Digital Commons Network^™

Foundations Of Police Integrity: Data Collection And Methods For Tracking Police Crime, Logan Casey, Tyson Jackson, Molly A. Whetstone, Samantha Kopf Apple, Eric M. Cooke, Philip M. Stinson

Criminal Justice Faculty Publications

Presentation at the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences 2025 Annual Meeting in Denver, CO on March 13, 2025.

Rank And Responsibility: Examining The Influence Of Officer Hierarchy On Criminal Behavior In Law Enforcement, Logan Casey, Samantha Kopf Apple, Eric M. Cooke, Philip M. Stinson

Criminal Justice Faculty Publications

Presentation at the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences 2025 Annual Meeting in Denver, CO on March 13, 2025.

Identifying Patterns Of Violent Crime Recidivism Among Police Officers, Tyson Jackson, Eric M. Cooke, Samantha Kopf Apple, Philip M. Stinson

Criminal Justice Faculty Publications

Presentation at the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences 2025 Annual Meeting in Denver, CO on March 13, 2025.

Understanding Hereditary Breast And Ovarian Cancer Syndrome In Black/African American Women: Implications For Equitable Outcomes And Interventions, Alexandria E. Fletcher

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Black/African American women face significant health disparities in hereditary breast and ovarian cancer syndrome (HBOC) due to systemic barriers to genetic counseling and testing, leading to poorer survival outcomes. Guided by the Social Determinants of Health (SDH) framework and Intersectionality Theory, this quantitative descriptive study examined disparities in access to genetic services, socioeconomic barriers, and healthcare biases. Data from the 2023 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) included 1,357 Black/African American and White women aged 25–65 with a family history of HBOC. The Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) dataset analyzed 15,684 Black/African American and 105,547 White women with breast cancer, …

The Influence Of Religious Beliefs On Attitudes Towards Public Policy And Religious Exemptions In Florida, Theresa Ward

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

An increasing amount legislation has been proposed and enacted across the United States, and particularly in the State of Florida, that targets or impacts the LGBTQ+ community. Research on the influence of religious beliefs within political decision-making has noted an association between individual religious identifications and attitudes towards various public policy issues, including issues that impact different marginalized populations. Looking specifically at the State of Florida, this thesis explores the relationship between religious identification and support (1) laws that protect LGBTQ+ people and (2) religious exemptions from nondiscrimination laws. Utilizing a mixed-methods approach, including secondary data analysis of the Florida …

Examining The Characteristics And Contexts Of Arrests For Animal Cruelty Among Police Officers, Molly A. Whetstone, Eric M. Cooke, Samantha Kopf Apple, Philip M. Stinson

Criminal Justice Faculty Publications

Presentation at the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences 2025 Annual Meeting in Denver, CO on March 13, 2025.

Spectator 2025-03-13, Editors Of The Spectator

The Spectator

No abstract provided.

Environmental Justice: Healing Environmental And Societal Wounds In The Overstory And Torto Arado, Marcia Tagg

Undergraduate Honors Theses

This thesis examines the approaches of two contemporary novels, The Overstory and Torto Arado, in providing pathways to environmental justice. The Overstory by Richard Powers is an American novel that provides a post-secular perspective on trees and their ability to provide answers on how to heal a wounded world. This wisdom works in the lives of individuals, and it alludes to how society at large could be impacted by the adoption of a more tree-like perspective, especially in how they view time. Torto Arado by Itamar Vieira Junior is a Brazilian novel that shows the importance of Afrodiasporic religious …

Classroom Teachers' Approaches To Values Education: Exploring Explicit And Implicit Strategies For Teaching And Modeling Values, Maria Ukamaka Clare Okeke

College of Education Theses and Dissertations

Abstract This study explores the approaches Nigerian secondary school teachers in Anambra State use to teach values through explicit and implicit methods. Recognizing the need to understand how values are effectively communicated in the classroom, this research delves into the dual strategies employed by educators and their impacts on student moral development. The research used a qualitative interview study approach, which included semi-structured interviews with ten experienced secondary school teachers and a document analysis of teaching resources. This method allows one to investigate the explicit instruction and implicit modeling strategies applied in values education in depth. Findings reveal that teachers …

Personal Perspectives Of Political Action: A Case Study Of How Women Discuss The Black Panther Party’S Free Breakfast For Schoolchildren Program, Megs Peterson

