Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Extractive Research Slide Generation Using Windowed Labeling Ranking, Athar Sefid, Prasenjit Mitra, Jian Wu, C. Lee Giles

Computer Science Faculty Publications

Presentation slides generated from original research papers provide an efficient form to present research innovations. Manually generating presentation slides is labor-intensive. We propose a method to automatically generates slides for scientific articles based on a corpus of 5000 paper-slide pairs compiled from conference proceedings websites. The sentence labeling module of our method is based on SummaRuNNer, a neural sequence model for extractive summarization. Instead of ranking sentences based on semantic similarities in the whole document, our algorithm measures the importance and novelty of sentences by combining semantic and lexical features within a sentence window. Our method outperforms several baseline methods …

Systematizing Confidence In Open Research And Evidence (Score), Nazanin Alipourfard, Beatrix Arendt, Daniel M. Benjamin, Noam Benkler, Michael Bishop, Mark Burstein, Martin Bush, James Caverlee, Yiling Chen, Chae Clark, Anna Dreber Almenberg, Timothy M. Errington, Fiona Fidler, Nicholas Fox, Aaron Frank, Hannah Fraser, Scott Friedman, Ben Gelman, James Gentile, Jian Wu, Et Al., Score Collaboration

Computer Science Faculty Publications

Assessing the credibility of research claims is a central, continuous, and laborious part of the scientific process. Credibility assessment strategies range from expert judgment to aggregating existing evidence to systematic replication efforts. Such assessments can require substantial time and effort. Research progress could be accelerated if there were rapid, scalable, accurate credibility indicators to guide attention and resource allocation for further assessment. The SCORE program is creating and validating algorithms to provide confidence scores for research claims at scale. To investigate the viability of scalable tools, teams are creating: a database of claims from papers in the social and behavioral …

Automating Autism: Disability, Discourse, And Artificial Intelligence, Os Keyes

The Journal of Sociotechnical Critique

As Artificial Intelligence (AI) systems shift to interact with new domains and populations, so does AI ethics: a relatively nascent subdiscipline that frequently concerns itself with questions of “fairness” and “accountability.” This fairness-centred approach has been criticized for (amongst other things) lacking the ability to address discursive, rather than distributional, injustices. In this paper I simultaneously validate these concerns, and work to correct the relative silence of both conventional and critical AI ethicists around disability, by exploring the narratives deployed by AI researchers in discussing and designing systems around autism. Demonstrating that these narratives frequently perpetuate a dangerously dehumanizing model …

Designing For The One-Shot: Building Consensus On Design Processes For Academic Librarians, Kirsten Hostetler

STEMPS Theses & Dissertations

Academic librarians have long been responsible for teaching information literacy competencies on college campuses, even as many are hesitant to accept the title of teacher. With inadequate instructional design preparation and one-shot sessions serving as a popular, if limited, instructional medium, librarians’ design processes are often developed on the job and infrequently explored in the literature. Previous research has examined specific design models and instructional strategies, but no studies were found that determined how academic librarians select and implement these design decisions within the unique context of a one-shot.

The purpose of this study was to describe academic librarians’ design …

Attentional Control In Young Drivers: Does Training Help Or Hinder Bottom-Up Processing In A Dynamic Driving Environment?, Sarah Elizabeth Yahoodik

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

Anticipating hidden hazards on the road is a critical skill for safe driving, one that many young and novice drivers lack. Training programs are shown to improve hazard anticipation performance in young drivers, but whether these training effects persist in the presence of salient and potentially distracting stimuli remains relatively less explored. In this study, we examined whether the effectiveness of an existing driving training program, Risk Awareness Perception Training (RAPT), on increasing latent hazard anticipation on the road persisted with extraneous bottom-up stimuli in the road environment. Forty-one young drivers, aged 18-21, completed a series of driving scenarios with …

Nursing Students’ Knowledge And Attitudes About Pain Management And Opioids, Hedieh Hatami Sirjani

Health Services Research Dissertations

Statement of the problem: healthcare professionals’ knowledge of using opioids for pain management safely is critical in preventing opioid abuse and overdose. Undergraduate curricula of health professional schools, including undergraduate nursing programs, need to improve and adopt a comprehensive education regarding this issue.

