Education Commons^™

Personality And Academic Performance In College, Jacob E. Alderson

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

Despite mounting evidence for the role of personality in predicting college level academic performance, there are aspects of this association that are still unexplained. With a sample of U.S. undergraduates at a large Appalachian university, this study sought to further establish what is already known about the association between personality and grade point average, credits earned, and retention rates by testing for both linear and quadratic effects. Results showed linear positive effects of conscientiousness, negative linear effects of openness and nonlinear effects of neuroticism for GPA. However, personality traits were not associated with either retention or credits earned. These findings …

Differences Between First-Generation And Continuing-Generation College Students In Psychological Need Fulfillment, Academic Engagement, And Retention, Cole A. Holt

All NMU Master's Theses

First-generation college students (FGCS) often struggle to find academic success unlike continuing-generation college students (CGCS) who often obtain higher GPA by the end of the semester. Using self-determination theory (SDT) as a lens, differences between FGCS and CGCS both at the beginning and end of the semester were investigated. Measures included psychological need fulfillment (autonomy, competence, relatedness), academic self-regulation (relative autonomy index), stress, academic engagement (learning involvement), academic performance (GPA), and retention. Between groups t-tests were used to assess differences in FGCS and CGCS, whereas multiple regression analyses were conducted to test relationships among the measured variables. FGCS reported …

Retention And Performance During Covid-19: Prosociality Perception, Social Isolation, And Online Engagement, Ashli L M Schick

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

The experiences of university students impacted by COVID-19 and circumstances surrounding their experiences, help inform the future of higher education in the United States. In the uncertain and rapidly evolving higher education system, understanding retention patterns of students has become increasingly complex. This study examined how self-perceived prosociality and self-perceived social isolation among university students in an online education environment relate to the intention to re-enroll in university and their academic achievement (Grade Point Average; GPA). Ninety-seven university and community college students completed an online survey. Based on previous literature, we expected women to report higher prosociality perceptions than men …

Cultivating Early Career Teachers’ Purpose: A Mechanism To Sustain Early Career Teachers’ Commitment To The Profession, Neesha Yatin Daulat

CGU Theses & Dissertations

The attrition rate of early career teachers is high. In fact, the government spends $2 billion annually to replace teachers in the first five years of their tenure (Alliance for Excellent Education, 2005). The purpose of this dissertation is two-fold: 1) to test the relationship between purpose, psychological well-being, and affective commitment to the profession, and 2) to design and examine the impact of a purpose-centered intervention in a sample of early career teachers in their first or second year of teaching, in the northeast. Study 1 examined the relationship between early career teachers’ purpose, psychological well-being, and commitment to …

The Role Of Faculty In Fostering Psychosocial Wellbeing Among University Students, Kelley Wick

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The transition to college represents a major life event, and successfully navigating this shift has implications for students’ psychosocial wellbeing. While there is ample support for the idea that social relationships can facilitate student wellbeing during the transition to college, there is limited understanding of the unique role faculty may play in supporting students. The aim of this study was to determine the relation of faculty support to student wellbeing and self-efficacy, independent of peer support and student level of stress. Additionally, the primary questions were to examine whether self-efficacy mediated the relation of faculty support to student wellbeing, and …

Social Influences, Decision-Making, And Career Retention Of Novice Teachers, Kerstin Anna Stewart

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

New teachers bring hope, optimism, and excitement for teaching and learning from their individual preparatory programs to their classrooms at the start of every new school year. However, research indicates a large number of those teachers leave the field of teaching within a 5-year timeframe. The consequence of this loss of professionals has a deep-rooted impact on student achievement and learning. This loss also has considerable career and financial implications for the field of education. The reasons for this exodus are varied and somewhat broad in nature and scope. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to describe the lived …

An Exploration Of Factors Influencing First-Generation College Students' Ability To Graduate College: A Delphi Study, Ashley C. Gray Benson

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

This dissertation serves as a counter-narrative to the standard deficiency model in published research that characterizes most first-generation college students as feeble and unequipped when it comes to thriving in, persisting in, and graduating from college. This is one of the few studies that examines the success of first-generation college students from the students’ perspective. First-generation college students who graduated from college participated in a Delphi study that addressed this question: What factors influence first-generation college students' ability to graduate college? Three rounds of data collection resulted in ten themes, roughly in order of importance based on feedback from study …

Conflict Management And Team Building As Competencies For Nurse Managers To Improve Retention, Jeanette Black

DNP Qualifying Manuscripts

Abstract

Aim(s): To critically review and summarize evidence related to coaching and training nurse managers in conflict management and team building skills and to determine the relationship of these skills to retention.

