Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Missional Leadership: An Instructional Program To Cultivate Leaders Of A Missional Church, Conner Mathias Brew

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this action research project is to design, execute, and evaluate a small group instructional framework that cultivates a missional culture focused on communal discipleship at MVMNT Church, a local church in the Association of Related Churches network, while also addressing a gap in scholarship surrounding the interrelation of discipleship and the missional church. Using a mixed-methods approach, this study leveraged inductive thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews with survey data to validate the lack of discipleship activity at MVMNT Church and moderate-to-low comprehension of topics related to mission, discipleship, and leadership in the church. This project recommended and …

A Transcendental Phenomenological Study Exploring How Licensed Marriage And Family Therapists Describe The Emotional Impact Of The Covid-19 Pandemic, Melissa Lund

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this qualitative, phenomenological study was to describe the experiences of Licensed Marriage and Family Therapists (LMFT) in private practice during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study was viewed through the lens of resilience theory, which suggests that an individual's ability to adapt and overcome adverse experiences is based on their individual level of resilience. Eight LMFTs varying in demographics, such as age, gender, and ethnicity, as well as length of time in practice participated in individual interviews exploring their lived experiences during the pandemic. The study's questions aimed to gain a better understanding of the emotional impact of …

The Forgotten American Heroes: A Phenomenological Study, Lynda Burke

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This phenomenological study explored the experiences of service providers who work first-hand with homeless veterans in Tennessee. Americans seem to view homeless people as inferior to others without considering the factors that have led these individuals to become homeless. They fail to acknowledge the hardships they face, the daily challenges to their mental health, and the invisible wounds that go unnoticed and are often overlooked. As more men and women have returned to the United States following their service in Afghanistan, Iraq, and other global locations, a significant number of combat veterans are struggling with untreated or unmanaged mental health …

Peer Recovery Support Specialists' Attitudes Toward The Therapeutic Use Of Psilocybin To Treat Depression, Tammala Watkins

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Psychedelic substances such as psilocybin are derived from various naturally occurring plants and fungi. During the 1950s and 60s, a great deal of research was conducted to examine the use of psychedelics to treat mental health conditions. However, research was halted in 1970 as a result of political and social pressure. Since 2000, there has been a renewed interest in the potential therapeutic value of psychedelics to treat depression, anxiety, PTSD, and other mental health conditions. There has also been an increasing curiosity regarding attitudes towards psychedelics. While current attitudinal research has primarily focused on mental health providers, and patients, …

Brain-Age Prediction: Systematic Evaluation Of Site Effects, And Sample Age Range And Size, Yuetong Yu, Hao-Qi Cui, Shalaila S Haas, Faye New, Nicole Sanford, Kevin Yu, Denghuang Zhan, Guoyuan Yang, Jia-Hong Gao, Dongtao Wei, Jiang Qiu, Nerisa Banaj, Dorret I Boomsma, Alan Breier, Henry Brodaty, Randy L Buckner, Jan K Buitelaar, Dara M Cannon, Xavier Caseras, Vincent P Clark, Patricia J Conrod, Fabrice Crivello, Eveline A Crone, Udo Dannlowski, Christopher G Davey, Lieuwe De Haan, Greig I De Zubicaray, Annabella Di Giorgio, Lukas Fisch, Simon E Fisher, Barbara Franke, David C Glahn, Dominik Grotegerd, Oliver Gruber, Raquel E Gur, Ruben C Gur, Tim Hahn, Ben J Harrison, Sean Hatton, Ian B Hickie, Hilleke E Hulshoff Pol, Alec J Jamieson, Terry L Jernigan, Jiyang Jiang, Andrew J Kalnin, Sim Kang, Nicole A Kochan, Anna Kraus, Jim Lagopoulos, Luisa Lazaro, Brenna C Mcdonald, Colm Mcdonald, Katie L Mcmahon, Benson Mwangi, Fabrizio Piras, Raul Rodriguez-Cruces, Jessica Royer, Perminder S Sachdev, Theodore D Satterthwaite, Andrew J Saykin, Gunter Schumann, Pierluigi Sevaggi, Jordan W Smoller, Jair C Soares, Gianfranco Spalletta, Christian K Tamnes, Julian N Trollor, Dennis Van't Ent, Daniela Vecchio, Henrik Walter, Yang Wang, Bernd Weber, Wei Wen, Lara M Wierenga, Steven C R Williams, Mon-Ju Wu, Giovana B Zunta-Soares, Boris Bernhardt, Paul Thompson, Sophia Frangou, Ruiyang Ge, Enigma‐Lifespan Working Group

