Communication Commons^™

Exploring Health And Risk Information Seeking In The Context Of Covid-19: Testing The Comprehensive Model Of Information Seeking And Risk Information Seeking And Processing Model As Competing Explanatory Models, Xianlin Jin

Theses and Dissertations--Communication

Facing a pandemic caused by a novel coronavirus (COVID-19), the public feels uncertainty and fear. To cope with the pandemic and reduce uncertainty, the public needs accurate and prompt information. By theoretically and empirically comparing the Comprehensive Model of Information Seeking (CMIS) and the Risk Information Seeking and Processing Model (RISP), this dissertation aims to unpack the core mechanism of health and risk information seeking. Built on the two models, the author proposed an Integrated Model and explored which variables are the significant predictors of health and risk information seeking.

The author recruited 729 adult participants and analyzed 394 completed …

Gender Violence On Television: Insights And Implications From Female Audiences Of Drama Series, Mary Celeste Clark

Theses and Dissertations--Communication

Gender-based violence is pervasive across many television shows that are targeted toward a variety of audiences and cover a range of genres and settings, yet there is a dearth of literature regarding gender violence in fictional television drama series and how female audiences interpret and react to the depictions of gender violence in those programs. For this study, I spoke with 13 women about their experiences viewing programs with depictions of gender violence. The data was analyzed qualitatively using a phronetic iterative approach and demonstrates why these women watch these shows, what affective responses they have, and how they interpret …

Understanding Struggles And Triumphs Of Widows In Central Nigeria: A Path To Communication And Economic Empowerment, Meredith Annette Garrison

Theses and Dissertations--Communication

One in ten African women age 15 or older are widows. Approximately 8 million widows live in Nigeria with many living in extreme poverty. Throughout the nation, widows are subjected to physical and psychological harm from their families and communities following the deaths of their husbands. Women are marginalized across Nigeria, but widowed women often experience ostracization and oppression that leads to poverty. Most widows rely on informal business and petty trading to survive but these ventures typically only bring in less than a $1 a day for a family. This dissertation critically examined the situation of widows in a …

I Need To See Me On Tv: Parasocial Affirmations Of Sexual And Gender Identity Development Of Lgbtq+ Mass Media Consumers, Donald I. Lowe

Theses and Dissertations--Communication

This dissertation presents a new cycle model of media usage by LGBTQ+ community members in the United States that reveals a purpose previously unnamed and undefined. While parasocial contact, parasocial interaction, and parasocial relationships have been present in the academic literature for quite some time (as early as 1956 when Horton and Wohl first wrote of the phenomenon), use of media to parasocially affirm one’s LGBTQ+ status is unique to this study. This study used qualitative methods to examine a specific mass media audience, LGBTQ+ individuals, and asked them, in one-on-one interviews, how they utilize mass media to assist with …

The Consent Of Man: An Examination Of Privacy Awareness, Surveillance, And Privacy Policy (Mis)Use, Will Reilley Silberman

Theses and Dissertations--Communication

The problem of privacy is nuanced, pervasive, and requires an elevated approach. Given the lack of consistency with regard to privacy’s conceptualization and operationalization, research is needed that examines variables related to privacy to better understand how privacy operates in the present day. This dissertation aims to better understand nuances of privacy by gauging knowledge of online privacy, technological affordances related to privacy, and knowledge of surveillance. In this study, human subjects from a large southern University were presented with an opportunity to use a privacy-invasive smartphone application. After doing so, they viewed one of three privacy policies. Finally, they …

Communication Strategies To Intervene In Intimate Partner Violence Among Young Adult Couples, Kaylee Marie Lukacena

Theses and Dissertations--Communication

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a social and behavioral health issue of importance among the young adult population (Cupp et al., 2015). IPV includes acts of physical violence, sexual violence, psychological aggression, and stalking enacted by an intimate partner (Smith, Zhang, Basile, Merrick, Wang, Kresnow, & Chen, 2018). In the United States., approximately one in three women and one in ten men experience IPV during their lifetime (Smith et al., 2018). Furthermore, over more than 70% of women who experience indicate that the first act occurred before the age of 25. One approach to preemptively address IPV on college campuses …

