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The emergence of the concept of DC grids comes from the fact that there is an increasing number of power grid components that naturally operate with DC power. The combined trend of DC sources and loads in power grids is an important player in the sudden growth of research interest in DC micro-grids and their interplay with the main power grid. Even though DC grids are easy to implement on a small scale and their own, the connection of DC micro-grid with the AC power grid takes research problems to another level. Innovative approaches, methods, distribution system architectures and control strategies are required to manage and mitigate the problems of involving DC micro-grid in conjunction with conventional power grids. Through this research work, novel, innovative and comprehensive system architectures and control strategies are proposed to mitigate some of the problems of DC micro-grid like DC-AC micro-grid interplay during steady-state and dynamic conditions, tandem operation of DC and AC micro-grids for frequency regulation. The thesis also proposes the concept of a DC ring architecture to emulate a small residential community using a common DC-bus-centric structure. The research work aims to provide a comprehensive DC-AC micro-grid design and control architecture that can provide a platform for testing and validation of steady-state and fault time system performance. The proposed methods in each chapter have been incorporated and validated on standard distribution test systems provided by IEEE like the 13 bus and 123 bus systems and hence their analysis is crucial and could serve as a reference for future design and control of DC micro-grids.
Many endeavors in the field of Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) align themselves with the promise of the democratization of technology production, a promise that has yet to be fulfilled due to gaps in access and underlying power dynamics. HCI has recently seen new glimmers of the promise of democratized technology production in the making phenomenon. In this dissertation, I present a theory project grounded in my experience of starting and running a university makerspace that engages with the concept of democratization directly. I first derive a definition of democratization, develop a normative theory that suggests a shift in values to better meet that definition, and present a series of empirical studies to develop the theory. I then use feminist utopianism as a definition of democratization to evaluate the theory and reflect on the merits and challenges of this theory project in light of HCI's promise of democratization. Contributions include insights about the merits of the NTHCM as a reflective lens for maker leaders and HCI researchers, insights about the merits of feminist utopianism to guide maker leaders and HCI researchers towards the promise of democratization, and insights about underlying assumptions of HCI that may be in the way fulfilling the promise of democratization.
Abusive supervision is defined as the sustained display of hostile verbal and nonverbal behaviors, excluding physical contact by a supervisor or leader. Research to date suggests that perceptions of abusive supervision may be driven as much as, if not more than, by subordinate characteristics than by supervisor behavior. The fundamental issue is that while abusive supervision is defined in terms of supervisor behavior, it is assessed via subordinate perceptions of supervisor behavior. While many studies have been conducted concentrating on the impact of specific subordinate characteristics on perceptions of abusive supervision, the literature has tended to focus on specific characteristics in isolation. Thus, the literature would benefit from a more comprehensive treatment that examines the collective effect of multiple subordinate characteristics and the relative importance with respect to ratings of abusive supervision. This survey-based study focused on several established subordinate characteristics. The results of these surveys were analyzed using regression analysis and supplemented by dominance weights analysis. This study found that collectively, subordinate characteristics accounted for 47% of the variance in subordinate perceptions of abusive supervision and that the "WUSI" scale dominated with 59% of this effect size.
This study seeks to explore equity and social justice in a teacher preparation program through the lived experiences of teacher candidates who are attempting to enact equity and social justice in their teaching. This study suggests that for a university-based teacher education program to support teacher-candidates enactment, while addressing the tension between focusing on equity and social justice or pedagogy, they must: a) identify how the curriculum addresses equity and social justice, b) identify how teacher candidates are attempting to enact equity and social justice in the classroom, and c) identify what the teacher candidates gained from the curriculum that helped them incorporate equity and social justice in the classroom. This study applied a case study approach to reveal the lived experiences of teacher candidates, who are student teaching in diverse urban schools during their last year in a teacher preparation program. Findings suggest when incorporating social justice and equity, teacher preparation programs need to thread equity and social justice in the curriculum in a way that is fluid and integral. When supporting teachers’ enactment of equity and social justice, bold and courageous decisions must be made to dismantle the racist systems in education.
ABSTRACT
The purpose of this mixed-methods research study was to understand student perceptions of online interactions with instructors in online courses in the spring, 2020 and determine if any differences exist in perceptions presented when taking into account Pell-eligibility. This study took place at a medium-sized community college within the North Carolina Community College System. Data was obtained through an online survey. The t-test and chi square test were used to analyze the quantitative data. Open-ended questions provided responses reflected in the themes identified in the qualitative analysis. This study revealed that students in this particular term were favorable when it came to online interactions and contrary to my hypothesis, I found that a student's perceptions were not significantly influenced by their Pell status; which can be interpreted that the experiences are not vastly different for lower-income students. Qualitative analysis found three significant themes with regard to their perceptions of the differences they experienced in online versus face-to-face interactions; response time, “seeing” and “hearing” the instructor and instructor attributes . Implications for practice and recommendations are conferred.
