Digital Commons Network^™

Adverse Childhood/Adolescent Experiences And Risk Of Recruitment Into Sex Trafficking, Shwana Coleman

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Human trafficking victims are negatively impacted by the process of coercion, kidnapping, and forced sexual interactions. Previous research studies showed that sex trafficking impacts victims’ mental health. The purpose of this quantitative study was to investigate whether adverse childhood/adolescent experiences (i.e., substance abuse, psychological abuse, and physical abuse) influence recruitment to sex trafficking in the United States and whether age acts as a moderator. The health belief model provided the theoretical framework for the study that includes data from 2010–2015 collected by the Polaris Project, a global sex trafficking database. Convenience sampling was done to delineate the study variables and …

'Ice In The Family': Exploring The Experiences Of Close Family Members When Another Family Member Is Using Methamphetamine: A Longitudinal Qualitative Study, Douglas Greg Gordon, Kylie Russell, Tracey Coventry

Medical Papers and Journal Articles

Objective: To explore the experiences of close family members when another family member is using methamphetamine and how the family member responds over time.

Background: Methamphetamine use has widespread implications and harms for both people who use the drug and those that live with them. While there is a significant representation in the literature relating to family members of people who use drugs or alcohol, there are limited studies specifically considering family members experiences of methamphetamine use. Families have been shown to have both positive and negative impacts on people using drugs, but less is known on the impact on …

Treatment Integrity And Differentiation In The Very Early Rehabilitation In Speech (Verse) Trial, Emily Brogan, Natalie Ciccone, Erin Godecke

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

Background:

Key elements of treatment fidelity include treatment integrity (adherence to the treatment protocol) and treatment differentiation (the difference in treatment ingredients in the control and intervention groups). The Very Early Rehabilitation in SpEech (VERSE) trial established treatment fidelity at the macro level for key components of therapy.

Aims:

To complete a detailed analysis of treatment integrity and differentiation at the utterance level of a therapeutic interaction.

Methods:

This was an observational study of therapy videos collected as part of the VERSE trial. Participants were people with aphasia in the very early phase of recovery post stroke (n = 44) …

The Role Of Processing Efficiency In Cognitive Outcomes Of Pediatric Cancer Survivors, Julie A. Trapani

All ETDs from UAB

Pediatric cancer and cancer-related treatments may disrupt brain development and maturation, placing survivors at risk for cognitive late effects. Identifying distinct patterns in outcomes across cancer types has been challenging, which has limited the implementation of systematic neurocognitive screening protocols. Emerging research indicates that processing efficiency (PE) impairment, or inefficient neural processing as measured by working memory (WM) and processing speed (PS) abilities, is a frequently reported but poorly defined cognitive late effect in survivors of both primary central nervous system (CNS) cancers and cancers of non-CNS origin. This dissertation attempts to 1) review and conceptualize PE skills in pediatric …

Prevalence And Phenotype Of Autism Spectrum Disorder Within Pitt Hopkins Syndrome, Helen Kay Root

All ETDs from UAB

Pitt Hopkins Syndrome (PTHS) is an extremely rare genetic disorder which has been described as closely associated with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). While individuals with PTHS have been observed to exhibit symptoms that closely mirror ASD (de Winter et al., 2016; van Balkom et al., 2012; de Pontual et al., 2009; Sweatt, 2013), there have been few studies which have specifically examined ASD-like symptomatology in this population. The current study aims to build understanding regarding the developmental and ASD-specific profile of individuals with PTHS using in-person, observational and elicited standardized assessment measures. Participants included 10 individuals with PTHS aged 2-12 …

Understanding The Impact Of Hospital Price Transparency Initiatives On Consumer Decision-Making To Purchase Healthcare Services, Neel Pathak

All ETDs from UAB

This study examined the influence of hospital list price information on individuals' decision-making to purchase healthcare services. The study collected quantitative data from 550 individuals by administering a hospital price transparency survey. Findings indicate that awareness of hospital list prices and quality outcomes metrics was high, but utilization rates were relatively low among survey participants. Demographic variations were explored with respect to the awareness and utilization of hospital list prices. Quality outcomes and recommendations from friends, family, and physicians emerged as the most important attributes influencing decision-making to purchase healthcare services whereas hospital list prices and social media had a …

