Digital Commons Network^™

Psychosocial Characteristics Of North American Male Cannibals, Sheila A. Murphy

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Criminal cannibalism is a rare form of violent offending that remains understudied despite public attention. This gap limits understanding of the psychosocial characteristics and life experiences of individuals who engage in cannibalistic behavior. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore psychosocial characteristics within the life experiences of North American males who engaged in cannibalistic behavior and identify common themes. Grounded in social control theory and self-control theory, the study examined how weakened social bonds and diminished self-regulation may relate to extreme deviance. The guiding research question focused on identifying common psychosocial characteristics within this population. A descriptive phenomenological …

Psychometric Properties Of A Newly Developed Self-Report Scale To Determine The Relationship Between Retained Primary Reflexes And Behavioral Signs And Symptoms In An Adult Population, Joan Marie Macmillan

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Many adults suffer from mental health issues, often caused by retained primary reflexes. There are current gaps in the literature surrounding primary reflex assessment methods. The purpose of this quantitative psychometric study was to evaluate the psychometric properties of a new behavioral self-assessment scale used to identify retained primary reflexes from behavioral indicators, while also determining if statistically significant relationships exist among study variables. The theoretical foundation for this cross-sectional study was based on the neurodevelopmental and neurobehavioral work of Melillo, while conceptually benefiting from several neuroplasticity related frameworks, such as those developed by Ayres, Bach-y-Rita, and Masgutova. The self-report …

Shift Work And Shift Change And Police Officers’ Subjective Well-Being, Macey Silano

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This phenomenological study explored the lived experiences of police officers working second and third shifts and how these schedules impacted their subjective well-being, mental health, relationships, and life satisfaction. This study addressed an important research problem because limited research has examined how night shifts and shift changes impact police officers’ well-being. The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine how police officers experienced shift work and shift changes while working second and third shifts and how they made meaning of these experiences in relation to subjective well-being. Using interpretative phenomenological analysis, this study was grounded in restorative rest and …

Using Geospatial Environmental And Income Variables As Predictors Of Diabetes In Appalachia, John Kunicki Huth

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Diabetes remains disproportionately prevalent in Appalachia, and macroenvironmental contributors remain poorly understood. Guided by spatial epidemiology, this quantitative, cross-sectional ecological study examined whether county-level environmental factors including distance to mine, distance to landfill, distance to water, mean annual precipitation, mean annual temperature, forest classification, distance to impervious surface, and median income were independently and collectively associated with diabetes cases per capita in West Virginia, used as a surrogate for Appalachia. Research questions addressed environmental predictors of diabetes cases per capita with and without controlling for median income. Publicly available county-level data from 53 West Virginia counties representing adults aged 20 …

Teacher Voices In Ethnic Studies: Bridging Policy And Practice Through Educator Insights In California, Isiah Peter Iniguez

LMU Theses and Dissertations

This study explores ethnic studies teachers’ perceptions of implementing ethnic studies as a required course in California. This study used both critical pedagogy (Freire , 1970) and pedagogical content knowledge (PCK; Shulman, 1986) as theoretical frameworks. Through interviews with thirteen ethnic studies teachers across California, this research uncovered the pedagogical demands, implementation challenges, and transformative potential of ethnic studies education. The findings illuminated a fundamental tension between ethnic studies’ community-centered nature and pressures toward standardization. Teachers emphasized that ethnic studies had to be rooted in community, describing powerful outcomes when the curriculum reflected students’ identities, local histories, and lived experiences. …

Spartan Daily, April 21, 2026, San Jose State University, School Of Journalism And Mass Communications

Spartan Daily, 2026

Volume 166, Issue 35

What's The Scoop On Life In New Hampshire? Youth Perspectives On New Hampshire As A Place To Live, Learn, And Work After High School, Elliot Ng, Jayson Seaman, Cindy L. Hartman, Andrew D. Coppens, Kate Moscouver, Hannah Falcone

Carsey Publications

To support its long-term economic vitality, New Hampshire must cultivate and retain its young talent. This brief analyzes the perspectives of New Hampshire youth and proposes actionable strategies that encourage them to build their futures in the state. While a majority of New Hampshire youth leave the state after high school, retention opportunities lie in leveraging what youth already love about the Granite State: Its natural environment, abundant outdoor amenities, and safe communities. By leveraging these assets and complementary policies such as expanding career-connected learning, promoting the abundance of in-state opportunities, and developing centralized social spaces, New Hampshire can create …

Defenders Assemble: A Blueprint For Building Antiracist Public Defender Offices, Ieshaah Murphy

Seton Hall Law Review

No abstract provided.

Bail, Detention, And The Nature Of The Offense, Anna Vancleave

Seton Hall Law Review

No abstract provided.

Board Of Officers - Vol. 56, No. 4 2026

Seton Hall Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Roots Of Reasoning: An Analysis Of Irac’S Reductive Framework And The Restoration Of The Rhetorical Foundation, Leslie Patrice Culver

Seton Hall Law Review

No abstract provided.

