Digital Commons Network^™

Insulin Is My Fuel, Jean Paul Vivas

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

The assertion that moments of play empower individuals to find balance amidst the tension of creation and destruction is a central tenet of my artistic philosophy. Through the expressive medium of painting, I have discovered that playfulness can serve as a responsive process that facilitates a flexible approach to coping with the complexities of identity, ideology, and morality. This fertile ground for creativity has become a means of defining a sense of life that is informed by my ongoing struggles with a diabetic medical condition. As my body's dependency on insulin necessitates a constant movement between the frustrations of daily …

In Between Lines: An Investigation Of The Ghanaian Migration Experience, Teddy Osei

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

As my socio-cultural experiences continue to evolve, so does my interest in contemporary border discourses. The question of ''who qualifies to be where and how,'' lingers in my mind daily as I reflect on my migration experience as a Ghanaian living in the United States of America. Another area of interest is the social and physical challenges endured by individuals transitioning from one geographic location to another.In replicating these experiences, I make ceramic sculptural vessels associated with sojourning. In my ceramic sculptures, I use specific elements, such as ropes and Ghana must-go bags, which honor Africa's past and its people …

A Part From You, Kenneth Rick Briggenhorst Jr.

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

I invite empathy through art that is technologically assisted to find alternative interpretations for nontheologically informed faith. The sudden passing of my dearest friend, Jimmy, encouraged me to dig through my archives of data, to cherish all the bytes that remain of him. In this endeavor, I find that death is not the end, but a post-physical state of being. I express this sentiment in a part from you, where the work utilizes inanimate constructs to place your faith in, to make sense of the complexities of grief in a digitally tethered way of life. This life that allows many …

Using Intentional Strategies To Promote Self-Efficacy In A Choral Classroom: An Action Research Study, Daniel Gutierrez

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

As a choral music educator, I investigated the impact of strategies I designed to foster self-efficacy in one of my choral classes. Drawing on Albert Bandura’s Social Cognitive Theory, I used enactive mastery, vicarious experience, verbal/social persuasion, and affective/physiological states to design specific classroom tasks that would serve as critical influences on an individual’s self-efficacy. The action research study was conducted with a mixed-gender choir class of grades 10-12 students, using Michael Zelenak’s Music Performance Self-Efficacy Scale as a pre-and post-survey measure. Observational and qualitative data were also collected to enable a reflective examination of teaching practices and student-teacher interactions.

Student Perspectives Of Music Courses In A Southwest Missouri School District: An Exploratory Case Study, Mary Elisa Wren

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate student personal perspectives (grades 8-12) of music courses, their value, and what music courses they might choose or recommend. Numerous researchers and educators have debated and researched how music course offerings and instructional approaches used are central to the relevance, inclusiveness, accessibility, and equity in music education (Abramo, 2011; Clauhs & Cremata, 2020; Cooper, 2013; Green, 2006; Kelly & Heath, 2015). However, few researchers have investigated how students think about the motivations and barriers to different types of music courses. A semi-structured interview was used to explore secondary music students’ (a) perceptions, …

Backsliding And Bad Faith: Aspiration, Disavowal, And (Residual) Practical Identities, Justin F. White

Faculty Publications

Disavowals such as "That's not who I am" are one way to distance ourselves from unsavory actions in order to try to mitigate our responsibility for them. Although such disclaimers can be what Harry Frankfurt calls "shabbily insincere devices for obtaining unmerited indulgence," they can also be a way to renew our commitments to new values as part of the processes of aspiration and moral improvement. What, then, separates backsliding aspirants from those in denial who seek unmerited indulgence? Drawing on Christine Korsgaard, on the one hand, and Heidegger and Merleau-Ponty, on the other, I propose a two-dimensional account of …

Specialized Intensive Inpatient Rehabilitation Is Crucial And Time-Sensitive For Functional Recovery From Disorders Of Consciousness, Bradley Chi, Colton Reeh, Sheng Li, Sunil Kothari

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

BACKGROUND: Disorders of consciousness (DoCs) after severe brain injury are considered to be conditions with dire prognosis. Despite the accumulating evidence, inpatient rehabilitation is often denied by payers referring to the Medicare/Medicaid criteria, under the assumption that such patients will not "

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to report on the effectiveness and efficiency of a specialized inpatient DoC rehabilitation program based on measurable clinical parameters.

