Digital Commons Network^™

Bridging The Diagnostic Gap: Expanding Dementia Care Navigation For Timely Diagnosis, Lucille Carriere, Morgan Minyo, David Bass, Katherine L Possin, Rafael Samper-Ternent, Joel Salinas, Nicole Deaner

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Over half of dementia cases remain undiagnosed, with persistent disparities across racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic groups. Dementia care navigation (DCN) has demonstrated value in post-diagnosis settings. If implemented earlier, DCN could address diagnostic delays and care gaps. We define the diagnostic window as the period from initial symptom awareness through diagnosis and early care planning. Drawing on deliberations from the Alzheimer's Association Dementia Care Navigation Roundtable, we present a pre-diagnosis DCN framework organized across six domains and describe navigator roles across three phases: pre-evaluation, diagnostic assessment, and immediate post-diagnosis and transition. We address special considerations, including people without a care …

Legends, Lies, & Rewritten Lives: After The Little Bighorn: Forgotten Struggles Of Those Who Walked Away, 2nd Edition, Thomas B. Davidson

DU Textbooks

This Story surrounds an event that occurred one summer on June 25, 1876, along the banks of the Little Bighorn River in what is now the state of Montana. Seen from a 21st century perch, it is a story of a collision between two very different civilizations or empires. Both empire’s military fought in the manner of their society. This narrative will attempt to balance the believable truth of what happened in that contest between the military representatives of both societies while also trying to tell an engaging story, without drifting into naked partisanship, purple prose, or sensationalism. The narrative …

Language Attitudes And Stereotypes Condition The Processing Of Contact-Induced Linguistic Variants, Sonia Barnes, Whitney Chappell

Spanish Languages and Literatures Research and Publications

This study examines the effect of language attitudes and stereotypes on vowel perceptions by two groups of listeners from Asturias, Spain that differ in their relationship with the languages present in their communities: Spanish, the national majority language, and Asturian, the regional minority language. The responses of 165 participants from the Nalón Valley (a mining area in the region) were compared with those of 156 listeners from Gijón (the largest urban area) as they categorized words containing synthesized productions of Spanish [o] and Asturian [u] in a task that combined binary forced-choice identification and visual priming. The results of a …

Dental Care Utilization Among Sexual And Gender Minority Individuals, Ishita Singh, Oladipo Afolayan, Sarah S Jackson, Irene Tamí-Maury

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Objectives: Sexual and gender minority (SGM) individuals can experience notable health disparities, including higher HIV prevalence, social isolation, substance abuse, lack of culturally competent providers, and poorer health outcomes compared to heterosexuals due to stigma and discrimination. This study aims to identify predictors of dental care utilization across sexual minorities using the 2023 TEXAS PRIDE Survey.

Methods: We analyzed data from 517 SGM individuals, assessing sociodemographic characteristics, health behaviors, and recent medical and dental visits. Multivariable logistic regression identified predictors of dental care utilization (i.e., a dental visit in the past year).

Results: Among sexual orientation groups, reported dental care …

Improving Workplace Satisfaction And Staff Retention Among Nurses In A Staffing Resource Pool, Amy Harper, Amy Roscher

Creating Healthy Work Environments (CHWE)

This quality improvement project assessed how simple engagement strategies impacted job satisfaction and retention rates among resource nurses. Results showed exceedingly positive feedback, improved satisfaction, and a remarkable decrease in turnover. Findings suggest simple, low-cost interventions can enhance connection and retention among staffing resource nurses.

Research Matters: Problem-Setting: A Research Reflection Process, Merinda Kaye Hensley

Communications in Information Literacy

In this inaugural “Research Matters” column, Merinda Kaye Hensley introduces problem-setting as an intentional research reflection process inspired by instructional design. This three-pronged approach invites librarians to examine their research agendas by surfacing prior knowledge, identifying bottlenecks, and creating an assumptions inventory. By interrogating what we think we know and where we struggle in doing research related to information literacy, problem-setting reframes our research processes as a generative, inquiry-driven practice. Drawing on an example from her own research agenda, investigating undergraduate researchers’ understandings of the publication process, Hensley demonstrates how reflective problem-setting can unstick thinking, sharpen questions and energize scholarly …

