Digital Commons Network^™

The Greek Language In Contact With English In Australia, Anastasios M. Tamis

Arts Papers and Journal Articles

This paper reports a sociolinguistic study of the state of Greek language in Australia as spoken by native-speaking Greek immigrants and their children. Emphasis is given to the analysis of the linguistic behaviour of these Greek Australians which are attributed to contact with English and to other environmental, social and linguistic influences. The paper discusses the non-standard phenomena in various types of inter-lingual transferences in terms of their incidence and causes and, in correlation with social, linguistic and psychological factors in order to determine the extent of language assimilation, attrition, and the content and context and medium of the language-event. …

A Strategy To Improve The Health Of The Ciba Church According To Principles Of Natural Church Development In The Context Of The Seventh-Day Adventist Denomination And Culture, Wang Xin Jiao

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem. Adventist churches in China do not operate under a denominational structure. As the government continues to open more churches, an increasing number of people become Adventists every day. Because of the fast growing pace of many churches in the past three decades, not much attention has been given to the health and quality aspect of church life. Therefore, the question of how to help the church to grow and to become healthy has become an urgent matter.

Purpose. The purpose of this project is to develop and implement a strategy to improve the health of the Ciba Seventh-day Adventist …

Readiness For Inter-Institutional Collaboration Among Adventist Institutions Of Higher Education In North America : Stages Of Change, Robert Arthur Paulson

Dissertations

Problem

The current sociological and economic environment faced by higher education in North America has inspired many institutions to form consortiums in an attempt to enhance institutional viability. The Association of Adventist Colleges and Universities (AACU) is a consortium of 15 Seventh-day Adventist institutions of higher education in North America. This consortium was formed as an attempt to increase collaboration, enhance quality, and augment institutional viability. The purpose of this study was to describe the current inter-institutional environment for collaboration among AACU member institutions. Currently, there has not been formal research into the collaborative environment of the Association of Adventist …

Planting Missional Mennonite Churches In Complex Social Contexts As The Denomination Undergoes A Paradigm Shift In Ecclesiology: A Multiple Case Study, David W. Boshart

Dissertations

Problem. The problem investigated in this study is the struggle of church planters and their key stakeholders to develop common understanding about the churches that are being planted in complex social contexts while relating to a denomination in the midst of an ecclesial paradigm shift in mission.

Method. This qualitative research used a multiple case design with an emphasis on narrative inquiry. Data collection involved conducting semi-structured interviews with denominational and conference leaders, church planters, and key stakeholders. The four cases chosen included Anglo, Hispanic, Hmong, and multi-ethnic church plants.

Findings. The study found that the attempt to establish a …

A Study In Change : Acts 15 As A Model Of Transformation In A Presbyterian Church (Usa) Context, Jeffrey Lyn Chandler

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

The Drama Of Collaborative Creativity: A Rhetorical Analysis Of Hollywood Film Making-Of Documentaries, Robert M. González Jr.

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Current creativity research is dominated by attention to the individual, with increasingly less attention paid to creativity in its context, in groups, and in filmmaking as a collaboratively creative enterprise. This study answers the research call to explore filmmaking as an exemplar for collaborative creativity. Utilizing the stories told on DVD extras on special edition releases of feature films, this study analyzes how collaborative creativity is storied. In turn, these stories reveal specific communication forms, practices, and strategies that enrich theoretical conceptions of collaborative creativity. Following dramatistic concepts elaborated by Kenneth Burke, this rhetorical analysis finds three emergent patterns of …

A Field Quasi-Experiment Of The Effects Of Employee Input In The Development Of Performance Appraisal Systems, Dan Ispas

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of employee input in the development stage of a new performance appraisal system on their attitudes and work behaviors. A field quasi-experiment with pre-test and post-test measures was conducted in two plants of an organization. The results, consistent with the hypotheses, show that the employees in the experimental plant report higher proximal (satisfaction with the performance appraisal system, procedural justice of the performance appraisal system) and distal (organizational satisfaction, fairness of the organization and citizenship behaviors) outcomes. Also, the proximal outcomes were stronger than the distal ones. Implications for theory …

