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Association Between Caregiver Status And Physical And Mental Health Among National Senior Games Athletes, Chibuzo Uchechukwu Victor Obasi

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

As the population ages, more people rely on informal caregivers, which puts many older adults at risk for health problems. Caregiving can be meaningful and strengthen family bonds, but it often leads to more psychological stress, especially for older adults who also have their own health concerns. Research shows that regular physical activity can help older adults build resilience and improve their mental well-being. Still, we know little about the health of older caregivers who stay very active. This study examines the health effects of caregiving among members of the National Senior Games Association (NSGA), a group of highly active …

Transition To Home Guideline For Patients With Diabetes, Kathleen R. Burgner

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Scholarly Projects

Background: Diabetes is a leading contributor to preventable hospital readmissions. These hospital readmissions often result from fragmented discharge planning, poor care coordination, and limited post-discharge support. At a 915-bed academic medical center in Southern California, the diabetes-related readmission rate was 13.3%, compared with 11.4% among patients without diabetes. This project aimed to develop an evidence-based Transition-to-Home (TTH) guideline for hospitalized patients with diabetes and evaluate the strength of its recommendations through multidisciplinary stakeholder review.

Methods: An evidence-based guideline development project was conducted over 8 weeks. A comprehensive literature search in CINAHL, MEDLINE, PubMed, and ScienceDirect identified current evidence on transitional …

Exploring How Yoga Affects Embodiment In Female Survivors Of Intimate Partner Violence: A Scoping Review, Kenzie R. Albers

Social Work Theses

Introduction: With violence against women continuing to rear its ugly head across the world, it remains imperative for helping professionals and researchers to continue advocating for survivors of intimate partner violence (IPV). Yoga shows promising results for people who have experienced trauma and have depressive or anxious symptoms. One area of research not explored is the effect of yoga on female IPV survivors’ feelings of self-embodiment and bodily autonomy.

Methodology: This scoping review was conducted based on the five-step framework created by Arksey and O’Malley. The guiding research question was: What does the current literature suggest about the effects of …

Creativity Through Thought Exercises: Developing A Personal Heuristic For Choreographic Decision-Making, Jalisa R. Johnson

Dance (MFA) Theses

This thesis explores the development of a personal set of heuristics, or accessible thought tools, that can be used in choreographic or creative decision-making. Through an in-depth study of the visual art of Romare Bearden paired with an evaluation of patterns of the author’s personal history, three tools or “dials” emerge: derealization, contextuality and inversion. A close study of Bearden’s work demonstrates a pattern of repurposing and distorting ideas in ways consistent with the three dials. The author found similar patterns emerge in an excavation of her personal narrative, indicative of a cyclical and prophetic re-imagining of previous life experiences. …

Northeastern Illinois University, Academic Catalog 2026-2027, Northeastern Illinois University

Course Catalogs

No abstract provided.

The Role Of Ombudsman And Social Work Protecting Rights, Roni Alicia Werner

Selected Full-Text Master Theses Collection 2018-

This thesis examines the role of the Ombudsman as an independent and impartial mechanism for addressing complaints, resolving conflicts, and promoting accountability within organizations. It explores how ombudsmen function across institutional contexts—such as higher education, government, and corporate settings—to provide confidential, informal, and accessible pathways for dispute resolution.

The study analyzes key principles guiding Ombudsman practice, including neutrality, independence, confidentiality, and informality, and evaluates their effectiveness in fostering trust and organizational transparency. Through a review of relevant literature and case examples, the thesis highlights how Ombudsman offices contribute to early conflict resolution, reduce formal grievances, and support ethical decision-making.

