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Nine New Gardner-Webb Faculty Members Welcomed At 2024 Faculty Assembly, Office Of University Communications

Gardner-Webb NewsCenter Archive

Gardner-Webb University welcomes new faculty members in the College of Education, College of Health Sciences and the College of Arts and Sciences. They were introduced at the Faculty Assembly today (Aug. 13).

The Lived Experiences Of Clinical Staff Nurses Who Provide Care For Transgender Patients In Florida, Twanna L. Crockam

Dissertations

Historically, transgender patients have experienced challenging interactions with healthcare providers. As a result, many transgender patients refuse to seek medical attention for a broad spectrum of healthcare needs. Although the transgender population has gained attention, a lack of research exists of clinical staff nurses' lived experiences providing care for transgender patients.

The purpose of this qualitative hermeneutic phenomenological inquiry was to uncover and understand the experiences of clinical staff nurses when providing care for transgender patients in Florida. The research question was this: "What is the lived experience of clinical staff nurses who provide care for transgender patients in Florida?"

Human Behavioral And Technological Adaptation To The Younger Dryas In The Midsouth: Investigations Into The Mississippi Projectile Point Survey, Christopher Dylan Colucci

Theses and Dissertations

In this study, I use 1,163 Paleoindian bifaces from Mississippi to study human behavioral changes in response to the Younger Dryas climate event (12,900 – 11,700 cal yr BP). I use the “organization of technology” as a theoretical approach and a modified version of the marginal value theorem to track changes in Paleoindian lithic technology through time and compare those changes to regional paleoenvironmental data. I find a decrease in absolute point size, increase in rates of resharpening, and expansion of settlement organization and raw material preferences throughout the Younger Dryas. I argue that the organization of hunter gatherer technology …

Three Rival Versions Of Physical Education: A Macintyrean Analysis Of The Field, Clayton Michael Whalen

Theses and Dissertations

At both the theoretical and applied levels of analysis, the field of physical education is all too often completely incoherent. There appears to be little agreement as to how school-based programs ought to be implemented or what the goals of such programs really are. No two physical educators run their programs exactly the same and, chances are, those physical educators likely have wildly different understandings of their field and its proper place within the education of our youth. Borrowing from the title of moral philosopher Alasdair MacIntyre’s (1990) book, Three Rival Versions of Moral Enquiry, I’ve chosen to describe the …

Time After Time: Deciphering Structural Violence And Vulnerability Using Postmortem Recovery Time Data And Demographics Throughout The Southeast Region Of The United States, Elise J. Adams

Theses and Dissertations

Over the last few decades, forensic anthropological research has made significant strides in developing better methods for decedent identification and increasing the accuracy of time since death/postmortem interval (PMI) estimations within medicolegal contexts. Until recently however, there has been little emphasis placed on how socioeconomic considerations might be connected, especially regarding recovery times for individuals from various demographic backgrounds. Using intersectional and biocultural frameworks and data collected from forensic anthropologists and medicolegal labs throughout the Southeastern US, this research aims to decipher the role that inequality, through instances of social vulnerability and structural violence, plays in recovery time data throughout …

Complexities In Datura Production And Ceramics In The Arkansas River Valley, Jaylyn Ashley Gustafson

Theses and Dissertations

Plants and ceramics play a crucial role in many Indigenous cultures, used in food preparation and rituals. Datura is a plant found in the Southeast and is known for its medicinal and hallucinogenic properties. The Indigenous cultures that used Datura in their rituals had to develop an understanding of the plant and how to use it. Datura contains specific alkaloids, which are used for medicinal purposes but can be lethal if consumed incorrectly. Being aware of the danger of consuming Datura incorrectly, the Indigenous people had to create a system of extracting the hallucinogenic properties for their ritual and medicinal …

The Impact Of Stimulus Set Size On Efficiency Of Sight Words Training, Junchen Guo

