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Title: A Root Cause Analysis of the Barriers to Transparency among Physicians: A Systemic Perspective.
Creator: Perez, Bianca, Liberman, Aaron, Oetjen, Dawn, Wan, Thomas, Abel, Eileen, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: Transparency in healthcare relates to formally reporting medical errors and disclosing bad outcomes to patients and families. Unfortunately, most physicians are not in the habit of communicating transparently, as many studies have shown the existence of a large medical error information gap. Research also shows that creating a culture of transparency would mutually support patient safety and risk management goals by concomitantly reducing medical errors and alleviating the malpractice crisis....
Show moreTransparency in healthcare relates to formally reporting medical errors and disclosing bad outcomes to patients and families. Unfortunately, most physicians are not in the habit of communicating transparently, as many studies have shown the existence of a large medical error information gap. Research also shows that creating a culture of transparency would mutually support patient safety and risk management goals by concomitantly reducing medical errors and alleviating the malpractice crisis. Three predictor variables are used to represent the various dimensions of the context just described. Perfectionism represents the intrapersonal domain, socio-organizational climate represents the interpersonal and institutional domains, and medico-legal environment represents the societal domain. Chin and Benne's normative re-educative strategy provides theoretical support for the notion that successful organizational change hinges upon addressing the structural and cultural barriers displayed by individuals and groups.The Physician Transparency Questionnaire was completed by 270 physicians who were drawn from a multi-site healthcare organization in Central Florida. Structural equation modeling was used to determine whether perfectionism, socio-organizational climate, and medico-legal environment significantly predict two transparency outcomes, namely, error reporting transparency and provider-patient transparency. Perfectionism and socio-organizational climate were found to be statistically significant predictors. Collectively, these variables accounted for nearly half of the variance in each transparency outcome. Within socio-organizational climate, policies had the greatest influence on transparency, followed by immunity and professional norms. Multiple group analysis showed that the covariance model developed in this study generalizes across gender, medical specialty, and occupation. In addition, group means comparisons tests revealed a number of interesting trends in error reporting and disclosure practices that provide insights about the behavioral and cognitive psychology behind transparent communication: 1) Physicians are more inclined to engage in provider-patient transparency compared to error reporting transparency, 2) physicians are more inclined to report serious errors compared to less serious errors, and 3) physicians are more inclined to express sympathy for bad outcomes than they are to apologize for a preventable error or be honest about the details surrounding bad outcomes. These results suggest that change efforts would need to be directed at medical education curricula and health provider organizations to ensure that current and future generations of physicians replace the pursuit for perfectionism with the pursuit for excellence. Also, a number of institutional changes are recommended, such as clearly communicating transparency policies and guidelines, promoting professional norms that encourage learning from mistakes rather than an aversion to error, and reassuring physicians that reporting and disclosure activities will not compromise their reputation. From the perspective of patient safety advocates and risk managers, the results are heartening because they emphasize a key principle in quality improvement - i.e., small changes can yield big results. From an ethical standpoint, this research suggests that healthcare organizations can inhibit (or facilitate) the emergence of professional virtues. Thus, although organizations cannot make a physician become virtuous, it is within their power to create conditions that encourage the physician to practice certain virtues. With respect to leadership styles, this research finds that bottom-up, grassroots change efforts can elicit professional virtues, and that culture change in healthcare lies beyond the scope of the medico-legal system.
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Date Issued: 2011
Identifier: CFE0004153, ucf:49083
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0004153

Title: EFFECTS OF HEALTH INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY ADOPTION ON QUALITY OF CARE AND PATIENT SAFETY IN US ACUTE CARE HOSPITALS.
Creator: Seblega, Binyam, Zhang, Ning, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: The adoption of healthcare information technology (HIT) has been advocated by various groups as critical in addressing the growing crisis in the healthcare industry. Despite the plethora of evidence on the benefits of HIT, however, the healthcare industry lags behind many other economic sectors in the adoption of information technology. A significant number of healthcare providers still keep patient information on paper. With the recent trends of reimbursement reduction and rapid...
Show moreThe adoption of healthcare information technology (HIT) has been advocated by various groups as critical in addressing the growing crisis in the healthcare industry. Despite the plethora of evidence on the benefits of HIT, however, the healthcare industry lags behind many other economic sectors in the adoption of information technology. A significant number of healthcare providers still keep patient information on paper. With the recent trends of reimbursement reduction and rapid technological advances, therefore, it would be critical to understand differences in structural characteristics and healthcare performance between providers that do and that do not adopt HIT. This is accomplished in this research, first by identifying organizational and contextual factors associated with the adoption of HIT in US acute care hospitals and second by examining the relationships between the adoption of HIT and two important healthcare outcomes: patient safety and quality of care. After conducting literature a review, the structure-process-outcome model and diffusion of innovations theory were used to develop a conceptual framework. Hypotheses were developed and variables were selected based on the conceptual framework. Publicly available secondary data were obtained from the American Hospital Association (AHA), the Health Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS), and the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP) databases. The information technologies were grouped into three clusters: clinical, administrative, and strategic decision making ITs. After the data from the three sources were cleaned and merged, regression models were built to identify organizational and contextual factors that affect HIT adoption and to determine the effects of HIT adoption on patient safety and quality of care. Most prior studies on HIT were restricted in scope as they primarily focused on a limited number of technologies, single healthcare outcomes, individual healthcare institutions, limited geographic locations, and/or small market segments. This limits the generalizability of the findings and makes it difficult to draw definitive conclusions. The new contribution of the present study lies in the fact that it uses nationally representative latest available data and it incorporates a large number of technologies and two risk adjusted healthcare outcomes. Large size and urban location were found to be the most influential hospital characteristics that positively affect information technology adoption. However, the adoption of HIT was not found to significantly affect hospitalsÃ‚Â' performance in terms of patient safety and quality of care measures. Perhaps a remarkable finding of this study is the better quality of care performance of hospitals in the Midwest, South, and West compared to hospitals in the Northeast despite the fact that the latter reported higher HIT adoption rates. In terms of theoretical implications, this study confirms that organizational and contextual factors (structure) affect adoption of information technology (process) which in turn affects healthcare outcomes (outcome), though not consistently, validating Avedis DonabedianÃ‚Â's structure-process-outcome model. In addition, diffusion of innovations theory links factors associated with resource abundance, access to information, and prestige with adoption of information technology. The present findings also confirm that hospitals with these attributes adopted more technologies. The methodological implication of this study is that the lack of a single common variable and uniformity of data among the data sources imply the need for standardization in data collection and preparation. In terms of policy implication, the findings in this study indicate that a significant number of hospitals are still reluctant to use clinical HIT. Thus, even though the passage of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009 was a good stimulus, a more aggressive policy intervention from the government is warranted in order to direct the healthcare industry towards a better adoption of clinical HIT.
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Date Issued: 2010
Identifier: CFE0003327, ucf:48445
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0003327

