Digital Commons Network^™

Experiences Of Parents Moving In, Moving Through, And Moving Out Of Play Therapy: A Phenomenological Study, Carly Rowan

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this transcendental phenomenological study is to describe the experiences of parents as they make meaning of their children’s participation in play therapy in the Dallas/Fort Worth region. Schlossberg's transition theory was utilized to provide a theoretical framework for answering the following questions: How do parents describe their expectations and perceptions of play therapy for their children who have received a minimum of eight play therapy sessions? How do parents describe their expectations for play therapy before their experience? In what ways were the parents' expectations met, and what were the unexpected outcomes experienced while their child was …

Americanism In The Soviet Union: How Albert Kahn Industrialized The Soviet Union, Daniel Leclair

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The aim of this dissertation is to examine Albert Kahn’s influence on the Soviet Union during Joseph Stalin’s first five-year plan, how the Soviet Union influenced Albert Kahn and obstacles that Albert Kahn, Inc. faced from American news reporting. This research focuses on the significance of American news reporting on Albert Kahn’s first contract with the Soviet Union until after Albert Kahn’s death and Germany’s attack on Stalingrad in 1942. The opposition that Albert Kahn faced early on with his dealings with the Soviet Union, because of the red scare that the US faced between 1917 and 1920 and then …

Scriptural Coping And Emotional Wellbeing: Examining The Mediating Role Of Hope Among Christian Professionals In The Helping Profession, Chinedum Amene

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This quantitative study examined the relationship between scriptural coping and emotional well-being among Christian medical and mental health professionals, with particular attention to the mediating role of hope. Christian medical and mental health professionals often operate in emotionally demanding environments and are frequently guided by faith-based practices, such as engaging with Scripture, to manage stress and maintain emotional stability. While religious coping has been extensively studied, limited empirical research has examined scriptural coping as a distinct construct within psychological research.

Grounded in Religious Coping Theory, Snyder’s Hope Theory, and principles of cognitive-behavioral theory, this study investigated whether engagement in scriptural …

High-Functioning Autism, Stress, And Access To Resources: A Grounded Theory Analysis Of Families’ Strategies To Create A Network Of Support, Emmett S. Ramirez Vasquez

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this systematic grounded theory study was to understand the process of partnership building for parents of individuals between the ages of 10-29 with high-functioning ASD at two counties in Central New York. The method of grounded theory was applied in this study as it gave an opportunity to study this process of partnership building between parents and support systems since previous theories had been insufficient to address this process. This study used a qualitative methodology to gather data from 12 participants including parents of individuals between the ages of 10-29 with high-functioning ASD as well as their …

A Predictive Correlational Study Of The Accuracy Of Facial Action Units And Heart Rate Variability To Predict Sustained Attention In Kindergarten, First-, And Second-Grade Students With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Carrie Michelle Harmer

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this quantitative, predictive correlational study was to determine to what extent facial action units brow raise, lip press, lip suck, and mouth open and heart rate variability predict sustained attention and how accurately heart rate variability predicts the same facial action units in children ages 5 to 7 in kindergarten, first, and second grade with autism in a northeast Florida public school district. Results add to the existing body of research on how accurately facial expression analysis and heart rate variability predict sustained attention in a larger, younger sample of children with autism. They also clarify the …

A Correlational Study Of Principal Self-Efficacy When Compared To Levels Of Work Locus Of Control And Perceived Autonomy Support, Christene Michelle Anderson

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this quantitative predictive correlational design study was to examine how well perceived autonomy support and work locus of control predict perceived principal self-efficacy among public secondary school principals throughout the state of Maryland. Discovering factors that could contribute to the effectiveness of school-based leadership may help school districts uncover new ways of providing professional development and support to assist principals in leading their buildings. The Principals’ Sense of Self-Efficacy Scale, Work Locus of Control Scale, and the Perceived Autonomy Survey were instruments used to measure the criterion variable of principal self-efficacy and the predictive variables of locus …

