Faith and Belief at Work: How Business Can Advance and Benefit from Religious Freedom

Lambert, Paul W ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Georgetown Univers 2022 해외박사(DDOD)

This thesis addresses the question of whether religious freedom should matter to business. Through a review of current research and my own original research, this thesis argues that religious freedom should not just matter to business, but that business is both well positioned to advance and benefit from religious freedom. To make this argument, Chapter One sets the stage by defining religious freedom and addressing the challenges that face religious freedom in society today and particularly in an economic and business context. Chapter Two reviews existing research to illustrate the connection between religion, religious freedom and economics at a macro level. Building on that connection, Chapter Three narrows the focus to a micro or business level and demonstrates the connection between actual businesses, business outcomes, religion, and religious freedom. Chapter Four, drawing from my own research, takes a deep dive into what some companies are doing to specifically address religion and establish religious freedom in the workplace. The chapter also introduces common principles for successfully building religious freedom in a workplace, drawn from original case studies presented in Chapter Five. Chapter Six discusses why training and education is critical for business leaders and business students and offers a framework for how such training can be delivered. Chapter Six also offers how the findings in this thesis can have global application and identifies where future research and work should be pursued. In sum, this thesis builds on the existing research regarding the connection between religious freedom and business and offers new findings on how businesses are embracing religious freedom in the workplace. It also offers new, practical tools and principles on how companies can successfully advance and benefit from religious freedom. As companies do so, they have potential to make businesses, societies and countries better, freer, more productive places.

A Descriptive Study of Nouns and Nominal Phrases in Soqotri

Aloufi, Amani A ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Georgetown Univers 2022 해외박사(DDOD)

This dissertation thoroughly describes the noun and the major phrases within the nominal domain in Soqotri, one of the Modern South Arabian languages which belong to the West Semitic branch of the Semitic language family. Soqotri is a severely endangered language primarily spoken in the Socotra Archipelago by approximately 50,000 to 60,000 speakers. The main goal is to gain a comprehensive empirical understanding of the morphological and the syntactic features of Soqotri nouns and the phrases within the nominal domain. The study also aims to identify the major questions and problems that Soqotri brings to theories of morphology and syntax. To achieve its goal, this study draws on data acquired over a period of three months (from January 2021 to March 2021) on Zoom and WhatsApp, as well as data obtained from many occasional short follow-up sessions since then. In order to attain its objective, this study provides an in-depth analysis of the morphology of nouns and their interaction syntactically with nominal-related phrases such as adjectives, relative clauses, possessive structure, prepositions, demonstratives, numerals, and quantifiers. Examining each element involves an investigation of its form and function and a discussion of its basic linear order in relation to the noun, on the one hand, and in relation to other elements in the spine of the DP, on the other hand. Given the very little documentation on Soqotri, the dissertation will contribute to the typology of languages in general and particularly to the knowledge of the Modern Standard Arabian languages. The facts presented throughout the dissertation capture how the language varies from or patterns like the other Modern South Arabian languages and Semitic languages. Various questions and tentative analyses provided over the course of the dissertation also open up avenues for additional investigation.

Confinement and Texture in Cement Hydrates: From Nanoscale Cohesion to Rheology

Goyal, Abhay ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Georgetown Univers 2020 해외박사(DDOD)

Concrete is the most abundant artificial material on Earth, yet the physical mechanisms that control its properties are not fully understood. Cement, the main binding agent, reacts with water to produce Calcium-Silicate-Hydrate (C-S-H) nanoparticles that form a heterogeneous and porous gel which serves as the glue for the hardened material. The C-S-H building blocks are highly charged and adhere due to electrostatics mediated by the water and counter-ions produced by cement dissolution. This multiscale complexity, coupled to the non-equilibrium setting process, is the central challenge to designing better cementitious materials---for more durable infrastructure, reduced emissions and improved sustainability, and 3D printing based construction. To address this, I have developed nano- and meso-scale computational models, connecting cement chemistry to its nanoscale cohesion and the consequential effects on microstructure and macroscopic material properties. The electrostatics governing cohesion of C-S-H nanoparticles is in the regime (strongly coupled i.e multivalent ions and high surface charge density) where the usual mean-field theories break down and a new approach is needed. By modeling explicit ions, immersed in SPC/E water, confined by charged surfaces, I demonstrate that strong spatial and dynamic correlations arise between ions and water which are responsible for the strong net attraction between the confining surfaces. This depends on surface charge and ion type, controlled by the cement chemistry, which changes over time. Coarse-graining to the mesoscale, I translate the nanoscale forces to an effective interaction between C-S-H particles. By coupling molecular dynamics with a Grand Canonical Monte Carlo process to mimic C-S-H precipitation, I investigate the heterogeneous C-S-H growth near cement grain surfaces. These simulations demonstrate how the time-evolution of the interactions can drive the formation of a percolating gel, which limits spatial gradients and anisotropy at early hydration times but reaches high densities with large local variations---as in hardened cement pastes---at later times. Together, these models provide a framework for predicting the nanoscale electrostatics, mesoscale morphology, and macroscopic properties of cement from first principles, and I discuss how this could be applied to make predictions of rheological properties.

