Trust in automation: Examining the relationship with decision making among automobile drivers in the United States

Published in SOAR: Shocker Open Access Repository by the Wichita State University Libraries Technical Services, August 2025.Copyright of the Journal of Management and Engineering Integration is the property of the Association of Industry, Engineering and Management Systems Inc., and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use.The main objective of the study was to examine the relationship between trust in automation on decision-making with respect to automobile drivers in the United States (U.S.). Human errors currently contribute to 93% of crashes in the U.S. Autonomous vehicles have the potential to significantly decrease the number of accidents caused by human error. The level of trust drivers place in automation plays a crucial role in shaping their decision-making processes. A sample of N = 174 adult drivers in the U.S. responded to an online survey. The appropriate research methodology for the current study was explanatory correlational. A bivariate regression analysis revealed a significant and positive association between trust in automation and decision-making scores of automobile drivers in the U.S. The current research plays an important role in establishing the critical link between trust in automation and decision-making among adult drivers and emphasizes the essential requirement of not only ensuring effective functionality in automated systems but also fostering user trust. The current research addressed multiple strategies to original equipment manufacturers: (a) developing training programs to educate drivers about automation, (b) designing driver centered automation interfaces that communicate effectively and (c) designing systems that ensure consistent performance

Examining the impact of human-animal interaction and therapeutic massage on physiological and psychological measures in first year doctor of physical therapy students

Presented to the 21st Annual Symposium on Graduate Research and Scholarly Projects (GRASP) held at the Rhatigan Student Center, Wichita State University, April 11, 2025.Research completed in the Department of Physical Therapy, College of Health Professions.INTRODUCTION: Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) students face significant anxiety due to demanding coursework, long hours of studying, intense academic challenges, and the pressure to excel. This stress can negatively affect mental and physical health, leading to increased anxiety and physiological responses. Human-animal interaction (HAI) and therapeutic massage (TM) have been studied as potential interventions to reduce anxiety, but limited research has compared their effectiveness in DPT students. PURPOSE: This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of HAI compared to TM in first year DPT students by measuring anxiety levels, blood pressure, and heart rate. METHODS: Eight first-year DPT students at Wichita State University participated and were randomly assigned to either the HAI or TM group. The HAI group engaged in 10-minute sessions interacting with a therapy dog, while the TM group received a 10-minute massage focusing on the cervical and upper trapezius muscles. Anxiety levels were assessed using the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI), while BP and HR were measured pre- and post intervention using an automatic cuff. Data was collected across three sessions and analyzed for trends using descriptive statistics. RESULTS: The data did not show a consistent anxiety reduction for either group based on STAI scores. However, HR and BP exhibited a downward trend in the HAI group; the TM group showed more variability. CONCLUSION: A clear advantage of one intervention over the other in anxiety reduction was not shown. Limitations such as small sample size and external stressors affecting anxiety levels should be addressed in future research.Graduate School, Academic Affairs, University Librarie

24th Annual Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity Forum

Program and abstracts of undergraduate student poster presentations held in the Woolsey Hall, Wichita State University, April 25, 2025

Multivariate degradation modeling using generalized cauchy process and application in life prediction of dye-sensitized solar cells

Click on the DOI link to access this article at the publishers website (may not be free).Recently, the Generalized Cauchy (GC) process has been applied to capture a Long Memory (LM) phenomenon in product degradation modeling and life prediction. Compared with the traditional fractional Brownian motion that captures the LM using a single Hurst parameter, the GC process has two free parameters (Hurst and fractal dimension parameters) that flexibly capture both global LM and local irregularity. However, all existing GC-based degradation models are for a single Degradation Characteristic (DC). In this article, motivated by a real degradation problem of dye-sensitized solar cells that jointly exhibits multiple DCs, global LM, local irregularity and DC-wise cross-correlation, we propose a novel GC-based Multivariate Degradation Model (GC-MDM) to simultaneously capture the aforementioned effects. A maximum likelihood estimation approach is developed to estimate parameters of the GC-MDM. Subsequently, product life prediction based on the GC-MDM is developed. The proposed GC-MDM is validated through a simulation study and a physical experiment of dye-sensitized solar cells. Results show that the proposed GC-MDM fundamentally improves the life prediction accuracy in comparison with conventional degradation models which significantly misestimate the uncertainty of product life. © 2024 Elsevier LtdWichita State University, WSU; Michigan Technological University, MTU; National Science Foundation, NSF: OIA-2148878; National Science Foundation, NSF; National Aeronautics and Space Administration, NASA: 80NSSC22M0028, 80NSSC23M0100; National Aeronautics and Space Administration, NASA; U.S. Department of Energy, USDOE: DE-EE0009525; U.S. Department of Energy, USDOEThis work was supported in part by the National Science Foundation under Award OIA-2148878, the Kansas NASA EPSCoR Research Infrastructure Development Program under Grant 80NSSC22M0028, and the NASA EPSCoR Program under Grant 80NSSC23M0100 to Wichita State University.This work was supported in part by the National Science Foundation under Award OIA-2148878, the Kansas NASA EPSCoR Research Infrastructure Development Program under Grant 80NSSC22M0028, and the NASA EPSCoR Program under Grant 80NSSC23M0100 to Wichita State University, and the U.S. Department of Energy under Award DE-EE0009525 to Michigan Technological University

