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- Creators: Arizona State University
Description
The resilience of infrastructure essential to public health, safety, and well-being remains a priority among Federal agencies and institutions. National policies and guidelines enacted by these entities call for a holistic approach to resilience and effectively acknowledge the complex, multi-organizational, and socio-technical integration of critical infrastructure. However, the concept of holism is seldom discussed in literature. As a result, resilience knowledge among disciplines resides in near isolation, inhibiting opportunities for collaboration and offering partial solutions to complex problems. Furthermore, there is limited knowledge about how human resilience and the capacity to develop and comprehend increasing levels of complexity can influence, or be influenced by, the resilience of complex systems like infrastructure. The above gaps are addressed in this thesis by 1) applying an Integral map as a holistic framework for organizing resilience knowledge across disciplines and applications, 2) examining the relationships between human and technical system resilience capacities via four socio-technical processes: sensing, anticipating, adapting, and learning (SAAL), and 3) identifying an ontological framework for anticipating human resilience and adaptive capacity by applying a developmental perspective to the dynamic relationships between humans interacting with infrastructure. The results of applying an Integral heuristic suggest the importance of factors representing the social interior like organizational values and group intentionality may be under appreciated in the resilience literature from a holistic perspective. The analysis indicates that many of the human and technical resilience capacities reviewed are interconnected, interrelated, and interdependent in relation to the SAAL socio-technical processes. This work contributes a socio-technical perspective that incorporates the affective dimension of human resilience. This work presents an ontological approach to critical infrastructure resilience that draws upon the human resilience, human psychological development, and resilience engineering literatures with an integrated model to guide future research. Human mean-making offers a dimensional perspective of resilient socio-technical systems by identifying how and why the SAAL processes change across stages of development. This research suggest that knowledge of resilient human development can improve technical system resilience by aligning roles and responsibilities with the developmental capacities of individuals and groups responsible for the design, operation and management of critical infrastructures.
ContributorsThomas, John E. (Author) / Seager, Thomas P (Thesis advisor) / Clark, Susan (Committee member) / Cloutier, Scott (Committee member) / Fisher, Erik (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2017
Description
College completion has become a national priority in the United States. Before students can graduate from a college or university, however, they must survive their first year in higher education. The retention of out-of-state freshmen is a major piece of the larger college student retention puzzle due to recent national enrollment trends and the financial implications of out-of-state student enrollment. With public universities nationwide receiving less financial support from state governments, many of these institutions have used a strategy of aggressively recruiting and increasingly enrolling out-of-state students because the higher tuition these students pay can help offset the loss of state funding. Despite the importance of out-of-state students to the national higher education landscape, little research has been conducted on out-of-state student retention.
This study examined the relation between a resource website and the engagement, sense of belonging, homesickness, and retention of out-of-state freshmen at Arizona State University (ASU). Mixed methods of inquiry were utilized; data sources included a pre- and post-intervention student survey, student interviews, student essay artifacts, website utilization records, and university retention reports.
This study demonstrated that freshmen coming to ASU from another state experienced four main challenges related to being an out-of-state student. Those challenges were homesickness, adjusting to living in Arizona, managing finances, and making friends at ASU. Out-of-state students therefore needed extra support for their transition. The study found that an out-of-state student resource website had a positive association with co-curricular engagement and homesickness frequency reduction. Moreover, the site provided useful information on the challenges experienced by out-of-state freshmen. Discussion includes possible explanations for the findings and implications for practice and research.
This study examined the relation between a resource website and the engagement, sense of belonging, homesickness, and retention of out-of-state freshmen at Arizona State University (ASU). Mixed methods of inquiry were utilized; data sources included a pre- and post-intervention student survey, student interviews, student essay artifacts, website utilization records, and university retention reports.
This study demonstrated that freshmen coming to ASU from another state experienced four main challenges related to being an out-of-state student. Those challenges were homesickness, adjusting to living in Arizona, managing finances, and making friends at ASU. Out-of-state students therefore needed extra support for their transition. The study found that an out-of-state student resource website had a positive association with co-curricular engagement and homesickness frequency reduction. Moreover, the site provided useful information on the challenges experienced by out-of-state freshmen. Discussion includes possible explanations for the findings and implications for practice and research.
