Digital Commons Network^™

A Mixed Methods Investigation Of Third Grade Academic Achievement Data: Pre- And Post-Google Chromebook Usage In A Midwest Elementary School, Brittany Powell

Dissertations

Technology in the educational setting has evolved drastically over the last few decades and continues to currently evolve. As technology advances, best practices for teaching and learning, standardized testing, and curriculum also must evolve. The purpose of this study aimed to fill the gap of the lack of research regarding the possible differences in academic achievement data, pre- and post-Google Chromebooks usage. The researcher investigated educators’ and administrators’ perceptions of technology by conducting inperson interviews at the conclusion of the two-year study. The analysis of qualitative data, gathered from all interviews and researcher journal entries, fell into various thematic categories, …

Surmounting Perceived Barriers For Missouri Female Superintendents: A Phenomenological Study, Leslee Kristina Smith

Dissertations

Female superintendents throughout the United States disproportionately represent superintendents of public school districts (Cassidy et al., 2021; Gullo & Sperandio, 2020). This research study utilized the theoretical frameworks of feminism and the structured organization of institutions (Acker, 1990). In addition, the qualitative study used the phenomenological design. An open-ended survey was utilized, as well as a follow-up interview with open-ended questions to solicit deeper, lived experiences of self-imposed barriers and the strategies lead female superintendents in a Midwest state employed to surmount those barriers. Forty-four female lead superintendents in a Midwest state shared stories of their journeys to a lead …

The Cultivation Of Transformational Leadership In Secondary School Principals, Christian S. Overstreet

Dissertations

Due to the challenges schools and school administrators face in the 21st century, transformational leadership is considered the most effective approach to school leadership (Bonsu & Twum-Danso, 2018; Longwell-McKean, 2012; Valentine & Prater, 2011). The purpose of this explanatory, sequential, mixed-methods study was to investigate the importance of cultivating transformational leadership qualities and traits within secondary school principals through professional development opportunities, networking experiences, and mentorships. There has been a lack of research on the need to train in transformational leadership and whether or not it positively influences follower outcomes (Peters, 2014; Tafvelin, 2013; Udin, 2020). Phase one data were …

Project-Based Learning In Introductory Psychology: Modern Adaptations To An Academic Classic, Colton R. Olson

Dissertations

This study used a quasi-experimental design to examine the effectiveness of a project-based learning (PjBL) course design on meaningful learning, student goal orientation, engagement, and perceived classroom motivational climate in an introductory psychology course. Project-based learning was examined in comparison to a traditional, lecture and multiple-choice exam course design in introductory psychology over the course of one semester (N = 247). Generally, there is limited research examining PjBL in large introductory classes, specifically in relation to concrete outcomes such as meaningful learning and perceived classroom climate (Gurung et al., 2016). Therefore, the purpose of the study was to add to …

Getting Them To The Chopper: An Empirical Study Of Man Therapy, A Public Health Campaign Designed To Encourage Men To Utilize Psychological Services, David Gretz

Dissertations

This study examined the effects that the Man Therapy website may have on men’s attitudes and intentions toward seeking professional psychological services, factors that play a role in deciding if they will eventually engage in the behavior of seeking of professional psychological services according to the theory of planned behavior. A large number of men die by suicide every year, and many men struggle with mental health concerns. Various components of masculinities can serve as barriers that dissuade men from seeking treatment for these concerns. Man Therapy is a novel approach that attempts to better engage men with professional psychological …

“Beginning, Again And Again”: The Experiences Of Excellent White Educators In Diverse Urban Schools, Christopher Deremer

Dissertations

This narrative inquiry study focused on the experiences of reputationally excellent White educators working in diverse urban high schools. Using methods from participatory narrative inquiry (Kurtz, 2014), this study asked three participants to explore their respective journeys as educators in diverse urban settings and to use story and reflection as well as more traditional narrative inquiry methods of observation, interviews, and artifact analysis to identify emergent themes about what made these White educators successful and how their definition of success changed throughout their career. The focus on White educators was important because of the demographic divide between students in urban …

Expanding The Conceptualization And Applied Role Of Shame, Nathaniel Michael Burrow

Dissertations

Prior research has shown shame to be a key component of a variety of mental health issues, symptoms, and disorders; however, a growing body of research also found it to be integral in the process of seeking to atone, ameliorate, or repair a prior transgression. This study sought to further explore what factors influenced this process. By utilizing a posttest-only control group experimental design and the Gausel and Leach (2011) model as a framework, this study was able to operationalize and investigate the role shame had in motivating a prosocial versus self-defensive response. Additionally, this study advanced this model by …

Stealth Dyslexia: Cognitive And Achievement Profiles Of Gifted Students With Dyslexia, Anne Hardy Boris

Dissertations

Identifying students who are gifted with dyslexia (GWD) has presented a host of challenges to practitioners in school and clinic settings because these individuals possess both qualities of giftedness and learning difficulties, yet do not ‘fit’ in either category. The term “stealth dyslexia” was coined to indicate the presence of high abilities that may mask dyslexia traits, complicate diagnostic accuracy, and allow individuals to compensate for their weaknesses. The masking of reading difficulties can cause dyslexia to remain undetected in gifted children for a prolonged period of time which may leave them prone to academic disengagement. The present study provided …

Comparing Collegiate Coaches’ And Players’ Perceptions Of The Coaches’ Multicultural Competence, Lee Arakawa

Dissertations

The coaching effectiveness model developed by Horn (2008) describes cultural context as a backdrop that forms beliefs, perceptions, and behaviors displayed by sport coaches. Sue et al.’s (1992) multicultural competencies model stresses the value of awareness, knowledge, and skills used in all service fields to strengthen cross-cultural relationships. Therefore, multicultural competence has been identified from these models as a critical component of effective sport coaching. Despite the growing importance of multicultural competencies expressed by, and for, sport coaches (Mesquita et al., 2011; Santos et al., 2010), there remains limited understanding of how coaches obtain and apply multiculturally competent behaviors and …

