A Qualitative Analysis Of White Nationalist Patriotic Discourse, Miguel Angel Vazquez

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

In the last decade, the U.S. has seen a significant uptick in White nationalist ideology, particularly because individuals espousing these extremist ideologies believe their group and the U.S. are under attack by non-White groups (Osborne et al., 2019). As a result, there are prevailing narratives that are used as patriotic rallying cries that center around the desire to progress the country towards White nationalist ideals (e.g., a country for a by White people), to regress the country back to a time where White people had their own eco-system of Whiteness (i.e., the golden days), and to protect and fight for …

Social Support As A Moderator Of Life Stress And Alcohol Consumption, Paige Patano

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Heavy alcohol use in emerging adults has several consequences, including increased risk-taking behaviors, cognitive deficits, and alcohol use disorder (AUD). Thus, it is important to understand risk factors and protective factors to heavy drinking. Experiencing life stressors may be associated with higher alcohol use in emerging adults, especially for historically marginalized populations. General social support, which may mitigate the impact of life stressors, tends to be a protective factor against drinking, although the literature is mixed on which types of relationships are considered protective. Between the support of family, friends, and significant others, it is unclear which relationships are associated …

Explaining The Paradox Of High Self-Esteem In Black Youth Exposed To Stress: The Protective Role Of Kinship And Spirituality, Takayla Christine Towns

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Adolescents are exposed to many stressful life experiences, such as major illnesses, the death of a family member, school stressors, peer pressures, conflict with parents, and more. Minoritized youth are exposed to even greater numbers of stressors, including those connected to racism, segregation, and poverty. This study aims to examine the relationship between stressful life experiences and self-esteem and explore protective factors that may protect minoritized individuals from the negative effects of stress on self-esteem. This study also builds upon literature that shows that Black youth report higher self-esteem than White youth, even while being exposed to higher levels of …

Talking To Strangers: A Mixed-Methods Evaluation Study Of An Intercultural Intervention, Andrew Peter Camilleri

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

The globalized nature of the world we live in, and the rapidly evolving technologies we have become accustomed to, have resulted in a highly interconnected worlds where meeting persons hailing from different cultural backgrounds is not only possible but highly probable. Consequently, intercultural communication is an important and prized competence which allows for meaningful encounters that lead to better relationship outcomes. An important context wherein these dynamics often play out are educational institutions given their active recruitment of international students. Despite such a trend and the resulting greater likelihood of intercultural encounters, most students lack intercultural communication and relationship building …

Empowerment As A Predictor Of System Justification Moderated By Race, Nicole Belcher

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

The attitudes people hold about the social structure around them have varying explanations in the field of psychology. System justification represents the idea that people will accept and enforce the social structures that exist because of the underlying need for consistency (Jost et al., 2004). Also central to this theory is the idea that people will legitimize structures because of a desire for the status quo to remain (Jost, 2001). These ideas seek to explain the problematic ideologies that maintain unfair social structures and why people allow them to remain. Studies have found individuals will support unjust systems because either …

Counting On The Family: Family Cohesion And Its Relationship To Ptg, Edgar Ivan Gandara

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

The current study aimed to understand how an adolescent’s perceived family cohesion predicts post-traumatic Growth (PTG). Although relatively new to Psychology, there is extensive literature on PTG and its relationship with social support. However, there is not as much research exploring family cohesion as it relates to PTG. A cohesion focus provides insight into the importance of emotional connectedness in social support and its impact on adolescent PTG. Moreover, we investigated the relationship family cohesion has with PTG across Hispanic and non-Hispanic adolescents to see if there was any significant variance given cultural differences in the role of family. Our …

Attachment And Resilience: The Mediating Effect Of Coping, Michelle Soans

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

This study explores the relationship between attachment security, coping strategies, and resilience among university students, focusing on the mediating role of problem-focused coping. We hypothesized that higher attachment security would be associated with greater resilience, that problem-focused coping would positively predict resilience, and that problem-focused coping would mediate the relationship between attachment security and resilience. A sample of 177 students completed measures of attachment security, coping strategies, and resilience. Mediation analysis revealed that higher attachment security significantly predicted resilience and problem-focused coping, while problem-focused coping also significantly predicted resilience. The indirect effect of attachment security on resilience through problem-focused coping …

