Digital Commons Network^™

Spirituality And Hope As Influences On Family Cohesion Among African American Men, Jennifer Joan Desouza

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Researchers have found that African American men have a history of difficulty in maintaining family cohesion. Researchers have also found that, in comparison to European American men, African American men are more likely to populate the penal systems, are more abusive to their partners, are less supportive of their children, and are less likely to have stable cohesive relationships. Evidence suggests that African American men draw strength from spirituality and hope, which are the core values of their culture. Drawing from these previous findings, as well as the stages of faith theory, hope theory, and the circumflex model of marital …

Factors Associated With Chlamydia Trachomatis Reinfection Among Puerto Rican Adolescents 2008-2012, Flavia Rosado

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The purpose of this study was to investigate the association between Chlamydia trachomatis reinfection rates of Puerto Rican adolescents and failure to follow the retesting protocol, failure of sexual partners to receive treatment, and failure to participate in the sexual orientation program about risk factors. Secondary data analysis, from a historical prospective study from the Health Department of Puerto Rico, was used in this study. Data analysis was restricted to adolescents 15 to 19-years-old who had a positive chlamydia result and reinfection pattern since January 2008 through December 2012. Multiple logistic regression analyses were run to predict Chlamydia trachomatis reinfection. …

Urhobo Culture And The Amnesty Program In Niger Delta, Nigeria: An Ethnographic Case Study, John Oghenero Tobor

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Despite abundant oil resources, the residents of the Niger Delta endure extreme poverty, polluted environments, poor infrastructure, and high unemployment. In the early 1990s, these problems led to a violent uprising against oil exploration. In 2009 the government of Nigeria attempted to end the uprising by implementing an amnesty program for the militants that was designed to address the region's problems. The amnesty program resulted in suspending the violence but so far has not resolved the region's problems. If these problems are not addressed, the uprising may resume. Although the Urhobo people comprised the largest number of militants from the …

The Effect Of Macroeconomic Variables On Stock Market Returns In Ghana (2000-2013), Charles Barnor

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Variations in macroeconomic indicators affect the performance of the stock markets. In Ghana, although the performance of the Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE) has been affected by macroeconomic variables from January 2000 to December 2013, the mechanisms of these relationships have not been studied. The purpose of this research was to examine the relationships between selected macroeconomic variables and their effect on the stock market returns on the Ghana stock market. The research questions addressed whether macroeconomic variables had significant effect on stock market returns in Ghana within the specified period. The target sample was all 36 listed firms on the …

Resource Control Or Terrorism: Competing Perspectives On The Conflict In The Niger Delta Region, Nigeria., Peter Ogoegbunem Opone

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

A state of conflict has existed in the Niger Delta for fifty years. The nature of the conflict, whether it is terrorism or civil insurrection, has not been resolved by the respective legislative entities. This qualitative case study was designed to explore the nature of the Niger Delta conflict from the perspective of several members of the Nigerian National Assembly and determine whether terrorism in Nigeria is related to the general conflict. Social conflict theory provided the basis for the exploration. An ancillary question explored whether antiterrorism legislation in 2006 alleviated the Niger Delta conflict. Interview data were collected from …

Prevalence Of Neonatal Tetanus In Northeastern Nigeria, Jalal-Eddeen Abubakar Saleh

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Although efforts have been made towards improving the health of children across the globe with notable results, neonatal tetanus (NNT) remains a major contributor to the neonatal death rates in Nigeria. This problem calls for a concerted effort by the government to achieve the revised global NNT elimination deadline of 2015. The purpose of this cross-sectional quantitative study using secondary data was to establish the prevalence of NNT in Nigeria's northeast region and to ascertain if there was any significant difference in frequency of antenatal care (ANC), trained traditional birth attendants (TBAs), and umbilical cord treatments, using single sample proportions …

Individualized Consideration: Poverty Countermeasure, Lawrence Wilson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Despite more than $1 trillion spent annually on poverty remediation, impoverishment in the United States persists unabated. With a U.S. poverty rate greater than 10% for more than 4 decades, economics are neither poverty's cause nor cure. As such, non-economic poverty remedies require exploration and expansion. Linking greater leadership and poverty theories, this non-experimental, cross sectional, quantitative, survey-based research effort correlated individualized consideration's (IC) practice with collegiate athlete graduation rates in order to identify and isolate possible leadership based social poverty remediation measures. Leveraging a two-stage random sample, this research effort correlated student athlete Multi-Factor Leadership Questionnaire (form 5X) responses …