Look To The Children: How New Jersey's Anti-Bullying Bill Of Rights Can Provide A Framework For Workplace Bullying, Bridget Knodel

Seton Hall Law Review

No abstract provided.

Perceived Inadequate Neighborhood Food Shopping And Cardiovascular Disease Risk: The Multi-Ethnic Study Of Atherosclerosis, Amier Haidar, Ghadi Ghanem, Rishi Rikhi, Karol E Watson, Shreela V Sharma, Michael D Shapiro

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background: Individuals with access to healthy food have healthier diets, improved cardiometabolic risk profiles, and decreased cardiovascular disease (CVD). However, previous studies have focused on the neighborhood food environment as distance to and density of food retailers. Our study examines the association between an individual's perceived adequacy of neighborhood food shopping and incident CVD.

Methods: We analyzed data from 6814 participants in the MESA (Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis), a prospective cohort study of individuals aged 45 to 84 who were enrolled in the study between 2000 and 2002 and followed longitudinally. Cox proportional hazards models estimated hazard ratios (HRs) for …

The Impact Of Cannabis Use On Pulmonary Function Among Young Adults: A Literature Review, Ava Petersen

Honors Theses

Cannabis is the most used illicit drug among young adults and many of these users perceive cannabis as harmless and do not believe the drug to be addictive. Cannabis is derived from the flower of the hemp plant and contains cannabinoids THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) and CBD (cannabidiol). THC is the psychoactive component that interacts with the endocannabinoid system to produce a coveted euphoric state among users. Cannabis can be consumed in an edible or combusted and inhaled via joint, pipe, bong, etc. The purpose of this review is to examine the effects of inhaled cannabis on pulmonary function with a specific …

The Artificial Maintenance Of Relationship Satisfaction: Romantic Ai Companion Usage Sustains Emerging Adults' Human Romantic Relationship Satisfaction While Eroding Relationship Stability, Rebekah M. Hakala

Theses and Dissertations

As artificial intelligence becomes increasingly sophisticated, romantic AI companions--AI systems designed to simulate romantic, emotional, or sexual relationships--have emerged as a novel relational phenomenon. Nearly one in four emerging adults now engage with romantic AI companions, yet little is known about how this usage affects their romantic human relationships. Drawing on Social Exchange Theory and the Investment Model of Commitment, and employing structural equation modeling, this thesis uses data from 2,431 emerging adults in romantic relationships to examine whether romantic AI companion usage influences relationship satisfaction and relationship stability among emerging adults in the United States (ages 18-30), and whether …

Courts Deliver Two Trans Rights Victories — Sort Of — From Out West, Arthur S. Leonard

Other Publications

No abstract provided.

Usa V. James Abrams

2026 Decisions

USDC for the Middle District of Pennsylvania

Resuscitating Old Methods: How Executions By Nitrogen Hypoxia Violate The Eighth Amendment, Hannah Caldwell

Seton Hall Law Review

No abstract provided.

Historical Claims And Environmental Harms: How Historical Analogues Can Be Utilized To Show Injury-In-Fact In Environmental Cases, Julia Landi

Seton Hall Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Myth Of Homespun, Valeria Delaportilla

Undergraduate Scholarly Works

In this work, delaPortilla analyzes the Homespun Movement, a boycott largely led by women during the American Revolution that encouraged the use of homespun fabrics to avoid purchasing fabrics from Europe. DelaPortilla argues that the homespun movement was not as widespread as existing historiography allows us to believe and explains that the movement was largely limited to people of means who could afford to commit to a fully homespun lifestyle. DelaPortilla further argues that the forceful application of the homespun movement in New England largely contributed to the mass criticism and in some occasions abuse of women.

Florida Police Officers’ Reflections On Faith And Spirituality Through Lived Experiences, Steven Vose Mcgillicuddy

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This qualitative phenomenological study examined how Florida police officers perceived changes in their spiritual and religious beliefs following prolonged exposure to critical incidents. The research question asked how officers interpreted, adapted, and transformed their spiritual or religious beliefs in response to repeated critical incident exposure. Nine sworn frontline officers participated and were interviewed using a semi structured protocol. Transcripts were analyzed inductively using thematic analysis. Three primary findings emerged: (1) Career and Impact captured cumulative occupational exposure that prompted moral appraisal and coping, and participants did not report uniform loss of faith; (2) Spiritual Belief followed three common trajectories—stability, strengthening/reaffirmation, …

Exploring Leadership Barriers To Patient Experience Improvement In The Acute Care Hospital Setting, James Scott Cooper

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Resistance to patient experience initiatives remains a persistent challenge in acute care hospitals, often undermining organizational efforts to improve engagement, culture, and care delivery despite broad acknowledgment of their importance. Healthcare leaders need to understand this challenge as a primary indicator affecting patient experience outcomes. The purpose of this qualitative narrative inquiry was to explore the factors that cause resistance to change faced by patient experience leaders (PELs) in the acute care hospital setting. The theory of planned behavior grounded this study. The participants consisted of 15 PELs working in acute care hospitals across the United States. Data were collected …

