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Behavioral Ecology And Physiological Health Of Managed Populations Of Juvenile Blanding's Turtles (Emydoidea Blandingii) In Urban Wetlands, Armand Andre' Cann

Master's Theses

Substantial threats to reptile species biodiversity have become apparent in the last few decades. This is partly caused by significant losses in grasslands and their associate prairie-wetland ecosystems. One Midwestern prairie-wetland species, Blanding's Turtles (Emydoidea blandingii), are at risk of extirpation due to habitat loss, fragmentation, and increased predator populations. Consequently, significant head-starting efforts, a form of reintroduction conservation using captive-reared and then released turtles, have been conducted to recover populations of E. blandingii in northeastern Illinois. However, the success of these programs both locally and range-wide have not been fully quantified. Unfortunately, many approaches to guaging success involve long-term …

Use Of Evidence-Based Best Practices And Behavior Change Techniques In Breast Cancer Apps: Systematic Analysis, Kerstin Kalke, Tamar Ginossar, Joshua M. Bentley, Hannah Carver, Sayyed Fawad Ali Shah, Anita Y. Kinney

Research, Publications & Creative Work

Background: Theoretically designed mobile health (mHealth) breast cancer interventions are essential for achieving positive behavior change. In the case of breast cancer, they can improve the health outcomes of millions of women by increasing prevention and care efforts. However, little is known about the theoretical underpinnings of breast cancer apps available to the general public.

Objective: Given that theories may strengthen mHealth interventions, this study aimed to identify breast cancer apps designed to support behavior change, to assess the extent to which they address content along the cancer care continuum and contain behavior change techniques, and to assess …

A Prototype Virginia Ground Station Network, Zach Leffke, Jonathon Black, Kevin Shinpaugh, Ian Harnett, Bryce Clegg, Nick Angle, Chris Goyne, Connor Segal, William 'Trace' Lacour, Mike Mcpherson, Dimitrie Popescu, Samuel Jensen, Jason Harris, Mary Sandy, Mike Miller

Electrical & Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

This paper provides a detailed technical description of a prototype ground station network, the Virginia Ground Station Network (VGSN), developed for the Virginia Cubesat Constellation (VCC) mission. Virginia Tech (VT), University of Virginia (UVA), and Old Dominion University (ODU) have each constructed ground stations to communicate with their respective VCC spacecraft. Initially, each university was responsible for commanding its own spacecraft via its own ground station. As the mission progressed, it was decided to network the ground stations and operations centers together to provide backup communications capability for the overall mission. The NASA Wallops Flight Facility (WFF) UHF smallsat ground …

When “Best I Can” Is Not Enough: Welfare Managers’ Appraisal Of Clients’ Mothering Practices, Brianna Turgeon

Research, Publications & Creative Work

The “mommy wars” are a cultural narrative of conflict between mothers that amplifies the scrutiny placed on mothering practices. While mothers at all social locations face criticisms for their choices surrounding parenting, mothers in poverty lack the resources to enact many socially mandated parenting practices and contend with additional scrutiny through participation in programs like welfare-to-work. In this project, I examine the parenting expectations mothers on welfare must navigate. I use 69 semi-structured interviews with welfare-to-work program managers in Ohio from 2010-2011 to examine which mothering ideologies they encourage and discourage clients to adopt. I find that managers are highly …

Proactive Personality And Creative Behavior: Thriving At Work As A Mediator And The Perceived Presence Of High-Involvement Hr Practices As A Moderator, Albi Alikaj, Wei Ning, Bingqing Wu

Research, Publications & Creative Work

This study examines the link between proactive personality and creative behavior by focusing on employee thriving at work as a mediator. Data from 438 employees and their supervisors were collected and examined by conducting structural equation modeling. This analysis revealed that employee thriving at work fully mediates the relationship between proactive personality and creative behavior. Additionally, the results showed that the perceived presence of high-involvement human resources (HR) practices in the organization enhances the tendency of proactive individuals to thrive at work. The paper concludes with a discussion of the implications for theory and practice as well as on directions …

Repairing A Nation: A Visual Exploration Into The American Debate On Reparations, Desi Jeseve Lapoole

Senior Independent Study Theses

The debate on reparations for slavery in the United States of America has persisted for generations, capturing the attention and imagination of America in waves before falling out of public consciousness over the decades. Throughout its longevity, the debate on reparations has had many arguments in support of and opposition towards the idea and has inspired many different proposals which seek to solve many different problems. Today, reparations have found new mainstream attention, thanks in part Ta-Nehisi Coates’ article, “The Case for Reparations,” published in The Atlantic, and to two new reparations bills in Congress. My research explores the …

Would You Date Her? How We Process Social Preferences And Social Perceptions, Madeline Claire Smith

Senior Independent Study Theses

No abstract provided.

