Digital Commons Network^™

Lessons From Adults Who Lived Through Parental Divorce As Adolescents, Nirav M. Patel

Pacific Journal of Health

Experiencing parental divorce during adolescence is a significant life event that can have long-term emotional and psychological effects [1]. This qualitative study focuses on how adults who experienced parental divorce between the ages of 10 and 17 reflect on their emotional, social, and academic experiences during that time. Nine adults participated in semi-structured interviews, which were transcribed, coded, and analyzed by the researcher using Dedoose software. Key findings that emerged from the interviews include emotional struggles, coping strategies, family support, the impact on school, and advice for today’s youth who are currently experiencing divorce. The findings emphasize that open communication, …

Are Single-Pilot Operations An Advantage Or A Disadvantage?, Ezgi Berte Erme

International Journal of Aviation, Aeronautics, and Aerospace

This study aims to investigate the potential benefits and drawbacks of Single-Pilot Operations (SPO) and to provide actionable insights for commercial airlines. A qualitative research design was employed, with data collected via online interviews and analyzed thematically and descriptively using MAXQDA 24. The findings indicate that pilots perceive several advantages of SPO, including the power of automation, learning artificial intelligence, minimizing human error, cockpit systems designed for artificial intelligence, more effective decision-making/speed-up in response time, reduced labor costs, reduced pilot fatigue, and reduced need for human factor/performance. Conversely, the perceived disadvantages include diminished lack of situational awareness, lack of communication …

Measuring The Impact Of Ai-Assisted Language Learning On English Language Education: A Mixed-Methods Study, Abdulrahman Alkhirbash, Vn Vamsidhar Kilari, Abdulrahman Dallak

UB Journal for Humanities

The use of AI tools in English language pedagogy is changing classroom practices by helping to develop students’ communicative competence and confidence and to assist teachers with their teaching tasks. This research examines the efficacy of existing artificial intelligence tools and applications for supporting English language teaching and learning, with a particular focus on the impact they have on the key language domains of speaking, reading, writing, and grammar. It explores how AI tools enhance personalization, instant feedback in language learning as well as addressing challenges such as data privacy, technology dependence and algorithmic bias. The design of this research …

A Symbolic Model Of Proof Acquisition In Act-R, Beckett Morris, Kerstin Haring

DU Undergraduate Research Journal Archive

Learning to construct mathematical proofs—formal arguments demonstrating the truth of a mathematical statement using logical deductions and previously established facts—is one of the most challenging skills in STEM education. This research aims to build the foundations for a symbolic cognitive model, using the ACT-R cognitive architecture and implementing in Python with the pyactr package, to explore how different proof strategies can be thought through with only symbols and rules. The model observes simple proofs, and its abilities are assessed based on its generalization capabilities, efficiency, and error patterns. By developing and analyzing such a model, this research provides new insights …

Generation Z And The Ai Misinformation Paradox: Understanding A New Digital Vulnerability, Cecilia Cooley, Elizabeth Sperber

DU Undergraduate Research Journal Archive

This paper asks: How and why is Generation Z more vulnerable to AI-generated misinformation and disinformation than older generations? Using a comparative review of recent empirical studies, survey data, and meta-analyses from 2019–2025, this paper synthesizes research on Gen Z’s exposure to and interaction with AI-produced content across social media platforms. Although it is commonly assumed that Gen Z ’s technological exposure and fluency make them better equipped to recognize false information, findings show the opposite: Gen Z is consistently outperformed by older cohorts in detecting AI-generated falsehoods. This vulnerability stems from three intersecting factors: (1) the sheer volume of …

Mothers On The Ballot: Gender And Partisan Dynamics In The Evaluation Of Maternal Political Candidates, Jimena Sanchez

