Digital Commons Network^™

Gender Differences, Learning Styles, And Participation In Higher Mathematics, Hilary Elizabeth Seifert

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Students' lack of participation in higher-level mathematics courses is a pressing concern. In a small rural district in Alaska, many high school students elect to opt out of taking higher-level mathematics once the minimum requirement is reached. According to Bandura's self-efficacy construct, a learners' motivation is influenced by their self-beliefs and affect towards learning. Moreover, research on student learning experiences in mathematics suggests a gender difference, with girls preferring that less abstract conceptual knowledge be taught through hands-on activities. As mathematics instruction is traditionally taught through lecture and demonstration, both of which are preferences of the assimilator learning style, this …

The Impact Of Religiosity And Gender On Attitudes Toward Juvenile Sex Offenders, Angela Marie Barteau

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Personal characteristics of mental health professionals can impact their attitudes toward juvenile sex offenders (JSOs) and affect treatment. The correlation between mental health professionals' religiosity and their attitudes has not been examined, and there is limited research about the correlation between professionals' gender and attitudes. The purpose of this study was to examine how mental health professionals' religiosity and gender related to their attitudes toward JSO treatment. Labeling theory provided the theoretical foundation for this study. This theory posits that individuals label certain populations, such as sex offenders, as deviant and this labeling perpetuates a cycle of criminal behavior. Using …

Attitudes Of Males About Teaching Grades K-12 In A Public School District, Jonathan Matthew Bracewell

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

According to the National Education Association, the number of teachers in the United States has decreased over the last 100 years and only 25% are currently male. Finding effective ways to increase the number of male teachers has remained challenging at the local level. This study compared the perceptions of male teachers and non-teachers regarding their motivation for entering their current professions and their perceptions of gender equivalence in the workplace. Popper's post positivism and Schutz's social constructivism were used as the theoretical frameworks. The study instrument was first piloted at a liberal arts university where a sample of 187 …

The Notion Of Progress Of An Afghan Woman In Society: Moving Beyond Foreign Aid, Hilda Grigorian

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Since 2002, foreign aid has been invested to create social change in Afghanistan, but little is known about the impact on women in rural areas. This case study focused on a single Afghan woman in a rural province who received a foreign aid grant for building baking skills and broader economic development of 20 rural women. The theoretical framework was based on Haq and Sen's development theory. Data were collected through in-depth interviews with the key participant, her husband who was identified as the main source of support, and four female beneficiaries. These data were inductively coded and then subjected …

Predictors Of Job Satisfaction Among Telecommuters, Lashawn Johnson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

With millions of people telecommuting each day, business leaders need to understand the factors contributing to job satisfaction among telecommuters. Drawing from the theory of purposeful work behavior, the purpose of this correlational study was to provide decision makers with information about the factors associated with job satisfaction among telecommuters. The research question addressed the relationship between gender, age, and level of telecommuting and job satisfaction. Using multiple linear regression analysis of 65 telecommuter survey respondents, the results (F(3,61) = 2.4, p > .05) indicated that no statistical significant relationships were found between job satisfaction and the predictor variables; however, the …

Faculty Career-Enhancing Training Opportunity Effects On Perceived Organizational Support, Job Satisfaction, And Organizational Commitment, Laura Pateri Bryant

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Research has shown that organizations outside of academia that provide career-enhancing training opportunities have employees with greater levels of perceived organizational support, job satisfaction, and organizational commitment than do organizations without such training. Increasingly, colleges and universities are looking to attract and retain the most talented individuals; providing opportunities for growth through career-enhancing training opportunities may be one way to do so. This study examined whether or not faculty at institutions providing career-enhancing training opportunities showed a similar positive relationship between perceived organizational support, job satisfaction, and organizational commitment as have employees at organizations outside of academia; this study also …

Effects Of Gender And Spirituality On Adults' Resilience To Daily Non-Traumatic Stressors, Lois S. Harris

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Researchers have conducted several studies of spirituality as it relates to individuals' coping strategies and resilience when facing life trauma. There is less research, however, on spirituality as it relates to adults' resiliency to daily non-traumatic stressors. The purposes of the current study were to examine the relationship between spirituality and adults' resilience to daily, non-traumatic stressors and assess whether gender has a moderating effect on this relationship. A quantitative correlational study based on Lazarus's transactional model of stress and coping using convenience sampling, an online survey (N= 94) was administered. Of the 94 participants ages 19 to 68, 66 …

The Relationship Of Students' Perceived Levels Of Self-Efficacy And Language Development, Alisa Ann Wargo