The Martha Wright-Reed Act: How The Fcc Took One Step Forward For Communication Equality For Deaf Individuals In Correctional Facilities And How It Could Be Expanded, Ashley Seebold

Seattle University Law Review

For decades, phone companies preyed on incarcerated individuals and their loved ones due to the lack of regulation of jail phone calls.2 In 2021, the average cost of a fifteen-minute jail phone call was about $3.3 In 2022, the average cost rose to $5.74, while some individuals faced an extreme charge of $24.82 for the same amount of time.4 In the early 2000s, consumer advocate and concerned grandmother Martha Wright-Reed called upon the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to fix the imbalance so she could speak to her incarcerated grandson.5 Eventually, in 2023, the FCC answered her call to action and …

Cal Poly Rodeo Program, Keith J. Johnson

Agricultural Education: Graduate Internship Reports

The purpose of this project was to evaluate and improve livestock welfare practices within the Cal Poly Rodeo Program while supporting the program's core values of student success, western heritage, and program excellence. Livestock play a critical role in collegiate rodeo by providing educational opportunities, athletic competition, and hands-on learning experiences for students. As public awareness of animal welfare continues to increase, rodeo programs must demonstrate responsible stewardship and ethical animal management practices.

This project assessed current livestock management procedures, identified areas for improvement, and implemented educational and operational strategies designed to enhance animal health and welfare. Key performance indicators …

Global Youth Development: Challenges And Remedies, Raymond Chimezie

Faculty Publications and Presentations

Young people have enormous potential for growth and innovation, but not all have access to resources and opportunities to explore, achieve their dreams, and contribute immensely to society. Absence or limited opportunities and resources pose great challenges to young people’s aspirations. Through a review of literature and study of some countries young people globally face challenges, though at varying degrees like unemployment, limited access to healthcare, social services, and education; lack of professional support, skills acquisition and retraining, and political exclusion; judicial inequity, loneliness, and poor parenting. There still exist policies, structures, or regulations that encourage racial and ethnic or …

Monika Leszczynska, Monika Leszczynska

Faculty CVs

No abstract provided.

Transformational Leadership And Financial Sustainability Of American Fastfood Nonfranchise Restaurants, Amar Verma

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

No abstract provided.

Weaning Stress Induced Alterations To The Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Thyroid And -Adrenal Axes In Swine, Isabel B. Walpole, Alyssa A. Smith, Kaylyn G. Rudy, Dayeon Jeon, J. Scott Radcliffe, J. Alex Pasternak

Animal and Food Sciences Faculty Publications

Combined modulation of the hypothalamic–pituitary–thyroid (HPT) and hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) axes is known to play a critical role in maintaining physiological stability in response to stress. In this study, stress induced modulation of these axes was examined using 20 pigs/treatment either weaned (WN), weaned with feed/water restriction 9 h (FR), transported 9 h (TRANS), or remaining with sow (SOS) and euthanized at 32 or 56 h post-weaning. Serum cortisol, thyroxine (T4), and triiodothyronine (T3) were measured before weaning and after 24, 32, and 56 h with no difference in cortisol concentrations among treatments at any timepoint. However, both T3 and T4 …

Feasibility And Acceptability Of A Mobile App And Wearable Device For Collecting Mental Health Survey And Passively Sensed Data Among Health Care Workers In Kenya: Mixed Methods Pilot Study, Linda Khakali, Andrew Aballa, Dorcas G. Mwigereri, Willie Njoroge, Rachel Maina, Amos Bunde, Peris Musitia, Moses Nyongesa, James Orwa, Jasmit Shah, Anthony Ngugi, Lukoye Atwoli, Amina Abubakar, Zul Merali

Brain and Mind Institute

Background: Mobile apps and wearable devices may help to facilitate early detection of mental health conditions by providing objective, real-time data to supplement other forms of feedback and diagnoses. Few studies have investigated the acceptability and feasibility of using a mobile app to track survey- and wearable-based data in mental health research in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Objective: This pilot study evaluated the feasibility and acceptability of using a mobile app and wearables to capture mental health–based survey data and passively sensed data among Kenyan health care workers.