DU Undergraduate Research Journal Archive

While scholarly research on the interaction between gender and political candidacy has grown, there is limited research on the way mothers are perceived in politics when they choose to run for office. The goal of the paper is to answer the following research question: how do partisanship and gender influences public perceptions of mothers running for political office, and to what extent does social desirability shape these attitudes? Through a list experiment, I surveyed individuals in the United States to capture the beliefs of the public toward mothers running for political office. Specifically, I analyze the opinions of survey participants …

Impact Of Eating Disorder Type On General Population Perceptions Of Stigma And Likelihood Of Comorbidity, Gabri Notov, Grace Schroeder, Kaz Skelton, Kevin Summers, Sarah Huff

DU Undergraduate Research Journal Archive

Eating disorders carry a significant risk of mortality, necessitating further research. Previous work has examined how stigma influences treatment seeking in other mental health conditions, creating a potential area for improving disordered eating outcomes. Additionally, prior meta-analyses have discovered high comorbidity of other mental health diagnoses with disordered eating. Some work has attempted to examine the perception of comorbid mental health problems alongside eating disorders, but this construct has not been studied in depth within general populations. To date, no work has simultaneously examined stigmatization and knowledge of common mental health problems with disordered eating in this population. This study …

Dr. Scott Phillips Faculty Spotlight, Katelyn Trimble

DU Undergraduate Research Journal Archive

An interview with Dr. Scott Phillips of the University of Denver's Department of Sociology and Criminology.

Du Undergraduate Showcase Abstracts: Research, Scholarship, And Creative Works, Sophia Wismar, Henry Staats, Allison Metzler, Chloe Puckett, Rachel Levine, Christa Kilpatrick, Scott Wolf, Joe Walsh, Grace Doolittle, John Engebreston, Zoe Lopez, Christopher Aaby, Audrey Duff, Timothy Sisk, Katelyn Lamberton, Angela Narayan, Gilkah Argueta, Habiba Samir, Girena Tesfazghi, Genet Kenore, Sinit Tesfamariam, Effley Brooks, Abi Newell, Megan Doherty, Natalie Baer, Lexi Blood, Talya Riciputi, Jessica Jimenez, Devin Hernandez, Lynn Clark, Taj Kumar, Sunil Kumar, Allen Rutman, Mira Pronobis, Tess Carson, Anna Sher, Frankie Stroud, Tamra Pearson D'Estree, Alyssa Wilson, Emily Melnick, Jenalee Doom, Yihang Gao, Gwendolyn Geiger, Noah Gettle, Scott Nichols, Clare Ayoub, Cara Dienno, Sunny Walker, Zoe Hansen, Maya Wheeler, Addison Rice, Patrick Martin, Sanjana Acharya, Daniel Mcintosh, Amanda Mckellips, Calli Cain, Justin Blake, Peter Sokol-Hessner, Natalie Miller, Max Weisbuch, Sophia Dellota, John Macikas, Charlotte Snow, Mark Siemens, Zoe Lynch, Alex Huffman, Prachi Shah, Jason Roney, Halcyon Levi, Nicole Herzog, Andrea Koly, Daniel Linseman, Annie London, Xi Yang, Avery Zwisler, Jane Smith, Chaz Contag, Michael Kerwin, Lucy Rand, Grace Schroeder, Michelle Rozenman, Nissa Tapper, Guiming Zhang, Mateo Mazariego-Halpern, Keith Meyer, Julie Do, Dakota Park-Ozee, Travis Herink, Kara Neu, Jonathan Plomin, Eve-Odine Duchaufour, Debbie Gale Mitchell, Tennyson Anderson-Stricklin, Lily Treitz, Samantha Rosenberger, Sierra Griffith, Finley Joseph, Daniel Sampson, Emmy Davis, Skyler Kasnoff, Evon Lopez, Vivian Nguyen, Cassy Young, Franklin Sellner, Martin Tobon, Ila Graham, Zach Billings, Holden Hedit, Decatur Boland, Paul Kosempel, Cory Chandler, Jay Mahoney, Sam Dragan, Susan Dagget, Yarrow Ator, Heidi Vuletich, Owen Weber, Andrew Kloeppel, Petersen Gray, Mandi Schaeffer-Fry, Razleen Bassra, Bryanna Rodriguez, Christina Blue, Taubie Sanders, Rachel Epstein, Luke Milburn, Camryn Evans, Ezra Martinez, Mary Westwood, Gabri Notov, Robin Tinghitella, Lilou Cabrol, Eli Barbour, Juliet Mendik, Selma Myers, Zac Wise, Noah Fahlin, Michelle Knowles, Abigail Hopper, Michael Greenberger, Romi Laclair, Sarah Watamura, Sabrina Efroymson, Casey Barker, Sydney Seltzer, Bryn Yehle, Jennifer Hoffman, Sara Garcia, Ryuka Nagamine, Trevor Briggs, Remy Le Boeuf, Elena Krone, Eileen Farrell, Regan O'Rourke, Elena Roel, Greg Mortimer, Ali Ayoub, Stefani Langehennig, Caitlin Turk, Logan Scmid, Stefan Chavez-Norgaard, Karen Kim, Tatiana Peccedi, Courtney Cassidy, John Sebesta, Rhianna Lewis, Janice Bening-Lacek, Vivian Lawless, Mckenna Hanson, Jeffrey Amidon, Riya Joshi, Ram Ambre, Brady Worrell, Perrin Schneider, Ali Azadani, Brooke Agulnek, Lyndsie Salvagio, Elise Siemanowki, Yan Qin, Andre Allen, Melodie Nguyen, Megan Livengood, Abby Reams, Saffron Hartreeve, Bri Wylie, Sarah Brookman, Mariah Loiacono, Green Russo, Abhia Lodhi, Gabrielle Welsh, Nika Spehar, Shahked Levin, Evrim Baykal, Kimberly Chiew, Jocelyn Torres, Kailey Hicks, Mykaela Tanino-Springsteen, Audrey Bellows, Akam Chahal, Madeline Tepper, Shannon Murphy, Alexa Fonseca, Deborah Han, Cassandra Perez, Oluwatoyin Alaba, Julia Roncoroni, Vy Nguyen, Nana Burn, Sarah Sasse, Rubin Tuder, Anthony Gerber, Nancy Lorenzon, Christine Vohwinkel, Camryn Gunter, Tristan Weber, Sam Rommel, Brian Michel, Muskan Fatima, Alannah Oleson, Kira Frey, Edward Garrido, Beckett Morris, Kerstin Haring, Drew Middleton, Abigail Walpert, Liam Dee, Gabby Ishaw, Cole Carnes, Maddie Weiser, Claire Fox, Valeriia Vlasenko, Kateri Mcrae, Riley Smith, Abigail Templin, Kushani Rajapaksha

