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The Political Behavior Of California Community College Nursing Facilities In Response To Budget Cutbacks, 1982-1987, Karen J. Berger Edd

Dissertations

This study explored the political behavior of community college nursing faculties during a unique period of California history, 1982-87, when the community colleges were struggling to adapt to the economic and political consequences of Proposition 13. Using a two-phase qualitative design, it examined the effects of budget cutbacks on the nursing programs at 38 community colleges statewide, including twelve targeted for faculty layoffs, and identified the political behavior of their nursing faculties in response. It then focused on six districts, varying in size, structure, and location, for a series of in-depth case studies. In four districts, nursing programs were targeted …

Romanticizing Leadership: A Historical And Cultural Critique, Elisa Maureen Sandra Carlson Edd

Dissertations

Romanticism, a cultural and intellectual ideology of the late 18th and early 19th century, left a historical legacy of ecstasy and disaster upon subsequent generations. Manifestations of neo-romanticism are evident in many areas of contemporary culture. These modern manifestations, which include an infusion of the spiritual into everyday life, pantheistic adoration of nature, glorification of the self, fascination with the irrational, focus on the power of the imagination, subjugation of the individual to the common good, and apocalyptic hope for a new world, are influencing, theories and practices of leadership. This research set out to find out whether leadership studies …

Implementation Of Continuous Quality Improvement In A Community Mental Health Care Center: Effect On Morale, Gary Dean Zomalt Edd

Dissertations

Morale is important to all service organizations because quality is dependent upon the nature of face-to-face interactions. Because the workers in mental health service organizations must care for patients, morale is especially important. Although studies suggest that rapid change due to cutbacks, privatization, and managed care, have demoralized mental health workers, the literature suggests that management is the problem. Mechanistic organizations with top-down, command-control management typically exclude and alienate workers. Continuous quality improvement (CQI) can improve morale as well as the bottom-line. However, there are no studies of how to implement CQI, from the perspective of workers, to improve morale …

The Experiences Of Mid-Career Elementary Teachers, Susan H.L. Johnston Edd

Dissertations

The demographics of the teaching population in British Columbia indicate a significant number of teachers in mid career. Their cares, concerns, and interests dramatically influence educational activity in the province. The experiences of these educators lie within a context of major restructuring of the entire provincial school system and substantive educational change mandated by the government of British Columbia. Using a phenomenological approach, this study explores the experiences of seven, mid-career, elementary school teachers in one British Columbia school district; investigates how these teachers experience system-wide, mandated, educational change; and suggests implications of these understandings for leadership practice. During three, …

The Study Of Leadership In Experiential/Adventure Programs, Gabriel Demola

Honors Theses

Very simply, an experiential/adventure program consists of assigning a designated group to complete a series of challenging tasks in an outdoor setting. The following research will explore the ways in which experiential/adventure education serves as an effective tool for teaching leadership. The paper will describe the attributes which make it an effective tool and delve into the distinctions of the experimental/adventure program. It will also study and analyze the results of tests used to determine its effectiveness and long term retainability of the skills developed by students in these programs. Furthermore, this paper will demonstrate how this unique style of …

Student Change Leadership, A Renewal Process For Organizations : A Case Study Of The 1995 Panhellenic Rush Revision, Melanie Sandukas

Honors Theses

Greek organizations experienced a national revival in the late eighties. According to Mrs. Scott's figures, rush participation increased on sixty percent of campuses in 1995. However, in these times of negative publicity and litigation, nervous university administrators question the merit of the Greek system. In "The Survival of Greek Life: Concerns and Solutions" Robert Ackerman states, "The fact that change is necessary suggests that some fraternities and sororities are falling short of the ideals upon which they were founded." He observes, "Change, when it does occur, all too often appears to result from an attempt to avoid problems or from …

The Effect Of Hospital Restructuring On Nurses' Perceptions Of Their Work Environment, Judy Reeve

Theses and Graduate Projects

Hospital restructuring has become commonplace in today’s competitive health care market. Often, such restructuring results in significant effects on the employees of the organization. Registered Nurses who continue to deliver patient care at the bedside may find themselves caught between duty to their patients and duty to their employer, yet there is Iittle research available which evaluates the effect of restructuring on either the nurse or the patient. This descriptive study analyzes staff Registered Nurses’ perceptions of their work environment following restructuring. Principles of restructuring, as delineated by Freeman & Cameron, served as the theoretical framework for this analysis. A …

