Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Determining The Effect Of Mission Design And Point Cloud Filtering On The Quality And Accuracy Of Sfm Photogrammetric Products Derived From Suas Imagery, Daniel Shay Hostens

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

This research investigates the influence that various flight plan and mission design strategies for collecting small unmanned aerial system (sUAS) imagery have on the accuracy of the resulting three-dimensional models to find an optimal method to achieve a result. This research also explores the effect that using gradual selection to reduce the sparse point cloud has on product accuracy and processing details. Imagery was collected in the spring of 2018 during leaf-off conditions at six field sites along the North Fork of the White River. The aerial imagery was collected using a DJI Phantom Pro 4 sUAS. Four different image …

Quantitative Reasoning: Individual Differences In Heart Rate And Response Latency, Abigail L. Van Nuland

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

Math is something that all students are required to use at some point during their academic careers. Then they must use it again in the real world. Unfortunately, many students struggle with quantitative processing. In the current study, participants answered first grade level math problems in order to assess cognitive effort when solving math problem. Participants were then assigned randomly to one of two conditions; Answer or Equation. In the Answer Condition participants were asked to solve a series of math problems, whereby they were given a math equation and then they were asked to choose an answer. In the …

Exploring Motivations For Intercollegiate Debate Participation, Joe Hamaker

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

This study seeks to use qualitative interviewing and grounded theory analytical methods to explore motivations for intercollegiate debate participation, as well as to update and expand existing research on the subject. This study found that students participate for a variety of reasons including an affinity for competition, enjoyment of the process of debate, the acquisition of skills and perspectives, and finding a sense of community within both their debate squads and the broader debate community. Further, this study found that students remain motivated to participate in debate despite competing demands on their time by strategizing completion of coursework, satisfying social …

Utilizing Strategic Culture As A Tool To Tailor U.S. Deterrence Policy Towards Iran, Ryan P. Taylor

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

The geostrategic environment since the end of the Cold War has drastically changed the way United States (U.S.) policymakers develop strategies to combat a wide range of hostile threats facing the country, especially in the field of the deterrence of weapons of mass destruction (WMDs). Iran is such an actor, who poses one of the greater proliferation threats in the world and continues to commit hostile actions in the Middle East. In this post-Cold War environment, it is imperative that the United States develop a tailored deterrence strategy to meet this challenge. Past deterrence strategies popular during the bipolar era …

Queering Performative Face Theory: Analyzing Coming Out Narratives, Dominic A. Pecoraro

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

This thesis focuses on performativity of sexual minorities in interpersonal interactions. Specific attention is placed on concepts of privacy, performance, and face negotiation. This study not only focuses on how individuals who are open about their sexuality manage face, but also how individuals manage face while going through the process of coming out. Concepts of normative gender roles, heteronormativity, and homophobia are analyzed when considering privacy and face negotiation. Communication Privacy Management (CPM) Theory and Performative Face Theory are employed as theoretical foundations for this thesis work. I discuss how queer individuals may negotiate their face differently due to specific …

Cybersecurity For Critical Infrastructure: Addressing Threats And Vulnerabilities In Canada, Samuel A. Cohen

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

The aim of this thesis is to assess the unique technical and policy-based cybersecurity challenges facing Canada’s critical infrastructure environment and to analyze how current government and industry practices are not equipped to remediate or offset associated strategic risks to the country. Further, the thesis also provides cases and evidence demonstrating that Canada’s critical infrastructure has been specifically targeted by foreign and domestic cyber threat actors to pressure the country’s economic, safety and national security interests. Essential services that Canadians and Canadian businesses rely on daily are intricately linked to the availability and integrity of vital infrastructure sectors, such as …

An Examination Of The Potential Threat Of A State-Sponsored Biological Attack Against The United States: A Study Of Policy Implications, Courtney Anne Pfluke

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

In 2002, US Navy Seals found a list of pathogens in an Afghanistan cave that Al Qaeda had planned to use in a series of biological attacks. Unique about the discovery was that the pathogens were not limited to human ones. Six pathogens targeted livestock and four targeted crops. Despite this discovery, limited attention has been given to the possibility of a state-sponsored terrorist attack utilizing biological agents against the US population, food source, or water supply. Throughout history, biological agents have been developed for use as an offensive weapon for both states and terrorist groups. The United States may …

Psychological Distress, Pain, Physical Impairment, And Acceptance Among Women With Ovarian Cancer, Megan M. Millmann