Leading In The Midst Of Change: A Theologically Grounded, Theoretically Informed Hermeneutic Of Change, Terri L. Elton

Faculty Publications

This essay proposes a hermeneutic of change, grounded in theology and theory, which can inform church leaders’ strategic actions in the midst of change. Drawing from the work of practical theology, it looks at four vantage points proposed by Don Browning: descriptive, historical, systematic, and strategic. The descriptive view offers two insights: God is active and present in the midst of change and God’s people are simultaneously saints and sinners. The historical perspective points out that God has always been in the midst of change, but God’s love and promises for the world have not changed. Systematic theology fuses the …

Making Academic Work Advocacy Work: Technologies Of Power In The Public Arena, Amy Propen, Mary Lay Schuster

English

Through interviews and courtroom observations in a case study done in collaboration with a community partner in two judicial districts in Minnesota, the authors extend the scholarly conversation about critical, activist research in business and technical communication and make pedagogical suggestions by studying two groups who contribute to the discourse about victim rights: judges who accept plea negotiations and make sentencing decisions and advocates who help victims contribute, through victim impact statements, their reactions as crime victims and their requests for certain punishments and conditions for the crime perpetrators. The authors identify the technologies of power used by each group …

Explaining The Impact Of Work Interference With Family: The Role Of Work-Family Psychological Contract And Cultural Values, Xian Xu

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study aims to further understand the mechanisms through which work interference with family (WIF) influences important attitudinal, behavioral, and well-being outcomes. First, the study expands the content of employees' psychological contract through creating a measure of Work-Family Psychological Contract Breach (WFPCB). The study also examines the mediating role of WFPCB in the relations between WIF and work-related outcomes. Finally, the study explores potential cultural influences by looking at the moderating role of individualism-collectivism on the relations between WIF and WFPCB as well as between WFPCB and the outcomes. Research was carried out in three stages: 1) telephone interviews were …

Determining The Quality And Impact Of An E-Mentoring Model On At-Risk Youth, Diane W. Culpepper

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this research was twofold. Since e-mentoring is relatively new, there have been very few studies that have explored the impact of an e-mentoring program on both the academic and psychological outcomes of its participants. In addition, there is little research on the quality of implementing, or what we will call the working quality, of an e-mentoring model. This study addressed both.

First, the study examined whether or not e-mentoring had an academic and psychological impact on 32 high school students who were at-risk of dropping out of school. The students were enrolled in a GED Exit Option …

Two Essays On The Conflict Of Interests Within The Financial Services Industry-- Financial Industry Consolidation: The Motivations And Consequences Of The Financial Services Modernization Act (Fsma) And “Down But Not Out” Mutual Fund Manager Turnover Within Fund Families, Lonnie Lashawn Bryant

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The objective of this paper is to examine the impact the Financial Services Modernization Act (FSMA) of 1999 has on the consolidation of the banking industry. The FSMA allows banks to simultaneously offer commercial banking, investment, and insurance services. I find a strong positive market response to the announcement of bank acquisition of brokerage firms (10.2 percent) and insurance companies (9.3 percent), but no significant response to bank acquisitions. I also find support for two complimentary hypotheses that explain the long-run returns to the acquiring banks. The "product-market spillover hypothesis" states that the post-consolidation returns of the acquirer are directly …

Narratives And Sensemaking In The New Corporate University: The Socialization Of First Year Communication Faculty, Andrew F. Herrmann

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

I examined what brand new Ph.D.s in Communication experience when they start their first, entry-level, tenure-track assistant professor position at a new university. Through the lens of scocial construction, I review vocational and organizational socialization, individual agency by newcomers, academic socialization processes, and the concept of the academic career in the current climate of university change and transformation. Then, I present the method of research, including the population and sampling method, and rationales for utilizing a narrative approach, interactive interviewing, and autoethnographic writing. After presenting the participants' narratives, I revisit both within- and between-case issues, beginning with socialization from the …

