Digital Commons Network^™

Impact Of Covid-19 On A Smoking Cessation Intervention: A Look At Recruitment And Retention, Elizabeth S. Hawes

All ETDs from UAB

While smoking prevalence rates have declined in the general population over the past 50 years, persons in the criminal legal population have disproportionally high rates of smoking. Previous research suggests that smoking cessation interventions and campaigns have missed targeting this population. Due to the COVD-19 pandemic, many ongoing clinical trials had to rapidly shift to using remote trials, including our smoking cessation trial with the criminal legal population. The purpose of this secondary analysis was to compare recruitment rate, study adherence, retention, NRT adherence, and quit attempts for participants who completed the study as planned (In Person), after implementation of …

Adverse Childhood Experiences And Chronic Low Back Pain In Adulthood: Roles Of Emotion Regulation And Socioeconomic Status, Pavithra Andrea Thomas

All ETDs from UAB

Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) can have profound deleterious effects on physical health and psychological functioning in adulthood. ACEs may be a social determinant of chronic pain development and severity in adulthood; however, little research to date has investigated the psychological processes that might underlie this association. Emotion regulation, an established transdiagnostic risk factor underlying psychopathological conditions, may be a potential mediator of the relationship between ACEs and pain. Lower socioeconomic status is associated with greater risk of ACEs and poor chronic pain outcomes, yet research has not clarified the role of subjective versus objective determinants of socioeconomic factors within these …

Correlates Of Life Space Mobility, Driving Frequency And Exposure Amon Older Blacks/African Americans And Whites With Diabetes, Henrietta Armah

All ETDs from UAB

Diabetes mellitus is one of the most common chronic diseases among older adults, affecting all aspects of daily living including restricted life space mobility, driving and building relationships outside of the home. The aim of this study was to investigate the covariate-adjusted associations of cognitive functioning, depressive symptoms, amount of support received and satisfaction with support with life space mobility, driving frequency and driving exposure among Blacks/African Americans and Whites with diabetes. The study used a representative sample of 247 older adults aged 65 and above from the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Diabetes and Aging Study of Health …

Enhancing Community Resiliency With Big Data And Machine Learning: Property Damage And Flood Forecasting During Hurricanes, Mujungu Lawrence Museru

All ETDs from UAB

Globally, coastal communities face significant vulnerability to the risks and impacts of flooding. This study addresses two critical aspects of flood management: enhanced flood damage assessment and coastal flooding prediction. Traditional flood damage modeling techniques have limitations, and the availability of comprehensive datasets is limited. The first part addresses these challenges. Multivariable machine learning models are applied to enhance flood damage assessment. A comprehensive dataset is developed by combining the Alabama property dataset with the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) claims dataset from Hurricane Katrina. Spatial varying datasets are added to enhance the comprehensiveness of NFIP dataset and oversampling techniques …

A Sage And A Guru Walk Into A Bar: Wisdom And Humor Styles, Jeffrey Dean Webster, Sonja Heintz

School of Psychology

Two studies investigated the relationship between wisdom, humor styles, comic styles, and wellbeing. In Study 1, 325 English-speaking college students completed the Self-Assessed Wisdom Scale (SAWS) and the Humor Styles Questionnaire. As predicted, overall wisdom, as well as all five wisdom subscales, was positively correlated with adaptive humor styles. Furthermore, the SAWS humor subscale correlated positively with all humor styles, most strongly with the adaptive styles. In Study 2, 189 German-speaking university students and adults from the general population completed the SAWS, the Comic Style Markers, and measures of positive mental health (meaning in life, optimism, and resilience). The SAWS …

Do You See What I See?: Testing Horses' Ability To Recognise Real-Life Objects From 2d Computer Projections, S Kappel, Marm De Oca, S Collins, K Herborn, M Mendl, C Fureix

School of Biological and Marine Sciences

No abstract provided.

Programs That Impact Juvenile Recidivism Beyond Mandatory Sanctions, John M. Marras

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Recidivism, especially juvenile recidivism, has been a major concern for the United States. In fact, 10.6% of the total U.S. population was composed of juveniles between the ages of 10 and 17 in the year 2009. The statistics have shown that juvenile recidivism is one of the key issues in the country that needs to be addressed. The purpose of this study was to isolate the youth programs that affect juvenile recidivism beyond their successful completion. The theoretical foundation of the study derived from Agnew’s general strain theory, which suggests focusing on factors that lead to delinquency and the commission …

The Geographic Pattern And Socioecological Factors Of Helicobacter Pylori Infections In The United States, Judith Ann Merryweather