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

Despite ovarian cancer being the deadliest form of gynecological cancers, there are significantly fewer studies addressing this type of cancer. The psychological and physical impact of the diagnosis and treatment for ovarian cancer can be debilitating. While previous studies have examined variables like physical impairment, pain, willingness and acceptance, and psychological distress in cancer patients, none have addressed all of these in ovarian cancer. Thus, the present study examined the relationship of these variables in 11 women with ovarian cancer, via self-report measures. To evaluate whether willingness and acceptance mediated the relationship between pain, physical impairment, and psychological distress, a …

Best Predictive Factor For Knowledge Of How To Appropriately Respond To Suicidal Individuals, Sadie Elizabeth Flood

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

Suicide is a major health crisis affecting all parts of the world. Although extensive research has been conducted on suicide and numerous suicide prevention programs are in place, there still exists a gap in our knowledge as to how to encourage the public to reach out to individuals who may be suicidal. The aim of the current study is to examine methods of responding when confronted by an individual with suicidal tendencies. Participants completed four scales measuring their knowledge of suicide, personality characteristics, level of suicide stigma, and knowledge of how best to respond to an individual with suicidal tendencies. …

Connecticut Waterfront Property Premium In Areas With Flood Risk, Conor O'Donnell

Honors Scholar Theses

This paper investigates the premium paid for waterfront property along the Connecticut shoreline and how that premium is affected by its vulnerability to coastal flooding as measured by its location relative to the FEMA 100-year and 500-year flood zones. The primary analysis is a comparison of the rate of appreciation of properties within each flood zone relative to coastal properties outside the flood-zone. An analysis of the impact of Super Storm Sandy in 2012 on the appreciation rate is also presented. It is hypothesized that the rate of appreciation of properties within the 100-year flood zone is lower following Hurricane …

Place Your Bet With Technical Services, Renee Gould, Jennifer L. Murray, Chris Boyd, Alyssa Koclanes, Michelle Joy

Library Presentations & Publications

Roundtable discussion on the biggest changes in Technical Services.

Major League Impact: A Comparative Analysis Of Youth Programs Within Major League Baseball Club Charities, Hayley Walker

Master's Projects and Capstones

As one of the most common structured activities for youth, sport provides numerous opportunities for children to learn to lead healthy, active lifestyles. Additionally, the popularity of sport among young people makes it an effective platform for Positive Youth Development (PYD). However, merely participating in sport does not guarantee that youth will develop positive character traits or acquire important life skills. For that reason, nonprofit organizations that offer sport-based youth development programs must have targeted approaches to facilitating opportunities for learning and growth. This study focuses on the methods of youth programming utilized by the charitable affiliates of five professional …

Supernatural Pilgrims: A Journey To A New Apostolic Reformation Congregation In The Ozarks, Samuel Wayne Gingerich

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

Birthed out of the revival events of the 1990s, the New Apostolic Reformation is known for its charismatic leaders and provocative theology. As an emerging third wave Pentecostal movement, the New Apostolic Reformation is redefining the edifices of American Pentecostalism. While academics and journalists are currently focused on exposing the influence of some of its leaders such as C. Peter Wagner, Bill Johnson, Randy Clark, and Heidi Baker, there is little scholarship regarding the congregations and communities of believers who find themselves a part of this dynamic movement. This thesis takes a step towards understanding the larger story of the …

Greenway Trail Viewshed Characteristics: Planning Applications Using Gis And Remote Sensing, Aric Addison Beehler

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

This study applies theoretical findings relating greenway trail viewshed characteristics to a proposed greenway trail. Utilizing geographic information systems and remote sensing techniques, this study compares the viewshed characteristics of two proposed routes to connect an existent greenway trail system to Wilson’s Creek National Battlefield in Greene County, MO. Light Detection and Ranging data is then used to map the viewshed of each route and calculate the openness and interconnectedness of each viewshed. High-resolution multispectral imagery is then used to calculate the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index measuring the “greenness” within each viewshed. Finally, parcel-level land use data is used to …

Executive Function Deficits In Patients With Mild Cognitive Impairment: Exploring The Impact Of Substance Use, William C. Dooley

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

Substance use is pervasive in the United States. With overdose deaths on the rise for the past decade, studies have examined the detrimental effects of a range of substances. Substance use has been shown to affect the domains of executive functioning, while diseases such as Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and Hepatitis-C (Hep-C) have been shown to increase the severity of these deficits when comorbid with substance use. Alzheimer’s Dementia (AD) also affects many of the same domains of executive functioning as substance use. However, because of the rapid degenerative nature of the disease, individuals clinically determined to have Mild Cognitive …

Disaggregating The United States Military: An Analysis Of The Current Organizational And Management Structure Of U.S. National Security Policy As It Relates To Military Operations In Space, Joseph M. Zeman

