The following papers/projects are produced by graduate students in programs where formal theses are not required. The majority (600+) are from the Occupational & Technical Studies program in the STEMPS Department of the Darden College of Education and Professional Studies. They date from 1974-present.
Additional master's papers are produced in the Institute for the Humanities (Arts & Letters), Educational Foundations & Leadership Department (Education), and School of Dental Hygiene (Health Sciences). To browse master's papers by academic department or program, please go to the Browse by Research by College, Department, Center page.
Master's Papers from 2026
The Psychology Behind AI-Generated Phishing and Social Engineering Attacks, A’shya Reynolds
Master's Papers from 2025
Norfolk Core Redevelopments and Population Disruption Dispersal, Sumner Darling
The Evolution of the Divine Feminine: How Religious Upheaval Changed Female Devotions, Nicole M. Honeycutt
Teaching Art Beyond the Hierarchy: How “Big Ideas” Combat Cultural Appropriation, Carlie Pearson
Master's Papers from 2024
“Koláče in the Blogosphere: Cultivating Food Expertise through Domesticity, Femininity, and Ethnicity”, Cathryn Janka
Simulation Modeling of an Earth Entry System and Solar Radiation Pressure Module Development, Michael Sean Manwell
Master's Papers from 2023
“People Like Me Get Left Out”: A Critique of Feminist Movement Organizing Practices Through Access Audits of Coalitional Spaces in Norfolk, Virginia, Megan Callahan-Palko
757TransFamily: Empowering Parents to Raise Their Transgender Child Through Knowledge, Connection, and Joy, Jessica Gurley
Navigating the Conversation: Sexual Abuse in the Black Home and the Church, Saundra Johnson
Master's Projects from 2021
Meditation and Cognitive Function Research Study, Darrin Landry
Keeping the Course: Nursing Student Motivation During a Pandemic, Travis William Storey
Master's Projects from 2020
Teachers’ Perceptions of Educational Technology, Matthew Joseph Fugere
Transformative Learning and the Power of Experience Contextualized in Tertiary-Level Study Abroad, Colleen M. Kolb
Master's Projects from 2019
Virtual Classrooms Bridging Homeschooling to Public Schools, Dennis I. Norman
Teachers’ Job Satisfaction: Content Area in Relation to Middle School Teachers’ Job Satisfaction, Ashley Potter
A Study To Determine How to Measure the Laser Safety Climate at Academic Institutions, John Settlemyer
Master's Projects from 2018
Examining Effective Collaboration in Instructional Design, Melissa Sue Ferguson
The Effects of Smartphones on Social Lives: How They Affect Our Social Interactions and Attitudes, D'Juan Gladden
Relationship of Supplemental Instruction and Attitude of Students Enrolled in College Algebra, Kele Anne McKaig
Becoming United Statesian: Experiences of Newly Resettled Iraqi Refugees and Iraqi Immigrants, Bnar Mustafa
Investigation of Ribbed Dome including Tuned Mass Damper, Ali Parva
An Injury Incidence Analysis at the Wal-Mart Distribution Center in Mount Crawford, VA from February 2016 to January 2017, Christopher T. Ruszala
A Case Study of the Southwest Virginia Higher Education Center, Sonia Vanhook
Master's Projects from 2017
Knowledge of Assistive Technology and Services Available to Students With Disabilities, Mary J. Addison
An Estimate on the Supply and Demand of Marketing Education Teachers in the Next Five Years in the Hampton Roads, Virginia Area, Alison Danielle Briel
The Relationship Between Obesity and Periodontal Disease, Jean Conover
Art Therapy Assessment: A Study of Males’ Bird’s Nest Drawings, Katherine A. Efimetz
A Self-Study Exploration of the Experience of Quilting: Implications for Art Therapy, Chelsey Lynette Fawthrop
Professional Bereavement of Oncology Nurses: A Literature Review, Nicole Ho
Materials and Processes in Art Therapy, Gabrielle Irvine
Working Through Unresolved Bereavement Through Fiber Arts and Reflective Writing: A Heuristic Study, Ashley S. Jenkins
Black Lives Matter: The Movement’s Relevance and Comparison to the 1960s Civil Rights Movement, Stacy Jenkins-Robinson
Self-Study of the Usefulness of Visual Journaling to Facilitate Reflection on Personal and Professional Growth, Tanisha A. Leonard
Community Art and the Role of an Art Therapist: An Autoethnographic Inquiry, Casey Ann McDaniel
The Influence of Cognitive Load on Infotec Students Participating in Online Learning, Joe Price
Exploring the Lived Experience of Being a Spouse and Caregiver to a Combat-Wounded Veteran and an Art Therapy Student: An Art-Based, Heuristic Study, Alisa Marie Simmons
The Impacts of Formal Training on the Motivation of Middle-Aged Runners, Margaret Turley
Master's Projects from 2016
Nature as the Ultimate Container: A Phenomenological Self-Study on Eco-Centric Art Making with Implications for Practicing Art Therapists, Tyler Maria Dillingham
Student Attitudes Toward the Transgender Community Following Restroom Reassignment, Kelly L. Duggins
Technological Literacy Programs in Elementary School, Natalie Soroka Emery
A Study of Old Dominion Student Opinions on Crimes Committed with Firearms by Convicted Felons, William Domebnick Euefueno
Process Painting with a Woman Diagnosed with Breast Cancer, Jaimee Foster
Impacts of Open Educational Resources on Enrollment Rates, Withdrawal Rates, and Academic Performance in the Virginia Community College System, Marcella Milhous Gale