An Examination Of Communication Sequencing In Enacted Support Interactions For People With Major Depressive Disorder, Madison Adams

Theses and Dissertations--Communication

Social support is integral to helping one manage Major Depressive Disorder [MDD], but enacted social support, or the supportive behavior itself, is not always beneficial. Using a normative theoretical perspective on social support and theory related to sequencing as guiding frameworks, in this thesis I examined common sequential patterns of enacted support between support providers and individuals with MDD. Moreover, I investigated how individuals with MDD evaluated the helpfulness of each of the different sequential patterns. To examine the sequential patterns and how individuals with MDD evaluated their helpfulness, I interviewed 20 participants who had been diagnosed with MDD. The …

The Persuasive Power Of Instagram Metrics: Examining How User-Generated Cues Affect Consumer’S Perception Of Influencer Credibility, Madison Lea Wallace

Theses and Dissertations--Communication

Since 2019, Instagram has been testing the removal of a visible like count on posts. This change particularly pertains to social media influencers whose popularity is visibly displayed through the number of likes and comments their posts receive. Therefore, the present study experimentally investigated how varying levels of the like (i.e. hidden, approximate, and exact) and comment (hidden and exact) display on Instagram’s Explore page affect user’s credibility evaluations of unknown influencers. Guided by the Heuristic Systematic Model, MAIN Model and Warranting Principle, this study conducted a 3 (like display: hidden likes, approximated number of likes, and exact number of …

Strategic Misrepresentation Or Something More Sinister? Deception In George W. Bush's War Rhetoric On Iraq, Cassandra D. Hightower

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Presidential war rhetoric is an incredibly complex and far-reaching genre of political rhetoric, and the consequences of such rhetoric can often lead to mass destruction and death. Based on the continuously changing rules of warfare and the increased use of deception in political communication, this study aimed to analyze this usage of deception more closely in presidential war rhetoric. This project examined the case study of George W. Bush’s war rhetoric on the Iraq War f 2003 to determine if the deception he used fits the “strategic misrepresentation” characteristic that Campbell and Jamieson identified in their landmark 2008 book, Presidents …

Training For Retention: How Effective Are Writing Center And Learning Center Training Programs At Pace University?, Anna Giacalone

Honors College Theses

Although peer student support services are offered at college and universities across the country, there is little discussion regarding how students are trained to work in these positions. While the benefits of student support services are generally agreed upon, these services can only be effective if student employees feel adequately prepared for their roles. This study aims to determine best practices to design training curriculum for students employed as writing center consultants, content tutors, and peer mentors in a university setting. To do so, student employees at Pace University - Pleasantville’s Learning Commons were surveyed to analyze how prepared students …

Comics For Pediatric Oncology Patients And Families: Education And Empowerment, Natalie Johns

Calvert Undergraduate Research Awards

The major objective is to develop the first book of a boxed set series of comic vignettes that will serve as a clinical educational tool for pediatric patients with a recent cancer diagnosis and their caregivers. These comics are hypothesized to improve patient and family understanding of the disease, its treatment, side effects, and outcomes in an engaging and aesthetically pleasing way. The overall goals of this project are to reduce anxiety and increase health literacy in patients and their families while assisting the oncology team in providing optimal medical care, thus improving the overall quality of treatment. Comics aimed …

Higher Education And The Dei Climate: Exploring And Understanding The Role Of Social Media, Self Esteem, And Intercultural Communication In Diversity, Equity, And Inclusion Initiatives On The College Campus, Christian T. Cardona

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

This study seeks to understand the effects and levels of impact that a university student’s intercultural communication competence, social media usage, and self-esteem have on the students’ attitudes towards diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts implemented by institutions of higher education. By studying these three independent variables, this research seeks to improve the understanding of the university students’ attitudes on DEI efforts for leaders and change agents in higher education, providing an inspiration for leaders, administrators, and change agents of higher education to continue collaborating to innovate methods and avenues towards creating a diverse, equitable, and inclusive campus climate, as …