Student and Faculty Publications

Structural neuroimaging data have been used to compute an estimate of the biological age of the brain (brain‐age) which has been associated with other biologically and behaviorally meaningful measures of brain development and aging. The ongoing research interest in brain‐age has highlighted the need for robust and publicly available brain‐age models pre‐trained on data from large samples of healthy individuals. To address this need we have previously released a developmental brain‐age model. Here we expand this work to develop, empirically validate, and disseminate a pre‐trained brain‐age model to cover most of the human lifespan. To achieve this, we selected the …

Achieving U.S. Preeminence In The Space Domain, Mohammad Durrani

National Security Affairs and International Relations Theses

As an expansion of the geopolitical theatre, the space domain has become fully integrated into the modern world, providing essential services such as communications, navigation, intelligence, and security for both civil and military purposes. With this integration, the fragility of the space domain becomes visibly apparent. Advancements made by U.S. adversaries, specifically China and Russia, in both satellite and counterspace weapons technologies, present a unique challenge that threatens to undermine U.S. dominance in the space domain. These threats may place the United States under severe constraints if conflict were to arise, potentially compromising critical nodes that are central to its …

School Teacher's Perceptions Of Twins: A Study On The Educational Experience Of Teaching Identical And Fraternal Twins, Robyn M. Lindley

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This study explored teachers' perceptions of twins' academic abilities and achievements compared to single-born students. It aimed to understand teachers' attitudes towards classroom dynamics and social interactions among twins and their peers, as well as how teachers differentiate instruction to meet the diverse needs of twins in the classroom. By employing a qualitative phenomenological approach, the research gathered comprehensive data through surveys/questionnaires and in-depth, semi-structured interviews with 15 elementary school teachers with experience teaching identical and fraternal twins in primary and secondary schools in Texas and Virginia. The study identified several key themes through thematic analysis: the importance of individualized …

Teacher Perceptions Of Principal Personality And Intent To Remain: A Causal-Comparative Study, Brittani Leanna Blair

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this quantitative, causal-comparative study is to explore the relationship between teachers' perceptions of their principals' personality traits, based on the big-five factor structure, and the teachers' intentions to remain in the teaching profession. Research indicates school leadership significantly influences American teachers' commitment to teaching, highlighting the need to understand teachers' perceptions of principal personality traits given the teacher shortage crisis in the United States. Data from a sample of 278 teachers was collected using an online Qualtrics survey that included the M5-50 personality questionnaire items and an item related to teacher intent to remain in the profession. …

Pastor's Cultural Intelligence And Personal Character Influence Within Youth Ministries, Linwood J. Sealey Iii

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Within this study, the logic was to understand the natural development of cultural Christlike character traits among youth pastors who serve in the 6th-12th grade youth ministry loneliness environment. The sample population comprised between 22 church pastors within the mid-Atlantic region of the United States. The sample included participants with different experience levels in pastoral and bi-vocational pastoral ministries. The guiding rationale was that the pastor's cultural Christlike character should be a positive factor in their ministry in the loneliness environment of the youth they serve. The sample covered the geographical settings within rural, suburban, and city environments. A purposive …

A Phenomenological Study Of Church Revitalization In Coastal North Carolina, Paolo Engle Santos

