Digital Commons Network^™

Nurses' Experiences Of Pain Management For Patients With Diagnosed Mental Health Conditions: A Systematic Review, Aaron Lapuz Alejandro, Middlewick, Seng Giap Marcus Ang, Rosemary Saunders, Irene Ngune

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Aim: To synthesise the available evidence related to nurses' pain assessment and management practices for patients with diagnosed mental health conditions. Design: Mixed-methods systematic review. Data Sources: Medline, CINAHL, PsycINFO, SPORTDiscus and Psychology and Behavioural Sciences Collection. Methods: Databases search was conducted in March 2024 and updated in June 2025. Methodological quality was assessed using the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool. Data synthesis followed the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) Manual for Evidence Synthesis. Results: Of the 1318 eligible studies identified, 12 met the inclusion criteria. The included studies were methodologically robust overall but frequently neglected nonresponse bias and were predominantly conducted …

Risk Factors Associated With Delayed Secretory Activation In A Cohort Of Nulliparous Women In Western Australia, Cassandra Cuffe, Giglia, Julie Hill, Matthew N. Cooper, Anita M. Moorhead, Joshua R. Lewis, Deborah Ireson, Therese A. O’Sullivan

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Background: Delayed secretory activation can negatively impact maternal and child health through increasing the risk of early cessation of breastfeeding. Early cessation of breastfeeding is known to be associated with increased health risks. Aim: To determine the occurrence of, and risk factors associated with, delayed secretory activation in nulliparous women in Western Australia. Methods: This analysis used a subset of participants (n = 183) enrolled in a multicentre trial. Nulliparous low-risk pregnant women were enrolled between 28–32 weeks’ gestation and followed until 1 week after birth. The association between self-reported delayed secretory activation status (onset 4 days or more postpartum) …

The Factors Influencing Organisational Responsiveness For Sustainable Projects, Richard Hughes, Bradley Baker

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Purpose: This study investigates how organisations respond to sustainability when it becomes a central strategic priority, particularly through project environments. The research seeks to understand the factors influencing organisational responsiveness to sustainability imperatives in projects, addressing a key gap in sustainable project management literature. Design/methodology/approach: The study employed a thematic meta-synthesis of qualitative case studies from multiple countries and different economic sectors. Using grounded theory, data were coded to identify first-order concepts, second-order themes and aggregate dimensions, culminating in the development of a conceptual model of dynamic adaptation. Findings: The analysis revealed three interrelated dimensions that shape organisational responsiveness: strategic …

Bridging The Social Class Capital Gap: A Psychological Intervention In The Newcomer Adjustment Context, Grace J. H. Lim, Marko Pitesa

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Motivated by observations that workers from lower social class backgrounds often experience lower career outcomes even after securing desirable jobs, we adopted an abductive approach—combining theory (the newcomer personal capital framework) with qualitative evidence from open‐ended accounts (Study 1)—to identify three challenges these workers face after joining organizations as newcomers: limited cultural capital (i.e., institutional knowledge), lower social capital (i.e., social self‐efficacy), and lower psychological capital (i.e., distress tolerance). Furthermore, in Study 1, we developed and tested a psychological intervention targeting these challenges and found that it effectively addressed them. In Studies 2 and 3, both preregistered field experiments, we …

Tuned Out Or Dialed In: How Attributions Shape Observer Reactions To Music Listeners At Work, Oguz Gencay, Trevor Foulk, Michael Schaerer

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Music listening while working is prevalent in contemporary workplaces, with extensive research demonstrating its psychological and behavioral implications. Shifting focus from intra-individual outcomes, the present research examines the social implications of music listening at work. To do so, we adopt a novel third-party perspective to investigate how observers perceive and react to music listeners. Building on attribution theory, we argue that music listening is an ambiguous behavior that invites observers to make leisure or productivity attributions, thereby shaping how they perceive and treat music listeners. We hypothesize that observers perceive music listeners (vs. non-listeners) as less engaged if they attribute …

Trading With The Enemy: A Coopetitive Perspective Of Resource Exchange At Arm’S Length, Zhefei Li, David Gomulya, Heli Wang