Additionally, …

Building Mental Health Literacy: The Impact Of Youth Mental Health First Aid On Emerging Youth Professionals, Burgin Rome

2026 Research Poster Competition

Nearly half of individuals in the United States will experience a mental health disorder during their lifetime, with many symptoms first emerging in childhood or adolescence. Adolescence is a critical developmental period characterized by emotional, social, and psychological changes that increase vulnerability to mental health challenges. Although public awareness of mental health has grown, stigma and societal taboos continue to limit open dialogue and delay intervention. As a result, many young people experience a significant gap between the onset of symptoms and receipt of professional support, which can worsen mental health concerns and contribute to long-term consequences that persist into …

Connectedness And Help-Seeking Among Veterans: Integrating The Andersen Behavioral Model And The Three-Step Theory Of Suicide, Samuel Ochinang

Theses and Dissertations

Veteran suicide rates remain higher than those of nonveterans, yet many veterans who die by suicide are not engaged in care prior to death. Veteran help-seeking research often focuses on healthcare utilization, overlooking informal sources of support and the decision-making processes that precede service use. Connectedness is a central protective factor in suicide theory but has received limited attention within help-seeking models. This study examined how connectedness influences veterans’ willingness to seek help. Guided by the Andersen Behavioral Model and the Three-Step Theory of Suicide, this secondary analysis used data from the Military Health and Well-Being Project. The analytic sample …

Family- And Cultural-Level Influences For Latine Adolescent Nicotine Use: A Qualitative Study Informing Prevention, Cindy M. Hernandez Castro

Theses and Dissertations

Early tobacco use among Latine adolescents represents a critical public health concern, with 23.8% reporting current use and exceeding rates among other racial/ethnic groups (Birdsey et al., 2023; Gaddy et al., 2022). This early initiation elevates risks for nicotine dependence and related morbidity in adulthood (Tsao et al., 2023). Guided by Structural Ecosystems Theory (Szapocznik & Coatsworth, 1999) and contemporary grounded theory analysis (Braun & Clarke, 2006; Charmaz, 2006; Noble & Mitchell, 2016), this study examined multilevel influences on nicotine-related attitudes among Latine youth, including: (1) familial factors (i.e., parental monitoring, caregiver-youth communication), (2) cultural dynamics (i.e., cultural values and …

Embodied, Relational, And Rooted: A Social Work Portfolio, Deneen Pancari

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

This portfolio reflects my professional and personal growth over the past three years of the University of Montana!s (UM!s) Online Master of Social Work (MSW) Program and showcases my understanding of advanced social work competencies (University of Montana School of Social Work, n.d.). My background includes yoga facilitation and preschool education, where I developed a strong appreciation for early childhood development and mindfulness. I never imagined how this path would lead me into clinical work in eating disorder recovery, adolescent therapy, and somatic-based interventions, which focus on the connection between the mind and body. My MSW coursework and practicum experiences …

Ryn's Portfolio, Ryn Briggs

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

No abstract provided.

Practicing From The Inside Out: A Portfolio Of Trauma-Informed And Spirit-Led Social Work, Cailey R. Denboer

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

This portfolio represents the integration of academic learning, practicum experience, and personal growth throughout my Master of Social Work education at the University of Montana. Grounded in empowerment theory, trauma-informed care, and anti-oppressive practice, this work reflects my commitment to ethical, culturally humble, and relational social work across individual, community, and organizational contexts. Drawing from coursework and practicum experiences, I highlight the development of core competencies through applied work.

A central theme of this portfolio is the ongoing process of self-reflection and humility, particularly in recognizing areas of growth and navigating the tensions between personal values, professional responsibilities, and systemic …

Socialization Interventions For Older Adults In Assisted Living Facilities: A Systematic Review, Anoop S. Muvva

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Older adults, defined as individuals over the age of 65, are a growing population in the United States, with projections estimating this group will reach approximately 80 million persons by 2050. Over 90% of older adults are diagnosed with a chronic condition, which can make it difficult to carry out the activities of daily living. As a result, some older adults reside in assisted living facilities, where dedicated staff provide daily support. However, issues in the delivery of care within these settings, including unmet socialization needs and complications among care staff, may contribute to social isolation. Programs designed to address …

Examining The Barriers To Healthcare Among Native Hawaiian And Pacific Islander Populations Living In Hawaii, Gracie L. Kaye