Mechanisms Linking The Circadian Clock To Cardiac Physiology, Lamario J. Williams

All ETDs from UAB

Rationale: Cardiovascular disease continues to be the leading cause of death in America. Many aspects of both cardiovascular physiology (e.g., blood pressure, heart rate) and pathophysiology (e.g., myocardial infarctions, sudden cardiac death) exhibit time-of-day dependent fluctuations (termed diurnal variations). Circadian clocks consist of transcriptional feedback cascades directly modulating expression of genes involved in processes such as metabolism, signaling, and ion transport. Interestingly, genetic deletion of a core circadian clock component in the heart (cardiomyocyte-specific Bmal1 knockout mice) leads to chronic induction of the transcriptional repressor E4 Promoter-Binding Protein 4 (E4BP4) associated with early-onset dilated cardiomyopathy, metabolic inflexibility, and electrophysiologic disturbances. …

Navigating Missed Visits In Hiv Primary Care: Exploring Risk Factors Associated With Missed Visits, Jiaying Hao

All ETDs from UAB

The HIV care continuum is a public health model that outlines the steps or stages people with HIV go through from diagnosis to achieving and maintaining viral suppression. Retention in care, a key component of the HIV care continuum, is critical in achieving good health outcomes for people with HIV (PWH) and preventing HIV transmission. Consistent HIV care is essential for the health of PWH as a part of retention in care. De-spite no standard measure for retention in care to PWH, the missed (no-show) vis-its/appointments is one of the most commonly used methods for evaluating retention in HIV care. …

An Exploration Of The Mental Health Experiences Of Young Women With Diminished Ovarian Reserve, Brittany M. Woods

All ETDs from UAB

Infertility is a reproductive disease resulting in the inability to conceive. One in six individuals will experience infertility in their lifetime. Diminished ovarian reserve (DOR) reduces the quantity and/or quality of a female's oocyte pool and is a known cause of infertility. Although this occurs during normal ovarian aging in the late 30s and early 40s, DOR can also impact younger women, increasing their risk for psychological distress from an unexpected diagnosis. The purpose of this dissertation is to develop a deeper understanding of the mental health experiences of young women with DOR through the generation of three manuscripts. Manuscript …

Mediation Analysis Using Marginalized Zero-Inflated Poisson Model, Andrew Sims

All ETDs from UAB

Mediation analysis has become exponentially more popular over the last decade as researchers are interested in establishing mechanistic pathways for intervention. Standard statistical methods emphasize quantifying and testing whether a specific exposure impacts a particular health outcome. Mediation analysis addresses the question ‘How is the exposure causing the outcome?’ by examining the extent to which an intermediate variable, called a mediator, influences the relationship between an exposure and an outcome. While multiple mediation strategies exist, the counterfactual approach to mediation allows for mediation effects to be estimated directly with nonlinearities and interactions. The counterfactual approach allows for the effect of …

The Costly Performance Of Strength: An Exploration Of Mental Health Treatment Utilization Among Black Women In The Deep South, Amber N. Martin

All ETDs from UAB

Introduction: Strength is indoctrinated into the cultural tapestry of Black women, dating back to slavery, and passed down through intergenerational socialization. The incessant need for Black women to be strong diminishes their psychological health leading to poorer quality of life. Further, historical injustices and unethical practices in mental healthcare continue to perpetuate the need for Black women to perform in strength. The performance of strength is one explanation for the grave mental health disparities among Black women offering an opportunity to better understand their mental health needs. This project aims to center Black women within the cultural contextualization of the …

Understanding Attitudes, Subjective Norms, And Intent Of Covid-19 Vaccine Hesitancy And Refusal Among African Americans In The United States Using The Theory Of Reasoned Action, Deandrea Lashay Martinez

