Master of Arts, The Ohio State University, 2019, Communication

Social media platforms are characterized by increasingly diverse features and functions over time. This thesis examines how users define their central qualities – or platform essence – and how those qualities depend on the surrounding media environment. A pilot study and online survey study were conducted via MTurk to validate original measures of platform essence and investigate how the perceived socialness of contemporary platforms shapes key social outcomes tied to popular platforms. Overall, results provide evidence that platform essence – and socialness, in particular – is associated with perceptions of social resources and affordances, bolstering the notion of perceived socialness as a self-fulfilling prophecy. Together, this work makes significant contributions to the existing literature by exploring how individuals navigate their social media ecologies, as well as how lay theories shape the experiences and effects of social media use.

Committee: Joseph Bayer (Advisor); Roselyn Lee-Won (Committee Member) Subjects: Communication

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2024, Spanish and Portuguese

This dissertation addresses the question of how we should approach the study of identity to advance the emancipatory goals in Latin American and Latinx studies. In answering this question, I aim to shed light on the debate about identity and its intricate connections with culture, language, and power—core themes in the humanities and social sciences. This dissertation intervenes in this debate both at the metatheoretical level—aiming to rethink the philosophical presuppositions that guide our theorizing, determine our questions, problems, values, and goals—and at the theoretical level—aiming to restructure the analytic concepts we use in our thinking. Chapter 1 critically engages with Nestor Garcia Canclini's "Culturas Hibridas", where he argues that “hybridity,” rather than “identity,” should be used to study cultural forms. By identifying the critical ontological, epistemic, linguistic, and axiological questions that any research paradigm must address, I aim to characterize both modern and postmodern paradigms and identify their potential problems. Specifically, I critique the postmodern paradigm's descriptivist view of language and metaphysics of chaos. I propose a pragmatist research paradigm that highlights the normative functions of discourse of identity, arguing that terms like “identity,” “hybridity,” and “authenticity” are better understood as linguistic devices used to negotiate cultural practices. Chapter 2 shifts focus to Latinx studies, examining Gloria Anzaldua's notion of “new mestiza consciousness.” This chapter aims to assess the theoretical and political adequacy of mestizaje, clarify the challenge of essentialism for emancipatory research, examine the influence of postmodern values on Latinx research, and showcase the philosophical advantages of a pragmatist approach combined with Systemic Functional Linguistics. I trace the emergence of Latinx studies and the importance of emancipatory values. By critically evaluating mestizaje, essentialism a (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Ignacio Corona (Advisor); Fernando Unzueta (Committee Member); Paloma Martinez-Cruz (Committee Member) Subjects: Ethnic Studies; Hispanic American Studies; Latin American Literature; Latin American Studies

Master of Fine Arts (MFA), Bowling Green State University, 2023, Creative Writing/Poetry

Terminal Body Outreach is a collection of poems that navigates the different maps of personhood, family, grief, intimacy, landscape, and the essence of who the speaker is and who the speaker is actively becoming, all with a focus on the "Body." "Terminal" signifies not only an end, but also a place of departure, a constant reaching or "Outreach" for something, somewhere, or someone. Readers are asked to develop associations between jumping language and image narratives that these poems invite. Self-portraits serve as touchstones in the manuscript, embodying the core movement of departure and return. The speaker searches through the Natural world and their interpersonal environment, particularly what seems to flower and perish, looking for answers to what makes this life necessary, sometimes without success. The desire for these answers slowly dissolves as the speaker is pulled by what and who they carry all the way to the end, where the speaker inhabits ideas of who we are once we're dead, whether or not dead really means gone, and the need to leave something plentiful behind.

Committee: Abigail Cloud Ph.D. (Committee Member); Larissa Szporluk Ph.D. (Committee Chair) Subjects: Literature; Spirituality

Master of Fine Arts (MFA), Bowling Green State University, 2023, Creative Writing/Poetry

Things That Stay is a collection of poetry that inhabits the permanence of Appalachian landscape, ritual, feminist variations of tradition, and versions of selves in relation to the metaphysical. Not only do these poems focus on the ways connection, religious beliefs, and natural elements persist in physical life—the passing of regional tradition woman to woman, sharing customs with partners, and the unyielding presence of plant life—but they also reach into the liminal, insisting on the transcendence of essence. Flowers, birds, hair, and supernatural experiences are reimagined and given new presence in transitional spaces; everything is given a soul, and the soul is what travels through spiritual places and stays after a physical life has been completed. Everything and nothing—emptiness and the knowledge from an entire existence—are brought together in spaces between lives and deaths, often grounded in the familiar reality of landscape and interpersonal relationships.