Method: the first project was a systematic analysis of the literature regarding the educational interventions’ impact on healthcare professional knowledge and practice behavior regarding prescription opioids. The second project was a qualitative study of nursing students to explore their experience, self-efficacy, and knowledge of prescription opioid use for pain management and whether they feel the need for …

The Relationship Between Virginia Title 1 Spending And Minority Male Graduation Rates: A Longitudinal Study, Anastacio B. Marin

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Theses & Dissertations

Over the past two decades, education funding in the United States has been redistributed to schools that lack sufficient financial resources to meet the needs of students (Boyle & Lee, 2015). The No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2001, the reauthorized Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), was enacted to increase academic accountability and achievement throughout the nation’s public-school systems. Nationwide, there is a persistent achievement gap between historically marginalized students and their affluent peers. This gap is evident in the Commonwealth of Virginia when measuring student proficiency on End of Course Assessments (EOCAs). For schools serving a large …

Stratified Security Communities: Transatlantic Distrust And Identity Divergence, Afra Maike Herr

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

With mounting pressure by the United States directly and through their strategic shift and slow abdication of leadership towards Asia and away from the transatlantic community, European states have growing incentive to cooperate more strongly and integrate their defense and security efforts. The absence of such a trend of integration points to internal barriers to growing cooperation countering the external dynamic. Utilizing the theory of security communities, this thesis explores German, French, and British understanding of leadership, defense, and their respective public opinions. Focusing on the security identities of all three nations and their visions for the community as well …

The Relationship Between The Earning Of Career And Technical Industry Credentials And The Virginia Economy, Anjanette Mcfadden Hendricks

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Theses & Dissertations

Nationally, the labor market is calling out for workers to fill the increasing number of job vacancies, but those qualified, skilled, and able to fill them are limited in supply or retiring in large numbers. As America’s key industries offer high salaries in return for candidates with the necessary skills and credentials to fill their vacancies, the skills learned and third-party industry credentials earned in secondary Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs seem to make a perfect fit for the student, employer, and the economy. However, unlike the favored US educational model of the four-year degree, the continued outdated perception …

The Effects Of Security Framing, Time Pressure, And Brand Familiarity On Risky Mobile Application Downloads, Cody Parker

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

The current study examined the effects of security system framing, time pressure, and brand familiarity on mobile application download behaviors, with an emphasis on risk taking. According to the Prospect Theory, people tend to engage in irrational decision making, and make qualitatively different decisions when information is framed in terms of gains and losses (i.e., the framing effect). Past research has used this framing effect to guide the design of a risk display for mobile applications (apps), with the purpose of communicating the potential risks and minimizing insecure app selections. Time pressure has been shown to influence the framing effect …

Climate Change Games As Boundary Objects: Fostering Dialogic Communication Within Stakeholder Engagement, Megan L. Mckittrick

English Theses & Dissertations

Rising waters and the increasing devastation of flood events make coastal resilience a significant issue in the Hampton Roads region of Virginia, particularly in the city of Norfolk. Enhancing resilience requires ongoing stakeholder engagement designed to invite dialogue while encouraging cross-jurisdictional collaboration and comprehensive problem-solving. Climate change games have been employed to support these endeavors. This dissertation provides a response to the following research questions: 1) What is the origin of the climate change game genre? 2) Why are key stakeholders in coastal resilience using climate change games? And 3) how do these games operate for these key stakeholders? To …

Enhanced Traffic Incident Analysis With Advanced Machine Learning Algorithms, Zhenyu Wang

Computational Modeling & Simulation Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Traffic incident analysis is a crucial task in traffic management centers (TMCs) that typically manage many highways with limited staff and resources. An effective automatic incident analysis approach that can report abnormal events timely and accurately will benefit TMCs in optimizing the use of limited incident response and management resources. During the past decades, significant efforts have been made by researchers towards the development of data-driven approaches for incident analysis. Nevertheless, many developed approaches have shown limited success in the field. This is largely attributed to the long detection time (i.e., waiting for overwhelmed upstream detection stations; meanwhile, downstream stations …

Defying The Odds: The Resilience Of African American Youth In The Face Of Differential Treatment In The Classroom, Frank R. Wood Jr.

