Digital Commons Network^™

The Dual-Factor Model (Dfm) Of Mental Among Appalachian Youth, Mawyah Adel Bashatah

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Background. Adolescent mental health is a critical public health concern, particularly in rural Appalachian communities where rates of depression, anxiety, and substance use exceed national averages and access to mental health resources remain severely limited. Traditional mental health frameworks rely predominantly on the identification and reduction of psychopathological symptoms, neglecting the independent contributions of positive well-being to adolescent risk and resilience. The Dual-Factor Model (DFM) of mental health offers a more comprehensive alternative by simultaneously assessing subjective well-being (SWB) and psychopathology, classifying individuals into four distinct groups: Complete mental health, Vulnerable, Symptomatic but content, and Troubled. Despite the DFM’s growing …

Genomic Variation, Adaptive Evolution, And Invasive And Evolutionary History Of Microstegium Vimineum, Cameron William Corbett

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Invasive species can cause environmental and economic damage, but can offer unique opportunities to study rapid evolution and adaptation in novel environments. Microstegium vimineum (stiltgrass) is a prolific invasive grass in the eastern United States. Historical herbaria collections were used to identify patterns of invasion history and population dynamics over a spatial and temporal scale. Analyses of plastid genomes reveal a complex invasion history, including a single introduction in the southern United States linked to Japan and multiple repeated introductions in the northern United States from various source populations. Spread of introduced populations provide evidence of admixture among previously geographically …

Formation-Based Analysis In Contemporary Saxophone Practice: A Case Study Of Ziwei Shi's The Blue Lotus Bloms, Jiageng Ren

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This dissertation examines contemporary saxophone repertoire through a formation-based analytical approach, using Ziwei Shi’s The Blue Lotus Blooms as a case study. It is organized into three parts. Part I establishes the conceptual and methodological framework by introducing the concept of “formation-based analysis,” positioning the “condition of musical formation” as its core. Further situating the study within scholarship on practice-based research, cross-cultural theory, and modernism/postmodernism. Part II provides a detailed analytical and performance-based investigation of the work, including the collaborative commissioning process, the application of Thaat as a pitch resource, the role of extended techniques and embodied endurance, and contrasting …

Comparison Of Three Methods In Diagnosing Maxillary Transverse Discrepancy, Madison Hull Smith

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Introduction

There are several different methods in determining the maxillary transverse discrepancy (MTD). In specific, MTD can be determined with the help of a cone beam computer tomography (CBCT), 3D scan and models, or simply a 2D occlusogram.  Do they provide the same MTD values for diagnosing transverse discrepancies? A patient may need a certain amount of skeletal and dental expansion based on a diagnosis of MTD, but this amount may vary depending on the diagnosis method used. There is a lack of knowledge in the literature comparing 2D and 3D methods in determining MTD. Currently, methods in measuring MTD …

The Impact Of Caregiver Training And Education On Confidence And Perceived Competence In Facilitating Self-Care Skills In Children, Ryan M. Coen

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Caregivers, especially those residing in rural Appalachia, face significant barriers and hardships that can hinder their ability to promote ADL, IADL, and self-care skill development. These barriers faced include geographic isolation, socioeconomic barriers, and a high prevalence of disabilities. Many caregivers may struggle to facilitate these self-care skills competently and effectively, and a gap is present in the most effective means to teach caregivers in this region the necessary skills. With almost 20% of individuals in West Virginia lacking access to reliable internet and physical isolation, many of these educational materials may not be effectively distributed (West Virginia Department of …

Bridging The Sensory Gap With Occupational Therapy: Program Development For Sensory Integration In Inpatient Rehabilitation For Adults With Central Nervous System Injuries, Callie Marie Honaker

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Objectives: This project aimed to identify sensory processing deficits in adults with central nervous system injuries and to inform the development of sensory-informed program components in an inpatient rehabilitation setting. Participants: A total of 76 adults admitted with diagnoses including cerebrovascular accident, brain injury, and spinal cord injury were included. Methods: A structured sensory screening and mental health questionnaire were administered and compared to prescreening admission documentation and PHQ-9 scores. Descriptive statistics and inferential analyses were conducted. Results: Sensory impairments were highly prevalent, with participants demonstrating an average of three impairments across the sensory domains. Proprioceptive, tactile, and visual deficits …

