Digital Commons Network^™

The Forgotten Carers: A Study Of The Lived Experiences Of Chinese Canadians Caring For A Family Member With Borderline Personality Disorder (Bpd/Fbpd), Judy Y.F. Wu

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

There is a fair amount of literature on Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD); however, it still lags behind research on other major mental illnesses such as depression and schizophrenia (Furnham et al., 2015). Similarly, while there has been ample research on caring from various perspectives; little has been explored regarding caring for individuals with BPD. Research on Chinese Canadian families caring for patients with BPD is even more scarce. This study explored the lived experiences of Chinese Canadians caring for family members diagnosed with BPD (FBPD) in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), Ontario, Canada. BPD is characterised by “interpersonal hypersensitivity, affective …

A Novel Federated Llm Framework For Distributed Traffic Modelling In Intelligent Transportation Systems, Seerat Kaur

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Intelligent transportation systems (ITS) depend on accurate traffic prediction to support congestion management, infrastructure planning, and real-time operational decisions. Despite substantial progress in data-driven forecasting, several challenges continue to limit practical deployment: traffic data is distributed across independent regional authorities, making centralized aggregation infeasible, standard federated aggregation strategies ignore traffic-specific characteristics that meaningfully affect model quality, and existing models produce only numerical outputs without interpretable reasoning that urban planners can act upon. This thesis addresses these challenges through four contributions that collectively advance privacy-preserving, explainable, and scalable traffic forecasting.

The first contribution provides a systematic review of 129 peer-reviewed publications, …

Cultivating Diversity In Sustainable Food Systems: Black Farming And Lived Experience In Rural Southern Ontario, Kadeem Jerofy Morgan-Adamson Mr.

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

This research examines the lived experiences of Black food growers in rural Southern Ontario to understand how their perspectives challenge dominant narratives of rurality and inform broader discussions on food sovereignty in Canada. Grounded in postcolonial theory, the study highlights how historical dispossession and persistent inequities shape the access of Black communities to land and resources. Using a mixed-methods approach that includes surveys, semi-structured interviews, and reflexive journaling within a community-based research framework, the study documents the barriers Black food growers face. These include limited land access, insufficient funding, inadequate training pathways, and experiences of racial isolation in rural contexts. …

“My Voice Is Trauma, My Voice Is Healing:” A Feminist, Trauma-Informed Embodied Study On The Impact Of Gender-Based Violence In Classical Music Communities, Sarah Pearson

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

This Social Work doctoral dissertation explores the impact of gender-based violence (GBV) in classical music communities on survivor-artists. This is an intersectional feminist, trauma-informed, embodied study that draws on these three theoretical concepts to conceive of classical music as an institution of both colonial patriarchal power and a site of spirituality and meaning-making. The issue of systemic GBV in the performing arts has been a focus of headline news and sensational celebrity stories in the last decade following the MeToo hashtag and is slowly gaining some attention in academic research.

For this qualitative study, the sample consisted of 14 participants …

An Examination Of Speech Motor Control And Auditory Processing In Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (Adhd), Rita Bishai

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Fluent speech production is achieved through a relative weighting of feedback and feedforward motor control systems. These systems are thought to be responsible for the online correction of vocal errors and initiating speech, respectively. The relative weighting of these motor control systems has been shown to differ under conditions of high attentional load and across individual differences in sensory acuity. However, research has yet to examine speech motor control in a population with clinical attentional and sensory processing differences, such as those with Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). The studies in this thesis aimed to examine how ADHD traits relate to …

The Power Of Letting Go: The Role Of Goal Adjustment Capacities Across Future And Daily Perspectives Of Chronic Illness, Alexandra Dagher, Meaghan Barlow

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Goal adjustment capacities are self-regulatory processes that protect psychological well-being by allowing individuals to disengage from unattainable goals and reengage in new attainable ones. Although research has shown that these capacities are beneficial in the context of chronic illness, little is known about how their effectiveness may differ across various aspects of the chronic illness experience. The present research consisted of two distinct yet complementary studies examining the role of goal adjustment capacities in two chronic illness contexts. Study 1 (N = 149) prompted participants to imagine the future progression of a chronic illness, whereas Study 2 (N …

