Digital Commons Network^™

Screening For Our Fathers: Representations Of Native American Masculinity In American Film, Jeromy Duane Miller

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In this work, I examine representation of Native American masculinity in the American film industry. The American film industry began just over a century ago, and one of its earliest subjects was the Native American. Throughout its history, the American film industry has maintained a steady trajectory of exploitation and erasure of Native American men and their subsequent masculine qualities. While there are notable historical outliers and critical exceptions in the 21st century, Native American men in film have been continually reduced to corpses, devoid of significant social presence, and denied meaningful explorations of their sexuality and interpersonal identity. The …

An Examination Of The Relationship Between Institutional Financial Aid Programs And Four-Year Graduation Rates, Dawn Herrod

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

Institutions are increasingly searching for strategies for using institutional financial aid awards to improve graduation in four years. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between institutional award programs with graduation in four years. Furthermore, there was investigation into any interaction that existed between ethnicity, Expected Family Contribution (EFC), and the type of award on graduation in four years. Covariates were tested from a theoretical framework that included elements from sociological and economic theories, academic components, and the concept of liquidity constraints. Data was queried from the student information system at the selected site for students who …

Bringing Instagram Posts Into Being: A Study Of Fyc Students' Self-Sponsored Posting Practices And Transfer Opportunities, Jessica Kester

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

Social media platforms have offered students—and all of us—more opportunities for self-sponsored writing. In response to calls from researchers to explore students' 21st-century writing practices and their relevance to college writing instruction, this dissertation articulated and applied a feminist teacher research methodology and a mixed-methods research design to explore first-year composition (FYC) students' self-sponsored writing practices, attitudes, and transfer opportunities on a popular, albeit under-examined, social media application: Instagram. This study found that students have developed elaborate, rhetorical, multimodal composing processes that include planning, drafting, evaluating, selecting, and styling images as well as planning, drafting/revising, and styling captions. Additionally, though …

Effects Of Abstinence-Based Sexual Education Compared To Evidence-Based Sexual Education In K-12 Schools, Lily Probst

The Eleanor Mann School of Nursing Undergraduate Honors Theses

Background: Historically, sexual education in the United States has been abstinence-based (ABSE), meaning that sexual education is centered around encouraging adolescents to abstain from sexual activity outside of wedlock. On the other hand, evidence-based sexual education (EBSE) includes abstinence in its curriculum but does not emphasize it, instead highlighting contraception and prevention strategies. Additionally, EBSE teaches adolescents about healthy relationships, attitudes towards sexuality, gender roles, and provides resources for sexual and reproductive health services. Supplying adolescents in K-12 schools with access to evidence-based sexual education may not only decrease teen pregnancy rates and incidence of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) but …

Latin American Identities And The American Demonym, Maia S. Schofield

Undergraduate Distinction Papers

Current literature addresses the question of Latin American identity largely in terms of assimilation, language proficiency, generation of immigrant, and political participation, while the American demonym remains an understudied topic. ‘America’ has been popularized in its usage to refer only to the United States and ‘American’ to its nationals. Although Latin Americans are natives of the Americas, they are rarely considered ‘American’. This study examines factors that influence the identity of Latin Americans living in the United States and focuses primarily on the connection between identity and the understanding of ‘America’. To examine this relationship, a questionnaire, offered in Spanish …

Investigating Cultural Values And Educational Technology Adoption In Central Asia: A Case Study, Randall W. Gwin

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Although the adoption of new tools for communication and learning could reasonably be expected to influence culture, little is known about the relationship between cultural values and the adoption or diffusion of Web 2.0 technologies. This case study examines the way in which the cultural values of 59 teachers in four Central Asian countries influenced and were influenced by Web 2.0 technologies during five to eighteen months of online professional development. Data was collected through self-introductions, Likert-scale and open-ended prompts on initial and final surveys, online forum discussions, and capstone projects. This allows an examination of changes in the participants’ …

Influences On Student Choice And Voice: Agency, Engagement, And Equity, Theresa L. Reali

Dissertations

Students at a suburban high school in the American Mountain West have been separated by race, linguistic ability, and socio-economic status for decades, and the research posits that the ways in which students have moved in cohorts throughout past decades has largely determined their academic pathways in high school. The researcher studied eight student perceptions of variable, heterogeneous grouping and democratic pedagogical practices on academic achievement, feelings of self-agency, and engagement in sophomore English Language Arts; two regular placement (non-advanced) sub-groups of Anglo and Latino/a students were included as student participants. Students were interviewed and observed during group work with …

