Digital Commons Network^™

An Exploratory Analysis Of The Role Of Sex In Load Carriage, Rachel E. Perez, Dustin R. Slivka, Brent C. Ruby

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Axially loaded weight may impose a metabolic demand equivalent to that of fat mass (FM) during load carriage. Males (M) typically have a lower body fat percentage than females (F), resulting in metabolic demand differences during load carriage that may be mitigated by accounting for FM in pack loads. PURPOSE: To determine whether normalizing pack load to FM equalizes metabolic cost across sexes during load carriage. METHODS: Twenty-eight participants (14M, 23 ± 5 y, 1.81 ± 0.07 m, 78.7 ± 10.0 kg, 12.7 ± 5.4% body fat, VO₂peak 4.18 ± 0.54 L·min^-1; 14F, 22 ± 4 …

The Laymen's Conceptualization Of The “Safe Space”, Tiffany A. Nord

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The term "safe space" appears frequently across academic, organizational, therapeutic, and social contexts, yet lacks conceptual clarity. While originating from LGBTQ+ and women's activist movements, contemporary usage has expanded without theoretical development, making it confusing and challenging to effectively implement for researchers and practitioners alike. This two-phase qualitative study examined how individuals define safe spaces. Phase 1 employed an open-ended questionnaire with 62 general population participants. Phase 2 involved semi-structured interviews with 22 self-identified LGBTQ+ individuals. Data were analyzed using a constructivist grounded theory methodology. Findings revealed five core elements: specified setting, enacting responsiveness, allowing candor, perceiving security, and sensing …

Velocity Based Training In Athletic Development, Ross Martin Sangalang

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The foundation of high-level sport performance is the ability to produce and express force rapidly across the task-specific temporal demands of sport. Traditional percentage-based prescription methods have long been used to develop hypertrophy, maximal strength, and power; however, fixed %1RM prescriptions fail to account for daily undulations in athlete readiness, accumulated fatigue, and changes in neuromuscular capacity. Velocity based training (VBT) offers a practical framework to regulate training through measurement of concentric velocity, allowing coaches to more accurately prescribe loads, stringently monitor repetition quality, and precisely regulate fatigue. This review discusses the neuromuscular qualities underpinning success in athletic endeavors, limitations …

Initial Qualitative Inquiry Into Social Proverb Use And Acceptability, Emma K. Hinds

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Currently,  1 in 36 individuals are diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), which is characterized by social communication differences and restricted and/or repetitive behaviors. Many children with ASD also present with sensory, behavioral, and emotional differences, underscoring the need for specialized, evidence-based interventions. Social proverb is a novel intervention approach developed by Dr. Schoffer Closson that provides in-the-moment guidance by explicitly stating expected social behaviors and the rationale behind them (e.g., “We cover our coughs, so we don’t spread germs”). To date, no research has examined the use of social proverbs as an intervention strategy. The purpose of this qualitative …

Aquatic Habitat Use By Western Toads And American Bullfrogs In California’S Central Valley: Effects Of Local Habitat Characteristics And Landscape Composition, Kaitlyn Breana Hernandez

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Drastic losses of historic wetland habitat in the California Central Valley have caused widespread population declines and extirpations of aquatic breeding amphibians. Efforts to restore wetland habitat have included private land, which represents 70% of land tenure in the Central Valley. Management of these restored wetlands is focused on waterfowl with the assumption that they will provide habitat for native herpetofauna. This study used combined surveys to test the assumption that restored wetlands on private land provide habitat for native amphibians with the western toad (Anaxyrus boreas) as a case study. The objectives were to use environmental DNA …

Analysis Of Policies And Incentives For The Successful Implementation Of Hydrogen-Fueled Medium-Duty And Heavy-Duty Vehicles In Humboldt County, California, Alka Verma

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

The 21st century has seen a significant rise in global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, with the transportation sector contributing 23% of these emissions. Medium-duty and heavy-duty vehicles (MD/HD) are particularly impactful, accounting for over a quarter of transport-related emissions. In Humboldt County, California, transportation represents 53% of total emissions, with MD/HD vehicles being a major contributor. As light-duty vehicles shift to zero-emission alternatives, the MD/HD sector faces unique challenges. Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles offer a promising solution, providing longer range, higher energy density, and quicker refueling compared to battery electric vehicles (BEVs). These features make hydrogen an attractive option for …

An Evaluation Of Aquatic Interventions To Support Increased Physical Fitness Levels For Children With Cerebral Palsy, Grace Kasberger