Theses and Dissertations

Reading skills are widely recognized as fundamental abilities, crucial not only for academic success but also for participation in social activities and navigating interpersonal challenges. In the early formation of reading abilities, mastery of sight words is instrumental in effectively enhancing reading proficiency, particularly for individuals lacking foundational reading skills. In educational practice, flashcard intervention stands as a widely utilized instructional approach. When Kodak et al. (2020) first introduced the concept of stimulus set size and its impact on the efficiency of skill acquisition interventions, they examined differences in training efficiency among children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) when exposed …

Unseeing The Seen: Jugha, Larra Myron Diboyan

Theses and Dissertations

The annihilation of the Armenian Medieval Cemetery of Jugha, located in the exclave Nakhijevan Autonomous Republic, in the current-day Republic of Azerbaijan, took place between 1998-2006. The systematic structural violence used by the Azerbaijani state, sponsored destruction of Indigenous Armenian cultural heritage, usurpation of sacred spaces, attempted rewriting of history, and reshaped the landscape, therefore distorting reality and memory. This research aims to scrutinize the tactics used by the Republic of Azerbaijan in their erasure of the Old Jugha cemetery and present how not only is this a case of structural violence but also one of landscape structural violence against …

Windows Into Changing Landscapes: Bioarchaeological And Geophysical Analysis Of The Grenada Yellow Fever Cemetery, M. Kathryn Mckenna

Theses and Dissertations

This project focuses on the Yellow Fever Cemetery of Grenada, Mississippi through geophysical and biological methods. A ground penetrating radar survey was conducted to investigate the landscape and burial patterns in relation to the use of the cemetery throughout high periods of mortality such as a yellow fever epidemic. Additionally, biological methods were used in the analysis of an individual recovered as part of a salvage archaeology event from the cemetery. The multifaceted approach aims to uncover more about the cemetery, landscape, and community as it has changed over time with the influence of extreme events such as the yellow …

Buffering The Strained Relation Between Masculinity And Social Support With Self-Compassion, Nathan Barclay

Theses and Dissertations

Men experience high rates of negative health outcomes and often have difficulty identifying and seeking support for their issues. Traditional masculine socialization has been identified as a potential determinant of this effect, as masculine ideals often conflict with prosocial help-seeking behaviors. Men who experience this sort of socialization need better support for their mental health and are less likely to seek it out in a professional setting. Therefore, other models of support, like social support, should be investigated. Additionally, factors that impact the way that men perceive social support should be explored, one of which may be self-compassion. The current …

Creating A Chronology Of Claiborne (22ha501): Revisiting And Revising Radiocarbon Assays Of A Poverty Point Site, Olivia Catherine Baumgartel

Theses and Dissertations

The Claiborne site in Hancock County, Mississippi has been considered part of a culture within Poverty Point’s control since it’s discovery in the 1950’s. In this study, I sampled and ran new five new radiocarbon dates from the collections at Mississippi State University. I then created a chronometric hygiene scale, ranked the new and current dates, removed dates from models that did not have the criteria needed to continue. This thesis created a new chronology for the site, placing it within the timeline of Poverty Point but also related it to the Archaic shell mounds in Southeastern North America.

Longitudinal Influences Of Parental Relationships On Positive Adolescent Functioning, Rebekah Buckley Sparks

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation examines the longitudinal influences of parental relationships – romantic, co-parenting, and parent-child – on positive adolescent functioning. Utilizing data from the Future of Families and Child Wellbeing Study, this study investigates how various dimensions of parental relationships impact adolescent well-being at age 15, as measured by the EPOCH scale. Grounded in Attachment Theory and the Life Course Perspective, this research highlights the interconnectedness of early parental interactions and their long-term effects on adolescents’ emotional and social development. Key findings indicate that supportive and stable parental relationships significantly enhance adolescents’ engagement, perseverance, optimism, connectedness, and happiness. The study emphasizes …

Foodways And Socioeconomic Complexities In Early Iron Age Of Bara, Old Oyo, Nigeria (Ca. 490 B.C. To A.D. 40), Racheal Bolakale Oyundoyin

