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“Make It Happen With Momentum”, Stavros Michailidis

Creativity and Change Leadership Graduate Student Master's Projects

The “Make it Happen with Momentum” workshop is a 90 minute interactive experience developed for the 11th Annual European Conference on Creativity and Innovation. It was first presented on October 29, 2009 in Brussels, Belgium by Stavros Michailidis and Donald M. Drost, Phd. The workshop was well received and selected amongst the best workshops of the conference.

The purpose of the workshop is to introduce participants to the Momentum Framework, developed by Stavros Michailidis to diagnose and nurture the successful implementation of creative works. Work to date includes a formula for momentum, a diagnostic tool for assessing momentum and basic …

Family Choices For The Career Woman In The Twenty-First Century, Gianna M. Koné

Theses and Graduate Projects

This study poses the question, "ls it possible for the twenty-first century woman to successfully integrate career and family, and if so, how?" Feminine identity, role, and fulfillment are changing and continue to transform in modern society. Today the twenty-first century woman struggles to integrate career, family, and home successfully while understanding the passion or driving force in her life. This research explores gender roles in order to understand, update, and find order in a chaotic world. Feminist thought and chaos theory are examined to see whether or not it is possible to integrate family and career in the new …

Mitigating And Preparing For Disasters: A Survey Of Memphis Organizations, Abdul-Akeem Ademola Sadiq

Public Management and Policy Dissertations

Disaster researchers have established the determinants of preparedness and mitigation at the household level of analysis. However, at the organizational level, there is limited research and no theory to guide research on the determinants of preparedness and mitigation. The main goal of this study is to answer the question "what are the determinants of mitigation and preparedness at the organizational level?" The data come from a survey of 227 organizations in Memphis, Tennessee. This study uses Tobit regression technique to identify the determinants. This study finds that organizational size and concern over disaster impact are strong positive determinants of mitigation …

Uses And Nonuses Of Patented Inventions, Taehyun Jung

Public Management and Policy Dissertations

Innovation comprises the processes of invention and commercialization. While the importance of innovation, especially commercialization, has been widely recognized, existing studies have largely overlooked the commercialization process. By examining the determinants of uses and nonuses of patented inventions from firms at the levels of technology, organization, and project/invention, this study attempts to help fill a critical gap in the literature. In doing so, it enriches theoretical understandings of innovation and, in particular, builds on the evolutionary explanation of technology development, the Teecian framework on profiting from innovation, Transaction Cost Economics (TCE), the Knowledge-Based View (KBV), and open innovation and innovation …

Year-Round School Calendars Versus Traditional School Calendars: Parents' And Teachers' Opinions., Jennifer Y. Rule

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine if there was a difference of opinions of teachers and parents of students who attend year-round calendar schools from those of teachers and parents of students who attend traditional calendar schools. A random sampling was taken from teachers and parents from schools in both Blount and Sevier Counties. The surveys were given to teachers who worked in a traditional school setting, teachers who worked in the year-round school setting, parents who had children attending a traditional school, and parents who had children attending a year-round school. A 3-point scale was used on …

A Comparative Content Analysis Of Televised Political Advertising In The United States And Canada In 2004 And 2008., Jessica A. Mahone

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Analyzing 195 televised political ads from the United States and Canada in 2004 and 2008, this research studies the use of issue and image ads and the attack, acclaim, and contrast function of ads in presidential and federal elections. Results indicate that there is no statistical difference in the use of issue or image ads and no statistical difference in the function of ads in both nations in 2004 and 2008. Issue ads are found to be more commonly used in Canada than in the United States, but there is no statistical difference in the use of acclaim ads between …

Teachers' And Students' Perceptions About The Roles Of School Resource Officers In Maintaining School Safety., Sarah Rippetoe

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

According to the National Association of School Resource Officers (2009), every state in the nation employs school resource officers. The trend, which began in 1991, was initially funded by federal monies. Since that time, school resource officers have remained in schools, gaining popularity as a proactive strategy in fighting against school violence. The purpose of the study was to examine students' and teachers' perceptions regarding school resource officers' performance related to the 3 dimensions of their responsibilities: maintaining a safe environment, enforcing the law, and teaching. Data were gathered from 104 teachers and 272 students from a middle school and …

Positive Psychological And Religious Characteristics As Moderators Of Negative Life Events And Depressive Symptoms: A Multiethnic Comparison., Preston Lee Visser

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Hope, optimism, and several markers of religiosity and spirituality were examined as potential moderators of the association between negative life events and depressive symptoms in a secondary data analysis of an ethnically diverse sample. Participants (267 female, 119 male) were college students enrolled at an urban Northeastern university. It was hypothesized that negative life events would be associated with increased depressive symptoms and that higher levels of hope, optimism, and religious and spiritual variables would attenuate this relationship. Ethnically-stratified moderation analyses were conducted to assess for differences in moderation between Blacks, Hispanics, Whites, and Asians. Hypotheses were generally supported, with …

