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Women’S Professional Sport And Stigma, Risa Isard

Doctoral Dissertations

Women’s sport has recently seen historic growth across the United States as new leagues launched and existing leagues reached new heights. Despite notable wins, sport remains a male-dominated institution and women’s sport does not always receive the respect it deserves. Indeed, evidence suggests women’s sport is devalued, enduring a unique stigma. Thus, the purpose of this dissertation is to explore the impact of stigma on fans of and employees working in women’s sport. I do this through three studies. In Study 1, I use reflexive autobiography to begin to develop a theoretical understanding of women’s sport fans’ experiences with stigma …

A Survey Of Tennessee Extension Agents’ Perceptions Of The Tennessee Extension Agent Performance Appraisal System, Joseph Leonard Donaldson

Doctoral Dissertations

This study aimed to describe extension agent perceptions of the Tennessee Extension Agent Performance Appraisal System. A survey instrument was developed to address the research questions. The instrument had two sections: Satisfaction with the Current Appraisal System (14 items) and Satisfaction with Appraiser Performance (7 items). The instrument was reviewed by an expert panel and pilot tested with a group of 39 extension agents. The instrument was deployed online to the study population.

The population studied consisted of all extension agents employed by the University of Tennessee and Tennessee State University in January, 2010 (N=312). The total completed responses were …