Title: HEDONIC PROPERTY VALUE MODELING OF WATER QUALITY, LAKE PROXIMITY, AND SPATIAL DEPENDENCE IN CENTRAL FLORIDA.
Creator: Walsh, Patrick, Milon, J. Walter, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: Hedonic property value analysis is one of the leading methods of environmental valuation. This non-market technique uses variation in home sales to infer the values of amenities or disamenities. While there have been numerous studies about air quality and hazardous waste, the number of papers focusing on water quality is much smaller. Consequently, there are still many unanswered questions about the proper handling of water quality through hedonic methods. Furthermore, estimates from hedonic...
Show moreHedonic property value analysis is one of the leading methods of environmental valuation. This non-market technique uses variation in home sales to infer the values of amenities or disamenities. While there have been numerous studies about air quality and hazardous waste, the number of papers focusing on water quality is much smaller. Consequently, there are still many unanswered questions about the proper handling of water quality through hedonic methods. Furthermore, estimates from hedonic property price analyses are rarely used in government cost benefit analyses. This dissertation investigates several important hedonic issues in a large analysis of water quality in central Florida. The first chapter of this paper explores the extent of water quality benefits. Almost all past studies have focused exclusively on waterfront homes. The present paper includes non-waterfront homes and investigates three hypotheses about the marginal impact of water quality. The first hypothesis is that non-waterfront homes are positively affected by water quality, but by a smaller amount than waterfront homes. The second hypothesis is about the effect of lake distance on the relationship between water quality and property prices: this relationship should be negative. The third hypothesis states that properties near larger lakes have a higher implicit price for water quality than homes around smaller lakes, all else constant. These three hypotheses are investigated in each chapter of the dissertation, and provide a unifying theme to the paper. Results from Chapter 1 support all three hypotheses. Most importantly, the empirical estimates indicate that water quality benefits extend beyond the waterfront in a declining gradient. Excluding non-lakefront homes from the analysis can therefore substantially underestimate the total benefits of a water quality improvement. Estimates of the total property price benefits from a one foot increase in water quality were found to double with the addition of non-waterfront homes. The second chapter examines the sensitivity of results to several spatial specifications. Spatial issues can be a problem in analyses of real estate data because of spatially correlated variables, unobservable neighborhood codes and covenants, identical or similar builders, and property appraisal valuation techniques. The focus of the chapter is on the spatial weights matrix (SWM). Six different SWM's are constructed, which are based on popular specifications encountered in the current spatial hedonic literature. An out-of-sample forecasting exercise is used to compare multiple spatial specifications. Results indicate that certain spatial models may be sensitive to the specification of the weights matrix. Furthermore, many popular models currently used in the literature could be improved by allowing more non-zero elements in the SWM. The third chapter investigates the definition of "water quality" and uses several additional quality indicators. Choosing the proper pollution indicator is an issue that has plagued many areas of the valuation literature. While clarity indicators have become popular in hedonic property price analysis, they are not used for the purposes of regulation by many state environmental departments. This chapter uses several indicators that are used by the state of Florida to classify lakes and implement policy. Implicit prices are computed for all of the indicators and issues of benefit extent and total benefits are explored. Instead of finding an optimal indicator for all situations, results indicate that the use of at least two types of indicators may capture a larger range of the true total benefits. The final chapter uses a repeat sales model to address potential problems with omitted variable bias. Due to the size of the data set in this paper, there are a substantial number of homes that have sold more than once. The repeat sales model analyzes differences in property sales prices for the same home over time. The three hypotheses of the first chapter are explored in this alternative model. The implicit price obtained from the repeat sales model is much larger than the regular hedonic model. However, there are some concerns with the smaller population of repeat sales.
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Date Issued: 2009
Identifier: CFE0002717, ucf:48154
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0002717

Title: THE EFFECTS OF URBANIZATION ON THE STRUCTURE, QUALITY, AND DIVERSITY OF CYPRESS PLANT COMMUNITIES IN CENTRAL FLORIDA.
Creator: Knickerbocker, Courtney, Quigley, Martin, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: The integrity of wetland ecosystems is largely determined by hydrological functionality, degree of connectivity to like ecosystems, and permeability to external influence. Land use changes in upland areas adjacent to wetland ecosystems may influence hydrology and connectivity while introducing novel biotic and abiotic materials. There is an increasing trend toward the use of remote assessment techniques to determine the degree of impact of external influences on adjacent wetlands. Remote...
Show moreThe integrity of wetland ecosystems is largely determined by hydrological functionality, degree of connectivity to like ecosystems, and permeability to external influence. Land use changes in upland areas adjacent to wetland ecosystems may influence hydrology and connectivity while introducing novel biotic and abiotic materials. There is an increasing trend toward the use of remote assessment techniques to determine the degree of impact of external influences on adjacent wetlands. Remote assessment and predictive capabilities are provided by indices such as the Landscape Development Intensity Index (LDI) (Brown and Vivas 2005) which may be beneficial in determining site condition, and which have the added benefit of providing a quantitative gradient of human impact. This study assessed the predictive ability of the LDI in cypress ecosystems, by testing its correlations with plant community metrics including an index of floral quality calculated using coefficients of conservatism (CC)(Cohen et al. 2004), plant species diversity, and fluctuation in community composition assessed by changes in the wetland status and native status of component plant species. LDI was also compared against an independent measure of disturbance which was used to construct an a priori disturbance gradient. Overall, diversity measures showed little correlation with any of the disturbance indices, while CC scores were significantly correlated. Models were constructed in an attempt to explain each of the variables of plant community response to development in the surrounding landscape. The length of time since the development of the land adjacent to the cypress domes was a predictor of plant community response only when included in models with other variables. LDI was the strongest predictor in all models except where increases in land use associated with hydrological changes helped predict or better predicted proportions of exotic and upland species.
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Date Issued: 2009
Identifier: CFE0002576, ucf:48280
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0002576

Title: EVALUATION OF A QUALITY MANAGEMENT INITIATIVE AND HIV AMBULATORY SERVICES PERFORMANCE IN THAILAND.
Creator: Meemon, Natthani, Wan, Thomas, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: The accomplishment of pilot implementation of the HIVQUAL-T model, an innovative HIV care quality management tool, has led to an authoritative decision to scale up the use of the model nationwide in Thailand. However, the level of implementing this model varies across target hospitals. Some hospitals have fully adopted the model by conducting quality improvement (QI) activities following performance measurement (PM) results while others have partially adopted only PM or have not used this...
Show moreThe accomplishment of pilot implementation of the HIVQUAL-T model, an innovative HIV care quality management tool, has led to an authoritative decision to scale up the use of the model nationwide in Thailand. However, the level of implementing this model varies across target hospitals. Some hospitals have fully adopted the model by conducting quality improvement (QI) activities following performance measurement (PM) results while others have partially adopted only PM or have not used this model at all. The differential level of implementation could be a contributing factor accounting for discrepancies in the quality of care across different HIV ambulatory care facilities. A cross-sectional study was conducted by using two main datasets, including Thailand's national HIV care performance results and an online survey of all public hospitals nationwide. A total of 382 hospitals responded to the survey, accounting for a response rate of 50%. A confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) method was performed to examine the validity of latent constructs developed from the diffusion of innovation theory. Structural equation modeling (SEM) approach was employed to investigate the relationship between the determinants of organizational decision-making and their contribution to organizational outcomes, under the context-design-performance framework. Furthermore, using a panel model of hospitals that reported performance results across a 3-year period, the improvement in HIV ambulatory services performance among the adopters was examined. The results indicated that two innovation attributes -relative advantage and simplicity perceived by HIV care practitioners in hospitals- were found to be positively associated with the level of the HIVQUAL-T model implementation. Two structural characteristics -interconnectedness and organizational slack- appeared to be positively associated with the level of model implementation, while rate of adoption in the region also had significant positive contribution. Ultimately, the extensiveness of the HIVQUAL-T model implementation demonstrated a proportionate impact on the variation in hospitals' HIV ambulatory services performance. It was noted that the implementers considerably improved their performance within two years of implementing the model. The study findings imply that adoption is more likely when individual practitioners assess the innovation and find it to be easy to comprehend and operate and also worthwhile to implement. Furthermore, hospitals' decision making is likely influenced by their relations to external environment. The findings suggest more emphasis on individual and hospital-level capacity building for meaningful use of this quality management initiative, accompanied by an adjustment of performance measurement software with valid, reliable, and interpretable indicators.
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Date Issued: 2011
Identifier: CFE0003753, ucf:48785
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0003753