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Research Summary: Research on inter-firm cooperation often focuses on long-term strategic alliances while overlooking the distinct form of arm's-length resource exchanges. Our study addresses this gap using the National Basketball Association (NBA) data for precise resource exchange measurements. Contrary to strategic alliances, where competitive pressure fosters cooperation, we find that competitive pressure reduces cooperation in arm's-length exchanges. However, relational capital helps to facilitate resource exchanges. We also found that while resource bundling exacerbates the negative effect of competitive pressure, it amplifies the positive effect of relational capital. Interestingly, relational rivalry intensifies the impact of competitive pressure but does not diminish …

(Re-)Developing A Library Faculty Mentoring Program, Curtis L. Kendrick, Sasha Frizzell

Library Scholarship

This article examines the redevelopment of a faculty mentoring program in a large academic library, situating it within the broader literature on academic librarianship and mentoring. It traces historical developments, innovative models, and psychosocial dimensions of mentoring, while presenting a case study from a northeastern R1 university library. A key contribution of this work is its focus on organizational readiness: the alignment of mentoring program design with institutional culture, faculty preparedness, and administrative capacity. The article emphasizes the importance of intentional matching, role clarity, and sustainability as essential elements for successful mentoring, and argues that mentoring should be viewed as …

The Manifestation Of Antihaitianismo In Abinader’S Dominican Political Atmosphere, Isabella Alcantara

FCRH Honors Program Theses

In the past decade, Haitian migration has become central to Dominican political discourse. This shift is particularly evident under President Luis Abinader’s administration, which has overseen a sharp increase in restrictive border enforcement and citizenship measures targeting Haitian migrants fleeing escalating humanitarian crises. While existing scholarship on Dominican nationalism highlights the historical role of antihaitianismo in shaping exclusionary state practices, less attention has been paid to how contemporary elite rhetoric reproduces these dynamics in more indirect, coded ways. Drawing on theories of symbolic politics and securitization, this study examines how state discourse constructs Haitian migrants within national narratives. It asks: …

Advancing Data Extraction Workflows For Single-Case Design Meta-Analysis Using Large Language Models, Yaosheng Lou

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

Single-case experimental designs (SCEDs) are a form of longitudinal research that is particularly valuable for studying marginalized and underrepresented populations. Meta-analysis plays an essential role in synthesizing evidence across studies and enhancing the generalizability of findings. However, as interest in SCEDs grows and the evidence base expands, conducting meta-analyses has become increasingly labor-intensive and time-consuming. This dissertation addresses these challenges by examining the applicability of large language models (LLMs) for data extraction and meta-analytic dataset compilation in the context of SCED meta-analysis. Because LLM performance is influenced by model selection, prompt design, and the specific materials being extracted, this dissertation …

Shelled Shut-Ins: A Conditional Escape Task Showing Perceptual Awareness In Hermit Crabs, Ari Drummond, John Spicer, Mark Briffa

School of Biological and Marine Sciences

Sentience is an increasingly popular topic in animal welfare and behavioural research. However, studying sentience can be difficult and contentious. Sentience has frequently been associated with ‘feelings’ and ‘subjective states’ not directly accessible to human observers; thus, investigating awareness in animals could be an alternative approach. Frameworks of awareness have been developed for the experimental examination of cognitive capacities that might underpin ‘feelings’ as affective states and subjective experiences. Using a framework of four hierarchically arranged levels of awareness (that is, perceptual, cognitive, assessment and executive), the awareness of an intertidal crustacean, the common hermit crab, Pagurus bernhardus , was …

A Cross-Cultural Study Of Parenting Styles And Involvement In Bullying Of Children With And Without Sen, Tansu Ince Cakan

School of Law, Humanities and Social Sciences Theses

This study explores the relationship between parenting styles and children's involvement in bullying, focusing on children with and without Special Educational Needs (SEN) in inclusive education settings in England and Türkiye. While bullying has been widely studied, most research has primarily examined typically developing children, leaving a gap in understanding the experiences of children with SEN. This study addresses this gap by comparing the impact of parenting styles on bullying experiences across both groups and cultural contexts.A mixed-methods approach was employed, combining quantitative and qualitative data collection. The quantitative phase included a questionnaire completed by 217 parents in Türkiye and …

Exploring Mathematics Texts In A Further Education College, Rajdulari Pettitt

School of Law, Humanities and Social Sciences Theses

Learning mathematics is a challenge for many learners in Further Education. It is also a requirement since Government policy stipulates that Further Education (FE) learners in England, who have achieved a General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) Mathematics grade 3 or lower, are required to continue studying this subject alongside their vocational courses. As a core subject, mathematics includes numbers, shapes, patterns and statistics with progression generally from concrete to abstract form; mathematics texts include specific vocabulary such as probability trees and procedures such as calculations using decimals. Engagement with mathematics has been shown to be related to motivation, confidence …