Methods: A mixed methods study was conducted among health care workers …

The Wake Of Addiction: Pharmacological Strategies For Sleep Disturbances In Stimulant Use Disorders, A Systematic Review, Isabella G Bourtin, Douglas J Calvillo, Jessica C Badawi, Joy M Schmitz, Scott D Lane, Jin Ho Yoon, Heather E Webber

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background: A systematic review was conducted following PRISMA guidelines to identify human studies investigating pharmacological interventions and reported sleep outcomes among individuals with CUD or MUD.

Methods: PubMed and APA PsycInfo were searched from inception to January 2025 and risk of bias was assessed. Articles were included if they included human participants with either cocaine or methamphetamine dependence, administered a pharmacological treatment, and reported night-time sleep as an outcome using at least one rigorous measurement tool. Articles were excluded if they included animals, did not include pharmacological intervention (e.g., supplements or behavioral treatments), or only assessed baseline sleep or if …

Paying For Participation: Equitable Compensation Models For Community Co-Researchers, Jamie Zimmerman, Prabhneet Girn

The Foundation Review

Community-engaged research is increasingly central to philanthropic practice, yet funders rarely provide guidance for compensating community members who participate as co-researchers. This gap is especially pronounced for youth, who often face administrative, legal, and developmental constraints that complicate what “fair pay” looks like in practice.

This article presents findings from a mixed-methods comparative case study of three youth participatory action-research projects involving 44 youth ages 16–24 across varied organizational settings. Data were collected through youth surveys, focus groups, staff interviews, financial analysis, and document review.

Findings show that each model carries distinct trade-offs related to feasibility, transparency, and administrative capacity, …

Entre La Magia Y La Carga: Género, Trauma Y Otredad En Encanto, Sergio García Cabezas, Ángel Serrano Valverde

GDI. Revista de investigación de Género, Diseño e Innovación

Este artículo analiza la película Encanto (Disney, 2021) desde una perspectiva de género, memoria y representación, con el objetivo de desentrañar cómo los personajes femeninos encarnan presiones sociales y culturales que trascienden la narrativa fantástica. A partir de un enfoque cualitativo basado en el análisis narrativo y semiótico, se examinan cuatro figuras centrales: Luisa, como metáfora de la sobrecarga física y emocional; Isabela, como encarnación de la prisión de la perfección estética; Mirabel, como representación de la invisibilización y la otredad; y Abuela Alma, como símbolo de la transmisión transgeneracional del trauma. Junto a ellas, los principales símbolos de la …

Oxytocin Dynamics And Synchrony In Mother-Child Dyads: Long-Term Neuroendocrine Effects Of Maternal Institutionalization, Olga V Burenkova, Ekaterina M Shurdova, Victoria Manasevich, Marina Norkina, Polina E Pashkina, Aleksei A Podturkin, Alena Vodneva, Marina A Zhukova, Elena L Grigorenko

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Early institutional care (IC; orphanage) is a severe form of early psychosocial deprivation with documented long-term effects on social and caregiving functioning. Despite longstanding interest in oxytocin (OT) as a key neuroendocrine modulator of affiliative behavior and stress, OT dynamics and synchrony during mother-child interaction among mothers with IC history remain poorly understood. To our knowledge, this is the first study to characterize maternal and child OT responses and dyadic OT covariation in this population. We measured salivary OT in mothers with IC history and mothers raised in biological family care (BFC), and in their children, at baseline and after …

Beyond Weight Loss: Effects Of Trx Suspension Training Combined With Caloric Restriction On Thyroid Function And Mental Well-Being In Obese Hypothyroid Women, Siavash Naddafha, Christopher B. Taber

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Background: The rate of metabolism decreases in hypothyroid patients; hypothyroidism is associated with body mass increases; due to this and other factors, depression, anxiety, and stress increase, which, alongside the disease state and psychological problems, causes the quality of life to suffer. Objectives: The purpose of this research is to investigate the effect of caloric restriction along with TRX exercise on body mass, thyroid hormones, and psychological measures in obese and overweight women with hypothyroidism. Methods: 34 women aged 18–50 with hypothyroidism and a body mass index above 25 participated in this study. They were divided into three groups: a …

Intellectual Play And Its Relationship To Teacher Self-Efficacy, Gregory William Kile

