Digital Commons Network^™

Benefits Of Learning Without Homework For Middle School Students, Ashley Garcia Marquez

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

The focus of this senior capstone is to examine the benefits of learning without homework for middle school students. The research draws on the experiences of teachers in Monterey County, who provide personal input and teaching philosophies on this topic. Throughout the use of the literature review, three teacher interviews, and fifty anonymous student surveys, the findings indicate that learning without homework is essential, and in-class workshops have a positive impact on middle school student's academic success. Thus, teachers should recognize that learning without homework and in-class workshops plays a vital role in educating the growing minds of middle school …

Conquering And Combating Isolation, Nicholas Deanda

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

The Conquering and Combating Isolation initiative, implemented by an OMNI Resource Center intern, addressed severe isolation issues among individuals with mental health disabilities in Salinas, California. The macro-level problem encompassed the adverse effects of isolation on mental health and well-being. At the micro-level, the agency-specific issue was the heightened risk of unhealthy habits, depression and anxiety, and suicidal ideation among OMNI clients due to loneliness caused by homelessness, stigma, and a lack of social skills. The project entailed facilitating weekly peer support group discussions to minimize impacts of isolation, aiming for increased knowledge and skill-building. Findings revealed positive outcomes as …

Intimate Partner Violence Prevention Curriculum For Teens, Oscar Plascencia-Herrera

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

The Y.W.C.A is a non-profit with a variety of services. The intern will oversee the Youth Education Advocacy division, to work with the teen population. Y.E.A. is a program that focuses resources on youth advocacy to promote healthy relationships. The overall goal is to reduce intimate partner violence (IPV) in communities. The micro-level problem is addressed by increasing students' self-awareness, and knowledge of healthy relationships, while also teaching effective communication skills. The program is a 10-week curriculum with PowerPoint presentations, activities, videos, and scenarios/case studies. All students were given an intro exam and a final exam. Despite not all schools …

Enhancing Recovery With The Use Of Animals, Christina Martinez

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

Avenues is a program designed to help adults lead happier and more productive lives by overcoming mental health and chemical dependency challenges. The problem is, participants are not fully prepared for independent living following these programs. The plan was to provide participants a therapeutic approach to gaining hands-on experience while combating symptoms of mental illness with the use of animals, with hopes that participants would be better prepared for life after leaving the program. If the project met the expected outcome, the agency would see a lower rate of participants returning to the program and a higher success rate of …

Improving Stress Management For Elementary School Students, Ashley Man

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

This capstone project focuses on stress management for elementary school students. As there has been a rise in elementary school students' reports of stress, a longitudinal study examined daily school stress and coping strategies of elementary school children in the United States. The students were ages 7 to 11 years old and results highlight critical relations between students’ exposure to daily stress at school, their stress appraisals and future expectations, and usage of coping strategies (Sotardi, 2016). The students' ability to manage daily stress in productive, socially acceptable ways was reported to be restricted. This shows that students may not …

Volunteer Effectiveness On Nonprofit Organizations, Brianna Yanice Mariscal

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

When a parent gets told their child has cancer it is a life changing and devastating moment. Although there are many factors that cause pediatric cancer, one thing remains constant. Families need to feel supported during these difficult times as their main priority is being with their child. Jacob’s Heart Children's Cancer Support Services is a nonprofit organization in California that operates on donations, grants, staff and volunteer support to alleviate burdens accompanied by a pediatric cancer diagnosis. Volunteers are vital for nonprofit organizations as they provide dedication to fulfill the organization's mission. Surveys were conducted to measure the effectiveness …

Emotional Regulation Strategies For 3 Year Olds, Gloria Aguirre

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

My capstone project focuses on teaching three year olds how to regulate their emotions. According to Parsafar and Davis, “emotional regulation refers to the set of processes involved in the way emotions are experienced and responded to” (2019, p 1935). There is a need for emotion regulation instruction for 3-year-olds because many 3-year-olds are having a difficult time regulating their emotions during a conflict with their peers. I have developed a set of lessons that will address this need by teaching 3 year olds different emotional faces, calming techniques, and ways to redirect their attention. The 3 year olds executive …

Supporting Social Development In Students With Disabilities, Elyzabeth Andersen

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

This capstone project focused on the social development of kindergarten students receiving special education services who spend a portion of their day in inclusive placements. The number of students receiving special education services in inclusive classroom environments has increased over time. However, special education students often experience social isolation, lack reciprocal friendships, and have limited interactions with peers without disabilities, even in inclusive settings (Avramidis et al., 2018; Koster et al., 2010). Therefore, there is a need to encourage positive interactions between peers with and without disabilities. To address this need, I developed a set of three lessons for special …

Homework Perpetuating Inequalities For Low-Income Families In Education, Eileen Boyd

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

This capstone project delves into the persistent issue of homework perpetuating inequalities among low-income families. Drawing on insights from North American public school teachers who have shared their perspectives and experiences, this research employs a combination of literature reviews, teacher interviews, and anonymous surveys. The collective evidence underscores the unsettling fact that homework drives educational disparities. Consequently, it calls for a broader acknowledgment among educators and schools that homework often hinders rather than enhances a student's academic achievements.

