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Final Master's Portfolio, Lisa Berlekamp

Master of Arts in English Plan II Graduate Projects

This portfolio is comprised of four papers which demonstrate my growth in English and my ability to use this growth to improve my knowledge and skills as an educator. The time spent researching writing, the teaching of writing, and diverse literature highlights my focus during the program. My work can hopefully be used by other educators who strive to adapt and create their English curriculum.

Special Issue - Call For Papers: Rethinking The Future Police Department: Examining The Role Of Testing And Assessment, Dennis Doverspike, Alexandra Petruzzelli, Marc Cubrich

Personnel Assessment and Decisions

No abstract provided.

Development Of The Life After Sports Transition (Last) Online Course For Collegiate Student-Athletes: Pretest-Posttest Study, Michael Stellefson, Trevor Bopp, Michael Odio, Min Qi Wang, Linxi Zhang

Journal of Athlete Development and Experience

Transitioning into athletic retirement can have negative impacts on college student-athletes’ psychological, social, emotional, and physical well-being, yet few educational programs exist to help augment college student-athlete preparation for embracing life after sports. The objective of this study was to develop and evaluate a new Life After Sports Transition (LAST) online course for college student athletes. A single group pretest-post-test study evaluated effects of the LAST course among a convenience sample of college student-athletes (n=10) attending a NCAA Division I university. Paired sample t-tests examined changes in athletic identity, psychological well-being, hope, and self-reflection/insight. Propensity score matching …

Tackling Difficult Conversations: Student-Athletes, Mental Health, And Emerging Technology, Todd Fraley, Stacy Warner, Christine Wilson, Gareth Jones, Michael Catalano

Journal of Athlete Development and Experience

Given the exponential growth of mental health issues on colleges campuses and the concerns regarding mental health disorders among elite level athletes, the NCAA (2016) has made recommendations to support and promote student-athlete mental health. However, to successfully address the increase in mental health issues, the development of effective communication skills is required. To address this, the researchers developed and built an immersive learning experience focused on “difficult conversations” using Mursion® technology. This pilot study contributes to this important conversation by analyzing the influence of an immersive experience on the student-athletes’ communication skills. Using a quasi-experimental design, 79 NCAA Division …

Student-Athletes At An Historically Black University (Hbu): Examining The Relationship Between Student-Engagement On Campus And Career Situation Awareness, Gregg Rich, Kenneth Kungu, Ali Boolani

Journal of Athlete Development and Experience

The purpose of this exploratory study was to examine the relationship between student-athletes’ engagement experiences on campus and their career situation awareness at an historically Black university (HBU) in the Southeastern United States with NCAA Division I affiliation. Data was obtained from a sample (n = 118) of female (n= 45) and male (n = 73) student-athletes using measures from the revised versions of the Student-Athlete Experiences Inventory (SAEI) and the Student-Athlete Career Situation Inventory (SACSI). One-way ANOVA, Pearson product-moment correlation tests, and t-tests were employed to analyze gender, race, year classification, and sport played effects. Following data analysis, three …

Athletic Identity: Complexity Of The “Iceberg”, Jamian Newton, Diane L. Gill, Erin Reifsteck

Journal of Athlete Development and Experience

Athletic identity is a common topic in research on athlete experiences and development. Many researchers rely on the understanding of athletic identity as conceptualized by Brewer, Van Raalte, and Linder (1993). This seminal work provided a foundational understanding for conducting survey research on athletic identity. However, the emphasis on survey approaches has resulted in an incomplete understanding of athletic identity as deeper meanings of the construct are taken for granted (Ronkainen, Kavoura, & Ryba, 2016a). To develop a more nuanced conceptualization of athletic identity, the current study used a qualitative descriptive approach to explore the meaning of athletic identity from …

A Unifying Framework To Study Workplace Decision-Making Aptitude And Performance, Nikki Blacksmith, Maureen E. Mccusker, Theodore L. Hayes

Personnel Assessment and Decisions

Employers are facing a skills shortage in the labor market: there are not enough workers who can perform the complex decision-making tasks that characterize 21st-century work. This manuscript aims to stimulate research investigating the relationship among individual differences, decision-making aptitude, and decision performance. We offer guidelines for future research by laying out a framework to unify disparate streams of research from organizational science, and judgment and decision-making research. We advocate for the use of pattern-oriented analytical approaches to capture the complexities of the predictor and criterion space.