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

This study was designed to determine the most appropriate aquatic interventions to best improve physical fitness levels in children with cerebral palsy (CP). Children with CP often experience reduced aerobic capacity, muscular strength, and functional mobility, which can limit participation in traditional land-based physical activities such as walking and playing. Aquatic environments provide safe and resistance-based environments that can reduce joint loading, spasticity, and provide training. This systematic review examined a variety of different aquatic interventions (e.g. HIIT, aerobic based, strength training, flexibility, and the Halliwick Method) to improve physical fitness in children with CP. Data collection focused on outcomes …

Coho Salmon (Oncorhynchus Kisutch) Response To Habitat Restoration Through Space And Time: Monitoring Growth, Survival, And Movement In A Restored Habitat Network, Carter Perez Adamson

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Despite the decline of coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch), Prairie Creek, a tributary of Redwood Creek in northern California, remains a coho salmon stronghold. The restoration of juvenile coho rearing habitat was identified as a recovery objective in this watershed by the National Marine Fisheries Service. Among the restoration projects addressing this objective are an ongoing project on Prairie Creek and its tributary Skunk Cabbage Creek, and a prior effort on Strawberry Creek (a tributary of Redwood Creek’s estuary). Standard monitoring methods for assessing project success have limitations and may be improved by measuring salmon use of restored habitats …

Nourishing Roots: Supporting Indigenous Food Education In School Gardens, Tatiana Marina Patino Madriaga

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

This project asked: How can a school garden at Hoopa Valley Elementary support Indigenous food education, student well-being, and relational learning? To explore this question, I designed and implemented a garden classroom and facilitated hands-on garden and culinary workshops with students.

The garden was planned in September, built in October, and had plants in the ground by November. Over the course of the project, I facilitated four workshops, one Earth Day community event, and weekly garden classes. Approximately 350 students participated in the garden in some capacity, reflecting broad, school-wide engagement.

Methods included participant observation, documentation of student engagement, and …

Repairing Estranged Death: Care, Politics And Ecology In The Us Funeral Industry, Cecilia Catherine Rodriguez

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

The industrialization of death practices in the US has separated humanity from natural cycles while centering white settler colonial norms that marginalize other cultural ways of caring for the dead. Through necropolitics, the contemporary death industry embodies capitalist values of commodification and a monopolization of care, separating death from community and its ecological cycles. Black and Indigenous feminist knowledges understand death as not a discrete event but instead as an ongoing process that shapes our relationships with both the human and more-than-human worlds. Engaging with feminist political ecologies, I extend a conversation about care and repair to contemporary death practices …

The Effects Of Expectancies And Attention To Placebo Relevant Sensations On The Open-Label Placebo Response, Miranda Connelly

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Placebo analgesia has shown promise in treating pain, but practitioners are reluctant to prescribe deceptive placebos. Open-label, or honestly prescribed placebos, offer an ethical alternative. Open-label placebos seem to work largely through experimenter-manipulated expectancy, as well as social/environmental factors. Additionally, verbally guided attention to relevant placebo sensations might bolster pain relief. In the present study, expectancy and attention were experimentally manipulated within a 2 (expectancy: high/low) x 2 (attention: high/low) between-subjects design with a no-treatment comparison group. Pain was experimentally induced in all five experimental groups using the well-established cold pressor task. The primary dependent variables were pain tolerance and …

Relational Approaches To Fire Resilience: Designing A Living Shaded Fuel Break With Indigenous Knowledge Systems, Natalee Nicole Lopes

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Escalating wildfire severity across California reflects not only changing climatic conditions but also the cumulative impacts of colonial land management systems that have disrupted Indigenous fire stewardship and altered forest structure and function. This project examines how wildfire mitigation infrastructure, specifically linear fuel treatments, such as fuel breaks, can be reimagined through Indigenous relational frameworks of care-based land stewardship. Grounded in Happy Camp (Athithúfvuunupma), California, within the ancestral homelands of the Karuk Tribe along the mid-Klamath River, this research is carried out in collaboration with Karuk knowledge holders, centering Indigenous knowledge systems and priorities.

Using a mixed-methods approach that integrates …

Effects Of Conifer Encroachment On Oregon White Oak Crown Structure And Nonvascular Epiphyte Communities, Courtney Jonell Copper

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Oregon white oak (Quercus garryana, QUGA) is an ecologically and culturally important broadleaf tree species native to northern California and the Pacific Northwest. Fire suppression and subsequent encroachment by Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii, PSME) and other conifers have made QUGA woodlands among the most threatened habitat types in the region. This study examines the influence of conifer encroachment on QUGA crown structure and nonvascular epiphyte (NVE) communities using ground- and crown-based sampling techniques.