Working With Parents & Guardians: Asset-Based Communication + Conference Simulation (4-Day Sequence), Carissa State Gober

Open Educational Resources - Teaching and Learning

This four‑day instructional sequence prepares teacher candidates to communicate with parents and guardians using an asset‑based, professional, and ethically grounded approach. The unit emphasizes prioritizing student strengths, shared goals, and contextual understanding while avoiding deficit‑focused language. Candidates begin by engaging in a Socratic Seminar grounded in research on effective family communication, allowing them to surface key themes, misconceptions, and questions. They then learn a structured conference script, analyze communication tips embedded within it, and practice applying the format through peer role‑play. Subsequent sessions focus on selecting and presenting data in family‑friendly ways, reframing challenges into needs and supports, and using …

Differences Of Sex Development (Dsd), Children's Mercy Kansas City

Clinical Pathways

No abstract provided.

Bridging Vision And Practice: A Case Study Of Educator Perceptions Within The Community School Model, Jessica M. Riedel

West Chester University Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Final Projects

Guided by a qualitative collective case study employing two focus groups and six individual interviews, this dissertation in practice examined educator and community school specialist perceptions of the community school model and sought to understand how those perceptions inform the district’s approach to teaching and school operations. Findings indicated a genuine desire to make the community school model successful for students within the buildings but also emphasized a lack of role clarity and professional development opportunities, misconceptions around the model, and siloing within different programs in the schools. These results highlight the need for more communication within districts and schools …

Adult Healthy Habits, Belinda E. Vicuna, Mahtab Soleimani, Yvonnie Baik, Elena Martinez, Theresa H. Cruz

Reports & Documents

No abstract provided.

Legislating Equity: A Qualitative Policy Analysis Of Healthcare Access And Health Literacy In Medically Underserved Communities In New Jersey, Korlu Y. Howard

West Chester University Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Final Projects

Access to healthcare has always been a major policy challenge in the United States and contributes to ongoing disparities. Reform efforts have focused on expanding insurance coverage, yet less attention has been focused on whether the healthcare system is navigable. This study examines three New Jersey statutes using Kingdon’s Multiple Streams Framework and the Health Equity Framework. The purpose of this examination is to better understand how statutory language shapes healthcare access. The findings show that access is primarily structured through coverage requirements, procedural protections, and established legal rights. At the same time, these systems often involve added complexity, requiring …

Arts Enriched Head Start Preschool And School Readiness: Are Benefits Accentuated For Children Facing Greater Economic Hardship?, Isabella Capera

West Chester University Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Final Projects

Children growing up in impoverished and low-income households face opportunity gaps that limit their school readiness (Blair & Raver, 2015). Head Start preschool, which serves families facing economic hardship, has been demonstrated to reduce these gaps and enhance school readiness. Further, multiple studies have suggested that arts enriched Head Start may offer particular benefits (e.g., Brown et al., 2010, 2018; Lobo & Winsler, 2008). Yet research to date is limited and has not examined whether the benefits of arts enriched preschool may be uniquely helpful for children facing the greatest economic risk. The present study examines growth in school readiness …

Dual Language Learner Status In Relation To Cortisol For Children In Head Start Preschool, Keala Bratsch

West Chester University Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Final Projects

Early childhood education (ECE) has well documented school readiness benefits, especially for children facing economic hardship. Yet preschool context poses challenges that are associated with elevated stress levels and potential long-term tax on physiological systems that respond to stress. The present study examined dual language learner (DLL) status in relation to levels of the stress hormone cortisol among low-income children attending Head Start Preschool programs. Participants included 207 children ages 3- 5 years who attended preschool in 2021-22 (60.9% attending a dual-language learning school, 39.1% attending an English-instruction-only preschool; all participants meeting the criteria for low-income), and their parents or …

Looking Beyond Minimalist Pedagogies: Rhetorical Listening As A Framework For Ethical Collaboration And Student Empowerment In The Writing Center, Abby M. Samella

West Chester University Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Final Projects

