Digital Commons Network^™

A Multiple Case Study: Male Correctional Officers’ Experiences And Attitudes Regarding “Gender Quota” Human Resource Management Strategies In Corrections, Rebecca Jo Patterson

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The stigma of corrections being labeled as a “male” workplace is a factor in the male/female ratio gap; thus, the new question is how to bridge the gender gap. In response to this human resource managers have implemented affirmative action strategies to ensure more females were being hired and promoted in corrections. Though unofficial in most areas, some state correctional agencies incorporated “quotas” in their affirmative action HRMS. Even though ‘quota-based’ or ‘gender based’ HRMS intended to reduce or eliminate discrimination, they have linked backlash effects and stigmatization toward females and minorities when the dominant group felt it was used. …

The Perceived Influence Of The Alice Training Principles On Survivors During A Violent Critical Incident, Shawn William Collins

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

According to the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI), since 2000, there has been a significant increase in active shooter events throughout the United States. The assailants frequently chose targets or establishments with the highest mortality rates, such as schools/universities, businesses, government agencies, houses of worship, and healthcare facilities. Alert, Lockdown, Inform, Counter, and Evacuate (ALICE) is part of Navigate360’s collection of active assailant preparedness solutions, which teaches civilians how to protect themselves during Violent Critical Incidents (VCIs). The problem addressed in this study was the lack of available research regarding the effectiveness of courses, such as ALICE’s Active Shooter Response …

Taking Equity-Mindedness To The Next Level: The Equity-Minded Organization, Román Liera, Steve Desir

Department of Educational Leadership Scholarship and Creative Works

University and college leaders have an espoused interest in racial equity. In recent years, university and college leaders have invested in diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) training that focuses on developing individual attributes that reflect equity-mindedness. For example, DEI training efforts have often been focused on helping faculty develop critical race consciousness by raising their awareness of systemic racism in their routine teaching, mentoring, and hiring practices. However, in many cases, DEI training and equity change efforts primarily focus on individual-level change without critically identifying, disrupting, and transforming organizational processes and policies that perpetuate structural racism. In this paper, we …

Firefighter Staffing Model Implications On Fire Casualties And Fire Loss: Life Safety And Socio-Economic Impacts Of The Fire Service, Jeffrey Daniel Shoffner

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Fire and rescue services are considered a staple among services provided by governments to local communities. Local governments are often charged with providing these services, especially across the United States and Canada. As with any professional service, there are standards set forth in order to ensure services are adequate and provide equity to the citizens that they serve. The purpose of this dissertation will be to delve into the common staffing configurations of career fire departments across the United States and Canada, particularly related to staffing levels on fire engines and ladder trucks. Fire departments utilize various staffing models, but …

A Clinical Nurse Leader Nurse Navigator Program For Heart Failure Patients, Shanna Lantel Negron

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this integrative review is to examine the literature regarding nurse-led educational interventions, transitional care (TC) strategies for heart failure (HF) patients, nurse navigation, HF self-care, and the clinical nurse leader (CNL) role to support integrating a CNL into the care delivery model serving as a nurse navigator (NN) for adult HF patients being discharged home from the hospital. The basis for this review is to identify an innovative way to improve patient reported and clinical outcomes for the HF population which increases each year. The economic and symptom burden associated with this disease is high further enhanced …

Prenatal Educational Strategies To Increase The Duration Of Breastfeeding: An Integrative Review, Kayla Caryl Carter

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Although breastfeeding is the best source of nutrition for infants, many women in the United States of America do not breastfeed their infants. Infants should be breastfed for the first 6 months of life. Not only does this benefit the baby, but the mother as well. While prenatal education has been linked with improvements in breastfeeding rates, little research has been completed on which educational strategies are most effective. The purpose of this integrative review is to determine effective prenatal educational strategies for increasing the duration of breastfeeding. The strategies reviewed were single methods, multiple methods, and education with continued …

A Phenomenological Study That Examines The Perseverance Of Young Single Mothers Who Have Earned A College Degree, Christine Marie Kirkpatrick