The Effects of an On-Site Health Center and Care Coordination on Type-2 Diabetes Outcomes

Wilson-Patterson, Shalonda Felesa ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Georgetown Univers 2020 해외박사(DDOD)

More than 30.3 million people in the United States (US) have diabetes with 90-95% having type-2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). In 2017, the total costs of diabetes care were estimated at $327 billion and contributed to the $3.3 trillion in annual health care costs in the US. Of the chronic diseases, T2DM is the seventh leading cause of death in the US. Management of T2DM is complex and requires a multidisciplinary approach. The on-site health center promotes health through innovative care solutions using a patient centered model. Care coordination can potentially maximize the value of care delivery with improved health outcomes.This scholarly project evaluated changes in T2DM outcomes at one on-site health center after enrollment into care coordination. A non-experimental, retrospective chart review was performed utilizing secondary data from health risk assessments (HRAs) and an electronic health record (EHR). The T2DM clinical variables evaluated at initial HRA and post-HRA surveys were: weight, body mass index (BMI), blood pressure (BP), blood glucose (FBS), hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c), microalbumin, low/high density lipoproteins (LDL, HDL), medication therapy with angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACE) or angiotensin receptor blockers (ARB), and HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors (statins). Additional variables included number of health center visits, foot exams, and wellness, podiatry, and eye exam referrals.Comparison of initial and post-HRA data were analyzed using a paired t-test. Data was used for comparison of organizational benchmarks and T2DM national standards. A total of 92 participants met the inclusion criteria. There were statistically significant improvements in HbA1c and microalbumin results. The post-HRA mean HbA1c was 7.5% (p=.045) and microalbumin was 17.8 (p=.006). There were near significant results for post-HRA mean DBP of 80.5 mmHg (p=.053) and FBS of 140.9 (p=.053). The American Diabetes Association (ADA) standards of diabetes care were met for BP control and lipid management, but not for HbA1c. Organizational benchmarks for foot exams, ACE or ARB medication therapy were met but not achieved for HbA1c. The implications to practice are on-site health centers can provide chronic disease management while potentially improving T2DM outcomes. Recommendations for further study include a cost benefit analysis of T2DM care at on-site health centers.

Perioperative Corneal Abrasion: An Exploration of Educational Intervention Effectiveness and Impact on Prevention Practices

Gonzalez-Birr, Aaron R ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Georgetown Univers 2020 해외박사(DDOD)

Research has identified risk factors associated with the development of perioperative corneal abrasions.2-4 Evidence suggests preventative measures that can be utilized to prevent corneal abrasions, however a standardized perioperative corneal abrasion prevention guideline has not been developed by any professional anesthesia organization.8,9,10-12 Due to the lack of standardized guidelines, individual institutions are left to develop their own perioperative corneal abrasion prevention guidelines, the effectiveness of which are largely unknown. The primary purpose of this study is to determine anesthesia providers’ current level of understanding of perioperative corneal abrasion prevention practices. The secondary purpose is to determine what impact an educational in-service has on the anesthesia provider’s understanding of perioperative corneal abrasion prevention practices.This study was conducted using a quantitative quasi-experimental pre-post interventional design. The design for this research was used to evaluate anesthesia provider’s understanding of perioperative corneal abrasion prevention methods before and after an educational in-service and the impact the intervention may have on their practices. The non-randomized convenience sample for this study included Anesthesiologists (MDAs) and Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists (CRNAs) who practice in two mid-Atlantic teaching hospitals in the United States. The de novo data collection tool utilized for this study included a pre-test and identical post-test administered approximately one month after the educational intervention. The pre and post-test consisted of 15 identical questions in 3 parts consisting of demographics, prevention practices, and 5-point Likert scale questions regarding the provider's willingness to alter current practices. Participants demonstrated a basic understanding of perioperative corneal abrasion prevention methods. The educational intervention did not have a significant association with improved understanding of perioperative corneal abrasion prevention understanding (p = 0.171) or a significant impact on anesthesia providers’ prevention methods (p = 0.213-0.277) however post-test scores did improve from 76% to 82%. Furthermore, 80% of participants felt that an educational intervention would have a significant impact on their corneal abrasion prevention methods. Continued perioperative corneal abrasion prevention education is warranted as the benefits of reduced corneal abrasions, including improved patient comfort, patient satisfaction, and reduced cost to the patient outweigh the cost of an educational in-service.