Title: NURSING HOMES' COMPLIANCE WITH STATE NURSE STAFFING STANDARDS AND ITS RELATION TO QUALITY-OF-CARE DEFICIENCIES.
Creator: Paek, Seung Chun, Wan, Thomas, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: The purpose of this dissertation is to examine nursing homes' compliance with state minimum nurse staffing standards and its relation to quality-of-care deficiencies. Specifically, this study, reviewing staffing standards from 50 states and the District of Columbia for the year 2007, proposes a unique algorithm to calculate the states' expected nurse staffing levels for individual nursing homes in order to investigate their compliance with the state nurse staffing standards. By using...
Show moreThe purpose of this dissertation is to examine nursing homes' compliance with state minimum nurse staffing standards and its relation to quality-of-care deficiencies. Specifically, this study, reviewing staffing standards from 50 states and the District of Columbia for the year 2007, proposes a unique algorithm to calculate the states' expected nurse staffing levels for individual nursing homes in order to investigate their compliance with the state nurse staffing standards. By using hierarchical linear modeling method, this study attempts to capture the impact of the staffing standards on actual nurse staffing levels under resource dependence perspectives. Path analysis using structural equation modeling was conducted to investigate both direct and indirect effects of the staffing standards on nurse staffing levels and quality-of-care deficiencies. The major findings were as follows: (1) nursing homes in states with higher state staffing standards for the categories of RN, LN, and total nurse were found to have higher RN, LN, and total staffing levels, respectively; (2) higher nurse staffing levels resulting from higher state staffing standards were significantly associated with better quality of care (less quality-of-care deficiencies cited) in nursing homes; and (3) state staffing standards were found to have much stronger contribution to nurse staffing levels than any other organizational or contextual factors while nurse staffing levels, particularly licensed staff, were found to have stronger contribution to quality-of-care deficiencies than any other organizational factors. The study findings suggest that if the goal is to increase nurse staffing levels for better quality, increasing the stringency of both federal and state nurse staffing standards would be the most effective way. However, the staffing standards first need technical changes to reduce their ambiguity and ensure their fairness. If the goal is to achieve better quality, merely increasing nurse staffing levels may not be effective since the variation of the quality-of-care deficiencies explained by exogenous variables was smaller than random variation 5%. If state Medicaid reimbursements can be utilized for financial incentives for better performing nursing homes, nursing homes may improve their productivity by efficiently managing organizational personnel or increasing job satisfaction among nursing practitioners. Lastly, longitudinal analysis, considering variation in length of state staffing policy implementations, is encouraged to investigate the long-term effects of state staffing standards on nurse staffing levels and quality of care.
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Date Issued: 2011
Identifier: CFE0003754, ucf:48781
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0003754

Title: The Impact of Mobbing and Job-related Stress on Burnout and Health-related Quality of Life: The Case of Turkish Territorial State Representatives.
Creator: Yesilbas, Mehmet, Wan, Thomas, Dziegielewski, Sophia, Steen, Julie, Zhang, Ning, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: Job-related stress occurs as one of the most serious issues in modern era in developed nations. It has direct and negative effects on employees' productivity and it may have negative impacts on employees' health. One of the potential results of prolonged stressors at work place is burnout and this response may lead to physical, emotional, and psychological exhaustion that can occur at both individual and organizational levels. Burnout is a job related threat that provokes social stress and...
Show moreJob-related stress occurs as one of the most serious issues in modern era in developed nations. It has direct and negative effects on employees' productivity and it may have negative impacts on employees' health. One of the potential results of prolonged stressors at work place is burnout and this response may lead to physical, emotional, and psychological exhaustion that can occur at both individual and organizational levels. Burnout is a job related threat that provokes social stress and can directly affect an individual's health. Health-related quality of life (HRQoL) is commonly used to measure an individual's overall/global health and quality of life. Another serious issue, mobbing, usually leads to some individual and organizational complications. It affects the organizational commitment, motivation and efficiency of staff, job satisfaction of employee, and may lead to potential burnout of the employees. The primary objective of this study is to determine whether stress and mobbing are directly related to burnout; and, whether burnout leads to an adverse effect on the HRQoL of Turkish territorial state representatives (TSRs). This study examines four specific research questions: 1) Whether and to what extent do the levels of perceived job related stress and mobbing affect the level of perceived burnout syndrome of TSRs? 2) Whether and to what extent is the level of perceived burnout syndrome associated with HRQoL of TSRs? 3) To what extent does the level of perceived burnout mediate the effects of job-related stress on HRQoL of TSRs? 4) What are the mediating factors between job burnout and HRQoL? This study is expected to offer valuable and insightful information about the role of job burnout factors influencing the variability in TSRs' HRQoL.The study utilized two statistical analyses, which were descriptive analysis and Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) which allows for the assessment of the relationships specified in the hypotheses and the SEM was used to validate the theoretically driven model. The findings of the study supported the hypotheses of the study, which asserted that there were correlations between job-related stress and burnout, mobbing and burnout, and burnout and HRQoL. The CFA results established that job-related stress was positively and significantly associated with the burnout of TSRs, while perceived mobbing was positively and significantly related to the burnout of TSRs. Moreover, perceived HRQoL of TSRs was negatively associated with the burnout of TSRs. Further, the findings indicated that the relationship between job-related stress and burnout and the relationship between burnout and HRQoL of TSRs were statistically significant. Thus the variable had a positive effect on burnout and a negative effect on the HRQoL of TSRs. In summary, the findings of the study showed that results and propositions of the theoretical frameworks of the study and literature were consistent with one another.
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Date Issued: 2015
Identifier: CFE0006236, ucf:51071
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0006236

