Digital Commons Network^™

The Relationship Between Experiences Of Master Of Divinity Students At The Seventh-Day Adventist Theological Seminary And Their Spirituality, Choung Sook Cho

Dissertations

Problem. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between the experiences of Master of Divinity students while enrolled in the seminary and their level of spirituality upon completion.

Method. A quantitative research design with a limited qualitative piece was used to survey MDiv students who graduated in 2004. Exactly 100 participants completed the Christian Spiritual Participation Profile and an instrument that explored the degree of effort put into formal curriculum offering, and the frequency of participation in nonformal curriculum and socialization activities. Participants were also asked to share a positive experienceand to recommend changes to the seminary …

Change Processes In Selected Private Institutions Of Higher Education, Ronald Dean Herr

Dissertations

Problem. Some higher education institutions are responding to internal and external forces created by the Information Age due to changes in technology, shifts in education delivery, and increasing financial pressures. Are there common processes among a number of selected institutions of similar size and control that could be emulated by peer institutions?

Purpose. The purpose of the study was to describe change processes in private institutions of higher education that are successful based on selected academic and financial data. The institutions selected initially for superior academic and financial statistics over a 5- year period were all church-related and therefore the …

A Comparative Investigation Of The Concept Of Nature In The Writings Of Henry M. Morris And Bernard L. Ramm, Andrew M. Mutero

Dissertations

The study examines two major contrasting theological accounts of nature within the contemporary North American Evangelical community as articulated by Henry Morris and Bernard Ramm. In doing so, the dissertation analyzes nature considered diachronically in three epochs namely: (1) Natura Originalis (the origin of nature); (2) Natura Continua (the contemporary status of nature); and (3) Natura Nova (the future of nature).

The purpose of this research is to discover, describe, analyze, and compare the shape of the two contrasting concepts of nature articulated respectively by Morris, a strict concordist and a special creationist and Ramm, a broad concordist and a …

Sources Of Stress, Levels Of Stress, And Coping Strategies Of Faculty And Staff At Northern Caribbean University, Gloria Davis-Roberts

Dissertations

Statement of the problem. Northern Caribbean University, formerly West Indies College, attained university status in June 1999. The purpose of this study was to describe the levels and sources of stress and coping strategies of faculty and staff at Northern Caribbean University (NCU) and to determine if these (levels, sources, and coping strategies) are related to selected demographic characteristics (such as gender, age, marital status, years of employment, and employment status---faculty or staff).

Method. A descriptive survey research design was used to conduct this study in which the Occupational Stress Inventory (OSI) was administered to the facultyand staff of NCU. …

Truth And Terror: A Text-Oriented Analysis Of Daniel 8:9-14, Martin T. Pröbstle

Dissertations

Daniel 8:9-14 constitutes the climax of the vision report in Dan 8, and is arguably one of the most difficult Danielic passages. This dissertation investigates the Masoretic Text of Dan 8:9-14 by means of a detailed and comprehensive text-oriented analysis that utilizes linguistic, literary, and intertextual procedures.

In chapter 1, an overview of modern text-oriented approaches and the review of recent literature on Dan 8 pave the way for a description of this study's methodology, which consists of a combination of linguistic (syntax, semantics, and text-grammar), literary (style and structure), and intertextual approaches (textual relations within the book of Daniel), …

Amish Childbearing Beliefs And Practices And The Implications For Nurse-Midwives As Servant-Leader Care Providers, Victoria L. Wickwire

Dissertations

Problem. The knowledge, beliefs, and practices associated with childbearing among Amish women from their perspective are not widely known. The available research on Amish childbearing health practices does indicate that these women are at high risk for problems during the childbearing period. This indication, coupled with both a general mistrust of outsiders and the Amish separateness from society at large, creates opportunities for misunderstandings. These misunderstandings in turn have created challenges for care providers outside the Amish culture who are seeking research-based knowledge about what constitutes culturally congruent childbearing care from the Amish woman's perspective. It is unknown how …

Motivational Factors That Influence African American Women To Serve As Michigan State Legislators, Rogenia Goza

Dissertations

Problem. The purpose of this study was to discover factors that influence the political career choice of African American women legislators to serve in the State of Michigan Congress. Therefore, this study focused on motivations that affected three African American women legislators' political experiences.

Method. This study used a case-study approach, and the end result is a multi-faceted case study of the political experiences of three State of Michigan African American women legislators. The techniques used in the ethnographic research---interviews, observations, note-taking, and reviews of public and personal documents---were intended to increase understanding of the observed phenomena. Data …

Factors Related To Adult Degree Program Completion At Atlantic Union College, Corina Polanco Parris

Dissertations

Problem

The Adult Degree Program at Atlantic Union College has for the past 34 years instituted innovations and practices, following new trends in adult education, to make it more accessible and viable in helping students grow intellectually and professionally and to complete their educational goals. This study was done to examine the extent to which institutional, personal, and family factors are related to adult degree program completion at Atlantic Union College.