All ETDs from UAB

COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and vaccine refusal contributed to many African Americans not receiving the COVID-19 vaccine. The reasons for vaccine hesitancy and vaccine refusal were unclear by sociodemographic factors (income, gender, education, and age) among African Americans. This research explored attitudes, subjective norms, and intent of COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and vaccine refusal among African Americans in the United States using the Theory of Reasoned Action. The two research questions were (1) Among African Americans, do age, income, gender, and education factors remain stable across three study cohorts in differentiating subjects who are COVID-19 vaccine hesitant versus refusal from 2020–2022? (2) …

Converging Crises: The Spanish Flu And Wwi's Influence Within Egon Schiele's Oeuvre, Mclean Boone

All ETDs from UAB

This thesis investigates the effect of the converging crises of WWI and the Spanish Flu in on the last artworks of Egon Schiele, and argues that these two events precipitated a shift in the artist’s theme, aesthetic, and technique in these 1918 artworks. Before his death from the Spanish Flu in late October, 1918, Schiele managed to produce nearly thirty paintings in the last two years of his career. While many scholars have discussed Schiele’s art in the context of personal maturation, I argue instead that Schiele’s aesthetic shift towards naturalism symbolized new modes of exploring ideas of life and …

Intent-To-Treat Versus Per Protocol Analysis Of A Crossover Feeding Trial: Effect Of Dietary Sodium On Obstructive Sleep Apnea, Gabrielle Gloston

All ETDs from UAB

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a common form of sleep disordered breathing that leads to poor daytime functioning. It is strongly associated with hypertension (HTN) and apneic events in individuals with OSA can drive blood pressure (BP) surges at night. Treating OSA with continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) has led to reductions in day- and nighttime BP and treatment of HTN has also been reported to have beneficial effects on OSA severity. Dietary sodium has long been implicated in HTN and dietary sodium restriction improves BP levels. Recently, dietary sodium restriction was found to reduce OSA severity in men with …

Impact Of Covid-19 On A Smoking Cessation Intervention: A Look At Recruitment And Retention, Elizabeth S. Hawes

All ETDs from UAB

While smoking prevalence rates have declined in the general population over the past 50 years, persons in the criminal legal population have disproportionally high rates of smoking. Previous research suggests that smoking cessation interventions and campaigns have missed targeting this population. Due to the COVD-19 pandemic, many ongoing clinical trials had to rapidly shift to using remote trials, including our smoking cessation trial with the criminal legal population. The purpose of this secondary analysis was to compare recruitment rate, study adherence, retention, NRT adherence, and quit attempts for participants who completed the study as planned (In Person), after implementation of …

Adverse Childhood Experiences And Chronic Low Back Pain In Adulthood: Roles Of Emotion Regulation And Socioeconomic Status, Pavithra Andrea Thomas

All ETDs from UAB

Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) can have profound deleterious effects on physical health and psychological functioning in adulthood. ACEs may be a social determinant of chronic pain development and severity in adulthood; however, little research to date has investigated the psychological processes that might underlie this association. Emotion regulation, an established transdiagnostic risk factor underlying psychopathological conditions, may be a potential mediator of the relationship between ACEs and pain. Lower socioeconomic status is associated with greater risk of ACEs and poor chronic pain outcomes, yet research has not clarified the role of subjective versus objective determinants of socioeconomic factors within these …

Correlates Of Life Space Mobility, Driving Frequency And Exposure Amon Older Blacks/African Americans And Whites With Diabetes, Henrietta Armah

All ETDs from UAB

Diabetes mellitus is one of the most common chronic diseases among older adults, affecting all aspects of daily living including restricted life space mobility, driving and building relationships outside of the home. The aim of this study was to investigate the covariate-adjusted associations of cognitive functioning, depressive symptoms, amount of support received and satisfaction with support with life space mobility, driving frequency and driving exposure among Blacks/African Americans and Whites with diabetes. The study used a representative sample of 247 older adults aged 65 and above from the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Diabetes and Aging Study of Health …

Enhancing Community Resiliency With Big Data And Machine Learning: Property Damage And Flood Forecasting During Hurricanes, Mujungu Lawrence Museru