Relationships Between Working Class, First Generation College Students And Their Parent(S)/Guardian(S): A Phenomenological Study On The Impacts Of Middle Class Socialization, Lindsay Ellen Mason

Dissertations

This constructionist phenomenological dissertation study explored stories from nine working class, first generation college students, specifically how middle class socialization on a four year university campus located in the Mountain West region of the United States impacts the relationships with their parent(s)/guardian(s). My primary research question was: How does attending college at a 4 year public university influence first generation, working class students’ relationships with the ir parent(s)/guardian(s)? My sub research questions were: What role does middle class socialization that occurs on a 4 year public university campus play in impacting this relationship? And what role does online learning/remote learning …

The Complexities Of Conscience: Reconciling Death Penalty L Aw With Capital Jurors’ Concerns, Meredith Martin Rountree, Mary R. Rose

Buffalo Law Review

Jurors exercise unique legal power when they are asked to decide whether to sentence someone to death. The Supreme Court emphasizes the central role of the jury’s moral judgment in making this sentencing decision, noting that it is the jurors who are best able to “express the conscience of the community on the ultimate question of life or death.” Manylower courts nevertheless narrow the range of admissible evidence at the mitigation phase of a capital trial, insisting on a standard of legal relevance that interferes with the jury’s ability to exercise the very moral judgment the Supreme Court has deemed …

Funding Crises: An Empirical Study Of The Paycheck Protection Program, William A. Birdthistle, Joshua Silver

Buffalo Law Review

In the early weeks of the COVID-19 pandemic, the United States Congress funded the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) to address the devastating consequences of business closures and millions of employees losing both their jobs and healthcare coverage during a public health emergency. That program immediately pumped more than a half-trillion dollars of forgivable loans out to five million businesses. But criticism was swift and widespread, if sometimes spurious, with detractors attacking the award of loans to wealthy celebrities such as Kanye West, politically connected donors such as the Kushner family, and large corporations such as Shake Shack and Ruth’s Chris …

Mind Over Matter: How A Dancer’S Mind Affects The Physical Body, Kayla Johnson

Honors College Theses

This thesis is an exploration of how a dancer’s mind can affect its physical body. Undoubtedly, there is a strong connection in every human between their mind and their body, but for an artist whose entire career depends on the ability of their body to create movement, there must be extra emphasis placed on their mental health care. Dance is just as mentally demanding as it is physically. To begin this project I collected research articles relating to injury, anxiety, self-confidence, body image and eating disorders performed on dancers. I noticed throughout my research that there was a lack of …

The Impact Of Political Protests In Hong Kong On Consumerism, Katherine Kane

Honors College Theses

Hong Kong’s free economy has major influence in Asia and around the world. Because of the rising political tension between Hong Kong and Mainland China, the city’s economy is at risk. There has been a long history of political dissent in the city showing a growing disapproval of the Beijing government. The political and sociological impact of activism has been extensively discussed in the literature. However, few studies have statistically tested the economic implications of the protests. During the 2014 Umbrella Movement and the 2019-20 Extradition Bill Protests, the city’s retail and tourism sectors have seen significant disruptions. This may …

Book Review: Die Mehrdeutigkeit Geteilter Religiöse Orte: Eine Ethnografische Fallstudie Zum Kloster Sveti Naum In Ohrid (Mazedonien), Dejan Aždajić

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

A review of Evelyn Reuter, DieMehrdeutigkeit Geteilter Religiöse Orte: Eine Ethnografische Fallstudie zum Kloster Sveti Naum in Ohrid (Mazedonien). Bielefeld: Transcript Verlag, 2021, 410 pp. €45,00, ISBN 978-3-8376-5519-3.

Homeless Voices Across The Nation: How Government Assistance Is Perceived To Support The Homeless Community, Chelsea Helena-Marie Nelson

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Abstract

Six subtopics are found throughout homeless-related literature including definitions of homelessness, mental health, substance abuse, policy, housing models, and COVID-19. Through conduction of 323 homeless lived experience surveys across 15 diverse cities in the United States, this research has found assumptions and conclusions between firsthand perspective and literature’s subtopics. A major gap in literature exists with the inclusion of lived experience, as this was routinely an emphasized response from the homeless population themselves. Alternate needs and solutions were proposed from the participants, which found general similarities to the subtopics and included significance of perceived apathy from politicians towards the …