Theses and Dissertations

The Early Iron Age period has been underexplored in the archaeology of West Africa, particularly Nigeria. Also, there is a lack of research and knowledge on organic residue analysis in Nigeria, particularly in the southwestern region of the country, despite the fact that other studies on archaeobotany and paleoenvironmental studies are well established. To address this gap, lipid analysis was conducted on 10 vessels from the Early Iron Age (490 B.C. to A.D. 40) site BSM6 in Bara, Old Oyo, Nigeria. The analysis revealed the plant and animal materials consumed by the Early Iron Age community. These findings provide vital …

Phenomenology Via A Narrative Inquiry In Action: A Study Identifying Themes Of Persistence And Barriers Faced By African American Male Students In Their Pursuits Of Higher Education, Jeremiah Rotich

The Interactive Journal of Global Leadership and Learning

The use of phenomenology via a narrative inquiry is increasingly becoming popular in qualitative research study as it provides an unparalleled approach in sharing lived experiences. This article employs a narrative inquiry study to improve the understanding as to why Black male students (also known as African American male students) graduate from college at a lower rate than their Latino, White, and Asian counterparts in the United States. These narratives helped describe the barriers that have frustrated African American male students from persisting in higher education. Participants identified the lack of financial support, lack of cultural competency, lack of identity, …

“The Limit Does Not Exist”: Utopian And Feminist Pedagogies In 21st-Century Broadway Musicals, Stephen Reaugh

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation analyzes four Broadway musicals that are adaptations of popular films and novels: Legally Blonde, Fun Home, Waitress, and Mean Girls. These texts are performed in the 21st century and each stages either sexual assault or the fear of a sexual assault that is narrowly avoided. More narrowly, this dissertation focuses on the 2007-2018 time period in which these musicals were performed, thus leading up to and through Alyssa Milano's pivotal #metoo message on Twitter. The dissertation reads the review and marketing milieux in which these musicals existed, as well as each text in performance, to theorize how spectators …

Our Bodies, Our Choices: Reproductive Justice And Social Embodiment, Charles Olney

Political Science Faculty Publications

Feminist scholars of reproductive justice argue for a broader model of politics organised around embodied experience. But to fully express the intersectional politics of reproductive justice, more attention must be given to the social function of embodiment—the ways that bodily markers create associative communities among strangers. This shared form of embodiment establishes connections that exceed the intimate relationship of a specific pregnancy. In particular, foetal embodiment manifests via communities with vested interest in the social meaning of life. These communities are affected, albeit indirectly, by reproductive choices and are therefore valid subjects of concern for reproductive justice. I develop the …

Cultural Competence To Meet Students' Transcultural Learning Goals, Taijohnea Haywood

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Researchers have noted that some primary grade teachers do not have the cultural competence to meet transcultural learning goals for primary grade students in diverse schools. This qualitative study explored perspectives of kindergarten through second grade teachers on their cultural competence to meet transcultural learning goals for primary-grade students in diverse schools. Mishra and Metha’s 21st century learning model and Vernon’s six principles of culturally competent practice were used as the framework for this study. This study addressed two research questions focusing on primary grade teachers’ perspectives of their cultural competence to meet the transcultural learning goals for their students …

Introducing Isomad, A Compilation Of Isotopic Datasets For Madagascar, Sean W. Hixon, Ricardo Fernandes, Antonin Andriamahaihavana, Andrea L. Baden, Marina B. Blanco, Guillaume Caulier, Melanie Dammhahn, Igor Eeckhaut, Timothy M. Eppley, Natalie Vasey, Multiple Additional Authors

Anthropology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Abstract We present the first open-access, island-wide isotopic database (IsoMad) for modern biologically relevant materials collected on Madagascar within the past 150 years from both terrestrial and nearshore marine environments. Isotopic research on the island has increasingly helped with biological studies of endemic organisms, including evaluating foraging niches and investigating factors that affect the spatial distribution and abundance of species. The IsoMad database should facilitate future work by making it easy for researchers to access existing data (even for those who are relatively unfamiliar with the literature) and identify both research gaps and opportunities for using various isotope systems to …

"If The Gyil Has Died, Dagara Itself Has Died": On The Relationship Of Dagara Music, Food, And Costume, Gordon Cortney