Twenty-four trees were sampled across four sites in northern California along a gradient of conifer encroachment that was quantified as PSME basal area (BA). A …

Bacterial Community Function In Pitcher Plant Leaves As An Experimental And Mathematical Model Of Functional Dynamics, Amelia Jackson

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

This work looks at two different sites with differing abiotic factors in measures of altitude, temperature and precipitation. The site with higher altitude, larger temperature range, and lower precipitation, located in Plumas National Forest (Quincy, CA), had a flat BEF trend that suggests functional redundancy The site with lower altitude, more moderate temperatures, and higher precipitation located in Six Rivers National Forest (Gasquet, CA), also had a flat BEF trend. These abiotic factors could correlate to the significantly different bacterial compositions between sites. The second portion of this work is modeling the host antagonist relationship between Eyxra moths and their …

Taking A Seat In The Circle: Decolonizing Gender Roles That Argue Against The Participation Of Feminine Bodies At The Big Drum, Juli Suzukawa

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

The origins of the Big Drum can be traced back to the 1860s when Tail Feather Woman, a Dakota woman, had a vision of its creation as a tool of resistance. The Big Drum has since expanded and can now be seen at various Indigenous ceremonies and social events. However, there has been controversy regarding the participation of feminine and queer bodies. While reasons for this vary, it has also contributed to harm amongst Indigenous youths that have a more fluid stand on gender identity and may not conform to colonial “gender norms”. In this paper, I will explore how …

Supporting Risky Outdoor Play Through Professional Development: A Quasi-Experimental Study Of Tk–6 Educators’ Attitudes, Justin Ross Burrill

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Children’s opportunities for active outdoor risky play have declined in many educational settings, despite evidence that manageable risk supports physical activity, self-regulation, confidence, resilience, and social participation. Educator attitudes and school culture may play an important role in determining whether children are offered developmentally appropriate opportunities for challenge, exploration, and autonomy. This quasi-experimental, single-group pretest-posttest study examined whether participation in a single-session professional development workshop was associated with changes in educators’ tolerance of risk in children’s play. Thirty educators attended a workshop focused on risky play, hazard-risk differentiation, inclusion of children with disabilities, loose-parts play, environmental affordances, and practitioner-informed implementation …

Assessing Water Storage In Northern California Forests, Christopher Gerard Gressierer

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

The climate is changing, with rising temperatures projected to increase vegetation stress and mortality. Precipitation is also expected to become more extreme, with longer dry seasons intensifying droughts, and wetter wet seasons increasing the risk of landslides or floods. Summer baseflows in northern California are declining, and a shift in water availability may alter vegetation communities, resulting in mortality and species composition changes. These trends highlight the need for increased attention and management to be focused on evaluating and maintaining watershed water storage to maintain ecosystem health.

This study estimates water storage capacity using a water balance approach, drawing in …

"What Power Do We Have?" Community Capacity And Justice In Samoa, California’S Floating Offshore Wind Terminal Development, Lauren Mccall Hart

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Floating offshore wind (OSW) is a relatively novel technology in the United States, which is positioned to play an integral role in California’s decarbonization strategy. Two federal OSW lease areas have been established off the coast of Northern California, and plans are underway to develop supporting port infrastructure, including the Humboldt Bay Offshore Wind Heavy Lift Marine Terminal (HLMT). The proposed HLMT site is adjacent to communities on the Samoa Peninsula of Humboldt Bay, which currently face socio-environmental vulnerabilities and critical infrastructure gaps. The social implications of OSW port development remain poorly understood, particularly in rural and underserved communities. This …

Queering Poetry Workshops, Dobby Morse

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

To what extent do participants report that a poetry workshop builds connections between poets and strengthen their confidence in writing? What do participants want or expect from a poetry workshop?

Through this project I hope to attend and host poetry workshops with an emphasis on the queer community. I will collaborate with campus and community organizations like Queer Humboldt and other organizations that are interested in exploring queer experiences through writing, connection, and meditation. This project will serve as a how-to guide for those seeking to conduct their own workshops.

Beyond The Meter: Frameworks For Evaluating The Broad Spectrum Of Microgrid Benefits, Elias Henderson

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Community-scale microgrids can create a range of social benefits. These include resilient electricity, cleaner air, decarbonization, and economic development, alongside more qualitative values like energy sovereignty and community self-determination. Many such benefits, however, are illegible to California’s market and regulatory frameworks. This thesis traces this disconnect, with particular attention to grid-edge communities in Northern California.