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Pastors and ministry leaders share the important responsibilities of church growth and revitalization. This research focused on overcoming decline and moving towards a season of strength and multiplication. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore church growth and revitalization within Southern Baptist churches in coastal North Carolina. The theory guiding this study was Rainer's (2020) central thesis about revived churches, which suggests that churches must adapt to cultural shifts and actively engage with the changing world. The study sought to gain insights into the perspectives and mindsets of full-time pastors and ministry leaders regarding numerical expansion, spiritual awakening, …

Push And Pull Factors That Influence Law Enforcement Officer Turnover: A Qualitative Case Study, Andrew Hunter Kim

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

A high frequency of voluntary turnover within a law enforcement organization is problematic due to the potential for an increase in expenditures, a reduction in public safety levels, and an increase in liability. However, research has indicated explicitly that criminal justice professions have a high turnover rate, with many organizations having an annual turnover rate of 10 percent or higher. Investigating employee turnover rates and potential solutions to increase employee retention are significant areas of focus that can reduce expenditures, maintain or improve public safety levels by keeping experienced employees, and create a better working environment. A high employee turnover …

Differences In Students' Self-Esteem, Prosocial Behaviors, Classroom Climate, And Participation In Read To Dogs Programs: A Quantitative Comparative Study, Kimberley Anna Brush

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This anonymous quantitative quasi-experimental pre-post-test study was designed to determine differences in students' self-esteem, the performance of prosocial behaviors, and teachers' perceptions of the overall classroom climate after participating in Read to Dogs (RTD) programs in elementary and middle schools in East Central, New Jersey. Students with reading difficulties have higher incidences of low self-esteem and self-concept, depression, and anxiety that result in internalizing and externalizing behaviors that impact the classroom climate for all students socially and academically. Student participants completed the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale and the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire, and teacher participants completed the grade-appropriate version of the …

Impact Of Body Dissatisfaction And Selfies And The Effect Of Self-Compassion: A Mixed Methods Study, Amelia Jing Zhen Cheah

Masters Theses

Social media has become one of the most widely consumed platforms worldwide—specifically, the act of taking pictures of oneself otherwise known as selfies. Previous research has demonstrated links to body dissatisfaction and eating disorders about social media usage. There is a lack of research on the selfie-editing process, from taking to selecting and editing the pictures before uploading them. In turn, social media may become a risk factor for young individuals engaging in selfies and experiencing body dissatisfaction. Given how rapidly the use of social media has evolved within society, there is a constant need to address and overcome body …

How Organizational Factors Reinforce Or Deter Hostile Workplace Behaviors In The Military: A Grounded Theory Approach, Christina Staebell

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Organizational culture is the main predictor of hostile workplace behaviors such as discrimination, harassment, and bullying. Psychological safety, inclusive workplace culture, and bystander intervention all show promising effects on deterring hostile workplace behaviors. No research exists that explores military members' perceptions of how the military organizational culture influences the presence of these constructs and how these constructs influence one another and hostile workplace behaviors. The following grounded theory study explored military members' perceptions of how the military organizational culture influences the occurrence of hostile workplace behaviors. The role of psychological safety, inclusive workplace culture, and bystander intervention on hostile workplace …

The Relationship Between Resilience, Psychological Capital, Burnout, And Grit In Direct Care Staff, Nicholas Stoia

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The present study examined the relationship between resilience, psychological capital (PsyCap), grit, and burnout among direct care workers. The current study assessed other fields within direct care that have not been investigated. When it comes to research methodology, the current research utilized a quantitative approach. Participants were selected and sent the survey through the online platform. The present study had a total of 195 participants between the ages of 18 - 60. Participants were workers in agency settings within the direct care field. These agencies included state agencies, private agencies, non-profits, federal agencies, and home care. Specific types of direct …

Recovering Christian Women Self-Care And Mentorship: A Qualitative Study, Clara Graves Hopkins

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this qualitative study was to describe Christian women in recovery's experiences serving as a mentor to other addicts in Florida. This heuristic phenomenological qualitative research study aimed to understand the phenomenon of recovering Christian women how they function in their various roles as ministers, leaders, and mentors, and what they do for psychological and physical self-care when faced with challenges and barriers in society, why they are employed as ministers, counselors, and therapists who promote positive wellbeing and provide support in the success of recovery from addiction, trauma, and psychological issues, and how they maintain mental, emotional, …