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study set out to explore what can be done to improve outcomes for students in Indiana public schools and beyond by exploring ways in which educational leaders might be able to increase levels of teacher self-efficacy in their existing staff. It looked specifically at intellectual play, defined as the behaviors associated with metacognition, play, and innovation, and analyzed its relationship with teacher self-efficacy. Student achievement and overall success in school is critically important to them as individuals and to our society as a whole. If there are innovative ways to improve those outcomes for students, they should be explored. …

Well-Being Of University Students In Singapore, Tina Li Yi Ng, Andree Hartanto, William Tov

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Singapore provides an insightful case study for university student well-being due to its national culture of competitiveness. Amid a meritocratic society that valorizes academic success as the path to securing one’s future (Ho et al., 1998), educational attainment is central to Singaporean university students’ well-being (Inter-University Network, 2022). In response to Singapore’s increasing incidence of mental health challenges among young adults (Ministry of Health Singapore, 2022), the government and higher education institutes have sought to destigmatize mental health and improve accessibility to related resources. In this chapter, we review the literature on the well-being of Singaporean university students. We situate …

From Review To Synthesis: A Step-By-Step Methodological Guide To Systematic Reviews And Multilevel Meta-Analyses, Meilan Hu, Paye Shin Koh, Xun Ci Soh, Andree Hartanto, Nadyanna M. Majeed

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

We provide a step-by-step guide on conducting a quantitative systematic review (i.e., meta-analysis) using the open-source programming language R, as well as conducting a multilevel meta-analysis, in contexts where effect sizes are non-independent (e.g., multiple studies from the same lab). Quantitative systematic reviews offer researchers a method for synthesizing large bodies of literature, helping clarify inconsistent findings, identify research gaps, and refine theoretical models. However, existing tutorials often assume prior knowledge and/or experience, often overlooking foundational concepts. To address this gap, a comprehensive walkthrough of the systematic review process is presented, covering pre-registration, literature search and retrieval, screening, risk of …

The Emerging Roles Of Ai In Self-Directed Stress Management: Systematic Review, Mary Kamillah Grace Reyes, Shauna Sha Min Teo, Andree Hartanto

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Background: Stress is widespread and carries substantial mental health, social, and economic burdens. Yet, access to clinician-led stress management remains constrained by service capacity, cost, and stigma. In response, artificial intelligence (AI)–enabled tools have rapidly proliferated as scalable, self-directed options. However, evidence on how these systems support stress management outside formal clinical settings remains fragmented. Objective: This systematic review aimed to synthesize empirical evidence on how AI-enabled technologies are used for self-directed stress management. We mapped the emerging functions of these tools, the psychological frameworks informing their design, the populations and settings studied, and the outcomes reported. Methods: We conducted …

Ai Fatigue In Human–Ai Interaction: Conceptual Framework, Scale Development And Validation, And Associations With Ai Engagement, Gabriel R. Lau, K. T. A. Sandeeshwara Kasturiratna, Adalia Y. H. Goh, Eddie M. W. Tong, Andree Hartanto

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Emerging from the accelerating pace of AI development, user fatigue arising from prolonged human–AI interaction has become an increasing concern in public discourse. This growing attention underscores the need to clarify why sustained engagement with AI systems can generate psychophysiological strain and how such exhaustion manifests in users. The present research develops a conceptual framework for AI fatigue and introduces the 15-item AI Fatigue Scale as a validated tool for examining its correlates. Across four studies with 717 participants, we generated and content-validated an item pool, identified and confirmed a four-factor (cognitive, emotional, physical, behavioural) higher-order model. The scale demonstrated …

Dementia, Advance Directives, And Second-Order Volitions, Rand Hirmiz

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

This paper contributes to the ongoing debate over the authority of advance directives in cases where patients with dementia express desires that conflict with their earlier wishes. Drawing on Harry Frankfurt’s concept of second-order volitions, I argue that the preferences of the pre-dementia self (the “then-self”) should, in most cases, take precedence over those of the post-dementia self (the “now-self”) –  particularly in instances where the now-self has lost the capacity to form second-order volitions and is no longer able to meaningfully repudiate prior values and commitments.