Sociology & Criminal Justice Theses & Dissertations

In the education system, African American youth are confronted by deficit-based narratives of intellectual inferiority and defiance that inform teaching pedagogies, curricula, and classroom management strategies, such as school discipline practices. In light of available research documenting the deleterious effects of low expectations and treatment by teachers on the academic outcomes of African American youth, this body of knowledge also underscores the importance of racial socialization and positive perceptions of school bonding in safeguarding the academic achievement and success of African American youth. However, the lack of criminological inquiry into the complex associations between perceptions of differential treatment by teachers, …

A Parametric Analysis Of A Turbofan Engine With An Auxiliary Bypass Combustion Chamber – The Turboaux Engine, Kaleab Fetahi

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

A parametric study of a novel turbofan engine with an auxiliary combustion chamber, nicknamed the TurboAux engine is presented. The TurboAux engine is conceived as an extension of a low-bypass turbofan engine with an auxiliary bypass annular combustion chamber around the core stream. The study presented in this thesis is motivated by the need to facilitate clean secondary burning of fuel at temperatures higher than conventionally realized, from air exiting the low-pressure compressor. The parametric study starts by analyzing the turbojet engine and its performance with and without an afterburner segment attached. Following that, the conventional turbofan and its mixing …

Status And Factors Associated With Healthcare Choices Among Older Adults And Children In An Urbanized County: A Cross-Sectional Study In Kunshan, China, Yuxi Zhao, Linqi Mao, Jun Lu, Qi Zhang, Gang Chen, Mei Sun, Fengshui Chang, Xiaohong Li

Community & Environmental Health Faculty Publications

As important unit for regional health planning, urbanized counties are facing challenges because of internal migrants and aging. This study took urbanized counties in China as cases and two key populations as objects to understand different populations’ intentions of choosing corresponding health service resources and to provide support for resource allocation. A cross-sectional study was conducted in Kunshan, a highly urbanized county in China, in 2016, among older adults aged 60 or over and children aged 0–6. Multinomial logistics models were used to identify the factors associated with healthcare choices. In this study, we found that income, distance of the …

The Drug Overdose Epidemic Seen Through Different Lenses, Barbara Blake Gonzalez, Richard Cebula, James V. Koch

Economics Faculty Publications

The age-adjusted death rate from drug overdoses in the United States per 100,000 individuals rose from 6.8 in 2010 to 17.1 in 2018. The most common explanation offered is the deaths of despair hypothesis. We identify additional factors that have contributed to the rise in drug overdose deaths in cities and counties. Methods: We utilize a period fixed effects model with a multi-variate panel data set for 94 independent cities and counties in Virginia for the period 2008 through 2017. Results: The drug overdose mortality rate is: (a) an increasing function (prob.

Wicked Ideas For Wicked Problems: Marine Debris And The Complexity Of Governance, Dawn Helene Driesbach

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

Myriad challenges regarding earth's common spaces, those unregulated by sovereign state authorities, mount and intensify as resources diminish and competition for commercial, scientific and security advantages increases; the pollution and degradation of those spaces simultaneously expands. Threats to the global commons complicate efforts to achieve international consensus which impedes attempts to develop effective governance. As an example, marine debris is a growing problem and is an existential threat to the global commons.

This dissertation aims to characterize marine debris as a wicked problem and explores the complexity of governance in the global ocean commons by answering two fundamental questions. Under …

Shifting Sources Of Humanitarian Aid: The Importance Of Network Resiliency And Donor Diversification, Mackenzie Marie Clark

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

As instances of forced displacement arise and become increasingly large and prolonged around the world, large influxes of humanitarian aid have become critical in assisting host countries with crisis response. The funding required to meet the immediate, emergency needs presented by a refugee situation is filled primarily by governmental humanitarian contributions, and more specifically, by the United States. Typically, the U.S. is integral to the structure of the networks of humanitarian aid being directed towards a humanitarian response as it is the largest donor, in most cases. However, what does this reliance on U.S. funding mean for the structural integrity …