The Mask of Athena: Socio-Emotional Labor’s Hidden Cost for the U.S. Army’s Women Officers

Hendrix, Shanna M ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Georgetown Univers 2020 해외박사(DDOD)

This study examines the role that socio-emotional labor has on the U.S. Army’s women officers with respect to their personal and professional decisions. Studies of civilian, professional populations have shown that this unique form of labor is used to maintain interpersonal relationships (both personal and professional), as well as to establish or reaffirm a gendered identity. This study found that both male and female officers typically assume responsibility for gendered forms of socio-emotional labor, with women officers disproportionately being responsible for tasks that are categorized as high-stress-low-control which leads to greater conflict and challenges when trying to balance personal and professional demands. Reasons for this unequal distribution of labor between male and female officers and their spouses range from a desire to combat the double-bind experienced by women professionals working in male-dominated professions, as well as the invisible power stemming from hegemonic ideologies and both an implicit and explicit desire to “do gender”. Society’s current alienation from their historicity have imbued socio-emotional labor with a great deal of influence on our perception of value systems and the alleged objective manner in which they are applied.

Interaction in Synchronous Computer-Mediated Communication: The Effects of Interlocutor, Task, and State Anxiety

Bistline-Bonilla, Christine ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Georgetown Univers 2020 해외박사(DDOD)

There is an increasingly large body of research that has addressed how interaction via Synchronous Computer-Mediated Communication (SCMC) may support second language (L2) development (see Ziegler, 2016 for a review). Various empirical studies in SCMC have demonstrated that type of interlocutor (e.g., Liu, 2017) and type of task (e.g., Blake, 2000; Yilmaz & Granena, 2010) can significantly impact the amount of negotiation that occurs during interaction. Nevertheless, the number of empirical studies is limited and they vary widely in their methodology. In addition, other researchers have suggested that one of the possible advantages of SCMC over other modes of communication is its potential to reduce L2 learner anxiety (e.g., Abrams, 2003).The present study aims to contribute to instructed second language acquisition (ISLA) research by employing two types of tasks along with three types of interlocutors in SCMC to address whether 1) production of language-related episodes (LREs) on task, 2) amount of talk on task, and 3) L2 lexical recognition and production scores over time are related to type of interlocutor, type of task, and learners’ state anxiety. It included 82 adult intermediate L2 learners of Spanish who collaborated with either a peer, professor, or native speaker via Zoom instant messaging to complete 1) an information gap task and 2) a decision-making task. After completing each experimental task, they completed a state anxiety questionnaire adapted from Baralt and Gurzynski-Weiss (2011). Statistical analyses revealed that a combination of Type of interlocutor and Type of task differentially affected the production of LREs and the amount of talk on task. In terms of participants’ lexical recognition and production performance over time, the analyses indicated that while Type of interlocutor played a limited role, participants were significantly more accurate in their recognition and written production of the decision-making task target items. It was also found that interlocutor type and task type were not predictors of participants’ overall state anxiety. Ultimately, these findings provide a better understanding of the roles of interlocutor status and the type of task in text-based SCMC and their impact on subsequent recognition and written production of L2 lexical forms.

Child Acquisition of Sociolinguistic Variation

Mooney, Shannon ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Georgetown Univers 2020 해외박사(DDOD)

This dissertation explores the acquisition of sociolinguistic variation by 5;0 to 6;0 year old children in a public bilingual immersion elementary school setting. It shows how children at this age engage in spontaneous stylistic variation during play with peers, suggesting early diffusion of non-local forms. The capacity for stylistic variation indicates an emergent sociolinguistic competence. This emergent sociolinguistic competence is then shown to play a role in phonological accommodation to peers and acquisition of a second dialect vowel system over the course of the first year at school, as, by the end of the school year, children were found to move toward the vowel system of the classmate to whom they showed the most affinity.Spontaneous child speech with classmates was recorded at monthly timepoints throughout a year of ethnographic fieldwork at the school. Vowel formants in fifteen lexical classes were extracted from the recordings to test for the presence of the traditional Eastern New England English (ENEE) dialect vowel system, as well as the vowel systems of surrounding regional dialects and vowels undergoing change in multiple North American English varieties. While a qualitative analysis reveals stylistic variation in performance of personae during roleplay, statistical modeling using classification and regression trees (CART) shows accommodation to the vowel system of a second dialect that appears to be subject to interpersonal relationships between peers as well as a potential influence of peer ethnicity.A major finding from this study is the amount of linguistic variation that exists between peers in this public early education setting that draws students from across many residentially-segregated communities in a small post-industrial city near Boston. The exposure of the very young children in this study to extensive linguistic variation leads to an active role for the children’s sociolinguistic competence as they navigate relationships with peers, identity, stances, power, and development into adult-like sociolinguistic actors.