First-Generation College Students’ Sense Of Belonging During Covid-19, Yesenia Garcia

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

First-generation college students (FGCSs) make up one-third of all college students in the U.S. (Whitley et al., 2018). Yet, retention of FGCSs continues to fall behind that of their non-first-generation peers (Act, Research and Policy, 2012; Cataldi et al., 2018). Understanding FGCSs’ sense of belonging, and its predictors, is a key component to helping promote retention. The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic brought many shifts and adaptations to education that impacted the overall college experience for students (Burki, 2020). This adaptation strained opportunities for social engagement, which deterred students’ abilities to feel a sense of belonging at their institution. The …

Historical Trauma In Context: Perceived Effects Among Second Generation Cambodian Americans On A Personal, Family, And Community Level, Linda Toch

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Although there is significant literature regarding Cambodian refugees and trauma, less is known about their U.S.-born children, many of whom are now adults. Literature suggests that second-generation youth are more susceptible to traumatic exposure and community violence compared to their White counterparts. However, there is little understanding of how second-generation Cambodian Americans contextualize the impacts of the Khmer Rouge genocide, and whether they perceive connections between historical trauma and their personal, family, and community experiences. This study utilized critical-constructivist grounded theory to explore perceived effects of historical trauma across domains of personal, family, and community. The recruitment process included e-mail …

Exploring Advocates’ Perceptions Of Rural And Urban Sexual Assault Survivors’ Experiences Seeking Civil Protective Orders, Hannah C. Samuels

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Civil protective orders (CPOs) are one of the most utilized legal remedies that exist for sexual assault survivors. While they are available for every survivor in Illinois, a survivor’s community context can impact their experience petitioning for a CPO. Prior research with domestic violence survivors suggests that the rurality and urbanicity of a community may impact a sexual assault survivors experiences seeking a CPO, but little research has been conducted with sexual assault survivors specifically. The purpose of this study was to examine the perceptions of rape crisis center advocates from rural and urban counties across the state of Illinois …

Clutter And Control: A Regional Analysis Of The Effect Of Decluttering On Women During The Pandemic, Zachary Henry Ellis

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

The Covid pandemic impacted the whole nation, with 72% of Americans reported disruption in their everyday lives, and 45% of Americans reported negative health impacts in response to the pandemic (Kirzinger et al. 2020). However, there are some populations of citizens that are more vulnerable to the negative mental health effects of the pandemic (Czeisler et al. 2020). Fear and psychological reactance, triggered when individuals feel their freedoms are threatened, surged during the pandemic (Taylor and Asmundson, 2021; Wortman & Brehm, 1975). Yet, little research explores how decluttering projects affect this behavior.

The current study explored the impact of successful …

Parent-Child Cultural Values (Mis)Matches And Youth Mental Health Among Latinx Families, Jesus Eduardo Solano-Martinez

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

When compared to youth from other ethnic backgrounds, Latinx youth present with higher levels of mental health problems (e.g., internalizing). Various heritage cultural values, such as affiliative obedience, have been found as protective against mental health problems in Latinx youth. These findings, however, have not been ubiquitous, have not often included parent or combined parent and child perspectives, and have been limited by design and methodological shortcomings (e.g., single reporters, difference scores). The Acculturation Gap Distress – Expanded (AGD-E) model was used as the guiding theoretical framework to examine parent-child heritage cultural value endorsement patterns and their association to youth …

The Role Of Team Sports, Coping, And Friendship In Reducing Depressive Symptoms In Youth, Abigail K. Bushnell

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Abstract

The prevalence of depression in adolescents has increased in the last decade. Minority and low-income youth face additional barriers to accessing mental health services leading to a significant proportion of adolescents going undiagnosed and untreated. Participation in multiple team sports may offer an additive protective effect for youth mental health, yet how and for whom this relation occurs is unclear. The current study aimed to examine how coping strategies and friendships interact with team sports participation to reduce depressive symptoms in youth. Self-report data was collected from 196 urban youth across two time points. Moderated moderation analyses were conducted …