Challenges Faced By Adult Gifted Students Who Have Experienced Traumatic Brain Injury: A Phenomenological Study, Dawn M. Nessler

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to describe the educational experiences of gifted adult students who have experienced traumatic brain injury (TBI). The theory guiding this phenomenological study was Kazimierz Dabrowski's theory of positive disintegration, with a focus on how the tragedy of various natures impacts the development of an individual's identity. This qualitative phenomenological study sought to understand the shared educational experiences of gifted undergraduate students who have experienced a TBI. 12 participants from Strong Minds, Kind Hearts, a Christian counseling and educational office located in Northwest Florida engaged in the study. Stratified sampling was used within the …

Brain-Age Prediction: Systematic Evaluation Of Site Effects, And Sample Age Range And Size, Yuetong Yu, Hao-Qi Cui, Shalaila S Haas, Faye New, Nicole Sanford, Kevin Yu, Denghuang Zhan, Guoyuan Yang, Jia-Hong Gao, Dongtao Wei, Jiang Qiu, Nerisa Banaj, Dorret I Boomsma, Alan Breier, Henry Brodaty, Randy L Buckner, Jan K Buitelaar, Dara M Cannon, Xavier Caseras, Vincent P Clark, Patricia J Conrod, Fabrice Crivello, Eveline A Crone, Udo Dannlowski, Christopher G Davey, Lieuwe De Haan, Greig I De Zubicaray, Annabella Di Giorgio, Lukas Fisch, Simon E Fisher, Barbara Franke, David C Glahn, Dominik Grotegerd, Oliver Gruber, Raquel E Gur, Ruben C Gur, Tim Hahn, Ben J Harrison, Sean Hatton, Ian B Hickie, Hilleke E Hulshoff Pol, Alec J Jamieson, Terry L Jernigan, Jiyang Jiang, Andrew J Kalnin, Sim Kang, Nicole A Kochan, Anna Kraus, Jim Lagopoulos, Luisa Lazaro, Brenna C Mcdonald, Colm Mcdonald, Katie L Mcmahon, Benson Mwangi, Fabrizio Piras, Raul Rodriguez-Cruces, Jessica Royer, Perminder S Sachdev, Theodore D Satterthwaite, Andrew J Saykin, Gunter Schumann, Pierluigi Sevaggi, Jordan W Smoller, Jair C Soares, Gianfranco Spalletta, Christian K Tamnes, Julian N Trollor, Dennis Van't Ent, Daniela Vecchio, Henrik Walter, Yang Wang, Bernd Weber, Wei Wen, Lara M Wierenga, Steven C R Williams, Mon-Ju Wu, Giovana B Zunta-Soares, Boris Bernhardt, Paul Thompson, Sophia Frangou, Ruiyang Ge

Student and Faculty Publications

Structural neuroimaging data have been used to compute an estimate of the biological age of the brain (brain‐age) which has been associated with other biologically and behaviorally meaningful measures of brain development and aging. The ongoing research interest in brain‐age has highlighted the need for robust and publicly available brain‐age models pre‐trained on data from large samples of healthy individuals. To address this need we have previously released a developmental brain‐age model. Here we expand this work to develop, empirically validate, and disseminate a pre‐trained brain‐age model to cover most of the human lifespan. To achieve this, we selected the …

Alexithymia Profiles And Depression, Anxiety, And Stress, David A. Preece, Ashish Mehta, Kate Petrova, Pilleriin Sikka, Ethan Pemberton, James J. Gross

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Background: Alexithymia is a multidimensional trait comprised of difficulties identifying feelings, difficulties describing feelings, and externally orientated thinking. It is regarded as an important risk factor for emotional disorders, but there are presently limited data on each specific facet of alexithymia, or the extent to which deficits in processing negative emotions, positive emotions, or both, are important. In this study, we address these gaps by using the Perth Alexithymia Questionnaire (PAQ) to comprehensively examine the relationships between alexithymia and depression, anxiety, and stress symptoms. Methods: University students (N = 1250) completed the PAQ and the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales-21. Pearson …

