Doctoral Dissertations
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This collection includes doctoral dissertations submitted to the Graduate School by Ball State University doctoral candidates in partial fulfillment of degree requirements.
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Item Influence of the NASA SPRING exercise protocol on myonuclear and satellite cell content of the vastus lateralis and soleus during 70 days of bedrest(2024-05) Skiles, Chad Michael; Trappe, Scott W.The purpose of this study was to determine if the SPRINT exercise protocol provided protection to MHC I and IIa myonuclear and satellite cell number in the vastus lateralis and soleus during 70 days of bedrest. Twenty-five subjects (24 M, 1F) were recruited, screened, and randomized into one of three groups: bedrest only (BR; n=8, 37±3 yrs), bedrest with resistance and aerobic exercise (BRE; n=9, 34±2 yrs), and bedrest with resistance and aerobic exercise concurrent with low dose of testosterone injections (BRE+T; n=8, 33±3 yrs). Muscle biopsies from the vastus lateralis and soleus were sectioned, immunofluorescently stained, and analyzed for myonuclear and satellite cell number, along with fiber size and fiber type composition. Myonuclear number in MHC I and IIa fibers of the vastus lateralis and soleus were unchanged (P>0.05) from pre- to post-bedrest within BR, BRE, and BRE+T. However, there was a main time effect (P<0.05) for a decrease in myonuclear domain for vastus lateralis MHC I fibers (-8%), as well as soleus MHC I (-18%) and IIa (-18%) fibers. Also, there was a trend for a main effect for time (P=0.059) for an increase (+37%) in satellite cell number for vastus lateralis MHC IIa fibers, which was primarily driven by the exercise groups (BR: -4%, BRE: +36%, BRE+T: +67%). The main effect of time that was observed in the myonuclear domain was mirrored by the main time effect in fiber atrophy in vastus lateralis MHC I fibers (-10%), as well as soleus MHC I (-21%) and IIa (-23%) fibers. Unloading did not reduce MHC I fiber proportion in both the vastus lateralis and soleus (P>0.05). BR trended to decrease vastus lateralis MHC IIa fiber composition (P=0.065) while BRE and BRE+T increased the vastus lateralis MHC IIa. Additionally, BRE decreased total hybrid proportions in the vastus lateralis (P<0.05). In the soleus there was a main time effect in the increase of total hybrids (P<0.05). Prolonged unloading did not alter myonuclei and satellite cells in both the vastus lateralis and soleus, but SPRINT may enhance satellite cell number in the vastus lateralis MHC IIa fibers. The decline in myonuclear domain was driven by the muscle fiber atrophy in the vastus lateralis MHC I fibers, and in soleus MHC I and IIa fibers. The results suggest that the SPRINT exercise is effective at maintaining fiber size, and consequently preserving myonuclear domain in both the vastus lateralis and soleus. The current data along with prior findings within this cohort support SPRINT as an effective countermeasure for protecting myocellular characteristics and function during prolong unloading.Item A hidden curriculum of communication: promoting success in the elite math classroom(2024-07) Blubaugh, Alana M.; Park, GilbertThis study sought to answer the question “How do math teachers at an elite school promote success in their classrooms?”. Qualitative data were collected through classroom observations and interviews of four math teachers and one administrator at Porter Preparatory Academy1, an elite high school. Informed by grounded theory and inductive coding methods, this study revealed five themes of good teaching practices: instruction, framing, creating continuity, positive reinforcement, and teacher humanness. Through discourse with the literature on good teaching, the teaching practices utilized by the four teachers at Porter Preparatory School are revealed as a hidden curriculum of communication that promoted success in their classrooms. The five themes are discussed through the lens of Hattie and Timperley’s (2007) model of feedback to suggest that these good teaching practices work together to strengthen the “Power of Feedback” (Hattie and Timperley, 2007, p. 81) by answering the questions “Where am I going?”, “How am I going?”, and “Where to next?”, along with an additional question suggested by this research, “Who am I going with?”