A Consideration Of Tracking Within A Bounded Educational System, Scott David Ripley

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

American education is built upon a cultural paradigm of equality and access. Tracking students into homogenous classes based on prior academic performance could disadvantage lower-achieving students, thereby reinforcing inequality. The problem in the study district is that homogenous tracking was implemented, yet the system had not been evaluated within the context of implementation. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to examine educators' perceptions of the practice of tracking. Bandura and Maslow's social cognitive theory provided the conceptual framework and Dewey's beliefs on social justice and a spirit of equity provided the theoretical foundation. Open-ended narrative questionnaires were disseminated …

Refining Computerized Physician Order Entry Initiatives In An Adult Intensive Care Unit, Chevita Fuller

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Computerized physician order entry (CPOE) is used in healthcare organizations to improve workflow processes and transcription, as well as to prevent prescribing errors. Previous research has indicated challenges associated with CPOE for end-users that predispose patients to unsafe practices. Unsafe CPOE practices can be detrimental within the intensive care unit (ICU) setting due to the complexity of nursing care. Consequently, end-user satisfaction and understanding of CPOE and electronic health record (EHR) functionality are vital to avoid error omissions. CPOE initiatives should be refined post system implementation to improve clinical workflow, medication processes, and end-user satisfaction. The purpose of this quality …

Symbolic Imprisonment, Grief, And Coping Theory: African American Women With Incarcerated Mates, Avon Marie Hart-Johnson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

African American men have been incarcerated at unprecedented rates in the United States over the past 30 years. This study explored how African American females experience adverse psychosocial responses to separation from an incarcerated mate. The purpose of this qualitative grounded theory (GT) study was to construct a theory to explain their responses to separation and loss. Given the paucity of literature on this topic, helping professionals may not understand this problem or know how to support these women. Disenfranchised grief and the dual process model of bereavement were used as a theoretical lens for this study. Data were collected …

A Correlational Analysis Of Empowerment And Experience With Resistance To Change, Rita Elizabeth Burgess

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Despite more than 60 years of research about the nature of change, resistance to change remains a problem across industries. Health care leaders have limited knowledge of how health care managers' perceptions of empowerment, years of experience, and resistance to change (RTC) relate. The purpose for this nonexperimental correlational study was to examine the relationship between empowerment, years of experience, and RTC among managers via an online survey. The theoretical framework incorporated Kanter's structural empowerment theory and Kotter's change theory. The sample included 245 out of 1,181 health care managers from Veterans Administration (VA) hospitals in the New York metropolitan …

Oral Health Knowledge, Attitudes, And Practices Among Secondary School Students In Nigeria, Johnson John Omale

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

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Understanding Leadership In Small Business From The Perspectives Of Practitioners, Daniel E, Holloway

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Many small businesses fail after 5 years, having a negative impact on local and national economies. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore small-enterprise leader-operators’ experiences regarding practices that aid sustainability beyond 5 years. Twenty small enterprise leaders in the United States Midwest who were identified as having 5 years of longevity in leading organizations with fewer than 500 employees were invited to participate. These participants shared their lived experiences through semistructured interviews conducted in-person and by telephone. The dynamic theory of leadership development was used to underpin the study. In the central research question for this study, …

Forging Meaningful Social Connections In A Virtual World, Lisa J. Cook

Career Services Publications

No abstract provided.

The Spanish Adaptation Of The Gilliam Autism Rating Scale-2: Translation And Psychometric Analysis, Linda Sue Jackson, Steven Little, Angeleque Akin-Little

Walden Faculty and Staff Publications

Autism is an increasingly prevalent developmental neurological condition that manifests in pervasive impairments in social interaction, communication, and stereotypic behavior and interests. Early identification leads to positive long-term outcomes. At present, all standardized rating instruments are written in English; therefore, the purpose of the present study was to adapt the Gilliam Autism Rating Scale-2 from English into Spanish using the state-of-the-art procedures described in the literature. The English instrument was translated into Spanish, back-translated into English, and then revised using an iterative process. The adapted instrument's psychometric qualities were substantiated. An alpha coefficient of .96 verified the adapted instrument's internal …

An Institutional Approach To Developing A Culture Of Student Persistence, Gary J. Burkholder Jr, Jim Lenio, Nicole Holland, Alan Seidman, Diane Neal, Jimmy Middlebrook, Rebecca Jobe