Background: Retention of nurse managers is a significant challenge to healthcare organizations.

Evaluation: The databases searched were CINAHL, PubMed, evidence-based journals, JANE, Cochrane, SCOPUS and Joanna Briggs. The keywords searched were conflict management, team building, nurse manager retention, retention, teamwork, healthy work environment, conflict management theory, organizational culture, coaching nurse managers, and nursing. Articles with the strongest evidence were critically appraised using the Johns Hopkins Research and …

On Campus Social Support And Hope As Unique Predictors Of Perceived Ability To Persist In College, Deanna D'Amico, Veronica Fruiht

Psychology | Faculty Scholarship

The psychological construct of hope, characterized by goal-directed thinking rooted in personal agency and the ability to develop pathways to achieve goals, has long been demonstrated to predict academic success. A sample of 994 undergraduates participated in this study to better understand the role of hope and on-campus social support in predicting students’ perceived ability to persist and succeed in college. Results demonstrated that on-campus support, particularly from teachers and professors, significantly predicted academic outcomes and hope. In addition, we found evidence of a support gap in which students from underrepresented ethnic minorities were far more likely to report that …

Why Do You Go To College? Shaping Student Beliefs And Success. A Dissertation Summary., Mitchell Colver

Publications

Students enter the realm of higher education with a wide variety of beliefs about the purposes of attending university, which often relate to or reveal their various motivations for pursuing a post-secondary education. Research demonstrates that some student motivations align more fully with intrinsic factors, such as the love of learning or quest for excellence, while other student motivations align with extrinsic factors, such as vocational preparedness and monetary incentives (Vallerand et al., 1989). Using a Bourdieusienne lens, this study sought to place these student motivations in the larger sociocultural context and argue for greater opportunities for democratic equity in …

Assessing Readiness To Seek Formal Mental Health Services: Development And Initial Validation Of The Mental Health Belief Model Assessment (Mhbma), Jennifer A. Greene

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Only a small percentage of people with mental health issues utilize mental health services. This would seem contradictory given the increasing understanding of mental disorders, their high prevalence, and associated disability and distress. Research shows that individual level factors, such as perceptions of need, mental health knowledge, mental health attitudes, and mental health literacy, are related to individuals’ decisions to seek mental health services. The Health Belief Model (HBM) posits four types of health beliefs that affect an individual’s health behavior, in this case, the decision to seek mental health services. To date, researchers and clinicians have no assessment tool …

Students On The Edge: Evaluating An Academic Support Group, Benjamin P. Heinisch, Nicole M. Smith

The Nebraska Educator: A Student-Led Journal

This qualitative case study evaluated the effectiveness of the Academic Skills Discussion Group, a new retention intervention targeting undergraduate students on academic probation. This intervention utilized a support group structure to provide social and academic supports to academically-poor students. These supports incorporated didactic educational presentations and interpersonal discussions relating to life change and college expectations. The case comprised one pilot administration of the intervention for three student group members. Data was collected from pre/post-intervention resiliency surveys, grade point average comparisons, journal-entry analysis and semi-structured exit interviews. The researcher conducted inductive data analysis by coding participant statements for meaning, calculating and …

The Efficacy Of A Goal-Based Study Skills Course For Academically At-Risk, First-Generation, African American, Female Students, Sarah Beth Garrison

Dissertations

The purpose of this research was to identify effective intervention strategies used in a goal-based study skills course for academically at-risk, first-generation, African-American, female students. Based on the theoretical framework from goal, motivation and achievement theories (Covington, 2000; Kuh, 2007; Nicholls, 1984), this study provided an analysis of research regarding the academic success and persistence of at-risk students. An explanatory mixed-method design was employed that consisted of two phases. The first phase of the study used quantitative data to test for difference in GPA and academic status between the control and treatment group. Quantitative data was also used to identify …

Behavioral Intervention Teams: An Exploration Of Team Member Perceptions At Oklahoma Regional Universities, Sheila J. Self