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this transcendental phenomenological study is to understand perseverance in young single mothers who have earned a college degree. The theory guiding this study is Duckworth’s theory of grit since many students who complete undergraduate degrees experience barriers related to the components of grit. Participants for this study were single mothers who have completed a college degree from an institution of higher learning in central Pennsylvania by the age of thirty. Data for the study were collected utilizing one-on-one interviews, personal timelines, and focus group discussions. Data were analyzed using Moustakas’ data analysis processes, including horizonalization, reduction, and …

System And Method For Imaging Tendon Cross Sections For Detecting Voids And Other Deficiencies In Grouted External Tendons, Alberto A. Sagues, Hani Freij, David Adam Dukeman, Christopher Lewis Alexander

USF Patents

An exemplary method of indicating a condition of grout within a post-tensioned tendon involves positioning a magnet and a metallic sensing plate in close proximity to an outer surface of the post-tensioned tendon; rotating the magnet and the metallic sensing plate around the outer surface of the post-tensioned tendon; measuring an amount of magnetic forces applied to the magnet during rotation of the magnet around the post-tensioned tendon; measuring an impedance between the metallic sensing plate and metallic strands within the post-tensioned tendon during rotation of the metallic sensing plate around the post-tensioned tendon; and generating an image of a …

Supported Perovskite-Oxide Composites For Enhanced Low Temperature Thermochemical Conversion Of Co2 To Co, John Kuhn, Bryan Hare, Debtanu Maiti, Yolanda Daza, Venkat Bhethanabotla

USF Patents

Disclosed herein is a catalyst composite containing a perovskite-oxide and an oxide support, methods of preparing a catalyst composite containing a perovskite-oxide and an oxide support, and the use thereof for CO2 conversion by a reverse water gas shift chemical looping (RWGS-CL) process.

Distributed Process State And Input Estimation For Heterogeneous Active/Passive Sensor Networks, Dzung Minh Duc Tran, Tansel Yucelen, Selahattin Burak Sarsilmaz

USF Patents

Systems and methods are described for estimating a state of a process and an input to the process using a sensor network. Each sensor node in the sensor network is directly to one or more adjacent sensor nodes and indirectly coupled to the remaining sensor nodes through the one or more adjacent sensor nodes. Each sensor node iteratively calculates a new estimated state based on estimations of the state and the input to the process calculated by the sensor node in a previous iteration. The new estimated state is then adjusted based on a difference between a predicted and actual …

Geomembranes And Methods For Making And Using The Same, Yasin Kocak, Manoj K. Ram, Venkat Bhethanabotla

USF Patents

Described herein are geomembranes with improved chemical, physical, and mechanical properties. In one aspect, the geomembrane includes polyethylene, a phenolic antioxidant, a phosphite antioxidant, a hindered amine light stabilizer, and carbon black. Also described herein are methods for making the geomembranes described herein.

Neutralizing Secularism: Religious Antiliberalism And The Twentieth-Century Global Ecumenical Project, Rabiat Akande

Articles & Book Chapters

A marked feature of the contemporary U.S. constitutional landscape is the campaign by an Evangelical- Catholic coalition against the idea of secularism, understood by this alliance to mean the exclusion of religion from the state and its progressive marginalization from social life. Departing from the tendency to treat this project as a national phenomenon, this article places it within a longer global genealogy of an earlier international Christian ecumenical effort to combat secularism. The triumph of that campaign culminated in the making of Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, now considered the paradigmatic international legal provision on …

High-Latitude Kelps And Future Oceans: A Review Of Multiple Stressor Impacts In A Changing World, Veronica Farrugia Drakard, Jordan Hollarsmith, Michael Stekoll

