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Educate To Advocate, Anna Dimelis

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

This senior thesis is an autoethnographic study in which I retell and analyze my experiences engaging in student advocacy with other students in the College of Education (COE) at Eastern Michigan University (EMU). It consists of a reflection on my experiences, an analysis of personal communications between various members of the EMU faculty and me, and the meaning I now make or give to those experiences. I begin by providing both narrower and wider contexts to explain how I have come to advocacy work and what informs the value I place on it for fostering democratic civic engagement, including a …

Community-Centric Approaches To Coastal Hazard Assessment And Management In Southside Norfolk, Virginia, Usa, Dalya Ismael, Nicole Hutton, Mujde Erten-Unal, Carol Considine, Tancy Vandecar-Burdin, Christopher Davis, Yin-Hsuen Chen

Engineering Technology Faculty Publications

Urban communities in environmentally sensitive areas face escalating challenges due to climate change and inadequate infrastructural support, particularly in underserved regions like southside Norfolk, Virginia. This area, characterized by its vulnerability to flooding and a predominantly low-income population, lacks equitable inclusion in broader urban flood protection plans. This research focuses on the development of community-centered resilience strategies through active engagement and collaboration with local residents. The methodology centered around building trust and understanding within the community through a series of interactions and events. This approach facilitated a two-way exchange of information, enabling the research team to gather crucial insights on …

It Is Time For A Precise, Narrowly Tailored Federal Right Of Publicity, Brandon Anand

Chapman Law Review

"A precise, narrowly tailored federal right of publicity will promote creativity and business rather than stifle it, and also protect First Amendment rights. In this article, Part I discusses whether the right of publicity should be considered a privacy or property right, and illustrates the importance of a publicity right. Part II provides an overview of the lack of consistency and uniformity between states’ right of publicity statutes. Finally, Part III examines what a federal right of publicity should look like and how a federal right would apply in practice."

Rap Rhyme, Prison Time: How Prosecutors Use Rap Evidence In Gang Cases, Charis Kubrin, Kyle Winnen, Rebecca Rogers

Chapman Law Review

"In this Article, we call for greater nuance and careful treatment of rap-related evidence in the courtroom, which includes recognizing rap’s history, conventions, and practices generally, and acknowledging rap’s complicated and complex intersection with gangs specifically. Greater nuance and more careful treatment will enable courtroom members, including judges and jurors, to make better informed evaluations regarding whether rap evidence, despite being prejudicial, is sufficiently probative and if so, what relevance it may have to the case. We preface this argument with a review of punitive policies and practices associated with gangs in the criminal justice system, and with a discussion …

Rap On Trial: A Brief History, Jack Lerner

Chapman Law Review

In recent years, the prosecutorial tactic, often called “Rap on Trial”—in which rap lyrics and videos associated with a defendant are used as evidence of criminal activity—has exploded into national prominence. The widely-followed prosecution of Young Thug and his labelmates, along with other high-profile rappers, has generated intense interest in the issue, but even before the Young Thug indictment, legislators in California, Washington D.C., and other states had introduced legislation to curb the practice. The Rap on Trial tactic has been around since at least 1991; hundreds of courts have issued judicial opinions permitting the use of rap evidence, despite …

Travel Literature. Mircea Eliade’S Occidental View In The Himalayan Journal And The Portugal Journal, Irina Armianu

Literatures and Cultural Studies Faculty Publications

This article retraces Mircea Eliade’s mystical travel through the Himalayas as shown in his Himalayan Journal and his struggle to survive as a writer under the weight of brutal historical events in his Portugal Journal. The two travel journals reveal the influence of geographical and historical elements on Eliade's mystical writing. A deeper analysis of these journals is necessary to link travel genre to mystical thought. The next pages will show (1) how these journals fit into the category of existential travel, as theorized by Erik Cohen in "The Phenomenology of Tourist Experiences" (179-201), (2) Eliade’s own transcendence of his …

Re-Envisioning Electric Railway Power Systems In Dense Urban Regions, Rohama Ahmad