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The problem addressed by this study was the relationship created by mandated English language curricula and state standardized tests and students' perceived levels of self-efficacy. Vygotsky's theories on thought and language development and Bandura's theories on self-efficacy were used as a theoretical lens for this study. The research question concerned the relationships between students' perceived levels of self-efficacy, gender, age, and grade point average (GPA) and language development when learning within a standards-based test-driven environment. The ELA portion of the State High School Exit Exam (SHEE) generated language development scores. The General Self Efficacy (GSE) scale was the survey instrument …

Peer Victimization And The Development Of Anxiety And Depressive Symptoms: The Roles Of Stress Physiology And Gender, Leigh Ann Holterman

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

The overall goal of the current study was to determine whether experiences of relational and physical victimization were related to anxiety and depressive symptoms in a sample of emerging adults. This study also investigated whether these associations were moderated by gender, as well as by sympathetic nervous system (SNS) and parasympathetic nervous system (PNS) reactivity to peer stress. Although work in this area has focused on children (e.g., Cullerton-Sen & Crick, 2005; Rudolph et al., 2009), it appears the presence and function of victimization changes with age, and the negative effects of victimization can last through early adulthood (e.g., Gros …

Are They Listening?: Revisiting Male Privilege And Defensive Learning In A Feminist Classroom, Cameron A. Tyrrell

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

Privileged students, particularly male-identified students, in women’s studies classrooms have been a population of study previously. Many feminist educators have encountered resistance from a male-identified student in their classroom. Scholarship has been done that analyzes the discourses around how male privilege is invoked by men in women’s studies classrooms. This study defined defensive learning with specific acts of disengagement that hinder privileged students, particularly male-identified students in Gender and Women’s Studies, from taking classes that are considered “feminist,” and from learning about systems of privilege. A series of semi-structured interviews with six male-identified students who were enrolled in women’s studies …

Gendering Fiction: A Mixed Methods Examination Of The Influence Of The "Boy" Book/ "Girl" Book Phenomenon On The Willingness To Read Of Young Adolescents, Megan Farley Munson-Warnken

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

Well-meaning educators often recommend more "boy" books to increase reading motivation amongst boys. This experimental mixed-methods study investigated the influence of the "boy" book/ "girl" book phenomenon on willingness to read using a researcher-designed instrument called the Textual Features Sort (TFS). The TFS measured two attitudinal constructs—gendered beliefs about texts and willingness to read—in relation to individual textual features of selected young adult novels. Data came from 50 sixth and seventh grade students at a mid-sized public school in a rural New England state. Mean scores, frequencies, and percentages were analyzed using independent samples t-tests, paired t-tests, and Fisher's exact …

Finding Sanctuary In Sisterhood: A Middle School Literacy Group Critically Analyzes Race, Gender, And Size, Dywanna E. Smith

Theses and Dissertations

This critical qualitative study documented intersectionalities of race, gender, body image, and literacies as interpreted by five eighth grade Black female students during an eight-week after school literacy group. Ethnopoetic methodologies were used to represent findings and provide insights about how critical literacy engagements can be used to create discursive spaces where young Black girls describe and define these intersectionalities, how they are socialized into current beliefs, make meaning of beauty ideals portrayed in media, and interpret gender, obesity, and race. Through content analysis of field notes, audio recorded sessions, research partner interviews, researcher journals, and genre artifacts, this study …

Gender, Genre, And “Quality” Television: The Field Of Television Production In America From 1951 - 2013, Joseph Andrew Hoff

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Gender has a major impact on how society is organized. Societal processes taking place within fields continually shape and recreate our concepts of man and woman. Within television this is no difierent. Although a field closely tied to capitalistic economic interests, television has been afiorded a slight amount of autonomy that has allocertain shows in certain genres to be engaged with by audiences much like literature that is rich in symbolism and open to multiple interpretations. This study addresses how gender has structured the field over three distinct time periods as it expanded and provided men with opportunities and resources …

Influences Of Masculinity On Health Behaviors, Tessa Louise Miracle

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

Gender schema explains the processes by which gender stereotypes become so psychologically ingrained in individuals in our society, but how does gender schema impact health care practices? The purpose of this study was to investigate how ingrained gender stereotypes not only influence day to day activities but also impact health, by limiting health protective and help seeking behaviors. The Masculine Behavior Scale (MBS) was used to determine if men with strong gender schemata engage in health risking behavior more than men with a weaker gender schemata or women of any gender schemata. To investigate the mediating effect gender has on …

Cultural And Gender Differences In Child Abuse Risk In African American And White Expectant Mothers And Fathers, Anjali Gowda