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this project is to investigate the impact ideology has on social movement actors. I do this by conducting a case study on the influence of Marxist feminist ideologies on the Black Panther Party’s (BPP) Free Breakfast for Schoolchildren Program (FBP). Within this case study, I narrow my focus to Marxist feminism, rather than Marxism more broadly, to choose a theoretical framework that aligns with my subject while ensuring gender is considered as a critical axis for examination. This research is situated at the intersection of feminisms and social movements, drawing from both social movement scholarship and Women’s, …

Exploring Juvenile Probation Officers' Perception Of Strategies To Reduce Juvenile Recidivism In Southeastern Michigan, Nikaya Cecelia Robin Banks

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The high rate of juvenile recidivism in southeastern Michigan poses a threat to the safety of the community as well as a challenge to the juvenile probation officers (JPOs) who supervise them. The literature is abundant with data on juvenile recidivism; however, little is known about JPO’s perceptions on the efficacy of strategies and practices that aid in the rehabilitation of juvenile probationers. Grounded in both social learning and social bond theoretical frameworks, the purpose of this study was to explain how behavior is learned through processes of observation and the significance of positive bonds in minimizing delinquent behavior. The …

Racialization Of Urban Black Middle School Students From The Perspective Of Middle School Teachers: A Phenomenological Study In Central And Southeast Michigan, Bryan L. Spencer

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Walden University College of Education and Human Sciences This is to certify that the doctoral dissertation by Bryan L. Spencer has been found to be complete and satisfactory in all respects, and that any and all revisions required by the review committee have been made. Review Committee Dr. Michael Langlais, Committee Chairperson, Psychology Faculty Dr. Matthew Hertenstein, Committee Member, Psychology Faculty Chief Academic Officer and Provost Sue Subocz, Ph.D. Walden University 2025   Racialization of Urban Black Middle School Students from the Perspective of Middle School Teachers: A Phenomenological Study in Central and Southeast Michigan by Bryan L. Spencer MPhil, Walden …

Exploring Cybersecurity Policy Compliance Strategies To Secure E-Government Systems, Michael Oyedele Arowosegbe

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Nigerian government organizations face significant challenges in complying with cybersecurity policies, threatening the security and efficiency of their e-government systems. IT leadership groups are concerned that compliance issues could lead to data breaches, service disruptions, and diminished public trust, ultimately hindering economic growth and digital transformation efforts. This qualitative multiple-case study, framed through the lens of neo-institutional theory, aimed to explore the cybersecurity policies and effective compliance strategies employed by information security officers to secure e-government systems against cyberattacks. The participants consisted of nine information security officers from three information security-certified government institutions in central Nigeria. Data collection included semi-structured …

Covid Mortality Diminished But Low Fertility Means Deaths Still Exceeded Births In More Than Two-Thirds Of U.S. Counties, Kenneth M. Johnson

Carsey Publications

In this brief, author Kenneth Johnson reports that only 3,606,000 babies were born in the United States between July 2023 and July 2024, according to new Census Bureau estimates. This is 43,000 fewer babies than the year before, which barely exceeds the 43-year low in 2020–2021. Births are diminishing because fertil­ity rates are at record lows. In contrast, deaths and mortality rates dimin­ished modestly last year, though deaths remain nearly 10 percent above pre-pandemic levels. As a result, the balance between births and deaths remains in flux.

These national trends are important, but one stark statistic illustrates the impact of …

Investigating Racial Attitudes In Higher Education Student Affairs Professionals Using The Color-Blind Racial Attitudes Scale (Cobras), Cindy Boe

The Interactive Journal of Global Leadership and Learning

Abstract

While the literature has documented the existence of colorblind racism in college students and faculty members, data about student affairs professionals (SAPs) are not yet clear. The purpose of this quasi-experimental interventional single group research was to assess SAPs using the Color-Blind Racial Attitudes Scale (CoBRAS) to investigate whether colorblind racism is present within the culture of the student affairs profession. A pretest involved survey questions about Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) statements and actions within higher education and reactions to quotations from public figures about race and society. Following a brief self-reflection about racial identity and related access …

Floodfriend, Lauren Watson

College of Computing and Digital Media Dissertations

Floodfriend is a two-dimensional puzzle-platformer game with two main characters that are trying to navigate their way out of a cave system. The player controls both the human and the monster of the duo: the hiker responds to direct arrow key input, while the monster can only be persuaded by using the hiker’s flashlight to swim and climb to otherwise inaccessible areas. The game is equal parts a simulation and a toy, encouraging the player to try different methods of interaction to garner the results they want to see. From a design perspective, the game is centered on the push …

How Length Of Residence Moderates The Relationship Between Time And Community Satisfaction In Rural Utah, Anna Jacob

