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Explaining The Satisfaction Of The Religious Tourist: The Case Of Maimonides In The City Of Cordoba, César Mora Márquez, Angelo Puccia

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

Tourism was one of the most severely affected sectors by the Covid-19 pandemic. Even religious tourism, traditionally less susceptible to market fluctuations, is now compelled to adopt innovative strategies in response to these effects. This article analyses the satisfaction of religious tourism, specifically its relationship with the figure of Maimonides, who is considered to be an important religious thinker and is included within the Pantheon database of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). A questionnaire was distributed and completed by 720 tourists in the city of Cordoba, Spain, which has close links to Maimonides. The findings indicated that the spirituality …

Ontology, Epistemology And Axiology In Halal Research: Empirical Evidence From Hajj Pilgrimage, Mohammad Mominul Islam

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

The philosophical contributions of ontology, axiology, and epistemology have not provided a clear understanding of conventional or Halal tourism, including the Hajj pilgrimage. Against this background, this study aims to explore the Halal perspective of knowledge creation, including At-Tawhid, Ijtihad, and philosophies, through a qualitative and grounded theory approach with inductive reasoning and ethnographic approach. The author collected primary data through active observation of the Hajj rituals from June 16th to July 25th, 2022, in Makkah, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and popular blog posts about the travel experience of pilgrims. Then, the data were analysed using ATLAS.ti to result …

Spirituality And The Quest For Transcendence On The Portuguese Way Of St. James, José Luís Braga, Miguel Pazos Otón, Isabel Borges

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

The pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela is a kind of proto tourism in a world where the number of pilgrimages has increased considerably. In the past the only motivation for such pilgrimages was religious, today we are witnessing the emergence of new motivations, such as cultural and even sporting ones. The research questions that guide this study are the following: Are faith and religion still strong enough motivations to justify pilgrimages to Santiago de Compostela? Are there points of convergence between religious and secular pilgrims? Can the Camino be a means of awakening religious vocations? In short, what is the …

Miracles Have Subjective Meaning For Religious Travellers, Even If They Are Not Supernatural, Stephen F. Haller

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

Miracles still play a role in religious tourism even though it is impossible to distinguish them as divinely inspired, rather than derived from ‘mere’ psychological causes. One might ask whether it matters to a religious tourist or pilgrim that the adoption of a religious attitude to the mysteries of miracles is not grounded in religious belief in the supernatural. Are religious tourists and pilgrims not just inventing comforting illusions in wilful ignorance?

This philosophical paper will relate a few examples of miracles; and explain how the experience of miracles is a subjective experience, and not an objective belief in a …

Exploring Models Of Reflective Practice To Aid The Understanding Of Pilgrimage Experience, Chris Hall

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

This paper explores the use of models of reflective practice to aid reflection and sense making for a walking pilgrimage experience and analyses the challenges of using such a model in this context. The paper then examines whether Greenia’s definition of pilgrimage experience can be used as a model to aid reflection. This is subsequently applied to a 5-day walking pilgrimage experience and its effectiveness assessed.

A Study Of Push And Pull Motivational Factors Of Religious Tourism In India, Niharika Singh, Somesh Dhamija, Aruna Dhamija

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

This study investigates the motivational factors that drive both foreign and domestic religious tourists to visit Vrindavan, one of India’s most famous Hindu religious sites. Using an established push and pull framework, the research explores why tourists choose Vrindavan as a destination for religious tourism. Based on existing theoretical and empirical studies, the researchers developed a quantitative approach, employing a three-part questionnaire to collect data from 598 visitors. Through Principal Component Factor Analysis, the study identified five key push factors and four pull factors, with religious beliefs and cultural enjoyment being the most prominent. The findings confirm the relevance of …

Visitor Experience Model At The Marian Shrine Of La Vang, Younghee Lee, Hyo Dan Cho

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

This research explores tourists’ experiences at La Vang in Vietnam. La Vang as a place of Catholic Marian apparition, is a sacred pilgrimage site that holds great religious significance for Catholics. This study employs both qualitative and quantitative methodologies to develop a model of the visitor’s experiences at La Vang. The initial qualitative study involved in-depth interviews and participant observation. Subsequently, the findings of the qualitative study were validated in the second quantitative study, which involved 75 surveys with residents of Macau who visited La Vang. This study proposes seven key scales measuring tourists’ experiential aspects at the sacred place. …