Dissertations and Theses

Grid decarbonization and modernization are key requisites to combat global warming. Decarbonization entails the deployment of renewable energy sources, improving the energy efficiency of major consumers, and the electrification of the transportation and building sectors. Various US states and cities have pledged to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions (e.g., the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA) in New York aims to reduce emissions to 40% below 1990 levels by 2030 and then to 85% below 1990 levels by 2050) via a set of targets in terms of renewable energy, energy storage system (ESS) capacity, and the number of electric …

Actuator Optimization And Control Of Pediatric Knee Exoskeleton For Community-Based Mobility Assistance: More Lightweight, More Affordable, And More Stable, Sainan Zhang

Dissertations and Theses

Lightweight and smart exoskeletons offer the potential to improve mobility in children. State-of-the-art pediatric exoskeletons are typically clinic-based since they are either tethered or portable but cumbersome, and their design is often not optimized across a range of environments and users. Child growth progressively alters key exoskeleton design requirements, yet no prior work investigated actuator optimization to accommodate child growth. Moreover, exoskeletons typically use the torque sensor or spring mechanics as exteroceptive feedback, but these torque sensing methods not only lead to extra cost and mass but also cause a small range of stable controller gains.

To facilitate pediatric exoskeleton …

Enforcement Through Voluntary Participation: The Impact Of Non-Binding Informal Groups On The International Nuclear Nonproliferation Regime, Claudia M. V. Hampton

Dissertations and Theses

The present thesis analyzes the policy impact of the informal group known as the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), a non treaty-bound grouping of states organized to define mutually agreed upon nuclear export controls with the aim of advancing the nonproliferation of nuclear weapons, in line with the values of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT). As informal groups or voluntary forms of interstate cooperation are often criticized for their lack of enforcement mechanisms, two case studies in this thesis review the implementation of amendments and changes in national laws for states participating in the NSG (The United …

Understand The Structure-Water-Responsive Relationship By Engineering Silk Materials, Yeojin Jung

Dissertations and Theses

Water-responsive (WR) materials mechanically swell and shrink in response to changes in relative humidity, and they have demonstrated the capability to exert higher actuation energy than conventional actuators and artificial muscles. As a result, WR materials have recently gained attention as potential high-energy actuating components for engineering applications. Despite the growing interest in this emerging category of WR materials, the fundamental WR mechanism of their significant performance is still not fully understood, limiting the ability to rationally design engineered systems. This dissertation presents three approaches for understanding the water-responsiveness of materials by engineering Bombyx (B.) mori silkworm silk protein. First, …

Reporting On Un Security Council: Decoding Media Bias, Alessandra Loiero

Dissertations and Theses

This thesis explores Western media's representation of the United Nations (UN), focusing on the Security Council's role in global conflict resolution. It examines how UN-accredited correspondents perceive the effectiveness of the Security Council, particularly when the body faces deadlock. The study employs text analysis techniques to identify biases and perceptions in media coverage, using The New York Times' reporting on the Ukraine conflict as a case study. It illuminates framing effects in journalistic narratives, revealing how journalists subtly interject their views when reporting, often revealing unrealistic expectations and shedding light on the limitations of the UN's mandate or its inability …

Parasympathethic Nervous Activity And Social Exclusion In Borderline Personality Disorder, Rebecca E. Barnes

Dissertations and Theses

Abstract

The experience of being excluded is universally unpleasant. However, for individuals that suffer from Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD), the experience of social exclusion, or ostracism can be unbearable (Bortolla, et al., 2019). While there is a significant amount of research on physiological reactivity in BPD, no studies adequately connect the parasympathetic nervous system (PNS) responses of people with BPD to social exclusion which is critical to understand as the inability of the PNS of individuals with BPD to adapt to stressors may be a contributing factor to the elevated rate of suicide and suicide attempts in this clinical population …

Depression In African American Males And The Mental Health Stigma, Deanna Carrington

Dissertations and Theses

Depression is a common mental health disorder in the United States. In particular, African Americans have a greater risk of depression because they are predisposed to depressive symptoms as opposed to their White counterparts (Miller and Taylor, 2011). Moreover, African Americans are 20% more likely to experience psychological distress that leads to depression compared to other racial groups. While African American cultural norms focus on resilience and independence, discussion around mental health is discouraged, which leads to underreporting and delayed treatment. For males in the African American community, they can be hesitant to seek help, let alone discuss their experiences …