A Rivalry Of Necessity: An Analysis Of Mechanisms Of Contention Between The Islamic Republic Of Iran And The Kingdom Of Saudi Arabia, Aras Syahmanssuri

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

The 1979 Iranian Islamic revolution that extremely concerned the Saudis leaders culminated after the overthrow of a monarchical regime of the Iranian Shah and the power rise of a theocratic Shia government led by Ayatollah Khomeini. From the early days of this revolution, Khomeini raised a unique slogan, which was “exporting the revolution” to neighboring countries. Through targeting the Shia minority in neighboring countries, this slogan highly concerned the Gulf countries including the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Examining four decades of hostility, which starts from the 1979 Islamic Revolution of Iran, this study indicates that the rivalry between the Islamic …

The Path To Victory: A Comparative Analysis Of Mena Region Countries, Negar Moayed

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

During the “Arab Spring” the Arab world witnessed a wave of uprisings. As a result of these anti-government movements, four governments of Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, and Yemen were overthrown, three governments of Bahrain, Jordan, and to some points Saudi Arabia were faced with critical difficulties, and one government ,Syria, experienced domestic war. All these happened while some other Middle Eastern countries remained stable. Yet, the remaining questions are: how did these protests emerge? How was the collective identity which is essential for the social movements created? Why were some of these movements successful in overthrowing the regime while the others …

The Role Of Traditional Knowledge In Coastal Adaptation Priorities: The Pamunkey Indian Reservation, Nicole S. Hutton, Thomas R. Allen

Political Science & Geography Faculty Publications

Coastal reservations are increasingly vulnerable to hazards exacerbated by climate change. Resources for restoration projects are limited. Storm surge, storms, tidal flooding, and erosion endanger artifacts and limit livelihoods of tribes in coastal Virginia. GIS offers a platform to increase communication between scientists, planners, and indigenous groups. The Pamunkey Indian Tribe engaged in a participatory mapping exercise to assess the role of traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) in coastal management decision-making and its capacity to address flooding. Priorities and strategies were spatially referenced using maps of potential sea level rise for 2040, 2060, and 2080, input into a resilience matrix to …

Family Communication Patterns During Recovery Maintenance: Relapse Prevention For Alcoholics & Addicts, Adam Pyecha

Communication & Theatre Arts Theses

The following thesis is research into the Family Communication Patterns (FCP) (McLeod & Chaffee, 1972) of “alcoholics and drug addicts” (ADA) with long-term recovery stages III and IV. Improving relapse rates of ADA in early recovery stage I and stage II may require knowledge about the family communication environment and family type of those ADA with extended recovery time. This is an exploratory descriptive of FCP and family typology of 81 ADA identifying as Twelve-step fellowship (TSF) members recovering from the disease of addiction (Jellinek, 1947; 1960). Data was collected via online questionnaire with adapted scales; AWARE 3.0 relapse awareness …

A Model Of Individual, Relationship, And Societal Factors And Mental Health And Well-Being In Partnered Sexual Minority Women: The Central Role Of Relationship Satisfaction, Charlotte A. Dawson

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

Sexual minority women (SMW) are at increased risk for mental health disorders, substance abuse, and physical health problems compared to heterosexual women. For heterosexual individuals, romantic relationships have been found to be protective against a variety of health issues. Less research, however, has focused on the association between romantic relationships and health in same-sex couples. The purpose of this study was to examine the potential protective nature of being in a relationship for SMW and to test a model investigating the central role of relationship satisfaction in the association between individual, relationship, and societal factors and mental health and well-being …

District Promotion Policies For Students With Disabilities: Examining Principal Interpretation And Implementation, Latoya Exum Floyd

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Theses & Dissertations

The number of students receiving special education services have steadily increased in the United States over the past decade. Students with disabilities (SWD) historically score lower on high stakes tests, and they require considerations beyond academic achievement for promotion. The growing number of SWD and accountability measures included in district promotion policies has resulted in a wide range of principal interpretation of district promotion policies. A principal’s interpretation of district promotion policies affects the district’s high school graduation and dropout rates. Therefore, unclear promotion policies can lead to inconsistent interpretation; which can lead to greater retentions and dropouts for SWD …