Committee: Abigail Cloud (Committee Member); Larissa Szporluk (Committee Chair) Subjects: Literature; Metaphysics; Regional Studies; Spirituality

Doctor of Philosophy, Miami University, 2022, Educational Leadership

The experiences of seven Catholic homeschooling families about their continued motivations for homeschooling their children was explored in a series of guided interviews conducted within the Archdiocese of Cincinnati, located in the state of Ohio. The study examined the initial motivations of why the participating parents chose to homeschool their children as well as how and if those motivations have changed over time. The interview data was analyzed through the lens of transcendental phenomenology. Following the process of transcendental phenomenology set out by Moustakas (1994) two major themes of motivating factors emerged as the primary reasons the participants chose to homeschool their children. The first major theme was Community support, which examined how the participants felt they were receiving positive support or negative support from their local community in the realm of education. The second major theme to emerge was the parent's desire for a curriculum that centered on both Faith and Family. The results showed that all of the participants' initial primary motivations for choosing to homeschool their children corresponded with the current established literature of pedagogical reasons such as curriculum, and school safety. However, their primary motivation for continuing to homeschool their children had shifted over time to religious instruction of their Catholic beliefs and practices. The results of this study suggest a need for dialogue between Catholic homeschool parents within the boundaries of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati, and the administration of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati about what support can be provided from the later to the former.

Committee: Kathleen Knight-Abowitz PhD (Committee Chair); William Boone PhD (Committee Member); Kate Rousmaniere PhD (Committee Member); Thomas Poetter PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Education; Education History; Education Philosophy; Educational Leadership; Individual and Family Studies; Religious Education; Theology

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), University of Dayton, 2015, Theology

This dissertation argues that the cultivation of a non-dual, Christian theological imagination can profitably be resourced by attending to the convergence between the linguistic non-dualism of Wittgensteinian philosophy and the theological-imaginative non-dualism of ancient Jewish and Christian mysticism (subsequently reflected in Eastern Orthodox theology, liturgy and iconography). I frame this convergence using the writings of Rowan Williams, whose engagement with both traditions witnesses to the fruitfulness of their further mutual encounter. First, as a matter of exposition, chapter one contends that Williams's thought has been profoundly influenced by Orthodox theology, particularly in the "kenotic personalism" that inflects his Trinitarian theology, pneumatology and theological anthropology. Second, as a matter of interpretation, chapters two through four trace the trajectory of Williams's thought from an overly formal notion of "intentional" union toward a much "thicker" notion of participation animated by his aesthetic reflection and by the fruitful interaction between the "vocabularies" of the divine energies and Thomistic participation. Finally, in a more constructive mode, chapters five through eight pursue a programme of mutually illuminating dialogue between the two non-dualisms, making further connections between the traditions with respect to theology proper, philosophy of language and the cultivation of a liturgical-theological imagination. The dissertation culminates with an examination of Williams's reflections on the Orthodox liturgy, highlighting both the link between liturgy and poetry and the importance for theology of attending to the formation of a "liturgical humanity" capable of inhabiting a posture of "unselfing attention"—a patient attending to what is given—open to an astonished wonder at the world lit by the divine love. On this reading, the "manifest wonder" of the Eucharist distills a spiritual pedagogy in which both the cause and (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Brad Kallenberg PhD (Committee Co-Chair); Silviu Bunta PhD (Committee Co-Chair); Kelly Johnson PhD (Committee Member); William Portier PhD (Committee Member); Alexander Golitzin PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Biblical Studies; Philosophy; Religion; Theology

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2006, Educational Policy and Leadership