All ETDs from UAB

Previous maltreatment literature examining child physical abuse risk has not effectively examined cultural nuances in risk and protective factors. Further, research has relied heavily upon maternal only samples, limiting our understanding of paternal risk factors. The current study examined macro-level variables (i.e., racial identification and gender role ideologies) in conjunction with individual-level factors (i.e., attribution of child intent and acceptability of abuse) as they relate to parental abuse risk. The study employed explicit and implicit measures administered to 142 African American and White first-time expectant mother and father dyads. Study hypotheses were partially supported, identifying both consistencies and inconsistencies across …

Fuckstutter, Anthony Francis Ramstetter

LSU Master's Theses

This manuscript is my Master thesis, which I have compiled to fulfill the requirements of a creative writing examination in poetry. It collects various pathways of poetry in terms of both form & content into professional & publishable finality. The thesis presents sections (untitled) which include subsequent themes & variations that qualifies, consolidates, & measures the poet’s work during this program of writing herein.

How Female Social Studies Department Chairs Navigate Their Roles As Leaders, Jeffrey C. Eargle

Theses and Dissertations

During the past four decades, state and federal education policy in the United States has focused on standardization and increased accountability. In contrast, education researchers advocate elevating the status of teachers through the professionalization of education. Teacher leadership is a concept that is used to reform schools and increase student achievement. The high school department chair is a formal teacher leadership role in the school hierarchy. Because research indicates that a majority of social studies teachers are male, female social studies department chairs are in a position to lead predominantly men.

A gap exists in the research on social studies …

The Relationship Between Substance Use And Social Class Among College Students, Kelcey Little

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Alcohol and substance use among a college population has become a norm for our society. Even more intriguing are the possible factors that may lead to use and abuse of alcohol and substances. The purpose of the current study was to examine the relationship between multiple participant characteristics (i.e., ethnicity, gender, year in college, socioeconomic status) and alcohol and substance use. A total of 902 participants from the University of Central Florida answered multiple questionnaires via the Sona system. Items in the questionnaires included topics such as demographic variables, social class variables, and items regarding alcohol and substance use in …

Queer Farmers: Sexuality And The Transition To Sustainable Agriculture, Isaac Leslie

Master's Theses and Capstones

Intimate relationships are foundational to farm viability. Such relationships affect how farmers share tasks, earn income, and access land, yet the role of sexuality and heteronormativity in agriculture remains understudied. Furthermore, queers are largely ignored as potential farmers by the sustainable agriculture and LGBT movements. Through participant observation and interviews with 30 sustainable farmers of various genders and sexualities in New England, I document the lived experiences of queer sustainable farmers, an under-researched group, and examine whether sexuality and gender affects why they farm. Whereas the perception of rural heterosexism can discourage queer participation in agriculture, queer farmers faced less …

Dualism, Physicalism, And Professional Or Alternative Health Seeking: A Gendered Perspective, Taylor M. Caldwell

Pitzer Senior Theses

Evidence supporting a range of 6-14 years between mental illness symptom recognition and psychological help seeking has spurred a substantial interest in help seeking barriers. The present study suggests that mind and body dualism, the perceiving of the mind as an entity distinct from the body, is one such barrier to help seeking. Despite the fact that beliefs in mind-body dualism or its opposite, that of physicalism, are evident in virtually all human cultures and religions, surprisingly little is known about the psychological and behavioral implications of holding such beliefs. An exception to this disparity is a study that demonstrated …

Locating Gendered Resistance: Interethnic Conflict, Environmental Disaster, And Feminist Leadership In Sri Lanka, Allison A. Donine

Pitzer Senior Theses

In geographically vulnerable and politically unstable regions such as Sri Lanka, I argue that linking natural hazards and climate-induced disasters to existing social issues is more pressing than ever. In the case of the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami, it was impossible to dissociate the two. Looking though the lens of distress, in conflict and environmental disaster, this thesis explores how women have transformed moments of victimization into opportunities for resistance and agency. This thesis examines the following questions: Within the geo-political context of Sri Lanka, how does social stress (human-made or environmental) produce conflict and resistance to patriarchal traditions along …

Glue Sticks And Gaffs: Disassembling The Drag Queening Body, Ray Siebenkittel

LSU Master's Theses

Drag queening men, typically gay men who perform femininities for entertainment, use makeup, padding, injections and other tools to change their bodies for performance. I focus on the backstage activities of drag performers in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, rather than conventional observations from the audience, to explore the negotiation, construction and implications of these bodies, both physically and discursively. Through autoethnographic accounts and participating in my own drag performance, I highlight the often unseen, less frequently discussed aspects of drag queening in order to lessen the distance between the efforts of performers and the stage. Drag queening men’s bodies are a …