A Mixed Methods Acceptability And Feasibility Study Of A Patient-Initiated Approach To Increasing Weight Communication In Primary Care, Jocelyn E. Remmert, Leon Mccrea, Nicole T. Crane, Adam Gilden, Meghan L. Butryn

The Journal of Integrated Primary Care

Background: Weight discussions between patients and physicians can have a positive impact on patients’ health, yet they occur infrequently in primary care. No study to date has promoted patient-initiated weight discussions. This study aimed to test the feasibility, acceptability, and explore trends of the effect of a waiting room-based pamphlet intervention to promote patient-initiated weight discussions.

Methods: Adults (n=60) with overweight or obesity attending a primary care appointment were recruited from the waiting room and randomized to receive the intervention pamphlet or to a non-intervention control condition. All participants attended their appointment and completed post-appointment assessments.

Results: Three …

Case Report Of A Brief Modular Anxiety Intervention For Integrated Primary Care: Addressing Clinician Feasibility Concerns And Barriers To Using Manualized Treatments, Katherine Buckheit, Robyn L. Shepardson, Luke Mitzel, Risa B. Weisberg, Stephen A. Maisto, Jennifer Funderburk

The Journal of Integrated Primary Care

Individuals with anxiety symptoms commonly present in primary care settings and prefer behavioral health (versus pharmacotherapy) treatment, but behavioral health interventions are underutilized. Primary care behavioral health (PCBH) models, in which embedded behavioral health providers deliver behavioral treatment in primary care, may help address the gap in provision of anxiety treatment. However, evidence-based anxiety treatment options feasible for delivery in primary care are limited, and clinicians often report concerns about using manualized interventions. Recent recommendations by the U.S. Preventative Services Task Force to increase anxiety screening among adults in primary care may result in increased identification of individuals with anxiety …

Lithium And Water: Hydrosocial Impacts Across The Life Cycle Of Energy Storage, James J. A. Blair, Noel Vineyard, Dustin Mulvaney, Alida Cantor, Ali Sharbat, Kate Berry, Elizabeth Bartholomew, Ariana Firebaugh Ornelas

Geography Faculty Publications and Presentations

As a key ingredient of batteries for electric vehicles (EVs), lithium plays a significant role in climate change mitigation, but lithium has considerable impacts on water and society across its life cycle. Upstream extraction methods—including open-pit mining, brine evaporation, and novel direct lithium extraction (DLE)—and downstream processes present different impacts on both the quantity and quality of water resources, leading to water depletion and contamination. Regarding upstream extraction, it is critical for a comprehensive assessment of lithium's life cycle to include cumulative impacts related not only to freshwater, but also mineralized or saline groundwater, also known as brine. Legal frameworks …

A Case Study Of Endocrine And Immune Responses To Traditional Hand-Tap Tattooing, Lauren A. Landgraf, Tomasz Nowak, Jeffrey Gassen, Michael Muehlenbein, Christopher D. Lynn

Pacific Journal of Health

Tattooing is a stressor that could have adaptive benefits. Previous research indicates that endocrine and immune systems adjust to the stress of modern electric tattooing over lifetime experience, but it is unclear how these systems react to traditional hand-tap tattooing. The objective of this study was to explore how the body responds to this intense cultural stressor through examining traditional tattooing in Samoa, where saliva samples were collected throughout the first day from a Samoan man receiving the tattoo. Morning elevations and diurnal profiles of cortisol, C-reactive protein (CRP), secretory immunoglobulin A (sIgA), and bacteria killing activity (BKA) are described, …

Examining The Role Of Core Self Evaluations, Core Group Evaluations, And Individual And Team Referent Psychological Safety On Team Member Behaviours And Performance, Helen H. Lee