The Continuation Of Violence: Analyzing The Retraumatization Of Incarcerated Survivors Of Domestic Violence And Evaluating The Potential Of A “Trauma-Informed” Prison Model, Eliana Kahn

Senior Independent Study Theses

The United States criminal justice system emphasizes punishment, in the form of incarceration, over the rehabilitation of individuals convicted of criminal activity. While confinement is harmful to many inmates, incarcerated women are even more vulnerable to the extent that they are disproportionately survivors of domestic violence and abuse. Given this vulnerability, the primary purpose of this study is to explore the impact of incarceration on survivors of domestic violence and abuse. I aim first to analyze the ways in which punitive institutions replicate dynamics of abuse, often retraumatizing female survivors of domestic violence. I then evaluate the policies and procedures …

Cheat Detection Using Machine Learning Within Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, Harry Dunham

Senior Independent Study Theses

Deep learning is becoming a steadfast means of solving complex problems that do not have a single concrete or simple solution. One complex problem that fits this description and that has also begun to appear at the forefront of society is cheating, specifically within video games. Therefore, this paper presents a means of developing a deep learning framework that successfully identifies cheaters within the video game CounterStrike: Global Offensive. This approach yields predictive accuracy metrics that range between 80-90% depending on the exact neural network architecture that is employed. This approach is easily scalable and applicable to all types of …

Greenbean Comics: An Independent Study!!!, Samantha Green

Senior Independent Study Theses

No abstract provided.

Born To Fight: The Virtues Of Pankratiasts Within Pindar's Nemean Odes, Elijah Culley

Senior Independent Study Theses

The goal of this study is to examine three of Pindar’s Nemean odes dedicated to victors of the pankration. I examine how Pindar constructs the athletes of pankration and the role that the sport plays in each ode. Pindar connects the past with the present by placing his athletes within the mythological timeline. He follows the Homeric tradition of epic poetry but adapts it to fit the context of lyric poetry. He transfers the qualities of Homeric heroes onto his athletes, introducing them as divine heroes in his own time. Pindar presents the pankratiasts as natural-born fighters who possess both …

Mother Nature And Menvironmental Politics: Analyzing How Gendered Frames Affect Support For The Clean Air Act, Grace Montgomery

Senior Independent Study Theses

While environmental issues are becoming more significant and frequent, concern for the environment varies. Research has shown a gender gap in environmental concern, particularly in that males see helping the environment as compromising their masculinity (Brough et al. 2016, 568). My I.S. examines whether and how gendered frames shape public support for the United States’ environmental air pollution policy, the Clean Air Act. In order to connect an issue to a frame, an individual will draw upon a relevant schema and apply elements from that schema in order to understand the issue. Gender is an accessible schema that strongly shapes …

Talking About Eu: The Impact Of Leaders' Discourse On Public Support For The European Union, Marco Roccato

Senior Independent Study Theses

This study asks how do changes in national political leaders’ (NPLs) discourse about the European Union affect public support for the EU? To develop an answer to this question, the research is situated in the tradition of discourse analysis, as it is better suited to understand the nuances in the discourse being presented to the population. In the literature reviewed for this project, EU-related discourse is presented as holding particular power in affecting people’s perceptions of European issues due to the historical low engagement and knowledge levels. The lack of a shared European public sphere and international conversations on topics …

Delete Your Account: A Methodological Investigation Of Leadership Trait Analysis And Its Ability To Utilize Twitter As Spontaneous Material, Jimmy Hinton

Senior Independent Study Theses

Given the important roles political leaders occupy within the international arena, it is vital that we understand the way they behave. In order to better understand a political leader, it is imperative that we analyze their personality traits. This study investigates the methodological applicability of Leadership Trait Analysis by asking the following research question: Is an analysis of social media an effective way to measure the Leadership Trait Analysis personality traits of international leaders? In order to answer this question, the study utilizes Leadership Trait Analysis to analyze the personality traits portrayed within the traditional spontaneous media (interviews/press conferences) for …

How Minority Candidates' Intersectional Identities Affect Their Use Of Race And Gender Issue Ownership Campaign Strategies, Mary ("Emma") M. Cotter

Senior Independent Study Theses

This Independent Study explores the ways in which a candidate’s intersectional identity affects their use of gender and race issue ownership techniques in their political campaigns. While prior research has studied the campaign strategies of (white) female candidates and black (male) candidates, it has not studied the effects of possessing multiple minority identities on the campaign strategies employed by black female candidates. Scholars have found that female candidates benefit from embracing gender issue ownership in their campaigns, while black candidates benefit from rejecting race issue ownership in their campaigns. I theorize that black female candidates’ intersectional identities preclude them from …

