ASU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
This collection includes most of the ASU Theses and Dissertations from 2011 to present. ASU Theses and Dissertations are available in downloadable PDF format; however, a small percentage of items are under embargo. Information about the dissertations/theses includes degree information, committee members, an abstract, supporting data or media.
In addition to the electronic theses found in the ASU Digital Repository, ASU Theses and Dissertations can be found in the ASU Library Catalog.
Dissertations and Theses granted by Arizona State University are archived and made available through a joint effort of the ASU Graduate College and the ASU Libraries. For more information or questions about this collection contact or visit the Digital Repository ETD Library Guide or contact the ASU Graduate College at gradformat@asu.edu.
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Description
The purpose of this qualitative action research study was to explore improving first semester training practices for graduate teaching assistants (TAs) in the Spanish program at Arizona State University’s (ASU) Tempe Campus. Adding to research on TA training in higher education, a communities of practice (CoP) framework was combined with concrete suggestions on cultivating CoPs to implement a two-part CoP principled training program intervention. Specifically, a goal of the intervention was to address the problem of practice of improving first semester TA lesson planning, communicative language teaching, classroom management, and learning management system usage. Data was collected from interviews, surveys, journals, and training activities from five new TAs who teach Spanish. Data analysis included a multi-cycle qualitative coding process to examine participants’ novice-expert positionalities and the presence of core features of a CoP. Results suggest that regardless of previous experiences, TAs need time to assimilate to the ASU culture, standards, and community. Furthermore, the CoP principled training program showed instances of the necessary core features of a CoP such as joint enterprise and mutual engagement, but also a need for continued community development to address dysfunctions. Implications for these findings point to possible positive effects of continued training through a CoP framework, and a need for reorganization of training practices to allow TAs to legitimately participate in training activities supported by community coordinators as they adjust to the ASU context before beginning their in-service teaching.
ContributorsFlanagan, Steven Ray (Author) / Chen, Ying-Chih (Thesis advisor) / Tecedor Cabrero, Marta (Committee member) / Angus, Katie (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2022
Description
Data use in higher education continues to increase as college and university leaders aim to meet accreditor and governmental expectations to use data to improve student outcomes. However, the steady increase in data use over the past decades has not been accompanied by an increase in employee data literacy in order for employees to use the data effectively. Further, inequitable student outcomes continue to persist in higher education, and more specifically at two-year community colleges, as potentially exacerbated by a lack of employee equity-mindedness. These concurrent problems—inadequate employee data literacy and persistent inequitable student outcomes—provide an opportunity to address both with one intervention. In this critical race, mixed-methods, action research study, I piloted an online professional development course, aimed at community college employees with the purpose to build data literacy and equity-mindedness. I used Bandura’s (1989) Social Cognitive Theory as a guiding theoretical framework paired with a quasi-experimental, delayed-start research design to study the effectiveness of the course in building employee data literacy and equity-mindedness, in addition to better understanding the impacts of environmental factors (i.e., organizational culture) on the implementation of the course. Using pre- and post-intervention surveys, pre- and post-intervention knowledge assessments, and post-intervention participant interviews, I determined that the professional development course contributed to improvements in employee data literacy and equity-mindedness. In particular, the course helped increase employee self-efficacy for data use, increased employee knowledge of data use and equity-mindedness, and increased employee intent to use data in the future. I also found that the organization’s culture related to data and equity to be complex and evolving, both hindering and facilitating data use, in general, and data use specifically, to address inequitable student outcomes.
