A State Comparative Study of the Factors Influencing Nursing Home Quality of Care Regulation

While over one million elderly reside in U.S. nursing homes, little attention has been given to the factors that influence state nursing home regulation and how state regulations differ from the federal regulations. The focus of nursing home research literature has been on factors that impact quality of care at the individual patient and organizational level. The state comparative literature, which examines the differences between state policy choices, focuses on fiscal nursing home policymaking. An important gap exists in the literature in that state decision-making regarding nursing home quality of care policy has not been explored. This study of U.S. nursing home quality of care regulation examines the factors that affect whether or not state nursing home regulations exceed the federal regulations. Most of the variables utilized in the current study were not significant in predicting whether or not states exceed the federal quality of care regulations. There does appear to be some demographic, socioeconomic and political influence. States with higher Medicaid payments per elder were more likely to exceed the federal regulations. States with Democratic governors were less likely to exceed the federal regulations, however, this was in the opposite direction than expected. States with traditionalistic political cultures may also be less likely to exceed to federal regulations for quality of care. Once other state-level factors were controlled for, Medicaid payment and political culture were no longer significant predictors of whether or not states exceed the federal quality of care regulations. Party control of the legislature emerged as significant with the odds of states with Democratic legislatures being 13 times more likely to exceed the federal regulations than Republican-controlled legislatures. Percent minority population also emerged as significant with a one percent increase in minority population decreasing the odds of exceeding the federal regulations by 7.5%. The variables and theory needed to explain differences in state nursing home policy may be different from other policy areas in terms of what factors affect policy outcomes. This study shows that a purely quantitative approach to state comparative studies may not be the best approach in all cases and interviews with key nursing home stakeholders should be pursued to further inform the decision-making processes regarding nursing home regulation

Life in Hampton Roads Report: The Ninth Annual Life in Hampton Roads Survey

[From the Executive Summary] The Social Science Research Center (SSRC) at Old Dominion University recently completed data collection for the ninth annual Life in Hampton Roads telephone survey. The purpose of the survey was to gain insight into residents’ perceptions of the quality of life in Hampton Roads. The project also investigated attitudes and perceptions of citizens regarding topics of local interest such as transportation and traffic, local and state government, perceptions of police, health, community, education, and other issues. This year, the SSRC also partnered with the Virginia Beach Department of Public Health and they provided additional health-related questions for the survey. The SSRC completed interviews with 687 Hampton Roads residents via landline and cell phones

Life in Hampton Roads Report: The Fifth Annual Life in Hampton Roads Survey

[From the Executive Summary] The Social Science Research Center (SSRC) at Old Dominion University recently completed data collection for the fifth annual Life in Hampton Roads telephone survey. The purpose of the survey was to gain insight into residents’ perceptions of the quality of life in Hampton Roads. The survey also attempted to determine the attitudes and perceptions of citizens regarding topics of local interest such as transportation and traffic, local and state government, crime, education, and other issues. The SSRC completed interviews with 853 Hampton Roads residents via landline and cell phones

Life in Hampton Roads Report: The Eighth Annual Life in Hampton Roads Survey

[From the Executive Summary] The Social Science Research Center (SSRC) at Old Dominion University recently completed data collection for the eight annual Life in Hampton Roads telephone survey. The purpose of the survey was to gain insight into residents’ perceptions of the quality of life in Hampton Roads. The survey also attempted to determine the attitudes and perceptions of citizens regarding topics of local interest such as transportation and traffic, opinions on government, crime, education, and other issues. The SSRC completed interviews with 908 Hampton Roads residents via landline and cell phones

Faculty and Advisor Advice for Cybersecurity Students: Liberal Arts, Interdisciplinarity, Experience, Lifelong Learning, Technical Skills, and Hard Work

The value of academic advising has been increasingly emphasized in higher education. In this study, attention is given to the most significant types of advice that a sample of cybersecurity faculty and advisors from the Commonwealth of Virginia recommend giving to cybersecurity students. The results show that faculty and advisors recommended that students be aware of six different aspects of cybersecurity education including the value of experience, the need for lifelong learning, the importance of hard work, the need to develop technical skills, the interdisciplinary nature of cybersecurity, and the need to develop liberal arts or professional/soft skills. Implications of the findings include the need to embrace the advising of cybersecurity students, the importance of helping cybersecurity faculty and advisors deliver effective advising, and recognition that good advising is more than simply telling students which classes to take