METHODS: A retrospective cohort study was conducted. The cohort comprised 137 patients with DoC admitted to a specialized acute inpatient rehabilitation program between January 2014 and October 2018. Patients were categorized as having been admitted …

The Effect Of Different Warm-Up Durations On Subjective And Objective Measures Of Singing In Choral Singers Over The Age Of 55, Jeremy A. Chesman

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

Choral singing is a popular activity in the United States. Choral singers are often encouraged to warm up vocally before they sing. Considering voice conditions, like presbyphonia, that can develop shortly after retirement, more research about vocal warm-ups is needed for those over the age of 55. This study assesses the effects of various durations of vocal warm-ups on subjective and objective measures of the singing voice using a within-groups design with randomized condition order. Nine participants performed vocal warm-ups for 0, 5, 10, and 15 minutes. A song sample was then recorded and sent to two expert raters who …

Investigation To Examine The Profile Of Auditory Brainstem And Hearing Thresholds Using Tone Burst Audiometry Brainstem Response In A Preclinical Migraine Model, Megan Huelsing

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

Migraine is a disabling neurological disease that is characterized by prominent auditory symptoms, including hyperacusis, which is defined as extreme sensitivity to sounds. The goal of this study was to investigate changes in hearing sensitivity and neural changes in the brainstem by measuring neural activity of the auditory brainstem in an established preclinical model of chronic migraine. To induce a chronic migraine state within the trigeminal system, male and female Sprague Dawley rats were subjected to three known human risk factors including neck muscle tension and REM sleep deprivation that promote latent sensitization, and exposure to a pungent odor, which …

Data-Integrity Aware Stochastic Model For Cascading Failures In Power Grids, Rezoan Ahmed Shuvro, Pankaz Das, Jamir Shariar Jyoti, Joana M. Abreu, Majeed M. Hayat

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

The reliable operation of power grids during cascading failures is heavily dependent on the interdependencies between the power grid components and the supporting communications and control networks. Moreover, the system operators' expertise in dealing with cascading failures can play a pivotal role during contingencies. In this paper, a dynamical probabilistic model is developed based on Markov-chains, which captures the dynamics of cascading failures in the power grid. Specifically, a previously developed Markov-chain based model is extended to capture the trade-off between the benefits of having a robust communication infrastructure and its vulnerability from data integrity (e.g., cyber-attacks). State-space reduction of …

Health Care Equity Through Intelligent Edge Computing And Augmented Reality/Virtual Reality: A Systematic Review, Vishal Lakshminarayanan, Aswathy Ravikumar, Harini Sriraman, Sujatha Alla, Vijay Kumar Chattu

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Faculty Publications

Intellectual capital is a scarce resource in the healthcare industry. Making the most of this resource is the first step toward achieving a completely intelligent healthcare system. However, most existing centralized and deep learning-based systems are unable to adapt to the growing volume of global health records and face application issues. To balance the scarcity of healthcare resources, the emerging trend of IoMT (Internet of Medical Things) and edge computing will be very practical and cost-effective. A full examination of the transformational role of intelligent edge computing in the IoMT era to attain health care equity is offered in this …

Enablers And Barriers Of Communication In Virtual Engineering Teams: The Role Of Teamwork Skills And Emergent Conflict, Pilar Pazos, Francisco Cima

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Faculty Publications

Communication is a critical process that facilitates team members' coordination, expertise exchange, decision-making, and, consequently, team elfectiveness. A focus on effective communication is critical in virtual teams due to their lack of face-to-face interactions and social presence. Communication becomes challenging in remote settings, and specific skills emerge as more essential to success. It is known that effective teams rely on planning, execution, and interpersonal skills to be successful. Still, the specific impact of these skills on virtual team effectiveness is not well understood. Additionally, conflict can emerge as a significant barrier to collaboration for remote teams that can hinder their …

Creating Portfolio Management Concepts For Highly Agile And Innovative Government Research Programs Using Design Thinking And Learn Start Up Methodologies, Vanessa Aubuchon, Resit Unal, Pilar Pazos, Holly Handley, Cindy Daniels

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Faculty Publications

Managing a research and development (R&D) portfolio presents numerous challenges, such as prioritizing research areas, remaining agile, strategic workforce planning, and measuring return on investment, impact, and innovation. One government R&D program is charged with producing a high degree of innovative, transformational breakthroughs in aviation technology. A practical, structured methodology for strategically prioritizing emerging aviation R&D in such an environment is lacking. The existing multi-criteria decision aid tools are primarily utilized at an enterprise level, take months to set up and collect data, require large teams of experts, are used on an infrequent basis, and are not conducive to a …

Integrating The Theory Of Planned Behavior And Bonding Social Capital To Examine Chinese Women’S Tampon Use Intentions, Yin Yang, Young Kim

College of Communication Faculty Research and Publications

This study integrates the theory of planned behavior with a structural approach to examining social capital to investigate how bonding social capital affected Chinese women’s tampon use intentions. Bonding social capital was operationalized as network closure, which included two main dimensions: density and hierarchy. Results from an online survey (N = 766) showed that network density was positively associated with attitudes toward, social norms about, and perceived behavior control around tampon usage, while network hierarchy negatively predicted attitudes only. Moreover, the indirect effects of network density on tampon use intentions were mediated by descriptive norms and perceived behavior control. …