Microgrid benefits are classified as monetized, modeled, or incommensurable according to their inclusion/exclusion in existing regulatory and revenue mechanisms. To explore each category, a mixed-methods analytic approach is employed, pairing Tribal and stakeholder interviews with the development of a microgrid valuation calculator. This tool is …

Proteome-Based Identification And Validation Of Nxpe3 In Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia, Najia Tabassum, Yamna Khurshid, Basir Syed, Aftab Ahmad, Sadia Muhammad, Rehan Imad, Talat Mirza

Pharmacy Faculty Articles and Research

Background: Childhood acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (cALL) tends to metastasize to central nervous system. Treatment with antileukemic agents against CNS leukaemia is an essential component for cure in ALL. Hence, it is essential to identify biomarkers for CNS infiltration. Proteomics, supported by mass spectrometry, is the platform for exploring biomarkers in various biological samples, contributing to translational research. Objectives: This study aimed to identify the plasma proteome profile of children across different risk groups of cALL. Neurexophilin and PC-esterase family, member 3 (NXPE3), was validated. The protein-protein interactions (PPI) of NXPE3 were evaluated with bioinformatics analyses. Methods: Plasma …

Does The Impact Of Volunteering On Health Differ By Wealth? [Research In Brief: Volunteering], Seoyoun Kim, Cal J. Halvorsen

Harvey A. Friedman Center for Aging

Volunteering among older adults has many potential health benefits; however, older adults with more wealth are also more likely to volunteer in the first place, raising the question of whether they are the ones reaping the most benefits. This study asked two questions: (1) Does formal volunteering improve self-reported health and reduce depressive symptoms in older adults? (2) Does the impact of volunteering on these outcomes differ between older adults in the lowest and highest wealth quintiles?

Walking The Line How Social Forces Shape Diabetic Foot Outcomes In The Texas Rio Grande Valley, Amanda L. Killeen, Stephanie N. Campbell, Naomie Jean, Juan Lopez-Alvarenga, Xuan Wang, Cyaandi Dove, Caroline E. Fife

School of Podiatric Medicine Publications

• Diabetes in the Rio Grande Valley is widespread and severe. Nearly 1 in 3 adults is affected, with foot ulcers and amputations occurring at rates far above state and national averages.
• Social drivers of health (SDOH) strongly influence outcomes. Poverty, uninsurance, limited education, transportation barriers, and distance from specialty centers delay care and increase amputation risk.
• Living conditions amplify risk. Colonias, unincorporated settlements often lacking clean water, sewer systems, or reliable electricity, make diabetes management and preventive foot care especially challenging.
• Data-driven identification of high-risk populations is critical. Zip code–level SDOH data, integrated into electronic medical records, can serve as …

Does Volunteering Give An Extra Health Boost? Volunteering And Hypertension Risk Among Insured And Uninsured U.S. Adults In Late Midlife, Byeongju Ryu, Seoyoun Kim, Koichiro Shiba, Cal J. Halvorsen

Brown School Faculty Publications

Introduction: Hypertension is a major predictor of cardiovascular disease, a leading cause of death in the U.S. Growing evidence suggests that formal volunteering in later life may reduce hypertension risk; however, it remains unclear whether these benefits extend to adults in late midlife and whether they differ by health insurance status.

Methods: This prospective cohort study analyzed data from the 2012–2018 Health and Retirement Study. The analytic sample included 4,169 respondents between the ages of 50 and 64. Because blood pressure was measured in half the sample in alternating waves, data were pooled across waves. To address selection into volunteering, …

Humanizing The Base Of The Pyramid: Exploring The Influence Of Resource (Dis)Advantages On Value Creation, Ted London, Lisa Jones Christensen, Tyson Mackey, Alison Mackey, Heather Esper, Andrew Grogan-Kaylor

Faculty Publications

Base of the pyramid (BoP) scholarship emphasizes the potential for enterprises to generate profits by enhancing the wellbeing of the impoverished, often by selling socially-beneficial products (SBPs). Yet, many such BoP enterprises have experienced mixed results. We argue that this may stem from insufficient attention to how BoP consumers value SBPs and other products. We frame SBPs as a type of human capital investment and thus use human capital theory to study how the consumption of SBPs does or does not create value for consumers. Specifically, we use a novel data set from rural India to measure value creation in …

Developmental Themes Associated With Religious Activity After Early Return From A Latter-Day Saint Mission, Samuel E. Hancock, Sam A. Hardy, Michael Goodman, Camron Angell, Jenae M. Nelson