Modeling Community Resource Management: An Agent-Based Approach, Maya M. Lapp

Senior Independent Study Theses

As the human population continues increasing rapidly and climate change accelerates, resource depletion is becoming an international problem. Community-based natural resource management (CBNRM) has been suggested as a method to conserve resources while simultaneously empowering traditionally marginalized communities. Because classical equation-based modeling methods fail to capture the complexity of CBNRM, Agent-Based Modeling (ABM) has emerged as a primary method of modeling these systems. In this investigation, we conduct a sensitivity analysis and thorough evaluation of an existing ABM of community forest management. We then modify the original model by providing a new enforcement mechanism that improves the validity of both …

Understanding Behavioral And Emotional Responses To Frames Used By Animal Rights Organizations In The United States And France, Alysa Tarrant

Senior Independent Study Theses

The purpose of this study was to examine how varying demographics among French and American populations responded to three types of frames used by animal rights organizations: ethical, environmental, and health related. A two by three experimental design in which participants saw two images corresponding to one of the three frames was distributed. The survey measured each respondent’s political opinions, emotional response, and behavioral response through self-designed scales. The study finds that culture and political ideologies play a significant role in influencing frame response, such that the French respondents were more emotionally and behaviorally influenced than Americans, and that liberals …

Arguing Over America's Best Idea: Examining The Congressional Partisan Divide With Regards To Public Lands Policy, Anna Medema

Senior Independent Study Theses

This Independent Study investigates the effect of political party on Congressional roll-call votes on public lands policies and how this effect changes over time. Many scholars have documented the role that political party plays in influencing roll-call voting behavior, but this study fills a gap with regards to public lands policy specifically. I argue that, over time, political party has become more predictive of whether or not a member of Congress will vote in favor of public lands policies. The results of my study show that, beginning around the 1990s, Senators began to divide along party lines on public lands …

The Defense Cannot Rest: The Impact Of Funding For Indigent Defense Services On Incarceration Rates, Itala M. Colby

Senior Independent Study Theses

Since the landmark decision of Gideon vs Wainwright in the Supreme Court in 1963, free legal counsel for indigent clients has been required for every state in the United States. However, the reality looks very different than this ideal with indigent defense services across the country being under-resourced, under-funded and forgotten by many other than those that require their services. This is happening in conjunction with the explosion of incarceration rates throughout the United States. This study aims to explain the relationship between the levels of funding provided for indigent defense services and the rates of incarceration. Using a multi-variate …

Student Midwives’ Perception Of The Growth Assessment Protocol (Gap): Preparation For Clinical Practice, R Lawes, S Jones

School of Nursing and Midwifery

Fetal growth restriction is a major complication of pregnancy and increases the risk of stillbirth. Midwives screen for fetal wellbeing by measuring the symphysis fundal height to detect growth restriction, which can present in a low risk pregnancy or occur late in gestational age. The detection, surveillance and onward referral of these pregnancies are the responsibility of all midwives. To prevent avoidable stillbirth due to restricted fetal growth and to ensure safe, evidence based practice, the Perinatal Institute developed the Growth Assessment Protocol (GAP). A qualitative study using semi-structured interviews was conducted to explore 2nd year student midwives' perception of …

Acoustic Complexity Index To Assess Benthic Biodiversity Of A Partially Protected Area In The Southwest Of The Uk, Bede F.R. Davies, Martin J. Attrill, Luke Holmes, Adam Rees, Matthew J. Witt, Emma V. Sheehan

School of Biological and Marine Sciences

No abstract provided.

Balancing Conscience: A Response To Fernandes & Ecret, Ian D. Wolfe, Maryam Guiahi

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

There are many lessons that bioethics can learn from the Holocaust. Forefront are the lessons from the Nuremberg trials and the formation of research ethics. An often-overlooked lesson is how the Nazi regime was able to construct a hierarchy in such a way that influenced people to act in horrendous ways. Fernandes & Ecret, writing in Conatus – Journal of Philosophy 4, no. 2 (2019), highlight the influence of hierarchy on the moral silence of nurses and physicians within the Nazi regime. While we greatly enjoyed the paper, and think it is an important contribution, we find several misrepresentations of …

Assessing The Impacts Of Metals And Radionuclides On Marine Mussels: Proteomics And Ecotoxicological Approaches, Charlotte Crowther

School of Biological and Marine Sciences Theses

It is well established that anthropogenic contaminants occur in all probable combinations and therefore are not isolated in their threat to the aquatic environment. Recently there has been an increasing interest in measuring pollutants in environmentally realistic conditions to predict the potential detrimental outcomes on the ecosystem. This includes realistic levels of contamination concentrations, chronic exposures duration and mixtures of contaminants. With this perspective, in the present work, marine mussels, Mytilus galloprovincialis were exposed to concentrations of copper (5, 32 μg L-1), lead (5, 25 μg L-1) and tritiated water (HTO, 1.5, 5 MBq L-1) both individually and as a …