Since its establishment, the Writing Center has strived to solidify its institutional presence as a space of student-centered pedagogy, minimalist directive approaches, and collaborative learning. However, students frequently perceive Writing Centers as the polar opposite of collaboration, frequently seeking out this support for a transactional, ‘remedial’ fix to their writing product. As Writing Centers grapple with this tension that threatens their process-driven pedagogies, scholars recognize a gap in Literature regarding collaborative approaches that empower the student through the implementation of rhetorical listening. Using the foundational framework of Rhetorical Listening as a strategy to reassert the collaborative identity of the Center …

The Role Of Technology In Education: Friend Or Fiend?, Michaela A. Morgan

West Chester University Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Final Projects

In this paper we will be examining the role of educational technology in the United States through a critical lens with the purpose of arguing that the growing dependence on EdTech, standardized testing, and data-driven instruction has contributed to the privatization, dehumanization, and inequity of public education. Drawing from critical pedagogy, sociocultural theory, and educational research both recent and decades prior. In my paper I explore how technology in schools often functions less as a liberatory tool and more as a mechanism of surveillance, commodification, and control. We consider the historical roots of educational inequality, including eugenics, meritocracy, and colonial …

The Experiences Of Black Women’S Maternity Care And Its Effects On Pregnancy Outcomes, Joy O. Osaghae

West Chester University Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Final Projects

Health disparities in maternal health are a significant challenge to the public health of the United States, and Black women have double the morbidity and mortality rates of maternal illnesses in comparison with White women. These inequalities persist across socioeconomic levels, highlighting systemic inequities within the healthcare system. Some published studies have focused on quantitative outcomes, but few have examined Black women's lived experiences and their impact on pregnancy outcomes. This paper fills this gap by discussing the maternity care experiences of Black women in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Drawing on Critical Race Theory and Intersectionality Theory, this qualitative phenomenological study explored …

Refining The Fiat: Exploring The Vocations Of Four Women Catholic Educators Through Narrative Inquiry In The Archdiocese Of Philadelphia, Kaitlyn A. Rodgers

West Chester University Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Final Projects

Catholic education in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia has a long history of integrating faith and education. While research often focuses on school efficacy and Catholic identity, less attention has been given to the educators who sustain these institutions. This qualitative narrative inquiry explored how Catholic faith shapes the professional identities and vocational commitments of four women educators in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. Guided by Catholic Social Teaching and feminist theology, the study examined how participants understood their vocation, or “fiat,” through personal and professional narratives. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with both vowed religious and lay educators.

Three themes emerged. First, …

Evaluating The Impact Of Telemedicine-Based Medication Education On Glycemic Control In Adult Male Veterans With Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus, Megan N. Calter

West Chester University Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Final Projects

Veterans experience disproportionately high rates of type 2 diabetes mellitus (20.5% vs 11.6% nationally), driven by military-related factors such as PTSD, deployment-related obesity, and service-connected disabilities. At a large urban primary care clinic, 28% (40/141) of veterans with type 2 diabetes mellitus had persistently elevated HbA1c levels of ≥8%, indicating a high risk for diabetes-related complications. This quality improvement project aimed to reduce the proportion of veterans with HbA1c of ≥8% by implementing tailored telemedicine-based medication education, leveraging underutilized virtual care infrastructure to address access barriers and improve diabetes self-management. Participants received two 30-minute telemedicine medication and disease management education …

The Role Of Growth Mindset As A Mitigating Factor On Teacher Burnout In The Secondary Math Classroom, Grant Butler

West Chester University Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Final Projects

This mixed methods sequential explanatory study examined how secondary mathematics teachers’ mindsets relate to burnout tendencies, and how schools can support staff mindset to prevent burnout. Using a two-phase design, Phase 1 gathered survey data from 94 secondary math teachers, measuring mindset and burnout with descriptive statistics, correlations, chi-square tests, and regression analysis to quantify associations between mindset orientation and burnout risk. Phase 2 employed semi-structured interviews with a subsample of teachers and open and axial coding to explain and contextualize the quantitative patterns. Quantitative analyses revealed that teachers with more fixed mindset tendencies reported significantly higher burnout scores across …

Poct Hgb A1c And Patient Satisfaction In Adult Patients With Diabetes, Kelly Galvin

West Chester University Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Final Projects