Faculty Publications

In the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, qualified young men are expected (and young women are given the option) to complete extended missionary service during the transition to adulthood. Some youth end their missionary service short of the anticipated duration, which is associated with markedly lower rates of religious activity post-return. This study is a qualitative inquiry into the developmental themes associated with early returned missionaries from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who chose to remain active (be consistently involved with the church), sampling from areas with high rates of Latter-day Saint activity, where stigmatization …

Self-Guided Functional Imagery Training To Reduce Anxiety, Jackie Andrade, Stephanie Hartgen-Walker, Caroline Morgan, Ayan, Idil Aytekin, Khadijah Sekoni, Kardelen Sengul, Jonathan Rhodes

School of Psychology

Objectives: Many university students experience high anxiety but have limited access to effective interventions. We evaluated a novel digital intervention for anxiety based on functional imagery training (FIT), designed to help individuals identify the impacts of anxiety, set engagement goals, and strengthen motivation for change. Functional Imagery for Keeping Anxiety low (FIKA) uses speak-aloud tasks, journalling, empathic questions, and personalised guided imagery for a person-centred approach. It builds motivation for engagement goals over safety goals through development and practice of vivid and emotionally laden multisensory imagery. Design: Study 1 used semi-structured interviews and thematic analysis to explore user experiences of …

Training Healthcare Professionals To Deliver A Group-Based Intervention For People Living With Severe Obesity: Lessons From The Progroup Feasibility Trial, Shokraneh Moghadam, Mark Tarrant, Lily Hawkins, Dawn Swancutt, Rod Sheaff, Laura Hollands, Raff Calitri, Jonathan Pinkney, Jenny Lloyd

School of Psychology

Introduction: Group-based programmes are increasingly adopted to support people living with obesity, as they have the potential to reduce staff time and costs and enhance motivation and capability for behaviour change. Group-based programmes could also provide members with opportunities to form meaningful social connections. As such, training should equip healthcare professionals to deliver group interventions successfully and be accessible and feasible for them to complete. This study presents how mixed-methods process evaluation data from the feasibility randomised controlled trial of PROGROUP (a group-based weight management intervention for people living with severe obesity) informed optimisation of the PROGROUP training programme. Methods: …

Children And Adults Across 15 Countries Believe In Human Uniqueness Of Mind: A Cross-Cultural Investigation Of Cross-Species Mind Perception, Karri Neldner, Luke Maurits, Magie Junker, Lara Abbas, Nayrouz Abbas, Arianna Abis, Federica Amici, Bernardo Arroyo-Garcia, Negar Asghari, Giovanna Barragán Pardo, Zhen Zhang, Junior Peña Chumacero, Ardain Dzabatou, Dustin Eirdosh, Susan Hanisch, Tom Herrnsdorf, Tom Hovehne, Alicia Junker, Patricia Kanngiesser, Felipe Villa Larens, Safaa Mahmoud, Sandra Masaquiza, Iino Masato, Risma Illa Maulany, Tongtong Meng, Kardelen Mutlu, Putu Oka Ngakan, Ebru Peközer, Ljubica Petrović, Mirella Christy Rehatalanit

School of Psychology

The way humans relate to other animals is fundamentally shaped by whether we perceive ourselves as unique, with feelings and thoughts not shared by other animals. How beliefs about animals’ ability to feel and think develop across cultures remains largely unexplored. We asked children and adolescents (4–17 years, N = 1025) and adults (N = 190) from 33 urban and rural communities across 15 countries whether animals have thoughts or feelings (judgments of presence), and whether those thoughts or feelings are human-like (judgments of similarity). Bayesian analyses revealed that participants generally ascribed non-human animals the ability for thoughts and feelings. …

Degrees Of Separation: Grandchildren's Experiences Of Grandparental Brain Tumor Or Stroke, Emily Sapsford, Alyson Norman, Sue Jackson, Josh Deacon, Emily Ravenhill, Pete Keohane

School of Psychology

The impact of acquired brain injury on family members is far reaching. Research has identified experiences of trauma, ambiguous loss and burden of care. Limited research has addressed the ripple effect of brain injury across the wider family. The study aimed to gain a detailed insight into the lived experiences of grandchildren of those who have experienced stroke or brain tumor. Ten participants (eight female and two males aged between 18 and 29) took part in semi-structured interviews about their experiences of grandparental stroke or brain tumor. Data were analyzed using interpretive phenomenological analysis (IPA). Four themes were identified. The …