Fish Out Of Water: Investigating The ‘Readiness’ And Proficiency Of Beginning Drama Teachers In Western Australian Secondary Schools, Christina C. Gray, Kirsten Lambert, Sarah Jefferson

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

The Australian Professional Standards for Teachers (AITSL, 2011) stipulate that graduating teachers need to be classroom-ready and able to perform at a ‘graduate standard’. However, recent research indicates that nearly 50% of beginning teachers lack readiness, are overwhelmed with stress, and will leave the profession within five years. This paper seeks to elucidate this disconcerting reality by providing a nuanced focus on the experiences of beginning drama teachers. Findings indicate that while participants in this study began feeling confident and ready for teaching drama; they were largely unprepared for the unwritten requirements of the profession – namely, coping with systems, …

Final Year Preservice Teachers' Views Of Professional Experience In Partnership Schools, Dianne M. Toe, Christine Ure, Damian Blake

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

This study investigated the perspectives of preservice teachers’ (PSTs) on their final year placements in Initial Teacher Education (ITE) programs offered at Deakin University, Victoria, Australia. It compared the views of PSTs in two placement models; the Alliance school (partnership)and non-Alliance school (or conventional) models. The Alliance model draws on Activity Theory (Engeström, 2015) to strengthen the links between theory and practice in ITE, providing additional support during school placements through an ‘in situ’ boundary crosser. These boundary crossers use an Assessment Circle process that supports professional conversations about teaching and learning. A mixed method approach has been used to …

Teacher Biography: Solo Analysis Of Preservice Teachers’ Reflections Of Their Experiences In Physical Education, John E. Haynes, Frances Quinn, Judith A. Miller

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Teacher biography, as a reflective practice, was implemented in the context of Physical Education in a primary teacher education course at a regional Australian university. Second year students were asked to provide descriptions of a critical incident they experienced at the primary or secondary level in a Physical Education or sporting context (N=214). Their responses comprised the data for this study and the Structure of Observed Learning Outcomes (SOLO) Model was used to determine the levels of complexity of the responses to ‘alternatives for action’ associated with these incidents. More responses were multistructural (48%), than relational (24%), and unistructural (23%), …

The Effects Of Teacher Preparation On Student Teachers’ Ideas About Good Teaching, Eran Tamir

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Utilizing a mixed method approach, this study focuses on the perceptions of good teaching held by graduates of a teacher education program in the U.S. Specifically, this paper examines whether graduates embrace their program’s vision of good teaching and core standards as a guide to their self-reported teaching practice. Six cohorts of graduates’ responses were recorded and analyzed upon arrival and completion of preparation to examine whether students’ ideas changed during the course of the program. Findings suggest mixed results suggesting that teachers adopted several ideas about good teaching that are related to the core standards of the program (e.g., …

“I Actually Felt More Confident”: An Online Resource For Enhancing Pre-Service Teacher Resilience During Professional Experience, Caroline F. Mansfield, Susan Beltman, Noelene L. Weatherby-Fell

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

One responsibility of teacher education is to provide opportunities for pre-service teachers to build skills and strategies to develop confidence for overcoming challenges and build their professional resilience, yet how students learn these skills is not clearly understood. This study examines how engaging with online modules influenced participants’ efficacy and resilience during their final professional experience practicum. Interviews with 13 Australian pre-service teachers revealed that the module content and design reactivated existing knowledge, taught new emotional regulation and coping strategies, encouraged self-awareness and reflection, and built confidence. While further research is needed, participants used their new found knowledge during their …

Reflections On Journaling: An Initiative To Support Pre-Service Mathematics And Science Teachers, Lisa O'Keeffe, Kathryn Paige

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

In this article the authors present two different ways in which journaling has been utilised with final year pre-service teacher students (PSTs) in their primary/middle science and mathematics pathway course. Pedagogical practices that model effective teaching and learning in a tertiary setting are an integral component of this course. As teacher educators exploring ways to develop our practices, we introduced journaling as a teaching and learning tool. The first results section of this article focuses on the journaling experiences of PSTs, including the different ways they chose to engage with journaling and factors contributing to their engagement or disengagement. The …

Problem-Seeking In Teacher Education: Empowering Students To Grapple With The Complexities Of The Profession, Julie Ballantyne, Libby Flynn, Tammie Olm-Madden

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Preparing teachers for the realities of the profession is an ongoing concern for teacher education providers. In a climate where the future of teaching is largely unknown and the issues to be faced by teachers throughout their career largely imagined, the ability to identify and solve problems becomes increasingly important. This paper documents an evaluation of a pilot approach to preparing pre-service teachers for the realities of their profession. This approach, which centred on students utilising mobile technologies to problem-seek, was evaluated in terms of students’ perceived preparedness for the profession and their development of problem-solving skills and strategies. Results …