Title: The effect of pre-service teaching on student achievement using a co-teaching model at an elementary school in a large, urban school district in central Florida.
Creator: McHale, Walton, Murray, Kenneth, Murray, Barbara, Doherty, Walter, Hutchinson, Cynthia, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: This study was focused on the effect of pre-service teaching utilizing a co-teaching model on student achievement at an elementary school in a large, urban school district in central Florida. The contribution of university student teachers (i.e., interns) to elementary school achievement was investigated. Specifically explored was the difference between student achievement scores in classes with interns who participated in a co-teaching model and interns in classes that did not employ any...
Show moreThis study was focused on the effect of pre-service teaching utilizing a co-teaching model on student achievement at an elementary school in a large, urban school district in central Florida. The contribution of university student teachers (i.e., interns) to elementary school achievement was investigated. Specifically explored was the difference between student achievement scores in classes with interns who participated in a co-teaching model and interns in classes that did not employ any structured approach to intern teaching. The researcher compared seven classes that employed co-teaching, where the university intern teacher and master teacher remained in the class conducting instruction, to seven classes that had a more traditional approach to the intern teaching. The co-teaching intern model did not exert a significant effect, either positive or negative, on student achievement. Also investigated was the effect of an intern, utilizing any model, on student achievement scores, when compared to similar classes without the presence of an intern. The study utilized 14 classes with interns and 13 classes without interns; each group had populations of approximately 285 students. The presence of an intern did not exert a significant effect, either positive or negative, on student achievement. However, the data indicated that the presence of an intern could positively influence mathematics scores.Additionally, the impact of teacher quality and socio-economic status on student achievement in reading and mathematics were explored. The data revealed the value of the individual teacher significantly affected student success in reading and mathematics. In reading, socio-economic status also significantly affected student achievement.
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Date Issued: 2015
Identifier: CFE0005841, ucf:50912
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005841

Title: Performance optimization of lateral-mode thin-film piezoelectric-on-substrate resonant systems.
Creator: Fatemi, Hedy, Abdolvand, Reza, Sundaram, Kalpathy, Malocha, Donald, Gong, Xun, Cho, Hyoung Jin, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: The main focus of this dissertation is to characterize and improve the performance of thin-film piezoelectric-on-substrate (TPoS) lateral-mode resonators and filters. TPoS is a class of piezoelectric MEMS devices which benefits from the high coupling coefficient of the piezoelectric transduction mechanism while taking advantage of superior acoustic properties of a substrate. The use of lateral-mode TPoS designs allows for fabrication of dispersed-frequency filters on a single substrate, thus...
Show moreThe main focus of this dissertation is to characterize and improve the performance of thin-film piezoelectric-on-substrate (TPoS) lateral-mode resonators and filters. TPoS is a class of piezoelectric MEMS devices which benefits from the high coupling coefficient of the piezoelectric transduction mechanism while taking advantage of superior acoustic properties of a substrate. The use of lateral-mode TPoS designs allows for fabrication of dispersed-frequency filters on a single substrate, thus significantly reducing the size and manufacturing cost of devices. TPoS filters also offer a lower temperature coefficient of frequency, and better power handling capability compared to rival technologies all in a very small footprint.Design and fabrication process of the TPoS devices is discussed. Both silicon and diamond substrates are utilized for fabrication of TPoS devices and results are compared. Specifically, the superior acoustic properties of nanocrystalline diamond in scaling the frequency and energy density of the resonators is highlighted in comparison with silicon. The performance of TPoS devices in a variety of applications is reported. These applications include lateral-mode TPoS filters with record low IL values (as low as 2dB) and fractional bandwidth up to 1%, impedance transformers, very low phase noise oscillators, and passive wireless temperature sensors.
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Date Issued: 2015
Identifier: CFE0005945, ucf:50805
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005945

Title: Quality by Design Procedure for Continuous Pharmaceutical Manufacturing: An Integrated Flowsheet Model Approach.
Creator: Vezina, Ashley, Elshennawy, Ahmad, Rabelo, Luis, Karwowski, Waldemar, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: Pharmaceutical manufacturing is crucial to global healthcare and requires a higher, more consistent level of quality than any other industry. Yet, the traditional pharmaceutical batch manufacturing has remained largely unchanged in the last fifty years due to high R(&)D costs, shorter patent durations, and regulatory uncertainty. This has led regulatory bodies to promote modernization of manufacturing process to continuous pharmaceutical manufacturing (CPM) by introducing new methodologies...
Show morePharmaceutical manufacturing is crucial to global healthcare and requires a higher, more consistent level of quality than any other industry. Yet, the traditional pharmaceutical batch manufacturing has remained largely unchanged in the last fifty years due to high R(&)D costs, shorter patent durations, and regulatory uncertainty. This has led regulatory bodies to promote modernization of manufacturing process to continuous pharmaceutical manufacturing (CPM) by introducing new methodologies including quality by design, design space, and process analytical technology (PAT). This represents a shift away from the traditional pharmaceutical manufacturing way of thinking towards a risk based approach that promotes increased product and process knowledge through a data-rich environment. While both literature and regulatory bodies acknowledge the need for modernization, manufacturers have been slow to modernize due to uncertainty and lack of confidence in the applications of these methodologies. This paper aims to describe the current applications of QbD principles in literature and the current regulatory environment to identify gaps in literature through leveraging regulatory guidelines and CPM literature. To aid in closing the gap between QbD theory and QbD application, a QbD algorithm for CPM using an integrated flowsheet models is also developed and analyzed. This will help to increase manufacturing confidence in CPM by providing answers to questions about the CPM business case, applications of QbD tools, process validation and sensitivity, and process and equipment characteristics. An integrated flowsheet model will aid in the decision-making process and process optimization, breaking away from ex silico methods extensively covered in literature.
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Date Issued: 2017
Identifier: CFE0006923, ucf:51683
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0006923