Honors College Undergraduate Theses

The Dagara people, located primarily in the Upper West region of Ghana, take pride in their careful preservation of traditional customs, amidst years of brutal colonization and ethnocide. Previous ethnomusicological research has recognized the gyil, a Ghanaian xylophone, as the focal point of Dagara society, noting how it interacts with and is inherent in all aspects of their culture. Recent developments to the gyil’s design, practice, and performance have created concern for a lost or dying culture among the Dagara. If the gyil is experiencing change, then so too is the rest of Dagara culture. In June and July 2022, …

A Radical Ethnography Of Asian American Mental Health, Sofia Huang

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Anti-Asian racism and violence in the U.S. both historically and currently impacts the Asian American community, leading to widespread fear and negative mental health consequences for Asian Americans. This has been widely discussed in the media due to the rise in anti-Asian rhetoric and attacks during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, psychological literature does not typically address the effects of the history and politics of Asian America on Asian American mental health. In particular, psychological literature does not engage with radical political perspectives which situate Asian American mental health within the broader context of structural oppression and processes of racialization. This …

Being And Sacrifice: An Essay On Hegelian Logic, Mitch Thiessen

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

A study of Hegelian logic in relation to postmodern thought, this essay investigates the limits and contemporary significance of Hegel’s concept of knowledge, both on its own terms and from the perspective of three of its most polemical critics: Søren Kierkegaard, Friedrich Nietzsche, and Georges Bataille. Of especial consequence in this study are the themes of individuality, desire, history, and death, insofar as Hegel’s critics judge him to have inadequately come to terms with—and to have even suppressed—the truth or fact of these realities, all of which are potentially fatal for his theory of the subject.

Place And Placelessness: An Ecocritical Approach Towards The Mountain Imagery In Country Music, Siyuan Ma

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Drawing upon cultural geographer Yi-Fu Tuan’s frame of place and placelessness, this ecocritical project explores how the mountain landscapes serve to construct regional, national, cultural, spiritual, religious, even racialized identities in various human societies. Using the U.S. country music as a primary example, I argue that what country music fundamentally draws from the imagery of the Appalachian Mountains is not the Anglo-Saxon ballad music or pastoral lifestyle of/from the mountains, but the powerful sense of place and placelessness (arguably only) the mountainous scenes are capable to provoke. This exploration serves to illuminate the commonalties between humanities of different cultures and …

Made In The Divine Image: The Interface Of Boki Concepts And Pontifical Biblical Commission's Reading Of Genesis 1-2, Luther Raymond

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Certain images facilitate tailoring our perception of ourselves and the rest of creation in positively practical ways, but others lead us astray and disfigure our relationships. Christians acknowledge that humans are made in the divine image, yet we allow the domineering presence of destructive frames and perceptions to counter our being divine image-bearers. This dissertation explores the intersection of the Boki Beri-be/Keredede motif and the language of the presentation of Genesis 1-2 in the 2019 Pontifical Biblical Commission Document What Is Man? calling for a recognition that humans are the embodiment of the divine presence in creation with a calling …

Biblical Choice Model: A St. Augustine-Inspired Approach To Behavioral Economics, Adebukola Adebayo

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Economics as defined by Lionel Robbins (1932), is a science which studies human behavior as a relationship between ends and scarce means which have alternative uses. While human behavior relates to how wants and desires are coordinated given decision-making mechanisms, social customs and political realities of society, the natural end of individual human actions should be eudaimonia (human flourishing). However, since sin has affected both our emotive and cultural plausibility structures, thereby leading to a distortion in our wants and desires and ability to desire the good, this has led to a generation that is self-ruling, self-creating and self-evaluating. The …

Exploring Hangar Flying As A Communication Practice For Vicarious Learning: A Qualitative Content Analysis Of General Aviation Storytelling On Youtube, Timothy Aaron Frizzell