Covering (Il)Legible Bodies: A Cda Of News Discourse About Undocuqueer Life In The U.S., Ayleen Cabas-Mijares

College of Communication Faculty Research and Publications

News narratives about immigration shape not only constructions of immigrants but of nation states. Through a critical content analysis informed by intersectionality and queer of color critique, this study explores how the news coverage of undocumented LGBTQ immigrants and the Undocuqueer Movement render distorted and incomplete constructions of these immigrants, their struggles and activism. Furthermore, the analysis shows how selective (mis)representations and erasures in the coverage contribute to the constitution of a homonationalist reimagination of the United States. Additionally, the paper makes the case for the incorporation of transnational sensibilities to enhance intersectional approaches to reporting.

Whose Public Virtue? Exploring Freedom Of Information Efficacy And Support, A.Jay Wagner

College of Communication Faculty Research and Publications

Little is known about public perceptions of how FOI laws influence government operations or impact citizens’ daily lives. A large representative sample of U.S. adults was surveyed for support of FOI laws and perceptions of FOI efficacy. Findings showed advanced education and higher perceptions of general government efficacy to be strongly significant in predicting both support for FOI and greater FOI efficacy. Males and liberal respondents also demonstrated significance in predicting support for FOI and higher FOI efficacy, while Black race was a significant negative predictor in support for FOI and whether FOI improved government operations and accountability.

Arhs 5973 Seminar In Art History, Ana Pulido Rull

All Syllabi

No abstract provided.

Perioperative Outcomes Of Patients With Bleeding Disorders Undergoing Major Surgery At An Academic Hemophilia Treatment Center, Ruben Rhoades, Zachary French, Amy Yang, Karen Walsh, Douglass A. Drelich, Steven E. Mckenzie

Department of Medicine Faculty Papers

Persons with bleeding disorders (PwBD) are at high risk for bleeding with invasive procedures. However, the risk of bleeding in PwBD undergoing major surgery and outcomes of patients managed perioperatively at a hemophilia treatment center (HTC) are not well described. We performed a retrospective review of surgical outcomes among PwBD undergoing major surgery between January 1st, 2017 and December 31st, 2019 at the Cardeza Foundation Hemophilia and Thrombosis Center in Philadelphia, PA. The primary outcome was postoperative bleeding, assessed according to the ISTH-SSC's 2010 definition. Secondary outcomes included use of unplanned postoperative hemostatic therapy, LOS, and 30-day readmission rate. Results …

Listening To The Aftermath Of Crime: True Crime Podcasts, Amanda R. Keeler

College of Communication Faculty Research and Publications

No abstract provided.

Employee Sensemaking Of Csr: On Micro-Discourses Of Corporate Social Responsibility, Katharine Miller

College of Communication Faculty Research and Publications

Purpose: Recently, scholars are pushing for an internal corporate social responsibility (CSR) view through employee perspectives regarding CSR efforts, particularly in considering how organizations can act responsibly toward internal stakeholders (May, 2011). Thus, research has begun taking a “micro-turn” in analyzing CSR (Aguinis and Glavas, 2012), focused on individual analysis of such practices within organizations. The purpose of this study is to uncover the organizational sensemaking of CSR by an important yet less understood stakeholder group, employees.

Design/methodology/approach: This study takes a primarily qualitative, micro-approach via interviews (n = 42) to understanding the internal sensemaking of various organizations' CSR …

Leading The Charge: Female Leaders Advance Dei Initiatives Through Employee Empowerment, Kati Tusinski Berg, Katharine Miller

College of Communication Faculty Research and Publications

Today the public relations industry faces the challenge of championing and executing diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts. Women leaders in public relations are well situated to do this work and drive meaningful change. A grounded theory approach was chosen to analyze narratives from the honorees of PRWeek’s Women of Distinction classes from the last three years. We argue that female public relations leaders are advancing the conversation related to DEI initiatives to empower their organizations and, in turn, shape the larger societal discourse on DEI. Our thematic analysis of narratives by female leaders in public relations resulted in four …

Snake In The Grass: Adapting Sex And Sexuality From Journalistic Truth To The Silver Screen, Patrick R. Johnson

College of Communication Faculty Research and Publications

No abstract provided.

Public’S Ethical Perception, Moral Outrage In Activism: Testing A Perceptual-Affective-Behavioral Model For Public Activism In Ethical Issues, Kyujin Shim, Young Kim, Chihyao Chang

College of Communication Faculty Research and Publications

Purpose

This study aims to propose a model of publics' ethical activism, testing the role of emotional outrage in an extended framework of the previously established STOPS model. Thus, this study aims to investigate (1) how ethical perception of a social issue affects situational motivation that leads to participation in public activism, and (2) how emotional outrage plays a role in mediating between situational motivation and activism behaviors.