Honors Undergraduate Theses

The state of Hawaii was annexed by the United States in 1898, and served as a starting point from which the U.S. influenced Hawaii's socioeconomic conditions and healthcare access. The literature review examines healthcare views and outcomes among Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander residents, utilizing various tools and resources to investigate how these factors have impacted overall health statistics and the reasons behind these trends. Results found that the western colonization of the island and the disease outbreaks led to an initial mistrust of “western ideas.” Additionally, due to long-standing cultural beliefs, there is a natural preference for traditional cultural …

The Knowledge, Experiences, And Attitudes Of Nurses Regarding Trauma-Informed Care For Sexually Abused Intrapartum Patients, Kayleigh Mcgraw

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Labor and delivery nurses care for women from diverse backgrounds who are preparing for a life-changing event, often marked by fear, excitement, sadness, and joy. However, 1 in 5 women in the United States have experienced rape or attempted rape, and for these survivors, labor can become re-traumatizing. Many report flashbacks, dissociation, and a sense of “being back in the rape” during childbirth. Research further links prior sexual assault to unplanned cesareans, traumatic births, and childbirth-related PTSD. Trauma-informed care (TIC) provides a framework to reduce these risks by encouraging providers to understand trauma, recognize signs of distress, and act to …

The Psychological Effect Of Maternal Separation From A Child During Incarceration: A Survey And Critique Of Risk Needs Assessments, Samantha Yearwood

Honors Undergraduate Theses

This study examines whether frequently used correctional assessment instruments adequately capture the psychological impacts of maternal-child separation among incarcerated women. This research was conducted in response to growing criticisms that traditional risk and needs assessments fail to account for gender-specific experiences, specifically those related to caregiving roles and pregnancy. Using a qualitative analysis content analysis to assess four widely used instruments, the Women’s Risk and Needs Assessment (WRNA), Correctional Offender Management Profiling for Alternative Sanctions (COMPAS), Brief Symptom Inventory-18 (BSI-18), and Level of Service Inventory–Revised (LSI-R), the thesis  examines the inclusion of pregnancy-related variables, caregiving responsibilities, and separation-related psychological factors. …

Oral Health Access Among Ethnic Minority Older Adults In The United States, Jasleen K. Sodhi

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Oral healthcare is a critical yet often overlooked component of overall health among U.S. adults. Ethnic minorities for older adults face heightened risks of poor oral health and related health conditions, while experiencing disparities in access to care. This study aimed to systematically examine and synthesize existing literature to assess the extent to which oral health disparities exist among ethnic minority older adults in the U.S. and explore the roles of socioeconomic factors on these disparities. Guided by the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) framework, we conducted a systematic review of peer-reviewed articles published in English …

Risk And Protective Factors Of South Asian American Youth Mental Health, Jasmine Kaur

Honors Undergraduate Theses

South Asian American youth represent a rapidly growing yet understudied population in United States mental health research. Much of the existing literature aggregates diverse Asian American subgroups, obscuring the unique sociocultural experiences of South Asian adolescents and young adults. This thesis examines the risk and protective factors influencing the mental health of South Asian American youth aged 15–25. A systematic review of peer-reviewed literature was conducted using the databases Web of Science, MEDLINE, PsycINFO, and CINAHL Plus with Full Text. Search terms included culturally specific identifiers, migration-related terminology, youth demographic terms, and mental health outcomes. After removing duplicates and applying …

Exploring The Link Between Hospice Setting And Caregiver-Reported Quality Scores, Aidan J. John

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Access to high quality hospice care largely varies across different care environments and regions within the United States. This can shape the experiences of family caregivers who support patients at the end of life. As hospice enrollment expands nationwide, understanding how care delivery changes between home-based services and more skilled inpatient and outpatient services has become integral for examining overall performance.  There are many noticeable differences in provider availability and resources between different programs that can influence the level of support families receive, including timeliness of symptom management and effectiveness of communication with hospice staff. This study evaluated whether hospice …