“Beychella:” Beyoncé’S Homecoming To A Futuristic Queer Utopian, Jolie V. Brownell

sprinkle: an undergraduate journal of feminist and queer studies

Beyoncé’s 2018 Coachella performance and 2019 Homecoming film set the stage for a radical Black queer reimagining. Yet, how can Beyoncé—who is straight—be located within a queer critique? In this paper, I argue that through a radical and political expansion of queer, the creative deployment of dis/identification, and the unapologetic expression of the erotic, Beyoncé performs an embodiment of queer of color critique. These creative gestures within “Beychella” invite viewers into a queer futuristic utopian and provide new creative modes to politically inhabit, resist, and reimagine interlocking systems of oppression.

Keywords: Beyoncé, queer, dis/identification, erotic, QoCC, …

The Medicalisation Of Gender Nonconformity Through Language: A Keywords Analysis, Angelo Cosma Galluzzo

sprinkle: an undergraduate journal of feminist and queer studies

Language is an important part of the way gender nonconformity is legislated and medicalised. In 2012, the American Psychiatric Association (APA) changed the nomenclature of the ‘gender identity disorder’ (GID) to ‘gender dysphoria in the ‘Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) to reduce the social stigma attached to transgender identities. While the recognition of gender nonconformity by the medical authorities has led to some beneficial consequences, scholars have shown that the language of pathology has narrowed the definitions of gender nonconformity and has created social stigma. I use the web pages of five major health providers of English-speaking …

Image Source Identification Using Convolutional Neural Networks In Iot Environment, Yan Wang, Qindong Sun, Dongzhu Rong, Shancang Li, Li Da Xu

Information Technology & Decision Sciences Faculty Publications

Digital image forensics is a key branch of digital forensics that based on forensic analysis of image authenticity and image content. The advances in new techniques, such as smart devices, Internet of Things (IoT), artificial images, and social networks, make forensic image analysis play an increasing role in a wide range of criminal case investigation. This work focuses on image source identification by analysing both the fingerprints of digital devices and images in IoT environment. A new convolutional neural network (CNN) method is proposed to identify the source devices that token an image in social IoT environment. The experimental results …

Front Matter, Yaljod 3.1, Prince Ifoh

Young African Leaders Journal of Development

Includes: Forewords from Amb. Dr. Salah Siddig Hammad (Ag Head, African Governance Architecture, African Union Commission) and Vasu Gounden (Founder and Executive Director, The African Centre for the Constructive Resolution of Dispute, Durban, South Africa);Preface from Prince Ifoh (Founder, YALF); and Acknowledgements.

Improving Zimbabwe's Public Policy Environment As A Regional And Global Strategy For Re-Engagement, Nicol Tinashe Tapfumaneyi, Delis Mazambani

Young African Leaders Journal of Development

For almost four decades, Zimbabwe's economy has been on a downward trend. Several economic policies have been adopted in an effort to mend the ailing economy, to no avail. According to the World Bank (2005), for public policies to be effectively implemented, political and economic fundamentals should balance. However, the politics of Zimbabwe continues to negatively impact on economic recovery and integration with regional and international trade networks. The net effect of this public policy imbalance is the ballooning of the national debt, skyrocketing of national inflation and pathetic positioning of the country on the human development index. The current …

Women's Political Representation And Sustainable Development In Nigeria, 1999-2019., Efetobar Stephanie Effevottu

Young African Leaders Journal of Development

All over the world, the invincibility of women in politics act as a limitation to the promotion of gender equality and the accomplishment of the sustainable development goals. This paper interrogates the political representation of women in Nigeria's fourth republic. It is driven by the desire to unravel the challenges faced by Nigerian women in their quest for equitable political space and its inference for sustainable development in Nigeria. The findings of the study reveal that there has been significant improvement in the lives of women in Nigeria since the return of democratic governance in 1999. It also indicates that …