Title: Under-Researched Areas of Audit Quality: Inputs, Firms, and Institutions.
Creator: Eutsler, Jared, Trompeter, Gregory, Roberts, Robin, Robb, Sean, Krishnamoorthy, Ganesh, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: Francis (2011) lists three under-researched units of analysis that affect audit quality: inputs, firms, and institutions. This dissertation analyzes how each of these units of analysis contributes to audit quality. Study 1 examines audit inputs, specifically, characteristics of the individual auditor that affect professional skepticism. Study 2 examines how firm staffing decisions affect audit quality. Study 3 examines how the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board ((")PCAOB(")), as a...
Show moreFrancis (2011) lists three under-researched units of analysis that affect audit quality: inputs, firms, and institutions. This dissertation analyzes how each of these units of analysis contributes to audit quality. Study 1 examines audit inputs, specifically, characteristics of the individual auditor that affect professional skepticism. Study 2 examines how firm staffing decisions affect audit quality. Study 3 examines how the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board ((")PCAOB(")), as a regulatory institution, promotes audit quality through their risk-based inspection program. The first study reports the results of two experiments that examine professional skepticism as a function of moral agency. Consistent with the theory of moral disengagement (through moral agency), the results suggest that common audit firm human resource practices used to promote audit quality (i.e. hiring creative individuals, and advertising public accounting's role as protecting the capital markets) may unintentionally decrease professional skepticism through increasing moral disengagement. Results of Experiment 1 demonstrate creative auditors are more skeptical. However, they are also more prone to engage in less skeptical behavior as they fabricate more creative moral justifications (a specific method of moral disengagement) when working under time pressure. Further, Experiment 2 suggests that moral disengagement is increased when firms frame their public interest responsibilities as protecting the 'capital markets.' The use of this label unintentionally dehumanizes the individuals that make up the public, and as a result, it decreases professional skepticism. Alternatively, altering the frame of the public interest responsibilities to protecting individuals (such as more familiar individual investors) increases humanization and increases professional skepticism. The second study examines how firms affect audit quality. Audit regulators view audit firm staffing as key input affecting audit quality and have suggested that it has value as a potential indicator of audit quality. Further, regulators (such as the IAASB) have called for audit firms to avoid cutting staff (including in periods of economic contraction), as reductions in staff could have a negative impact on audit quality. However, little empirical evidence exists to support how firm-level staffing maps into engagement-level audit quality. This study evaluates the extent to which firm-level staffing affects audit quality. Audit firm employment is obtained from the 1991-2014 rankings of the top 100 U.S. public accounting firms and analyzed across multiple measures of audit quality. In multivariate tests, firm staffing (such as number of partners) and firm leverage (as measured by total partners divided by total professional staff) are associated with audit quality. This analysis provides support for claims made by regulators, about the value of potential labor related audit quality indicators proposed by the PCAOB. Further, decreases in partners or staff (from year to year) are negatively associated with audit quality supporting regulatory claims that audit firm staff cuts have a detrimental impact on audit quality. The third study examines the relationship between the PCAOB, as an institution, and audit quality. The PCAOB uses a risk-based selection process to identify engagements for inspection and states that their inspection findings are an indicator of audit quality. However, critics argue that the risk-based selection program produces reports that are not representative of the overall audit quality for the firm. This study creates a selection model, investigates the extent to which inspection findings are representative of overall firm audit quality, and examines the extent to which the inspection process may improve audit quality. Inspection reports of annually inspected firms from 2004 to 2012 are analyzed in combination with the financials of their issuer clients. Results suggest that inspection report findings can be generalized to the audit quality of those deficient accounts for the issuer client base exhibiting the highest levels of selection risk. Specifically, when audit firms have increased levels of revenue related to inspection deficiencies, their high selection risk clients have higher average discretionary revenues for the year inspected. Further, the analysis suggests that the PCAOB risk-based inspection process is effective in improving audit quality of deficient accounts for clients exhibiting the highest levels of selection risk in the subsequent year. The results indicate a negative association between prior levels of revenue specific inspection deficiencies and future levels of discretionary revenues for high selection risk clients.
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Date Issued: 2016
Identifier: CFE0006297, ucf:51590
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0006297

Title: Exploring Relationship Quality as a Dyadic Mediator of Adverse Childhood Experiences and Health for Economically Disadvantaged Couples.
Creator: Wheeler, Naomi, Barden, Sejal, Lambie, Glenn, Young, Mark, Carlson, Ryan, Taylor, Dalena, Daire, Andrew, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: The purpose of this research study was to investigate the directional relationships between Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE; Felitti et al., 1998), relationship quality (as measured by the Relationship Assessment Scale [Hendrick, 1988] and the Behavioral Self-Regulation for Effective Relationships Scale [Wilson, Charker, Lizzio, Halford, (&) Kimlin, 2005]), and health (as measured by the OQ 45.2 [Lambert et al., 2004] and a Brief Medical History Questionnaire [Daire, Wheeler, (&) Liekweg,...
Show moreThe purpose of this research study was to investigate the directional relationships between Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE; Felitti et al., 1998), relationship quality (as measured by the Relationship Assessment Scale [Hendrick, 1988] and the Behavioral Self-Regulation for Effective Relationships Scale [Wilson, Charker, Lizzio, Halford, (&) Kimlin, 2005]), and health (as measured by the OQ 45.2 [Lambert et al., 2004] and a Brief Medical History Questionnaire [Daire, Wheeler, (&) Liekweg, 2014]) among economically disadvantaged couples. The theorized model included a dyadic structure and mediation of ACE and health by relationship quality using the Actor-Partner Interdependence Mediation Model (APIMeM). The researcher employed structural equation modeling analyses and the APIMeM to investigate the model fit with archival and enrollment data from 503 heterosexual couples in a relationship education program. The majority of participants (76.9%) also identified a racial or ethnic minority background. Final results indicated a good fit for the model to the sample data and explained a significant portion of variance in health (i.e., 82.3% for men [a large effect], 56.5% for women [a large effect]). Significant findings included: (a) ACE exerted an effect on health indirectly through relationship quality (i.e., 98.05% of the male total actor effect, 57.4% of the female total actor effect); (b) ACE exerted a direct effect on health for women; (c) overall ACE, relationship quality, and health were significantly related at the actor-level; and (d) a dyadic influence between male and female reports of ACE, relationship quality, and health contributed to the overall model fit. Discussion of results, implications for practice, recommendations for future research, and study limitations are provided.
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Date Issued: 2017
Identifier: CFE0006673, ucf:51229
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0006673

Title: Near-road Dispersion Modeling of Mobile Source Air Toxics (MSATs) in Florida.
Creator: Westerlund, Kurt, Cooper, Charles, Radwan, Ahmed, Randall, Andrew, Hall, Steven, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: There is a growing public concern that emissions of mobile source air toxics (MSATs) from motor vehicles may pose a threat to human health. At present, no state or federal agencies require dispersion modeling of these compounds, but many agencies are concerned about potential future requirements. Current air pollution professionals are familiar with Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) requirements for dispersion modeling to produce predicted...
Show moreThere is a growing public concern that emissions of mobile source air toxics (MSATs) from motor vehicles may pose a threat to human health. At present, no state or federal agencies require dispersion modeling of these compounds, but many agencies are concerned about potential future requirements. Current air pollution professionals are familiar with Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) requirements for dispersion modeling to produce predicted concentrations for comparison with appropriate standards. This research examined a method in which the potential near-road concentrations of MSATs were calculated. It was believed that by assessing MSATs in much the same way that are used for other pollutants, the model and methods developed in this research could become a standard for those quantifying MSAT concentrations near-roadways.This dissertation reports on the results from short-term (1-hour) and long-term (annual average) MSATs dispersion modeling that has been conducted on seven intersections and seven freeway segments in the state of Florida. To accomplish the modeling, the CAL3QHC model was modified to handle individual MSAT emissions input data and to predict the concentrations of several MSATs around these roadway facilities. Additionally, since the CAL3MSAT model is DOS based and not user-friendly, time was invested to develop a Windows(&)#174; graphical user interface (GUI). Real-world data (traffic volumes and site geometry) were gathered, worst-case meteorology was selected, mobile source emission factors (EFs) were obtained from MOVES2010a, and worst-case modeling was conducted. Based on a literature search, maximum acceptable concentrations (MACs) were proposed for comparison with the modeled results, for both a short-term (1-hour) averaging time and a long-term (1-year) averaging time.Results from this CAL3MSAT modeling study indicate that for all of the intersections and freeway segments, the worst-case 1-hour modeled concentrations of the MSATs were several orders of magnitude below the proposed short-term MACs. The worst-case 1-year modeled concentrations were of the same order of magnitude as the proposed long-term MACs.The 1-year concentrations were first developed by applying a persistence factor to the worst-case 1-hour concentrations. In the interest of comparing the predicted concentrations from the CAL3MSAT persistence factor approach to other dispersion models, two EPA regulatory models (CAL3QHCR and AERMOD) with the ability to account for yearly meteorology, traffic, and signal timing were used. Both hourly and annual MSAT concentrations were predicted at one large urban intersection and compared for the three different dispersion models. The short-term 1-hour results from CAL3MSAT were higher than those predicted by the two other models due to the worst-case assumptions. Similarly, results indicate that the CAL3MSAT persistence factor approach predicted a worst-case annual average concentration on the same order of magnitude as the two other more refined models. This indicated that the CAL3MSAT model might be useful as a worst-case screening approach.
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Date Issued: 2013
Identifier: CFE0004772, ucf:49804
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0004772