Durable Benefits Of Learning-By-Teaching For Research Question Generation Performance: A Field Experiment, Stephen Wee Hun Lim, Sarah Shi Hui Wong, Piyawan Visessuvanapoom

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Generating good questions is central to scientific inquiry. How can we improve this skill in classrooms? This field experiment showed that teaching others enhances students’ ability to generate higher-order research questions that create new knowledge. Whereas learning-by-teaching often involves delivering face-to-face or video-recorded lectures, we tested its efficient implementation via writing a verbatim (i.e., word-for-word) teaching script, exactly as how one would orate a lecture. In a research and statistical methods course, 199 undergraduates studied statistical concepts by writing verbatim teaching scripts or study notes. One month later, students’ long-term learning was assessed on a high-stakes test, whereby they explained …

Spying The Lie: Insider Threat Prevention In National Security, Jazma M. Parker

Journal of Strategic Security

Insider threats pose significant risks to critical assets within the United States. The US intelligence community has already experienced the consequences of insider compromise, such as the unauthorized release of classified material to WikiLeaks and foreign adversaries. Traditional mitigation strategies have struggled to keep pace with the evolving threat landscape. This article recommends updated interventions to detect and prevent insider threats within the Department of Defense and the Intelligence Community. A review of current research and best practices reveals three targeted strategies. First, organizations must prioritize the detection and reporting of anomalous behaviors that often precede insider incidents. Achieving this …

Escalation By Algorithm, Restraint By Architecture: Pakistan’S Military Ai Divergence, Sajjad Ahmed, Ahmad Nizar Yaakub, Asma Javed

Journal of Strategic Security

Debates on military artificial intelligence (AI) remain skewed toward great power dynamics, oscillating between techno-optimist celebrations of speed and techno-pessimist warnings of collapse. This binary overlooks how middle powers, operating under nuclearized rivalry and asymmetric sanction risk, embed restraint into organizational and technical practice. This article develops Systems Restrained Realism (SRR), a framework that extends defensive realism into the machine age by theorizing restraint as a deliberate doctrinal posture rather than a symptom of incapacity. Using Pakistan as a critical case, the study draws on expert interviews, procurement manuals, and UN submissions to demonstrate how restraint is operationalized through latency …

Youtube As A Tool For Digital Diplomacy And Strategic Security: A Comparative Analysis Of Russia And Kazakhstan, Bekzat Baktybekovna Baktybekova, Elmira Kagazbaeva, Botagoz Ali

Journal of Strategic Security

In the context of growing competition in the information space, digital diplomacy is gaining key importance for the strategic security of states. This study analyzes how Russia and Kazakhstan use the YouTube platform to promote their foreign policy narratives, shape the image of the state, and strengthen digital sovereignty. Based on a qualitative analysis of 60 videos (30 for each country) published by official government channels between 2020 and 2024, differences in strategies, visual codes, tonality, and patterns of interaction with the audience were identified. The Russian approach is characterized by an aggressive narrative, antagonism to Western structures, and a …

The Role Of Special Services In Providing National Information Security, Volodymyr Artemov, Alexander Rusnak, Viktor Trepak, Grygorii Ostafiichuk, Alexandr Kalinin

Journal of Strategic Security

The growing dependence of states on digital infrastructures has elevated national information security to a matter of strategic importance. This study examines the role of special services (intelligence agencies) in protecting against cyber threats, focusing on their legal, operational, and technological functions. Using a combination of comparative legal analysis, case law review, expert surveys, and statistical modelling across 20 countries, the research highlights both strengths and limitations of current approaches. The findings demonstrate that states with clear and specific legislation on intelligence and cybersecurity achieve a 26% higher rate of preventive success than those with ambiguous frameworks. Strong judicial oversight …

Beyond The Shelf: How Reallocating Shelf Space To Emerging Brands Enhances Store Performance Through Dynamic Brand-Level Effects, Jesse Core, Ho Kim

Journal of Applied Marketing Theory

This study examines the effects of reallocating shelf space from established to emerging brands in the flavored malt beverage category, a fast-moving, impulse-driven product category. Using a 13-week field experiment in 16 U.S. grocery stores (six treated, ten control), we reallocated one shelf facing from an established to an emerging brand for four weeks before reverting the shelves to their original configuration. Then we analyzed weekly SKU-level data on sales with fixed-effects panel regressions. Results show that the shelf-space reallocation increased category sales by 21.2% during treatment and 27.6% after reversion, revealing persistent gains. At the brand level, emerging brands …