Crafting Myths In Modern Times: Essentialising Duty, Obligation And Exchange In Religious Tourism, Anuja Jose, Vinita Chandra, Uday Pratap Singh

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

This paper aims to study the factors that contribute to the success of present-day myths in religious tourism. It also seeks to investigate the factors that compel modern pilgrims to accept a certain myth and the role played by stakeholders of religious tourism in the creation of a myth. In order to explore these research questions, Kauḍī Mātā temple in Varanasi, a popular religious tourist spot for Southern Indians, was chosen for Case Study. Qualitative data have been generated through in-depth interviewing. Simultaneously, several myths of goddess Kauḍī Mātā were recovered from textual and digital sources in addition to the …

Confucian Virtue Ethics And Tourists’ Response To Spiritual Destinations: Ho Chi Minh City, An Sor Model Approach, Nguyen Van Si, Vo Duy Minh

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

This study aims to identify key factors that impact tourists’ responses, such as electronic word of mouth, and revisit intention to spiritual destinations. Based on the Stimulus-Organism-Response (S-O-R) framework, this study introduces ritual propriety in Confucian Virtue Ethics as a new ‘stimulus’, along with destination image and tourism facilities. In addition, this study introduces spiritual belief and gratitude as two new ‘organisms’ together with destination attachment. The quantitative analysis of 470 spiritual tourists’ responses in Ho Chi Minh City confirmed that ritual propriety, destination image, and tourism facilities as ‘stimuli’, impact gratitude, spiritual belief, and destination attachment as ‘organisms’, resulting …

Pilgrimage In The 12th Century: From The Ancient Travel Practices To Religious Tourism Routing Practices, Mafalda Martins Nascimento, Luís Mota Figueira

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

Pilgrimages assumed a crucial importance in the Middle Ages and in religious history in general, having always mobilised thousands of people worldwide. Travel in general and movements for religious reasons still assume an extraordinary relevance in the tourist sector, providing an important contribution to regional and local development involving sacred places, creating value and benefiting local populations. Thematic tourism routing is a component of the offer (endogenous resources transformed into attractions), planned from the local (local circuit) to the global (international route).

In this medieval context some religious-military orders assumed a relevant role at a socioeconomic level, whose legacy is …

School-Based Mental Health Practice: The Impact Of Physical Activity On Depression, Nafees Alam, Joy Krug

Social Work Faculty Publications

The relationship between physical and mental health has long been theorized to be profoundly important in understanding human behavior and development. This article aims specifically to highlight the state of existing research about the relationship between physical activity and the state of depression. Studies across the nation, summarized here, have found that healthy physical activity levels generally correlate with health within the mental and emotional arenas. Despite the abundance of existing literature on this topic, research remains scarce on the longitudinal effects of physical activity beginning with pre-puberty children into adulthood. Physical activity is a relatively cheap and non-harmful lifestyle …

Optimizing Warfarin Management In Cardiovascular Care, Tessa A. Martinez

Doctor of Nursing Practice Final Manuscripts

Background: Maintaining a therapeutic International Normalized Ratio (INR) is essential to reduce bleeding and thromboembolic risks in patients on warfarin therapy. In a rural outpatient cardiac clinic serving a predominantly underserved population, many patients face financial and access barriers that preclude the use of newer non-vitamin K antagonist oral anticoagulants (NOACs). Patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) or mechanical valve replacements who rely on warfarin require consistent monitoring and management, which can be challenging in settings with limited resources and staffing.

Purpose: The purpose of this evidence-based pilot project was to improve therapeutic INR outcomes through the implementation of a standardized …

Jewish College Students' Experiences Of Belonging, Identity, And Inclusion Within Campus Dei Initiatives, Laurence Allen Bolotin

Dissertations

Jewish college students navigate complex identities within higher education, often facing challenges related to antisemitism, exclusion, and the omission of religious identity within many Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives. This qualitative narrative inquiry explores the lived experiences of Jewish undergraduate students at public universities across the United States, examining their perceptions of belonging and the effectiveness of campus DEI initiatives in addressing their needs. Grounded in Jewish Critical Theory (JewishCrit), this study analyzes semi-structured interviews with 11 Jewish students, identifying five key themes: Belonging and Community, Intersectionality and Identity, Experiences with Antisemitism, Institutional Responses and DEI Initiatives, and the …

Exposure To Second-Hand Smoke In Homes And Respiratory Symptoms Among Non-Smoking Adults In Depok, Indonesia 2025, Faraz Ali, Budi Hartono