DU Undergraduate Research Journal Archive

Abstracts from the DU Undergraduate Research Showcase.

Effects Of A Complexity-Based Expressive Language Treatment On Comprehension In Children With Down Syndrome: A Preliminary Investigation, Aliese M. Pedro

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined whether a complexity-based expressive morphosyntactic intervention targeting auxiliary BE questions improves morphosyntactic, vocabulary, and narrative comprehension in adolescents with Down syndrome (DS). Two participants (ages 15;11 and 14;2) received intervention delivered over 15 and 12 sessions, respectively, using a structured narrative-based protocol. Comprehension was assessed pre- and post-intervention using the Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals-Fifth Edition (CELF-5) Following Directions subtest, the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test-Fifth Edition (PPVT-5), the Test of Narrative Language-Second Edition (TNL-2), and the Test of Early Grammatical Impairment (TEGI) Grammaticality Judgment (GJ) task. Results indicate no reliable or clinically significant improvements in comprehension across …

An Exploration Of The Lived Experience Of Married Couples Impacted By Aphasia, Summer Ewell

Theses and Dissertations

People with aphasia and those closest to them experience changes in their lives and relationships due to aphasia. These changes may be particularly impactful for married couples. The aim of this study was to increase understanding of the dynamic and complex experiences of couples impacted by aphasia and to add personal perspectives to the creation of practical treatments and resources. Twenty-eight participants (14 married couples) participated in both individual and couples' semi-structured interviews, resulting in 42 total interviews for analysis. Participants answered open-ended questions about aphasia's influence on the couple's communication and relationship. Interviews were then transcribed orthographically and coded …

Truth, Justness, Falseness, And Lie In The Deweyan Sense, Mathieu Gagnon

Dewey Studies

No abstract provided.