Mental Health And Well-Being Of Survivors Of Torture As They Seek Asylum, Samantha L. Nau

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

This study aims to explore experiences of asylum seekers, who are also sruvivors of torture, as they go through the immigration process. Using semi-structured interviews, this study examined how mental health and well-being are impacted by post-migration stressors associated with the process of seeking asylum and by perceptions of the sociopolitical climate in the United States. Six asylum seekers who have received services from the Marjorie Kovler Center for Survivors of Torture were interviewed. An interpretative phenomenological analysis was conducted to explore how participants make meaning of their experiences and to identify themes that were shared across participants. Findings from …

Can We Help You With Your Bootstraps? How First-Generation Graduate Students Can Use Relationships To Transform Universities, Brianna N. Mabie

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

As a result of the abundance of literature on first-generation undergraduate students, several support programs and resources have been developed to assist this population throughout their undergraduate career. However, graduate school can pose a whole new set of challenges for first-generation graduate students, which can result in poor outcomes (Martinez et al., 2009; Wilcox et al., 2021). It is therefore necessary to increase attention on first-generation graduate students. An explanatory-sequential mixed method research design, with an intersectional lens, was used to answer how first-generation graduate students rely on university relationships to be well and what institutional barriers exist to achieving …

The Effects Of Chronic Stress On Predictors Of Academic Learning, Gabriel Mcnair

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Executive functioning, goal orientations, and intrinsic motivation in education have shown to predict outcomes in academic learning. Research has shown that for students in chronically stressed environments, the development of all three may be influenced by their ecological contexts. The current study examines how chronic stress at the systems level impacts the development of adaptive learning approaches, specifically mastery goal orientation and intrinsic motivation, among diverse youth. Further, this study seeks to examine the role of executive functioning in the relationship between systemic stress—a conceptualization of chronic stress at the systems level—and mastery goal orientation and intrinsic motivation.

The study …

Personality Pathology As A Self-Regulating Dynamical System, Haya Fatimah

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

With mounting evidence that personality is both stable and variable, personality scientists have called for comprehensive approaches that integrate stability and dynamics. Dynamical systems theory offers concepts and tools to systematically integrate the stable and dynamic components of personality while identifying the relationship between these components. This study extends the dynamical systems approach to personality pathology and investigates how pathological personality states vary in a patterned manner in relation to their equilibria or attractors, as opposed to random noise. Furthermore, I test if these patterned dynamics may describe important individual differences and predict behavioral outcomes. Using daily data pertaining to …

Crafting A Queer Information Literacy (Qil) Framework: An Exploration Of Embodiment, Digital Learning, And Information Literacy In Academic Spaces, Joseph Kevin Sebastian

Library Faculty Presentations

This presentation introduces and explores Queer Information Literacy (QIL) as a critical, embodied, and transformative framework within academic and digital learning contexts. Bridging theoretical explorations with practical applications, the project delves into the intersections of queerness, embodiment, and information literacy, challenging and subverting normative structures embedded within traditional literacy models and digital learning environments. Personal narratives from the researcher’s experiences as an academic librarian and digital learning specialist enrich the discussion, offering tangible insights and strategies for enacting QIL. The presentation ultimately advocates for a QIL that is collaborative, adaptive, and reflective, honoring the fluidity and multiplicity of queer experiences …

The Institutional Challenges Of A Quantified Self Study: An Attempt To Ascertain How Data Collected From A Mobile Device Can Be An Indicator Of Personal Mental Health Over Time, Julian Lazaras

University Honors Theses

The adoption of an application of new technology always comes with a bias, this is never more true for the case of human behavioral analytics within higher education. While movements such as the quantified self movement make strides to reinterpret the realm of data analytics, psychology, and computer science, there are inevitably limitations to the adoption and application of such approaches within the standard realm of research. Herein is presented a case where an effort to evaluate the prospect of use of mobile phone data as secondary indicators of personal mental health through the lens of data analysis was put …

Neverland Theory: An Introduction To A Childish-Positive Framework, Daniel M. Gardner

University Honors Theses

Proposes, defines, and defends the beginnings of an original theoretical approach (Neverland Theory) which advocates for the revitalization of psychotherapy through embracing and incorporating more of the "Childish" in clinical practice. Three formal aspects of Childishness are proposed and briefly defined. A literature review of three existing psychotherapies which effectively incorporate the proposed Childish aspects are highlighted and shown to be effective and efficacious. It is argued that prioritization of these aspects contributes to treatment outcome in a way which goes beyond what can be empirically evidenced.