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Psychological safety has been defined by Edmondson (1999) as “a shared belief that the team is safe for interpersonal risk taking” (p.354). Psychological safety has been found to predict a host of beneficial outcomes for teams and organizations. However, the items in the most used measure of psychological safety developed by Edmondson (1999) demonstrates inconsistency in terms of mixing referents at both the individual and team level. Individual referent (IR) psychological safety appears to be more likely to reflect individuals’ perceptions of psychological safety rather than encompassing the psychological safety of a team as a whole. On the other hand, …

Volume 63-2 Complete Issue, Casey D. Allen

The Geographical Bulletin

Volume 63-2 Complete Issue

Transforming The Applied Learning Experience Through Interdisciplinary Fieldwork, Dawn M. Drake, Ashley Elias, Carissa Ganong, Michael L. Grantham, Mark S. Mills

The Geographical Bulletin

This paper introduces an interdisciplinary field research project undertaken by faculty at Missouri Western State University in an effort to improve student learning outcomes and enrich student experience. The project uses a single ecosystem, the nine human-built ponds on the campus, and combines five different faculty members’ areas of research across ecology, microbiology, and geography to immerse students in an interactive applied learning opportunity that not only helps them develop research skills, but also learn to present their research to a variety of audiences. The paper reviews the nature of the project, the conditions that allowed the project to emerge, …

Reflections On Fieldwork In Romania: Subjectivities, Risks, Benefits, And Ethics, Georgeta Stoian Connor

The Geographical Bulletin

Romania, one of the largest and most ruralized Eastern European countries, has a very complex agrarian history: from the traditional free communal villages and serfdom to the communist collective farms, followed by the agricultural alignment to the Common Agricultural Policy. Because the European Union (EU) has had a preconceived vision of what a modern agricultural landscape should look like, when this vision has been implemented within Romania’s agricultural landscape, it has produced deeply contradictory outcomes. In this context, by examining the archive records and information from extended fieldwork in Romania, this study investigates how Romania’s efforts to join the EU …

Reflecting On Interdisciplinary Trends In Artificial Reef Design, Monitoring, And Assessment In The Us Southeast: Insight From Recent Developments And Hope In The Restoring Resilient Reefs Act, Johnathan D. Johnson, Clayton J. Whitesides

The Geographical Bulletin

Although artificial reefs (Figs. 1 and 2) have long been the focus of biological and ecological research, “the economics and social impact of artificial reefs … have not been carefully examined” (Bohnsack and Sutherland 1985, 11). Since the time of that statement in the mid-1980s, we are pleased to report that much research on the economics and social impacts of artificial reefs has been published in the academic literature (e.g., Sutton and Bushnell 2007, Whitmarsh et al. 2008, Stolk, Markwell, and Jenkins 2009, and Islam et al. 2014).

Left Behind In Lockdown: Covid-19 And The Denver Unhoused Community, Lucy Briggs

The Geographical Bulletin

The population experiencing homelessness in Denver, Colorado, increased by nearly 15% from 2018 to 2019. This trend, combined with the SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) pandemic of 2020, led to a distinct crisis for unhoused communities. This research attempted to answer the question, “How has COVID-19 impacted the locational strategies and spatial patterns of the Denver unhoused population in relation to public spaces and resources in the city core?” More specifically, this research has three objectives: (1) To explore the impact of COVID-19 on the shelter availability in Denver, (2) to develop an understanding of COVID-19’s impact upon public restrooms in Denver, and …

Defining Humanity In The Popular Imagination: The Neanderthal And The Early Modern Human In H.G. Wells And Yuval Noah Harari, Laurel Bayless

The Geographical Bulletin

Popular depictions of Neanderthals place them in a liminal position between the human and nonhuman. Examination of how such depictions have changed over time reveals evolving and enduring ideas about humanity and nature. Descriptions of Neanderthals and the prehistoric anatomically modern humans who encountered them in Europe reveal the features their authors see as essential to humanity. Not only do authors project their contemporary ideas onto Neanderthals, but doing so but then naturalizes those ideas. H.G. Wells, one of the f irst popular writers to discuss Neanderthals, depicted Neanderthals as shambling, inhuman brutes, whereas he used colonial ideas about the …