Faculty, Staff, and Students

Kelp forests worldwide are threatened by both climate change and localized anthropogenic impacts. Species with cold-temperate, subpolar, or polar distributions are projected to experience range contractions over the coming decades, which may be exacerbated by climatic events such as marine heatwaves and increased freshwater and sediment input from rapidly contracting glaciers. The northeast Pacific has an extensive history of harvesting and cultivating kelps for subsistence, commercial, and other uses, and, therefore, declines in kelp abundance and distributional shifts will have significant impacts on this region. Gaps in our understanding of how cold-temperate kelp species respond to climate stressors have limited …

The Long Game: A Functional Cure Is Possible With Nucleoside Analogues And The Tincture Of Time, Nicholas Noverati, Vivian Yan, Jay Jun, Dina Halegoua-De Marzio, Hie-Won Hann

Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology Faculty Papers

Chronic hepatitis B is still prevalent globally. Many patients are treated for many years with nucleos(t)ide analogues to prevent the virus from actively replicating. However, although it typically requires consecutive treatment for more than 10 years, patients can achieve a functional cure from this virus. This case series presents details of functional cures in patients who received varying nucleos(t)ide therapies for an average of 15.3 years before losses of hepatitis B surface antigen and viral load were observed. It is imperative to understand that abbreviating therapy once a functional cure is achieved may be a possibility in treating patients in …

The Relevance Of Gender For Excellent Research And Innovation: An Opinion, Yvonne Galligan

Irish Journal of Academic Practice

This piece argues that the integration of sex and/or gender in research improves the quality of the research, contributes to excellence in the research process and makes the outcomes beneficial to society.

Suicide Prevention: Suicide Literacy And Its Impact On Helping Intentions, Salman Ibrahim

Electronic Theses and Dissertations Archive

Suicide is currently classified as a public health crisis due to the number of people that die by suicide each year. The majority of those that that are contemplating suicide disclose their thoughts to family and friends before mental health professionals. Non-mental health professionals can receive suicide prevention training in order to bolster their general understanding of suicide, otherwise known as suicide literacy. However, to date, there exists no research that has demonstrated a link between an individual’s level of suicide literacy and their intention to help someone at risk of suicide. To this end, we examined the association between …

Law 10/2014 Of 26 June 2014 On The Regulation, Supervision And Solvency Of Credit Institutions, Banco De Espana/Central Bank Of Spain

Documents

No abstract provided.

Lessons In Crisis Leadership From 9/11: Delineating The Constituents Of Crisis Leadership And Their Utilization In The Context Of Covid-19, Christina Nizamidou

All Works

Abstract The year 2020 was challenging and demanding for humankind. The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic compelled thousands of organizations to shift their operations online and millions of employees to work from home. Many have compared this crisis to the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, in the United States, another inconceivable incident that changed the way we think and act today. This study analyzes three leaders in the context of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, who proved to be role models of leadership during crisis situations and, thereby, have contributed to the evolution of crisis leadership. By doing so, it …

The Evolution Of The Artesh: 1980 To Present, Ryan Charles Touchstone

Masters Theses

Despite the large media coverage around Iran’s military actions, the role of the Artesh in Iran’s national security structure is often unmentioned. Looking at the evolution of the Artesh since the fall of the Shah of Iran, this study uses firsthand accounts, recent research, and governmental statements and reports to trace the Artesh’s journey to present day. It examines several battlefield successes and failures during the Iran-Iraq War to gauge the ability of the Artesh to adjust in a wartime environment. These adjustments are mixed with some valuable lessons being implemented to later battles while other important lessons remained unapplied. …

Short-Term Responses Of Soil Carbon, Nitrogen, And Microbial Biomass To Cover Crop Mixtures And Monocultures, Igor Alexandre De Souza, Amanda B. Daly, Jorg Schnecker, Nicholas D. Warren, Adalfredo Rocha Lobo Jr., Richard G. Smith, Andre Fonseca Brito, A. Stuart Grandy

