Digital Commons Network^™

Self-Concept Competency Of National Aeronautics And Space Administration Research And Development Managers, Mark A. Beymer

Dissertations and Theses

Boyatzis has stated that "true" management competencies are characteristics of a manager which differentiate superior from average and below average performance. Boyatzis, however, treats a manager's self-image (self-concept) as a "threshold" rather than a "real" competency. Lafferty's research, which has measured relationships between several lifestyle (self-concept) variables and corresponding organizational behavior, has found that performance differences between average and high performing managers are associated with differences in self-concept construction. The researcher proposes to treat variations in self-concept measurements from managers as indications of their relative management competency. Thisresearch investigates seventeen hypotheses relating to the self-concepts of high performing, mid-level technical …

The Use Of Efficient Information Systems For Information Acquisition By The Hearing Impaired: A Case Study, William L. Nicolay

Dissertations and Theses

This paper presents an exploratory case study focusing on the acquisition of information, through technologically efficient systems, by the hearing impaired. The multiple-case study was conducted during one school year with seven students participating.

While a central question and propositions derived from that question guide the data collection and analysis, this is a hypothesis-building study. The purpose of the study was to generate questions to focus further research of a descriptive or explanatory format.

One question, and the propositions generated by it, dominated this research: How do efficient acquisition systems in the classroom effect academic and social behavior, independent activities, …

Oregon Women In Educational Administration: Profiles And An Analysis Of Upward Career Mobility Factors, Leland D. Chapman

Dissertations and Theses

The first purpose of this study was to determine from the positive and negative factors identified by Jones and Montenegro (1982), which factors Oregon female administrators perceived had influenced upward mobility in their careers. Study of this topic reveals added information and direction to administrators of university administrative programs, school board members and school personnel administrators involved in hiring and providing training or staff development. As a result, the commonalities and differences among female school administrators in Oregon are identified. Identifying the factors that relate to upward mobility of tenured and nontenured female administrators provides insight and hopefully will promote …

Factors Affecting Persistence Of Non-Traditional Students In A Non-Traditional Baccalaureate Degree Program, Dixie Lee Lund

Dissertations and Theses

Limited theoretical research exists regarding attrition of nontraditional (older, part-time, commuter) students on American college and university campuses today. Thus, when colleges or universities seek to improve programs specifically designed for such students, there is no broad research base on which to rely. The present study sought to determine if there were differences, especially ones the institution could do something about, between non-traditional students who left such a program and those who completed it. A conceptual model of non-traditional student attrition, developed by adult educators/researchers, Drs. John Bean and Barbara Metzner, provided the theoretical base for the study. Data were …

Staff Development And The Process Of Teacher Change: A Case Study, Christene Kay Jones

Dissertations and Theses

This case study documented a staff development program which was the major component of a public school/university partnership between Portland State University and the Lake Oswego School District, a suburb of Portland, Oregon. A select group of 34 Lake Oswego teachers and 4 administrators participated in the Joint Ventures in Instructional Leadership Program which included classes in learning and instructional theory, techniques of peer sharing, instructional strategies and models of teaching, and approaches to the teaching of higher order thinking skills. The program included 7 full days and 4 evenings of instructional training which occurred throughout the 1986-87 school year. …

Organizational Inducements And Social Motives: A Game Theoretic Analysis, Richard G. Davis

Dissertations and Theses

Game theory was used to analyze compensation systems based on individual and group incentives. Payoff formulas were developed for these incentives assuming different preferences for individual and social outcomes. Two levels of contributions were considered: (1) Defection. The minimum acceptable level of contributions, and (2) Cooperation. A level of discretionary contributions above the minimum. The discretionary contributions associated with cooperation were represented as a cost to the individual.

