By using a justice over human rights-based approach; Kenya’s Sexual Offense Act (KSOA) deviated …

Understanding Gaps Between Established Software Engineering Process Knowledge And Its Actual Implementation, Sayantika Bhattacharya

Theses

A part of Software Engineering (SE) Process Improvement is to identify and bridge the gaps between what we learn about established SE Processes and what we actually execute. Students majoring in SE degrees learn about various established SE processes in class and also try to execute them in their academic projects. In our research, we analyze student SE projects and interview these project teams to identify the gaps between what students learn in class about SE processes, what they think they execute, along with understanding the cause behind these gaps.

What A Night, Jose Hidalgo Thormann

Theses

Producing an audiovisual work is the ability to transform an idea, a story, a script into a tangible product, to bring it closer to the screen. After the production of any project, it is ready to be filmed. In this project, you can find the memories to carry out the production of a fiction short film entitled What A Night. This paper discusses the making of the short film by Jose Hidalgo Thormann to fulfill his thesis requirement to receive his MFA in Film and Animation from the Rochester Institute of Technology

Happiness Advantage: The Impact On School Culture, Jillian Sagan

Dissertations

The purpose of this evaluation is to analyze the implementation of the Happiness Advantage principles (Achor, 2011) to address the mental well-being for all school district employees. In addition to Happiness Advantage Training (Achor, 2011), the study seeks to determine if the implementation of positive psychology principles affects school culture, teacher engagement and student achievement. The program design incorporates whole district training, ongoing professional development for employees and the autonomy to generate new ideas to sustain a positive mindset for individual schools sites and classrooms. The findings indicate that when positive psychology principles are implemented across a school district, teacher …

Perceptions And Experiences Of Online Learning And Synchronous Communication, Michelle Fry

Dissertations

Abstract

High-quality and effective online education is essential to the continuous growth of higher education. As online higher education grows in professional programs, it is especially pertinent to investigate learning designs for their effectiveness in supporting the acquisition of professional skills. Drawing upon the Community of Inquiry (CoI) and the Practice-Based Teaching (PBT) frameworks, this research investigated the effectiveness of one online graduate program designed for practicing teachers to learn new skills (i.e., diagnostic assessment and differentiated instruction) in teaching reading to elementary students. The learning design introduced a new component of virtual presence (i.e., synchronous communication) at strategic points …

Diverse Learners In Inclusion Classrooms And Their Standarized Achievement Test, Janice Quartman

Dissertations

Special Education services has opened many opportunities for students with

disabilities and special needs. Disabled students were previously educated

in a separate facility barring them from educational and social interactions

with their non-disabled peers. Disable students are now entering their community

school and receiving services through an I.E.P. (Individual Education Plan). The

primary purpose of this study is to understand the impact of Standard Achievement

Tests of disabled students that learn in a co-taught general education classroom

with a regular teacher and a special education teacher. This study will be valuable

in revealing the academic achievement of students that have …

Influence Of Competitive Sports On Disordered Eating Behaviors In Young Female Athletes, Jill Bernstorf

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The field of treating and learning about eating disorders in athletes is a growing field that continues to flourish as more knowledge is acquired. The purpose of this study is to examine the influence that length of time in the sport, age at which an individual starts a competitive sport, level of competitiveness, and type of sport (leanness vs. non-leanness focused) has on disordered eating behaviors. The participants were college students who were involved in at least one competitive sport in their life. They completed the EAT-26 questionnaire as well as a basic questionnaire. There was not enough data collected …

Experiential Learning Tools For 5th Grade Scientific Concepts, Megan Cramer

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The experiential learning theory (ELT) has been integrated in educational programs through wildlife conservation education, Human-Animal Interaction (HAI), and Equine Facilitated Learning (EFL). The goal of this study was to evaluate the effect of different experiential learning tools, specifically animals and equine, on gaining knowledge through measuring the retention of 5th grade scientific concepts. Students attending the Institute of Wilderness Studies (IWS) at Pine Cove Camps in Central Texas were used to evaluate student knowledge through a quantitative assessment (n=142). Student knowledge was measured a total of three times using three assessments, one pretest and two posttests. Overall, the total …