ContributorsMitchell, Dennis Shane (Author) / Beardsley, Audrey (Thesis advisor) / Ott, Molly (Committee member) / Jacobsen, Craig (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2022
Description
Investigating effective elements of the interior environment in which are proactive strategies related to active shooting prevention are explored through passive and active measures. The research analyzes changes to the interior environment at Virginia Tech after the 2007 shooting based on the strategic implementation of certain actions, features, and experts involved in the decision-making process. This study aims to investigate effective proactive interior design strategies for higher education campuses (or classrooms) that engage both passive and active tactics, and to identify the process in which the decisions are made and implemented. The reviewed literature identifies important aspects of the policies, procedures, psychological/behavioral contingencies of space, and the convergence of design and the built environment. Utilizing a mixed-methods approach, the study will use interviews, photo-ethnography, and forced connections to identify changes made in policies and design which have impacted the higher education environment and safety. The findings are expected to suggest an intersecting approach between decisions made by outside experts and their effect on the interior environment. The potential impact of this research will guide and encourage collaborative, standards, and best practices relative to evidence-based decisions on protection and proactive actions against active shooter situations at Institutions of Higher Education.
ContributorsBurnett, Brooklyn Kate (Author) / Hejduk, Renata (Thesis advisor) / Barton, Scott (Committee member) / Mejía, Mauricio (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2022
Description
The transition from high school to college can cause an undue amount of attrition for fully qualified, college-intending first-generation students. Although the students may have overcome multiple obstacles to be accepted to a college and arrive at the transition over summer, it can feel overwhelming to complete the flood of tasks without access to a supportive network to guide and interpret the intricate steps. Many programs focus on college preparation and access to college but do not devote attention to the delicate transition from access to enrollment during the summer months. The term opportunity melt for students who confirm their enrollment and do not enroll in any institution of higher education in the fall semester. This study identified the influence of strategic peer mentor support during the summer months for Chico State students who applied, were admitted, and accepted their college admission. This action research intervention applies key concepts of academic capital theory and follows up on previous cycles of action research in the California State University system to identify barriers for those who intended to enroll but decided not to attend any Cal State or other institution of higher education in the Fall semester after high school graduation.
ContributorsRyan, Shawn (Author) / Dorn, Sherman (Thesis advisor) / Kim, Jeongeun (Committee member) / Weston, Jeffrey (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2022
Description
While deep disciplinary knowledge will be required to develop next-generation clean energy technologies, the skills to work across disciplines and with diverse stakeholders will also be required. Providing authentic and explicit opportunities for graduate students in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) to engage in the broader impacts (BI) 0f their research could support the development of these skills. A concurrent mixed methods action research study was conducted to evaluate the effects of a three-part, semi-structured design workshop on clean energy fellows’ knowledgeability of the broader impacts of their research, their identification with the clean energy field, and their ability to develop high-quality educational outreach products. This study was grounded in a sociocultural theory of learning and informed by several conceptual frameworks: situated learning (Lave & Wenger, 1991), communities of practice (Wenger, 1998), and knowledgeability (Wenger-Trayner & Wenger-Trayner, 2015). Quantitative data was collected through a rubric and survey informed by guiding principles from the Broader Impacts Review Document for National Science Foundation Proposals (Center for Advancing Research Impact in Society, 2020). Qualitative data was collected through this survey and a focus group interview. Results demonstrated a significant, strong, and positive correlation between attendance at the design workshop attendance and Product of Lasting Value (PLV) quality. Unfortunately, the lack of respondents in the post-survey prevented the ability to quantify any changes that took place in fellows’ knowledgeability of the BI of their research and their identification with the clean energy field due to the innovation. Yet, results from the focus group interview do show that some fellows experienced increased knowledgeability of the BI of their research and identification with the clean energy field, but these gains were not necessarily due to the PLV Design Workshop.
ContributorsHendrickson, Danica Lyn (Author) / Salik, Steven (Thesis advisor) / Weinberg, Andrea (Committee member) / Garcia, David (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2022
Description
The purpose of this study was to (a) embed nature and mindfulness into university course curriculum to determine the influence they have on students’ health and well-being, (b) examine students’ perspectives of mindfulness in the natural environment, and (c) to determine what students identify as the impacts of integrating nature and mindfulness into the university curriculum. This study was unique from previous studies. Several mindfulness practices were introduced so participants could explore and evaluate what worked for them and what did not. The research was conducted in two Environmental Education Certificate courses at Arizona State University: The Ecology and History of the Sonoran Desert (SCN 301) and Nature Journaling (SCN 309). This action research (MMAR) study included a participant pool of thirty-two students: sixteen from the in-person SCN 301 courses and sixteen from the online SCN 309 courses. Students participated in four activities requiring them to sit in a location, engage in mindfulness, and observe nature. These activities are identified as “sit spots” in this study. The four sit spots included two indoor and two outdoor sit spots. Students participated in a one-minute breathing meditation, a 54321 mindfulness technique, and a self-administered, non-clinical Mindfulness-based Art Therapy (MBAT) component during these sit spots.