Journal of Indonesian Health Policy and Administration

Second-hand smoke (SHS) exposure in the home environment has become a public health emergency, especially in countries with very high smoking rates, such as Indonesia. SHS exposure has already presented evidence of symptoms of the respiratory category, like a cough and shortness of breath. This study aimed to assess the association between exposure to SHS at home and the presence of respiratory symptoms among non-smoking adults in Depok, Indonesia. Convenience sampling was adopted for enrolling 108 non-smoking adults aged 18-30 who were jointly exposed to SHS in their homes for a cross-sectional study. Data aggregations of gatherings were performed using …

All But Mud & Memories, Chase Lt Romero

LSU Master's Theses

All But Mud & Memories addresses the inevitability of erosion and land loss near my homeland of Algiers Point— locally known as The Point— through the perspective of locals and visitors, in addition to my own experience. Located near New Orleans across the Mississippi River, Algiers Point holds a community that shares a tender bond with the levee that protects their home and day-to-day interactions. Often in discussions of wetland events in Louisiana, the focus is on land and environmental losses rather than the surrounding culture. I provide a more community-centered narrative by expressing what’s to be lost if the …

Experimental Characterisation Of Laser Cladding Of Crniw And Crnifealzr Powders On H13 Tool Steel And Optimisation Of Process Parameters, Martin Vinoth S

Theses and Dissertations

In this work, laser cladding on H13 steel substrate with two different powder compositions CrNiW and CrNiFeAlZr has been carried out. The laser power, powder feed rate, and scanning speed were varied and the clad dimensions, aspect ratio, and dilution percentage were measured. The microhardness found in the CrNiW clad is 834 ± 20 HV0.5, which is higher than that of the CrNiFeAlZr clad (780 ± 20 HV0.5) as well as the substrate (548 ± 20 HV0.5).

The X-ray Diffraction (XRD) patterns identified the common phase creation of Ni3C and Fe3C for CrNiFeAlZr and CrNiW coatings, while the oxide formation …

Possibilities And Limitations Of Geopolymers In Real-World Wastewater Treatment Applications, Tero Luukkonen

Alkali Activated Materials and Geopolymers: High-end technical applications [2025]

Please click Additional Files below to see the full abstract

Lack Of Sleep Linked To Negative Body Image In Teens, Clara Turnage

University of Mississippi News

OXFORD, Miss. – Poor sleep quality is often tied to mental health conditions such as anxiety and depression, but new research from the University of Mississippi suggests it may also be related to how teens feel about their appearance.

Utilization Of Flow Cytometry, Metabolomic Analyses And A Feline Infectious Peritonitis Case Study To Evaluate The Physiological Impact Of Polyprenyl Immunostimulant, Irene Lee, Amar Desai, Akshay Patil, Yan Xu, Kelley Pozza-Adams, Anthony J. Berdis

Chemistry Faculty Publications

Measles, hepatitis C, and COVID-19 are significant human diseases caused by RNA viruses. While vaccines exist to prevent infections, there are a small number of currently available therapeutic agents that can effectively treat these diseases after infection occurs. This study explores a new therapeutic strategy using a small molecule designated polyprenyl immunostimulant (PI) to increase innate immune responses and combat viral infections. Using a multi-disciplinary approach, this study quantifies the effects of PI in mice and THP-1 cells using flow cytometry to identify immune phenotypic markers and mass spectroscopy to monitor the metabolomic profiles of immune cells perturbed by PI …

Multi-Level Collaborative Governance Framework For Designing Accountable Ai Systems For Emergency Management, Yu-Che Chen, Chun-Hua Tsai, Edouardo Zendejas

Information Systems and Quantitative Analysis Faculty Publications

This paper addresses a gap in the AI governance literature in understanding collaboration between national governments and tribal nations in governing AI systems for emergency management. This conceptual work develops and presents a governance design framework for accountable AI systems to fill the knowledge gap by drawing from the fields of public administration, information systems, indigenous studies, and emergency management. This framework situates the governance framework in a cross-sovereignty historical, legal, and policy contexts. It captures the multi-level features and embeddedness of governance structures, including the levels of collaborative governance structure, software system governance rules, and technical software system design. …

Various Bone Disorders Affecting The Medically Underserved South Texas Region, Blake Martin, Manoj Peiris, Michael Sander