Orogenesis, Timothy Ryan Butcher

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This thesis and accompanying exhibition explore the translation of panenhenic mystical experience and the collaboration with Appalachian natural spaces into abstracted landscape images. This work aims to “map” a sensation of fundamental unity and gesture toward the ineffable by utilizing found-object stamp printing, and automatic mark-making. Inspired by practical mystic traditions and contemporary landscape painting, this body of work, entitled Orogenesis, combines intricate, abstracted ink landscape drawings and photographs to create images suggestive of the mystical patterns in the process.

Designing Dracula: A Feminist Revenge Fantasy, Really: A New Take On The New Woman, Spencer T. Lawlor

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This thesis will document the process of designing the costumes for Dracula: A Feminist Revenge Fantasy, Really, by Kate Hamill. It will detail a close reading of the text and how it differs from its original source material, Bram Stoker’s Dracula, an examination of the research process for this design, as well as an analysis of the design process and execution of costumes for this production. It will explore the challenges I faced as the Costume Designer on this production, including but not limited to: examining the gender dynamics involved in genderbending a well-known piece of literature, working within a …

Upper Echelons And Corporate Venture Capital: Ceo Effects On Investment Direction And Resource Deployment, Ralph Judicael Mompoint

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This study examines how founder-CEO status shapes the strategic orientation of corporate venture capital (CVC) activity. Drawing on upper echelons theory, I argue that founder-CEOs differ from non-founder CEOs in where they direct CVC investments, not simply in whether they engage in CVC at all. Using a panel of S&P 500 firms spanning 2004 through 2024, I test whether founder-CEOs pursue greater CVC activity overall and whether they concentrate that activity in ventures operating within the firm's core industry. Results from random-effects negative binomial regression models show that founder-CEO status is positively associated with core-industry CVC but not with investments …

Framing Addiction In The Age Of Vaping: A Journalism-Focused Reporting Toolkit, Jessica L. Riley

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This project addresses a critical gap in journalism practice: the lack of accessible, evidence-based guidance for reporting on addiction. Particularly as it relates to nicotine, tobacco and vaping. Journalists play a key role in shaping public understanding of substance use, yet existing resources often focus on opioids, lack specificity, or fail to keep pace with rapidly evolving nicotine products and scientific research. As a result, reporters may struggle with inconsistent terminology, unclear risk communication and the potential for unintentionally stigmatizing language.

Grounded in media effects theory, health communication and stigma research, this project examines how journalistic language and framing influence …

Success Coaching And Conditional Admit Student Success, Zachery Oliver Thayer

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Student success is a matter of critical importance to institutions of higher education, and to students. Colleges and universities exist in a current context of decreasing supply of potential students as a result of an impending demographic cliff and, therefore, increased competition for those remaining students, all while many institutions have become more tuition-dependent. This creates an incentive to decrease selectivity in order to meet enrollment goals as well as to focus university resources on student success measures that impact retention.  Some institutions have decreased selectivity to the point of admitting students conditionally or provisionally, even if those students do …

Acts Of Becoming: A Phenomenological Investigation Into The Lived Experiences Of West Virginia Teacher-Activists, 1990 To The Present, Phillip Elias Howard

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This critical phenomenological dissertation explores the lived realities of becoming a West Virginia teacher-activist. Presenting the experiential accounts of three participants, its semi-structured questions Show the lifeworld forces, inherited (factical) self-identities, and occupational, "on-the-ground" classroom experiences that inspired its research collaborators to assert themselves as unionists and natural teacher-organizers. This dissertation utilizes a collection of Marxian, phenomenological, and post-structural interpretation devices to develop robust, sensemaking themes which reveal the meaning of participants’ lived reflections. It also provides thick descriptions of co-researchers' historic and current political, economic, and socio-cultural backdrops amid West Virginia’s right-wing political realignment of the 2010s, the eternal …