Qualitative and quantitative data was collected via the pre- and post-Nature Relatedness Scale (NR) and Perceived Stress Scale (PSS). Quantitative data was also collected during the Activity Survey (AS). Qualitative data consisted of open-ended questions in the AS, class discussion, researcher observations and notes, and students’ reflections. All analyzed data was synthesized to produce the findings in this study.
The findings suggest that integrating mindfulness and nature into university positively influenced students' mental health and well-being. Students reported decreased stress and anxiety while increasing focus, attention, and academic performance. Mindfulness and nature cultivate a more mindful and meaningful way of connecting with oneself, individuals, and nature. Mindfulness and nature also were linked to learning by producing academic benefits. The results of this study inform my local practice and set the foundations to produce results in a larger educational context.
ContributorsSchuster, Cyna (Author) / Koyama, Jill (Thesis advisor) / Walters, Molina (Committee member) / Henriksen, Danah (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2023
Description
The quality of support provided to students in higher education can have a powerful impact on the student’s experience, their perceptions of challenges, and their overall academic success, particularly retaining in and completing their degree. Though many universities create robust services to support undergraduate students, existing literature and efforts by universities may be lacking when it comes to doctoral student support. The purpose of this action research, mixed methods study was to evaluate academic support to first year doctoral students in the School of Life Sciences (SOLS) at Arizona State University, specifically addressing the following concepts related to their doctoral study: development of self-efficacy, awareness of requirements and policies, and sense of belonging. With Communities of Practice and self-efficacy theory providing a framework for this study, first year doctoral students in SOLS were invited to participate in a twelve-week, two-condition study during their first semester. The two-condition study involved a Personal Support and a Social Support condition, wherein Personal Support participants (n=8) received 1:1 academic advising and biweekly newsletters, while Social Support participants (n=14) engaged in biweekly advising sessions within groups of 3-6 students and an academic advisor. Results suggest Social Support significantly impacted SOLS doctoral student self-efficacy scores (z = -1.96, p = .05), it created an avenue for students to cultivate community with doctoral student peers thus benefiting sense of belonging, and collaborating with peers influenced awareness to the point of Social Support participants becoming a resource for other students not participating in the study. In contrast, Personal Support appeared to have less of an impact on self-efficacy, sense of belonging, and awareness. For students with vulnerable needs to disclose, Personal Support has the potential to reinforce self-efficacy, sense of belonging, and awareness, but the impacts are nominal otherwise. Furthermore, by the end of their first academic year Social Support participants had retained their self-efficacy and sense of belonging scores. Ultimately, the findings suggest the need for reevaluating how doctoral students are supported in and outside SOLS, with a specific discussion about incorporating Social Support as a permanent model for academic support.