All ETDs from UAB

Globally, coastal communities face significant vulnerability to the risks and impacts of flooding. This study addresses two critical aspects of flood management: enhanced flood damage assessment and coastal flooding prediction. Traditional flood damage modeling techniques have limitations, and the availability of comprehensive datasets is limited. The first part addresses these challenges. Multivariable machine learning models are applied to enhance flood damage assessment. A comprehensive dataset is developed by combining the Alabama property dataset with the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) claims dataset from Hurricane Katrina. Spatial varying datasets are added to enhance the comprehensiveness of NFIP dataset and oversampling techniques …

Programs That Impact Juvenile Recidivism Beyond Mandatory Sanctions, John M. Marras

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Recidivism, especially juvenile recidivism, has been a major concern for the United States. In fact, 10.6% of the total U.S. population was composed of juveniles between the ages of 10 and 17 in the year 2009. The statistics have shown that juvenile recidivism is one of the key issues in the country that needs to be addressed. The purpose of this study was to isolate the youth programs that affect juvenile recidivism beyond their successful completion. The theoretical foundation of the study derived from Agnew’s general strain theory, which suggests focusing on factors that lead to delinquency and the commission …

The Geographic Pattern And Socioecological Factors Of Helicobacter Pylori Infections In The United States, Judith Ann Merryweather

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractHelicobacter pylori (H. pylori) is one of the most common human pathogens and may play a role in the development of several distinct diseases, which include gastric ulcer, duodenal ulcer, and gastric cancer. Studying geographic territories of the United States may reveal clusters with high rates of H. pylori infection and perhaps the prevalence of gastric cancer; however, geographic mapping of patterns in the United States is scarce. The purpose of this study was to investigate changes in H pylori infection patterns in the United States between two different time points (2000–2002 and 2016–2018). The primary hypotheses of this study …

Strategies Global Virtual Team Leaders Use To Improve Trust And Communication, Sarah Crandell Monday

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Global virtual team (GVT) members’ inability to effectively build trust and communication has the potential to negatively impact organizational outcomes. Organizational leaders are concerned with team members’ inability to build trust and communication, as it is the leading cause of reduced productivity and efficiency levels within GVTs. Grounded in the social exchange theory, the purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to explore strategies GVT leaders use to improve trust and communication among GVT members. The participants were 18 GVT business leaders from six organizations located in the Pacific Northwest of the United States. Data were collected using semistructured …

Lived Experiences Of African American Women Encountering Barriers In Executive Level Advancement In The Business Services Industry, Sheriley Yvonne Smith

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

It is unknown how African American Women (AAW) perceived experiences involving the experience of the barriers faced when attempting to advance to executive levels in their corporate jobs. Existing literature showed that AAWs experienced several forms of discrimination, including racism, oppression, and limitations which were critical to examining their work experience and progressing up the corporate ladder. The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to develop an understanding of lived experiences of AAWs when they apply for and fail to reach executive positions in the business services industry. The glass ceiling theory (GCT) and intersectionality theory (IT) were used …

Mental Health Experiences Of Black Males Beyond Juvenile Delinquency, Jasmine D. Spratling

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Incarceration rates around the United States continue to increase for Black male adolescents. These numbers are even more significant in Atlanta, where youth spend time in juvenile detention centers and return soon once released. Summary findings from existing research showed the lack of mental health services provided once a youth has been released from incarceration, but a lack of specifics around the services needed remains. The purpose of the current study was to explore the experiences of Black male adolescents who received little to no trauma informed care post-incarceration. A qualitative, phenomenological approach was used to conduct semistructured interviews with …

Preincarceration Collaborative Religious Coping Strategies Of Black Males With A History Of A Criminal Offense, Pearlette E. Springer

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

African Americans are 56% of the incarcerated population in the United States. Black males spend an average of 13.4% of their working lives incarcerated and 82.6% of their working lives addressing the stigma and restrictions associated with incarceration. The purpose of this study was to address a gap in research by exploring the preincarceration collaborative religious coping strategy experiences of Black males with a history of criminal offenses. Pargament’s theory of collaborative religious coping strategy guided the research, interview questions, and data analysis. The qualitative narrative approach with purposeful and snowball sampling was used to recruit and collect data from …