Teachers’ Perceptions Of Preventing Teacher-Directed Violence In Urban Title I Schools, Allison Mashburn

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The problem that was investigated through this study was the increase in suspensions for teacher-directed violence at two urban mid-Atlantic Title I elementary schools. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore elementary teachers’ perceptions of preventing and managing teacher-directed violence in two Title I mid-Atlantic schools. Bronfenbrenner’s ecological framework was used as the foundation for environmental explanations. For this basic qualitative design, semistructured interviews with 10 teacher participants were conducted. The thematic analysis resulted in three themes based on the teacher request for (a) classroom management resources and supports, (b) clarifying the code of conduct, and (c) improving …

Exploring The Role Of Family Engagement In Youth Behavioral Health Programs, Jordon R. Washington-Trahan

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The behavioral health leaders at Organization X do not have a clear and practical way to engage family members in youth behavioral health programs. When caregivers are not actively involved in youth behavioral health treatment, youth may disengage from missed appointments and discontinue treatment prematurely. The present case study focused on Organization X, a small behavioral health organization located in the Southeastern United States. The Baldrige Framework of Excellence was the conceptual framework for this study, with a focus on consumer engagement and workforce operations. Semi structured and structured interviews were conducted with three behavioral health leaders. Data were collected …

April 21, 2026 Ereporter, University Of Alabama At Birmingham

eReporter (campus newsletter)

No abstract provided.

Journey Of Becoming: Risk And Self-Determination In The Story Of Self For Adults With Intellectual, Developmental, And Learning Disabilities A Phenomenological Case Study Employing Narrative Inquiry And Thematic Analysis, Christopher R. J. Worth

Dissertations

This phenomenological case study, employing narrative inquiry and thematic analysis, captured the first-person voice of emerging adults (ages 20–28) with intellectual, developmental, and learning disabilities to explore how experiences of risk and self-determination shaped their personal narratives, or story of self. Guided by Critical Disability Theory, Foucault’s concept of relational power, and Shogren’s Causal Agency Theory, the study challenged the systemic bubble-wrapping that denies this population the "dignity of risk" (Perske, 1972). Data were collected from six participants through semi-structured interviews, adapted photovoice submissions, and participant selfreflections. The findings revealed that the phenomenon of becoming, catalyzed by intellectual adaptive risk-taking, …

Patient Facing Physical Therapy Clinicians’ Experience Of Leader Development Across Their Professional Span: A Phenomenological Inquiry, Judith R. Gelber

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

While healthcare professions call for leadership among its practitioners as a key function of practice, hospital systems typically employ a top town leadership structure. In physical therapy, leadership is centered around managers and educators. This leaves a gap in understanding about leadership at the level of the patient facing clinician. This study explored the experience of leader development across the career span of experienced patient facing physical therapists in the United States. The study used a hermeneutic phenomenological approach undergirded with leader development, experiential learning, and distributed leadership theories. Participant recruitment focused on patient facing physical therapists with ten or …

Awareness, Protest, And Action: Women Science-Fiction Writers As Writer Activists, Carolyn Nolte

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Following the end of World War II, science-fiction literature, which was mostly dominated by white male writers, experienced an increase in stories written by women writers. Of these postwar stories written by women, the three women writers in this dissertation imagined how their present-day experiences informed the future by exploring their concerns about humanity’s collective trajectory. By analyzing how their stories dramatize possible future social, psychological, biological, and environmental harms, this dissertation argues that these women writers’ works distinguish them as writer-activists, a concept I borrow from Rob Nixon’s work Slow Violence and the Environmentalism of the Poor.

I …

Opportunistic Breast Cancer Detection With Photon-Counting Ct: A Quantitative Pilot Study Of Reconstruction-Dependent Image Quality, Graham Hannon

McKelvey School of Engineering Graduate Student Theses & Dissertations

Photon-counting computed tomography (PCCT) has emerged as a promising imaging modality with improved spatial resolution and contrast capabilities compared to conventional energy-integrating detector systems. These advantages present an opportunity for opportunistic detection of breast cancer in routine thoracic CT scans that include breast tissue. In this pilot study, we evaluated the feasibility of opportunistic breast cancer detection using clinical PCCT data through quantitative image analysis. Two patients with confirmed breast malignancies and corresponding thoracic PCCT scans were retrospectively analyzed. Dedicated reconstructions were performed with varying convolution kernels, field-of-view sizes, and virtual monoenergetic spectra. Image quality was assessed using signal-to-noise ratio …

Three Papers On The Impacts Of Electoral Rules On The Behavior Of Politicians, Jordon Tyler Newton

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation is composed of three papers that examine the ways that electoral rules may provide elites incentives that cut against citizen interests. In the first, titled ``Maybe Later: Term Limits and Strategy Behind Candidate Entry," I use the context of term limits to reexamine conditions for candidate entry. I argue they reduce the number of candidates who challenge incumbents, leading to a lock-in effect. By increasing the frequency of open races, term limits incentivize potential challengers to wait for an open race. To demonstrate this, I analyze primary data from 85 legislative chambers in 44 states over a two-decade …