Methodology

A survey research method was used in this study. A questionnaire was designed and administered to 365 adults: 160 alumni, 45 withdrawals, and 160 current students. Useable responses …

Academic Performance And Engagement Of Educational Opportunity Program Students In A College Algebra Extended Class At The State University Of New York, New Platz, Courtney Anthony Pindling

Dissertations

Problem

The purpose of this study was to describe the academic performance of a group of Educational Opportunity Program (EOP) students in a College Algebra Extended Program (CAEP) at the University of New York, New Paltz. Generally, EOP students are admitted with low mathematics placement scores. In the past, they would have been required to do remedial math. However, since college remedial math is no longer available, the CAEP was implemented to remedy this problem. This study was conducted to examine how a small group of EOP students performed in this course.

Method

A descriptive research design was used to …

Profiles Of Pre-Service Teacher Education : An Investigation Into The Nature Of Selected Exemplary Programs In Jamaica And Michigan, Heather Smith-Sherwood

Dissertations

Problem. The education system in this 21st century is faced with numerous challenges that, quite often, leave administrators and classroom teachers bewildered in their quest for effective solutions. In light of these challenges, this study investigated three exemplary pre-service teacher education programs in Jamaica and Michigan in order to provide an account of how these are structured in different contexts of tertiary institutions and, in addition, to identify how these programs ensure that their graduates are prepared to function effectively in today’s schools.

Method. A qualitative case study design was used in this study. Five categories of stakeholders in the …

The Relationship Between Leadership Traits And Church Growth Among Pastors Of Free Churches In Germany, Edgar Machel

Dissertations

Problem. Many German Christian denominations have been losing members year by year for the past five decades. There are more and more voices that question the way pastors function as leaders. Therefore, this study looked at the differences of personality traits among pastors of Free Churches in Germany in the context of church growth. The leading research question was. What kind of leadership traits, behaviors, and attitudes are favorable to lead a church toward growth and to return stagnating churches to vibrancy?

Methodology. The “Business-focused Inventory of Personality” was sent out to 1,100 Pentecostal, Baptist, and Adventist pastors, of …

Identification Of Seventh-Day Adventist Health Core Convictions : Alignment With Current Healthcare Practice, Randall L. Haffner

Dissertations

Purpose. The prevailing literature suggests that organizations can sustain their vitality and longevity by preserving their core ideology. The purpose of this study is to define and articulate the core convictions of Seventh-day Adventist healthcare and then investigate how the leaders' and employees' cognitive understandings, behaviors, and affective attachments align at Florida Hospital in Orlando, Florida.

Method. This two-phased sequential exploratory study utilizes qualitative research to define the core convictions of Seventh-day Adventist healthcare through historical literature review, analysis of official Church publications, four commissioned scholarly papers, and one-on-one interviews with seasoned healthcare administrators. These findings are then used to …

Data Warehousing And Decision Making In Higher Education In The United States, David Lester Heise

Dissertations

Problem. Compared to the business world, higher education has a lower level of acceptance and a lower rate of adoption of data warehousing for decision making. Studies into the way data warehouses are used in higher education and the extent to which they are used are hard to find. Accordingly, this research examines the use of data warehousing in higher education and its role in decision making.

Method. Internet survey research method was used in this study. I asked college and university presidents to provide me with contact details of senior decision makers and technology managers from their institutions. …

Socioeconomic Characteristics As Factors Of Academic Success On The Exame Nacional De Cursos Among Undergraduate Students Of Selected Study Programs In Brazil, Josmar Sionti Arrais De Matos

Dissertations

This study investigated the possible relationships among socioeconomic characteristics as factors influencing the success levels of Brazilian students. Data were provided by the 2002 Exame Nacional de Cursos [National Examination of Study Programs], or ENC , in five cursos . For this study, the following programs, representing three levels of prestige, were selected: low (Modern Letters and History), middle (Law), and high (Medicine and Dentistry). The purpose was to gain a deeper understanding of the issues associated with relationships among various socioeconomic characteristics, as well as to gain a more global understanding of the implications of the socioeconomic process as …

Moral Implications Of Darwinian Evolution For Human Reference Based In Christian Ethics: A Critical Analysis And Response To The "Moral Individualism" Of James Rachels, Stephen Bauer

Dissertations

The topic. This dissertation explores and analyzes James Rachels's efforts to prove that Darwin's theory of evolution has catastrophic implications for traditional Christian ethics.

The purpose. The purpose of this dissertation is to explore and evaluate the question of whether or not protology affects ethics. In particular, I propose to distill the implications of evolutionary views of origins for ethics, mainly in reference to the issue of human preference over nature in ethics. I propose to disclose Rachels's understanding of the implications of evolution on human preference (greater protections for human beings over non-humans) in ethics (such as biblical-Christian ethics), …