.Item Women's inclusion in Colombian Western classical music: an examination of four contemporary flute pieces(2024-07) Cubillos Flauteros, Lady Paola; Watanabe, Mihoko; Clement, BrettThis dissertation examines four flute pieces by Colombian women composers and provides a historical study of women’s inclusion in classical music culture in Colombia. The musical analysis provides a historical overview, analysis, and performance guide for four flute compositions from the twentieth- and twenty-first centuries. “Pasillo 3/Contrastes” by Francy Montalvo and “Chirimías Metálicas” by Carolina Noguera represent a nationalistic approach by incorporating traditional Colombian musical elements such as the pasillo and La Guaneña. “El Encantador de Pájaros, Op. 24” by Amparo Ángel and “El lugar de las palabras, Mi primer poema cardiocéntrico” by Laura Zúñiga demonstrate a more personalized compositional language by closely relating the music to the meaning of the piece. The analysis of these musical works investigates elements such as rhythm, harmony, and instrumentation, as well as the Neo- Classical and Neo-Romantic elements, such as musical form, melodic, and harmonic design. The performance guides provide exercises and practice suggestions to overcome these musical works’ challenges from my experience as a musician trained in Western Classical and traditional Colombian music. Over the last decade, several Colombian women composers, including Montalvo, Noguera, Ángel, and Zúñiga, have gained recognition despite a historically male-dominated music industry. This document also highlights the evolution of women’s roles in music and their significant impact on the Colombian music scene, paving the way for future generations. Women’s equality in Colombia is improving with more opportunities for women musicians and various initiatives to promote and recognize their work.Item Accent bias towards nonnative accented counseling trainees(2024-07) Zhong, Lizi; Kite, Mary E.The current study examined how accent affects people’s perception of counselors-intraining in the United States. Broadly, research has consistently shown that people with nonnative accents are viewed less favorably and evaluated less positively compared to those with native accents (e.g., Dragojevic et al., 2021; Giles & Rakić, 2014; Gluszek & Dovidio, 2010a). More importantly, accented speakers are often evaluated more harshly in formal settings (Fuertes et al., 2012). For instance, research has demonstrated the people who speak with an accent are viewed as less hireable based on job interviews (e.g., Hansen & Dovidio, 2016) and less competent in a work setting (e.g., Nelson et al., 2016). In the Counseling Psychology field, few studies have examined people’s perception of therapists with different accents. Thus, this quantitative investigation of the effects of accent bias from a perceiver’s perspective fills an important gap. The results of the present study showed that native English speakers in the United States perceive native and nonnative English-speaking counselors-in-training as equally qualified, but they viewed nonnative accented trainees as less competent, skillful, warm, and likeable, and more inferior (or less superior) than their native accented peers. Additionally, participants expressed less willingness to work with these foreign accented trainee therapists. The perceived comprehensibility of their speech and the speaker’s expected communication difficulty independently explained the ratings of trainees' qualifications and competence based on their accents, and the participants’ willingness to work with them. Specifically, higher ratings of perceived comprehensibility predicted higher ratings of the outcome variables, and higher ratings of expected communication difficulty predicted lower ratings of the outcome variables. Furthermore, levels of Social Dominance Orientation (SDO) and Patriotism significantly impacted the aforementioned ratings of qualification, competence, and willingness: people with higher SDO or Patriotism rated nonnative accented trainees lower on these variables than their native accented peers.Item Cultural expression in Li Yinghai's Chinese art songs(2024-07) Wu, Qiaohui; Zhong, MeiThe purpose of this project is to present a comprehensive study of thirteen selected Chinese art songs by Li Yinghai in an extended dissertation lecture recital format. This dissertation lecture recital project aims to: 1) explore the cultural expression in Li Yinghai's Chinese art songs; 2) analyze the musical characteristics of the selected songs, providing Chinese IPA and text translation, as well as brief performance guidelines for each selected repertoire; and 3) expand the international reach of Li Yinghai's vocal works, particularly in Western countries, to enhance audiences' and singers’ understanding of his music. I divided these thirteen selected art songs by Li Yinghai into four distinct thematic groups. The first group is comprised of four art songs, which are rearrangements of Han folk songs. The second group also consists of four art songs, which are rearrangements of Xinjiang folk songs. The third group consists of two little-known art songs by Li Yinghai. The fourth group is the well-known song cycle “Three Poems of the Tang Dynasty,” which consists of three Chinese art songs.