Faculty Publications

Increasingly, cover crops are being adopted for the purpose of improving soil health, yet the timescale and magnitude by which living annual cover crops might modify soil chemical and biological aspects of soil health is not well understood. At the same time, there is growing interest among farmers in cover crop mixtures due to perceptions that species-rich cover crop communities will enhance soil health relative to monocultures. In a field experiment in southeast New Hampshire, we investigated how groups of cover crops grown as monocultures and mixtures for specific seasonal niches (winter/spring, summer, and fall) influenced levels of soil nitrogen …

Current Oral Hygiene And Recreational Behavioral Trends In Hiv Disease, Donald E. Mercante, Emily Guarisco, Elizabeth A. Lilly, Arni Rao, Kelly Treas, Clifford J. Beall, Zach Thompson, Ann L. Griffen, Eugene J. Leys, Jose A. Vazquez, Michael E. Hagensee, Paul L. Fidel

School of Dentistry Faculty Publications

Objective: HIV disease is evolving with more HIV+ persons experiencing a high quality of life with well-controlled viremia. We recently enrolled a large cohort of HIV+ and clinically relevant HIV− persons for oral microbiome analyses that included a questionnaire related to oral hygiene and recreational behaviors. Here, the questionnaire responses were analyzed for behavioral trends within the cohort, together with trends over time by comparison to a previous geographically centered HIV+ cohort. Methods: Data were collected by questionnaire at baseline visits as cross-sectional assessments. Multivariable analyses were conducted for associations of HIV status as well as age, race, and sex, …

Exploring The Determinants Of Organic Matter Bioavailability Through Substrate-Explicit Thermodynamic Modeling, Firnaaz Ahamed, Yaqi You, Amy Burgin, James C. Stegen, Timothy D. Scheibe, Hyun-Seob Song

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Faculty Publications

Microbial decomposition of organic matter (OM) in river corridors is a major driver of nutrient and energy cycles in natural ecosystems. Recent advances in omics technologies enabled high-throughput generation of molecular data that could be used to inform biogeochemical models. With ultrahigh-resolution OM data becoming more readily available, in particular, the substrate-explicit thermodynamic modeling (SXTM) has emerged as a promising approach due to its ability to predict OM degradation and respiration rates from chemical formulae of compounds. This model implicitly assumes that all detected organic compounds are bioavailable, and that aerobic respiration is driven solely by thermodynamics. Despite promising demonstrations …

Exploring The Pre-Service Teachers Use Of Mobile Augmented Reality In Education Through An Extended Technology Acceptance Model, Mohamad Nizar Nur Nabihah, Rahmat Khairezan

Research Publications (2021 to 2025)

The popularity of Mobile Augmented Reality (MAR) has increased in recent years. However, the potential remains underexplored in education due to the massive penetration in the entertainment industry. It promotes flexibility in learning as well as enriches students’ learning experiences. Therefore, this study aims to enhance the use of MAR and formulates a model of MAR usage for pre-service teachers. Since there are limitations in achieving existing MAR technology resource, the present study developed a MAR technology, namely Mobile Augmented Reality Learning Cardiovascular (MARLCardio). In the context of this study, MARLCardio serves as an experimental tool to determine the acceptance …

Oxytocin Attenuates Yohimbine-Induced Reinstatement Of Alcohol-Seeking In Female Rats Via The Central Amygdala, Samantha M. Wilfur, Elizabeth C. Mcneely, Aliya A. Lackan, Cassie P. Bowers, Kah-Chung Leong

Psychology Faculty Research

Alcohol use disorder is a significant public health concern, further exacerbated by an increased risk of relapse due to stress. In addition, factors such as biological sex may contribute to the progression of addiction, as females are especially susceptible to stress-induced relapse. While there have been many studies surrounding potential pharmacological interventions for male stress-induced ethanol reinstatement, research regarding females is scarce. Recently, the neuropeptide oxytocin has gained interest as a possible pharmacological intervention for relapse. The present study examines how oxytocin affects yohimbine-induced reinstatement of ethanol-seeking in female rats using a self-administration paradigm. Adult female rats were trained to …

Situational Analysis Of Gold Processing Practices At Artisanal And Small-Scale Gold Mining In Tanzania, Sospeter Maganga