The Role Of Self-Efficacy, Family Support, Family Affection, And Family Conflict On Adolescent Academic Performance., Christine L. Pearson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Department of Education funded this study as a part of a larger longitudinal study to examine the relationship between the role of family environment factors and academic performance among adolescents. The participants included 685 middle school adolescents from rural and semirural public schools. Family environment factors were gathered using the Family Environment Scale (Moos & Moos, 1981) and included family conflict, family support, and showing affection. Standardized test scores across 4 domains and final course grades across 4 domains were collapsed and used as measures of academic performance. The moderating relationship between support, conflict, and academic performance was examined. …

Initial Development Of The Sex Offender Attitude Scale., Brandon Coy Bogle

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

As long as the public maintains staunch and unwarranted negative attitudes toward sex offenders, little hope remains for released sex offenders to successfully reintegrate into society. Therefore, it is in the interest of society that we understand the nature of views of sex offenders so that attempts can be made to promote maximal reintegration and preventing recidivism. To date no valid psychometric instrument exists that measures attitudes toward sex offenders. Therefore, the purpose of this project is to develop such an instrument that will accurately measure stigma associated with sex offenders. Unrotated Prinicipal Components Factor Analysis revealed a single interpretable …

Evaluating The School Performance Of Elementary And Middle School Children Of Incarcerated Parents., Melissa F. Neal

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Children of incarcerated parents are at significantly increased risk of negative long-term outcomes. With about 1% of the adult population incarcerated, the United States has millions of children at risk for these negative outcomes. Research on this population is increasing; however, it is still unclear whether children of incarcerated parents are at an increased risk for poor school performance as a specific result of parental incarceration above that associated with their social and economic status. Because parental incarceration may result in a variety of outcomes that can negatively impact school performance including school mobility, prolonged exposure to stress, and insufficient …

Perceptions Of Interprofessional Communication: Causes And Effects On Patient Care, Occupational Stress, And Job Satisfaction., Stacey Quillen Deshkulkarni

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Poor interprofessional communication has been linked to decreased quality of patient care and increased numbers of medical errors. Increased occupational stress due to lack of effective interprofessional communication can lead to poor job satisfaction and burnout. The purpose of this study was to identify barriers to interprofessional communication as perceived by radiologic technologists. In particular, how did demographic data influence these perceptions? The research was conducted during June of 2009. The population for this survey consisted of registered radiologic technologists employed at hospitals in Northeast Tennessee. A survey questionnaire covering the subject of interprofessional communication was distributed to a cluster …

Psychosocial Concerns And Childhood Overweight In Pediatric Primary Care Clinics Serving Rural Appalachia., Suzanne Allen

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Objective: To examine the prevalence of psychosocial concerns presenting in 3 pediatric primary care clinics serving rural Appalachia. The association between pediatric weight status and psychosocial concerns was examined. Methods: Caregivers of children presenting in one of 3 pediatric primary care facilities completed a demographic questionnaire and the Pediatric Symptom Checklist. Results: Approximately 21.4% of children were identified as having a clinically significant behavioral health concern. Among children with available weight status data, ~53% of the children were identified as overweight. Children identified having significant behavioral concerns were more likely to have a lower weight status than those with nonsignificant …

Psychometrics Of The Missouri Student Survey: Examining Validity, Reliability And Consent, Susan Marie Depue

Dissertations

Risk and protective factors for adolescent drug and alcohol abuse have gained prominence in the prevention field as a framework for prevention. Communities that Care® is the original survey that collected data on risk and protective factors in the adolescent community. The Missouri Student Survey is based upon the Communities that Care® survey and is administered to students across the state of Missouri every two years. This study examines the reliability and validity of the Missouri Student Survey in a sample of 126,923 students from across the state of Missouri. In addition, this study also considers the question of active …

Transparency And City Government Communications, Jennalande Oswald

Theses and Dissertations

This study expresses the need for a communications model created specifically for government communications that is centered on the concept of transparency. However, it also recognizes the previous research done pertaining to government communications and public relations. Importantly, the study recognizes the lack of trust in American government at city, state and federal levels and the need to improve trust, which is very closely related to transparency. The study focuses primarily on a model created in 2007 called the three-dimensional model for government communications. The model has four parts: the base of the model is the need to value transparency; …

Lucy Diggs Slowe, Howard University Dean Of Women, 1922-1937: Educator, Administrator, Activist, Lisa R. Rasheed