A Qualitative Case Study Exploring The Relationship Between Nutritional Awareness, Behavioral Outcomes, And The Prevention Of Early Risk Factors Of Hypertension And Cardiovascular Disease In Elementary School Students: Perceptions Of Parents And Educators In Hull-Daisetta Independent School District, Shante Monique Espree

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this case study was to explore the relationship between nutritional awareness and observed behavioral outcomes among elementary school students, with a secondary focus on how these factors may contribute to early risk indicators for hypertension and cardiovascular disease. This study was situated within Hull-Daisetta Independent School District (ISD), Texas and centered on the perspectives of both parents and educators. The theory guiding the study was the Social Cognitive Theory (Bandura, 1986) as it emphasizes the role of observational learning, social influence, and behavior change in health-related interventions. This framework supported the exploration of how nutritional awareness shapes …

Comparing General Perceptions Of Law Enforcement Suicides To Other Line-Of-Duty Deaths: Pilot Study, Shannon E. Allen

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Officer suicide remains an underrecognized occupational hazard despite increasing awareness of mental health risks within law enforcement. This quantitative, cross-sectional pilot study examined public perceptions of officer suicide compared to line-of-duty deaths caused by violence or accidents and assessed whether mental health literacy and suicide stigma influenced these perceptions. Grounded in framing theory, stigma theory, the health belief model, and the interpersonal theory of suicide, the study explored how knowledge and attitudes shape legitimacy judgments. A sample of 169 non–law enforcement adults in the United States completed the Mental Health Literacy Scale, the Stigma of Suicide Scale–Short Form, and the …

From Novice To Target: Reducing New Graduate Nurse Bullying, A Quality Improvement Project, Christina Matousek, D'Ana Brooks, Joy Elwell, Ivy M. Alexander, Tracy Carafeno

Creating Healthy Work Environments (CHWE)

Background: The bullying of new graduate nurses is often considered a rite of passage in the nursing profession.¹ Bullying within nursing has led to poor professional development, reduced self-confidence, and has the potential to negatively impact patient outcomes; with links to increased medication errors, falls, and hospital costs.^1,9 Within a comprehensive cancer center, high rates of nurse bullying have been reported. Currently, this institution lacks staff education regarding bullying and the negative impacts it poses to staff and patients.

Purpose: The purpose of this quality improvement project was to reduce the bullying of new graduate registered nurses (RNs), …

Two Centuries Of Sexism In British Parliament: A Computational Analysis Of Women’S Representation In The Hansard Corpus, Mandira Sawkar

Theses

Detecting sexism and gender bias in text is a central problem in NLP, yet most existing work focuses on short, informal content such as social media posts. In contrast, much less is known about how sexism operates in long-form, formal discourse, where it is often expressed indirectly through rhetorical framing, appeals to tradition, or references to gender roles. Parliamentary debates offer a particularly rich setting for studying such language, but their scale, linguistic complexity, use of archaic English, and the presence of distributional shift across centuries make systematic analysis challenging and historically infeasible without automation. In this work, we analyse …

Exploring Eating Behaviors And Dietary Patterns Among Adolescents And Emerging Adults With Adhd: A Scoping Review, Annika Waller

Theses

Objective     To map global evidence on eating behaviors and dietary patterns among adolescents and emerging adults with ADHD, with attention to executive function, medication-related appetite timing, and gender. Introduction     Adolescents and emerging adults with ADHD gain increasing autonomy over food choices during a developmental period marked by heightened executive-function demands and irregular routines. Research examining ADHD and diet is fragmented across disciplines and uses heterogeneous eating and dietary outcomes, limiting synthesis. Inclusion Criteria Studies were eligible if they included adolescents or emerging adults aged 12 to 25 years with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and reported at least one eating behavior, dietary pattern, …

Storytelling Ai Could Help Identify Loneliness, Depression In Elders, Clara Turnage

University of Mississippi News

OXFORD, Miss. – Social isolation and loneliness produce serious impacts on mental and physical health, and older adults are likely to experience these conditions. A new project aims to use artificial intelligence to help identify loneliness of older adults as they tell the stories of their lives.