Leading Change In The Healthcare Industry : Sentara Health Systems, Norfolk, Virginia, Heather S. Heitz

Honors Theses

After going through the steps of implementing a change in Sentara Health Systems, I learned that using my visionary and participatory leadership skills contributed to my success in leading a change in the organization. First, I used my visionary leadership skills to encourage each individual to envision processes, to support each other, and to use resources which would motivate the group to do something that they wanted to do. Also, I used a participatory leadership to ensure that the subordinates were involved in the group's goals throughout the change process. By empowering people to have responsibility when changes are made …

Does Gender Influence Leadership?, Stacy L. Jones

Honors Theses

The question of gender's influence on leadership styles is an important topic in the modern organizational world. The face of the organization is changing, with new demands being made of management. Organizations no longer depend on rigid hierarchies to achieve their goals, but rather these organizations seek innovation and communication. To achieve these new objectives, organizations are searching for leadership from their executives, managers, and employees.

It is of primary importance to determine whether men and women demonstrate the same leadership behaviors or demonstrate significantly different styles of leadership. This knowledge may substantially aid an organization in utilizing the most …

The Multiple Sclerosis Society : One Thing People With Ms Can Count On, Chris O'Neil

Honors Theses

In my study of the Central Virginia Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, I have chosen not to focus on the departure of the Executive Director, Jacqui Kozsuch, who is leaving for personal reasons. I have instead focused on the issues that are going to be relevant and important for the growth of the chapter in the future, such as the board involvement, fund.raising strategies and meeting the needs of the clients.

Based on my research and observation, I think that the chapter has made a turn for the better and has the groundwork laid for future success. All …

Virginia Commonwealth University's Plan For A Diverse Community, Matthew T. Corkern

Honors Theses

Having always been intrigued by academic administration, it is only appropriate that I chose to study leadership perspectives within this traditional, yet ever changing context. Desiring the challenge of intellectual development as well as an opportunity to bring an effective change, I researched and assembled a pilot project. With use of this procedure, the Office of Academic Planning at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), may now analyze the implementation of various directions and components of their Strategic Plan over the next months for the September 1995 deadline.

Awakening Intuition: A Delphi Study, Verna Veronica Schmidt Edd

Dissertations

This study was framed by three key questions: How is intuition characterized, how is intuition in adults best developed, and what influence might the development of intuition have on individuals, organizations, and society. The data for the study was collected using the Delphi method. The panel included twenty females and twenty-three males from three Canadian provinces and eighteen American states. Eighty-three percent of the panel had post secondary degrees in over twenty different disciplines. Twenty-three percent of the panel held doctorate level degrees. Thirty-one different occupations were represented. All forty-three participants who started the study completed all three rounds. Data …

Development Of A Participative Approach To Guide Organizational Change: Reviewing The Sawtooth Technique, Port Robert Martin Edd

Dissertations

In a world economy that bears scant resemblance to the one dominated by the United States following World War II, many American companies have found it increasingly difficult to keep pace with their foreign competitors. The public sector, too, has found itself under significant pressure to provide needed services but with significantly reduced resources. In each individual case leaders have been seeking new solutions to both old and new problems, and organizations have been faced with change and its impacts. The purpose of this study was to design a methodology that could be used to structure organizational changes in such …

Transforming Leadership In The California Literature Project: Ethnographic Narrative As True Fiction, Jon S. Davies Edd

Dissertations

With rare exception leadership scholars and practitioners focus on individuals as leaders. However, to investigate leadership only through the activities of individual leaders is to miss its essential feature, namely, that leadership is a particular kind of relationship in which leaders and followers create changes. Relationships are difficult to describe because researchers cannot observe them directly; instead, they must infer them indirectly. This study investigated leadership relationships in the California Literature Project. An exploration of leadership relationships required that I implement research methods that would support the construction of detailed descriptions of transforming leadership processes. These methods developed in part …

Leadership Training Of Ministerial Students In Evangelical Institutions Of Higher Education, Alan E. Nelson Edd

Dissertations

There exists a growing sense within evangelicalism in the United States, that more and better leaders are needed in local congregations. Traditionally, seminaries, graduate and undergraduate schools have prepared pastors to fulfill these roles and satisfy church expectations. The majority of pastoral preparation is theological in nature, augmented by ministerial skill courses. The hypothesis of this research was that little has been done in the area of leadership development and that an optimum program is needed to serve as a model. The intent of this research was twofold. First, the researcher needed to determine to what extent pastoral preparation programs …