Changes in Hippocampal Synaptic Plasticity following Exposure to High Frequency Head Impacts (HF-HI)

Sloley, Stephanie S ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Georgetown Univers 2020 해외박사(DDOD)

Concussions account for over 80% of all cases of TBI reported each year. Sustaining multiple concussions is associated with the development of lasting cognitive and memory impairments. Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a slowly developing tauopathy, has been linked to the development of these impairments; however, it is unknown if the cognitive deficits associated with CTE can occur prior to the deposition of tau and death of neuronal cells. The overarching goal of these studies was therefore to 1) identify any tau-independent mechanisms associated with deficit development following exposure to multiple concussive impacts and 2) to assess how injury frequency contributes to deficit development.To perform these studies, our group has developed an experimental model of high frequency head impacts (HF-HI), where mice receive 5 hits a day for 6 days (30 hits total). It recapitulates the frequency of injuries experienced by athletes engaged in high contact sports like football and boxing. Immunohistochemical analyses revealed that HF-HI did not cause cell death, inflammation, tau accumulation or excitatory synapse loss compared to sham mice. Despite this, behavioral testing at one-month post injury showed that HF-HI results in deficits in hippocampal-dependent learning and memory. I hypothesized that synaptic adaptations resulting from HF-HI were underlying the development of the deficits. To assess synaptic plasticity, I measured long-term potentiation via stimulation of the Schaffer collateral pathway, as this has been described as the cellular mechanism underlying learning and memory. I discovered a significant impairment in LTP despite there being no difference in their stimulus input/output curve. Whole cell patch clamp electrophysiology was then done on individual CA1 pyramidal neurons at 24 hours and 1 month after HF-HI. Current clamp experiments revealed differences in intrinsic cellular properties and excitability 24 hours post impacts, which resolved after 1 month. Voltage clamp experiments revealed that NMDA receptor contributions to excitatory post synaptic currents were increased at 24 hours and 1 month after impacts, reinforcing the hypothesis that synaptic adaptations related to plasticity occur following HF-HI. Taken together, these changes illustrate that postsynaptic modifications to glutamatergic receptors arise following HF-HI, and are sufficient to alter plasticity, learning and memory.

The Dynamics of Implicit and Explicit Knowledge Acquisition: An Examination of Bases of Human Learning

Weinberger, Adam ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Georgetown Univers 2020 해외박사(DDOD)

Human learning relies on interrelated implicit and explicit systems. Extensive evidence indicates that implicitly learned information can become consciously-accessible (i.e., explicit). According to a number of theoretical accounts of human learning, this occurs by way of intuitions, which emerge from implicit learning experiences and, in turn, constrain the formation of subsequent explicit knowledge and beliefs. Similarly, information explicitly acquired can eventually be stored implicitly, allowing for greater automaticity. Across three studies, this dissertation investigates the interrelated operations of implicit and explicit systems. Study 1 examined the relationship between implicit learning of patterns/order within visuospatial sequences and belief in an intervening/ordering god. Results revealed that individuals who displayed stronger implicit pattern learning reported (i) stronger belief in an intervening/ordering god, and (ii) increased strength-of-belief from childhood to adulthood. Intuitions of universal order mediated these effects. In Study 2, the theorized relationship between implicit learning, intuitions, and explicit knowledge was more directly tested. Findings indicated that intuitions developed from implicit learning experiences prior to explicit knowledge. Further, the accuracy of explicit reports was significantly associated with intuition timing and accuracy. Superior implicit learning, however, was not correlated with intuition accuracy. Study 3 focused on putative neural mechanisms that facilitate learning. Key questions concerned whether functional modularity was associated with academic achievement. Additional analyses examined changes in implicit and explicit task-based connectivity following an extended period of classroom education. Results indicated that whole-brain modularity was significantly related to GPA, but no effect of learning on implicit and explicit task-based connectivity was observed. Implications and open questions pursuant to these findings are discussed.