Applying lean assessments to optimize machine efficiency and minimize waste

Published in SOAR: Shocker Open Access Repository by the Wichita State University Libraries Technical Services, October 2025.This project investigated the impact of Total Productive Maintenance (TPM) on a Bavius 5-axis CNC machine used in aircraft floor beam production. In Fall 2024, students partnered with Spirit AeroSystems to assess and improve maintenance using 5S, OEE, and value stream mapping. This study identifies inefficiencies, evaluates process effectiveness, and offers recommendations. Early results show mixed outcomes, providing key insights into TPM’s role in boosting operational efficiency

Study of heterogeneity of soy protein materials using XPS imaging technique

Thesis (Ph.D.)-- Wichita State University, College of Engineering, Dept. of Mechanical EngineeringProteinous materials, such as soy protein isolate (SPI), have drawn tremendous attention as an economical biological resources for materials applications, due to their inarguably outstanding sustainability and promising properties and functionalities. To achieve precise materials design and fabrication, the knowledge of materials structure-property relationship is demanded. However, proteins are known for their complex structures consisting of about 20 different types of randomly and covalently bonded amino acids. The diverse inter-/intra-molecular interactions further complicate the aggregated protein structures in the solid state. Currently, the knowledge of solid-state protein structures and their relationship with properties of protein-based materials is inadequate, due to the limitation of modern characterization technologies. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) is a surface analysis technique that can measure the elemental and chemical state for less than 10 nm from the surface and can be quantified without a known standard, superior to many other technologies. Meanwhile, via analysis of the heterogenous elemental distributions, the aggregated protein structures, dominated by the peptide bonds, were revealed. The presence of dimethyl sulfide and glycerol in SPI significantly affected the elemental distribution but did not noticeably impact the aggregation of peptide bonds. The nearly identical distributions of metallic elements from the ash compositions in SPI, such as Na and Ca, suggested their favorable binding with peptide bonds, which were not affected by the materials fabrication and modifiers. This study proves the feasibility of XPS in characterizing the heterogeneity of soy protein materials via identifying and quantifying the distributions of chemical states in soy protein, leading to new knowledge about the aggregated solid structures in soy protein materials

Relationships between white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) browsing intensity, slope aspect, and understory plant communities in Kansas cross timbers woodlands

Thesis (M.S.)-- Wichita State University, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Dept. of Biological SciencesIncreases in white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) densities in eastern and central North America have caused concern about their impacts on forests and woodlands. It is well documented that deer have robust negative impacts on woody species recruitment; however, little is known about how deer affect understory herbaceous plant communities. My study investigates the relationship between deer browsing intensity and species composition of herbaceous plant communities in Kansas Cross Timbers oak woodlands. Further, I address how slope aspect affects understory species composition and mediates effects of deer browsing intensity. I conducted a regional survey across 19 woodland understory plant communities on northeast and southwest facing slopes. In each community, deer browsing intensity was quantified using damage to juvenile post oaks and blackjack oaks. Data collection quantified plant species composition, litter depth, slope aspect and slope steepness. Surprisingly, results show a significant positive relationship between deer browsing intensity and Shannon Diversity Indices, over a range of low to moderate browsing intensities. However, deer browsing did not increase exotic species cover as predicted and was not a strong driver in plant species composition. Further, slope aspect, steepness and canopy cover appear as the strongest explanatory variables for differences in plant community composition. This study suggests there is minimal effect of deer on Cross Timbers woodland understory plant community composition. My findings illustrate that landscape features, such as slope aspect and steepness, play a role in shaping these plant communities and perhaps influencing the relationship between plants and animals

Video games and education: A study on the differences between videogame playing and non-videogame playing post-secondary educators

Thesis (E.dD)-- Wichita State University, College of Applied Studies, Dept. of Intervention Services and Leadership in EducationThis study explores the differences between post-secondary educators/professors who play video games and those who do not. It examines the perception of post-secondary educators in terms of their technology usage and adaptability (Technological orientation), gamification of teaching style (Gamification orientation), and their perception of video game skills usage in their role as educators (skills Usage orientation) and the retention of these developed skills as usable skills beyond the gaming environment (skills Retention orientation). This study uses an originally developed survey based on the body of academic literature as an instrument to gather all the required data for the study. The total participant pool entailed post-secondary educators or those who have roles that involve teaching in a post-secondary education institution (n = 216). The result of this study supports the hypothesis that playing video games significantly relates to increased Technology and Gamification orientation compared to non-gaming post-secondary educators. While differences in mean orientation for the skills usage and retention for educators who play video games are not statistically significant, the inclusion of the perception of non-gamers into the mix does create a statistically significant difference. The results of the study implicate that an increase in average weekly hours of playing video games could have an impact in participant orientation for these two orientations (skills Usage and Retention), but also within the Technology and Gamification orientation. Since this topic within the body of literature on video games remains largely unexplored, the study results on the relationship between gaming experience and the increased orientation scores provide evidence that there is more to explore in this direction