Essays On Stock Market Expectations And Financial Decisions, Shanxiang Yang

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This dissertation consists of three essays on stock market expectations and financial decisions. The first essay shows significant racial differences in expectations regarding future stock market performance. Using data from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s Survey of Consumer Expectations from 2013 to 2022, we find that, relative to White Americans, Black and Hispanic Americans have lower probabilistic expectations that the stock market will increase. This racial gap in expectations was even larger during the recession caused by the Covid-19 epidemic, suggesting that economic uncertainty exacerbates this heterogeneity in expectations. Furthermore, we show that relative to White Americans, the …

Evaluation Of Brook Trout (Salvelinus Fontinalis) Thermal Tolerance And Projected Climate Change Effects On Headwater Brook Trout Population Persistence, Cory Bauerlien

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Climate change has been identified as one of the greatest threats to global biota in recorded human history. Consequences are expected to be more pronounced in ectotherms because most of their physiology is controlled by external temperature conditions. Predicting how ectotherms may respond to increasing global temperatures necessitates information about thermal limits of thermal sensitive species and how increasing temperatures may affect individual and population-level fitness. Therefore, the objectives of this research were aimed at gaining a better understanding of the mechanisms that underpin thermal tolerance limits of fish and how those mechanisms may affect fitness and population persistence under …

Spatial Analyses Using Emergency Medical Services Data To Inform Healthcare., Jeffrey Alan Pesarsick

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Spatial analyses using Emergency Medical Services data to inform healthcare.

Jeffrey Pesarsick

Background

Emergency Medical Services (EMS) often serve as the initial entry point for patients into the healthcare system in the United States.  Rural health disparities, geographic isolation, socioeconomic disadvantages, and operational challenges create disparities in access to EMS services.  Disparities include prolonged response times, less resources available, and inequities in levels of care available.  The overall goal of these series of projects was to quantify the extent to which operational challenges in EMS data impact health, and how EMS data could be used to identify neighborhood level trends …

More Than A Man: An Ethnomusicological Survey Of The Folklore Of John Henry And Resource Guide For “More Than A Man” By Shanyse Strickland, Clayton R. Heath

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

“John Henry” exists as an enduring folk legend in the United States of America, representing the confluence of the Reconstruction Era, the economic utility of Appalachia and the Westward expansion of industry which left it behind. Though based on historical events, Henry’s fictional representation has diverted and evolved in music and other media from its inception in the oral tradition to the modern age. Through this progression, shared symbols have circulated, gathering embedded meanings and associating the folklore with specific communities. Henry’s representational identity has been signaled with the creation and distribution of each version of his story, both complicating …

Three Essays On Option Markets, Fangzheng Ou

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This dissertation includes three essays examining index option and stock option markets. The first essay investigates the pricing kernel puzzle by examining S&P 500 index option returns and empirical pricing kernels across expiration dates ranging from one month to one year. We document that at short maturities, out-of-the-money call option returns are negative and decrease with the strike price, while at long maturities, at least some are positive and increase with the strike price. Empirical pricing kernels predominantly exhibit a W-shape at short maturities, with this pattern becoming less pronounced and evolving toward a monotonically decreasing curve at longer maturities. …

White Lies Of Time: Temporal Racialization In 19th-20th Century American Literature, Yu Uchida

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

By examining mid-nineteenth to mid-twentieth century American literary texts, this dissertation project aims to theorize the ways in which whiteness relies on conceptualizations of time to hegemonize non-white subjects and prescribe their historical representations. Because whiteness is dynamic in its emergence and effects and ubiquitous in sociopolitical and cultural realms, this dissertation holistically turns to white, Black, and Indigenous writers to delineate how whiteness functions throughout the period and how racialized subjects negotiate it. Portraying the nation’s history as lived experience rather than objectified knowledge, the racialized authors I examine undermine the concept of linear progressive time that subtends structural …

High-Resolution Laser Diagnostics For Ion Measurements In Magnetized Plasmas, Katey Stevenson

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

In this work, we investigate ion heating in two plasma systems (helicon plasmas and flux rope plasmas) using the PHAse Space MApping (PHASMA) experiment. Our studies rely on high-resolution laser diagnostics, specifically laser-induced fluorescence (LIF), to measure ion velocity distribution functions (IVDFs). The temperature and bulk flow of each species are inferred from their respective VDFs. This dissertation is organized into three main parts: the study of ion heating in helicon plasmas, pulsed LIF modeling and diagnostic development, and the study of ion heating in flux rope plasmas. Helicon plasma sources efficiently generate high-density plasmas and are widely used to …