Being-Online: Towards A Phenomenological Account Of Virtual Place And Narrative Selfhood, Ben Runey

Honors Undergraduate Theses

The intent of this thesis is to explore and explicate a phenomenology of virtual place by investigating how environments motivated by computers and smart devices appear within lived experience as well as how these virtual places found and mediate interpretative narratives of self-identity. Many individuals today spend vast portions of their waking hours concerned with or engaged within virtual domains. While contemporary scientific research aims to uncover the effects of this on human psychology, physiology, and social structures, phenomenology must be utilized to reveal the existential, lived dimensions of virtual places. This investigation will be founded upon, but not limited …

Report On The 2025-26 Survey Of Applied Legal Education, David A. Santacroce, Robert R. Kuehn, June T. Tai, Sarah Boonin

Other Publications

This report summarizes the results of the Center for the Study of Applied Legal Education’s (CSALE) 2025-26 Survey of Applied Legal Education. The 2025-26 CSALE Survey is CSALE’s seventh triennial survey of law clinic and field placement (i.e., externship) courses and educators. The results provide insight into the state of experiential legal education in areas like program design, capacity, administration, funding, and pedagogy, and the role of clinic and field placement educators in the legal academy. Law schools, legal educators, scholars, and oversight agencies rely on CSALE’s data. The 2025-26 CSALE Survey is composed of two parts. A Survey of …

Blunt Relief: Cannabis Use As Coping Mechanism For Undergraduate Students With Adverse Healthcare Experiences, Isabella Marie Cafini

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

Negative experiences within the healthcare system can shape how individuals cope with psychological distress, particularly in young adult populations. Coping-motive frameworks suggest that when trust in formal support systems erodes, such as after an adverse healthcare experience, individuals may self-medicate with substances rather than risk another unsupportive interaction. This present study examined how negative experiences within the mental healthcare system influence help-seeking attitudes and cannabis use among college students. We hypothesized that (1) individuals with lower utilization of mental health resources will have higher cannabis use compared to those with higher utilization of mental health resources, and (2) greater amounts …

Improving Healthcare Professionals’ Comfort Level Screening For Intimate Partner Violence, Madison M. Mitzel

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Practice Innovation Projects

Background: Pregnancy increases a woman’s risk of experiencing intimate partner violence (IPV). Although healthcare visits typically increase during pregnancy, IPV screening is often overlooked, and many women remain unaware of available domestic violence resources. 
Local problem: Globally, women are impacted by IPV, with those living in rural areas facing a higher risk. 
Methods: The Abuse Assessment Screen (AAS) was implemented in a rural women’s health facility to screen patients for IPV. Prior to implementation, healthcare professionals within the facility received education regarding the screening protocol and available resources for patients. 
Interventions: The comfort level of the healthcare professionals discussing IPV …

From Needs To Action: Designing Inclusive Writing Workshops For Academics, S. Alison Bolling, Julie Hicks Patrick

2026 Scholarly Teaching Conference: Poster Session Papers

Being productive in academic writing is a critical component of success for graduate students and faculty, yet many scholars report persistent barriers that interfere with successful writing (Kaslow et al., 2025, Sweet et al., 2017). Few faculty and graduate students receive formal training on the art of writing and those who have attended writing programs vary in success (Dankoski et al., 2012). The present study reports results from multiple institutions to inform workshops on writing needs of graduate students, faculty, and postdoctoral scholars.

Data was collected online through a Qualtrics survey distributed by WVU listserv. Participants (N = 26) included …

Ai-Resistant Activities For Online And Large Enrollment Courses, Jason Bock, Eric Lemley

2026 Scholarly Teaching Conference: Concurrent Session Papers

The rapid adoption of generative AI tools has fundamentally challenged traditional assessments in higher education, particularly in large-enrollment and fully asynchronous online courses where instructor presence and grading time are constrained. While many instructors have responded by restricting AI use or adopting detection tools, research increasingly shows that detection-based approaches are unreliable and labor-intensive. We propose a design-centered alternative: reshaping assessments so that AI use becomes insufficient, rather than prohibited.