Office of Institutional Research and Assessment Publications

There continues to be increasing focus on college student retention and persistence. This focus is coming from the United States federal government, accrediting organizations, and from students, parents, and the public. Given the spiraling costs of education and the fact that retention rates have not improved over time, various stakeholders are concerned about the value of a higher education credential. The purpose of this manuscript is to describe the efforts of a for-profit, distance education institution to focus its resources, in an evidence-based manner, on retention and to develop a culture of retention and persistence throughout the institution. The literature …

Exploring Income Supplementation For Farm Sustainability, Elizabeth P. Persson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Sustainable farms are critical to United States’ food independence and they positively contribute to the global economy. Farms in the United States are not sustainable without profitable supplemental income. The purpose of this case study was to explore the historic profitability of farm income supplementation methods. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory served as the conceptual framework. A purposive sample of 25 farmers from 5 regions of the continental United States completed semistructured interviews and described their personal experiences. Archival supplemental income data came from the United States Department of Agriculture census. All the data were analyzed using coded keywords, phrases, …

Social And Emotional Learning Competencies And Cross-Thematic Curriculum Related Skills Of Greek Students: A Multifactorial And Triangulation Analysis., Olympia Tsolou, Vasileios Margaritis

Journal of Educational Research and Practice

The cross-thematic curriculum (CTC) for school education has recently been implemented so that the quality of the Greek educational system is improved. This study aimed at assessing social and emotional learning competencies and CTC-related skills of 541 Greek students aged 11–13. Data triangulation was also used for validating these findings, having 145 school teachers reporting their perceptions on students' skills. Both students and teachers reported moderate scores of all students' skills. Multivariate analysis revealed that gender remained a significant predictor for high scores of all students' skills, and that the higher the grade level of the students, the lower the …

Cyberbullying In Higher Education, Maria A. Minor, Gina S. Smith, Henry Brashen

Journal of Educational Research and Practice

Bullying has extended beyond the schoolyard into online forums in the form of cyberbullying. Cyberbullying is a growing concern due to the effect on its victims. Current studies focus on grades K–12; however, cyberbullying has entered the world of higher education. The focus of this study was to identify the existence of cyberbullying in higher education, reveal the existence of students bullying instructors, and determine its impact. Three hundred forty-six online instructors from the undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral programs at the school of management at a large online university were surveyed. Of the respondents, 33.8% said they had been cyberbullied …

Hiv/Aids Care, Coping Strategies And Work Environmental Stress Among Nurses In Botswana, Thabo T. Fako, Debra Rose Wilson, James G. Linn, Ntonghanwah Forcheh

Walden Faculty and Staff Publications

Since 2006 there has been universal acceptance in both developing and industrialized societies that HIV treatment and related services, including more effective programs, be available to all citizens. However, as a result of the worldwide recession and shifting health priorities, progress toward these goals has stalled. While the epidemic continues to grow (approximately 34 million globally, with 2.7 million new cases in 2010), fewer resources are dedicated to treatment and prevention than previously, and clinical staffs, especially nurses are challenged by more patient care responsibilities. This paper focuses on the relationships of HIV/AIDS care, coping strategies and work environmental stress …

Assessing The Developmental Instruction Model: An Exploratory Study Of Classroom “Fit” Using Environmental Types, Daniel W. Salter

Journal of Educational Research and Practice

To support the instructional process, Knefelkamp advanced the developmental instruction model (DIM) to describe the aspects of academic environments that facilitate the epistemological development of college students, consistent with the Perry scheme. No related measurement tool has been developed for the DIM, which may account for the lack of research on it. Because the four DIM constructs (experiential, diversity, personalization, and structure) seemed consistent with the four dimensions found in environmental type theory (extraversion–introversion, sensing–intuition, thinking–feeling, and judging–perception), its related measure, the Salter Environmental Type Assessment, was used. The assertion that advanced learners begin to recognize these four dimensions was …

Church-Based Health Care Initiatives In East Baltimore, Maryland, Valerie Warner-Collins

2010-2016 Archived Posters

A qualitative case study that investigated the perceptions of clergy regarding their roles, and those of the church, in health care advocacy. Questions emanating from the research literature were piloted to 4 expert jurors before distribution to 17 main participants. The results indicated that barriers to health care access was predicated on clerical perceptions of the role of the church, severed relationships between collaborators, and several faulty and systemic factors of prior partnerships.