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractHelicobacter pylori (H. pylori) is one of the most common human pathogens and may play a role in the development of several distinct diseases, which include gastric ulcer, duodenal ulcer, and gastric cancer. Studying geographic territories of the United States may reveal clusters with high rates of H. pylori infection and perhaps the prevalence of gastric cancer; however, geographic mapping of patterns in the United States is scarce. The purpose of this study was to investigate changes in H pylori infection patterns in the United States between two different time points (2000–2002 and 2016–2018). The primary hypotheses of this study …

Strategies Global Virtual Team Leaders Use To Improve Trust And Communication, Sarah Crandell Monday

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Global virtual team (GVT) members’ inability to effectively build trust and communication has the potential to negatively impact organizational outcomes. Organizational leaders are concerned with team members’ inability to build trust and communication, as it is the leading cause of reduced productivity and efficiency levels within GVTs. Grounded in the social exchange theory, the purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to explore strategies GVT leaders use to improve trust and communication among GVT members. The participants were 18 GVT business leaders from six organizations located in the Pacific Northwest of the United States. Data were collected using semistructured …

Lived Experiences Of African American Women Encountering Barriers In Executive Level Advancement In The Business Services Industry, Sheriley Yvonne Smith

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

It is unknown how African American Women (AAW) perceived experiences involving the experience of the barriers faced when attempting to advance to executive levels in their corporate jobs. Existing literature showed that AAWs experienced several forms of discrimination, including racism, oppression, and limitations which were critical to examining their work experience and progressing up the corporate ladder. The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to develop an understanding of lived experiences of AAWs when they apply for and fail to reach executive positions in the business services industry. The glass ceiling theory (GCT) and intersectionality theory (IT) were used …

Mental Health Experiences Of Black Males Beyond Juvenile Delinquency, Jasmine D. Spratling

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Incarceration rates around the United States continue to increase for Black male adolescents. These numbers are even more significant in Atlanta, where youth spend time in juvenile detention centers and return soon once released. Summary findings from existing research showed the lack of mental health services provided once a youth has been released from incarceration, but a lack of specifics around the services needed remains. The purpose of the current study was to explore the experiences of Black male adolescents who received little to no trauma informed care post-incarceration. A qualitative, phenomenological approach was used to conduct semistructured interviews with …

Preincarceration Collaborative Religious Coping Strategies Of Black Males With A History Of A Criminal Offense, Pearlette E. Springer

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

African Americans are 56% of the incarcerated population in the United States. Black males spend an average of 13.4% of their working lives incarcerated and 82.6% of their working lives addressing the stigma and restrictions associated with incarceration. The purpose of this study was to address a gap in research by exploring the preincarceration collaborative religious coping strategy experiences of Black males with a history of criminal offenses. Pargament’s theory of collaborative religious coping strategy guided the research, interview questions, and data analysis. The qualitative narrative approach with purposeful and snowball sampling was used to recruit and collect data from …

Strategies To Retain Employees In The Mental Health Workplace, Chauncey Janielle Strange

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Employee turnover continues to be an issue in the mental health community as mental health business leaders lack strategies to retain employees. Retention strategies are essential to promote continuity, funding, and profitability for mental health agencies and quality service care for patients. Grounded in Bass’s transformational leadership theory, the purpose of this qualitative single case study was to explore strategies mental health business leaders use to retain employees. Participants comprised three mental health center managers from a state agency in northern Louisiana who contributed to employee retention. Data were collected using semistructured interviews and a review of organization performance evaluations, …

First-Year Postsecondary Student Persistence Leading To Second-Year Enrollment, Collene G. Webb

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

At a southeastern U.S. university, the low retention of postsecondary, traditional-aged first-year students persisting to second year was a problem, importantly decreasing their ability to graduate and gain a career. The purpose of this study was to determine the factors that have motivated postsecondary traditional-aged, first-year students to return to the university as second-year students and to learn from students what they perceived that the institution could do to increase persistence. The conceptual framework that grounded this study was Tinto’s institutional departure model. The research questions explored the factors that motivated first-year students to persist into their second year of …

Moderators Of Peripheral Neuropathy On Overall And Cardiovascular Mortality In People Without Diabetes, Adeoye Muideen Adenekan

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Peripheral neuropathy (PN), a group of common heterogeneous disorders with varied etiologies, is associated with substantial morbidity and mortality. PN presents both as a diagnostic and therapeutic challenge to physicians and other healthcare providers. Socioeconomic moderators of PN in adults without diabetes in the United States have not been well studied. The consequences of PN can be devastating and include foot ulcers, amputations, a general decline in the quality of life, and death. The overall prevalence of PN in the United States is 13.5% in adults with diabetes and 11.6% in adults without diabetes. Clearly, these statistics indicate a public …