Title: An Analysis of the School Board of Brevard County Instructional Personnel Performance Appraisal Instrument and the Validity of its Components.
Creator: Mela, Carol, Murray, Barbara, Murray, Kenneth, Taylor, Rosemarye, Hahs-Vaughn, Debbie, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: This study examined the relationship between the professional practices components of the School Board of Brevard County Instructional Personnel Performance Appraisal System Instrument and student achievement as measured by a teacher's value-added measurement score. A Pearson Product-Moment Correlation was the statistical test used to analyze the data. The population included Brevard Public School instructional personnel assigned to Grades 4-10 who taught reading and/or mathematics measured...
Show moreThis study examined the relationship between the professional practices components of the School Board of Brevard County Instructional Personnel Performance Appraisal System Instrument and student achievement as measured by a teacher's value-added measurement score. A Pearson Product-Moment Correlation was the statistical test used to analyze the data. The population included Brevard Public School instructional personnel assigned to Grades 4-10 who taught reading and/or mathematics measured by the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test during the 2011-2012 school year and who received teacher aggregated value-added measurement scores.Findings indicated that there was a small to moderate statistically significant, positive relationship between all eight professional practices component variables and value-added measurement scores. Correlation coefficients ranged from .089 for collaborative inquiry to .218 for quality of instruction. All of the components combined had a correlation of .231, confirming the strength of multiple evaluation measures.Recommendations were provided for future research aimed at further data analysis in Brevard Public Schools as well as other school districts in order to identify the combination of evaluation components that most accurately reflect teaching effectiveness resulting in student learning as well as to pinpoint weaknesses upon which additional training could be based and the fidelity of implementation improved.
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Date Issued: 2013
Identifier: CFE0004719, ucf:49810
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0004719

Title: Defining a Stakeholder-Relative Model to Measure Academic Department Efficiency at Achieving Quality in Higher Education.
Creator: Robinson, Federica, Sepulveda, Jose, Reilly, Charles, Nazzal, Dima, Armacost, Robert, Feldheim, Mary, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: In a time of strained resources and dynamic environments, the importance of effective and efficient systems is critical. This dissertation was developed to address the need to use feedback from multiple stakeholder groups to define quality and assess an entity's efficiency at achieving such quality.A decision support model with applicability to diverse domains was introduced to outline the approach. Three phases, (1) quality model development, (2) input-output selection and (3) relative...
Show moreIn a time of strained resources and dynamic environments, the importance of effective and efficient systems is critical. This dissertation was developed to address the need to use feedback from multiple stakeholder groups to define quality and assess an entity's efficiency at achieving such quality.A decision support model with applicability to diverse domains was introduced to outline the approach. Three phases, (1) quality model development, (2) input-output selection and (3) relative efficiency assessment, captured the essence of the process which also delineates the approach per tool applied. This decision support model was adapted in higher education to assess academic departmental efficiency at achieving stakeholder-relative quality. Phase 1 was accomplished through a three round, Delphi-like study which involved user group refinement. Those results were compared to the criteria of an engineering accreditation body (ABET) to support the model's validity to capture quality in the College of Engineering (&) Computer Science, its departments and programs. In Phase 2 the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) was applied to the validated model to quantify the perspective of students, administrators, faculty and employers (SAFE). Using the composite preferences for the collective group (n=74), the model was limited to the top 7 attributes which accounted for about 55% of total preferences. Data corresponding to the resulting variables, referred to as key performance indicators, was collected using various information sources and infused in the data envelopment analysis (DEA) methodology (Phase 3). This process revealed both efficient and inefficient departments while offering transparency of opportunities to maximize quality outputs. Findings validate the potential of the Delphi-like, analytic hierarchical, data envelopment analysis approach for administrative decision-making in higher education. However, the availability of more meaningful metrics and data is required to adapt the model for decision making purposes. Several recommendations were included to improve the usability of the decision support model and future research opportunities were identified to extend the analyses inherent and apply the model to alternative areas.
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Date Issued: 2013
Identifier: CFE0004921, ucf:49636
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0004921

Title: Drinking Water Infrastructure Assessment with Teleconnection Signals, Satellite Data Fusion and Mining.
Creator: Imen, Sanaz, Chang, Ni-bin, Wang, Dingbao, Wanielista, Martin, Bohlen, Patrick, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: Adjustment of the drinking water treatment process as a simultaneous response to climate variations and water quality impact has been a grand challenge in water resource management in recent years. This desired and preferred capability depends on timely and quantitative knowledge to monitor the quality and availability of water. This issue is of great importance for the largest reservoir in the United States, Lake Mead, which is located in the proximity of a big metropolitan region - Las...
Show moreAdjustment of the drinking water treatment process as a simultaneous response to climate variations and water quality impact has been a grand challenge in water resource management in recent years. This desired and preferred capability depends on timely and quantitative knowledge to monitor the quality and availability of water. This issue is of great importance for the largest reservoir in the United States, Lake Mead, which is located in the proximity of a big metropolitan region - Las Vegas, Nevada. The water quality in Lake Mead is impaired by forest fires, soil erosion, and land use changes in nearby watersheds and wastewater effluents from the Las Vegas Wash. In addition, more than a decade of drought has caused a sharp drop by about 100 feet in the elevation of Lake Mead. These hydrological processes in the drought event led to the increased concentration of total organic carbon (TOC) and total suspended solids (TSS) in the lake. TOC in surface water is known as a precursor of disinfection byproducts in drinking water, and high TSS concentration in source water is a threat leading to possible clogging in the water treatment process. Since Lake Mead is a principal source of drinking water for over 25 million people, high concentrations of TOC and TSS may have a potential health impact. Therefore, it is crucial to develop an early warning system which is able to support rapid forecasting of water quality and availability. In this study, the creation of the nowcasting water quality model with satellite remote sensing technologies lays down the foundation for monitoring TSS and TOC, on a near real-time basis. Yet the novelty of this study lies in the development of a forecasting model to predict TOC and TSS values with the aid of remote sensing technologies on a daily basis. The forecasting process is aided by an iterative scheme via updating the daily satellite imagery in concert with retrieving the long-term memory from the past states with the aid of nonlinear autoregressive neural network with external input on a rolling basis onward. To account for the potential impact of long-term hydrological droughts, teleconnection signals were included on a seasonal basis in the Upper Colorado River basin which provides 97% of the inflow into Lake Mead. Identification of teleconnection patterns at a local scale is challenging, largely due to the coexistence of non-stationary and non-linear signals embedded within the ocean-atmosphere system. Empirical mode decomposition as well as wavelet analysis are utilized to extract the intrinsic trend and the dominant oscillation of the sea surface temperature (SST) and precipitation time series. After finding possible associations between the dominant oscillation of seasonal precipitation and global SST through lagged correlation analysis, the statistically significant index regions in the oceans are extracted. With these characterized associations, individual contribution of these SST forcing regions that are linked to the related precipitation responses are further quantified through the use of the extreme learning machine. Results indicate that the non-leading SST regions also contribute saliently to the terrestrial precipitation variability compared to some of the known leading SST regions and confirm the capability of predicting the hydrological drought events one season ahead of time. With such an integrated advancement, an early warning system can be constructed to bridge the current gap in source water monitoring for water supply.
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Date Issued: 2015
Identifier: CFE0005632, ucf:50215
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005632