School of Medicine Publications

Bone disorders can have a devastating impact on an individual’s quality of life. The main objective of our study was to analyze various demographic disparities between various bone disorders in the demographically unique Rio Grande Valley region. We hypothesized that osteoporosis would be the most prevalent condition and that the demographics between the various conditions would vary depending on age, sex, BMI, and ethnicity but not on marital status. This was a retrospective chart review using the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley UTHealth electronic database from January 1, 2017, to January 1, 2024. Any relevant individuals seen at a …

Comparing Performance Of Aquaponics Systems Using Different Designs And Fish Feeds, Cody G. Willmore

Biology Theses, Dissertations, and Student Creative Activity

Future food production requires sustainable approaches that used both land and water resources efficiently, while remaining economically viable. One approach is aquaponics, the practice which combines hydroponics and aquaculture, as a sustainable food producing system. Aquaponic systems are unique, as the system can be designed to reuse and repurpose locally sourced materials and resources to meet individual needs. However, productivity of these systems can be inefficient or inconsistent, impacting the viability of aquaponics. The first objective of my study was to compare how system design between a do-it yourself reclaimed-materials aquaponic system and a prefabricated aquaponic setup affects water quality …

Development And Feasibility Testing Of An Implementation Evaluation Tool: Recommendations From The Managing Epilepsy Well (Mew) Network Research Collaborative, Martha Sajatovic, Clara Adeniyi, Jessie Black

Faculty Scholarship

Aims: The Managing Epilepsy Well (MEW) Network has led the development, testing and scale-up of epilepsy self-management (ESM). The MEW Integrated Database (MEW DB) is a pooled repository of archival studies that facilitates aggregate analysis. This report describes an implementation evaluation tool for ESM adopters. Methods: Publicly available materials on program implementation, adoption and sustainability as well as readiness surveys used by the MEW Network were reviewed, as were content domains and format styles relevant to ESM implementation. Requirements for data Tiers included: 1) survey Tier should be short (≤6 items) and completed quickly (< 3 min), 2) question and response format should be consistent, 3) data elements are relevant to ESM adopters and 4) the tool should be applicable across ESM programs. Iterative review, discussion and item-ranking yielded a final set of 3 distinct data element Tiers. Results: Implementation data elements assess the characteristics of organization that may be a potential ESM adopter (Tier 1), organizational readiness to ESM implementation (Tier 2) and perceptions of ESM program effects or impact by adopters at the individual and program levels (Tier 3). There are 18 data elements, 6 elements in each Tier. Organizational characteristics reflect health disparities among people with epilepsy and common comorbidities. Implementation readiness barriers include motivational factors, training and resources. Implementation experience/outcomes include perceived ESM duration, credibility, impact, likability and effectiveness. Conclusions: A brief and practical implementation evaluation tool for ESM has potential value and important clinical and policy implications in advancing care for people with epilepsy.

Space And Attention In The Kyrgyz Demonstrative System, E. Ótott-Kovács, T. Kubatova, H. Saunders, Jonathan North Washington

Linguistics Faculty Works

Based on novel empirical work on the Kyrgyz (Turkic) nine-term demonstrative system, this paper investigates the spatial uses of demonstratives and the relationship between demonstratives' attention-drawing and spatial denotations, which has been a fundamental question for the study of demonstrative semantic content (Skilton 2019, Levinson 2018). While Kyrgyz, similarly to Turkish (Küntay & Özyürek 2002, 2006), appears to have a specialized attention-drawing demonstrative indicating that attention-drawing and spatial denotations can be entirely distinct, careful elicitations reveal that attention drawing is derived from a (joint-attention) sociocentric distal meaning.

Traceable And Scalable Food Balance Sheets From Agricultural Commodity Supply And Utilization Accounts (2010–2022), Xin Zhao, Maksym Chepeliev, Neus Escobar, Matthew T. Binsted, Pralit Patel, Page Kyle, Marshall A. Wise

Department of Agricultural Economics Faculty Publications

The Food Balance Sheets (FBS), compiled by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), serve as a cornerstone dataset for studies on agricultural development, food security, and dietary health, providing a broad overview of global and regional food systems. However, its limited transparency and scalability hinder its application in empirical analysis and multisector dynamic modeling. Here, we present a traceable Food Balance Sheets (T-FBS) dataset, developed from detailed Supply Utilization Accounts (SUA) using a novel Primary Commodity equivalent (PCe) aggregation approach. This framework enables the aggregation of commodity flows along supply chains while ensuring consistency and balance across multiple dimensions. The …