Increasing Emotional Regulation In Young Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Bryana Arias

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

This capstone project focuses on the emotion regulation skills of school-age children (5 to 7 years) on the moderate to severe autism spectrum. Emotional regulation is the process by which a person engages in behaviors with the implicit or explicit goal of altering emotion frequency, intensity, duration, or type (Raugh & Strauss, 2023). Through emotional self-regulation, individuals can control their thoughts, behaviors, and emotions within everyday situations. This process involves the ability to identify one’s emotions and those of other people while developing strategies to constructively manage their reactions to emotional experiences and inhibitory control (Dumont et al., 2019). Autism …

Preschool Children Learn About Regulating Emotions, Elisa Camacho

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

This project was done to teach preschool children how to self-regulate, as well as see what they know about self-regulation.

Self-Care Through Nature For Adolescents, Sumiko Strachan

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

Self-care is defined as actions or activities done by an individual to improve their own health; most often referring to mental health. This project focused on giving tools for self-care and mindfulness through nature. These tools included ways to self-soothe through meditation, mindfulness and nutrition. The project’s activities were conducted at MEarth, an outdoor learning facility located in the Carmel Valley. MEarth is a prime location for this project as it is still a place of learning, but it is not a traditional classroom and teaches in a more engaging way for presenting information. The self-care project lessons aimed to …

Awareness Of Mental Health Among Adolescents, Gloria Ortiz-Wilson

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

The focal point of this capstone project is to bring mental health awareness to the adolescent community in Soledad, California. With the numbers rising in the likelihood of adolescents developing a mental health disorder, it is extremely important for adolescents to know the different types of mental health disorders and the signs of these disorders (Abrams, 2023). Between 20-30% of adolescents have a form of depression, 37% have anxiety disorders, and there has been a 16% increase of suicide in youth 12 and older (Valdez et al., 2022).

Because of adolescents’ increasing risk for mental health issues, there is a …

Improving Self-Regulation In First Graders, Areli Santiago Perez

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

This capstone project focuses on the development of self-regulation skills in a first grade class. Self-regulation is an individual's capacity to comprehend and control their behaviors, emotions, and thoughts (Bockmann & Yu, 2022). Self-regulation abilities influence a child's academic performance. For example, some school age children get easily distracted from one activity to another, struggle to follow directions, and find it difficult to regulate their feelings, which can seriously create difficulties in their learning capabilities. Therefore , there is a need for self-regulation strategies to be taught to young school age children. By improved emotional control, students with higher self-regulation …

Incorporating Social-Emotional Learning In Latino Communities, Jesus Moreno

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

The capstone project focuses on teaching social-emotional skills to second-grade students in Latino communities. Many second-grade students are still developing socially-emotionally and some have not yet mastered self-awareness, self-management, and relationship skills which all fall under Social-emotional skills. As said by National University, obtaining these 3 skills “helps students of all ages to better comprehend their emotions, feel those emotions fully, and demonstrate empathy for others”. According to Guzman (2022), they are “key components to succeed academically, interpersonal relationships, family, and community life”. Social-emotional development provides long-term skills that can be learned during childhood and is beneficial throughout the lifespan. …

Factors Associated With Caregiver Responsive And Non-Responsive Feeding Styles In Clark County, Nevada, Amanda Castelo Saragosa

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Early childhood obesity has increased significantly over the last few decades, reaching epidemic levels in the United States. Many interventions exist to alleviate early childhood obesity; however, little focus is on preventing obesity-related risks for children under two. High-quality child-caregiver interactions are deemed critical for preventing early childhood obesity development, but there is little information on the socio-ecological factors that influence a caregivers' feeding styles. This study examined socio-ecological factors associated with caregivers' feeding styles (responsive vs. non-responsive) for infants under two in Clark County, Nevada. This cross-sectional study utilized a survey targeted to caregivers (18 and older) with infants …

"My Gut Feeling Is…": An Ethnographic Study Exploring Interprofessional Communication About Children And Adolescents With Chronic Musculoskeletal Pain In Paediatric Rheumatology., Rebecca R. Lee, Janet E. Mcdonagh, Tim Rapley, Albert Farre, Mark Connelly, Tonya M. Palermo, Karine Toupin-April, Emily Wakefield, Sarah Peters, Lis Cordingley