A Fine-Scale Genomic Study Of Cheat Mountain Salamanders (Plethodon Nettingi) On Managed Public Land, Amylynn Nicole Ephraim

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Habitat fragmentation has the potential to isolate localized populations, particularly those which are understood to have limited dispersal capabilities. This isolation can reduce genetic diversity through the effects of inbreeding depression, and small populations are more susceptible to the impacts of genetic drift. In this study, I aim to understand the level of genetic connectivity between known occupied patches of Cheat Mountain salamanders (Plethodon nettingi; CMS) on managed public land. CMS are a federally threatened, high-elevation, West Virginia endemic species associated with red spruce (Picea rubens) forests. I used double-digest restriction site associated DNA (ddRAD) sequencing …

Process Modeling, Operability Analysis, And Techno-Economic Optimization Of Soecs For Sustainable H2 Production, Krishna Murthy Busam

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

The global imperative to decarbonize energy systems has intensified research into sustainable hydrogen production pathways, as hydrogen emerges as a critical energy carrier for sectors difficult to electrify directly. Among water electrolysis technologies, solid oxide electrolyzer cells operating at elevated temperatures offer the highest theoretical efficiency by utilizing thermal energy to reduce electrical energy requirements, yet comprehensive frameworks integrating electrochemical modeling with process operability analysis and techno-economic optimization remain scarce in the literature. This dissertation develops a process systems framework for proton-conducting solid oxide electrolyzer cells that bridges the gap between fundamental electrochemical phenomena and industrial-scale process economics. At the …

Enhancing Chime Data Integrity: Utilizing An Ancillary Antenna To Detect And Mask Radio Frequency Interference, John W. Metzger

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

The Canadian Hydrogen Intensity Mapping Experiment (CHIME) is a radio telescope array designed to map Baryon Acoustic Oscillations (BAO) and detect Fast Radio Bursts (FRBs) within the 400-800 MHz frequency range. However, man-made Radio Frequency Interference (RFI), such as television broadcasts and cellular signals, significantly degrade data integrity and mask weak astronomical signals. This thesis details the design, simulation, and implementation of a slotted waveguide antenna at the Green Bank Outrigger (GBO) to detect and mask RFI. Utilizing cross-correlation, the system identifies similarities between the telescope and the horizon- pointing antenna to isolate interference. Mathematical models were used to determine …

Community Resilience Drives Change, Andrew Thomas Solt

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

The opioid crisis has impacted many Americans. From 1999 to 2023, approximately 800,000 people have died due to opioid overdose (CDC, 2025). What began as overprescriptions of painkillers has quickly evolved into a complex social health issue that is now further worsened by stronger synthetic drugs like fentanyl. Fentanyl and fentanyl analogs (synthetic opioids that are very similar chemically to fentanyl) are often found in illegal drug supplies and in counterfeit pills (CDC, 2025). Thus, individuals who might have been initially overprescribed painkillers might now be pushed towards illegally produced drugs that are significantly more potent than what they were …

Community Resilience Drives Change, Claudia Rose Dilima

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

The opioid crisis has impacted many Americans. From 1999 to 2023, approximately 800,000 people have died due to opioid overdose (CDC, 2025). What began as overprescription of painkillers has evolved into a complex social health issue that is now worsened by stronger synthetic drugs like fentanyl. Fentanyl and fentanyl analogs (synthetic opioids that are very similar chemically to fentanyl) are often found in illegal drug supplies and in counterfeit pills (CDC, 2025). Thus, individuals who might have been initially overprescribed painkillers might now be pushed toward illegally produced drugs that are significantly more potent than what they were originally prescribed. …

Utilizing Plethodontid Occupancy To Assess Initial Ecosystem Responses To Invasive Plant Control Treatment In The Central Hardwoods, Maree Guinevere Dieterich