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The aim of this study was to examine Behavioral Intervention Teams from the perspective of twelve team members at four regional universities in Oklahoma. This study strengthened the knowledge base regarding team-member perceptions of Behavioral Intervention Team effectiveness, functioning, resources, needs, state factors, and campus impacts, and added qualitative data to the existing body of literature. Behavioral Intervention Teams were designed to be a tool for preventing campus violence and addressing behaviors of concern through information gathering, analysis, and intervention. While it may never be known how many acts of violence, suicides, or other student issues have been prevented or …

Spaced And Expanded Practice: An Investigation Of Methods To Enhance Retention, Katherine Kalenberg

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

In order to promote quality instruction and maximized student learning, it is essential for schools to integrate the most practical, effective, and efficient teaching methods into the curriculum. The purpose of this research was to investigate the effect of various spacing patterns between practice sessions on retention of information. This study investigated the effects of practice at consistent intervals (spaced practice), practice at increasing intervals (expanded practice), and no practice. Participants were taught a set of eight unknown math words and definitions using incremental rehearsal (IR). After the teaching session, students in expanded and spaced practice conditions participated in three …

An Evidence-Based Mentorship Program For Experienced Nurses, Roma Allen

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Turnover of experienced nurses is a component of the nursing shortage, which has created a lack of expert nurses administering bedside care. The project site is a Chicago suburban hospital with an average first year turnover of experienced nurses at 35%. This rate is above the 27% first year turnover reported by the Metropolitan Chicago Healthcare Council. This project focused on development and evaluation of an evidence-based mentorship program supported by theory that can contribute to an increase in experienced nurse retention. A detailed literature review references causative factors of turnover, such as an increasing workload, a multigenerational and aging …

Academic Advising Support For Students On Academic Probation, Kaitlyn N. Stormes, Gregg J. Gold

IdeaFest: Interdisciplinary Journal of Creative Works and Research from Cal Poly Humboldt

No abstract provided.

Profiles Of Academic Commitment, Anna Jill Womack

Dissertations

Tinto (1993) found that only 15-25% of students who dropped out of college did so due to academic failure, while the reasons for leaving among the remaining group of students who dropped out were unknown. This suggests that the majority of students who drop out of college are likely doing so for reasons other than academic struggles. Researchers have suggested that individuals who are committed to their major are more likely to obtain a bachelor’s degree (Bowling, Beehr, & Lepisto, 2006; Den Hartog & Belschak, 2007; Duffy, Dik, & Steger, 2011; Goulet & Singh, 2002; Landrum & Mulcock, 2007), indicating …

The Use Of Online Supplemental Materials In College Courses To Improve Retention, Amy Lynn Hennings

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

First-generation college students continue to have lower retention and success rates in colleges and universities, reducing their likelihood of staying above the poverty line. The study tested Bandura and Vygotsky's social cognitive theories of self-efficacy, self-regulation, and student ability to self-pace in the classroom. The purpose of this study was to explore if offering supplemental online materials to traditional class delivery, which can be self-regulated and self-paced, impacted students' success rates in the class and semester-to-semester retention. Using a quasi-experimental method, first-semester college students, in a small private liberal arts college (N = 678); were compared on use of supplemental …

The Effect Of An Email Intervention Tailored To Highly Ambitious Students On University Retention, Lauren Bahls

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

This study sought to increase student retention through the use of email interventions tailored to a specific group of ambitious students as determined by the Hogan Personality Inventory. Previous literature shows the relationship between ambition, the similar constructs of work drive and achievement seeking, and positive academic outcomes such as higher GPA, higher ratio of credits earned to credits attempted and increased likelihood of returning to the same institution. Focusing on students who rated high on ambition according to the Hogan Personality Inventory, the treatment group received emails with activities that may be of interest to help them build their …

A Career Course Follow-Up: Does A Student Development Elective Make A Difference?, Jamie Marie Hansen

Theses and Dissertations

Since its inception, work and career-related issues have been central to the aims and scope of counseling psychology as a discipline. One common career counseling intervention in the University setting is to offer elective, credit-bearing courses in career development and exploration to provide help and direction to college students as they decide on majors and prepare for careers. Much research has been conducted which suggests that the use of career courses in the university setting has strong, positive impact on students' career decision-making ability and other output variables. What is less established is the impact of these career courses on …

Social Cognitive Theory, Isalt Team

iSALT Resources: Theories, Concepts, and Measures

No abstract provided.