ContributorsFranse, Kylie Rae (Author) / Wylie, Ruth (Thesis advisor) / Vogel, Joanne (Thesis advisor) / Farmer-Thompson, Antoinette (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2023
Description
First-generation college students (FGCS) are considered underrepresented minorities in healthcare. While there are numerous studies on undergraduate students, little is known about FGCS in graduate programs, as this information has not been routinely collected. As such, diversity has been measured only based on race or ethnicity, which may not capture diversity from a broader definition. Furthermore, current research provides a deficit narrative, presenting these students as lacking in abilities and capital. However, these students were successful as undergraduates to enter graduate school and likely have undisclosed strengths. The purpose of this mixed methods study was to develop a comprehensive understanding of FGCS in graduate healthcare programs. All students enrolled in physical therapy, occupational therapy, or pharmacy programs at Creighton University in Phoenix were invited to complete a survey with items related to demographics, parental educational attainment, cultural capital, help-seeking and help-avoidance, and sense of belonging. Additionally, most of the FGCS in this study participated in semi-structured interviews with questions related to cultural capital and experiences in their current programs. The results show that FGCS in this study demonstrate similar cultural capital, help-seeking and help-avoidance, and sense of belonging as their peers. From the interviews, the FGCS strengths include family support, navigational capital, a desire to give back to their communities by providing care in underserved areas, and they have a desire to connect to faculty and peers. Challenges include family stressors, finances, mental health, and academic issues. These are presented with evidence-based recommendations for faculty and administrators. This study provides a more holistic view of FGCS as they navigate graduate school. By avoiding a deficit narrative, this study improves our understanding of FGCS.
ContributorsShaibi, Stefany (Author) / Koyama, Jill (Thesis advisor) / Ross, Lydia (Committee member) / Michalec, Barret (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2023
Description
The purpose of this mixed methods study was to explore how students experience the New Student Orientation Experience (NSOE) and how they perceived it prepared them for their 1st semester of college at a large public university in the United States, Arizona State University (ASU). Institutions of higher education are under pressure to operate more efficiently, reduce costs, and achieve higher student performance outcomes. Student retention models provided the framework for this study as orientation programs have long been considered an impactful component of first-year programs. This study aimed to learn more about student experiences, the value of their experiences, and their preparation for ASU based on attendance. Data were collected from surveys completed following participating in each of the three modules in the NSOE: (a) ASU Essentials, (b) Academic Orientation Session, and (c) ASU Ready. Over 3,000 students responded to survey questions. Though accelerated by the COVID-19 global pandemic, the concept of leveraging technology to deliver orientation to supplant in-person programs is still an emerging approach. This study added to the limited body of literature exploring the experience of in-person students going through an online orientation and can be replicated at any 2- or 4-year institutions. When student participation in online orientation results in outcomes that are commensurate with traditional in-person orientation models, universities will have a viable strategy to deliver a key component of the first year transition programming at scale.
ContributorsPatel, safali (Author) / Koyama, Jill (Thesis advisor) / Ott, Molly (Committee member) / Mcintyre, Lisa (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2023
Description
This qualitative study examined how the scientific journal PLOS ONE assembled its editorial board, which is made up of more than 10,000 academic editors based in 131 countries. The study investigated how the board’s geographic diversity is enacted by the human and nonhuman actors of the assemblage. PLOS ONE is an open-access (OA) mega-journal launched in 2006 by the nonprofit organization Public Library of Science (PLOS). It publishes over 16,000 papers yearly, covering more than 200 scientific subjects of science and medicine. I drew on Actor-Network Theory (ANT), which proposes that processes, ideas, organizations, or objects are continuously generated within a network of relationships between human and nonhuman actors. I used the case study methodology and employed two qualitative research methods. First, I conducted semi-structured interviews with 26 academic editors from different fields, including biology and life sciences, chemistry, medicine and health sciences, physics, and social sciences. These editors are affiliated with research institutions across 14 countries. Additionally, I interviewed PLOS leaders, staff members, and a representative from an external contractor. Second, I employed documentary analysis of organizational documents and online secondary data. Findings showed that the human and nonhuman actors of the PLOS ONE editorial board reproduce biases in science based on authors’ and editors’ geographic origin, the journal’s size and the low diversity of PLOS staff members. I also identified that APCs (Article Processing Charges) act as mediators that trigger betrayals among the actors, which has consequences on the stability of the assemblage, especially in terms of trust between the publisher and the scientific community. Finally, this study also identified that publishing an OA mega-journal has contradictions and unexpected effects on the publishing landscape due to its large scale.
ContributorsLujano Vilchis, Ivonne (Author) / Fischman, Gustavo (Thesis advisor) / Kim, Jeongeun (Committee member) / Hailu, Meseret (Committee member) / Dussel, Inés (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2023