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

More than 50% of general aviation accidents are caused by pilot error, often due to inadequate formal training or inexperience in real-life situations (Pilot Institute, 2023). Some scholars suggest that learning from other pilots’ experiences could supplement formal training and increase general aviation safety (Cohn, 1994; Harnagel, 2021; Krog, 2022). With this in mind, this study explored the communication phenomenon known as hangar flying, an aviation storytelling practice in which pilots share flying experiences. The goal was to investigate how hangar flying may enable vicarious learning, influence personal flying culture, and, as a result, increase flight safety. Employing a qualitative …

An Examination Of “The Vine” Motif Through The Lens Of The Old Testament, The Books Of John And Revelation, And Peripheral Extrabiblical Sources, Ellsworth C. Huling Iv

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Motifs and themes are interchangeable, used in everyday speech, and common in scholarly literature. Some scholars view motifs and themes as the two most used forms of narrative repetition. “The vine” motif contains multiple meanings throughout the Old and New Testaments. Sometimes, “the vine” readers misunderstand motif-specific referents. Research on “the vine” motif can clarify those specific passages of Scripture that utilize this motif. The interpretation of Scripture is not easy to understand without a proper understanding of the vine motif. Throughout Scripture, especially in the Old Testament, Israel is “the vine.” In the Gospel of John, Jesus is “the …

Emergent Themes In Identity Development For Transracial Adoptees: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis, Andrew G. Cecil

Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of the study was to examine the identity development processes of transracial adoptees in college, using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) to explore the lived experiences of individuals from this community through in-depth interviewing. This study identified nine superordinate themes and eighteen sub-themes providing knowledge on the dynamic processes of multidimensional identity development of transracial adoptees in college. Despite variability and differences across participant experiences, these themes function as major paradigms illustrating participants’ understanding of their respective identity development and lived experiences. The results of this study may serve as a basis for further exploration of transracial adoptees’ identity …

The Qualitative Ethnographic Research Of The Relationship Related To Parental Involvement, Community Support, And School Administrative Substructure Amid To Inner-City Title-I High School Band Programs In Memphis, Tennessee, Thomas Akil Perry

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This qualitative ethnographic research investigated the fundamental unsubstantiated relationship related to parental involvement, community support, and school administrative substructure amid two inner-city Title-I high school band programs. This qualitative research embraced an ethnographic process managed by anthropology and sociology approached framework geared to study cultural responses over some time based on similar analytical cultural statistics. This study depicts the socioeconomic domain of a high school band community, highlighting key factors that add to the success and decline of the inner-city and Title-I high school band programs. It was conducted within Memphis, TN, within the North Memphis region, outlining the Raleigh, …

Patient Experiences With An Mhealth App For Complex Chronic Disease Care: Connections Despite Lack Of Traditional Clinical Interactions, Jenney Lee, Melissa Cheyney, Michael A. May, Marit L. Bovbjerg

Patient Experience Journal

Chronic diseases are costly to treat and burdensome for patients. Mobile health (mHealth) technologies might reduce costs of care and increase patient self-efficacy in chronic disease management, but the patient experience of mHealth is poorly understood. Our objective, therefore, was to evaluate patient experiences with using an mHealth app for complex chronic disease management, within a U.S. population of low-income patients. We used nurse/patient text messages from an mHealth complex chronic disease management tool, and exit interviews from patients, to assess qualitatively Medicaid patients' experiences with a remote monitoring mHealth app. Salient themes about the patient experience included: (1) Visibility …

Building Resilience: Food And Nutritional Insecurity Among University Students In Buenos Aires, Argentina Amidst Inflation And Escalating Poverty, Kyoka Miura

Capstone Collection

This paper examines how university students (aged 18 and older) in Buenos Aires, Argentina, navigate the challenges of escalating food insecurity amidst food price inflation and poverty. Utilizing a resilience framework, the research explores the coping strategies of these students. The study integrates semi-structured qualitative interviews and questionnaires. The findings reveal that university students in Buenos Aires are affected by food and nutritional insecurity, impacting their ability to manage their academic responsibilities, and leading some students to question their ability to complete their education. To cope, students adopt various strategies: price comparison, reducing out-of-home expenses, altering food purchasing habits, compromising …