Educating Nurses On Failure To Rescue Due To Treatment Delay, Ganiyu Olasheni Adewale

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Studies have found a shortfall in nurses' skills in caring for patients with a significant risk of failure to rescue in an acute care setting. The practice gap the healthcare facility was experiencing today was a gap in relation to failure to rescue with an increased rate of sentinel cases. There was a knowledge deficit among critical care nurses. The importance of educating nursing staff is to increase their knowledge and help decrease the occurrence of failure to rescue in an acute care setting. The practice-focused question for this education project asked if educating nursing staff with a medical-surgical competency …

The Effects Of Secondary Traumatic Stress And Resilience On The Indicators Of Compassion Fatigue Among Occupational Therapists, Gayla Ann Aguilar

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractCompassion fatigue (CF) has been described as the “cost of caring” for traumatized individuals, which may lead to missed workdays, diminished work satisfaction, increased turnover, and decreased client care. CF has long been studied in other caring professionals, but occupational therapy practitioners (OTPs) have been largely overlooked. The purpose of this quantitative correlation study was to determine the relationship between secondary traumatic stress (STS) and resilience (RES) on burnout (BO) and compassion satisfaction (CS; i.e., indicators of CF) in OTPs. In this study, the moderation effect that RES has on STS and BO as related to CF in 68 completed …

Enrollment In Science, Technology, Engineering, And Math Courses After Enactment Of Texas' House Bill 5, Carlana Cla'shette Allen

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Student participation and performance in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) have been an education concern in the United States for years. In 2013, Texas lawmakers passed House Bill 5 (HB5) to support increases in STEM awareness, particularly among ethnic minority and female students. To date, no studies have been conducted on the impact, if any, of HB5 on Texas high school students’ course selections in STEM areas. Further, it is unknown whether the impact that does exist is equally distributed across socioeconomic status (SES), race/ethnicity, and gender groups. The purpose of this nonexperimental correlational quantitative study was to determine …

Burnout And Positive Thinking Skills Among Critical Care Nurses, Evangeline Ani

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractBurnout is a global health problem with a significant negative impact on the physical, mental, and emotional health and well-being of critical care nurses, which in turn has serious effects on the critical care work environment. Positive thinking has the potential of transforming the work environment. The purposes of this quantitative, correlational study, guided by Lazarus’s theory of stress, were to determine (a) if there was a relationship between the use of positive thinking skills and burnout among critical care nurses, and (b) if there was a difference between the use of positive thinking skills and burnout among critical care …

The Role Of Diversity Management Policies And Practices In Advancing Inclusive Culture, Christopher Emeka Babundo

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractThe Roles of Diversity Management Policies and Practices in Advancing Inclusive Culture by Christopher Emeka Babundo

MBA, Azusa Pacific University, 2014MA, Azusa Pacific University, 2013 BS, University of Benin, Nigeria, 2002

Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Industrial and Organizational Psychology

Walden UniversityAugust 2023

Exploring Goal Setting And Motivational Experiences For Adult Workers With Autism, Daniel Ball

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractWhile the heterogeneity of autism for adults has been much more accepted over the past 40 years, research still has a broad gap to fill as there is scarce empirical evidence on how interventions, such as motivational tactics, need to be adapted to meet individual abilities and needs. Also, the number of workers entering the workforce each year is growing as a ratio. It is posited by various authors that one in 52 people are now diagnosed as having the disorder and this number has doubled over the past decade. Furthermore, 80% of this population is underemployed or unemployed, representing …

Thirty-Second Mindful Body Scan Meditation For Bedside Nurses, Shruti Balwalli-Udyawer

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Compassion fatigue, or secondary traumatic stress, is a state of physical and mental exhaustion caused by an inability to cope with the everyday environment that reduces the ability of the nurse to provide high-quality health care to a patient. The purpose of this staff education project, guided by Selye’s general adaption syndrome , was a 6-week, 30-second mindfulness exercise program to promote stress reduction for cardiac step-down and medical-surgical nurses. In this quantitative, pre- and posttest study, the Perceived Stress Scale was completed by a sample of 24 nurses who met the inclusion criteria. The practice focused whether educating nurses …