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

Interprofessional communication about inflammatory and non-inflammatory musculoskeletal conditions is an important component of assessment and management in paediatric rheumatology. Chronic pain is a feature of some of these conditions which likely influences the extent and type of communication about pain. Research investigating interprofessional communication about paediatric pain is limited but has found that communication is inclusive of the biopsychosocial context of children/adolescents as well as their families. The aim of this ethnographic study was to explore interprofessional communication about children and adolescents with chronic musculoskeletal pain in paediatric rheumatology. We observed forty-five healthcare professionals recruited from 3 UK paediatric rheumatology …

Exploring Illness Perceptions Of Multimorbidity Among Community-Dwelling Older Adults: A Mixed Methods Study, Ayomide Okanlawon Bankole, Rozmin B Jiwani, Forgive Avorgbedor, Jing Wang, Onome H Osokpo, Sara L Gill, Carrie Jo Braden

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background: Illness perceptions are individual beliefs or experiences about the nature and treatment of their illness. Although extensive research exists about illness perceptions, little is known about illness perceptions of multimorbidity.

Methods: The purpose of this parallel-convergent mixed-methods study was to comprehensively explore illness perception of multimorbidity among community dwelling older adults. Data was collected using one-on-one semi-structured interviews (n=17) and the Multimorbidity Illness Perception Scale (MULTIPleS) (n=116). Qualitative data were analyzed using content analysis while quantitative data were analyzed with descriptive and inferential statistics. Both qualitative and quantitative findings were integrated to identify differences in illness perceptions of multimorbidity …

An Opioid-Minimizing Multimodal Pain Regimen Reduces Opioid Exposure And Pain In Trauma-Injured Patients At High Risk For Opioid Misuse: Secondary Analysis From The Mast Trial, Constanza De Dios, Robert Suchting, Charles Green, James M Klugh, John A Harvin, Heather E Webber, Joy M Schmitz, Scott D Lane, Jin H Yoon, Angela Heads, Kandice Motley, Angela Stotts

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: Screening to identify patients at risk for opioid misuse after trauma is recommended but not commonly used to guide perioperative opioid management interventions. The Multimodal Analgesic Strategies for Trauma trial demonstrated that an opioid-minimizing multimodal pain regimen reduced opioid exposure in a heterogeneous trauma patient population. Here, we assess the efficacy of the Multimodal Analgesic Strategies for Trauma multimodal pain regimen in a critical patient subgroup who screened at high risk for opioid misuse.

METHODS: The Multimodal Analgesic Strategies for Trauma trial compared an opioid-minimizing multimodal pain regimen (oral acetaminophen, naproxen, gabapentin, lidocaine patch, as-needed opioid) against an original …

Emergency Remote Teaching And Transition To Nursing Practice During The Covid-19 Pandemic: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis, Carrie Watkins Jeffrey

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Purpose: The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore the lived experience of new nurses in the United States who experienced Emergency Remote Teaching (ERT) for most or all of their nursing education during the COVID-19 pandemic and how they perceive ERT influenced their transition to practice during their first year as registered nurses.

Background: The National Council of State Boards of Nursing reports that in 2021, the overall pass rate for first-time NCLEX-RN® demonstrated the sharpest decline since 2013. Most of the 185,000 nursing students who took the exam in 2021 and 2022 received their nursing education during …

Healthcare Practices In The United States Aimed At Improving Care And Language Access Services For Limited English Proficiency Refugees: A Systematic Review, Bemnet Kebede

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Objective: The United States has accepted over 3 million refugees from all around the world since 1975. However, many Limited English Proficiency (LEP) refugees face significant barriers when seeking healthcare due to limited access, lack of knowledge, mistrust in physicians, language differences, cultural concerns, and overall complexity of the U.S. healthcare system. The purpose of this systematic review was to identify practices in the last 10 years that have improved healthcare and language access services for LEP refugees living in the U.S.

Methods: A search was conducted in four electronic databases PubMed, Embase, CINAHL, and Scopus from January 2013 to …

Comparison Of Male And Female Ultramarathon Runners, Kelsey Klug

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This research study investigates how specific running variables and demographic characteristics impact performance, or speed, for ultramarathon runners. These variables and characteristics include biological sex, cadence, age range, total distance of the race, duration of the race, years of running experience, total number of ultramarathon races ever completed, and number of races completed in the last twelve months. An ultramarathon is any running distance over a standard marathon or 42.2 kilometers. Participation in ultramarathons has increased by 345% since 2010, with females making up 23% of participants. No in-person data collection was necessary for this study. Participants were asked to …

Beyond The Surface: A Novel In-Game Behavioral Observation Matrix To Assess Video Game Expertise, Sam A. Leif

