Digital Commons Network^™

Developing A Competency Model For Highway Safety Engineers: A Delphi Method, Garrett K. Wheat

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The primary purpose of this study was to determine the core competencies needed by State DOT Highway Safety Engineers as perceived by Highway Safety experts in the United States. First, a list of competencies was identified. Next, a panel of Highway Safety experts determined the importance of each identified competency for the current year (2020) and for the future (year 2030). Finally, ratings provided by the panel were tested for the presence of consensus.

For this study, the researcher used a Delphi Method as classified by Delbecq, Van de Ven, and Gaustafson (1975). Through this method, a panel of forward-thinking …

Equipped To Serve Our Youth: A Phenomenological Study Of 4-H Extension Youth Educators' Perceptions Of The Value Of Mentoring, Allison Ann Bruchhaus

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Challenging economic times and increasingly complex social contexts intensify the demand for organizations to focus on areas of human resource development that positively contribute to developmental relationships of employees. One such method is the implementation of a formal mentoring program. Mentoring is especially important for 4-H youth educators. Youth educators are usually specialized in program development among other areas and plan, implement, and evaluate programs with the intent of bettering the quality of life for youth. The dynamics of working with today’s youth mandate effective professional development and developmental relationships for career enhancement. This study was developed for the researcher …

The Influence Of Business Ownership And Selected Demographic Characteristics On The Perceived Effectiveness Of An Entrepreneurship Training Program Among Female Participants, Carol A. Carter

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Small businesses are the backbone of the American economy, and entrepreneurship is of critical importance to women because it provides a means to becoming self-sufficient, in charge of one’s own career path, and as a way to rise about the “glass ceiling” of the corporate world. Women who perceive themselves as having the necessary skills and knowledge to start their own companies have a higher likelihood of starting a business than those who do not. Therefore, it is important to understand the training needs and perceptions regarding the efficacy of entrepreneurship training programs specifically targeted to women. The primary purpose …

Crisis Management Post Hurricane Katrina: A Qualitative Study Of A Higher Education Institution's Administrators' Response To Crisis Management, Steven Lee Mccullar

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

From campus shootings to mass prolonged campus closures in the Gulf Coast due to Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, the past decade has seen an increase in high profile crises at higher education institutions. Louisiana State University was one of the institutions impacted by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005. After the experience, university administrators created an Emergency Operation Center and a new plan for how to handle campus crises. In 2008, LSU administrators had an opportunity to test their full scale plan with the landfall of Hurricane Gustav. In this study, university administrators from LSU were interviewed about their experiences …

Dispositional Influences On The Intent To Transfer Learning: A Test Of A Structural Equation Model, Bogdan Vladimirovich Yamkovenko

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The transfer research has evolved to a significant body of works during the last two decades. Many relationships however remain unexplored and unexplained. Among these are dispositional characteristics, which are rarely studied in combination with transfer because of difficulties and inconsistencies in measurement. In addition dispositional characteristic are so numerous that it is often difficult to identify a set of such variable that explain the most variance in transfer of training. This study explores the hypothesized relationship between dimensions of the Five Factor model of personality, goal orientation, self-efficacy and intent to transfer training on the job. Most research articles …

Examining Successful Recuritment Strategies Utilized By Volunteer Alumni, James Eric Prudhomme

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this phenomenological qualitative study was to describe the manner in which volunteer alumni recruiters at a flagship institution were able to recruit prospective students both in and out of the formal recruitment setting. Due to the challenges facing Louisiana State University with out-of-state recruitment, volunteer alumni recruiters provide a cost-effective alternative to assist this effort. Findings of this study can be used to expand the current alumni volunteer recruitment effort by providing insight into the strategies that result in success in the recruitment process, all the while encouraging fellow alumni to assist their effort. The methodology for …

A Divided-Attention Timed Stepping Accuracy Task As A Procedural Learning Intervention Improves Balance And Functional Performance In Healthy Older Adults, Susan Joy Leach

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

For both healthy individuals and individuals at high risk of falling, certain environments, such as a dual-task situation, require more resources than others to prevent a loss of balance. Stepping assessment tasks can be used to predict falls, and it has been suggested that impaired voluntary stepping may be a contributing factor to falls (Lord & Fitzpatrick, 2001). In this research, a stepping task was used not as an assessment, but as a therapeutic intervention. The purpose of this research was to determine how training with a task that provides a procedural learning environment can affect balance and functional outcomes. …

The Use Endocrine Markers To Predict And Monitor Performance In Strengh [Sic] And Power Activities, Jason B. Winchester

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Hormones are typically considered to be chemical messengers, which are designed to be released from specific cells where they are carried to their target tissues for binding to receptors. It is this binding of a hormone molecule to its specific receptor which allows for an action to occur (Hadley and Levine 2006). Testosterone is the predominant androgen in the majority of mammalian species and is largely responsible for regulation of reproduction and maintenance of sexual function. In addition, in adult mammals, T has multiple other roles including the growth of muscle and bone, hematopoesis, blood coagulation, development and regulation of …

The Time-Course Of Vascular Adaptations Following Localized Short Term Exercise Training, Jason David Allen

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This is a series of 3 experiments in the area of vasoreactivity. The first study investigated the stability and reproducibility of brachial artery flow-mediated dilation (BAFMD). Twenty-six healthy volunteers underwent 3 scans on 2 days, performed by 2 ultrasonographers, and analyzed by 2 readers. All subjects were tested between 7 and 11am after refraining from food and exercise. Average baseline diameter was 3.48±0.53mm, which increased to 3.71±0.57mm (6.58±4.15%) at peak dilation. ICCC's for days, testers and readers were 0.9188, 0.9394, and 0.8982 respectively. To detect a difference in vasoreactivity of 60% (two-tailed), e.g. 5% vasodilation versus 8% vasodilation, at 90% …