Navigating Social Belonging: Live Experiences Of Young Adults With Intellectual Disabilities In Inclusive Postsecondary Education Programs, Brian Keys

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Inclusive postsecondary education (IPSE) programs have expanded access to higher education for students with intellectual disabilities (ID), yet access alone does not ensure meaningful inclusion or a sense of belonging. This study examined how students with ID experience and make meaning of social belonging within inclusive college environments. Grounded in disability studies and belongingness theory, the study focused on how students perceive belonging, navigate social relationships, and experience campus spaces in relation to inclusion and exclusion.

An interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) design was employed to explore the lived experiences of four young adults enrolled in a university-based IPSE program. Participants …

Recognition Celebration 2026, Communications And Marketing

Faculty And Staff Recognition Dinner Programs

Award Winners:

University of Minnesota John Tate Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Advising: Marissa Holst

UMM Faculty Distinguished Research Award: Heather Peters

UMM Alumni Association Teaching Award: Cheryl Stewart

Community Engagement Award: Miriam Gieske

Morris Academic Staff Award: Jessica Porwoll

Mary Martelle Memorial Award: Marie Hagen

Outstanding Support Staff Awards: Tera Kleespie, Teresa Sayles, Rebecca Hamilton

Retirees: Kathy Dingman, Bart Finzel, Stephen Gross, Roland Guyotte, Arne Kildegaard, Athena Kildegaard

Parent Well-Being In Early Intervention: The Case For Assessing Parental Stress, Karla Michelle Chaff

Post-Professional Occupational Therapy Doctorate - Innovations in OT Symposium: Transforming Possibilities into Practice

Importance:

Research shows that parental stress negatively impacts child developmental outcomes, indicating caregiver well-being can directly influence intervention responses. Parental stress is a well-documented barrier to effective early intervention that remains unmeasured.

Objective:

This quality improvement project aims to assess the potential for adoption of a parent stress measure into family assessment to ensure caregiver well-being is systematically identified, documented, and addressed.

Design:

A feasibility project design was used to evaluate relevance, usability, barriers, and facilitators to introducing a standardized stress measure in practice.

Setting:

The project is based in an early intervention program.

Participants:

Key stakeholders were recruited from …

Why We Do This Work, Eric F. Spina

President's Blog: From the Heart

The University of Dayton and other American Talent Initiative institutions have opened the doors of education for more than 75,000 high-achieving, lower-income students. That’s an entire football stadium filled with talented young people.

(Review Of) Monica Ciobanu And Mihaela Șerban, Eds. Between The Memory And Post-Memory Of Communism In Romania: Fluid Memories, Stefan Cristian Ionescu

History Faculty Articles and Research

A review of Monica Ciobanu and Mihaela Șerban's Between the Memory and Post-Memory of Communism in Romania: Fluid Memories.

Ai Mistakes: "Confabulation" And Abduction, Not "Hallucination", Stephen M. Mcjohn, Ian Mcjohn

Suffolk University Law School Faculty Works

"Hallucination" has become the common term for errors by AI systems, yet it implies a misleading analogy to human perception. LLM's process tokens. They do not have conscious experience or conscious perception. A hallucination is an experience, and (to our knowledge, to date) LLM's do not experience anything. This paper suggests that legal scholars follow the lead of a small number of AI researchers who have suggested that "confabulation" is a more accurate term, a metaphor grounded in psychology. People confabulate when they unknowingly invent spurious explanations or facts. We then take this terminological question and stretch it into a …