Social Determinants Of Psychosis: An Examination Of Loneliness, Stress, Discrimination, And Neighborhood Cohesion In Psychotic Disorders, Alexandria Selloni

Dissertations and Theses

This study examined social determinants in individuals diagnosed with psychotic disorders in a large, diverse, sample from the NIH-sponsored All of Us Research Program. Participants completed self-report measures of loneliness, perceived stress, everyday discrimination, and neighborhood social cohesion. Analyses showed that individuals with a diagnosis of a psychotic disorder experience significantly more feelings of loneliness, stress, everyday discrimination, and poorer neighborhood social cohesion compared to individuals without any diagnosis of a mental disorder as well as compared to individuals who may have other mental disorders other than psychosis. We further examined racial difference among individuals with psychotic disorders and found …

The Menstrual Cycle In Psychotherapy: Interventions, Therapist Engagement, And Blind Spots, Rozita Alaluf

Dissertations and Theses

There is a dearth of literature on psychotherapy and menstruation, except for the treatment and diagnosis of issues associated with premenstrual distress. This study aimed to bridge this gap by investigating the frequency and context of discussions about the menstrual cycle, the factors influencing therapists’ engagement with this topic, and the therapeutic approaches utilized to address the menstrual cycle within psychotherapy.

In phase 1, 118 psychotherapists from various theoretical backgrounds completed a survey on menstruation in clinical practice. The data was analyzed using descriptive statistics. In phase 2, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 7 psychotherapists, primarily identifying their theoretical orientation …

Teach Them How To Say Goodbye: Student Therapist Termination At A Psychodynamic Training Clinic, Michael Ferrara

Dissertations and Theses

Termination is arguably one of the most important aspects of psychotherapy, however, the research into training for termination is sparse. Further, student therapists report that their training for termination provided little guidance, instruction, or acknowledgment of clinical realities around treatment endings. Using a semi-structured interview with a sample of 11 student therapists at a psychodynamic training clinic, this study explored experiences of termination and the preparation for those endings. Qualitative thematic analysis indicated that this group of student therapists did not experience shared and structured termination training but did not feel they were unprepared for the endings with their patients. …

The Shadow Of Grief: Understanding Grief Among Ethnoracially Diverse Young Adults, Rona R. Tarazi

Dissertations and Theses

Background: Complicated grief, characterized by prolonged and intense mourning, presents unique challenges for individuals grappling with loss, as it is shaped by a multitude of factors influencing the grieving and mourning processes. While the literature has identified several factors that significantly impact complicated grief, such as post-loss symptom severity, stigmatization, the quality of the relationship to the deceased, and grief-related avoidance, this two-part study aimed to expand on existing findings by shedding light on the landscape of grief among a sample of ethnoracially diverse young adults. Part 1 of the study examined whether previously identified factors remain significant in this …

Identity-Focused Therapist Self-Disclosure In Matched Sexual/Gender Minority Dyads: A Longitudinal Therapy Process-Outcome Study, Brian Thomas Neff

Dissertations and Theses

Therapist self-disclosure (TSD) is a controversial clinical intervention whose benefits and drawbacks remain contested. Notably, no prior research has differentiated explicitly between self-disclosures related to the therapist’s core identities and those peripheral to identity, and qualitative studies suggest that identity-focused therapist self-disclosure (TSD-I) may be beneficial when therapist and patient share at least one marginalized identity. LGBTQ+ people, who experience significant health disparities and utilize psychotherapy more than their heterosexual and cisgender counterparts, could benefit particularly from TSD-I. The mental and physical health challenges facing LGBTQ+ individuals are predominantly explained through minority stress theory, which suggests that societal prejudice and …

Investigating The Roles Of Dapk, P53/Cep-1, And Mitochondrial Damage In Necrotic Neurodegeneration In C. Elegans, Anil Singh

