Digital Commons Network^™

An Exploratory Study Of Technology Use By Older/Senior Men For Enrichment, Communication, And Social Connectedness, Emerson Campbell Hardy

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

More older adults are moving toward options for digital connection; keeping up with and learning technology is challenging. Older adults’ perceptions of the difficulty of learning to use technology may contribute to their hesitancy to adopt technology options (Barnard, Bradley, Hodgson, & Lloyd, 2013). The purpose of this study was twofold: (1) to explore the experiences of older/senior men learning and using technology for enrichment, communication, and social connectedness; and (2) to identify learning experiences and/or supports that aided these older/senior men in building knowledge, confidence, and comfort in technology use.

This was an exploratory qualitative study utilizing in-depth interviews. …

Self-Perceived Assessment Of Undergraduate Leaders Competencies Through A Leadership Development Program, Ryan D. Newton

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This ex-post facto research study identified changes in participants’ self-perceptions of their competence in six key leadership competencies, as reported from a pre-training and post-training self-assessment. This study also identified the relationship between the participants’ self-reported changes and their persistence in enrollment at the University upon completion of the leadership training program. This quantitative study analyzed secondary data (N=201) from a large, four-year, public research institution in the southeast United States. Paired samples t-tests were used to determine that the self-reported change among participants was statistically significant (p<.05) from the pre- to the post-training self-assessment. Further, this study then examined the relationship between participants’ self-reported mean change and their persistence at the institution, defined as having graduated or continuing enrollment one year after completion of the leadership training program. A logistic regression was utilized to identify a negative predictive relationship between participants’ mean change and their likelihood of persistence. Implications for competency-based learning were discussed in relationship to student affairs practice.