The Impact Of Nondiagnostic Information On Selection Decision Making: A Cautionary Note And Mitigation Strategies, Dev K. Dalal, Levi Sassaman, Xiaoyuan (Susan) Zhu

Personnel Assessment and Decisions

Selection decision makers are inundated with information from which to make decisions about the suitability of a job candidate for a position. Although some of this information is relevant for making a high-quality decision (i.e., diagnostic information), much of the information is actually unrelated to the decision (i.e., nondiagnostic information). Although the deleterious effects of nondiagnostic information on selection decision making have been demonstrated, the prevalence and impact of this type of information is increasing, especially with recent advances in new selection methods used by employers. The purpose of this paper, therefore, is to caution selection decision makers, and/or those …

Threat Of Technological Unemployment, Use Intentions, And The Promotion Of Structured Interviews In Personnel Selection, Kevin P. Nolan, Dev K. Dalal, Nathan Carter

Personnel Assessment and Decisions

Meehl (1986) proposed that an important factor underlying professional decision makers’ resistance to standardized decision aids is threat of technological unemployment – fear that using the practices would reduce the perceived value of their employment. Nolan, Carter, and Dalal (2016) provided initial support for threat of technological unemployment being a factor that contributes to practitioners’ reluctance to adopt scientifically meritorious standardized hiring practices. This study serves to further develop the theory of threat of technological unemployment in personnel selection by (a) replicating the findings of our earlier research using a within-subjects methodology that is more generalizable to the cognitive processes …

Decoy Effects Improve Diversity Hiring, Nathan R. Kuncel, Jeffrey A. Dahlke

Personnel Assessment and Decisions

A growing literature demonstrates that when making choices among multiple options, decision makers are strongly influenced by the mere presence of additional options, even when those options are largely undesirable and are never actually selected. The effects of irrelevant options on decisions, often called decoy effects, have been observed in hiring and admissions decisions where the nature of a third candidate can radically shift preferences. In this study, we examine the influence of decoy effects on diversity hiring and extend research by examining choices with more than two organizational goals. Results indicate that the presence of a second candidate who …

Does Feedback Increase Decision Aid Use Among Hiring Professionals?, Aneeqa Thiele, Alexander T. Jackson, Stacey M. Stremic, Satoris S. Howes

Personnel Assessment and Decisions

We examined the influence of formative and outcome feedback on people’s reliance on decision aids. Decision aids are tools that managers can use to increase the accuracy of their hiring decisions. In our study, participants were asked to make 20 different hiring decisions and make predictions of a candidate’s performance on the job, with the option of using a decision aid formula. We manipulated whether participants received feedback on the accuracy of their predictions, the accuracy of the decision aid’s predictions, or both. The results demonstrated that feedback failed to have a significant impact on decision aid use for both …

Communicating Validity Information To Differentially Experienced Audiences: The Effects Of Numeracy And Nontraditional Metrics, Nathaniel M. Voss, Christopher J. Lake

Personnel Assessment and Decisions

One of the biggest challenges facing organizational researchers is convincing practitioners to adopt evidence-based personnel selection practices such as the structured interview. In this study, we examined the effects of nontraditional validity metrics and numeracy by presenting validity information about the structured interview to audiences with differing amounts of interview experience (students, working adults, and hiring managers). The results indicated that nontraditional metrics were associated with higher understanding, more positive attitudes, and greater perceptions of the usefulness of the structured interview. These effects were constant across differing levels of numeracy. Additionally, the results revealed that nontraditional metrics result in more …

Pushing The Limits For Judgmental Consistency: Comparing Random Weighting Schemes With Expert Judgments, Martin C. Yu, Nathan R. Kuncel

Personnel Assessment and Decisions

Consistent use of information has been identified as a critical issue that can undermine expert predictions. Using three personnel assessment datasets, we conduct Monte Carlo simulations to compare the accuracy of expert judgements for predicting the job performance of managers against four different weighting schemes: consistent random weights, completely random weights, unit weights, and optimal weights. Expert accuracy fell within the completely random weight distribution in two samples and at the low end of the consistent random weight distribution in one sample. In other words, consistent random weights reliably outperformed expert judgment for hiring decisions across three datasets with a …

Introduction To The Special Issue On Applications Of Judgment And Decision Making To Problems In Personnel Assessment, Edgar E. Kausel, Alexander T. Jackson

Personnel Assessment and Decisions

No abstract provided.

Can Playwork Have A Key Working Role?, Pete King

International Journal of Playwork Practice

This study interviewed 23 people currently involved in playwork which included face-to-face playwork practitioners, playworkers who are more involved in the development and management of specific projects or settings, playwork traininers and those working more at strategic director-level. All participants were asked to consider if playwork can have a key working role and how it will operate once the lockdown from COVID-19 has been relaxed. Analysing the 23 interviews through thematic analysis, the understanding of key working fell into three groups: 1) UK Government Response to the current COVID-19 pandemic; 2) health and well-being of people; and 3) supporting individual …

What Do Children Need From Playwork In The Time Of Covid-19? A Reflection On Playwork Practice In A Pandemic., Freya H. Howard

International Journal of Playwork Practice

This article explores the child’s need for play especially at the time of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic in terms of the child’s welfare and rights, playfulness and their wellbeing. It reflects on previously learnt lessons with regards to virus outbreaks and the production of activity packs as a means of playwork in the pandemic context.