Undergraduate Honors Theses

The Olympics served as a mega-event during the early 2000’s which greatly affected the surrounding areas in rural Utah. There were social disruptions and changes in the community that altered resident’s perceptions of their community in which they had lived most of their life: however, it also became a community of interest due to the publicity and traction the Olympics brought to Heber and surrounding areas. This study seeks to explore the relationship between length of residence as a moderator between time and community satisfaction in Heber, Wallsburg, Daniel, and Charleston Utah during pre-boom, boom, and post-boom time periods. Additionally, …

Protegiendo La Antártida En El Antropoceno: Bioseguridad Como ‘Ritual’ Turístico, Clare A. Sammells, Vuochnea Taing

Faculty Conference Papers and Presentations

No abstract provided.

Toward A Unified Conceptualization Of Social Capital, Paulina Erices-Ocampo, Miranda J. Lubbers, Jimi Adams

Faculty Publications

Social capital is among the most broadly used concepts in social science. Despite its shared understanding as beneficial resources available from the connections between people, authors vary widely in their conceptualizations of social capital. To extract clarity from these disparate perspectives, we offer a systematic framework for conceptualizing social capital, which identifies three primary theoretical dimensions of scholars’ conceptualizations of social capital: (a) where beneficial resources reside, ranging from within individuals to the relationships between individuals; (b) beneficial network structure, differentiating closure from brokerage arrangements; and (c) the level to which rewards accrue, distinguishing individual from collective benefits. We illustrate …

Evaluating The Meditation Practices And Barriers To Adopting Mindful Medicine Among Physicians, Marylou Cardenas-Turanzas, Aila Malik, Radha Korupolu

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background: Chronic pain affects over 25% of U.S. adults and is a leading cause of disability. Mindfulness meditation (MM) is a nonpharmacologic approach to manage pain and improve well-being. Despite mounting evidence supporting its efficacy, MM remains underutilized in medical practice. Understanding physicians' engagement with MM and the barriers they face can inform strategies for integration into clinical care. This study assessed physicians' attitudes toward MM, including barriers to practice and their likelihood of recommending it to patients.

Methods: A cross-sectional survey of U.S. physicians was conducted from April to July 2024. Participants provided information on demographics, health struggles, and …

The Ittecf And Educational Research: The Next Version Of A Flawed Vision?, Jim Hordern, Clare Brooks

School of Law, Humanities and Social Sciences

In this article we discuss the view of educational research outlined in the Initial Teacher Training and Early Career Framework (ITTECF) document, published in 2024 by the UK Department for Education, in the context of debates about the relationship between educational knowledge and teacher education. Through an elementary bibliometric analysis of the changes made to the reference lists in the document since its predecessor documents (the Core Content Framework and the Early Career Framework), we show how the previous UK Conservative government sought to embed a scientistic approach to educational knowledge for teacher education in England, with research sponsored by …

2025-03-12 Fiesta De Callejon Celebrates Latin American Culture On Campus, Kevin Ruiz

The Spectator Online

https://s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/barrow.production.bepress.com/24621964_2025-06-12-1759968000/files/2025-03-12%20Fiesta%20de%20Callejon%20Celebrates%20Latin%20American%20Culture%20on%20Campus%20%E2%80%93%20The%20Spectator.pdf?AWSAccessKeyId=AKIAYVUS7KB2IXSYB4XB&Signature=Q7uue79qRD96HoF%2BFs%2Fwk%2F%2BrjpA%3D&Expires=1752343199

‘You're Panicking, I'M Panicking, Let's Do It Together!’ Special Educators' Views On Family Involvement During Covid-19, Diana L. Cruz, Tracy Gershwin, Guofeng Shen, Silvia Correa-Torres

Journal of Educational Research and Innovation

Communication and family engagement in education shifted significantly during the COVID-19 pandemic. This qualitative study explored these changes by conducting ten focus groups with 43 PK-12 special educators from one school district, examining their experiences with family involvement during the first two years of the pandemic. Educators employed various innovative strategies to foster communication and maintain family involvement, including using technology, conducting home visits, offering open communication channels, and creating personal connections through interactive activities. Participants noted that decreased family involvement in the first year was primarily due to technological barriers, childcare challenges, and linguistic or communication differences. The study …

Reimagining Cultural Intersections: A Book Review Of Maya Christian Murals Of Early Modern Yucatán, Texas University Press, 2024., Lilia Fernández Souza Phd, Lilia Lucia Lizama Aranda Dr., José Israel Herrera

Journal of Maya Heritage

Colonial mural art in the Yucatán Peninsula represents a cultural intersection where Christian iconography and Maya artistic traditions converged in a complex visual dialogue. Maya Christian Murals of Early Modern Yucatán (Texas University Press, 2024) offers a detailed analysis of these pictorial expressions, exploring how Indigenous artists reinterpreted colonial impositions by preserving ancestral techniques, materials, and symbolism. The book proposes a rereading of the murals in Franciscan convents, highlighting their role not only as tools of evangelization but also as evidence of cultural resistance and adaptation.