A classification scheme for uniform n-person games was developed using the approach of Rappaport and Guyer (1966) for 2 x 2 games. This classification scheme defines the natural outcome (cooperation or defection) …

Traditional College-Age Students' Attitudes Toward Arnold's Seven Building Blocks Decision-Making Strategy, Mary Ellen Wernow

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study was to learn more about the attitudes of traditional college-age students toward Arnold's Seven Building Blocks decision-making strategy (John D. Arnold, 1978. The Art of Decision Making. New York: Amacom). to identify student characteristics which could predict those students who are most likely to respond in a positive manner to the strategy and to determine which of the steps in the strategy students perceive as being helpful. The sample population consisted of 62 traditional college-age students currently enrolled in four Oregon educational institutions. Data was gathered through the Decision Making Inventory (Johnson, Coscarelli, and Johnson. …

The Characteristics Of The Teacher Evaluation Process As Perceived By Elementary Teachers And Principals, Peter H. Taylor

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study was to investigate the perceptions of elementary teachers and principals of the evaluation system used in two suburban school districts near Portland. Oregon. The two districts involved in the study used the ITIP model for instruction and teacher evaluation over a period of several years. The Teacher Evaluation Profile (TEP) developed by the Northwest Regional Education Laboratory was the instrument used in the study of teachers. A modified version of the TEP was used with elementary principals. The population of the study consisted of 233 elementary teachers from grades K-6 and 14 elementary principals. The …

Collective Bargaining For Educational Administrators: Oregon And Washington Principals' Perceptions Of Working Conditions, Patricia Ann Boles

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between collective bargaining for public school principals and principals' perceptions of their working conditions. Specifically, this study examined the perceptions of working conditions for a sample of principals who had statutory authority to bargain collectively (Washington) and a sample of principals who did not have such authority (Oregon). This type of study can make a contribution to the knowledge base for educational leadership, administrative behavior and governance dynamics within educational organizations. Methodologically, this descriptive study utilized a survey research design. Survey research permits data gathering from a relatively large number …

Adults As Students: Ego Development And The Influence Of The Academic Environment, Shannon Moon Leonetti

Dissertations and Theses

This study was based on the premise that one outcome of education is ego development. The research was based on Jane Loevinger's theory that ego development is the central frame-of-reference through which people view themselves and their relationships with others. The study looked for evidence of ego development in adult students and for contributing factors, including academic environments. It compared the ego levels of students aged 35 to 55 at two higher education institutes and some experiences that are common to most colleges.

The variables compared were based on Loevinger's levels of ego development and theories of academic environments of …

Preferred Perceptual Learning Styles Of Chinese Students, Alex Albert Pia

Dissertations and Theses

The basis for this study was work done by Joy Reid (1987) of Colorado State University. Reid's work analyzed the pref erred perceptual learning styles of several groups of English as a Second Language students and one group of American students. The learning styles concept has been established on the theory that students have a particular mode through which they learn best. The learning styles analyzed in this study were: auditory, visual, kinesthetic, tactile, individual, and group. The objectives of this study were to determine the relationships that exist between the preferred perceptual learning styles of P.R.C. and American students …

Toward Predicting Completion Of Substance Abuse Treatment, Rebecca Lee Bragg

Dissertations and Theses

This investigation attempts to identify factors which influence whether or not someone is likely to drop out of a chemical dependency treatment program. Dropping out is defined as someone who leaves treatment against medical advice.

The subjects were patients from a private, non-profit, medically based, residential program. Nine demographic characteristics were abstracted from the charts on file for the patients at the treatment center. Two groups of 45 patients each were selected from the inpatient population. One group, the Completed Treatment group, comprised patients who had completed the 28 day program. The second group, the AMA Discharge group, comprised patients …

An Analysis Of The Relationship Between Learning Style Perceptual Preferences And Attitudes Toward Computer-Assisted Instruction, Mary Brambilla Mcfarland

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this investigation was to identify the perceptual learning style preferences of nursing students and to examine the relationship, if any, among students whose learning style perceptual preferences were identified as being auditory, tactile or visual and their attitudes toward the use of computer-assisted instruction (CAI) in the areas of comfort, creativity and function. The relationships between nursing students' perceptual learning style preferences and the following were also examined: (a) the amount of time they spent using the computer program, Cardiac Exam Bingo; (b) whether the use of the computer program added to their learning the content about …

Persistence Of New Full-Time Students: A Study In A Community College, Janet Stephine Stennick

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study was to identify those retention-associated variables which best account for persistence and nonpersistence among new full-time students in a community college. The major research question for the study was: Within a community college, what differentiates new full-time students who leave and those who stay? Do factors identified in previous studies which helped to explain persistence and nonpersistence in four-year colleges and universities and those colleges that serve large numbers of residential students hold the same power for explaining this phenomenon in community colleges? Of the 607 new full-time students who enrolled Fall Term, 1987, 552 …

Portland State Magazine, Portland State University. Office Of University Communications

Portland State Magazine

PSU’s alumni magazine, published quarterly. In this issue: PSU faculty experience Middle Eastern and North African cultures through study-travel program; joint program encourages ethnic minorities to become teachers; Portland’s reputation for racist violence; and more.