Design/methodology/approach

The study aims at investigating the mediating role of emotional outrage between situational motivation and activism behaviors, which have not been investigated thoroughly in public relations research. By conducting a national …

A Test Of A Dual Model Of Positive And Negative Eors: Dialogic Employee Communication Perceptions Related To Employee-Organization Relationships And Employee Megaphoning Intentions, Minjeong Kang, Ejae Lee, Young Kim, Sung-Un Yang

College of Communication Faculty Research and Publications

This study investigated how employees’ perceptions of an organization’s dialogic employee communication influence their evaluations of their positive and negative relationships with the organization. The study further examined how employees’ relationship assessments could drive their intentions for positive and negative megaphoning about their organizations. To test the differentiating effects of dialogic employee communication on positive and negative employee-organization relationships (EORs) and, subsequently, employee megaphoning intentions, we used a dual measure with the positive and the negative EORs. The online survey of 527 full-time U.S. employees showed that dialogic employee communication – particularly mutuality orientation – distinctively influenced the employees’ EOR …

Finding Political Balance In Times Of Political Inconsistency, Patrick R. Johnson

College of Communication Faculty Research and Publications

No abstract provided.

To Stay Silent Or Speak Up Against Corporate Racial Discrimination? An Internal Public Segmentation Approach To Employee Voice And Silence Behaviors, Young Kim, Hyunji (Dana) Lim

College of Communication Faculty Research and Publications

This book aims to explore the connection between internal communication and employee engagement in both educational and business settings. Through the collection of chapters contributed by leading public relations, communication, and management scholars as well as seasoned practitioners, readers will gain new insights into current issues in internal communication and employee engagement through a series of real-world case studies analyzing current issues and offering best practices in internal communication and employee engagement in specific industry and organization settings.

Learning outcomes and discussion questions for both classroom use and business strategizing round out each chapter, providing a springboard to further inquiry, …

The Presentation And Impact Of Compassion Fatigue And Compassion Satisfaction In Occupational And Physical Therapists Working With People Who Have Sustained Burn Injuries, Miranda L. Yelvington

Theses and Dissertations

Therapists who work with burn survivors are frequently exposed to patients who are undergoing or have undergone severe trauma and pain. This exposure places burn therapists at risk for the development of compassion fatigue and diminished professional quality of life. Alternatively, the sense of purpose and altruism experienced by these same therapists have the potential to foster compassion satisfaction. This dissertation explores the prevalence and presentation of compassion fatigue and compassion satisfaction in burn therapists in the United States. This three-paper design focuses on: 1) a scoping review of current literature, 2) a cross-sectional quantitative survey utilizing the Professional Quality …

U.S. Travelers’ Perceived Image Of Latin America As Their Future Travel Destination, Maricela I. Montes-Guerra, Natalia Zapata-Cuervo, Miyoung Jeong

Faculty Publications

This study identified U.S. travelers’ perceptions toward Latin America as their future place to visit, based on their perceived destination attributes, activities, and overall affective image. Selecting nine attractive destinations, this study aimed, first, to develop U.S. travelers’ perceptual mapping of countries by using destination image attributes and activities, second, to determine comparative strengths and weaknesses, and third, to propose destination marketing strategies that will derive U.S. travelers' attention to the country. Overall, Americans have favorable affective image toward the nine tourism destinations in Latin America. Costa Rica was respondents’ most preferred country to visit, followed by Peru and Brazil.

Preparing Students For Life After College: A Mixed-Methods Analysis, Nichole Zumbach Harken

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Institutions of higher education work to engage students in high-impact practices throughout their educational journey. Although prior research highlights the increase of stress as students near graduation, little research has explored how students manage the transition out of higher education. The purpose of this study was to investigate graduating students’ concerns, the emotional impact of those concerns, the discovery of information related to adulting practices, and the potential impact of a curriculum-infused exit program. The data were collected at a Midwest, comprehensive, liberal arts institution that confers bachelor, master’s, and doctoral degrees. To develop better praxis, the authentic union of …

Stakeholder Impact On Individual Development Within A Transition Worksite Program: A Case Study, Kong Chen

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Emerging adults (Arnett, 2000) struggled with their transition from school to employment (Arnett, 2015). Within that group, individuals with disabilities were in a particularly vulnerable and disadvantaged situation. The 2009 to 2019 employment rates for emerging adults with disabilities (33-39%) were far lower than for those without disabilities (73-79%; U.S. Census, 2019). There are employment programs designed to assist and support individuals with disabilities to transition to and retain employment. One such program, Project SEARCH, has served over 34,000 young adults with intellectual disabilities while achieving an average 72% employment rate when program participants had completed the training. Several studies …