Point-of-care testing (POCT) is used to measure a variety of healthcare data rapidly at the bedside. It can be particularly useful when laboratory data is not available at the time a patient sees their healthcare provider (HCP). Patients living with diabetes frequently do not obtain laboratory data prior to their visit with their HCP. This quality improvement projected aim to assess if use of POCT to measure an Hgb A1c level in patients with diabetes affected patient satisfaction in an endocrinology clinic. Eligible participants were asked to complete an anonymous survey, with three questions asking if having their Hgb A1c …

Updating Order Set Review Policy To Improve Adherence To Evidence-Based Practice In A Multi-Hospital System, Corynne Lurie

West Chester University Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Final Projects

Ensuring that clinical order sets reflect current evidence-based practice is essential to delivering safe, high-quality, and consistent patient care across health systems. In multi-hospital organizations, maintaining alignment across facilities presents additional challenges, including variability in workflow, stakeholder involvement, and policy adherence. This quality improvement project evaluated the existing order set review process within a three-hospital health system to determine whether current policies effectively support system-wide needs and promote best practices. Guided by Lewin’s Change Theory, a qualitative descriptive design was used to assess current workflows and gather feedback from stakeholders involved in order set development and review. Survey data, with …

Retrospective Analysis Of Calcium Administration In Patients Undergoing Massive Transfusion Protocol (Mtp), Chrissy Unton

West Chester University Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Final Projects

Unintentional injuries have remained the third leading cause of death in the United States since 2015, with the exception of 2020. Of those deaths resulting from traumatic injury, 40% result from hemorrhage and uncontrolled blood loss. Current treatment efforts focus on early, balanced transfusion of blood products and aim to correct metabolic derangements/coagulopathies, while minimizing crystalloid administration. As such, the role hypocalcemia plays in the injury process and the importance of calcium administration in resuscitation efforts has gained traction over recent years. The aim of this retrospective analysis was to assess calcium supplementation in relation to current facility protocol for …

Seeing Through Their Lenses: Perspectives Of Kindergarten Teachers On Implementing Purposeful Play For Children’S Academic And Developmental Learning, Subarna Basu

West Chester University Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Final Projects

The purpose of this study was to examine the kindergarten teachers’ perceptions of using purposeful play for children’s academic and developmental learning, and the benefits and challenges they perceive in implementing purposeful play. The study utilized a qualitative, visual arts-based, participatory action research (PAR) design, in the form of Photovoice methodology. This qualitative study focused on the kindergarten teachers’ lived experiences and voices on the importance of implementing purposeful play and employed Paulo Freire’s Critical Pedagogy and Constructivist theories. Utilizing this methodology, six kindergarten teacher participants collected photographs based on photo prompts, provided narratives to their photographs, and reflected and …

A Community Cultural Wealth Approach In Exploring The Lived Experiences Of Second-Generation Black Caribbean American Undergraduate Women Attending U.S. Predominantly White Higher Education Institutions, Arielle Phillips-Law

West Chester University Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Final Projects

This qualitative phenomenological study explores the lived experiences of second-generation Black Caribbean American women undergraduate students who attend U.S. predominantly white institutions. Black women students from ethnic minorities encounter racism, sexism, and ethnocentrism, all factors that can influence their persistence and completion within U.S. higher education and the economic outcomes post-graduation. Using Community Cultural Wealth as the guiding theoretical framework for this study, I focused on centering the strengths and skills of Black Caribbean women in their navigation of higher education. I used an interpretive phenomenological analysis as the study methodology. Participants included ten second-generation Black Caribbean cisgender women who …

Stories Of Strength, Struggle, And Unchecked Boxes: An Intersectional And Mestiza Consciousness Study Of Testimonios From Latina College Students, Stephanie Pinel

West Chester University Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Final Projects

Latina college students remain the fastest-growing student population within the United States higher education system. However, when discussing the Latina identity, monolithic assumptions remain at the forefront. When faced with systems of oppression, Latinas experience intersectional struggles that ultimately render their college experiences invisible. Using the theoretical frameworks of Mestiza Consciousness (Anzaldúa, 2021) and Intersectionality (Crenshaw, 1989) this testimonio-qualitative study explored how Latina college students made sense of their racial/ethnic identity and the intersectional forces that then shaped their testimonios of strength and struggle within higher education. I interviewed eleven Latina-identifying students utilizing a testimonio method and analyzed the data …