Evaluation Of Modern Missing Data Handling Methods For Coefficient Alpha, Katerina Matysova

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

When assessing a certain characteristic or trait using a multiple item measure, quality of that measure can be assessed by examining the reliability. To avoid multiple time points, reliability can be represented by internal consistency, which is most commonly calculated using Cronbach’s coefficient alpha. Almost every time human participants are involved in research, there is missing data involved. Missing data means that even though complete data were expected to be collected, some data are missing. Missing data can follow different patterns as well as be the result of different mechanisms. One traditional way to deal with missing data is listwise …

The Role Of Prenatal Empowerment In Predicting Parent And Infant Outcomes Among Working Women, Yao Yao

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The current study examined the relationship between women’s prenatal empowerment and children’s social-emotional competence. A longitudinal study was conducted in Nebraska that included (N = 38) working women and their infants. Mothers’ prenatal empowerment and infants’ social-emotional competence, parental stress, parent-child relationship, and mothers’ knowledge of infant development were measured. Results from the current study did not support a direct association between mothers’ prenatal empowerment and infants’ social-emotional competence. However, mothers’ prenatal empowerment and infant’s social-emotional competence were both significantly related to parental stress. These findings indicate that prenatal empowerment may have an indirect relationship with infants’ social-emotional development. …

A Longitudinal Examination Of Bedtime Routines And Sleep In Toddlers, Amanda Prokasky

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Ample research has examined the impacts of sufficient and high-quality sleep on children’s health, development, and well-being (Chen, Beydoun, & Wang, 2008; Gregory & Sadeh, 2012; Touchette et al., 2009), yet less research has focused on the factors that contribute to sufficient and high-quality sleep in early childhood. The bedtime routine is one environmental influence on children’s sleep that has received little attention in the literature base and therefore is the focus of the current study.

In a sample of 399 30-month old toddlers studied over the course of one year, three aims were investigated: the within-age consistency of the …

A Mixed-Methods Study Of Entomology Incorporation In U.S. Secondary Science Instruction, Erin M. Ingram

Department of Entomology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

To encourage understanding and appreciation of insects, entomology education advocates have supported and encouraged K-12 teachers to integrate insects and insect-related content into formal science instruction. However, research examining how and why science teachers incorporate entomology into secondary science courses is limited.

A sequential explanatory mixed-methods research study was conducted to address this gap. The study was conducted in two phases. During the first phase, quantitative survey research was conducted with a representative sample of 254 U.S. secondary life science teachers. During the subsequent qualitative phase, follow-up interviews were conducted with a purposeful sample of 18 survey participants and an …

An Evaluation Of Sustainability In Consumption: The Behaviors Behind Purchase, Care, And Disposal Of Apparel, Ana La Rosa

Department of Textiles, Merchandising and Fashion Design: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Fashion trend cycles have become increasingly fast-paced and unsustainable due to competition and consumer demand in the apparel sector. Despite having sustainable apparel choices available, consumers seem reluctant to adopt sustainable changes in their consumption habits due in part to the market allure of rapid turnover of goods, better known as ‘Fast Fashion’. Paired with aggressive marketing campaigns that encourage increased consumption beyond need, the apparel industry keeps expanding at alarming rates around the world. Although it has been identified that consumers increasingly care about the unethical behaviors in the industry that negatively impact the environment, this feeling does not …

Mise En Scene And The Decisive Moment Of Visual Legal Rhetoric, Michael D. Murray

Law Faculty Scholarly Articles

This article explores the attorney author's understanding and implementation of principles that define how visual rhetorical works fulfill the task of effective visual communication and advocacy. These principles-referred to as mise en scene-will guide the attorney in the identification or creation of works that will exhibit the "decisive moment" of effective visual rhetoric in legal contexts. In equal measure, knowledge and understanding of these principles will enable lawyers to design and use effective visuals, and to challenge or respond to the visual rhetorical works proffered by their opponents.