Tanzania Journal of Engineering and Technology (TJET)

This study reports the state-of-art situation of gold processing practices at artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) in Tanzania. It involved literature review, document review of public domain reports, and field survey during data collection. This was followed by screening of literature, reports, and field data relevant to the study topic. Further, the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and challenges (SWOC) analysis of ASGM was conducted and discussed. The study indicates that ASGM subsector in Tanzania continues growing with people involved directly in ASGM ranging between 1 to 1.5 million. Further, the study indicates that ASGM in Tanzania contributes about 90% of …

Some New Techniques And Their Applications In The Theory Of Distributions, Kevin Kellinsky-Gonzalez

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation is a compilation of three articles in the theory of distributions. Each essay focuses on a different technique or concept related to distributions.

The focus of the first essay is the concept of distributional point values. Distribu- tions are sometimes called generalized functions, as they share many similarities with ordi- nary functions, with some key differences. Distributional point values, among other things, demonstrate that distributions are even more akin to ordinary functions than one might think.

The second essay concentrates on two major topics in analysis, namely asymptotic expansions and the concept of moments. There are many variations …

How Do International Students In A University In The United States Relate Their Cultural Identity To Fashion Trends, Kharen Alejandra Martinez Murcia

Masters Theses

International students who move to the United States must endure the challenge of adapting to a new culture. Understanding different aspects of how the adaptation process works is essential to create better avenues to connect with these students as they go through the acculturation process. This research focuses on how international students communicate their cultural identity through clothing choices. This study followed a qualitative method through in-depth interviews with ten participants from eight countries. Participants answered questions regarding motivation, cultural adaptation, clothing adaptation, and cultural identity and expression. Findings show that participants consider clothing communicates something about themselves and their …

Self-Beliefs, Transactive Memory Systems, And Collective Identification In Teams: Articulating The Socio-Cognitive Underpinnings Of Cohumain, Gabriela Cuconato

Student Scholarship

Socio-cognitive theory conceptualizes individual contributors as both enactors of cognitive processes and targets of a social context's determinative influences. The present research investigates how contributors’ metacognition or self-beliefs, combine with others’ views of themselves to inform collective team states related to learning about other agents (i.e., transactive memory systems) and forming social attachments with other agents (i.e., collective team identification), both important teamwork states that have implications for team collective intelligence. We test the predictions in a longitudinal study with 78 teams. Additionally, we provide interview data from industry experts in human–artificial intelligence teams. Our findings contribute to an emerging …

Study On The Effectiveness Of Environmental Regulations And Its Spatial Spillover In China’S High-Quality Human Habitat Cities, Chuansheng Wu, Weixuan Fan, Lingling Qi, Levent Kutlu

School of Economics and Finance Faculty Publications

High-quality human habitat cities in developing countries are facing new urban environmental problems as a result of the significant resource footprints of wealthy urban populations in the process of rapid urbanization. These areas are desperate for solutions to the coexistence of old and new pollutants, as well as inorganic and organic compounds. The authors of this study propose a comprehensive framework and methods for evaluating the effectiveness of environmental regulation in high-quality human habitat cities for a state-of-the-art path of improving environmental governance and optimizing environmental policies in these regions. This paper aims to analyze the effectiveness of environmental regulation …

Guiding Post-Hospital Recovery By 'What Matters:' Implementation Of Patient Priorities Identification In A Va Community Living Center, Erica Martinez

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: Patient priorities care (PPC) is an effective age-friendly health systems (AFHS) approach to aligning care with goals derived from 'what matters'. The purpose of this quality improvement program was to evaluate the fidelity and feasibility of the health priorities identification (HPI) process in VA Community Living Centers (CLC).

METHODS: PPC experts worked with local CLC staff to guide the integration of HPI into the CLC and utilized a Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) model for this quality improvement project. PPC experts reviewed health priorities identification (HPI) encounters and interdisciplinary team (IDT) meetings for fidelity to the HPI process of PPC. Qualitative interviews …