Richard Thivener V. Andrew Nero

2026 Decisions

USDC for the Western District of Pennsylvania

B. M. V. Upper Darby School District

2026 Decisions

USDC for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania

The Catalan-Speaking Linguistic Landscape Of Spain: A Comparative Analysis Of Commercial Signage In Barcelona, Valencia, And Palma De Mallorca, Kyle Reasons

Honors Theses

The present study is a linguistic landscape of the Catalan-speaking region of Spain. Linguistic landscaping is a relatively new survey technique in the world of linguistics first developed in a study by Landry & Bourhis (1997) and has a focus on addressing the languages present on various forms of signage within a given area. Catalan is a Romance language with approximately 9 million speakers where it is recognized as a co-official language in 3 communities included in this study (the Balearic Islands, Catalonia, and the Valencian Community). This study looks at 3 cities in Spain (Barcelona, Valencia, and Palma de …

Embedding Trauma-Informed Care In Nursing Education: Strategies For Healthy Work Environments, Rachel Ann Elliott, Kathryn Pfaff, Edward Cruz, Sherry Morrell, Adrian Guta

Creating Healthy Work Environments (CHWE)

Background: Trauma is ubiquitous within society; it is experienced by people who access healthcare, and their care providers, including nursing students who experience high rates of adverse childhood experiences (Gilroy et al., 2024). Although trauma-informed care (TIC) is an established approach that addresses the widespread health effects of trauma (Wathen et al., 2021), its systematic integration in nursing education curricula is lacking (Pfeiffer & Grabbe, 2022). This leaves new graduate nurses ill-equipped to competently support clients and families who have experienced trauma, compromising a safe culture of care (Ross et al., 2025).

Purpose: To explore individual, relational, structural, and organizational …

Care Among Crisis: Trauma And Building Resiliency With Wildfire Respondents, Zurisadai A. Inzunza, Monika Scherer, Maximus Balliet, Zoe Hollingsworth, Adrienne Martinez-Hollingsworth

Creating Healthy Work Environments (CHWE)

In January 2025, over 230 employees were rapidly deployed from a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) system to support the medical and social needs of Eaton wildfire evacuees at the Pasadena Convention Center (PCC). Of the thousands of Pasadena and Altadena residents displaced, many of the employees were directly impacted. As environmental disasters are becoming more frequent, organizations can implement measures to reduce the psychological impact by promoting coping strategies to improve mental wellbeing for nursing professionals.^1,2

Research has shown that volunteer responders who are highly motivated report lower levels of burnout.³ There is a gap in research …

The Current Landscape Of Remote Patient Monitoring Regarding Diabetes Mellitus And Hypoglycemia: Protocol For A Scoping Review, Mathew J. Stephen, Baylor Akhavan, Melinda B. Chu, Kavita Batra, Roberto Sagaribay

Department of Medical Education Faculty Research

Background: Diabetes mellitus is characterized by impaired glucose regulation, predisposing patients to both hyperglycemia and hypoglycemia. Hypoglycemia, particularly frequent in insulin-treated individuals, remains a serious but underrecognized complication. Remote patient monitoring (RPM) technologies, such as continuous glucose monitors, smartphone apps, and hybrid closed-loop systems with remote monitoring capabilities, have emerged as promising tools to improve glycemic control and prevent hypoglycemia in nonclinical settings. Evidence examining the use of RPM technologies has expanded rapidly; however, the scope, characteristics, and reported outcomes of these interventions remain fragmented across modalities and settings. Objective: This scoping review aims to systematically map and describe the …

Entrepreneurial Communication In Religious Nonprofit Organizations: Sustaining Mission Continuity With Volunteers, Respati Wulandari