Dissertations and Theses

Stroke is one of the leading causes of death in the U.S., with minority groups, suffering higher fatality rates. Stroke is caused by ischemia, where occlusion of blood supply to the brain results in neurodegeneration. Most of the damage is attributed to excitotoxicity, where an accumulation of the neurotransmitter glutamate in the synapse overstimulates postsynaptic neurons and ultimately leads to cell death (largely by necrosis). Stroke treatments are often ineffective, due to the delay between the onset of stroke and the delivery of effective treatment. To address this, we focus our study on putative later-acting mediators of excitotoxicity such as …

Character Strengths In Applied Behavior Analysis And The Treatment Of Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Pilot Study, Michael G. Johansen

Dissertations and Theses

Diagnoses of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) have continued to rise. Individuals diagnosed with ASD may display a range of deficits in social communication, behaviors, and symptoms that limit everyday functioning. Among the treatments for ASD, Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) is typically the earliest and longest intervention individuals with ASD are exposed to. Concerns have been raised over ABA being a compliance-based therapy which potentially produces prompt reliance, reinforcement dependency, and a lack of intrinsic motivation. In an attempt to address these concerns, this study aimed to assess the potential benefits of including the concept of character strengths from the field …

Policing With A Double-Edged Sword: The Associations Between Neighborhood Deprivation, Coping & Substance Use Among Black & Latiné Families, Neil M. Allicock

Dissertations and Theses

The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated systemic racial inequities among Black and Latiné communities, increasing daily stressors such as exposure to violence, racial discrimination, and negative perceptions of the police. Social constraints from quarantining and social distancing have weakened community relationships that previously provided relief from these stressors. Persistent poverty and racial discrimination further strain community ties and challenge the well-being of marginalized communities. Negative experiences with the police are unique stressors for Black and Latiné youth, potentially increasing their risk for substance use. The erosion of community ties may heighten psychological stress and lead to less adaptive coping methods, such …

Comparing Perceptions Of Continued Presence Of The Deceased And Unidentified Sensed Presence Experiences In A Non-Clinical Sample Of Paranormal Experients, Scarlet Sidwell

Dissertations and Theses

Research on individuals' paranormal experiences, particularly sensed presence experiences, has predominantly focused on bereavement contexts (Kamp et al., 2020; Evrard et al., 2021). However, less is understood about the similarities and distinctions between perceived presence of the deceased and unfamiliar sensory perceptions of presence. The present study employs both quantitative and qualitative methods to explore the phenomenology of individuals' sensory experiences of presence within two distinct domains: perceptions of the continued presence of the deceased (PCPDs) and unidentified sensed presence experiences (USPEs). The current study utilized data from a sample of paranormal believers and experients to test the hypotheses that …

Mentalized Affectivity Among Adolescents In Wilderness Therapy: An Initial Exploration, William Holland

Dissertations and Theses

Mentalized affectivity (MA) blends emotion regulation and mentalization in a single construct that underlies psychopathology and is a target of psychotherapeutic intervention as a mechanism of change. Little research has investigated MA’s role in psychopathology and treatment for adolescents. Change in MA has yet to be investigated. Wilderness therapy is a non-traditional treatment model for “hard-to-reach” adolescents; its mechanisms of change have not been robustly researched. This study aims to investigate change in adolescents’ MA capacities over the course of wilderness therapy, in order to explore the role of MA components (Identifying, Processing, Expressing) in adolescent psychopathology; the relation between …

Making Sense Of The Space Between: A Qualitative Study Of Therapist’S Experience And Use Of Therapeutic Enactments, Paul Ballantyne Lafreniere

Dissertations and Theses

This study sought to examine a particular category of technical challenge in therapy: enactments. Enactments, broadly defined, are moments or stretches of time in therapy where both the patient and therapist cannot put their conflicts into words, and instead act them out within the therapeutic milieu. These phenomena frequently elicit shame and guilt on the part of the therapist, and can prove detrimental to treatment. Equally, however, investigation of these moments within treatment can be of considerable clinical utility. In this qualitative phenomenological study, 6 therapists were interviewed about their experiences working with enactments in clinical practice. The strategies which …

Adult Play And Its Relations To The Working Alliance And Psychosocial Dysfunction In Short-Term Psychotherapy, Charlotte B. Gendron