Shakespeare's Nameless Characters, Savanna Stone

Criterion: A Journal of Literary Criticism

No abstract provided.

A Mixed Methods Approach To Understanding The Juvenile Re-Entry Mentoring Process, Sara E. Moore

Student Work

Juvenile mentoring programs are an institution of informal social control that through programmatic design intends to mitigate delinquent behaviors with the development of strong quality social bonds. In these programs, mentees involved in the juvenile justice system are matched with older mentors to form social bonds as a method of encouraging prosocial behaviors. The Juvenile Reentry Mentoring Project (JRMP) is one such mentoring program matching juvenile mentees in the justice system with undergraduate mentors. Research is clear that the longer the match relationship, the stronger the relationship (Rhodes, 2007; Garringer et al., 2017). Yet, research is limited as to the …

Exercise Recommendations For Cardiac Patients With Chronic Nonspecific Low Back Pain, Peter Ronai

Exercise Science Faculty Publications

Musculoskeletal comorbidities (MSKCs) are the most frequent cause of activity limitations in persons with cardiovascular disease (CVD) and affect as many as 70% of this population. It has been observed that over 50% of new outpatient cardiac rehabilitation participants experience some musculoskeletal pain, with back pain reported by up to 38% of cardiac rehabilitation patients. Back pain can limit performance of activities of daily living (ADLs) and reduce exercise tolerance and compliance during outpatient cardiac rehabilitation (CR). This article will describe ways to facilitate CR exercise participation in patients who have comorbid, chronic nonspecific low back pain (CNSLBP) and have …

Communicating Death To Potential Military Recruits: A Terror Management Theory Approach, Amanda M. Augustine

Communication Theses - Archive

Efforts to encourage more citizens to join the military is a prominent duty within a military organization. In order to maintain force strength, military recruiters and marketing teams need to persuade the population to join. This study used Terror Management Theory (TMT) and the relationship between the fear of mortality and its effect on motivation toward volunteering for military service in the United States. TMT is a theory that explains how the human psyche combats the fear of mortality, and this study sought to answer how mortality salience affects an individual’s motivation to join the military. TMT’s explanation of defense …

Psychogenic Antecedents And Apparel Customization: Moderating Effects Of Gender, Su Kyung Seo, Chunmin Lang

Faculty Publications

The impact of gender is critical in consumer behavior; however, gender differences have been overlooked in consumer studies. The purpose of this study is to examine how behavior-inducing psychogenic needs (i.e., need for uniqueness, self-promotion, and social identity) influence the way individuals perceive apparel customization, leading to buying intention of customized apparel products. Further, to identify whether gender plays a moderating role in the relationships between those psychogenic needs and the perception of apparel customization. The conceptual model was tested by conducting an online survey of 338 samples from college students in the United States. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was …

Admission Criteria: A Focus On Using The Interview, Vanessa Jones

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The growing number of candidates for allied health programs and the continued quest for identification of ideal candidates increases the pressure for allied health programs to continually improve their selection process. Despite past and recent research and the significant amount of literature on admission criteria for selective allied health programs, there is limited research on faculty perceptions of the interview as part of the admission criteria.