An Exploration Of The Sensemaking Process During The Implementation Of Academic Tracking Systems At Three Public Universities, Jean Mccarthy Gonzalez

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Policy tends to be formulated at the upper level of an organization and handed down to policy actors on the frontline for enactment. Since policy can be vague, ambiguous, or send conflicting messages, it can create uncertainty about its meaning. Moreover, policy is rarely accompanied by explicit instructions for implementation. Therefore, when frontline workers, or streetlevel bureaucrats, are pressed to make sense of policy's meaning in realistic terms, they engage in what Weick describes as sensemaking (1995). Sensemaking is a cognitive process entered into during times of uncertainty or change. Streetlevel bureaucrats engage in sensemaking by drawing on cues in …

Transformation Into Mission : A Case Study Of Forest Park United Methodist Church, Derek Edward Russell

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Organizational Communication And Change: A Case Study On The Implementation Of An Innovation At A Florida Medical Facility, Erika G. Llenza

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study examined how employees at a Florida medical facility felt regarding the upcoming change to a paperless system and whether a training program administered by the organization was effective in reducing anxiety, increasing understanding of the need for the change, increasing employee confidence using the new computer system, changing employee perceptions of the new system, and helping employees view the change as an organizational improvement. The results indicated that the training program marginally reduced anxiety, but did not significantly increase user confidence or understanding of the need for the change. While participants viewed the change as an organizational improvement, …

An Evaluation Of The Technology Acceptance Model As A Means Of Understanding Online Social Networking Behavior, Timothy J. Willis

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Organizations invest sizable amounts of financial and human capital toward developing and implementing innovative technology solutions that will help them achieve organizational objectives. Professionals are now able to use online social networking technology to maintain and grow their network of business contacts virtually, resulting in increased efficiency and the ability to foster relationships with colleagues who otherwise would not be accessible. Organizations can use the benefits of online social networking to their strategic advantage if they understand the nature of the technology and how it is used. The Technology Acceptance Model is often used to explain the acceptance of new …

Time Bending: Temporal Malleability And Organizational Response In Crisis Situations, Gary W. Carson

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The terrorist attacks of 9/11 created a crisis of epic proportions for the airline industry. The attacks, on the heels of the first financial losses in four years, threatened the existence of many airlines. It was incumbent on the CEO to make sense and offer a plan to control the crisis and move forward. There were fewer audiences more attentive to this senemaking activity than the stockholders. On the cusp of the organization, shareholder management is a central job of CEOs in the 21st century. This study focuses on CEO presentations to shareholders for American, Delta and Frontier Airlines before …

Change And The Adventist Church, Michael E. Cafferky

Faculty Works

What does it take to bring change to the structure of the Seventh-day Adventist Church? A methodical, incremental process that would protect core values as it tiptoes through the political minefields. The Commission on Ministries, Services, and Structures, a hundred-member committee that studied the subject, brought a report to the 2007 Annual Council recommending a few procedural adjustments that were voted. The changes outlined in the approved measure suggest that organizational mission and unity seem to have Rook® -power over efficiency or financial savings

On The Convergence Of Innis's International Political Economy And Sebald's Novels, Joseph S. Pinter

CLCWeb: Comparative Literature and Culture

In his paper "On the Convergence of Innis's International Political Economy and Sebald's Novels" Joseph S. Pinter contributes to the development of an area of scholarship on Harold A. Innis and Canadian political economy which deals with issues of representation, landscape, and memory. Pinter draws attention to a specific aspect of Innis's approach to political economy and focuses on ways in which Innis was able to represent fundamental aspects of the settlement process in Canada. Pinter argues that Innis focussed on landscape as a basic element in the European experience of North America (US and Canada) that, in turn, enabled …

Teacher Perceptions Of The Changing Role Of The Secondary Middle School Principal, Dawn E. Coffin

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The focus of this study was to examine perceptions of middle school teachers regarding the changing role of the secondary middle school principal and compare teachers' results with assistant principals' and principals' perceptions of their role, thus adding the voice of teachers, regarding the secondary principal's role, to existing literature.