A Marxist Analysis Of Women's Labor In The Soviet Union, Shania Sweet

University Honors Theses

This thesis examines the evolution of Soviet women's labor and labor laws through a Marxist lens, emphasizing the contributions of Karl Marx, Friedrich Engels, and Vladimir Lenin. It explores the ideological foundations of communism concerning gender equality and the legislative measures taken by the Soviet Union to emancipate women from traditional capitalist oppression. The analysis reveals significant advancements in women's rights, such as legal equality and protection in the workforce, yet highlights the inconsistencies and challenges, particularly under Stalin's regime, where ideological shifts and practical enforcement diverged from Marxist principles. The research utilizes historical documents, legislative texts, and scholarly analyses …

Elementary School Teachers’ Lived Experience Teaching Remotely During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Natasha Gorman

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Teaching experiences changed during COVID-19 from face-to-face to online, and teachers encountered numerous challenges. Considerable research has been conducted on many of the issues that teachers at different grade levels faced in this transition. The experiences of elementary school teachers, however, have not received much attention. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the lived experiences of elementary school teachers who taught remotely during the COVID-19 pandemic. Understanding their challenges may lead to the development of appropriate resources and specific training for teachers in these early grades. The theoretical foundation that grounded this study was Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems …

Elementary School Teachers’ Lived Experience Teaching Remotely During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Natasha Gorman

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Teaching experiences changed during COVID-19 from face-to-face to online, and teachers encountered numerous challenges. Considerable research has been conducted on many of the issues that teachers at different grade levels faced in this transition. The experiences of elementary school teachers, however, have not received much attention. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the lived experiences of elementary school teachers who taught remotely during the COVID-19 pandemic. Understanding their challenges may lead to the development of appropriate resources and specific training for teachers in these early grades. The theoretical foundation that grounded this study was Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems …

A Phase 2 Clinical Trial To Evaluate The Safety, Reactogenicity, And Immunogenicity Of Different Prime-Boost Vaccination Schedules Of 2013 And 2017 A(H7n9) Inactivated Influenza Virus Vaccines Administered With And Without As03 Adjuvant In Healthy Us Adults, Christina A Rostad, Robert L Atmar, Emmanuel B Walter, Sharon Frey, Jeffery L Meier, Amy C Sherman, Lilin Lai, Rachel Tsong, Carol M Kao, Vanessa Raabe, Hana M El Sahly, Wendy A Keitel, Jennifer A Whitaker, Michael J Smith, Kenneth E Schmader, Geeta K Swamy, Getahun Abate, Patricia Winokur, Wendy Buchanan, Kaitlyn Cross, Ashley Wegel, Yongxian Xu, Inci Yildirim, Satoshi Kamidani, Nadine Rouphael, Paul C Roberts, Mark J Mulligan, Evan J Anderson

Center for Medical Ethics and Health Policy Staff Publications

Introduction: A surge of human influenza A(H7N9) cases began in 2016 in China from an antigenically distinct lineage. Data are needed about the safety and immunogenicity of 2013 and 2017 A(H7N9) inactivated influenza vaccines (IIVs) and the effects of AS03 adjuvant, prime-boost interval, and priming effects of 2013 and 2017 A(H7N9) IIVs.