‘The Limits Of The Landscape: A Critical Examination Of Outdoor Learning, Self-Regulation, And Semh Within Neoliberal Schooling’, Nicola Clayton

School of Law, Humanities and Social Sciences Theses

This doctoral thesis critically examines a specialised outdoor learning intervention for primary pupils with significant Social, Emotional, and Mental Health (SEMH) needs who are at risk of exclusion. It assesses the intervention’s implementation and its efficacy in supporting these pupils' capacity for self-regulation and stress management.The study is situated amidst escalating global child mental health concerns and recent English educational policy shifts that mandate schools to actively foster pupil well-being. Exploring outdoor education as a widely cited approach for promoting positive mental health, this research engages with established social theories, particularly those of Bernstein and Bourdieu, to critique the wider …

Errors And Misconceptions In Mathematics Teacher Retraining: An Investigation Of Subject Knowledge Enhancement Course Results, Gabor Szalontai

School of Law, Humanities and Social Sciences Theses

This thesis investigates the subject knowledge capabilities and deficiencies of teachers who wished to enter or return to secondary mathematics teaching and took part in the Subject Knowledge Enhancement Plus programme. It focuses on the proportions, types and causes of their mistakes, as well as their potential for development and the possibility of increasing their awareness of errors.The study uses recorded responses of 1602 participants from the online assessment of the courses, which ran across England. The assessment, covering the entire secondary curriculum and consisting of 643 questions, provided an interactive, multiple-attempt design allowing the investigation of the participants’ results …

Reimagining Mathematics Education: A Practitioner Inquiry Into Critical Pedagogy, Lesson Study, And Teacher Agency In England, Derek Robinson

School of Law, Humanities and Social Sciences Theses

AbstractThis thesis investigates how mathematics educators can reclaim pedagogical agency within an English education system dominated by performativity, compliance, and examination-driven accountability. Grounded in critical pedagogy and drawing on six decades of professional experience, it offers a practitioner-led, reflexive inquiry into how pedagogical beliefs, professional identity, and teacher agency are formed, constrained, and reconstituted over time within particular institutional and policy contexts.The study adopts narrative inquiry as its overarching methodology, operationalised through personal memory work, critical-incident reflection, and historical policy analysis. Professional experience is treated not as anecdote but as analytic data, interrogated through multiple reflexive lenses to reveal how …

"Tell Me About Your Esol Experience": Exploring Language Journeys Through Shared Stories, Rocio Rivero-Gutierrez

School of Law, Humanities and Social Sciences Theses

This thesis explores the English language learning experiences of ESOL(English for Speakers of Other Languages) participants from southern Spain, examining the interplay between language acquisition, cultural adaptation, andidentity transformation. Grounded in my own ESOL journey — shaped both inSpain and through immersion in an English-speaking context — the studyinvestigates how participants assign meaning to their L2 engagement acrossdiverse social settings, and how English becomes a tool for bothcommunication and personal reinvention. The research adopts a qualitative, narrative-based methodology. The datawere generated through in-depth interviews, small group discussions, andreflective journal entries with nine adult participants, all native Spanishspeakers. Crucially, the data …

Exploring The Reading Motivation And Reading Experiences Of Secondary School Students With Dyslexia In England, Ahmet Kaan Alper

School of Law, Humanities and Social Sciences Theses

This research examines how a small group of secondary school students with dyslexia in England make sense of their reading experiences and motivation to read across school, home and everyday settings. It responds to concerns that literacy policy and practice foreground accuracy, speed and comparison, leaving limited space for reading for pleasure on students’ own terms. Drawing on Michel Foucault’s concepts, the study treats dyslexia and literacy as historically and institutionally produced categories and explores how discourses, norms and accountability regimes shape what counts as legitimate reading and a motivated reader. The research is grounded in a relativist ontology and …

Safe Family Therapy Activities And The Emotional Well-Being Of Parents Of Autistic Children, Gamze Camci

School of Law, Humanities and Social Sciences Theses

This thesis addresses a critical gap in the existing literature on the emotional well-being of parents of autistic children by applying SAFE family therapy activities grounded in the Narrative Attachment Therapy approach through a three-cycle action research design. Stage 1 involved 3 parents as primary participants, with their children present during selected sessions. Stage 2 included 2 families; the primary focus was on 3 parents across these families. Stage 3 engaged 5 therapists. Data were collected through interviews, diaries, questionnaires and therapy recordings. Data from interviews and journals were analysed thematically, whereas questionnaires were analysed idiographically. The first and second …