Title: Is Conflict a Factor in a Population's Quality of Life? A Comparative Study of University Students in the Palestinian Territories and Jordan.
Creator: Asi, Yara, Unruh, Lynn, Ramirez, Bernardo, Liu, Albert/Xinliang, Sadri, Houman, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: As nearly one third of the world's population lives in an area that is in some way touched by war, researchers have long been interested in the varied impacts of conflict on civilians. Many indicators, measuring both physical and mental constructs, have been assessed in war-torn populations from around the world, one of which is health-related quality of life (HRQoL). The occupied Palestinian Territories (oPt) are one region in which copious research on health indicators has been undertaken...
Show moreAs nearly one third of the world's population lives in an area that is in some way touched by war, researchers have long been interested in the varied impacts of conflict on civilians. Many indicators, measuring both physical and mental constructs, have been assessed in war-torn populations from around the world, one of which is health-related quality of life (HRQoL). The occupied Palestinian Territories (oPt) are one region in which copious research on health indicators has been undertaken in an effort to understand how long-term conflict manifests itself in noncombatant populations. However, existing studies focus primarily on indicators within the Palestinian population itself that impact HRQoL, and not on the extent to which the presence of the conflict and its consequences disturb physical and mental health outcomes compared to areas without conflict. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the impact of long-term conflict by comparing HRQoL in the oPt and the neighboring country of Jordan, as well as to assess how demographic factors such as socioeconomic status and household size can moderate or aggravate this impact. The potential mediating factors of insecurity and perceived stress will also be assessed. This study found that the presence of conflict was not the most significant predictor of low HRQoL. The mitigating factor of a traditional foundation of mental resilience in Palestinian culture is addressed as a potential explanation for this result. The implications of this study are wide-ranging, particularly in their ability to contribute to healthcare policy recommendations in war-affected areas, and to bolster our understanding of the health status and needs of those living in these areas.
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Date Issued: 2015
Identifier: CFE0005574, ucf:50233
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005574

Title: Antecedents and Consequences of Customer Experience in Beverage Establishments.
Creator: Bujisic, Milos, Nusair, Khaldoon, Sivo, Stephen, Hutchinson, Joe, Chen, Po-Ju, Mattila, Anna, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: It is estimated that there are approximately 42,000 beverage establishments in the U.S. whose annual revenue surpasses $20 billion (First Research, 2014). To facilitate discussion of beverage establishments, it is essential to recognize beverage establishments as businesses whose majority of sales come from alcoholic drinks (Moss, 2010a). In this research, beverage establishments are divided into beverage-only bars, bar/entertainment combinations, and food and beverage combinations. Even...
Show moreIt is estimated that there are approximately 42,000 beverage establishments in the U.S. whose annual revenue surpasses $20 billion (First Research, 2014). To facilitate discussion of beverage establishments, it is essential to recognize beverage establishments as businesses whose majority of sales come from alcoholic drinks (Moss, 2010a). In this research, beverage establishments are divided into beverage-only bars, bar/entertainment combinations, and food and beverage combinations. Even though they are a well-established industry, beverage establishments have received little academic attention (Moss, 2010b). For example, previous studies have given little attention to the development of the model that examines the relationships between quality attributes, convenience, perceived price fairness, customer experience, and customer loyalty in beverage establishments. However, current research in other service sectors has showed that quality, pricing and convenience have a strong effect on customer experience and behavioral intentions (Baker (&) Crompton, 2000; Cronin et al., 2000; Taylor (&) Baker, 1994; Tian-Cole, Crompton, (&) Willson, 2002; Woodside et al., 1989). Quality is tightly related to customer experience since it positively affects customer satisfaction and therefore company's profitability (Hallowell, 1996).This study has the following objectives: (1) to develop an instrument to measure the antecedents of customer experience in beverage establishments; (2) to examine the relative importance of different antecedents of customer experience in different types of beverage establishments; and (3) to build a model of various antecedents of customer experience in beverage establishments.This study was conducted in six phases. The first phase was the analysis of previous literature regarding quality attributes, convenience, perceived price fairness, customer experience, customer loyalty, and beverage establishments. The second phase was a development of mixed methodology research design. The third phase was the data collection based on interviews with management of beverage establishments, customer focus groups, and a survey of customers of beverage establishments. The fourth phase was a pilot study that involved a refinement of the study instrument. The fifth phase was a main quantitative study based on the survey design. The results from each qualitative and quantitative phase of the study were integrated and analyzed.The results from the instrument development part of the study identified the following eleven antecedents of customer experience in beverage establishments: (1) service quality, (2) product quality, (3) physical environment design, (4) physical environment layout, (5) music quality, (6) social environment, (7) information convenience, (8) location convenience, (9) parking convenience, (10) entrance fee fairness, and (11) perceived price fairness. Additionally, the second instrument development study was used to recognize different customer experiential state dimensions. The factor structure included two customer experiential states: (1) the affective experiential state and (2) the cognitive experiential state.A comprehensive theoretical model that integrates different dimensions of antecedents of customer experience, customer experiential states, customer loyalty and the moderating affect of the type of the beverage establishment was developed. One of the most important findings of the study is the relationship between the social environment and the affective experiential state. The results of the study indicate that the majority of other antecedents of customer experience did not have a significant effect on two experiential states or that effect was relatively weak. However, social environment was the strongest predictor of customers' positive emotions and therefore customer loyalty and behavioral intentions. Finally, the study results confirmed Oliver's (1997) theory of customer loyalty by providing support for the sequential relationship between cognitive, affective, and conative loyalty. This study has several important theoretical contributions. Different antecedents of customer experience in beverage establishments were recognized and an instrument that measures these dimensions was developed. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first scale specifically developed to measure experience in beverage establishments. Additionally, the importance of each of the antecedent of customer experience was examined in regards to their effect on customer experience. Additionally, an instrument that measures cognitive and affective experiential states was developed and was a foundation for the study model. Finally, this study integrates different customer experience and customer loyalty dimensions into a comprehensive theoretical model that could be applied and retested in other service settings.
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Date Issued: 2014
Identifier: CFE0005309, ucf:50532
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005309