Strategies To Retain Employees In The Mental Health Workplace, Chauncey Janielle Strange

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Employee turnover continues to be an issue in the mental health community as mental health business leaders lack strategies to retain employees. Retention strategies are essential to promote continuity, funding, and profitability for mental health agencies and quality service care for patients. Grounded in Bass’s transformational leadership theory, the purpose of this qualitative single case study was to explore strategies mental health business leaders use to retain employees. Participants comprised three mental health center managers from a state agency in northern Louisiana who contributed to employee retention. Data were collected using semistructured interviews and a review of organization performance evaluations, …

First-Year Postsecondary Student Persistence Leading To Second-Year Enrollment, Collene G. Webb

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

At a southeastern U.S. university, the low retention of postsecondary, traditional-aged first-year students persisting to second year was a problem, importantly decreasing their ability to graduate and gain a career. The purpose of this study was to determine the factors that have motivated postsecondary traditional-aged, first-year students to return to the university as second-year students and to learn from students what they perceived that the institution could do to increase persistence. The conceptual framework that grounded this study was Tinto’s institutional departure model. The research questions explored the factors that motivated first-year students to persist into their second year of …

Moderators Of Peripheral Neuropathy On Overall And Cardiovascular Mortality In People Without Diabetes, Adeoye Muideen Adenekan

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Peripheral neuropathy (PN), a group of common heterogeneous disorders with varied etiologies, is associated with substantial morbidity and mortality. PN presents both as a diagnostic and therapeutic challenge to physicians and other healthcare providers. Socioeconomic moderators of PN in adults without diabetes in the United States have not been well studied. The consequences of PN can be devastating and include foot ulcers, amputations, a general decline in the quality of life, and death. The overall prevalence of PN in the United States is 13.5% in adults with diabetes and 11.6% in adults without diabetes. Clearly, these statistics indicate a public …

Educating Nurses On Failure To Rescue Due To Treatment Delay, Ganiyu Olasheni Adewale

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Studies have found a shortfall in nurses' skills in caring for patients with a significant risk of failure to rescue in an acute care setting. The practice gap the healthcare facility was experiencing today was a gap in relation to failure to rescue with an increased rate of sentinel cases. There was a knowledge deficit among critical care nurses. The importance of educating nursing staff is to increase their knowledge and help decrease the occurrence of failure to rescue in an acute care setting. The practice-focused question for this education project asked if educating nursing staff with a medical-surgical competency …

The Effects Of Secondary Traumatic Stress And Resilience On The Indicators Of Compassion Fatigue Among Occupational Therapists, Gayla Ann Aguilar

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractCompassion fatigue (CF) has been described as the “cost of caring” for traumatized individuals, which may lead to missed workdays, diminished work satisfaction, increased turnover, and decreased client care. CF has long been studied in other caring professionals, but occupational therapy practitioners (OTPs) have been largely overlooked. The purpose of this quantitative correlation study was to determine the relationship between secondary traumatic stress (STS) and resilience (RES) on burnout (BO) and compassion satisfaction (CS; i.e., indicators of CF) in OTPs. In this study, the moderation effect that RES has on STS and BO as related to CF in 68 completed …

Enrollment In Science, Technology, Engineering, And Math Courses After Enactment Of Texas' House Bill 5, Carlana Cla'shette Allen

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Student participation and performance in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) have been an education concern in the United States for years. In 2013, Texas lawmakers passed House Bill 5 (HB5) to support increases in STEM awareness, particularly among ethnic minority and female students. To date, no studies have been conducted on the impact, if any, of HB5 on Texas high school students’ course selections in STEM areas. Further, it is unknown whether the impact that does exist is equally distributed across socioeconomic status (SES), race/ethnicity, and gender groups. The purpose of this nonexperimental correlational quantitative study was to determine …