Navigating The Digital Shift In Mozambique: Teacher Agency And Digital Learning In Schools, Clive Ruraca

School of Law, Humanities and Social Sciences Theses

The educational technology industry frequently promotes the idea of a significant paradigm shift, proposing that technology can supplant traditional, transmission-based pedagogies such as ‘tell and practice’ approaches. In theory, this perspective positions digital tools as catalysts for systemic educational reform, capable of replacing rote learning with dynamic, technology-supported models (Voogt et al., 2013; Wang et al., 2024; Casilli & Posada, 2019). Employing an interpretative, empirical methodology, involving questionnaires and interviews with secondary school teachers. Data from this study are used to explore teachers’ experiences with digital learning tools through the lens of Activity Theory. This study examines the digital shift …

Can The 2025 Nobel Prizes In Physics And Economics Inspire A “Quantum” Turn In Tourism Research?, Waqas Ali

Plymouth Business School

No abstract provided.

The Role Of Conflicting Cognitions In Changing Hazardous Consumer Behaviour, Krzysztof Kubacki, Krzysztof Stepaniuk, Dariusz Siemieniako, Karolina Małagocka, Chrystyna Misiewicz

Plymouth Business School

Despite diverse approaches deployed worldwide to address harmful alcohol consumption, understanding binge drinking as a hazardous consumption behaviour remains a pressing issue in marketing and consumer behaviour research. Thus, this study examines the role of cognitive dissonance – and its absence – in facilitating transitions between different phases of binge drinking. Drawing on 38 biographical interviews conducted in Australia, the Netherlands, Poland, and the United States, we identify six instances where cognitive dissonance, or the absence thereof, contributes to the transition into, between, and out of phases of binge drinking. By examining conflicting cognitions that emerge from the gaps between …

Educational Interventions To Prepare Undergraduate Students For Out-Of-Hours Practice As A Newly Qualified Doctor In The United Kingdom: A Scoping Review, Alex Gordon, Molly Parkinson, Rosanna Watts, Kamal El-Badawi, Erin Dawson, Rohan Chiktara, Lorna Burns, Nicola Brennan

Peninsula Dental School

Background: In the United Kingdom (UK), newly qualified doctors are routinely responsible for out-of-hours (OOH) care, often managing acutely unwell patients with limited supervision. Despite national recommendations encouraging OOH experience during medical school training, there is no formal curriculum for OOH practice. Objectives: This scoping review aimed to identify the range of educational interventions designed to prepare UK medical students for OOH clinical responsibilities and assess their reported effects on perceived and actual preparedness. Methods: Following Joanna Briggs Institute methodology, a systematic search of seven databases and grey literature sources was conducted. Eligible studies involved UK-based medical students and reported …

A Pilot Study Assessing The Oral Microbiome In Women Of Menopausal Age: Do Oral Nitrate–Reducing Bacteria Play A Role?, Katie Muddiman, Amazon Doble, Abish Stephen, Raul Bescos Garcia, Charlotte Illsley, Tomas Nicholas, Sally Hanks, Lisa Du Toit, Zoe Brookes

Peninsula Dental School

Introduction The links between oral health and female ageing are poorly understood, but many changes occur in the oral cavity of menopausal women that affect quality of life, and few current oral health interventions consider gender as part of their approach. The aim of this pilot study was to test the hypothesis that the oral microbiome and microenvironment change during female ageing and are thus worthy of further consideration both experimentally and clinically. Methods This observational pilot study retrospectively assessed women aged 18 to 89 years (n = 60) attending a UK primary care dental school facility for blood pressure …

Seeing Anxiety: Ecological Video Ethnography And Simulation To Understand Anxiety And Decision-Making In Dental Care, Mona Nasser, Hannah Drayson, Sally Hanks, Nicholas Peres, Michael Punt

Peninsula Dental School

BACKGROUND: Dental anxiety is a widespread barrier to care, often contributing to appointment avoidance, treatment disruption, and emotional strain for both patients and clinicians. While extensively studied as a psychological trait, less attention has been paid to how anxiety manifests situationally and relationally, through non-verbal, affective, and spatial cues within clinical encounters. Moreover, in certain contexts, such affective signals can intersect with decision-making processes, shaping how patients interpret, engage with, or withdraw from clinical choices.