Overall, the United States’ population is becoming more diverse, and children in minority groups have many disadvantages due to circumstances beyond their control. They experience more poverty (US Census Bureau, 2017), unequal educational opportunities (US Census Bureau, 2019), discriminatory practices (Pascoe & Smart Richman, 2009), trauma (Sacks & Murphey, 2018), mental health diagnoses, and inadequate mental health services. Mental health professionals who work with children, specifically play therapists, are called to be more responsive to the increase in diversity of the growing population of children. To support diverse children and offer responsive mental health services, researchers need to explore factors that may influence play therapists’ social justice advocacy attitudes. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine how adverse childhood experiences, attitudes related to trauma-informed care, and cultural humility were related to social justice advocacy attitudes among play therapists. A standard multiple regression was utilized to examine how the predictor variables were related to play therapists’ (N=409) social justice advocacy attitudes. Results indicated that attitudes related to trauma-informed care and cultural humility contributed significantly to the prediction of social justice advocacy attitudes, accounting for 11% of the variance. Implications, limitations, and recommendations for future research are discussed.
This meta-analytic review integrates the micro perspective theory of coping responses with the macro perspective theory of institutional theory of moral collapse to understand the likeliness of the employee reporting sexual harassment. Based on previous research, classifications of individual, industry, and country level factors are proposed that impact the reporting of sexual harassment and then used in the analysis of 248 studies with 284 independent samples, containing 538,426 study participants. This study showed that employees with positive job attitudes were less likely to report sexual harassment as their coping response. Perceptions of the global environment is a relatively more important predictor of reporting sexual harassment over individual difference variables of age and tenure under the institutional theory of moral collapse. The power distance and masculinity norms of the country where the business is located as well as the industry of the business moderates the relations between the perceptions of the global organizational environment and reporting sexual harassment as a coping response. In the discussion, I identify several gaps in the literature, suggest directions for future research, and highlight organizational policies to reduce the risk of sexual harassment.
Research indicates that the substance use of a family member can affect all members of the family (Church et al., 2018; Kelly et al., 2017; McDonagh et al., 2019). However, the major focus of research to date has been on the effects of substance use on the individual who presents with a substance use problem, their parents, their partners, and their children (Selbekk et al., 2018; Shumway et al., 2019). There is a gap in the literature related to sibling experiences with a siblings’ substance use. By broadening our view of who needs support when a family presents with an offspring suffering from substance misuse, researchers would help to support the thousands of siblings who are trying to manage their own lives while faced with the demands of their sibling’s addiction (Olafsdottir et al., 2020; Tsamparli & Frrokaj, 2016; Smith-Genthôs et al., 2017). The principal investigator used a phenomenological research design to explore the experiences of 15 participants who identify as having or having had a sibling with substance use problems. Semi-structured interviews and Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis were used to investigate the lived experiences of the participants related to having a sibling with substance use problems. The six themes identified were Safety, Chaos, Relationship Stress, Emotionality, Avoidance, and Movement. A review of implications and recommendations for clinicians and future research are included.
Population aging in the twenty-first century is one of the most significant social transformations. Technology use is essential for the senior community to integrate with the world outside their community. The shift in demographics and the current COVID-19 pandemic has caused healthcare providers, researchers, and designers to place their focus on improving the quality of life instead of extending the lifespan of the population. However, the focus of recent research in designing technology for older adults is on usability and health monitoring. Despite the increasing number of studies in the field of aging and technologies, there is limited research on understanding the practical issues related to user focus, adoption, and engagement with respect to interactive technologies among older adults. In this study, we use four technological interventions (Move and Paint, Savi, uDraw, and GrandPad) that are novel for older adults on stimulating and increasing initial engagement to use technology.
We use a mixed-method approach such as focus group discussions, in-depth interviews, observations, and diary study to understand technology-related perceptions and behaviors of older adults and identify factors affecting the initial engagement of older adults in the use of interactive technology. The results of this study highlight the lack of research on initial engagement, which is more important than need and usability, affects long-term engagement, and poses different challenges to older adults based on their behavior towards interactive technology. The contributions of this study include the following: 1) a new model of engagement that goes beyond need and usability to address the gap in studying older adults’ initial engagement with interactive technology; 2) an active–passive spectrum of the behaviors of older adults towards technology relevant to their initial engagement with interactive technology; and 3) the identification of the key factors that influence the initial engagement of older adults. It presents new expectations of initial engagement in HCI along with suggestions for new research directions in the use of interactive technology by older adults.
Hypersaline brines like flue gas desulfurization wastewater concentrate are difficult to treat because of high halide concentration and currently, there are a lack of cost-effective and energy-efficient technologies for the removal of halides. This research explored the feasibility of removing halides from high-salinity brines through the precipitation of layered double hydroxides. Parameters that affect the reduction of the concentration of halides including, the initial molar concentration of halides, the calcium to aluminum ratio, and reaction temperature were evaluated. The stability of the layered double hydroxide products at various prevailing solutions and environmental conditions were investigated and optimal calcium to the aluminum ratio for the effective removal of the halides was established. Experimental results confirmed that the initial halide concentration, rather than the calcium to aluminum ratio, highly influenced the mass of halides sequestered in the structure of the layered double hydroxide samples. It was also observed that the layered double hydroxide samples undergo congruent dissolution when mixed in water or basic solutions, while dissolution rates in acidic solutions were high with little residues remaining. Based on the analyses from characterization using various instrumentation and the statistical analyses, it could be hypothesized that the synthesis of layered double hydroxides using calcium to aluminum ratio of 3:1 will be optimal for effective removal of halides from hypersaline solutions. This research will lead to a better understanding of the formation of layered double hydroxides while it contributes to the evaluation of key controlling variables will provide a framework to treat field samples like real and complex FGD wastewater concentrate. In addition, the results suggest that this process is simple, low-cost, and an effective method to treat high-salinity brines.