Age And Roles On The Family Farm, Cassie Chambers

Humboldt Journal of Social Relations

Age is a factor that has been analyzed in the workforce for quite some time now. The aging process is universal and found in daily lives throughout the work force or labor market, but some factors of age are different in the agriculture industry. This paper aims to acknowledge and explore the aging process specifically found in the agriculture industry. The key concepts of this paper have been broken into four different topics. These topics include youth roles on the farm, mid-adult roles on the farm, older adult roles on the farm, and public policy implications dealing with the agriculture …

The Implementation Of Tribal Provisions From The Vawa 2013 Reauthorization, Deejay E. Chino

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Recent changes in VAWA allows tribes – for the first time – to prosecute non-Indians for intimate partner violence. In order to do so, however, tribes have to first meet specific federal mandates. Implementation of federal regulatory policy by American Indian tribes is a dynamic and complex process but there is a dearth of information on the challenges tribes face or on factors that would facilitate successful implementation at the tribal level. This legislation has filled a serious gap in tribal jurisprudence but not all tribes are able to meet requirements, which include having specific legal codes and justice resources. …

The Experience Of Self-Coherence: Self-Coherence As The Hub Of All Needs, April Ursula Fox

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Self-coherence as the hub of all needs is a novel proposition made by Carol Dweck (2017), and not yet further explored. While supporting self-coherence with a comprehensive review of its presence within behavioral sciences, Dweck does not dive deeper into it, and offers an invitation for further research of its workings. In this study I respond to that invitation. I design a continuation to her theory. I also expand her theory to include what I have found to be missing, but essential, additional components that cannot be ignored within the context of self-coherence as a master sensor of needs. Finally, …

Constructing The Perfect Girlfriend: Gender, Class, Race, & Performativity Of Paid Intimacy In Nevada Brothels, Christina Parreira

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

While most research on commodified intimacy, especially in the sex industry, has explored gender dynamics, sex work researchers are beginning to also explore intersectional dynamics in the industry. But little research has examined whether or how workers may navigate these dynamics differently through the ways in which they understand and perform service labor. Much research has explored commodified intimacy in different settings, but very little attention has been paid to the different ways that workers in the same setting perform intimacy. In this dissertation I ask how do different performances of intimate service in the brothels- the girlfriend experience (GFE) …

Feasibility And Efficacy Of Virtual Darkness In Reducing Intra-Individual Sleep Variability Among Young Adults With Insomnia, Samantha Nicole Sherwood

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

BackgroundInsomnia impacts 30% of people and is associated with increased risk for medical and psychiatric illness. However, pharmacological treatments for sleep yield mixed results and often result in undesirable side effects indicating a need for novel insomnia interventions. Sleep patterns also demonstrate high intra-individual variability which may be associated with greater daytime impairment, and sleep-wake cycles are strongly affected by the timing of exposure to blue-green wavelength light. Virtual darkness, a novel intervention, blocks blue wavelength light from reaching the eye to simulate actual darkness on retinal cells sensitive to light. Therefore, the purpose of the current study is to …

Hybridity, Ecocriticism, And Feminist Perspectives In She-Ra And The Princesses Of Power, Sarah Warso

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Children’s cartoons are growing increasingly nuanced in the twenty-first century. She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018) is an animated television series targeted towards young girls that includes themes of ecocriticism and feminism. The show does this by introducing cyborg, or hybrid, characters. My research explores how cyborg identities in children’s media and their feminist, ecocritical meanings in She-Ra and the Princesses of Power. The cyborg, as a feminist mythic hero, breaks down binaries and recodes communication between opposing forces. The She-Ra is filled with characters that inhabit multiple identities. The main character, Adora, identifies as both a former Evil …

International Relations And Tourism: Geopolitical Tension In China-United States Relations And Implications In Tourism Development, Le Shen

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

"Black cat or white cat, if it can catch mice, it's a good cat." As China's then Chief Secretary, and later the nation's "Paramount Leader" Deng Xiaoping made this now-famous metaphor in the 1960s for a planned economy versus that of a market economy (Zheng & Sun, 2018), little did anyone at the time anticipated the sheer level of influence this populous yet impoverished nation would have on the world's geopolitical and economic scene in the coming decades. Indeed, through a combination of economic reforms, diplomatic engagement, and political reorganization, the People's Republic of China rapidly elevated its international positioning …