Life in Hampton Roads: The Sixth Annual Life in Hampton Roads Survey

[From the Executive Summary] The Social Science Research Center (SSRC) at Old Dominion University recently completed data collection for the sixth annual Life in Hampton Roads telephone survey. The purpose of the survey was to gain insight into residents’ perceptions of the quality of life in Hampton Roads. The survey also attempted to determine the attitudes and perceptions of citizens regarding topics of local interest such as transportation and traffic, local and state government, crime, education, and other issues. The SSRC completed interviews with 883 Hampton Roads residents via landline and cell phones

Toward a Student-Ready Cybersecurity Program: Findings from a Survey of STEM-Students

As the number of available cybersecurity jobs continues to grow, colleges strive to offer to their cybersecurity students an environment which will make them sufficiently prepared to enter the workforce after graduation. This paper explores the academic and professional needs of STEM-students in various higher education institutions across Virginia and how cybersecurity programs can cater to these needs. It also seeks to propose an evidence-based approach for improving the existing cybersecurity programs so that they can become more inclusive and student-ready. A survey of 251 college students in four higher-education institutions in Virginia showed that while there are common patterns observed across gender and race, there are still areas in which more should be done regarding some of these groups. In particular, some discrepancies are observed across gender when it comes to students’ preparation with business fundamentals, the overall satisfaction of the received STEM education, and across race and ethnicity, when it comes to college advising, peer-mentoring, tutoring and faculty mentoring. The results from this study inform specific recommendations that will bring higher-education institutions and their cybersecurity program to a more student-ready level. Cover Page Footnote This research is supported in part by the National Science Foundation under grant DGE1914613 and the Commonwealth Cyber Initiative

Life in Hampton Roads Report: The Seventh Annual Life in Hampton Roads Survey

[From Executive Summary] The Social Science Research Center (SSRC) at Old Dominion University recently completed data collection for the seventh annual Life in Hampton Roads telephone survey. The purpose of the survey was to gain insight into residents’ perceptions of the quality of life in Hampton Roads. The survey also attempted to determine the attitudes and perceptions of citizens regarding topics of local interest such as transportation and traffic, local and state government, the 2016 presidential election, crime, education, and other issues. The SSRC completed interviews with 962 Hampton Roads residents via landline and cell phones

CIVIIC: Cybercrime in Virginia: Impacts on Industry and Citizens Final Report

[First paragraph] Victimization from cybercrime is a major concern in Virginia, the US, and the world. As individuals and businesses spend more time online, it becomes increasingly important to understand cybercrime and how to protect against it. Such an understanding is dependent on valid and reliable baseline data that identifies the specific nature, extent, and outcomes of cybercrime activity. A better understanding of cybercrime activity is needed to target and prevent it more effectively, minimize its consequences, and provide support for both individual and corporate victims. Before that can occur, however, better baseline data are required, and this project was designed to provide those data for the Commonwealth of Virginia. The purpose of this study was to describe the experiences of Virginia residents and businesses around cybercrime, identify the specific vulnerabilities that are exploited, and discover the consequences of victimization

Life in Hampton Roads Report: The Tenth Annual Life in Hampton Roads Survey

[From the Executive Summary] The Social Science Research Center (SSRC) at Old Dominion University recently completed data collection for the tenth annual Life in Hampton Roads (LIHR) telephone survey. The purpose of the survey was to gain insight into residents’ perceptions of the quality of life in Hampton Roads. As in previous years, the project also investigated attitudes and perceptions of citizens regarding topics of local interest such as transportation and traffic, perceptions of police, health, community, education, work, experiences with flooding, and other issues. These are presented independently or as trending with previous years when appropriate. This year, the SSRC also partnered with the city of Chesapeake who provided additional questions for the survey. The SSRC completed interviews with 882 Hampton Roads residents via landline and cell phones