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

This thesis was written to provide the reader with a comprehensive assessment about the realities of the current organizational and management structure of United States national security policy as it relates to the conduct of military operations in space. To create an encompassing argument, this thesis considers the current organizational structure of United States space policy while acknowledging that space has, in fact, become a warfighting domain. A reorganization of this magnitude has the potential to generate a succinct chain of command for military space operations while condensing the space acquisitions process and ultimately providing military space operations with the …

Moral Foundations Of U.S. Political News Sources, William Edward Padfield

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

The media ecosystem has grown, and political opinions have diverged such that there are competing conceptions of objective truth. Commentators often point to political biases in news coverage as a catalyst for this political divide. The Moral Foundations Dictionary (MFD) facilitates identification of ideological leanings in text through frequency of the occurrence of certain words. Through web scraping, the researcher extracted articles from popular news sources’ websites, calculated MFD word frequencies, and identified words’ respective valences. This process attempts to uncover news outlets’ positive or negative endorsements of certain moral dimensions concomitant with a particular ideology. In Experiment 1, the …

The Relationship Between Substance Abuse, Intimate Partner Violence And Sexual Assault In College Students, Erin K. Deotte

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Numerous studies demonstrate linkages between substance abuse, intimate partner violence (IPV), and/or sexual assault (e.g., Nabors, 2009; Rivera, Phillips, Warshaw, Lyon, Bland, & Kaewken, 2015; Santana, Raj, Decker, & Silverman, 2006). For ages, college students have been associated with substance abuse (e.g., Hingson, Zha, and Weitzman, 2009; O’Malley & Johnston, 2002). Substance abuse has been associated with IPV and sexual assault (Nabors, 2009; Rivera, Phillips, Warshaw, Lyon, Bland, & Kaewken, 2015; Santana, Raj, Decker, & Silverman, 2006). Although much research has been conducted on the relationships between substance abuse and intimate partner violence (including sexual violence), little research has been …

2020 Census Trusted Messengers: Community Based Organizations Challenged To Make The Marginalized Matter, Stephanie Mcnally

Master's Projects and Capstones

The decennial census is the cornerstone of the United States democracy. Its purpose is to determine representation in Congress and the Electoral College as well as provide the basis for drawing districts for federal, state, and local offices. California’s voice in public policy decision-making would diminish if votes were lost in a census undercount. Additionally, federal funding is allocated based on each state’s population as determined by the census. If California’s residents are not accurately counted, the state stands to lose almost $2,000 per person per year for the next 10 years. Currently, trust in the federal government is low …

The Psychos, Paula N. Stevenson

Graduate School of Art Theses

My current body of work is a series of drawings that juxtapose characters of fiction and reality in an attempt to explore the relationship between horror film and contemporary social issues. I strive to render an accurate portrayal of the face to draw the viewer into questioning the troubling narrative these characters illuminate. I focus on retelling stories of fear and horror, and crime and infamy. I want my work to convey ethical dilemmas as they are present within the relationship between horror movie antagonists and the audience (all of us). It is these concerns I attempt to visualize in, …

To The Humanities: What Does Communication Studies Give?, Mari Lee Mifsud

Rhetoric and Communication Studies Faculty Publications

This special issue of Review of Communication presents new offerings of the study of communication, forging present and future humanities. This Introduction engages the six essays in this special issue—which extend and intersect across categories of the humanistic study of communication: communication philosophy and ethics, rhetorical theory, history, pedagogy, criticism, and digital humanities—to explore their contributions in defense of the humanities. Taken together, these essays explore the study of communication as (1) a resource for inquiring and exchanging with concepts, practices, and embodiments of difference, the other, and the posthuman; (2) a means of examining the ontological, epistemological, technological, existential, …

Evaluating The Effectiveness Of Peer Engagement And Knowledge (Peak): A Community-Based Group Intervention For Youth In Hawai‘I, Jennifer T. T. Ho

Doctoral Dissertations

This study is a program evaluation with a mixed methods design that evaluated the effectiveness of Peer Engagement and Knowledge (PEAK), a six-week community-based group intervention that incorporates mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) to address multiple health behaviors for multiracial youth in Hilo, Hawai‘i. A total of 51 youth, ages 12-23 years old, participated in this study which included pre-/posttest analyses of health risk factors such as substance use and depression and health promoting factors such as resilience, self-esteem, and mindfulness. Responses from two subsets of participants, who engaged in a focus group (n = 11) and composed gratitude letters ( …

Taking An Earth Day Winning Hand To The Next Level, Sandy Avila, Christina C. Wray, Kelsie Johnson

Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

Presentation was delivered on May 17, 2019 at the Florida Library Association Annual Conference held in Orlando, FL May 15-17th, 2019.