The Leadership Of A Superintendent: Putting The California School Reform Movement To Work, Jennifer L. Jeffries Edd

Dissertations

Public education has been engulfed in a dramatic and turbulent time. In California, the drive for improvement in public education was codified in Senate Bill 813, passed in 1983. Each school district wrestled with the intent and the mandates of this massive reform document. During the implementation stage of this legislation, the organizational climate in school districts was ripe for leaders and followers to engage each other in dialogue and debate about the direction and form the legislation would take. This dialogue and debate rendered policies in response to the legislative mandates. Senate Bill 813 provided opportunities to promote and …

The Influence Of Glasser's Control Theory And Reality Therapy On Educators: A Case Study, Debra Cullinane Edd

Dissertations

The influence of Glasser's control theory and reality therapy on educators' perceptions of change, relationships and self reflection has to date not been researched. The purpose of this study was to investigate and describe the influence that control theory and reality therapy training had on educators in one school district. A case study method was chosen because of its descriptive and evaluative strength in educational settings, its qualitative character and its flexibility. All educators currently employed who had participated in one week of training or more were sent a fifteen item survey. From the group of 100 who received the …

Meeting Graduate Student Needs Through Alternative Programs: An Analysis Of The Impact Of Factors Related To Student Choice, Debra Jill Wright Edd

Dissertations

The purpose of the study was to explore the design and initiation of alternative graduate programs and their impact on student needs, to examine the university organizational structure and environment that fosters the development of alternative graduate programs, and to identify the factors graduate students see as important in their choice to attend and participate in an alternative graduate program. The intent of the research was to rank the factors significant in the design of a graduate program to meet the factors meaningful to the student in meeting their needs related to graduate programs. The content of the survey instrument …

Bicultural Women In Monocultural Organizations: Professional Hispanic Women's Experiences Of Diversity And Their Recommendations For Organizations, Carmen Mestas Bárcena Edd

Dissertations

The composition of the work force in this country is changing from one in which the White male was dominant to one in which by the year 2000 women and ethnic minorities will be dominant. Work force diversity will impact organizations at all levels, including top management, which has been closed to women and minorities, and in particular, minority women. The diverse work force's expectation for advancement into top levels of management will present challenges to organizations. Some organizations have recognized that to remain competitive they need to manage a more diverse work force. The purpose of this study is …

Leadership Relationships And The Superintendency, Theresa M. Peterson Edd

Dissertations

Leadership in the 1990s is perceived as the primary solution to the political, social, economic and educational problems encountered today by our western society. The solutions that have worked in the industrialized society of the past are being re-evaluated and questioned by our technocratic society of today. The concept of leadership is undergoing a change. The old industrial view of leadership is making way for the emerging postindustrial view--a view that regards leadership as an inter-relational process among people who intend real, substantive changes berthed from a mutuality of purpose. This research focused on the leadership relationships forged in the …

Empowerment As A Dynamic Of The Leadership Relationship: A Study Of Two Local Governmental Organizations, Danell Scarborough Gavares Edd

Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to develop a better understanding of the empowerment processes operating within organizations and to theorize about the relationship between empowerment and leadership. The study focuses on empowerment in two local governmental organizations--the City of Carlsbad, California and the City of Scottsdale, Arizona. The research design combined the key characteristics of naturalistic inquiry with the analytical approach of grounded theory methodology. The researcher interviewed the members of both management teams and spent time as a participant observer. The data were synthesized into a conceptual model--a picture of the empowerment practices within these two organizations. The …

Nsu A 25-Year History Of The National Ed.D. Program For Educational Leaders: The Courage To Lead By Denise A. Garrott, Ed.D. June 22, 1992, Nova Southeastern University

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education and School of Criminal Justice College Archive

No abstract provided.

Entrepreneurial Leadership: A Delphi Study Of New Venture Success Factors, Alan J. Grant Edd

Dissertations

Over a million new U.S. enterprises are formed each year. Virtually all the country's net new jobs come from these and other new ventures. Yet 60% of new ventures still fail within two years. The purpose of this study was to isolate the most dominant leadership success characteristics of a typical early stage, high-growth potential venture. Thus discovered, these factors could properly focus the enterprise's tactics on improving its probability of fulfilling its original success related objectives as well as enhancing new job creation and in turn, economic wealth. A Delphi Technique research methodology was employed. The advice and counsel …