The Lived Experiences Of Civilian Review Board Members, Vereen Charmaine Barton

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractThe purpose of this transcendental phenomenological research was to describe the lived experiences of investigative civilian review board (CRB) members. The central research question of the study examined the lived experiences of investigative civilian review board members as it related to recruitment and selection, training, and support. Eight participants from two CRBs in the Northeast and Midwest formed a random sample of six females and two males. Three data collection instruments were used in this research (in-depth interviews, writing prompts, and personal narratives) to elicit information. The instruments were designed to prompt information about CRB members' experiences based on the …

Emotional Intelligence And Safety Culture In Business Aviation, Sonnie Bates

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

With a lack of research regarding the relationship between emotional intelligence and safety culture in the aviation industry, safety professionals have inadequate information to reduce human error, the leading cause of tragic aircraft accidents. The purpose of this study was to determine the extent to which there is a relationship between emotional intelligence and safety culture in the business aviation industry. This study was grounded on Reason’s theoretical model for safety culture, enhanced by Wang and Sun, and the emotional intelligence framework by Salovey and Mayer, enhanced by Jordan and Lawrence. A quantitative descriptive correlational approach was used with convenience …

Strategies To Improve Employee Motivation In Addiction Treatment, Dawn Marie Belamarich

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Addiction treatment leaders are experiencing challenges in motivating qualified and committed professionals within their businesses. Without strategies to motivate and retain employees, addiction treatment businesses will fail, and patient outcomes can suffer. Grounded in Herzberg’s two-factor theory of motivation, the purpose of this qualitative multiple-case study was to explore strategies addiction treatment leaders used to improve employee motivation. The participants were 10 addiction treatment leaders with demonstrated experience in utilizing leadership strategies to improve employee motivation. Data were collected through semistructured interviews, a review of the literature on employee motivation in addiction treatment organizations, and a review of organizational archival …

How College Professors Perceive The Managements Of Deliberate Acts Of Classroom Incivility Among Students, Sara Bengsch

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Despite the negative consequences of incivility, there is a lack of research on how professors handle intentional student-to-student incivility. To address this gap, this study used qualitative, interpretative phenomenological research design to explore the experiences of 14 professors who have been teaching for five or more years at the university level in Dodge and Fond du Lac Counties in southeastern Wisconsin. The lens of facework and politeness theory was utilized. The data collected were analyzed using NVivo software, which identified five themes based on patterns within the interviews: intervention strategies, motivations, policies, participant worldview, and skills. These themes provided valuable …

Intimate Partner Violence: The Silent Enemy Among African Immigrant Women, Omoniyi Anne Bello

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Intimate partner violence among immigrant and minority groups remains a social and health problem that has garnered little attention. African immigrant women particularly face intersectional challenges (e.g., language barriers, unemployment, and lack of access to health care, resources, and services) that heighten their vulnerability to partner violence. Yet, knowledge about their experiences remains elusive in empirical research. Examining the nature and extent of their experience can provide valuable insights that could enhance research and practice on partner violence. The purpose of this generic qualitative study was to explore the experiences of African immigrant women survivors of partner violence in Edmonton, …

Public Policy And African American Victims Of Inner-City Violence, Michael Andrew Benson Sr.

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The effects of being victimized or being a witness to a violent traumatic event without the support of public institutions, such as criminal justice, social service agencies, and mental health care clinics has led to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The purpose of this study was to explore the barriers and success factors for victims of inner-city violence as it related to access to public administration institutions to address their victimization. Self-efficacy theory was used as the theoretical foundation, and the study’s research question focused on victimization and access to public policy institutions. The study used a qualitative design with 10 …

Middle School Teachers’ Perceptions About The Implementation Of The Read 180 Intervention Program, Melissa H. L. Betsill

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractMany states have used the READ 180 intervention program as an instructional tool to improve reading performance outcomes. The problem was that despite teachers' implementation of the READ 180 program, students at Wonderful Middle School were not learning or developing as well as desired despite the intervention. The purpose of this study was to investigate the perceptions of teachers about how they implement, what difficulties they had, and what they might need to be better prepared to use the READ180 program. The conceptual framework guiding the study is based on Florida Reading Initiative, a researched-based school-wide reform effort committed to …

Screening For Depression In Immigrants In Their Host Country, Hortense Bissila

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractThe initial need for care for depression is greater for immigrants, who encounter linguistic, cultural, structural, and attitudinal hurdles to mental health care that render them more susceptible to increased levels of depressive symptoms compared to populations of hosting country. The aim of this Doctor of Nursing Practice project was to educate frontliners in the community on how to assess for depression in immigrants in culturally congruent ways. This project addresses gap in mental health care practice that needs urgent redress in promoting self-cultural competence and raising awareness to assess for depression on immigrants. To meet the aims of the …