A Proposal for an Art Therapy Intervention to Address Burnout in Family Caregivers with Family Members Diagnosed with Muscular Dystrophy, Emily-Ann Menke
Art Therapy and Cognitive Processing Therapy for Combat PTSD: A Randomized Controlled Trial, Vanessa Pierce
A Disciplined Practice of Art Making and Art Therapist Professional Identity, Christopher L. Porche
A Comparison of Human Figures Drawn by HIV Positive and HIV Negative Children In Limuru, Kenya, Ruth H. Rand
The Potential Use of Comics as a Medium in Art Therapy Practice: A Qualitative Heuristic Study, Emma Claire Reilly
Spreading Awareness of Art Therapy to Undergraduate College Students, Whitley Louise Rogers-Richards
Training Needs of Licensed Veterinary Technicians Employed in Augusta County, Virginia, Jeannie Kay Skelton
The Effects of Parental Cancer on the Professional Identity Development of an Art Therapist-in-Training: An Art-Based, Heuristic Self-Study, Ashley L. Sweigart
The Costume-Making Experience: A Heuristic Self-Study for Implications to Art Therapy, Melissa Mary Sykes
Contributing to Building a Conceptual Model of Art Therapist Professional Identity, Rachel Davenport Ward
Growing Up Grounded: Learning to Cope with a Parent Who Suffers from a Mental Illness: An Art-Based Workbook, Shelby Marie Wynn
Master's Projects from 2015
Place-Identity: Understanding Sense of Self Through Art-Making in Nature After a Geographic Transition, Monika Burkholder
Training Needs of a Worldwide Military Exchange Salesforce, Chelsea Camarda
A Self-Study Using Zentangles to Respond to Countertransference in Art Therapy, Lauren N. Caraotta
Art Therapy with a Patient with Schizoaffective Disorder, Caroline Cheslak
Interviews with Trauma Informed Art Therapy Experts: A Qualitative Study, Kara Cross
Unearthing Redemption: A Student’s Self Exploration with Survivors of Trafficking, Carly Elise Dean
Availability of Tuition Assistance Funding Effects on Educational Pursuits, Geneva M. Dooley
Attitudes of Employers toward Exceptional Students (Ages 14-17) in Vocational Education Programs, Eunice A. Ervin
Non-Traditional Students Attitudes toward Academic Advising and Its Affects on the Successful Completion of Education Programs, Parisa Fetherson
Consideration of the Impact of Therapist’s Gender in Art Therapy Treatment with an Adolescent Female Survivor of Sexual Abuse: A Clinical Case Study, Michael J. Galarraga
Self Study: Exploring Art Therapist Professional Identity and Body Image After Bariatric Surgery Through Reflective Art Making, Jennifer W. M. Gorman
Starving: An Art Therapy Perspective of Anorexia Nervosa, Reland L. Happel
Dreams and Identity: A Self-Study Using Dream Imagery and Analysis to Explore Relationships and Identity Development, Jasmine S. Jackson
Children’s Human Figure Drawings and Racial Identity: A Mixed Methods Study, Sonya B. Jimerson
Battling Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome: A Graduate Student’s Journey Through Art Therapy, Christina Lynn Lowry
A Self-Study on the Use of Dreams in Self-Reflective Process to Foster Art Therapist Professional Identity in Graduate School, Ramsi M. Metzger
Bringing the Darkroom to Light: A Heuristic Study in Photographic Art Therapy Processes, Maria Papa
Approaches and Considerations for Providing Medical Art Therapy: A Qualitative Analysis, Jillian Popp
Art Therapy with a Familial Caregiver of an Individual with Dementia of the Alzheimer’s Type, Alexandra M. Serino
Clinical Case Report: Art Therapy Treatment of an Adolescent With Autism Spectrum Disorder in an Educational Setting, Alyssa Spjut
The Call to Artmaking: Claiming and Reclaiming the Artist Therapist, Josephine M. Stromseth
Art Therapy for Anxiety and Depression During Military-Induced Separation: A Case Study, Christa L. Turpin
Law Enforcement Officer Stress Management Art Therapy Group Design, Abigail Williams
Master's Projects from 2014
Automobile Industry Growth from 1916 to 1989: The Effect on Flint, Michigan Climate, Noel Bankston
Self-Perception on Women's Fashion Decisions, Shannon Cokes
Relationship Between Senior-Level Student Absences and Class Rankings, Stacie Davis
Preparing Highly Qualified Technology Education Teachers, Logan Foster
Assessment of the Transition from Pinyin to Hanzi in University Level Introductory Chinese Language Courses, Ronnie Hess
Analysis of Electronic Teaching and Reflective Learning for Dental Hygiene Education, Cassandra Huffman
Crew Resource Management Training Attitudes of United States Coast Guard Aviators, Greg Stewart
Effectiveness of the Near Miss Safety Program Relative to the Total Number of Recordable Accidents in a Manufacturing Facility, Kristen Templeton
Master's Projects from 2013
Use of a Procedure Manual as an Effective Training Method for Distance Learning Site Personnel of Old Dominion University, Jennifer Allen
Old Dominion University's Engineering Summer Camp's Effect on Students Interest in Engineering, Clair Dorsey
College Freshmen Living Arrangement as a Predictor of Retention and Persistence to Graduation, Mildred V. Jones
Effectiveness of Old Dominion University's Fashion Merchandising Program, Christie Martin
Attitudes of Virginia Technology Education Teachers toward the Effectiveness of Their Curriculum, Glenn Patton
Career Planning and Counseling Strategies for Students with Mild Learning Disabilities, Jeraldine Williams
Master's Projects from 2012
Attitudes of Portsmouth Residents Towards an Education Scholarship Tax-Credit Program, Scott Bogle