Guns, Gender, Geography: Exploring Reasons For Gun Ownership, Lauren N. Kadet

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study was aimed to depict patterns of gun ownership in the United States and to outline the reasons for gun ownership and the influential variables associated with people’s reasons for owning handguns and long guns. This study used data derived from the 2004 National Firearm Survey to examine how respondents’ geographic region of residency, gender, race, age, rural location and education level influenced the likelihood of, and reasons for owning a firearm. The findings from this study suggest that being a male, living in the south and participants’ age was significant in determining the likelihood of participants owning a …

The Influence Of Emotion On Memory For A Crime, Taylor Langley

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Researchers have reported errors in recall or recognition of witnessed events, accounting for the most common cause of false convictions of innocent people. Tiwari (2010) indicated that 25% of suspects who were identified in a line-up were actually innocent. Jurors are strongly influenced by eyewitness testimony and this can lead to false convictions. The validity of eyewitness identification is critical in cases in which it is used as evidence. In the current study we examined specific emotion states by inducing fear, surprise, and neutral moods. We hypothesized that participants in the Fear group would be least susceptible to the effects …

Surviving At The Top: A Critical Case Study Of Female Administrators In Higher Education, Renanda Wood Dear

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Women encounter significant barriers as it relates to their gender and leadership traits. The strong patriarchal system has made it more difficult for women to advance in higher education. Research has previously examined a number of factors, including characteristics, institutional influences, and practice efforts to increase the representation of women in leadership in higher education. However, exploring the persistence of gender inequality at the highest ranks of executive leadership is essential to understanding the underrepresentation of women in executive leadership positions in higher education (Bonebright, Cottledge & Lonnquist, 2012; White, 2012). Even though women have been a part of higher …

Soviet Defectors: Sexuality, Gender, And The Family In Cold War Propaganda, 1960-1990, Scott A. Miller

All Master's Theses

The purpose of this study is to examine the rhetoric of gender, sexuality, and the family used by the media of the Soviet Union to discuss American and Soviet defectors from 1960 to 1990. Utilizing previously established historiographies of gender, sexuality and the family as well as statements from Soviet and American government officials, it is shown that the Soviet government linked gender, sexuality and family “perversions” to the individualistic and capitalistic ideology of American society, by contrast with the Soviet collectivist and socialist “purity.” This analysis fills in the gaps in the historiography by connecting studies of gender, sexuality …

The Mnemonic Maid: Joan Of Arc In Public Memory, Tara Beth Smithson

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation examines the relationship between Joan of Arc, postcolonial identity, and public memory. Since her repopularization in the nineteenth century, Joan of Arc has become one of the most emblematic figures of French history. Commemorated in public statuary, celebrated by writers, and championed by politicians, la Pucelle’s story is tantamount to national myth. While Joan of Arc’s centrality to France’s iconic imagining of itself during the spread of its empire has received much critical attention, her postcolonial afterlife remains understudied. This project offers a counterpoint to the prevailing assumption that Joan of Arc has few implications for postcolonial studies …

What Do You Think I Am?: On Perceiving Unintelligibility In The Nonbinary Gender Experience, James Warwood

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

What does it mean to be “retired from gender,” and what role does such an identity play in daily life? Engaging with the work of Maurice Merleau-Ponty and Judith Butler, this project attempts to elucidate the experience of nonbinary – that is, external to the male/female gender binary – gendered individuals, and the ultimate unintelligibility of that experience. Merleau-Ponty’s phenomenological approach to perception allows for an exploration of the social norms and regulations that determine how gender is defined in Western culture; combined with Butler’s significant work on gender and its performativity, phenomenology proves a useful tool for revealing the …

Better Talking Heads: Concerning Fuller "Experience" In Environmental Philosophy, Christina Bovinette

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Through this project, I demonstrate how professional environmental ethics is constrained by, what I call, a rationalist bias and I offer a different approach to environmental questions in the face of this observation. Intellectual life depends on material conditions and our necessary physical ties to Earth. I suggest that an emphasis on our physical connections with the planet can benefit professional environmental ethics. I draw from some feminist understandings to discuss the advantages of a professional environmental ethics that respects and integrates experiences outside of rational deliberation. I attempt to bring my discussion of experience, environmental ethics, and some feminist …

A Comparison Of Course Quality Surveiy Results From Students On Gender Balanced And Gender Imbalanced Field Courses At Nols, Alexandra M. Alway

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

There is an extensive database of literature about diversity in outdoor Environmental Education and any of the studies focus on NOLS specifically. Several studies have investigated the impact of course composition in terms of gender as well as socioeconomic diversity; however, the research studies about course composition and gender were limited to differences between single gender and coed groups. The role of gender ratios on coed groups has not been widely researched. This study was designed to fill this gap in the research literature. Using course quality survey data, results showed that the student responses were significantly different between gender …