Student Wellness And The Residency Experience, Joseph Spillman, Laura R. Haddock, Michelle Perepiczka

2010-2016 Archived Posters

This project surveyed MS Mental Health/Marriage Couple and Family /Career residency students. Data was collected over the course of two year s of residencies in a variety of geographic locations to determine what impact the residency experience had on the ProQuol Compassion Satisfaction, burnout and secondary traumatic stress levels of Walden Master’s counseling students. The goal was to use the information to assist Walden faculty in the training, education, and personal support of counseling students in their professional and personal growth and development.

Death Anxiety, Depression, And Coping In Family Caregivers, Veronica Semenova

2010-2016 Archived Posters

Previous research suggests a relationship between caregiving and depression associated with negative impact on the caregivers’ health; however, there remains a gap regarding possible relationships among depression, death anxiety, and coping in family caregivers. In this quantitative study, participants included 46 family caregivers. Multiple regression analysis identified significant relationships between death anxiety, depression, coping, and duration of caregiver experience.

Consumer Satisfaction With Gluten-Free Yeast-Raised Doughnuts For Commercial Production, Kevin Thomas Cavanagh

2010-2016 Archived Posters

The demand for gluten-free baked goods has been growing. Currently the baking industry has been unable to produce a yeast-raised gluten-free doughnut to meet this demand. This study tested one formula, and sought to discover the feasibility. Research into gluten-free baked goods offers celiac suffers more versatility in their diet.

Independent Living Oldest-Old And Their Primary Health Provider: A Mixed Method Examination Of The Influence Of Patient Personality Characteristics, Lee Stadtlander, Martha Giles, Amy Sickel, Emma Brooks, Cherri Brown, Melissa Cormell, Lara Ewing, Delores Hart, Dawn Koons, Christy Olson, Pamela Parker, Veronica Semenova, Shawna Stoneking

School of Psychology Publications

This convergent mixed methods study examined 35 healthy, independent living individuals' (over 85 years) perceptions of their relationship with their primary health provider (PHP) and health practices. The relationship between PHP relationship perceptions and locus of control (LOC), resilience, and self-efficacy was explored through surveys and interviews. The majority indicated they visited their PHP just for preventative care; the number of PHP visits per year was significantly lower than reported for individuals over 85 by the CDC, possible reasons for this finding are provided. A positive relationship between LOC, resiliency, and self-efficacy for the oldest-old was found. Few participants indicated …

2013 Social Change Impact Report, Walden University

Social Change Impact Report

The 2013 Social Change Impact Report focuses uncovers who is leading and contributing to positive social change. The 2013 Social Change Impact Report posits types of change agents, providing new insights into defining social change agents.

The 2013 Social Change Impact Report site includes a link at which to download the entire report, resources for the media, profiles of some of Walden’s featured social change agents, information on data collection and methodology used in the 2013 survey, appendices, and three infographics illustrating report findings. A special feature is an interactive quiz; “What kind of social change agent are you?”

Leadership Strategies And Initiatives For Combating Medicaid Fraud And Abuse, Krista K. Laursen

Frank Dilley Award for Outstanding Doctoral Study

An estimated 3-10% of the $2 trillion spent annually on health care in the United States is lost to fraud. Improper payments undermine the integrity and financial sustainability of the Medicaid program and affect the ability of federal and state governments to provide health care services for individuals and families living at or below the poverty level. This study explored how health care leaders in the state of Arizona described factors contributing to the invisible nature of Medicaid fraud and abuse and necessary strategies for counteracting the business opportunities of Medicaid fraud and abuse. The institutional choice analytic framework grounded …

Applying Principles Of Psychology To Contemporary Society, Gary J. Burkholder

Walden Faculty and Staff Publications

No abstract provided.

Independent Living Oldest-Old And Their Primary Health Provider: A Mixed Method Examination Of The Influence Of Patient Personality Characteristics, Lee Stadtlander, Martha Giles, Amy Sickel, Emma Brooks, Cherri L. Brown, Melissa Cormell, Lara Ewing, Delores Hart, Dawn Koons, Christie Olson, Pamela Parker, Veronica Semenova, Shawna Stoneking

Walden Faculty and Staff Publications

This convergent mixed methods study examined 35 healthy, independent living individuals' (over 85 years) perceptions of their relationship with their primary health provider (PHP) and health practices. The relationship between PHP relationship perceptions and locus of control (LOC), resilience, and self-efficacy was explored through surveys and interviews. The majority indicated they visited their PHP just for preventative care; the number of PHP visits per year was significantly lower than reported for individuals over 85 by the CDC, possible reasons for this finding are provided. A positive relationship between LOC, resiliency, and self-efficacy for the oldest-old was found. Few participants indicated …