Drawing on a systematic process of testing proposed and original assessment ideas directly against multiple generative AI models (using both simple and advanced prompting strategies), we present a curated playbook …

Preserve Democracy By Teaching Social Action, Cheyenne C. Luzynski

2026 Scholarly Teaching Conference: Concurrent Session Papers

This presentation introduces social action pedagogy aimed to empower students to lead campaigns on pressing social issues and strengthen their participation in democracy. Teaching social action has enhanced the knowledge, practice, and skills of leadership and civic engagement. America’s Promise Alliance conducted a research study on the state of young people in 2024 and found that young people have low trust in American institutions and adults and feel negatively affected by the current social and political climate (Flanagan et al., 2025). The report also found that young people want access to civic education and engagement opportunities to correct inequalities and …

From Prompt To Practice: Designing Custom Ai Bots For Interpersonal Skill Development, Alaina Michelle Schrader

2026 Scholarly Teaching Conference: Concurrent Session Papers

Developing strong interpersonal, leadership, and professional communication skills is foundational in counselor and education preparation programs (Fecke et al., 2023; Lateef, 2010; Stamer et al., 2023). Despite this reality, students often have limited opportunities for repeated, low-stakes practice before engaging with real clients, students, families, administrators, and other stakeholders (Lateef, 2010; Maurya, 2024; Stamer et al., 2023). This session describes a teaching practice that uses custom AI bots as simulated clients, parents, group members, and school administrators to create realistic, structured practice environments where students can rehearse counseling skills, consultation conversations, advocacy, boundary-setting, and professional decision-making without the pressure or …

The Association Between Naloxone Distribution, Buprenorphine Treatment And Retention And Incident High-Risk Opioid Prescribing With Opioid Overdose Death In Kentucky, Massachusetts, New York And Ohio, United States, Alexander Y. Walley, Debbie M. Cheng, Nathan Vandergrift, Marc Larochelle, Ja Nae Holloway, Jennifer L. Brown, Redonna Chandler, Laura C. Fanucchi, Daniel J. Feaster, Patricia Freeman, Timothy Hunt, Michelle R. Lofwall, Hannah K. Knudsen, Edward V. Nunes, Emmanuel Oga, Douglas R. Oyler, Jeffrey H. Samet, Jennifer Villani, Sharon Walsh, T. John Winhusen

Psychiatry Faculty Publications

Aim: We evaluated whether community-level naloxone distribution, medication for opioid use disorder treatment and retention and incident high-risk opioid prescribing rates were associated with opioid overdose death rates. Design: Observational cohort conducted using 2019 to 2023 community-level data as an exploratory analysis of the HEALing (Helping to End Addiction Long-term®) Communities Study (HCS). Exposures included: (1) community-level naloxone distribution, past 12-months, categorized as ≤1000 units per 100 000 population vs. 1001–3000 units per 100 000 population vs. >3000 units per 100 000 population; (2) individuals treated with buprenorphine per 100 000 adult population in the current quarter; (3) individuals retained …

Guidebook For Artificial Intelligence Integration Into The University Environment, Mark J. Uline, Tarek Shazly, Grace Cosby

Reports

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is not a peripheral or speculative technology in the university setting, it is rather a rapidly evolving transformational force that will reshape research, teaching, and administrative operations. Recent systematic reviews conclude that generative AI tools are already being widely used by students and instructors and can positively affect learning outcomes and academic performance when thoughtfully integrated into instruction (Hon, 2025; Qian, 2025).

At the same time, case studies warn that unmanaged or poorly governed AI use can undermine academic integrity, exacerbate inequities, and create new institutional risks (Mangundu, 2025; Şen et al., 2026). AI adoption brings unparalleled …

Msw Portfolio, Ryan Stadheim

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

No abstract provided.