For this study, interviews were conducted with fifteen allied health faculty members who teach in a program with selective admissions. The interviews consisted of seven open-ended questions and were audio-recorded, then transcribed through Temi.com. …

Stories Of Color: An Exploration Of Storytelling And Racial Microaggression, Tama Lunceford

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study examines experiences of racial microaggressions as related to an audience through the art of Storytelling. Integrating Performance Ethnography and Critical Race Theory, it examines how storytelling may serve to illuminate the concept of racial microaggressions. After examining the current body of work on Racism, Storytelling and Microaggression, the author moves through the stories of experiences with racial microaggression from four individuals, gathered and performed as a storytelling event, before a live audience. The communicative management methods individuals use when talking about race and racial microaggressions are explored in presentation of the audience discussion which followed the performance. The …

Assessing Perfectionism As A Predictor Of Exercise Dependency Over Time., Sarah E. Ernst

College of Arts & Sciences Senior Theses

Exercise is generally thought to be beneficial for physical and mental health; however, when done in excess, exercise can lead to damaging physical, psychological, and social health consequences. This type of exercise is known as exercise dependency and is frequently associated with eating disorder pathology. Perfectionism (high standards and evaluative concerns) is a risk factor for eating disorders and is also associated with exercise dependency. However, no studies have examined longitudinal relationships between perfectionism and exercise dependency. The current study used a sample of adolescent females (N = 444) from a Southeastern United States high school, and participants completed …

An Exploration Of Psychosexual Functioning And Factors Affecting The Prophylactic Decision-Making Process In Women Of Childbearing Age With A Brca 1/Brca2 Mutation, Alexis Hayes

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Background: A breast cancer type 1 and type 2 susceptibility protein (BRCA1/BRCA2) gene mutation carries an 85%- 90% lifetime risk of developing breast cancer and a 27%-65% chance of developing ovarian cancer. There is minimal evidence regarding how psychosexual functioning, the psychological well-being in regards to body image and sexuality, affects the decision to have prophylactic treatment in women of childbearing age (18 - 49) with a BRCA gene mutation. Diagnosis of a BRCA gene mutation presents a dilemma where life-changing medical decisions must be made to prevent breast and ovarian cancer. Throughout decision-making and following surgical prophylactic interventions, such …

Predictors Of Short-Term Residential Treatment Completion Preceded By Detoxification For Opioid Use Disorder, Christopher Gideon

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Background and Significance: Deaths related to opioid overdose are increasing. Treatment for opioid use disorder (OUD) is necessary to help prevent future opioid abuse, and often involves opioid detoxification, followed by short-term residential treatment, typically lasting about 28 days. Literature regarding OUD and short-term residential treatment is limited. Predictors of short-term residential completion, including whether detoxification was performed, may help addiction professionals individualize treatments. This study’s purpose was to determine predictors of short-term residential completion treatment for OUD, and whether detoxification prior to entering residential treatment may also be a factor in residential completion.

Method: De-identified data regarding …

Understanding Diabetes Health Beliefs And Health Practices In Vietnamese Americans, Linda Sheen

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Background: Diabetes related complications resulting in mortality and morbidity are higher among Vietnamese individuals living in the U.S. with diabetes. Few studies have examined the personal perceptions and cultural beliefs pertaining to disease management. An in-depth understanding of perception and cultural beliefs in regard to diabetes self-management is needed for the development of culturally appropriate interventions in this population.

Purpose: Two specific aims were explored: 1) To explore how Vietnamese individuals living in the U.S. with prediabetes and diabetes conceptualize diabetes self-management and; 2) to understand how Vietnamese individuals living in the U.S. with prediabetes and diabetes integrate …

Factors Affecting Antiretroviral Treatment Entrance, Adherence And Retention Among Hiv Patients In Nigeria And Uganda, Nnenna Ananaba

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Introduction: The maximum benefits of antiretroviral therapy (ART) are achieved when HIV patients follow through the HIV Care Continuum. Understanding the factors that impact the Care Continuum are key in minimizing late ART uptake while increasing treatment retention and adherence in sub-Saharan Africa. Objectives: To explore factors that impact the various phases of the HIV Care Continuum, we review trends in median CD4 cells count and presentation with HIV advanced disease stage between 2013 and 2017. We also examined treatment retention rates and the impact of food security on ART adherence. Methods: Two datasets were reviewed. One dataset consists of …