This review, titled Reimagining Cultural Intersections: A Book Review of Maya Christian Murals of …

A Conversation Starter On The Sociological Factors Impacting Black Women Leading In White Religious Spaces In Houston, Texas, Jonita Fair-Payton

Doctor of Leadership

This Doctoral Portfolio is an exploration into the factors the play a role in limiting the opportunities for Black women to lead in white religious spaces. As Black women seek to serve and answer the call on their lives, they are faced with navigating implicit and explicit biases that negatively impact their ability to lead.

With 15 years of experience working, serving, and leading in White Religious Spaces, I have experienced interactions, conversations, and decisions that have created a distrust in the leadership and congregation. My experience is not unique as the women in my Stakeholder Group have had similar …

Everybody Plays: Leadership Emergence Through Intergenerational Partnerships At The Church On The Way, David Timothy Clark

Doctor of Leadership

"The Church On The Way needs to strengthen a culture of intergenerational partnership to effectively raise up emerging generations for ministry leadership.”

I discovered this need while exploring ways to develop Gen Z leaders at The Church On The Way. I understood churches risk stagnation, decline, and death without emerging leaders.

However, I did not foresee where the research would take me. I found that a generational industry has been built on the narrative that underscores the differences between age groups. This narrative often leads churches to believe that creating programs tailored to each generation is the primary strategy for …

No. 36: ‘Going To The Supermarket Was Hard’: Pandemic Foodscapes And Unsettled Food Practices Of Refugees In The Waterloo Region, Sujata Ramachandran, Elizabeth Onyango, Zhenzhong Si, Zack Ahmed, Mercedes Eguiguren, Jonathan Crush, Neil Arya

Migration and Food Security (MiFOOD) Network

In this paper, we examine how the ‘new normal’ of pandemic-living transformed the local food environment in Ontario as pandemic foodscapes. Using selected findings from mixed methods research with a small sample of recently resettled refugees in the Waterloo region, we evaluated how these changes affected their grocery shopping and food-sourcing habits. We identify the distinctive ways the pandemic-related restrictions altered our participants’ interactions with their local food environment and influenced their food availability and accessibility. Our study found that participants spent more time acquiring food from a reduced number of food sources and experienced an overall weakening of their …

No. 35: Venezuelan Migration And Covid-19 Response Measures In Urban Areas Of Ecuador, Cheryl Martens, Taymi Milán

Migration and Food Security (MiFOOD) Network

The COVID-19 pandemic significantly impacted Venezuelan migrants in Ecuador, exacerbating their vulnerabilities due to restrictive containment measures, socioeconomic instability, and barriers to healthcare and basic services. This paper examines the intersection of pandemic-related restrictions, migrant precarity, and state responses, highlighting the disproportionate effects on urban Venezuelan migrants. Key challenges included irregular migration pathways, increased food and housing insecurity, exclusion from early vaccination programs, and heightened exposure to gender-based violence. Despite Ecuador’s early adoption of an inclusive vaccination strategy, systemic inequalities persisted, limiting migrants’ social and economic integration. The findings contribute to broader discussions on migration governance, humanitarian responses, and the …

Faculty Senate Minutes 2025-03-11, The University Of Texas Rio Grande Valley. Faculty Senate.

Faculty Senate Minutes

No abstract provided.

High School Students' Mathematics Experiences And Mathematics Learner Identities In A Rural Georgia Town: A Qualitative Study Using Autophotography With Photo-Elicitation, Wesley Cooper

Dissertations

This study examines the mathematics experiences (MEs) and mathematics learner identities (MLIs) of high school students in a rural Georgia town, addressing the underrepresentation of rural perspectives in mathematics education through an asset-based lens. Using autophotography with photo-elicitation, ten participants captured images reflecting their MEs, MLIs, and recommendations for improvement. Semi-structured interviews and focus groups along with two mini-cases amplified participant voices, guided by the frameworks of Four Faces of Mathematics Learner Identity (4F), Content Learning and Identity Construction (CLIC), and Critical Rural Theory (CRuT). Findings highlight how rural students’ MEs and MLIs are shaped by both the strengths of …