To Diversify Or Not To Diversify: A Preliminary Report On Farmers’ Perspectives On Diversification In The U.S. Midwest, Lauren Asprooth, J. Gordon Arbuckle, Rebecca Traldi, Sarah P. Church, Kristin Floress, Benjamin M. Gramig, Andrew J. Margenot, Elizabeth Maynard, Aaron Thompson, Ariana P. Torres, Emily M. Usher, Ishraq Awashra, Katherine Pivaral, Finnleigh S, Woodings, Linda Stalker Prokopy

Department of Horticulture & Landscape Architecture Faculty Publications

Diversifying the simplified landscape of corn and soybeans in the Midwest is an emerging priority in both the public and private sectors to reap a suite of climate, social, agronomic, and economic benefits. However, little research has documented the perspectives of farmers, the primary stakeholders in diversification efforts. This preliminary report uses newly collected survey data (n = 725) from farmers in the states of Illinois, Indiana, and Iowa to provide descriptive statistics and tests to understand what farmers in the region think about agricultural diversification, including their perspectives on its benefits, barriers, and opportunities. For the purposes of the …

Intersectional Analysis Of Vaccination Inequity Among Individuals With Disabilities In The United States During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Philip Ndoki, Heba M. Athar, David O. Anderson

Journal of Social, Behavioral, and Health Sciences

We investigated how disability status, types, sociodemographic indicators, and reasons for not receiving vaccinations influenced COVID-19 vaccination rates among individuals with disabilities in the United States. Despite efforts, vaccination disparities persisted, necessitating a nuanced understanding of the barriers to vaccination. Using intersectionality theory and the social determinants of health framework, we examined the impact of marginalized identities and structural inequalities. Key questions included the association between disability status and vaccination uptake, differences among disability types moderated by sociodemographic factors, and the interaction between disability status and reasons for not vaccinating. We used Household Pulse Survey data from the U.S. Census …

‘I Could Replicate The Situation Exactly The Same As I Do In Class’: Apprentice Lecturers Use Of A Learning Management System At An Irish University During And After Covid-19, Eleanor Attridge, Tom O'Mahony

Articles

While technology is playing a more critical role in learning, apprentice lecturers’ use of technology to support learning is under-researched. This qualitative study explores apprentice lecturers’ use and experience of a Learning Management System during and after COVID-19. Thematic analysis was used to make sense of the rich data, gathered using semi-structured interviews, from ten apprentice lecturers. The analysis revealed that technology use largely mirrored participants’ teacher-centric face-to-face methods. This approach did not sustain apprentice online engagement. Applying the theoretical framework, TPACK revealed that limited pedagogical expertise and, to a lesser extent, limited technological proficiency shaped participants’ approaches. Systemic constraints …

A Complete Transfer Learning-Based Pipeline For Discriminating Between Select Pathogenic Yeasts From Microscopy Photographs, Ryan A. Parker, Danielle S. Hannagan, Jan H. Strydom, Christopher J. Boon, Jessica Fussell, Chelbie A. Mitchell, Katie L. Moerschel, Aura G. Valter-Franco, Christopher Cornelison

Faculty Articles

Pathogenic yeasts are an increasing concern in healthcare, with species like Candida auris often displaying drug resistance and causing high mortality in immunocompromised patients. The need for rapid and accessible diagnostic methods for accurate yeast identification is critical, especially in resource-limited settings. This study presents a convolutional neural network (CNN)-based approach for classifying pathogenic yeast species from microscopy images. Using transfer learning, we trained the model to identify six yeast species from simple micrographs, achieving high classification accuracy (93.91% at the patch level, 99.09% at the whole image level) and low misclassification rates across species, with the best performing model. …

Invited Paper: Augmenting Pilgrimage With Ai: Walking The Kumano Kodō Iseji With A Digital Companion, Wayne E. Arnold, John A. Shultz

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

Can a pilgrimage feel sacred when walking it alongside an artificial intelligence? In early 2025, we set out with a custom-built AI companion to walk the 170km Kumano Kodō Iseji route, exploring how digital tools might reshape one of Japan’s oldest pilgrimage paths. Rather than replacing the traditional experience, the AI deepened it by providing real-time translations, historical context, and even companionship during long stretches of remote trail. This field reflection explores how AI, when thoughtfully programmed and intentionally used, can augment sacred travel without diminishing its meaning. Walking with AI allowed us to engage more fully with the layered …