Beyond The Book: Charting New Progressions Through Improvisational Experience In Higher Education Jazz Performance Programs, Jacob L. Manny

West Chester University Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Final Projects

Jazz improvisation is a historically rich and culturally relevant art form that is also an underutilized pedagogy in higher education music performance programs (HEMPPs). Previous research has extensively unmasked the relationship of creative, social, and cognitive benefits of improvisational learning. Yet, postsecondary institutions continually rely upon Western European colonialist practices through the isolation of music history, music theory, piano, and compositioncourses. This disconnect results in curricular designs that fail to recognize the importance of experiential learning. In this qualitative inquiry semi-structured interviews were conducted with ten participants who perform and educate globally. Participant stories unearthed not …

Assessing The Mentorship Role In Neonatal Outcomes, Patricia Juhline Brunner

West Chester University Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Final Projects

The complex environment of neonatal intensive care requires a skilled, engaged nursing workforce to maintain high‑quality outcomes. Structured mentorship is an evidence‑based strategy shown to enhance professional engagement and support improved clinical outcomes. This Doctor of Nursing Practice quality improvement project aimed to evaluate the impact of a structured clinical mentorship program on evidence‑based practice beliefs, nurse engagement, and selected neonatal outcomes in a Level III academic intensive care nursery.

Guided by the Donabedian model, the project evaluated structure through mentorship design and preparation, process through mentor–mentee interactions and workflow integration, and outcomes through nursing and patient metrics. Lewin’s change …

Say Gay: Increasing Preservice Teacher Confidence Using Participatory Theatre, Sarah Maxime Hyson

West Chester University Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Final Projects

Research Design: Research shows a lack of LGBTQ+ instruction in teacher preparation programs. This social justice mixed methods study evaluates effectiveness of participatory theatre for increasing confidence in preservice teachers. Research Questions: RQ 1: How does student self-rating of confidence change after participatory theatre experiences that examine issues concerning LGBTQ+ individuals and materials? RQ 2: What do preservice teachers’ writing, sketching, and discussion about their participatory theatre experience reveal about their evolving confidence regarding LGBTQ+ individuals and issues? RQ 3: What do the instructor’s experiences and reflections reveal about the effectiveness ofparticipatory theatre pedagogy to increase confidence in preservice teachers …

Real-Time Isolated Asl Recognition: Evaluating Spatial-Temporal Networks And Multimodal Llms, Raga Mouni Batchu

West Chester University Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Final Projects

This thesis investigates the deployment of high-accuracy Isolated ASL Recognition (ISLR) in resource-constrained edge environments. We train a lightweight Spatio-Temporal Attention Network (SSTAN,∼2.7 M parameters,∼10 MB) on the WLASL-100 benchmark, achieving 75.25% Top-1 and 88.24% Top-5 accuracy with 139 ms CPU-only inference. A systematic comparison against frontier multimodal LLMs (Gemini 3 Flash, Gemini 3.1 Pro, Qwen 3 VL) shows SSTAN outperforms the best LLM baseline by∼1.85×in accuracy while being 22–230×faster and up to 40×cheaper annually. The LLMs’ core limitation is a lack of fine-grained temporal perception; they impose English-language semantic priors rather than learning the articulatory distinctions that define ASL …

Global Inventory Of Fluoropolymer Production Plants And Their Associated Pfas Environmental Contamination, Anna J. Miller, Kevin Kleemann, Juliane Glüge, Rainer Lohmann, Ian T. Cousins, Dorte Herzke, Mark F. Miller, Amanda Rensmo, Xenia Trier, Zhanyun Wang, Martin Scheringer

Graduate School of Oceanography Faculty Publications

Fluoropolymers are widely used across sectors, but their production is associated with emissions of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs), which are mobile, persistent, and toxic. In this work, we compiled a global inventory of fluoropolymer production plants (FPPs) and assembled PFAS concentration measurements for various media in their vicinity. We identified 52 currently operating FPPs across 11 countries and 41 cities. For 12 FPPs, in 12 different cities, there are peer-reviewed site-specific PFAS measurements specifically attributed to the FPP. At these 12 sites, at least 236 individual PFASs have been detected across multiple environmental media, including surface water, groundwater, air, …