Abstract:

Join a team of two librarians, a faculty member and one of their support staff as they discuss the ins and outs of creating a well-attended group of library programming events about Earth Day and local habitat awareness. Attend this session if you want to learn more about how to create winning partnerships and make your programming a hit around campus or in your local community!

Anxiety And Behavior: Brief Cognitive Behavioral Therapy In School With A Ten-Year-Old Boy Using The Coping Cat Program, Sarah Bernhardt

Dissertations, Theses, and Projects

The prevalence of anxiety in school-age children is on the rise. Schools offer a unique opportunity to identify children who struggle with symptoms of anxiety and to provide interventions to reduce anxiety. This project evaluated the results of providing the Coping Cat cognitive behavioral program in a public elementary school with a fourth-grade student named Dawson (a pseudonym) with a history of behavioral problems and a diagnosis of Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Dawson completed 8 sessions (on 7 days) of the 16-session curriculum of Coping Cat in the school setting at a rate of …

A Brief Bystander Training Program: Promoting A Positive School Climate, Matt Meyer

Dissertations, Theses, and Projects

Ensuring that our most vulnerable, marginalized students are surrounded by a positive school climate is a vital task for our future educators. In line with the American School Counseling Association Standards, school counselors should identify ways to engage in leadership roles and promote a positive school climate for all students. While much research has identified the relationship between school culture and positive student outcomes, recommendations for school counselors remain vague and fail to promote leadership in these school improvement efforts. In review of the literature, the author argues that the use of a bystander intervention group is a proactive way …

Chang (Beer): A Social Marker, Ritual Tool, And Multivalent Symbol In Tibetan Buddhism, Kayla J. Jenkins

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

In this thesis, I analyze the use of beer (Tib. chang) in Tibetan tantric Buddhism and emphasize its importance for studying themes of purity and pollution, meaning, and power in this context. In doing so, I argue that beer functions as a social marker and influences gender dynamics in Tibet. Beer also functions as a religious ritual tool for transactions of power. Lastly, beer is present as a multivalent symbol in Tibetan tantric songs and stories, useful as both a negative and positive metaphor for qualities or states of mind. As something that informs social, religious, and literary worlds within …

Terrorism In The 2020s: Examining The Global Threat Landscape, Landon W. Swearngin

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

This thesis uses quantitative and qualitative research methods to (1) explore the global trends and trajectories of terrorism, (2) identify emerging strategic challenges, and (3) outline an opportunity analysis for U.S. counterterrorism strategy. Collectively, this project provides a strategic forecast for terrorism in the 2020s, demonstrating that terrorism is becoming increasingly dangerous, dynamic, and difficult to defeat.

Examining Human Behavior And Tool Use Through Experimental Replications And A Technological Analysis Of Ground Stone In The Lower Columbia, Kelley Prince Martinez

Dissertations and Theses

While ground stone tools represent diverse activities, the technology is analyzed at a coarse level in the Pacific Northwest. Conducting more detailed analyses of ground stone assemblages can inform on regional Indigenous raw material knowledge, resource use, and tool manufacturing and maintenance practices.

In this thesis I addressed questions regarding ground stone technology, including manufacturing time investments, tool recycling, and how ground stone tools were used through the application of experimental tool replication, use studies, and in depth analyses. I replicated tools that are common in the region, including a banded and notched net weight, a maul, two bowls, and …

Role And Impact Of E-Journals: A Case Study Of University Institute Of Engineering And Technology (Uiet), Kurukshetra University, Sukhbir Singh, Neha Garg, Dr. Chetan Sharma

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

Present study aims to determine the use and awareness of e-journals among teachers and research scholars of University Institute of Engineering and Technology (UIET). Study also targets to define the purpose of e-journals’ use, access place, preferred format and frequency to use. Data was collected from 60 users of different departments of UIET. Study indicates that majority of the respondents use e-journals for their research assignments, they prefer to retrieve e-resources mainly through simple search techniques such as key word, author and title.

Framing Of European Union Borders In Online News: Multimodal Discourses Of Inclusion And Exclusion, Ivana Cvetkovic

Communication ETDs

In times of crisis, online news media, on whose reports people heavily rely for information and interpretation of complex European affairs, play an important role in production of knowledge and negotiation of the meanings of the European Union’s response to the “migrant crisis” in 2015 when more than million migrants reached Europe after fleeing their home countries. This research project examines how European online news outlets constructed notions of borders, space, mobility and migration, and thus promoted particular institutionalized discourses on inclusion and exclusion with profound ideological implications. A secondary goal of this research is to explore the particular ways …