Predictors Of Depression In American Indian Adolescents, Quang Duong-Tran

Dissertations and Theses

Discriminant analysis was conducted to examine the empirical use of psychosocial variables and stressful life events scales in classifying depressed and non-depressed American Indian adolescents using a standardized criterion measure. Subjects attending a Bureau of Indian Affair boarding school were administered a mental health screening survey and were interviewed within four weeks using the Diagnostic Interview Schedule f or Children-Revised (DISC-R). Three models of discriminant analysis were used to determine the overall and incremental variance contributed by the stressful life events scales and the related psychosocial variables (i.e., gender, perceived social support from family and from friends, self-esteem, and depressive …

Normative Data On The Auditory Memory Test Battery For Ages 9 Through 13 Years, Elisabeth Y. Carter

Dissertations and Theses

Auditory short-term memory (STM) is important for speech and language development and for learning new information presented auditorily. Research has shown that auditory STM ability is of a developmental nature in the 5 through 8 year age range for a variety of auditory stimuli. Many tests and subtests are available to measure auditory STM ability, however one test, the Auditory Memory Test Battery (AMTB) measures auditory memory span and memory for sequence for 5 types of stimuli.

The purpose of this study was to collect normative data on the AMTB scores of normal 9 through 13 year old students and …

Effects Of Flat Panel Display Parameters Across Three Application Areas Upon Similarity Judgments, Novia Weiman

Dissertations and Theses

A human performance experiment was conducted to investigate pixel parameter requirements for three types of flat-panel display images: an alphanumeric character, an oscilloscope waveform, and a real-world image. Subjects performed similarity judgments between an extremely high-quality image and an image composed of different levels of anti-aliasing and pixel width-plus-pixel separation (pitch). It was found that the effect of pitch had greater influence on perceived image quality for the alphanumeric character and oscilloscope waveform than for the real-world image. The results of this research provide empirical evidence showing that the pixel pitch requirements for flat-panel systems that are used to display …

Portland State Magazine, Portland State University. Office Of University Communications

Portland State Magazine

PSU’s alumni magazine, published quarterly. In this issue: Predicting presidential performance is the subject of the day for professors Jim Heath and David Smeltzer; paint brush to canvas has become light pen to video terminal in one Art Department office; advanced degrees in science and engineering are the focus of far-reaching plans at Portland State; a professor and a student from PSU heads up an experimental needle exchange program; and more.

Advertising In Restrooms, Karsten C. Hofmann

Dissertations and Theses

There is a common belief that the special situation one encounters in restrooms is likely to evoke negative associations between the setting and a potential product, and that these presumed associations make advertising in restrooms incompatible with the objectives of advertisers.

This general proposition was questioned on theoretical grounds. It was argued that the specific situation in a restroom would be conducive to advertising goals in a number of ways. In addition, while negative associations may occur with certain kinds of products, others were hypothesized to be unaffected. In particular, the potential value of restrooms for communicating public education issues …

Beyond Difference Scores: Testing Models Of Speed Of Information-Processing Using Confirmatory Factor Analysis, Gary A. Uhland

Dissertations and Theses

This study has two parts: Part I discusses the limitations of difference scores and exploratory factor analysis for representing speed of information-processing stages in the context of a reanalysis of a study by Vernon (1983). Vernon interpreted the differences between objectively measured reaction times on various simple cognitive tasks as components of speed of information processing. Correlations were calculated among these differences and subjected to exploratory factor analysis. The factors obtained from this analysis were interpreted by Vernon in terms of short-term and long-term memory processing constructs. The use of difference scores, however, implies an additive model allowance for random …

Eating Disorders: The Correlation Of Family Relationships With An Eating Disorder Continuum, Jana Schweitzer

Dissertations and Theses

For the purposes of this study, eating disturbances were placed on a continuum ranging from disordered to normal, and family factors were examined via this framework. Research on anorectics and bulimics indicates that a variety of family variables contribute to the etiology of eating disorders. Research suggests the presence of a subgroup of persons who experience some disturbance in their relationships with food but not to the severity observed among eating disordered individuals. This study examined the relationship between family factors and eating disturbances.