Dissertations and Theses

The importance of play in child development is well-documented: the capacity to play is associated with psychological health, and the cognitive and affective processes involved in play, such as fantasy, symbolism, narrative organization, divergent thinking, and affective expression, relate to areas of adaptive functioning. Research also illustrates that the inability to play is associated with adverse experiences in children, and that play therapy can facilitate the development of play and subsequent psychological health. In addition to its relation to psychological health, the capacity to play in childhood is inextricably linked to the infant-caregiver relationship. There is less literature on what …

A Qualitative Exploration Of Psychodynamic Therapist's Experiences When Working With Parents In Child And Adolescent Psychotherapy, Marie-Clair Siegman

Dissertations and Theses

A Qualitative Exploration of Psychodynamic Therapist's Experiences of Working with Parents in Child and Adolescent Psychotherapy.

By

Clair Siegman, MA

Advisor: Steve Tuber, PhD

The aim of this study was to identify how therapists incorporate parent-work into their practices and explore the experiences related to this. The literature on engaging parents during child treatment suggests that it is a central to improving outcomes. Research about the treatment alliance that develops between the therapist and parent is limited, especially when considering the therapist perspective. Literature within the psychodynamic and psychoanalytic fields, suggests therapists have a hesitance to working with parents either …

Dostoyevsky And Wright On Becoming The Underground Man, Zain Alam

Dissertations and Theses

This thesis explores the parallels between Fyodor Dostoyevsky's Notes from Underground and Richard Wright's The Man Who Lived Underground, focusing on their shared use of the "Underground Man" archetype to critique philosophical and societal structures. Dostoyevsky's Underground Man embodies the contradictions of Determinism and Rational Egoism in 19th-century Russia, exposing the flaws of these ideologies through satire. In contrast, Wright recontextualizes this character to address racial injustice in mid-20th-century America, using Fred Daniels' descent into a literal underground to highlight systemic oppression. By comparing these works, the thesis demonstrates how both authors utilize the underground as a metaphorical space …

Complexities Of The Underrecognized: Conceptualizing Erasure And Exposure In Queer Caribbean Narratives, Noemi Saladin

Dissertations and Theses

Queer is not explicitly about homosexuality, it is questioning orientations, identity, and the binary. This work aims to explore the multivalence of erasure and exposure in queer Caribbean narratives, which deconstructs or reconstructs stereotypes, sexuality, and identity. Erasure is defined as the exclusion or suppression of a member of the LGBTQ+ community in history and the present time due to differences in their gender orientation, sexuality, and sexual preference. Exposure allows these suppressed voices to be lifted and rejoiced through inclusivity and awareness. Colonization erased gender diversity in the Caribbean, instilling their Christianity and heteronormative beliefs. Colonization did not only …

Situative Black Girlhood Reading Motivations: Why And How Black Girls Read And Comprehend Text, Sara Jones

Faculty Publications - College of Education

This study aims to illustrate the complex relationships between reading motivation and reading comprehension for Black girl readers. There is an urgent need for research that explicitly centers on the reading motivations of Black girls through a humanizing, asset-oriented lens. Through a Situative Black Girlhood Reading Motivations lens, which integrates a situative perspective on motivation and the tenets of Black Girlhood Studies, this multi-year study focuses on a group of Black girl readers participating in a summer reading program. Qualitative data, including video observations, student work artifacts, and small-group artifact-elicited interviews, were analyzed through a generic inductive approach to answer …

How Do Elementary Induction Teachers Perceive Video Coaching As A Job-Embedded Professional Development Strategy?, Ursala Maddox Davis

Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative narrative case study examines the perceptions of elementary school induction teachers on video coaching as a job-embedded professional development strategy. The research was conducted with 12 induction teachers from an urban school district in Georgia, utilizing questionnaires, focus groups, and individual interviews. Nine teachers participated in focus groups, and four in individual interviews. Initially, teachers expressed negative views about video coaching, primarily due to discomfort with being recorded. However, over time, increased self-reflection and structured mentor feedback led to a positive shift in perceptions. Teachers reported heightened self-awareness, instructional improvements, and a stronger emotional connection to their teaching …