ContributorsCorrea, Kevin (Author) / Rotheram-Fuller, Erin (Thesis advisor) / Ott, Molly (Committee member) / Blakemore, Arthur (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2017
Description
Over the past century, the world has become increasingly more complex. Modern systems (i.e blockchain, internet of things (IoT), and global supply chains) are inherently difficult to comprehend due to their high degree of connectivity. Understanding the nature of complex systems becomes an acutely more critical skill set for managing socio-technical infrastructure systems. As existing education programs and technical analysis approaches fail to teach and describe modern complexities, resulting consequences have direct impacts on real-world systems. Complex systems are characterized by exhibiting nonlinearity, interdependencies, feedback loops, and stochasticity. Since these four traits are counterintuitive, those responsible for managing complex systems may struggle in identifying these underlying relationships and decision-makers may fail to account for their implications or consequences when deliberating systematic policies or interventions.
This dissertation details the findings of a three-part study on applying complex systems modeling techniques to exemplar socio-technical infrastructure systems. In the research articles discussed hereafter, various modeling techniques are contrasted in their capacity for simulating and analyzing complex, adaptive systems. This research demonstrates the empirical value of a complex system approach as twofold: (i) the technique explains systems interactions which are often neglected or ignored and (ii) its application has the capacity for teaching systems thinking principles. These outcomes serve decision-makers by providing them with further empirical analysis and granting them a more complete understanding on which to base their decisions.
The first article examines modeling techniques, and their unique aptitudes are compared against the characteristics of complex systems to establish which methods are most qualified for complex systems analysis. Outlined in the second article is a proof of concept piece on using an interactive simulation of the Los Angeles water distribution system to teach complex systems thinking skills for the improved management of socio-technical infrastructure systems. Lastly, the third article demonstrates the empirical value of this complex systems approach for analyzing infrastructure systems through the construction of a systems dynamics model of the Arizona educational-workforce system, across years 1990 to 2040. The model explores a series of dynamic hypotheses and allows stakeholders to compare policy interventions for improving educational and economic outcome measures.
This dissertation details the findings of a three-part study on applying complex systems modeling techniques to exemplar socio-technical infrastructure systems. In the research articles discussed hereafter, various modeling techniques are contrasted in their capacity for simulating and analyzing complex, adaptive systems. This research demonstrates the empirical value of a complex system approach as twofold: (i) the technique explains systems interactions which are often neglected or ignored and (ii) its application has the capacity for teaching systems thinking principles. These outcomes serve decision-makers by providing them with further empirical analysis and granting them a more complete understanding on which to base their decisions.
The first article examines modeling techniques, and their unique aptitudes are compared against the characteristics of complex systems to establish which methods are most qualified for complex systems analysis. Outlined in the second article is a proof of concept piece on using an interactive simulation of the Los Angeles water distribution system to teach complex systems thinking skills for the improved management of socio-technical infrastructure systems. Lastly, the third article demonstrates the empirical value of this complex systems approach for analyzing infrastructure systems through the construction of a systems dynamics model of the Arizona educational-workforce system, across years 1990 to 2040. The model explores a series of dynamic hypotheses and allows stakeholders to compare policy interventions for improving educational and economic outcome measures.
ContributorsNaufel, Lauren Rae McBurnett (Author) / Bekki, Jennifer (Thesis advisor) / Kellam, Nadia (Thesis advisor) / Rogers, Bradley (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2020
Description
This study was designed to examine the associations between food skills, resilience, and coping during the Covid-19 pandemic. Between April and June of 2020, a sample of 154 students, faculty, and staff from Arizona State University were surveyed. Each respondent was administered a survey containing demographic questions, a food skill questionnaire, and the 14-item Resilience Scale (RS). Results indicate that food skill was correlated with resilience (p<0.001) at an r=0.364 and r2=0.1243 and that resilience was correlated with coping during the Covid-19 pandemic (p<0.001) at an r=0.455. Correlations were also run between resilience score and the separate domains of food skill score: all domains remained significantly associated with resilience score (p<0.001) with a r=0.340 and r2=0.1173 for ‘Food Selection and Planning,’ r=0.312 and r2=0.0958 for ‘Food Preparation,’ and r=0.294 and r2=0.0767 for ‘Food Safety.’ Data seems to be consistent with contemporary research suggesting positive associations between diet quality and physiological resilience and positive associations between resilience and coping during the Covid-19 pandemic.
ContributorsPhares, Savanna Julene (Author) / Johnston, Carol (Thesis advisor) / McCoy, Maureen (Committee member) / Irving, Andrea (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2020
Description
The National Center for Educational Statistics (2018) reported that only 59% of first time college students will retain from their first to second year. The institutional effects of retention are wide ranging and nationwide colleges and universities are seeking effective methods of improving the retention of first year students. Isaak, Graves, & Mayers (2007) identified both emotional intelligence and resilience as important factors contributing to student retention. According to Daniel Goleman (1995), emotional intelligence is integral to success in life, and a significant relationship has been found with grades and successful acclimation to the college environment (Ciarrochi, Deane, & Anderson, 2002; Liff, 2003; and Pekrun, 2006). This study explored the impact of an emotional intelligence (EI) intervention within a First Year Experience course on students’ emotional intelligence, resilience, and academic success. Forty four students at a small, private, liberal arts institution in the southeastern United States participated in the EI intervention and were measured for EI and resilience utilizing the EQ-i 2.0 and the 5x5RS measures as pre and posttests. Based on the results of this study, the EI intervention may have positive implications on EI, resilience and academic success. Institutions and researchers should continue to explore EI as a mechanism to improve resilience and academic success among first year students.