Air Pollution And Outdoor Recreation On Urban Trails: A Case Study Of The Elizabeth River Trail, Norfolk, Va, James E. Mccann

Human Movement Studies & Special Education Theses & Dissertations

Poor air quality represents a significant health risk, especially when recreating outdoors in urban parks and trails. It is important for managers of urban parks and trail to understand how potential visitors’ perceptions of air quality and health risks and benefits may affect visitation. The goal of this study was to investigate temporal variance in air quality along the Elizabeth River Trail, an urban trail located in Norfolk, Virginia, as well as trail users’ perceptions of air quality and of health benefits in relation to trail use. The researcher rode a bicycle with a Dylos DC1700-PM mobile air quality monitor …

Sociopolitical Crisis And The Rise Of A Social Justice Superintendent In Charlottesville, Sara Lourdes Epperly

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Theses & Dissertations

This qualitative case study examined one school superintendent’s handling of a sociopolitical crisis event over the course of its phased unfolding. A review of literature in the fields of both crisis management and social justice educational leadership supplied a conceptual lens for viewing the case. Key concepts from the crisis management literature included staged intervention, organizational learning, and transformative leadership. Key concepts from the literature of social justice educational leadership included criticality, inclusion, relationshipbuilding, and capacity-building. The study methodology involved the conduct of 17 interviews and collection of more than 100 related documents. Analysis of the data supported a series …

The Effects Of Military Sexual Trauma And Depressive Symptoms On Reintegration, Rachel L. Davies

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

Reintegration is a challenge for many veterans returning to civilian roles after military service. Difficulties range from an assortment of issues such as self-care to community participation. Military sexual trauma may be an experience that alters or changes veterans and result in difficulty in reintegration. Specifically, it was predicted that military sexual trauma would indirectly affect reintegration, via depressive symptoms. In addition, locus of control was predicted to play a role in how military sexual trauma impacts reintegration with external locus of control acting as a buffer. Participants were a cross-sectional community sample of both female veterans who reported having …

Understanding The Association Between Social Networks, College Student Alcohol Use, And Protective Behavioral Strategy Use And Beliefs, Melissa Roberts Colangelo

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

Heavy drinking and alcohol-related problems are a growing concern for American college students (Jun, Agley, Huang, & Gassman, 2015). Social networks, or peer groups, have demonstrated predictive associations with college students’ alcohol outcomes (Neighbors, Lee, Lewis, Fossos, & Larimer, 2007). Protective behavioral strategies (PBS), defined as behaviors used to reduce negative alcohol-related consequences, are often assessed as a mechanism of change and predictor of alcohol outcomes (Martens, Taylor, Damann, Page, Mowry, & Cimini, 2004). Still, the association between social networks’ and college students’ own PBS use has yet to be explored. The current study was designed to address this gap …

Concept Maps As Sites Of Rhetorical Invention: Teaching The Creative Act Of Synthesis As A Cognitive Process, Amy Lee Marie Locklear

English Theses & Dissertations

Synthesis is one of the most cognitively demanding practices novice writers must undertake, and research demonstrates that first-year students’ synthesis writing practices result in more knowledge telling rather than knowledge creation and transforming. Pedagogies used to teach synthesis often focus on developing text-building strategies but lack explicit instruction on the more cognitively demanding conceptualizing behavior. To explore alternative pedagogies and heuristics, this study looks beyond composition scholarship to incorporate studies in neuroeducation and rhetoric to define synthesis as an ongoing, generative act of cognitive invention, effectively shifting pedagogical focus from text-centered product to student-centered cognitive processes that inform development of …

An Examination Of The Relationship Among Social Services Support, Race, Ethnicity And Recidivism In Justice Involved Mothers, Ne’Shaun Janay Borden

Counseling & Human Services Theses & Dissertations

Historically, women have been ignored and minimized in criminology research and theory, leading to gaps in the literature on justice involved women. In recent years, there has been more focus on women as their rates of involvement in the justice system have increased. Previous studies have found that pathways to justice involvement are different for women and men, with women experiencing higher rates of victimization, sexual abuse and mental health concerns. Further, justice involved women are unique in that over 80% are mothers or primary caregivers for minors. General Strain Theory is used to assert that receiving support should reduce …