Assessing Transfer Student Performance, Hyderhusain Shakir Abadin

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

Higher educational institutions place a high priority on the retention and timely graduation of students. Previous literature and research studies have identified transfer students to have a vital role in the success of four year universities. The university in the study enrolls a high percentage of transfer students, primarily from two year community colleges within the state of Minnesota. To understand transfer students performance, the study used multiple measures of transfer student success, including (1) cumulative GPA, (2) one year retention rate, and (3) one year graduation rate. The comparison of transfer students and native students is examined, showing that …

Teacher Beliefs Regarding Grade Retention In An Urban Elementary School, Toni Gilmore Hook

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

The purpose of this study was to determine if exposure to a research-based presentation on grade retention, including the academic, socio-emotional and behavioral outcomes, would yield a change in teacher beliefs regarding retention as an intervention strategy. Teachers from a small urban school district were asked to complete a presurvey, view a research-based online presentation on grade retention and complete a postsurvey. Results from this research revealed that teachers' beliefs regarding grade retention significantly changed after viewing a research-based online presentation on topic. Results also indicated that, not only was there a change of overall participants, but there was a …

Teachers' Beliefs Towards Grade Retention In A Rural Elementary School, Sarah Elizabeth Terry

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

This study examined the beliefs of kindergarten through fourth grade teachers regarding effects of retention on academic, emotional, and social areas, as well as alternative interventions to retention. The teachers were asked to take a web-based pre-survey on grade retention. After completing the initial survey they were then asked to watch a web-based PowerPoint presentation on research-based evidence regarding retention before taking a web-based postsurvey. The results of this study revealed that teacher‟s beliefs towards grade retention were not significantly changed when presented with a research-based PowerPoint presentation regarding the negative effects of retention practices, as measured by the pre …

Utah School Psychologists: Self-Reported Reasons For Retention And Job Satisfaction, Lisa A. Dickison

Theses and Dissertations

This study focused on the level of job satisfaction reported by Utah school psychologists and their reasons for staying in their profession. An existing survey was modified and distributed to 119 of the 238 licensed school psychologists in Utah to obtain information on this topic. Sixty-nine school psychologists completed and returned the questionnaire (58% return rate). Based on their feedback, the top five reasons Utah school psychologists stay in their profession were (a) feeling the success and joy of helping students, (b) counseling with students, (c) working one-on-one with students, (d) taking vacation time during summers and holidays, and (e) …

Factors Predicting Teacher Satisfaction And Retention In The Hampton City Schools Teacher Induction Program, Gale A. Lee

Theses and Dissertations in Urban Services - Urban Education

This descriptive and correlational study used a mixed methodology of both quantitative and qualitative data collection strategies to identify factors that predict new teacher satisfaction and retention in the Hampton City Schools' teacher induction program. In the first phase of the study, a researcher-developed questionnaire was mailed to 657 Hampton City Schools' elementary, middle, and high school teachers with 0–5 years of experience and was returned by 40 percent (n = 226) of the sample. The first phase of the study utilized a 31-item teacher questionnaire. The first section of this questionnaire requested demographic information, which helped to categorize teachers …

Retroactive Inhibition Versus Proactive Inhibition As A Function Of Variable Time Interval Among Elementary School Children, Tom L. Warren

All Master's Theses

As a study of phenomena which affect learning, the inquiry into retroactive and proactive inhibition and their varying functions should be of vital interest to both psychology and education, particularly to those educators and learning theorists who work with elementary school children. Also, it is hoped that this study will provide more reliable and statistically significant data on the question of whether retroactive inhibition is greater than proactive inhibition of retention. And, in addition, if there is a difference between retroactive and proactive inhibition when the retention test is immediate or follows soon after original learning, will this difference disappear …

Retention Of Conservation Acquired By Instructional Methods, Eight Months After Termination Of Instruction, Wenden W. Waite

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This study attempted to determine if subjects that had been instructed in the principle of conservation, maintained conservation after termination of instructions. Using subjects from kindergarten to third grade that had received instructions by use of both concrete example and mental imagery methods. Those S's that received instructions were compared with S's that had received no instructions. A test of conservation was administered to a total of 96 S's approximately eight months after termination of instructions to determine if the scores received on a test of those students that had received instructions exceeded those S's that had not received instructions. …