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Invasive plants are a growing concern for land managers, impacting ecosystem resilience and outcompeting native vegetation. To combat this, invasive plant control treatments can assist in reducing the impacts and spread of damaging, non-native plant species. However, intensive treatments completed at large scales have the potential to negatively impact ecosystem services as well. To monitor these impacts, I utilized a well-known indicator in the Central Applachian region, Plethodontid salamanders, to assess impacts of invasive plant control treatments in the Central Hardwood forests. I completed 12 visual samples across 60 sites in West Virginia, USA during Spring and Fall of 2025 …

Plant Invasion Patterns In Understory And Soil Microbial Communities Of North Central West Virginia Mixed Hardwood Forests, Isabelle Marie Uganski

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Invasive plants alter forest ecosystems by reducing species richness, habitat heterogeneity, and nutrient cycling as they rapidly displace native plants. Invasive plant composition can influence soil health through altering soil microbial associations and communities. By studying the mechanisms in which invasives alter above- and below-ground communities, we can better understand whole-ecosystem impacts and inform management decisions. This study examined the relationships between co-occurring invasion on above and belowground communities of mixed hardwood forests of north central West Virginia. Despite distinctive associations with aboveground characteristics (native diversity, native tree regeneration, and leaf litter density) we detected limited changes to soil microbial …

Graded Repertoire For Violin By Latin American Composers: Pedagogical Analysis And Categorization Of Selected Pieces, Irene Guerra Rudas

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Repertoire sequences have evolved from a collection of technical studies into a comprehensive educational framework. This research aims to enhance the integration of innovative pedagogical materials by identifying, analyzing, and categorizing works originally composed for violin by Latin American composers. These works are assessed for their suitability within a structured violin curriculum and organized into graded levels, ranging from elementary to advanced.

Each selected piece is evaluated according to pedagogical parameters commonly used in established violin teaching traditions. These parameters include pitch range, rhythmic complexity, bow strokes, length, stylistic diversity, musical language, and the historical and cultural relevance of both …

A Digital Calibration Source For 21 Cm Cosmology Telescopes, Kalyani Balkrishna Bhopi

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Precise calibration of radio telescope beams and gains is a central requirement for 21 cm intensity mapping experiments, which aim to measure large scale cosmological structure through the redshifted emission line of neutral hydrogen. Bright astrophysical foregrounds dominate the sky at these frequencies, and separating them from the cosmological signal demands precise control over instrumental systematics, particularly the telescope beam and its frequency-dependent response. Existing aerial calibration sources are incoherent broadband emitters, detectable only as total power. They provide no direct phase information and suffer from poor sensitivity in low signal-to-noise regimes.

We present the Precision Emitter for 21cm Array …

Microwave Calcination Techniques For Electrode And Electrolyte Powders In Fuel Cells, Logan Scott Proud

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This work investigates microwave-assisted calcination as a rapid, energy-efficient alternative to conventional resistive heating for the synthesis of complex oxide powders used in solid oxide electrochemical cells. Ce₀.₉Gd₀.₁O₁.₉₅ (GDC10) and La₀.₆Sr₀.₄Co₀.₂Fe₀.₈O₃–δ (LSCF6428) were synthesized via solid-state and co-precipitation routes to evaluate the influence of precursor chemistry and dielectric behavior on microwave coupling, reaction kinetics, and powder characteristics. Calcination was performed in single-mode and multimode microwave systems using a silicon carbide/alumina susceptor–insulation package to ensure controlled high-temperature processing. A parametric study examining ramp rate, sample size, and temperature revealed that microwave processing reduced calcination time to ~1 hour compared to >21 …

Do You Walk On By? The Effects Of Donor Fatigue On Willingness To Donate, Shawn Michael Henry

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Donation solicitation literature validates the successful usage of various solicitation tactics that lead to achieving set donation goals for their associated cause. Yet, while the financial success of “checkout charity” is well-documented, a significant gap remains regarding the impact of high-frequency solicitations on long-term consumer-brand relationship. This research addresses this gap. Over the span of three surveys, this study finds that donation request frequency overall erodes donation likelihood through donor fatigue when donation frequency changes (occasional vs. always). However, this relationship is moderated by the perceived consumer base, with a larger perceived consumer base exacerbating the “diffusion of responsibility.” Further, …