What If And What More: Disturbing Habits Of Thought About Playwork ‘Re-Search’, Wendy K. Russell, John Fitzpatrick, Bridget Handscomb

International Journal of Playwork Practice

This short article reports on a presentation given at an International Journal of Playwork Practice seminar in 2018. It describes an approach to evaluating the work of an adventure playground using Participative Action Research and a critical cartographic method for producing documentation that shows the unique nature of playwork.

Portuguese Lifeguards Performance In Aquatic Rescue: An Exploratory Study, Olga G. Marques Ph.D., José Palacios-Aguilar Ph.D, Henrique G. Melo Mcs., Nuno G. Leitão, Lucia P. Castillo Msc., David Szpilman M.D, Luís Rama Ph.D.

International Journal of Aquatic Research and Education

The objective of the study was to compare the performance of Portuguese lifeguards in two trials of simulated rescue at the beach within a regular continuous workday. Additionally, the study aimed to analyse the influence of experience and initial course syllabus on the rescue performance. A total of 86 Portuguese lifeguards (LG) participated in this study, 69 males and 17 females. The two simulated drowning occurrences were planned to occur at 50 meters from the coastline between 9.00h am and 18.00h pm. The weather conditions, the characteristics of the beach, wave amplitude were also controlled. The results were analysed through …

Validation Of A Brief Pornography Screen Across Multiple Samples, Shane W. Kraus, Mateusz Gola, Joshua B. Grubbs, Ewelina Kowalewska, Rani A. Hoff, Michał Lew-Starowicz, Steve Martino, Steven D. Shirk, Marc N. Potenza

Psychology Faculty Publications

Background and Aims: To address current gaps around screening for problematic pornography use (PPU), we initially developed and tested a six-item Brief Pornography Screen (BPS) that asked about PPU in the past six months.

Methods and Participants: We recruited five independent samples from the U.S. and Poland to evaluate the psychometric properties of the BPS. In Study 1, we evaluated the factor structure, reliability, and elements of validity using a sample of 224 U.S. veterans. One item from the BPS was dropped in Study 1 due to low item endorsement. In Studies 2 and 3, we further investigated the five-item …

Book Review: Playing Practices In School-Age Childcare By Eva Kane, Gillian Vickers

International Journal of Playwork Practice

No abstract provided.

Play Spaces As Heterotopia: Seeking New Ways To Trouble The Discourses And Enactments Of Playwork, Linda J. Shaw

International Journal of Playwork Practice

In 1966 Foucault broadcasted a talk on French radio about “heterotopia.” These, he claimed, were institutional spaces that could be identified as being part of society, but at the same time outside contemporary social and political norms in their structure, discourses and iconography. The discourses and enactments of playwork frequently occur in shared spaces, in which they come up against powerful counter-discourses, particularly those generated by educational institutions. A (re)turning to data collected in three primary schools, their partner nursery and out-of-school provision revealed tensions and opportunities for playwork and playworkers during school play times and before and after school …

How Does A Level 2 Rights Respecting School Facilitate Play For Children With Special Educational Needs And Disabilities (Send)?, Francesca Woods, Caroline Bond

International Journal of Playwork Practice

No abstract provided.

The Play Cycle Observation Method (Pcom): A Pilot Study, Pete King

International Journal of Playwork Practice

This pilot study of the Play Cycle Observation Method (PCOM) provides a method to record the process of play as outlined by Sturrock & Else (1998) Play Cycle. Using a single 4 minute video, 5 participants mapped the Play Cycles of a boy (aged 5-6 years) and a girl (aged 9-10 years) and recorded quantitative data in relation to recording play cues prior to and then within established Play Cycles, number of Play Cycles and how long they last. In addition, more qualitative data can be recorded with respect to the nature of the play cues, play frames, annihilation (how …

Teaching Foundational Aquatic Skills To Children In Open Water Environments, Chris Button, Angela J. Button, Anne-Marie Jackson, Jim D. Cotter, Brian Maraj