ContributorsDavis, Alexander M (Author) / Wylie, Ruth (Thesis advisor) / Correa, Kevin (Committee member) / Duncan, Tisha (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2020
Description
Concert band classes have been part of the schooling landscape in Canada and the United States since the early 1900’s. Nevertheless, the context in which concert band classes have been offered recently has undergone a dramatic change. Typically, concert band classes have been offered as an elective course in schools, but more recently, concert band classes in some school settings have been required, especially at the beginning level. Because of the required band class context, it can no longer be assumed students in such band classes have the same music making goals exhibited by earlier generations of students. Persistence, resilience, engagement and musical self-efficacy have been affected when choice was no longer afforded. This study was conducted to examine how goal setting strategies influenced student persistence, resilience, engagement, and musical self-efficacy within a required beginning concert band class. Framed by Bandura’s Self-Efficacy Theory, Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Systems Theory, and Tinto’s research on persistence, a goal setting intervention was devised and offered to students taking a required grade 6 beginning band classes at an independent school in Ontario. Using a concurrent mixed method framework, quantitative and qualitative data were collected. Results from the quantitative data indicated no changes in the outcome measures. By comparison, qualitative data indicated persistence, resilience, engagement, and musical self-efficacy were influenced when using the goal setting tools. From students’ perspectives, musical self-efficacy and personal self-efficacy were realized through grade attainment, music notation fluency, rhythmic accuracy goals established on students’ weekly goal charts, and goal setting mind maps. Persistence and resilience were influenced as students overcame physical challenges through scaffolding their practice efforts by creating individualized practice regimens. Engagement was influenced through the goal setting intervention as students set goals such as performing for others—be it peers, family, or their teachers. In terms of future research and practice, cycles of action research would include expanding the goal setting intervention to include creating differentiated music making experiences alongside the traditional concert band genre, based upon principles drawn from a community music making contexts—specifically those involving collaborative music making like those experienced in Samba band ensembles. Recommendations for such experiences were shared.
ContributorsMantie, Angela (Author) / Buss, Ray (Thesis advisor) / Schmidt, Margaret (Committee member) / Brewer, Wesley (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2019
Description
Disasters represent disruptions to stability and offer lessons about how climate adaptation is negotiated and acted on. Viewing adaptation as a negotiation helps understand recovery not just as actions taken to minimize harm, but a reflection of values and motivations surrounding adaptation. This research elicits these perspectives and considers them as part of an ongoing agreement for disaster recovery and adaptation in Puerto Rico. Previous research has characterized recovery as an opportunity for rethinking societal arrangements for climate adaptation and highlights the importance of how adaptation is conceptualized across actors. This study builds on past research by using distinct perspectives to understand recovery as an adaptation process and a co-production of a new ‘social contract’ after Hurricane Maria. Community interviews and government documents are analyzed to understand who is involved, where change is happening, and what resources are necessary for success. The purpose of this is to consider distinct framings of recovery and adaptation, and what these contribute to long-term change. Community interviews give a perspective of local stability and show capacities for immediate and long-term recovery. Similarly, government documents discuss managing foundational vulnerabilities like infrastructure, while navigating recovery given geographical and economic obstacles. Findings show that self-organization and harnessing social capital are crucial components of recovery in the Corcovada community after Maria. They rely on bonding and bridging social capital to mobilize resources and reduce vulnerabilities for future threats. This transformative approach was also present in official recovery documents, though political and economic change were stressed as necessary for stability, along with modernizing infrastructure. While recovery documents suggest connecting physical and social resilience, community residents have cultivated this connection long before Maria. Unlike in Corcovada, the government of Puerto Rico is only starting to view disruptions as windows of opportunity and therefore mention plans for transformation but don’t present actions taken. Further, the reality of vulnerable infrastructural, political and economic systems greatly affects recovery both in Corcovada and across the island. Both perspectives will likely affect actions taken in Puerto Rico and recognizing these unique framings of stability can help design transformative, adaptive social contracts for facing future threats.