Data was collected electronically using the survey method in one urban Florida school district. Qualitative and quantitative data were captured using the Principal's Role Questionnaire (PRQ) (Goodwin, 2002). Thirty-six principal role descriptor statements on the PRQ survey requested a level of agreement from research participants regarding changes, current and future …

Ccu Newsletter, February 18, 2008, Coastal Carolina University

Coastal Carolina University Newsletter

Coastal Carolina University's weekly on-campus newsletter.

2008 Celebration Of Inquiry Program, Coastal Carolina University

Celebration of Inquiry

7th Celebration of Inquiry, February 13-15, 2008. Theme: The Modern Life: The Challenges and Advantages to Living and Learning in the 21st Century

A More True ‘Domestic And Foreign Missionary Society’: Toward A Missional Polity For The Episcopal Church., Dwight J. Zscheile

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Understanding Church Size Based On Empirical Data, Bill M. Sullivan

Journal of the American Society for Church Growth

One of the most remarkable graphs I have ever seen was developed by ANSR’s own Rich Houseal. While he was serving as president of ASARB he was able to acquire, from five other denominational statisticians, the church attendance data for their respective churches. Attendance data has only been collected in recent years and has not been readily available. Of course, actual report data is more desirable than survey data. It may not be 100% accurate but it is generally consistent and reliable. Most denominations have standard reporting procedures which over time have produced an acceptable level of reliability.

Theatre History At The University Of North Dakota, Loren Liepold

UND Departmental Histories

This departmental history was written on the occasion of the UND Quasquicentennial in 2008.

Another Forgotten Army: The French Expeditionary Corps In Italy,1943-1944, Brook White

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The French Expeditionary Corps that fought in Italy during World War II was a French army, but that description must be qualified. Therefore this thesis asks two questions: how did France manage to send the equivalent of an army to Italy if French military leadership in 1943 had no direct access to French manpower resources; and the most important question since it is unique to the historical debate, why were the troops that were sent to Italy so effective once there when compared to the 1940 French army? To answer the first question, it was a French colonial army - …

Consumer Theology: Its Causes, Effects, And Solution, R. Douglas Bailey

Doctor of Ministry

This paper claims that consumerism has permeated our culture so completely as to affect the church as well, creating a consumer theology. The thesis of this paper is that spiritual formation, properly understood and implemented in an established church, is the corrective for the harmful effects of consumer theology. Chapter 1 traces the rise of consumerism in America, noting its harmful effects on society. This chapter also introduces consumer theology, claiming that it is characterized by a commodification of the Holy; churches' becoming vendors of religious goods and services; a radical individualism; and a sense of entitlement among congregants. Chapter …

A Strategy To Strengthen The Role And Function Of The District Pastor For Effective Leadership And Guidance Of Local Churches In Ghana, Paul Adu Sampah

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

Ever since the General Conference introduced Union and Conferences to run local churches, progress of the gospel work in Ghana has been slow. Before their introduction, churches were grouped into districts and run by district pastors. Due to their high administrative expenditure, local churches have become poor with no proper pastoral care. When church administration is given back to the districts and district pastor’s role is strengthened, conference expenditure will be reduced, more pastors will be sent to the churches, and local churches will be saved from financial collapse.

Method

Studies were carried out by reviewing current literature on …

Artisans, Athletes, Entrepreneurs, And Other Skilled Exemplars Of The Way, Alex Stewart, Felissa Lee, Gregory N.P. Konz, S.J.

Management Faculty Research and Publications

We introduce management and spirituality scholars to the “knack” passages from the c. 4th century B.C.E. text, the Zhuangzi. The knack passages are parables about low status figures, such as wheelwrights, furniture makers and cooks, whose actions offer insights into the spirituality of ordinary work and, we argue, of entrepreneurship. Such non-corporate settings are lesser-studied domains for spirituality. Ancient Chinese writings have been noticed by spirituality and management writers but we call for deeper scholarly textual attention. We seek also to model more attention to the renaissance in scholarship on classical China. More ambitiously, we hope to show that these …