Valuing A Culturally Diverse Work Force: An Examination Of Intended Changes And Successes As Perceived By Upper And Middle Management, Supervisors, And Line Staff In A Health Care Organization, Cynthia L. Camberg Edd

Dissertations

The growing diversity of the work force is having and will continue to have a significant impact on organizations. The diversity of cultures, lifestyles, and household compositions compels managers and organizational leaders to make a variety of organizational changes. Additionally, the globalization of business, the integration of the world economy, and the rapid changes in corporate life require a reexamination of how organizations are thought of, and how employees are managed (Copeland, 1988; Betters-Reed & Moore, 1988-89; Goldstein, 1988). Since in the past organizations have been based on white male European traditions, a revolutionary response is needed from organizational leaders …

Constructing And Testing Practical Procedures For Describing A Corporate Culture: The Electric Troublemen, Timothy S. Vonder Edd

Dissertations

During the 1980s much attention was focused on trying to understand and apply the concept of corporate culture. Scholars and practitioners worked on clarifying the definition of culture as it applies to workplace settings. Scholars adapted the anthropological concepts of culture to fit within the framework of a business organization. Both scholars and practitioners attempted to investigate the cultures of many organizations throughout the business world. Scholars conducted lengthy case studies and used a mixture of qualitative and quantitative techniques. Business world practitioners conducted short studies and used mostly quantitative survey techniques. What was found was that the scholarly approach …

The Impact Of The Accountability Movement On Principals In A Large Southern California School District, Dianette T. Mitchell Edd

Dissertations

Organizations achieve uniqueness in their functions despite similarities in their structure. This uniqueness is true of school districts as well. Though there are specific similarities which have been found in effective schools and districts who have joined the accountability movement, each has its own systematic method of modifying and controlling desired behavior and possible achievement. This research focuses on one unique group of people, the site administrators in a large school district, and seeks to ascertain the effects of the effective schools' accountability movement as seen from the perspective of school principals. The three major objectives of this study were …

Leadership Development At A Training Center In The Philippines, Henry Heng-Lee Tan Edd

Dissertations

The great tragedy today is the dearth of leadership in many of our organizations. The cry for leadership, "Where are the leaders?" reverberates around the world without any active response. Consequently, many organizations have initiated steps to incorporate the process of developing leaders from within their organizations. One such organization is the Campus Crusade for Christ International. This researcher examined the leadership training program of Campus Crusade's Great Commission Training Center (GCTC) in Manila, Philippines by asking nine research questions arising from "How is training for leadership presently incorporated into the GCTC curricula?" A questionnaire was designed incorporating the characteristics …

Ethnic Inclusion Strategies For The World Affairs Council: A Case Study, Adriana Cornelia Theresia Zylmans Edd

Dissertations

The inclusion of people of diverse ethnicities in voluntary organizations is a challenging endeavor. Cultural diversity, rich traditions, historical perspectives, ethnic celebrations, religion, and language are lenses through which leaders of organizations can view the many uniquenesses, differences, and similarities among ethnic groups. The World Affairs Council of San Diego, from January 1,1989 to July 1, 1990, undertook an ambitious community project entitled, "Community and Citizen Involvement in Foreign Policy," funded by the Ford Foundation, to increase the participation of ethnic groups, women, and youth in the Council. In this research study, the ethnic inclusion strategies used by the Council …

The Effect Of Sexual Harassment On Female Naval Officers: A Phenomenological Study, Kathleen Anne Krohne Edd

Dissertations

Sexual harassment has grown to epidemic proportions since being documented as a workplace problem. Court cases are rising along with costs to organizations from litigation, turnover, absenteeism and stress-related medical claims. Courts are continually refining the legal definition of sexual harassment, resulting in a steady expansion of employers' liability. Perceptions of men and women regarding what constitutes sexual harassment differ markedly as do their responses to sexually oriented behaviors at work. Development of a formula for effectively preventing sexual harassment is, therefore, a complex and perplexing exercise. Two of three women serving in the military report that they have been …

Education For Christian Leadership, James H. Ford Edd

Dissertations

There is an increasing number of nonordained catholic men and women trained for leadership and ministry in the United States. What are the perspectives of these women and men on leadership in the church, the nature and purpose of leadership, and education for leadership? This qualitative study compared transforming leadership with the perspectives on leadership discovered among the 17 participants in the study. The respondents expect to exercise leadership in a church that faces a challenging future. The researcher also outlined those future challenges facing leaders and participants who practice the process of leadership. The author makes prescriptive suggestions on …