ContributorsOrtiz, Jessica (Author) / Manuel-Navarrete, David (Thesis advisor) / Klinsky, Sonja (Thesis advisor) / Muñoz-Erickson, Tischa (Committee member) / Brundiers, Katja (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2019
Description
Suicidality, understood as the risk of suicide with intent or the idea of suicide, has been increasingly prevalent in our country, yet the topic of suicidality is one that is often spoken in hushed tones and behind closed doors (Pam, 2013). While suicide statistics trend upwards, there is a growing need to understand representations of suicidality, particularly within media (Centers for Disease Control, 2017). This thesis looks to explore the representations of suicidality in media, specifically Netflix’s original series, Thirteen Reasons Why. Data collection for this thesis will be collected from online social media forums dedicated to the show in the form of episode discussions reflecting on each episode in the season. Through an emergent, grounded analysis, this paper will address current representations of suicidality within Thirteen Reasons Why as well as identify common themes found in online social media forums. This research established common themes of resilience-enhancing, community building, and individuals feeling at-risk or triggered by representations of suicidality in Thirteen Reasons Why as found throughout the online social media forums.
ContributorsTaylor, Katlyn (Author) / Nadesan, Majia H (Thesis advisor) / Walker, Michael (Committee member) / Waldron, Vincent (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2020
Description
Background: During the Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, nurses experienced increased workloads which affected their compassion fatigue (CF). High levels of CF affect quality of care. However, little is known about what factors are associated with CF among nurses during the pandemic. Aim: This study aims to examine the factors associated with CF using the socio-ecological model (SEM).
Methods: This study is a cross-sectional correlational study which targeted nurses who are actively practicing and can speak English, Korean, Japanese, or French. Online websites for the recruitment including the study description and survey link were provided in each country. Survey data were collected from July 1, 2020 to January 25, 2021.
CF, consisting of burnout and secondary traumatic stress (STS), was measured using Professional Quality of Life scale (ProQOL). Factors based on each level of the SEM were measured: intrapersonal factors (demographic factors, resilience), fear of infection, intention to leave their job, care of COVID-19 patients, developing policies, being asked to work at higher acuity levels, received training about COVID-19, and any COVID-19 test results); interpersonal factors (fear of bringing COVID-19 to family); organizational factors (provision of personal protective equipment [PPE] or masks, organizational support to prevent COVID-19, type of organization, and accommodational support); community factors (country of practice and incidence rate); and policy factor (mask policy). These data were analyzed using multiple regression using maximum likelihood estimation with robust standard errors.
Results: Intrapersonal factors (resilience, age, being bedside staff, fear of infection, intention to leave their job, being asked to work at higher acuity levels, and receiving the positive COVID-19 results), organizational factors (provision of PPE, organizational support for COVID-19, and accommodational support), community factors (incidence rate when the mask policy was not in effect, and country of practice), and policy factor (mask policy under a high incidence rate) were the associated factors. The interaction between incidence rate and mask policy was significant.
Conclusion: To prepare for future emerging infectious disease crises, organizational support with proper PPE supplies, continuing education on emerging infectious diseases, and providing interventions to increase resilience are suggested.
ContributorsJo, Soo Jung (Author) / Reifsnider, Elizabeth (Thesis advisor) / Bennett, Jo Anne (Committee member) / Pituch, Keenan (Committee member) / Singh, Komal (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2021
Description
Blended families including half siblings (brothers/sisters who share only one biological parent, most likely a product of divorce and remarriage) are becoming increasingly prevalent in Western societies. Studies have determined the negative outcomes of sharing only one biological parent on familial relationships, but less so on how half siblings may be resilient in the wake of restructuration and cultivate positive relationships overtime and into adulthood. This study applied a systems and resilience perspective to understand how blended family structure influences this unique sibling dyad. This research includes two studies. First, seventeen older half siblings who define their current sibling relationship as positive participated in a retrospective turning points interview. The second study required sixteen additional participants to keep a two-week daily diary on their communication with immediate family members, including half siblings. These two studies combined shed light on the typical communication practices between positive half siblings, including which behaviors contribute to prosocial relational sibling maintenance. Results detailed 23 prosocial relational maintenance behaviors. The maintenance behaviors positivity, joint activities, openness, and parental intervention were most significant in contributing to a positive half sibling relationship. Three novel maintenance behaviors (parental intervention, awareness of maturity, and mentoring behavior) were also identified to contribute to existing maintenance literature. Theoretical and practical implications for scholars and practitioners alike are discussed.
ContributorsOliver, Bailey M (Author) / Alberts, Jess K. (Thesis advisor) / Waldron, Vincent R. (Committee member) / Randall, Ashley K. (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2018