An Inquiry Into Inquiry: Examining The Foundations Of Dewey's Democratic Ideal, Nathaniel Deken

Dewey Studies

No abstract provided.

Environmental Ethics And The (Dis)Continuity Of Meaning In Experience And Nature, Harrison S. Jackson

Dewey Studies

No abstract provided.

The Effect Of Incidental Emotions On Self-Control: An Examination Using A Need-Based Choice Model, Shruti Koley

Business Faculty Publications and Presentations

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to develop a framework that examines the effects of incidental emotions on choices in self-control dilemmas. The framework predicts that the effect of emotions depends on the hedonic and non-hedonic needs they activate and the extent to which emotional consumers expect the virtuous and gratifying options in the choice dilemma to facilitate these needs (i.e. their instrumentality toward the activated needs). The framework helps develop propositions for the self-control effects of six commonly experienced emotions: happiness, sadness, pride, guilt, anger and anxiety. Design/methodology/approach – The author uses a choice model to develop …

Place-Based Education: A Rural Solution For Student Achievement, James A. Chamness

College of Education

Rural secondary students in the United States continue to demonstrate lower academic outcomes on standardized assessments compared to their non-rural peers, highlighting the need for contextually responsive instructional approaches. This concurrent mixed methods study examined the relationship between place-based education (PBE) and academic achievement among rural secondary students and explored rural teachers’ perceptions of PBE. Guided by social cognitive theory, the study investigated differences in ACT composite scores between students exposed to PBE and those receiving traditional instruction, as well as perceived challenges and opportunities associated with PBE implementation. Quantitative data included archived ACT scores, which were analyzed using descriptive …

Bridging The Justice Gap: A Comparative Study Of Legal Aid Marketing In Canada, Australia, And The United States, Farah O. Haq

Student Theses and Dissertations

Access to justice remains a central challenge across legal systems, particularly for immigrants and refugees, Indigenous communities, and survivors of domestic violence. While legal aid organizations play a critical role in bridging this gap, their effectiveness increasingly depends on how clearly and compassionately they communicate legal information online to their target audience. This thesis conducts a comparative content analysis of nine nonprofit legal aid organizations in the United States, Canada, and Australia, three countries united by a common law tradition but divided by the communication barriers their communities face, examining 180 social media posts and nine websites through the lens …

The Importance Of Career And Retirement Services For Student Athletes, Vincent R. Giuliano

Masters Projects

There are hundreds of thousands of collegiate student-athletes competing in organized sports in the NCAA. Research shows the different resources that are available to them during their time competing, as well as how sports can open different opportunities for them during their competitive years. However, once this is over, an individual may realize they spent their time becoming an athlete and not enough time on their holistic well-being and professional development due to time constraints, identity engulfment, etc. While institutions do well in nurturing students during their competitive years, they lack in considering the retirement of these student-athletes. This project's …

The Disconnect Of Moral Accountability: Freedom, Equality, And The Limits Of Punishment, Celine Shiah Choi

Philosophy Senior Theses

This thesis examines the justificatory foundations of moral accountability as a social practice and the profound disconnect between our ordinary intuitions about justice, the moral attitudes we hold toward one another, and the governing institutional practices of punishment. Drawing on Stephen Darwall's second-person standpoint and P.F. Strawson's account of reactive attitudes, the paper argues that legitimate accountability presupposes two necessary conditions, freedom and equality, understood as the shared capacity of rational agents to recognize moral demands and stand in reciprocal normative relation with one another. Both conditions, however, prove deeply fragile in practice: legal institutions invoke the language of rational …