Youth And Paralysed Digital Economy On Sustainable Economic Development: Conceptual Understanding, A Case Study Of Africa., James Kelimanzila

Young African Leaders Journal of Development

The new development of technology and global innovation has changed the world economic view and perspective. This redefine that every country has its own stability and effect on digital economy and technology depending on its investments and readiness of available human resources. Many African country are trying to boost and push up their economic development in order to get in middle economy. However, youth always gets more challenge in adopting and using technology or digital platform hence they found in a paralysed and muted situation. In this competitive era and globalized world, every country needs and want smart people who …

Mobile Moneyand Financial Inclusion In Cameroon, Arfa Nasser Bakary

Young African Leaders Journal of Development

The objective of this article is to analyze the effect of mobile money on financial inclusion in Cameroon. To carry out this work, it was necessary for us to analyze the effect of this adoption on the facilitation of access to financial services for households in Cameroon, and to analyze its effect on the mobilization of savings. Thus, we adopted a hypothetico-deductive approach, and collected data from several sources between 2011 and 2018, including Global Findex, Finscope and COBAC. Stationarity tests followed by series cointegration tests for the analysis of cointegration relationships between variables then led us to choose and …

Corporate At-Tax On Africa: What African States Can Learn From The Oecd's Regime For Combatting Aggressive Tax Practices, Marilyn S. Onukwugha

Young African Leaders Journal of Development

Aggressive tax practices are significantly detrimental to developing countries in Africa not just to their economies or the strengths of their legal frameworks, but also to the organizational structures needed for the operation of society and good quality of life in these countries. However, it is possible to reduce and reverse the detrimental effects of aggressive tax practices by employing an effective regime that tackles the issue. This article evaluates whether the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), successfully combats aggressive tax practices carried out by multinational enterprises (MNEs) and how the African Union may learn from the OECD's …

Plastic Waste In Africa, Extending The Problem And Ideas For Solutions, Shawgei Salah Ahmed Ismaeil

Young African Leaders Journal of Development

Plastic waste has become a very complicated problem to solve, due to legal, environmental and international complexities that arise when dealing with issues related to compacting the harmful effect on health and environment, in Africa the problem is hard to solve, because there is no effective legislation and laws applied to oblige beneficiaries of production to recycle a fixed percentage of the total production of plastics, to reduce the impacts on marine life and wildlife. This paper draws attention to the alarming figures on the amount of plastic produced and the impact on the environment, in order to raise awareness …

Hurdle Negative Binomial Model For Motor Vehicle Crash Injuries In Namibia, Ndilimeke Shiyuka

Young African Leaders Journal of Development

The study was based on a quantitative research for all road crash injuries recorded from 2011-2016 secondary data, with number of injured persons per crash as the dependent variable. The Hurdle Negative Binomial two-way model looked at crashes with injuries=0 (Ordinary Ratio (OR)), and those with injuries >0 (Relative Ratio (RR)): crash type with vehicle to vehicle (OR=0.5), Cause of crash with driver behaviour (OR=0.1), and Time of crash with peak time (OR=0.3); Months of crashes with holiday month (RR=0.2) Day of crash with Weekend (RR =0.1) Region with Northern regions (RR= 0.3), Type of crash with vehicle by vehicle …

Impact Of Infrastructure On Trade: An Empirical Assessment By The Gravity Model In Ecowas, Kossi Edem Baita

Young African Leaders Journal of Development

Increased trade is seen as one of the channels that can boost economic growth in ECOWAS. However, we are witnessing a relative decline in intra-ECOWAS trade. This relative weakness in intra-African trade is said to be due to trade barriers and obstacles, like the quality of infrastructure and transportation costs. In this paper, research is made into understanding the impact of infrastructure quality on trade in ECOWAS countries by referring to the gravity model. Estimates show that bilateral trade increases as the quality of infrastructure improves. Also, the results show that the value of bilateral trade increases with the size …