Journal of Management for Global Sustainability

Entrepreneurial communication has been predominantly examined within corporate contexts, with limited empirical investigation in faith-based nonprofit governance. This article examines how the Entrepreneurial Communication Paradigm (ECP) operates within a volunteer-dependent religious nonprofit organization and how it contributes to governance sustainability. Although ECP has mainly been developed within corporate and strategic communication frameworks, there is a paucity of study examining its relevance in the governance of faith-based nonprofits. This study utilizes longitudinal qualitative data from in-depth interviews with the National Director and 24 Diocesan Directors of the Pontifical Mission Societies of Indonesia (PMSI) to examine the influence of communication practices on …

Barriers And Bridges To Mental Health: A Quantitative Study Of Religious Commitment, Mental Health Stigma, And Help-Seeking Attitudes In The Black Community, Catisha Tillman

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Mental health is a silent killer in the Black community. The Black community prefers to seek mental health support from their pastors, friends, families, and church members rather than from a professional counselor. This mistrust is seated in a deeply rooted history of transgenerational trauma towards the medical and mental health care system. Stemming from the enslavement of the Black community to the present day, with systemic racism, disparities in mental health care, limited educational resources, and socioeconomic disadvantages. The following research examined how religious commitment affects mental health stigma, help-seeking attitudes, church-based relational support, and perceived barriers to mental …

Christian, English-Speaking-Hispanic, Individuals’ Experiences With Marital Internet Infidelity Of Their Partners: A Phenomenological Study, Ivan Herran

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This phenomenological study explored the lived experience of Christian, English-speaking Hispanic individuals who have experienced internet-based emotional infidelity. The increasing use of digital communication has contributed to new forms of relational challenges within marriages, particularly in a faith-based context. Data was collected through semi-structured, in-depth interviews and a focus group, with participants purposively recruited via personal outreach and referrals. The analysis focused on understanding how individuals perceived, interpreted, and coped with emotional infidelity within their relationships. Findings revealed that participants experienced emotional distress, disruptions in trust, and challenges in communication, while also relying on personal, relational, and faith-based coping strategies. …

A Phenomenological Study Of The Lived Experiences Of Black Counselors Completing Wellness Checks For Their Black Clients, Shanique Slowley-Azeez

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore the lived experiences of Black counselors who have contacted the police for wellness checks on their Black clients. This study explored how factors such as intergenerational trauma, systemic oppression, and race shaped the perceptions and experiences of these counselors who sought wellness checks from law enforcement for Black clients. This research was guided by intergenerational trauma theory (1966) and social constructivist theory (1978). Social constructivist theory allowed the researcher to understand how individuals describe and assign meaning to events, thus shaping their knowledge and lived experiences. The researcher employed semi-structured interviews …

Training & Support Impacts To Leader Mental Health: A Multiple Case Study, Casey R. Childers

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This expansive body of work displays a composite overview of the problem considered, research process employed, and conclusive findings centered on mental health in leadership within the healthcare setting. From the research background, literature review, planning phase, execution tasks, data analysis, and conclusive findings, the research comprehensively signifies a complex contribution to the current body of knowledge. Throughout this study each of the specific research phases are carefully outlined to fully identify the problem surrounding insufficient support systems and the subsequent impact on team engagement, retention, and overall performance. The study leverages a flexible design to approach the problem statement …

Examining The Relationship Of Telehealth Use Between Zoom Fatigue And Psychological Well-Being, And The Moderating Role Of Social Support Seeking And Work-Life Boundaries Among Remote Therapists, Angelia M. Worley

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

During the COVID-19 pandemic, mental health therapists rapidly transitioned to telehealth services. In addition, therapists experienced a significant increase in client demand, leading to larger caseloads and longer waitlists. In the post-pandemic context, many therapists have continued to deliver services via telehealth, either fully remote or in a hybrid format. However, there is limited research on the relationship between telehealth intensity and therapist wellness. The purpose of this correlational study was to examine the relationship between telehealth intensity (duration, frequency, and burstiness) and wellness outcomes, specifically, synchronous telehealth fatigue (STF; therapist-related Zoom fatigue) and psychological well-being (PWB). Furthermore, this study …