Methods: Healthy adults (n = 180), ages 19-50 years, were enrolled into this partially blinded, randomized, multicenter phase 2 clinical trial. Participants were randomly assigned to 1 of 6 vaccination groups evaluating homologous versus heterologous prime-boost strategies with 2 different boost intervals (21 vs 120 days) and 2 …

Let Us Fail: Speculative Futures And Digital Librarianship, Natalia Estrada, Kristina Bush, Stacy Snyder

Journal of Critical Digital Librarianship

Let Us Fail explores what digital librarianship work might look like if digital library workers were not tied to the technology, infrastructure, or work culture of academia that we currently experience. We explore what work could look like if we were given the agency to play and be creative, support to learn from failure, and freedom from traditional assessment metrics. This podcast dreams about a future in which digital library workers are self-directed, autonomous workers with the capacity to explore, experiment, and iterate.

To stream each episode of this podcast, navigate to JCDL volume 0, issue 2 and click on …

Desire Paths In The Information Landscape, Victoria Van Hyning, Mason A. Jones, Travis Wagner

Journal of Critical Digital Librarianship

Libraries and archives serve so many different users who come to information institutions with various perspectives, needs, experiences, and desires around accessing physical or digital collections. While our users may find what they are looking for immediately, many have to beat their own paths through complex systems and metadata that doesn’t align with their needs. Their search strategies may leave digital “desire paths”–alternative routes through the information landscape that can show us how to better meet their needs. This article covers three scenarios where users’ desire paths can be seen or where gaps around user experience can be better addressed. …

Exploring Cultural, Health, And Technology Intersections: A Focus On Migrant Experiences, Merna Mina, Sahij Gill

Bridges: An Undergraduate Journal of Contemporary Connections

Despite the plethora of theories and frameworks addressing culture, health, and technology adoption, there remains a notable absence of a unifying theory that comprehensively encompasses all three aspects, particularly concerning newcomers. The Health Belief Model, for example, underscores individual perceptions and attitudes toward health yet fails to consider the intricate interplay between cultural factors and technology adoption among immigrant populations. The Healthy Immigrant Effect, which posits that immigrants often exhibit better health outcomes than native-born individuals, does not mention the role of technology on health outcomes. Acculturation theories, while shedding light on the adaptation process, often fall short of explaining …

Making Sentencing Meaningful: How Victims Find Justice In The Sentencing Process, Melissa Handford

Bridges: An Undergraduate Journal of Contemporary Connections

This article examines the role of victims in the criminal justice system, and how victims find justice through the sentencing process. It examines the role that providing a victim impact statement, receiving information about typical sentencing practices, and restorative or traditional sentencing play in how victims perceive justice in sentencing. Quantitative analyses were conducted analyzing the aforementioned variables and their relationship to participant perceptions of sentence effectiveness, anger, sentence harshness, and happiness, as well as their propensity to obedience. Qualitative analyses were conducted to better understand the reasoning behind victim perceptions and preferences in relation to restorative and traditional sentencing …

Effect Of Inclusiveness And Contemporary Teaching And Learning Environments On Students With Learning Disability, Emmanuel Chidiadi Onwubiko

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

This work is an overview of the effect of inclusiveness and contemporary teaching and learning environments on students with learning disability. The paper looked at learning disability, inclusiveness in education and contemporary teaching and learning environment from the conceptual perspective as well as the effect of both inclusiveness and contemporary teaching and learning environments on students with learning disability. It was ascertained based on reviewed literature that inclusive education is in tandem with the United Nations Sustainable Developmental Goal (UN-SDG) 4 which stipulates that no child should be left behind in education with special reference to students with learning disability. …

The Role Of Transformational Leadership And Job Satisfaction In Change Readiness In Petrochemical Industry Of Saudi Arabia, Maram Alshahrani, Harris Siddiqi Tahir, Bassem Emile Maamari, Beverley Mcnally

Arab Economic and Business Journal

Neglecting an organization’s readiness for change may have far-reaching influence on the success of a change process. This study investigates two factors that impact organizational change success, leadership and job satisfaction. The aim of study is to examine the relationship between transformational leadership, job satisfaction, and change readiness in the Saudi petrochemical industry context. The results reveal that change readiness increases job satisfaction of employees when leaders apply the principles of transformational leadership. The findings have implications for HR practitioners in designing leadership development programs to ensure job satisfaction, better and desired outcomes from an organizational change program.