Educational Policy Studies Dissertations

ABSTRACT LUCY DIGGS SLOWE, HOWARD UNIVERSITY DEAN OF WOMEN, 1922-1937: EDUCATOR, ADMINISTRATOR, ACTIVIST by Lisa R. Rasheed Within the last twenty years, some educational researchers initiated an emphasis to study the accomplishments and contributions of African-American women in higher education. Although they were marginally recognized, some African-American women forged into uncharted territories by providing examples of administrative leadership in post-secondary settings. Their triumphs and failures have gone unnoticed, leaving a vacant space in the chronicles of history in higher education. Little is know about one African-American woman, as an administrator at a co-educational institution in terms of her vision about …

Division Of Household Labor: Changes Over The Course Of The Marital Relationship, Christopher W. Matteson

Theses and Dissertations

Previous research has established the influence of the division of household labor between spouses on marital satisfaction, as well as the mental health of each spouse. Less is known about how the division of labor changes during the course of marriage. The family development perspective suggests that division of labor will change in response to different stages and circumstances, while the homeostasis perspective suggests that the division of labor will remain stable throughout the life course. This study used data from a 35 year longitudinal study of married women to examine changes of household division of labor over the life …

Family Separation And Changes In Peer Relationships Among Early Adolescent Latino Youth: Examining The Mediating Role Of Family Relationships, Lawrence Duane House

Psychology Dissertations

This longitudinal study examines whether family processes (family cohesion and family conflict) mediate the relationship between family separation experiences and the development of peer relationships (quality and conflict). The study includes a sample of 199 early adolescent Latinos from immigrant families. Family conflict mediated the relationship between separation experiences from fathers and peer conflict at year 1 but not year 2 such that more separation from father was associated with higher family conflict and higher peer conflict at year 1. Family cohesion did not mediate associations between mother or father separation and peer relationship outcomes. Family cohesion predicted more positive …

Acoustic Mediation Of Vocalized Emotion Identification: Do Decoders Identify Emotions Idiographically Or Nomothetically?, Michael Kenneth Lauritzen

Theses and Dissertations

Most research investigating vocal expressions of emotion has focused on one or more of three questions: whether there exist unique acoustic profiles of individual encoded emotions, whether the nature of emotion expression is universal across cultures, and how accurately decoders can identify expressed emotions. This dissertation begins to answer a fourth question, whether there exist unique patterns in the types of acoustic properties persons focus on to identify vocalized emotions. Three hypotheses were tested: first, whether acoustic patterns are interpreted idiographically or nomothetically as reflected in a comparison of individual vs. group lens model identification ratios; second, whether there exists …

An Acoustic Phonetic Analysis Of African American English: A Comparative Study Of Two Dialects, Catherine A. Adams

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

In this thesis, I contribute acoustic phonetic data and analysis to the study of African American English (AAE). For this research, I collected speech samples of self-identified AAE speakers and speakers of a dominant coexisting dialect, the Northern Cities Shift (NCS). I analyze these samples to determine if vowel quality and vowel duration are consistently and predictably varied between the two dialects. Labov's Chain Shift Principles are used as the context for the results.

In my analysis, I find that both vowel quality and duration are different between AAE and NCS in ways previously undocumented in the linguistic literature. The …

The Reduction Of Anti-Gay Bias Through Interpersonal Contact: The Moderating Roles Of Hiv Stigma And Motivation To Respond Without Prejudice., Lisa Ann Elliott

Psychology Theses

The intergroup contact effect is well-documented in the research literature (for a meta-analysis see Pettigrew & Tropp, 2006). Although researchers have identified a few moderators of the contact effect, the constraints under which the contact effect is optimally effective are not well understood. The current research explored two individual difference measures related to anti-gay attitudes, AIDS stigma and motivation to respond without prejudice (internal and external motivation), as potential moderators of the contact effect on heterosexual men’s attitudes towards gay men. Results indicated that increased external motivation and AIDS stigma hinder the benefits of contact for anti-gay attitudes. Implications of …

New Public Management And Governance Collide: Federal-Level Performance Measurement In Networked Public Management Networks, Amy S. Degroff

Public Management and Policy Dissertations

The purpose of this research was to investigate the implications of networked public management on the design, implementation, and utilization of federal performance measurement systems. A multiple, instrumental case study of four public health programs funded by CDC and implemented nationally through vertical and horizontal network structures was conducted. Cross-case findings suggest that the networked implementation structures for the four federal-level, public health programs have important implications for the design of the performance measurement systems. Specifically, the performance measurement systems were affected by four consequences of the implementation networks: the political influence of collaborative stakeholders; network variability; dependencies on voluntary, …

Creating A Community Of Support For National Guard And Reserve Military Families, Kelly Christine Atwood

Educational Specialist, 2009-2019

This project provides community mental health professionals with information regarding the current supports and difficulties National Guard and Reserve military families face and the resources available to them. Literature on the stresses confronted by National Guard families, social support, the deployment cycle, and needs of National Guard families is reviewed. The current study investigated social support using the Social Support Questionnaire (Short Form) (Sarason, Levine, Basham, & Sarason, 1983). Participants reported the number of people they could really count on when they needed help and how satisfied they were with the help. In addition, qualitative written responses and interviews provided …