Title: Development of a chemical kinetic model for the combustion of a synthesis gas from a fluidized-bed sewage sludge gasifier in a thermal oxidizer.
Creator: Martinez, Luis, Cooper, David, Randall, Andrew, Vasu Sumathi, Subith, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: The need for sustainability has been on the rise. Municipalities are finding ways of reducing waste, but also finding ways to reduce energy costs. Waste-to-energy is a sustainable method that may reduce bio-solids volume while also producing energy. In this research study bio-solids enters a bubbling bed gasifier and within the gasifier a synthesis gas is produced. This synthesis gas exits through the top of the gasifier and enters a thermal oxidizer for combustion. The thermal oxidizer has...
Show moreThe need for sustainability has been on the rise. Municipalities are finding ways of reducing waste, but also finding ways to reduce energy costs. Waste-to-energy is a sustainable method that may reduce bio-solids volume while also producing energy. In this research study bio-solids enters a bubbling bed gasifier and within the gasifier a synthesis gas is produced. This synthesis gas exits through the top of the gasifier and enters a thermal oxidizer for combustion. The thermal oxidizer has an innovative method of oxidizing the synthesis gas. The thermal oxidizer has two air injection sites and the possibility for aqueous ammonia injection for further NOx reduction. Most thermal oxidizers already include an oxidizer such as air in the fuel before it enters the thermal oxidizer; thus making this research and operation different from many other thermal oxidizers and waste-to-energy plants.The reduction in waste means less volume loads to a landfill. This process significantly reduces the amount of bio-solids to a landfill. The energy produced from the synthesis is beneficial for any municipality, as it may be used to run the waste-to-energy facility. The purpose of this study is to determine methods in which operators may configure future plants to reduce NOx emissions. NOx mixed with volatile organic compounds (VOC) and sunlight, produce ozone (O3) a deadly gas at high concentrations.This study developed a model to determine the best methods to reduce NOx emissions. Results indicate that a fuel-rich then fuel-lean injection scheme results in lower NOx emissions. This is because at fuel-rich conditions not all of the ammonia in the first air ring is converted to NOx, but rather a partial of the ammonia is converted to NOx and N2 and then the second air ring operates at fuel-lean which further oxidizes the remaining ammonia which converts to NOx, but also a fraction to N2. If NOx standards reach more stringency then aqueous ammonia injection is a recommended method for NOx reduction; this method is also known as selective non-catalytic reduction (SNCR).The findings in this study will allow operators to make better judgment in the way that they operate a two air injection scheme thermal oxidizer. The goal of the operator and the organization is to meet air quality standards and this study aims at finding ways to reduce emissions, specifically NOx.
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Date Issued: 2014
Identifier: CFE0005528, ucf:50301
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005528

Title: The role of freedom in assessing the relationship between tourism competitiveness and quality of life: The case of Central America.
Creator: Kubickova, Marketa, Croes, Robertico, Nusair, Khaldoon, Rivera, Manuel, Robinson, Edward, Santana, Maria, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: The purpose of this dissertation study is to investigate the relationship among tourism competitiveness, quality of life, and freedom. The main premise is that the degree of freedom shapes the relationship between tourism development and quality of life. The study hypothesized that the greater the degree of freedom is, the greater impact tourism development will have on quality of life of residents of a destination. The theoretical framework of this study is based on combining Sen's...
Show moreThe purpose of this dissertation study is to investigate the relationship among tourism competitiveness, quality of life, and freedom. The main premise is that the degree of freedom shapes the relationship between tourism development and quality of life. The study hypothesized that the greater the degree of freedom is, the greater impact tourism development will have on quality of life of residents of a destination. The theoretical framework of this study is based on combining Sen's capability approach with the tourism competitiveness theory. Tourism competitiveness aims at enhancing the quality of life, while Sen's capability approach provides the ingredients for how to improve quality of life through freedom. Thus, the main premise is that the combination of the two theoretical frameworks is possible through the construct of quality of life. The study is applied to the Central American region as tourism has become an important driver for socio-economic progress and growth. The study applied panel data analyses and comparative regression analyses to decipher and understand the context of tourism competitiveness and quality of life. The study built a tourism competitiveness index and investigated the intertemporal effects of tourism competitiveness, quality of life, and freedom.The major findings of this study are as follow. First, long term bi-directional causality was found between tourism competitiveness and quality of life. In other words, tourism not only positively impacts quality of life, but high levels of quality of life have positive influence on tourism competitiveness in the Central American region. This is a major contribution as such assumptions have been mainly hypothesized. Second, economic freedom was found to act as a moderating variable between tourism competitiveness and quality of life. This finding allows us to further understand what impact such relationship between tourism competitiveness and quality of life. Third, economic freedom was found not to have an impact on quality of life as originally thought. However, quality of life was found to have a short-term impact on economic freedom. Finally, economic freedom had a bi-directional relationship with tourism competitiveness. This is a major contribution as such relationship was not previously discussed in the academic literature. The theoretical implication of this study is in terms of combining the capability approach and the competitiveness theory. In terms of managerial implications, governments of the Central American region can work on strategies, such as marketing, to promote tourism which in turn will improve residents' quality of life. At the same time, the government can work on improving residents' well-being while impacting tourism competitiveness.
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Date Issued: 2014
Identifier: CFE0005364, ucf:50476
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005364

Water Quality (8)	+ -
quality of life (8)	+ -
quality (7)	+ -
water quality (7)	+ -
Quality (6)	+ -

Quality of Service (4)	+ -
Quality of Life (3)	+ -
Service Quality (3)	+ -
distribution system (3)	+ -
quality improvement (3)	+ -
quality of care (3)	+ -
structural equation modeling (3)	+ -
student achievement (3)	+ -
teacher quality (3)	+ -
Air Quality (2)	+ -
Bragg grating (2)	+ -
CAL3QHC (2)	+ -
CLASS (2)	+ -
Central Florida (2)	+ -
Classroom Quality (2)	+ -
Corrosion (2)	+ -
Customer Satisfaction (2)	+ -
Data Fusion (2)	+ -
Environmental Engineering (2)	+ -
MOVES (2)	+ -
Performance (2)	+ -
Phosphorus (2)	+ -
Quality Factor (2)	+ -
Quality Management (2)	+ -
Quality of Experience (2)	+ -

ETD Collection (123)	+ -
Honors Collection (16)	+ -

English (138)	+ -
Engilsh (1)	+ -

University of Central Florida (135)	+ -
Elshennawy, Ahmad (6)	+ -
Randall, Andrew (6)	+ -
Wan, Thomas (6)	+ -
Duranceau, Steven (5)	+ -

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