Wood City: Timberizing The City’S Building Blocks, Stephen Luoni

Community Design Center Faculty Publications and Presentations

"Wood City" applies mass timber engineering to the 19 building categories that essentially shape our built environments, otherwise financialized as real estate products by Wall Street. Suburban offices, fast-food restaurants, metal warehouses, big-box grocers, garden apartments, single-family houses, hotels, self-storage facilities, assisted living facilities, strip-shopping centers, etc. constitute 75% of the built environment. Given that the US will double its built environment in just one generation coupled with the urgency to develop low-carbon futures, what if cities were built from the only construction system sequestering carbon and engineered to be “energy positive” – wood? Real estate value chains are undergoing …

Cultural Impact On Identity And How It Is Expressed Through Dress, Jenifer Thao

Apparel Merchandising and Product Development Undergraduate Honors Theses

This study examined how students at the undergraduate and graduate levels at the University of Arkansas incorporate their cultural background into their clothing as a form of self-expression. The study included an online survey platform, Qualtrics, created with a series of Likert-type and open-ended response questions to gather data regarding student opinions on clothing impacts. Results indicated that there were no significant associations when it comes to cultural influences on identity and how it is expressed through dress.

‘Papers, Please’ – Using A Video Game To Explore Experiential Learning And Authentic Assessment In Immigration And Asylum Law, Gene Carolan

Irish Journal of Academic Practice

This paper presents a case-study of the author’s efforts to align Lucas Pope’s 2013 video game, ‘Papers, Please,’ with teaching, learning, and assessment strategy on the Immigration, Refugee & Citizenship Law module at TU Dublin. The author secured funding from TU Dublin IMPACT to purchase the game for the 37 students enrolled on the module in the 2020-2021 academic year. Students played the game over a five-week period, during which time they submitted reflective blog posts on their experience of the game. A more substantive written assignment followed thereafter, in which students elaborated upon their reflections with reference to the …

Introduction: Critical Perspectives On Global Partnerships In Higher Education: Strategies For Inclusion, Social Impact, And Effectiveness

Journal of Comparative & International Higher Education

No abstract provided.

Book Review Van Der Wende, M., Kirby, W.C., Liu, N.C., & Marginson, S. (Eds.). China And Europe On The New Silk Road: Connecting Universities Across Eurasia. Oxford University Press, 2020

Journal of Comparative & International Higher Education

No abstract provided.

Experimental Investigation Of The Aerodynamics Of A Large Industrial Building With Parapet, Aly Mousaad Aly, Matthew Thomas, Hamzeh Gol-Zaroudi

Faculty Publications

The aerodynamic performance of a roof depends significantly on its shape and size, among other factors. For instance, large roofs of industrial low-rise buildings may behave differently compared to those of residential homes. The main objective of this study is to experimentally investigate how perimeter solid parapets can alter the flow pattern around a low-rise building with a large aspect ratio of width/height of about 7.6, the case of industrial buildings/shopping centers. Solid parapets of varied sizes are added to the roof and tested in an open-jet simulator in a comparative study to understand their impact on roof pressure coefficients. …

Front Matter, Michigan Journal Of Environmental & Administrative Law

Michigan Journal of Environmental & Administrative Law

Front Matter for Volume 10, Issue 2 of Michigan Journal of Environmental & Administrative Law

Assessing The Impact Of Covid-19 Restrictions On The Perinatal Experience In Mississippi, Baylee Grimsley

Honors Theses

The purpose of this study is to assess how COVID-19 restrictions affected the perinatal experience of women in Mississippi. A flyer detailing the purpose and inclusion criteria of the study was sent via social media platforms. Five postpartum women from the Hattiesburg, Mississippi area participated in this study. Eight open-ended questions were asked in an interview format, and a seven-question demographic survey was given to each participant at the conclusion of the interview. Five restrictions related to COVID-19 were identified: visitor restrictions in the hospital, mask requirements in healthcare facilities, screening of patients upon admission to the Labor and Delivery …

Touching Sound: Passion And Global Politics, Maria Frederika Malmström, Mark Levine

Abdou Filali-Ansary Occasional Paper Series

How does sound shape and/or constrain the actions of individuals and groups? In what ways does 'touching sound' constitute important stimuli within everyday experiences and how/why does sound induce strong affective states? How does listening to noise as well as to silences, screeches and songs, clicks and pops, affect us? By focusing on the under-studied realm of sound we increase our understanding of the politics of the sonic. This text opens an interdisciplinary conduit that should enable cross-fertilizations between the disciplines of anthropology, ethnomusicology, history, cultural studies, religious studies and political sociology, bringing together studies of aesthetic production, the …