Education And Peaceful Coexistence Among Urban Refugee Children, Brenda Aleesi

Young African Leaders Journal of Development

Education is a salient aspect of the peaceful coexistence of any society that cannot be ignored. This paper examines the role of education in aiding the peaceful coexistence of urban refugees in Uganda. Uganda continues to host refugees fleeing conflict, war and instability from countries in the Great Lakes region and the Horn of Africa. Refugees are given basic assistance in rural settlements. Urban refugees who choose to live in the urban areas amongst the host community do not receive basic assistance except a few on the urban caseload (with security and health problems). The information is drawn from qualitative …

Combating The Effects Of War Remnants In Africa: A Case Of Landmines In Zimbabwe, Fradreck Jockonia Mujuru

Young African Leaders Journal of Development

The war remnants especially landmines from the Zimbabwe Liberation struggle that ended in 1980 is killing, maiming and haunting the people and animals. With these landmines, the security of the people is at risk in seven major areas: Mukumbura, Musengezi, Mazowe, Sheba forest, Rusitu, Sango and Lusuku. Zimbabwe is said to be heavily contaminated with landmines. Though the demining missions with five different organisations have kick-started their operations, minute progress has been made. Landmines are destroying the lives of people and animals creating societies unsafe for development. Zimbabwe needs to engage in accelerated demining actions. Furthermore, she needs to correct …

Effects Of The Public Procurement And Disposal Act Of 2015 On The Financial Management Of Thes State Corporations In Kenya: A Case Study Of Agriculture And Food Authority, Andayi George Manasse

Young African Leaders Journal of Development

The objectives of the study was to find out the effects of Public Procurement and Asset Disposal Act, 2015 (PPADA) on financial management in Kenya's State Corporations, a case study of the Agricultural and Food Authority (AFA). The specific objectives were: cost of goods and services procured transparency in the procurement processes, lead-time of procured goods, quality of goods procured affects the financial management of Agricultural and Food Authority. A descriptive study design was adopted for this study. Stratified sampling was employed in the study to pick out the management and other staff at AFA countrywide offices where a total …

Women Socioeconomic Status: The Repercussion Of Illiteracy, Case Study: Charlotte, Sierra Leone, Anthonette Quayee

Young African Leaders Journal of Development

Illiteracy has affected women in Sierra Leone, by limiting their abilities to participate in governmental, domestic, and economic activities. As a result of the limited opportunities, women are faced with various challenges that impact their social livelihood. For example, women are deprived from making decisions in their homes because of low educational status. Sierra Leone has an adult literacy rate of 43.21%. The male literacy rate is 51.65% and the female literacy rate is 34.85%, creating a huge gap between both sexes (UNESCO, 2018). The impacts of illiteracy also affect youngsters, as early marriage takes the trend, and literacy programs …

Clash Of Interests? Conflicting Perspectives Of The State And Border Communities On Smuggling In Nigeria, Akhigbe Allwell O.

Young African Leaders Journal of Development

Smuggling has been a signature of African borders. The study takes a critical look at the issue of smuggling in the Imeko border community of Nigeria that is situated at the Benin border. It examines the perspectives of the state and the border communities and uses the Onion method of Conflict Analysis to determine the actual needs of both parties and how they could be met. While the government sees it as a crime that robs the state of its much-needed resources, the border communities consider smuggling to be legitimate trade relations with their kinsmen across the border as a …

The Consumption Gaps Between The Poor And The Non-Poor Households In Malawi: A Blinder-Oaxaca Decomposition Analysis, Endington Wa Kavuli

Young African Leaders Journal of Development

So far, most of the literature for example, Bokosi (2006), Mukherjee and Benson (2003) etc. has focused on determinants of poverty but they have ignored the fact that consumption differences exist between the poor and the non-poor population in the society. This study therefore, is set out to investigate the poor and the non- poor welfare inequalities in Malawi based on fourth Integrated Household Survey. It has been found that socio-economic and demographic factors do influence household consumption in both the poor and the non- poor. In addition, the B-O decomposition has helped in identifying the differences in the per …