The purpose of this study was to design, develop, and validate an indigenous Chinese personality assessment inventory. The inventory is intended for use with university students in Chinese societies, to help them understand their personality traits and how their unique sets of energies influence and are influenced by others. The assessment instrument is based upon the Chinese philosophy of the five elements and their yin and yang qualities. The behavioral traits representing this cosmological model are derived from an ancient Chinese work titled Jen Wu Chih, which is regarded as one of the earliest references to personality theory in Chinese literature. A two hundred item bank was generated and pilot tested with 267 Taiwanese university students. With application of the statistical tools of Cronbach's alpha, homogeneity analysis, and exploratory factor analysis, the item bank was reduced to 80 and administered to 715 Taiwanese university students. The strength of the psychometric standards of the inventory was demonstrated with reliability and validity measures. Four hypotheses were tested showing that 1) yin and yang can be clearly differentiated; 2) yin and yang show complementary and bipolar relationships; 3) there are gender differences consistent with cultural conditioning; and 4) there are no substantial academic area differences. The inventory consisted of thirty scales (two for each yin and each yang of each of the five elements). The researcher concluded that forty scales may offer more in depth perspective in future studies and that there may be merit in exploring further the complex dynamic of how the elements act upon each other, in addition to their properties, as suggested in Chinese philosophy.

Committee: Ayres D'Costa (Advisor) Subjects:

Master of Arts in Psychology, Cleveland State University, 2012, College of Sciences and Health Professions

Morale has been defined as, “the capacity of a group of people to pull together persistently and consistently in pursuit of a common purpose" (Leighton, 1949, p. 78). What is missing in our understanding of morale is knowing precisely what generates, increases, and decreases morale. One purpose of the current project is to explore these aspects of morale. Specifically, one factor that may boost or drive morale is the survival of the group's identity, or common purpose. The “essence” of a group includes their values, ideals, and identity that may live on even after current members of the group no longer exists. Although previous research identifies several components of morale and how to measure the concept, previous frameworks of group morale (Hocking, 1941; Peterson, Park, & Sweeney, 2008) have not been empirically validated. Using a systematic approach, a study has been designed to use as a starting point in empirically studying morale so valid conclusions can be reached. In the current study, participants were led to believe that the essence of a group they belong to (their city) is threatened, or that the essence of their group (city) is undergoing a new sense of vitality. In a third condition, participants were not given any information related to the status of the essence of their city. It was predicted that participants who were reminded about the survival of their group's essence would experience an increase in group morale compared to those who were not reminded about group essence survival or were lead to believe their group's essence is threatened. Partial support was found in support of the hypothesis, and additional evidence implying that morale is specifically related to the vitality of the group's essence was also obtained. These findings provide a valid starting point for an updated framework of group morale.

Committee: Conor McLennan PhD (Committee Chair); Mike Horvath PhD (Committee Member); Naohide Yamamoto PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Social Psychology

Doctor of Education (Ed.D.), Bowling Green State University, 2007, Leadership Studies

While school leaders negotiate changing governmental mandates, tracking continues as the most implemented curriculum delivery model in American schools (Lovelace, 1999). There is a growing disconnect between governmental pushes toward a similar educational bar for all students and tracking, which encourages student achievement at fluctuating levels. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to reveal the experience of tracking for graduating high school seniors. Tracking is defined as dividing students into class levels for low, medium, and high achievers in each grade (Oakes & Lipton, 1994). A philosophical background demonstrated how the ethic of justice spectrum—the balance between the good of society and individual rights (Starratt, 1991)—applied to curriculum design. The impact of tracking on students' school experiences was addressed. The six participants engaged in this study ranged all track levels. The research questions were (1) How do 12th grade students describe their experience in tracked classes in high school?, (2) How does the essence of tracking impact 12th graders' high school experiences?, and (3) How are students' tracking experiences represented on the ethic of justice spectrum? An existing Method of Analysis of Phenomenological Data was used to analyze and code the data (Moustakas, 1994). The thinking processes behind data transformation were highlighted. The participants overwhelmingly supported tracking. Their experiences revealed five themes: (1) appropriateness of placement, (2) student effort and perceived teacher effort, (3) similarity of instructional methods, (4) social influence of peers and family, and (5) view of others: students in different track levels and school leaders. Tracking met the needs of participants according to individual ability levels. Tracking found its place on the ethic of justice spectrum toward the individual, nonconsequential end and away from utilitarian notions. The participants supported continued track (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Patrick Pauken (Advisor) Subjects: