Theses and Dissertations from UMD

Permanent URI for this communityhttp://hdl.handle.net/1903/2

New submissions to the thesis/dissertation collections are added automatically as they are received from the Graduate School. Currently, the Graduate School deposits all theses and dissertations from a given semester after the official graduation date. This means that there may be up to a 4 month delay in the appearance of a give thesis/dissertation in DRUM

More information is available at Theses and Dissertations at University of Maryland Libraries.

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Now showing 1 - 5 of 5
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    Experiences of substance use and medication for opioid use disorder stigmas in an underserved, rural community
    (2024) Anvari, Morgan; Magidson, Jessica F; Psychology; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
    Overdose rates related to opioid and stimulant use have been steadily increasing in underserved, rural areas of the U.S. for over 10 years. Access to and retention in medication for opioid use disorder (MOUD) care are persistent challenges nationally and in underserved rural communities. Stigma around substance use (SU) and MOUD specifically are barriers to engagement in opioid use disorder and MOUD care. However, little is known regarding how SU and MOUD stigmas manifest and affect patients in rural settings. Given their shared lived experiences, peer recovery specialists (PRSs), individuals with lived substance use and recovery experience who are formally trained to support others’ recovery, may be unique resources to shifting stigma barriers. Yet, few studies have examined if and how PRS engagement shifts stigma, particularly in underserved, rural communities. This qualitative study sought to understand: 1) how substance use and MOUD stigmas manifest in a low-resource, rural community; 2) how these stigmas influence patients’ treatment experiences and preferences; 3) if and how PRS-delivered intervention may shift these stigmas and improve MOUD outcomes. Patients (n = 25) and staff (n = 5) at a telemedicine-mobile treatment unit (MTU) in an underserved, rural community completed semi-structured qualitative interviews. Transcripts were analyzed using thematic analysis, guided by the interview guide and Stigma Mechanisms Framework. Study findings demonstrated the pervasive role of multiple forms of stigma in a rural community, negatively impacting substance use treatment outcomes. Experiences of these stigmas were found to be uniquely influenced by rural living conditions. Additionally, results revealed that PRS-delivered interventions have potential in shifting these stigmas and improving MOUD outcomes by leveraging PRSs’ shared lived experiences. Identifying and understanding patient experiences of substance use and MOUD stigmas are vital in developing innovative solutions to target stigma reduction and support recovery. Future research may continue to develop and evaluate how PRS interventions can reduce stigma and support positive recovery outcomes.
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    Chaos and Community Attachment in Rural Low-Income Families: Influences on Parenting and Early Childhood Language and Behavior Problems
    (2016) Duncan, Aimee Claire Drouin; Harden, Brenda J; Human Development; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
    Families in rural poverty are vulnerable to a range of environmental stressors that negatively impact early childhood outcomes. There is a need for comprehensive research on the context of rural poverty and its impact on a variety of family and developmental processes. This research would inform the development of parenting and early childhood programs by providing information on the risks rural low-income families face, the resources they have, and the services they need to promote the best possible outcomes for vulnerable children and families. I intended to address the persistent gap in the empirical literature specific to family processes and child development in low-income, rural communities. My major goal was to enhance our understanding of the mechanisms which affect parenting within the context of rural poverty and their influence on child language and problem behaviors , specifically those related to school readiness. Participants were low-income rural parents (N = 97) and their preschool age children (M=42 months). Data were collected at one time point in the participants’ homes and included measures of chaos, community attachment, parenting stress, parenting, and child language and behaviors. Hierarchical regression and measured variable path analysis were used to test the relationships between variables. I found that chaos was significantly related to parenting stress. Community attachment was also found to be significantly related to parenting stress. In addition, positive parenting was significantly related to language outcomes but did not have a significant relationship with behavior problems. Finally, results from my study did not reveal a mediating role of parenting and parenting stress in the relationship between risk and protective factors and child language and behavior problems. My findings are considered in the context of the literature on rural low-income families, and of policy and practice.
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    THE COLLEGE CHOICE PROCESS OF FOUR STUDENTS FROM RURAL APPALACHIAN KENTUCKY
    (2013) Harris, Kristen L.; Monte-Sano, Chauncey B; Curriculum and Instruction; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
    This study examined the extent to which the college choice process of four students from one high school in rural Appalachian Kentucky aligned with Perna's (2006; 2010) nested process model of college choice. I used qualitative case study methodology and inductive analysis to describe how four high-academic achieving students of varying family income backgrounds in the particular context of one community in rural Appalachian Kentucky decided to enroll in an institution of higher education. In brief, three of the four students enrolled in the closest, most familiar institution after relying on an adult other than their parents for guidance in selecting a college. The remaining student, despite her low socioeconomic status and family income, enrolled in a selective private university in Kentucky after an expanded college search. School practices that supported students' access to higher education are highlighted. This research adds to the theoretical knowledge in the field of college access and choice, which indicates that different student populations experience the college choice process differently, but has yet to fully include research on rural students. My analysis revealed a number of influential factors for these four students' college choice decisions that were in Perna's (2006; 2010) model, such as guidance counseling, college costs, and financial aid. The analysis also showed the meaning of identified factors for students given the context of their community in rural Appalachian Kentucky. Additional influential factors that were found for these students, such as the role of athletics in increasing demand for higher education, and factors that were not present, such as parental support during the college choice process, added nuance to the model. By learning how and why some students from rural Appalachian Kentucky are able to go to college, we can begin to understand how to increase the low level of educational attainment of individuals in the region.
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    Preventing Rural Exodus through Development in the Pampas
    (2009) Kalil, Artur Marques; Wortham-Galvin, Brooke; Architecture; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
    Rural Brazil has gone through a crisis in the past century. Modernization and technology shifts has left agriculture in few very mechanized hands and pushed the rural labor force into industrialized urban areas. This phenomenon is called the Rural Exodus. The Pampas, the southernmost tip of Brazil, are symptomatic of the exodus. Establishment of free trade zones along the state's borders with Uruguay and Argentina has allowed new economic opportunities and influxes of investment in the area. Opportunities to reverse emigration patterns have sprouted in small-scale projects pushed by strengthening interest in economic strategies of micro-credit and self-empowerment. These ideals can mold an architectural study of design strategies that empower the rural individual to develop from scratch a home, a business, and collectively, a community. Design through regional tectonic strategies for economic development is essential to the alleviation of the rural exodus in the Pampas.
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    An Assessment of a Home-Visiting Intervention on Rural, Low-Income Children's School Readiness
    (2006-08-09) Schull, Christine Pegorraro; Anderson, Elaine A.; Family Studies; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
    School readiness is an important educational success indicator for children and communities, and an equally important educational goal after research revealed that nearly half of all children are not ready for kindergarten because they have not acquired the appropriate necessary pre-literacy, and social competencies (Rimm-Kauffman, Pianta, & Cox, 2000). Rural children are at particular risk given that isolation, poverty, and limited parental educational attainment levels are associated with difficulty learning and getting ready for school (Perroncel, 2000). The purpose of this study was to assess the effects of a home visiting program on school readiness in a population of low-income, rural children in Garrett County, MD. Children (n=164), who entered the Healthy Families Garrett County program in 1999 or 2000 shortly after birth and completed the school readiness assessment upon kindergarten entry in 2004 or 2005, were selected along with their families. Path analyses were used to examine the relationships among frequency, intensity, and duration of the home visiting intervention, and home safety, parental knowledge of infant development, and school readiness. All variables, (1) home visiting frequency, (2) home visiting intensity, (3) home visiting duration, (4) parental knowledge of infant development, and (5) home safety were considered to be paths leading directly to the enhanced outcome of school readiness in this low-income, rural sample. Path analyses revealed that: (1) Duration of home visiting had a positive, direct effect on home safety; (2) Duration of home visiting had a positive, direct effect on parental knowledge of infant development, (3) Home safety had a positive, direct effect on school readiness in the composite and all tested subscales (personal and social, language and literacy, mathematical thinking, physical health and development); and 4) Duration has an indirect effect on school readiness through home safety. Recommendations include maintaining program duration, implementation of new parental knowledge or home environment measures, and continued emphasis on home safety and collaboration with local agencies for impacting school readiness.