Focal Point, Volume 02 Number 04, Portland State University. Regional Research Institute

Research and Training Center - Focal Point

In the last two decades there has been a movement in the mental health field toward improved services to children and families who are members or" minority populations. Recognized as at risk and underserved, families of minority populations have repeatedly been the subjects of research and demonstration projects. Mental health professionals serving these children and families today are faced with the nagging question: "What constitutes appropriate services for minority clients?" Fortunately, the cumulative results of twenty years of work in this area are now becoming apparent. The knowledge base has grown and models for working cross-culturally have been developed and …

Hedonic Analysis Of Gasoline Retailing, Soleman A. Al-Bassir

Dissertations and Theses

Researchers have difficulty modeling the influence of retailing attributes on consumer choice. The literature of retailing that has dealt with this issue has conventionally used experimental data for estimating the influence of retailing attributes on consumer behavior. The present research applies hedonic analysis to the measurement of the value of retailing attributes. This is accomplished by applying hedonic specifications to supply and demand models for the retail sales of unleaded gasoline for the purpose of estimating the influence of specified retailing attributes on retail prices. Four retailing attributes-accessibility, convenience, service, and competition-were expected to have a determinable value that was …

Faculty Senate Monthly Packet June 1988, Portland State University Faculty Senate

Faculty Senate Monthly Packets

The June 1988 Monthly packet includes the June agenda and appendices and the Faculty Senate minutes and attachments from the meeting held May 1988.

Effects Of Feedback And Goal Setting On Job Attitudes And Productivity: A Field Study, Stephen Kildahl

Dissertations and Theses

Two theories of work motivation taken from the field of Industrial/Organizational Psychology were compared in a six-week field experiment at a Fortune 500 company. A Job Enrichment Model (Hackman & Oldham, 1975) was used and the Motivating Potential Score (MPS) of three groups of machine operators was obtained before and after a six-week productivity study. Three goal conditions based on Goal Theory (Locke, 1968) were assigned one to each of three groups of machine operators and comparisons were made between the treatment groups. Production increases resulted from providing goals and feedback to subjects, but these increases were not statistically significant. …

Effects Of Graded And Steady Exercise And Self-Confidence On Stress, Kristine M. Clarke

Dissertations and Theses

This study examined the effects of steady, graded, and no exercise on stress reduction, and the effects of self-confidence on stress reduction through exercise. Seventy-two male and female volunteers from the Portland area, ranging in age from 19-49 years, served as subjects. Subjects completed pre and post measures of the Tennessee Self-Concept Scale and the state portion of the Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory. Subjects were divided into two experimental and one control group matched according to age and exercise history. The control group kept its exercise at a minimum for eight weeks. Exercise programs for the two experimental groups consisted …

Grace Wick: Portrait Of A Right-Wing Extremist, June Melby Benowitz

Dissertations and Theses

"Grace Wick: Portrait of a Right-Wing Extremist" is a biography of an American woman who lived between 1888 and 1958. Wick grew up in a small midwestern town, but as a young woman broke away from small town tradition by moving to the city to pursue a career as an actress in the theater and in silent movies. In the course of her acting career she traveled across North America and had the opportunity to associate with people from all walks of life. As an actress, she was able to achieve an autonomy enjoyed by few women during the 1910s …

Portland State Magazine, Portland State University. Office Of University Communications

Portland State Magazine

PSU’s alumni magazine, published quarterly. In this issue: Under the direction of Lee Casperson, PSU’s laser research lab is affecting the way the world uses lasers; helping crime labs identify skeletal remains has become a fascinating sideline for anthropologist Ann Bennett; conservative investing lessened the blow of October’s Black Monday for alumnus Richard Huson and his clients; the University’s 35 Advisory Councils are creating new bonds between PSU and the community; and more.

Identifying Pedophiles With The Mmpi, Margaret M. Seits

Dissertations and Theses

The present study investigated the validity of the Pe (Toobert, Bartelme, & Jones, 1959) and Sexual Deviancy (Marsh, Hilliard, & Liechti, 1955) subscales, developed from the MMPI, to determine if the scales would discriminate convicted sexual offenders from nonsexual offenders.