Unlocking The Colleague Next Door, Yoshihiko Ariizumi

Learning, Teaching, & Researching Optimization

The structural barriers that isolate faculty from one another—individualistic reward systems, professional identity protection, disciplinary silos, fragmented time—have been documented in detail elsewhere. This paper begins where that analysis ends. Its sole focus is solutions: what actually works, what you can do without waiting for your institution to change, and most importantly, what you can do today. It is organized in three movements: evidence-based institutional strategies, community-level structures any group of faculty can build, and a granular map of the smallest possible individual first steps—the ones that cost almost nothing and have an outsized probability of changing how you experience …

Leading In The Classroom Empowering Educators In Paraguay, Carissa State Gober, Donna Zerr, Jason Clemensen, Aaron Hurt

Open Educational Resources - Teaching and Learning

Here’s a simplified version of the abstract with clear, straightforward language:

Abstract

In May 2026, faculty and staff from Pittsburg State University gave presentations in Asunción and Ciudad del Este, Paraguay. The sessions focused on practical topics for educators and students, including strategies for teaching English to speakers of other languages (TESOL), ways to use artificial intelligence in education, leadership tips, and international opportunities available at Pittsburg State University. Each session encouraged participation and discussion, helping connect Paraguayan educators and students with new ideas and resources. These events showed the university’s commitment to building international partnerships, supporting teachers with useful …

Hope And Resilience For Families Affected By Alcoholism Within The Deaf And Hard Of Hearing (Dhh) Community, Jessica Ellen Kuehne

Faculty Publications and Presentations

This presentation will cover research-based information about family alcoholism, children of alcoholics (COA), and adult children of alcoholics (ACOA) and explore how it impacts the Deaf community. Cultural considerations regarding alcohol use will be included in the presentation. The purpose of the workshop is to engage participants in increasing their knowledge and understanding of working with the unique group. It is important to note that the lack of studies and resources focusing on family alcoholism which impacts a group of COAs and ACOAs in the Deaf community. The presentation will begin with a brief overview of how family alcoholism impacts …

A Review Of Enhanced Recovery After Surgery In Kidney And Liver Transplantation And Outline Of The Newcastle Eras Protocols, E. Bonner, C. Scuffell, F. Dowen, L. Macdougall, J. Fabes

Peninsula Medical School

Although Enhanced Recovery after Surgery (ERAS) is now common practice across various surgical specialties, the adoption of its principles has only recently gained momentum in liver and kidney transplantation. The publication of relevant ERAS guidelines in these specialties has undoubtedly facilitated the assimilation of evidence in support of ERAS components, the paucity of which had been viewed as a barrier to the implementation of ERAS in transplantation. In conjunction, institutionally-developed ERAS pathways have provided pragmatic examples of how these principles can be adopted within transplant practice. In this article, we summarise the current recommendations and underlying evidence for key components …

Maryland Reproductive Freedom And The Full Personhood Of Pregnant People, Margaret E. Johnson

All Faculty Scholarship

Pregnant and birthing people are inappropriately criminalized. Such criminalization is for behavior during their pregnancy that would not otherwise be criminalized, including when there was no harm to the later born baby, and for birth outcomes like miscarriages and still births. Law supports criminalization in part because of the historic legal significance given to fetal “viability” as a demarcation between full personhood rights for pregnant people and the encroachment of fetal “personhood” on those rights. Focusing on Maryland’s new constitutional amendment for reproductive freedom, this essay examines how the new amendment offers promise in restoring the full personhood rights for …

The Relationship Between Musical Ability And Perceptual Skills For Speech Motor Learning In Young Adults, Emily Catmull