International Journal of Aquatic Research and Education

Learning to swim in a swimming pool might not prepare water competence sufficiently for different aquatic environments. The aim of this study was to assess the effectiveness of teaching children water safety knowledge and skills in open water environments (i.e., harbor, river, and surf). The aquatic knowledge and skills of 98 children (7-11 years old) were tested in a swimming pool before, immediately after, and three months after receiving a three-day intensive education program. At pre-test, typically fewer than 50% of children achieved a high level of water safety competence. After the program, competency in each of the six tasks …

“The Torture Of Colonization And The Holocaust: Multidirectional Memory In The Nature Of Blood”, Sarah Webb

International ResearchScape Journal

In this paper, I read Caryl Phillips’s 1997 post-colonial The Nature of Blood as a novel that exemplifies Michael Rothberg’s theory of “multidirectional memory.” Rothberg’s theory, which argues against the dominant competitive model of memory in the United States, asserts that memory is a “productive, intercultural dynamic” (Rothberg 3). In other words, memories of different groups of people, specifically African-Americans and Holocaust survivors in his essay, are intertwined and inform each other in a modern setting. Phillips’s novel depicts a relationship between the Holocaust and colonization through the use of multiple narratives interwoven throughout the novel. Those narratives begin with …

I Am Fascinated By What Is Beautiful, Strong, Healthy” Leni Riefenstahl, Gender, And Absolved Guilt, Karmann Ludwig

International ResearchScape Journal

Public discourse around the Nazi regime is typically surrounded by its doctrine of hatred and violence; traditional gender roles and these traits have rendered fascism a decidedly masculine pursuit—which Nazi doctrine wholeheartedly supported. Many men are to blame for the atrocities of the Holocaust and are rightfully criticized and despised for their actions; however, though a major contributor to the fascist ideology through her propaganda, filmmaker Leni Riefenstahl has remained extremely controversial. While scholars and critics have criticized Leni Riefenstahl’s films as emblemizing a fascist aesthetic, many have nonetheless praised her as an innovative artist, arguing for a separation from …

High School Athletic Director Expectations' Of Athletic Trainers Show Inconsistency Within Prevention And Evaluation Practice Domains, Emily Rinehart, Jennifer Walker, Erika Smith-Goodwin

Journal of Sports Medicine and Allied Health Sciences: Official Journal of the Ohio Athletic Trainers Association

Please enjoy Volume 6, Issue 1 of the JSMAHS. In this issue, you will find Professional, Graduate, and Undergraduate research abstracts, and case reports.

Thank you for viewing this 6^th Annual OATA Special Edition.

The Ocean Lifeguard Intervention Continuum: A Cognitive Aid For Surf Lifeguard Education, William A. Koon, Ryan M. Gates, Shane Scoggins, Paul Andrus, Jack A. Futoran

International Journal of Aquatic Research and Education

Ocean lifeguards are constantly engaged in beach risk analysis, required to efficiently evaluate a variety of environmental and other factors quickly in order to triage and prioritize who needs help. Teaching these skills is a challenge for introductory training programs. We sought to improve new lifeguards’ understanding of the interaction of various risk components in the beach environment and aid decision-making related to when a lifeguard should intervene in a situation. We developed a two-part cognitive aid for introductory ocean lifeguard education depicting individual and interacting elements of a beach goer’s risk of drowning or injury and the process by …

Kids Don’T Float…And Their Parents Don’T Either: Using A Family-Centered Approach In Alaska’S Kids Don’T Float Program, Michelle E. E. Bauer, Audrey R. Giles, Justina Marianayagam, Kelli M. Toth

International Journal of Aquatic Research and Education

The goal of this experiential report is to outline the adoption of a family-centered Kids Don’t Float approach. We conducted a critical synthesis of information to reflect the expansion of the Kids Don’t Float program into a more family-centered approach. The critical synthesis provided insights into why we should adopt this approach, how it was implemented, and how it influenced drowning incidents compared to the previously used child-centered approach. The adoption of a family-centered approach may contribute to reducing drowning incidents by targeting parents, providing safety information to families, and promoting parental modelling of life jackets. Program evaluators and water …

Promising Practices For Boating Safety Initiatives That Target Indigenous Peoples In New Zealand, Australia, The United States Of America, And Canada, Mitchell Crozier, Audrey R. Giles

International Journal of Aquatic Research and Education

Boating-related incidents are responsible for a significant number of the drowning fatalities that occur within Indigenous communities in New Zealand, Australia, the USA, and Canada. The aim of this paper was to identify promising practices for boating safety initiatives that target Indigenous peoples within these countries and evaluate past and ongoing boating safety initiatives delivered to/with Indigenous peoples within these countries to suggest the ways in which they – or programs that follow them - may be more effective. Based upon evidence from previous research, boating safety initiatives that target Indigenous peoples in New Zealand, Australia, the USA, and Canada …