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

In the evolving landscape of gaming, a need for reliable methods to differentiate expertise levels among players has emerged. This study defines experts by their exceptional skills, domain-specific knowledge, and successful application of these attributes in complex situations. Unlike conventional methods that rely on self-reported experience for expertise stratification, this research proposes a shift towards systematic behavioral observation for a more reliable assessment of expertise. The Model of Domain Learning (MDL) facilitates empirical differentiation between novice, competent, and expert categories, allowing for appropriate stratification. Drawing from digital proxemics theory and adapted from the behavioral assessment matrix used by McCreery and …

Profiles Of Cross-Domain Motivational Beliefs: Relations With Engagement And Gender, Alireza Maghsoudlou

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

A central tenet of expectancy-value theory is that individuals’ relative expectancies and values across multiple academic domains influence their achievement-related outcomes. However, few studies have investigated how expectancy-value beliefs in multiple domains combine within individuals and how such motivational configurations are related to engagement. In this study, a person-centered approach was employed to identify and evaluate naturally occurring combinations of motivational beliefs among 3,928 fourth-grade students. Leveraging TIMSS and PIRLS database of 2011, I examined profiles of students’ math, reading, and science self-concept and interest value and their relations with engagement in these domains. Additionally, I examined gender as predictors …

Evolving Expressions Of Trauma In James Joyce, Jean Rhys, And Caryl Phillips, Sean M. Mccray

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Evolving Expressions of Trauma articulates ways that dynamic, changing theories of trauma can provide a language and conceptual space to examine innovative modes and means of expression in Modernist novels and in later, post-colonial and experimental novels. This dissertation asserts that as trauma theory has expanded to encompass and describe different types of traumata, including the mundane, the insidious, and empathetic, it has provided a scaffolding for studying difficult, even impenetrable works from the Modernist period and beyond. The works examined here are strategically selected to demonstrate scope and particularity in the growth of trauma theories and their potential applications …

“And I’M Going To Destroy You.”: Persona And Gender Performativity In Ernest Hemingway’S The Garden Of Eden, Nicole Minton

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

While debate of Ernest Hemingway’s authorial masculine persona in connection to The Garden of Eden has been a point of interest in literary scholarship, no single work has tied together theory of gender performativity to persona. A borderline parodic display of masculine adventure has encouraged a one-dimensional view of Hemingway, who is viewed by audiences as the pinnacle of masculinity. However, this image is complicated by the publication of Eden, which reveals an author interested in gender and sexual identity fluidity. Rarely has a single text called into question so controversially an author’s public image. Eden showcases an empathetic …

Does Maternal Mental Health (Anxiety And Depression) Negatively Impact Exclusive And Continued Breastfeeding Practices?, Smriti Neupane

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Exclusive and continued breastfeeding practices are the optimal source of nutrition for an infant's well-being, cognitive growth, and development and have positive health outcomes for the mother too. Anxiety and depression are common perinatal mental health conditions associated with early breastfeeding interruption. However, Nevada lacks data on perinatal mental health and its influence on breastfeeding practices. The objective of this study was to assess whether maternal mental health (anxiety and depression) impacts exclusive and continued breastfeeding practices in Clark County, Nevada. A cross-sectional survey was conducted with 358 mothers having children 0-23 months old and residing in Clark County, Nevada. …

Compassion, Oxytocin, And Simulation Experiences Among Prelicensure Nursing Students, Shelley L. Price

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Background: Compassion is a core competency and the philosophical foundation of nursing. Previous studies demonstrated that uncompassionate nursing care was associated with increased patient morbidity and mortality, prolonged illness and recovery, and missed care opportunities. However, it is unknown whether prelicensure nursing education contributes to greater compassion levels among prelicensure nursing students (PNSs). Aims: These studies addressed three research aims: (1) Describe and compare levels of compassion in first-term and last-term PNSs, (2) Determine the effects of a compassion-inducing simulation event on compassion in PNSs, as measured through a survey and biological measurement, and lastly, (3) Investigate the relationship between …

Examining Health Literacy And Patient-Centered Communication: A Secondary Analysis Of U.S. Adults With A History Of Cancer, Kimberly Ann Dy Tomas

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Racial/ethnic communities bear a disproportionate burden when examining cancer mortality and infection-related cancer incidence rates. According to the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (ODPHP), health literacy and clear communication between professionals and patients are crucial to improving health and the quality of healthcare. This study examined the relationship between personal health literacy and perceived patient-centered communication quality (PPCQ). A secondary data analysis was conducted using the Health Information National Trends Survey (HINTS) 5, Cycle 4 (2020), and STATA/BE 17.0 for Windows. The sample included respondents who have a history of cancer and have seen a healthcare provider within …

The Importance Of Cism Responder Self-Care: Don't Neglect Engaging In Meaningful Activities, Harvey J. Burnett Jr, David Sherman

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.