Theses and Dissertations

Speech motor learning is the multimodal process of acquiring speech sounds. Speech motor learning is trained through speech-language pathologist intervention in individuals across the lifespan. Previous research has explored which factors can influence speech motor learning, such as musical experience or training, which is the subject of this study. Sixty young adult participants (four male, 56 female) were recruited as part of a larger study that examined four possibly influential factors: bilingualism, phonetic knowledge, perceptual skills, and musical experience. Since the adult population has already acquired all the speech sounds in English, learning was measured using nonnative consonant clusters. Participants …

From Double Absence To Double Presence: Video-Selfie As Empowerment In A Multicultural Italian Classroom, Maria Ranieri, Ilaria Bucciarelli, Giulia Cuozzo

Journal of Media Literacy Education Pre-Prints

This paper examines the video-selfie as a tool for empowerment in multicultural secondary school classrooms. We draw on data from the European ICME project, focusing on a vocational secondary school in Italy, where 17 of 18 first-year students – approximately half of whom had migration backgrounds – produced short videos presenting themselves through personally meaningful objects. Students then participated in a structured reflection activity after watching each other's videos in class. We combine three theoretical frameworks: critical media literacy, identity and self-representation studies, and Mezirow's transformative learning theory. Our argument is that the video selfie empowers in multiple ways: it …

The Applicability Of A Scale On Self-Regulated Writing Strategies In English For High School Students, Teresa Angelina Kaluge, Sisilia Setiawati Halimi

Jurnal Pendidikan: Teori, Penelitian, dan Pengembangan

Writing appeared to be crucial in learning foreign languages. This study aimed at examining the applicability of a measure on self-regulated writing strategies in terms of its psychometric properties. The scale items were designed from theoretical foundations and previous relevant studies. Questionnaires were distributed online to high school students, collected and analyzed as many as 106. Correlation, confirmatory factor analyses, and calculating Cronbach’s alpha were carried out to make sure the applicability of the scale. The findings showed five main constructs to be applicable. They were self-initiating, planning, text-generating, revising, and acting on feedback.

Mapping Arabic Calligraphy Education Research Structure: A Bibliometric Analysis Between 2016 And 2021 Using Vosviewer, Nurul Murtadho, Mohammad Dawood

Jurnal Pendidikan: Teori, Penelitian, dan Pengembangan

The purpose of this study is to present a bibliometric analysis of Arabic calligraphy research from the Scopus database from 2016 to 2021. This study identified 43 English documents for further analysis based on the query used and the document screening stages. In this study, Vosviewer was used to visualize the data, and Harzing's Publish or Perish is used to harvest data, calculate metrics, and analyze citations. According to our findings, Arabic calligraphy research publications are increasing, with the peak occurring in 2019, including in terms of citations. The findings indicate that research in language and arts is closely related …

Hidden In Plain Sight: The Role Of Belonging In Shaping Pre-Service Teachers’ Motivations & Practices In A Paraprofessional-To-Teacher Pathway, Julie Sidarous Dr., Douglas Van Dyke Dr.

i.e.: inquiry in education

As school districts face persistent teacher shortages, paraprofessionals and school staff remain an untapped resource with immense potential. The purpose of this study was to explore the distinct benefits that school employees bring to the teaching profession when transitioning into roles as teachers of record. To deeply understand candidates' stories, this qualitative study employed Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) to examine how preservice teacher candidates make sense of their own lived experiences. The findings reveal five key advantages these transitioning educators provide: deep community connections, practical institutional knowledge, resilience in high-need schools, expertise supporting non-traditional learners, and a profound desire to …

Belonging As The Bedrock Of Learning, Gloria Mcdaniel-Hall, Nina Weisling

i.e.: inquiry in education

The reasons why we teach are intensely personal. We give our hearts and souls to “the work,” though it is so much more than work to us. It is a calling, felt deep in our souls, to correct wrongs, to bend the “arc of the moral universe” all the way to justice, to realize the dreams that have been deferred at best and stamped out and denied at worst. Because at the core of each day, we find humans, students, families, and colleagues who are inherently worthy of learning, loving, and living a fulfilling life. Yet, for far too many …