Evaluation Of The Psychometric Properties Of The Emotion Regulation Scale, Bebhinn Martha Timmins

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is the most common childhood disorder effecting 3-7% of school aged children and accounting for 30-50% of mental health referrals. Recent research in the area of emotional regulation has found that youth with ADHD have more difficulty regulating emotion than youth without ADHD. This is unfortunate, as emotional dysregulation has been linked to psychopathology, poor social functioning, substance abuse and suicide. Given this information, it is extremely important that measurement of emotion regulation is adequate because without good measurement it is impossible to improve our understanding of how emotional regulation is developed, maintained and how …

Reimagining Ourselves At Madison (Roam): An Innovative Adventure-Based Peer Counseling Program For University Students Demonstrating High Risk Alcohol-Related Behaviors, Amy Tice

Educational Specialist, 2009-2019

In the United States, heavy drinking appears to be normative behavior for college students, and high-risk drinking is a growing problem on college campuses. This paper introduces Re-imagining Ourselves at Madison (ROAM), an adventure-based peer counseling program for James Madison University students who demonstrate high risk-alcohol-related behaviors. The primary objective of this pilot program is to increase participants’ awareness and acknowledgement of their high risk behavior surrounding alcohol through an experience that is different than traditional alcohol education classes or alcohol counseling. ROAM also provides participants with an experience in which they are introduced to healthy alternatives to their high …

Evaluating Systemic Change In The Virginia Department Of Corrections: Creating Agents Of Change, Philip Andrew Mayles

Educational Specialist, 2009-2019

The Virginia Department of Corrections (VADOC) is attempting to change the practice of working with offenders placed on probation and parole to effect a reduction in the rate of recidivism. The VADOC’s proposal is to get the probation and parole officers to become “change agents” in motivating the offender toward pro-social behavior using evidence-based practices and Motivational Interviewing (MI). The purpose of this paper is to describe the ways in which organizations attempt change and explores the reasons for the resistance displayed by the probation and parole officers. The author argues that the VADOC should employ a second-order change and …

Unexpected: Identity Transformation Of Postpartum Women, Laura J. Cammaroto

Educational Specialist, 2009-2019

This purpose of this paper is to explore the physical, emotional and societal issues women face as they transition to motherhood and the accompanying redefinition of self. Themes of acceptance of new roles and responsibilities, resolution of losses, adjusting marriage/partnership, renegotiation of relationships and professional standing are discussed. Women experiencing postpartum depression and anxiety appear to have difficulty navigating or adapting to the new maternal identity. Therefore, this paper summarizes some of the physical responses of the postpartum period as well as possible puerperal mental disorders such as: postpartum dysphoria (Baby Blues), postpartum depression disorder (PPD), post traumatic stress disorder …

Measuring Marriage Or Measuring Individuals: An Ontological Analysis Of Marital Therapy Outcome Measures, Joseph Andrew Ostenson

Theses and Dissertations

Many scholars have noted the pervasiveness of individualism in American culture, particularly in the marriage culture. Unfortunately, assuming individualism in the marriage culture poses very specific threats to marriage as an institution. Some claim that these individualistic assumptions have also infiltrated the marital sciences, undermining the efforts of researchers who hope to defend marriage. This dissertation explores that claim by analyzing seven of the most popular marital outcome instruments used by marital researchers today for individualistic assumptions. Using a conceptual analysis called "contrasting relations," the meanings of both the content and the process of the instruments are laid out according …

An Empirical Methodology For Engineering Human Systems Integration, Nicholas S. Hardman

Theses and Dissertations

The systems engineering technical processes are not sufficiently supported by methods and tools that quantitatively integrate human considerations into early system design. Because of this, engineers must often rely on qualitative judgments or delay critical decisions until late in the system lifecycle. Studies reveal that this is likely to result in cost, schedule, and performance consequences. This dissertation presents a methodology to improve the application of systems engineering technical processes for design. This methodology is mathematically rigorous, is grounded in relevant theory, and applies extant human subjects data to critical systems development challenges. The methodology is expressed in four methods …

Servant Leadership And The Military Professional: How Do Military Professionals Practice Servant Leadership In Their Lives As Leaders?, David Limberg

Theses and Graduate Projects

Military organizations, like the U.S. Army, traditionally are mission driven entities and organizational success is paramount in all military endeavors. The purpose of this research is to investigate the relationship between leadership practices of military professionals and the characteristics of Servant Leadership. The specific research question is: "How do military professionals practice Servant Leadership in the conduct of their lives as leaders?" The examination of this question will further ground Servant Leadership as a tangible leadership model in a large organization. This study will qualitatively examine four military professionals through a series of interviews and determine what leader actions they …