OBJECTIVE: To explore how anxiety manifests within the micro-choreography of dental encounters, develop a taxonomy of 'anxious tells', and assess the utility of ecological video …

Connecting The Dots - Recognition Of Artificial And Natural Shapes Relies On Representing Points Of High Information, Gunnar Schmidtmann, Nicholas Baker, Kevin J. Lande, Filipp Schmidt

School of Health Professions

Physiological and psychophysical evidence suggests that the visual system represents object outlines using prominent curvature features, particularly regions of extreme curvature (convex maxima and concave minima). These curvature extrema often coincide with points of high informational content (“surprisal”), but this relationship is only correlational. It remains unclear whether the visual system explicitly encodes curvature extrema or instead prioritizes the most informative contour locations. To address this, we conducted two shape-matching experiments comparing the roles of curvature extrema and surprisal in shape representation. Observers performed match-to-sample tasks in which smooth reference shapes were matched to simplified polygonal versions created by connecting …

Treatment Of Birdsong In Selected Works For Solo Piano, Madeline Hoover

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Birdsong-inspired music makes up a small but important part of the classical piano repertoire. This paper reviews birdsong in classical music since the seventeenth century, exploring different techniques for mimicking birdsong and the unique strengths of the piano as an instrument for purveying bird music. In the Baroque and Classical eras, the cuckoo song was sampled often because of its simplicity. Later, composers’ attention turned toward more complicated songs, like that of the hermit thrush. Interest in more complex songs led to experimentation in notation and a push for more accurate transcriptions. In the 20th century, composers included recordings of …

The Impact Of Ai Service Workers On Opportunistic Complaint Behavior, Chelsi J. Baker

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Consumer complaint behavior research has traditionally focused on interactions between customers and human employees, leaving open questions about how these behaviors may change when the service agent is artificial intelligence. This research looks at whether customers are more likely to engage in opportunistic complaint behavior when interacting with AI service agents and explores what might explain that behavior. The results show that customers are more likely to behave opportunistically when interacting with AI service agents than with human employees. Perceived morality helps explain this relationship, as more human-like service agents increase the extent to which exaggerating a complaint is seen …

Impact Of A Revised Educational Training Process On Improving The Efficiency Of Primary Care Mental Health Integration (Pcmhi) Referrals, Demesia Brown

DNP Projects

Timely access to mental health care remains a challenge for new Veterans entering primary care at the Meridian Community-Based Outpatient Clinic (CBOC). Although a Microsoft Teams warm hand-off referral system to Primary Care Mental Health Integration (PCMHI) was available, referrals were inconsistently initiated, limiting use of psychiatric mental health nurse practitioners (PMHNPs) and reducing opportunities for same-day access. This quality improvement project examined whether revising the educational training process for CBOC staff would improve referral efficiency and increase same-day PCMHI encounters for new Veterans. Guided by Orem’s Self-Care Framework, the intervention consisted of monthly educational sessions from June to December …

Improving Child Safety: Enhancing Healthcare Professionals’ Knowledge And Confidence In Reporting Maltreatment Through Targeted Education, Molly Sullivan

DNP Projects

Child maltreatment remains a significant public health concern associated with serious physical, emotional, psychological, and developmental consequences. Healthcare professionals are often in a unique position to identify signs and symptoms of child abuse and neglect; however, many report limited education and lack confidence regarding recognition and mandated reporting responsibilities. Educational interventions may help address these knowledge and confidence gaps. The purpose of this Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) project was to evaluate the effectiveness of an educational intervention designed to improve healthcare professionals' knowledge, confidence, and preparedness related to the identification and reporting of child maltreatment. A pre-survey/post-survey design was …

Effect Of Workload, Burnout, And Flexible Work Practices On The Well-Being Of University Faculty And Staff, Caroline O. Rogers

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

The present study examined the impact of workload, burnout, and flexible work practices (FWPs) on the well-being of higher education employees from the perspective of Job Demands-Resources (JD-R) theory. A moderated mediation model was hypothesized, wherein workload would be associated with well-being through burnout, and that this association would be attenuated by the presence of FWPs. A total of 477 full-time faculty, staff, and affiliated research foundation employees from a large public university in the Northeast region and a broader range of colleges and universities across the United States of America completed a cross-sectional survey. Validated measures assessed workload (Quantitative …