Counseling Supervisors' Experiences Facilitating Supervisees' Cultural Competence, Christopher D. Bozell

Dissertations

A vital attribute of counselors to provide quality client care is cultural competence. Counseling supervisors are tasked to demonstrate cultural competence in supervisory interventions by aiding the supervisees in increasing their knowledge, awareness of attitudes and beliefs, and skills related to culturally sensitive practice. Although many professional organizations require counseling supervisors to provide culturally competent supervision, very few studies have examined how counseling supervisors demonstrate their skills. This qualitative Descriptive Phenomenological study explored the experiences of counseling supervisors when facilitating supervisees’ cultural competence.

Ten individual semi-structured interviews with counseling internship site supervisors were conducted to collect data about their experiences …

Emotional Labor And New Independent School Heads, Seth William Yocum

Dissertations

The most important relationship to the life of an independent school has been the relationship between the head of school and the board of trustees. Still, most independent school heads have found that attending to their relationship with their board of trustees was one of the more challenging aspects of their work. Conventional wisdom and scholarship alike have suggested that this relationship could be especially trying for new independent school heads. The goal of this analytic autoethnographic study was to explore the performed emotional labor of new independent school heads in their relationship with their board of trustees during their …

Principals’ Definition And Identification Of Critical Thinking In Teacher Practices, Carmen Aumber Polka

Dissertations

Principals are teacher evaluators and, therefore, need a clear definition and identification of critical thinking in teacher practices to increase their impact on teacher effectiveness and student critical thinking outcomes. Beyond teacher evaluations, principals are responsible for supporting and developing teachers in their instructional practices (Davis et al., 2005) and for enhancing teachers’ pedagogical skills (Marzano et al., 2011). This instrumental case study explored how 12 principals, who use the Colorado State Model Evaluation System (CSMES) to evaluate critical thinking teacher practices, define critical thinking, and identify critical thinking utilized in teacher practices. Participants were purposefully selected from this Colorado …

Lived Experience Of Reintegration Among Involuntarily Separated Operation Enduring Freedom (Oef) And Operation Iraqi Freedom (Oif) Era Veterans, Austin Deshon Hamilton

Dissertations

The present study is the first known attempt to explore what reintegration is like for those who separated from the military against their will. The primary purposes of this study were to (a) assist counseling psychologists, other mental health care providers and administrators who work with involuntarily separated veterans in better understanding the unique difficulties and psychological stressors associated with leaving the military community against one’s will; and (b) highlight potential barriers to accessing mental healthcare among involuntarily separated veterans. Finally, the secondary objective was to identify whether interpersonal theory of suicide (Joiner 2005)-related constructs were present among this sample …

A Portraiture Of Two Tribal College Leaders, Jessica Jasmine Buckless

Dissertations

This study explored the lives and self-perceived impacts of two Tribal college presidents in a northwest state of the United States. This qualitative inquiry employed portraiture in which the researcher created a diverse range of stories curated through interviews, observations of participants, and artifacts to formulate a story of each participant’s life. This study shared the unique stories of each Tribal college leader. Their stories were captured through questions about their perspectives and how they felt that they had contributed to their respective colleges. In addition to how they had contributed culturally, follow-up questions addressed how they had attributed to …

Determining The Effectiveness Of Virtually-Delivered Written Exposure Therapy For Treatment Of Posttraumatic Stress Symptoms, Stephanie M. Haft

Dissertations

The COVID-19 pandemic has disproportionately impacted individuals with mental health issues (Swendsen, 2020). Although the peak destruction of the COVID-19 pandemic has passed, the psychological fallout remains. Social isolation, home confinement, and travel restrictions have exacerbated mental health issues during the COVID-19 pandemic, contributing to negative psychological distress (Smith et al., 2020). Survivors of trauma have higher vulnerability to prolonged psychological distress than the general population and others with non-trauma-related mental health conditions, which has been exacerbated during and following the COVID-19 pandemic. For these reasons, survivors of trauma may particularly benefit from virtual-delivery of trauma-focused treatments. Mental health providers …

Development Of Smart Wearable Sensory Systems On Flexible And Fabric Platforms For Health Monitoring Applications, Simin Masihi

Dissertations

Wearable sensing technology has recently received an increased attention in both research and commercialization phases and has moved from a vision of science fiction to reality with a wide variety of applications. This incredible growth can be attributed to several factors, such as affordability and ergonomics provided by advances in flexible electronics. The other factors that realized wearable sensing technology include a critical need for more accessible health care services experienced during the recent COVID pandemic, integration to the Internet of Things (IoT), and a growing consumer desire for health awareness. This dissertation presents the fulfillment of three main projects …

Human Resource Development In The Intercollegiate Workplace: The Intersection Of Organizational Politics, Political Skill, Job Design, And Employee Engagement, Logan John Schuetz

Dissertations

This project is expected to help explain how workplace competencies affect employee development, performance, and decision-making in the sport industry. This study utilized an indepth qualitative examination of the lived experiences of employees in intercollegiate athletics departments. To do so, the researcher embedded himself into an ordinarily restrictive environment (i.e., intercollegiate sport organizations) which offered unique data regarding the intersection of organizational politics, job design/crafting, and employee engagement in the sport workplace. This study utilized the framework of Human Resource Development (HRD) to explore how job crafting and design can enable sport employees’ understandings of engagement and performance. Sport employees …

Flourishing For Sport Consumers: The Case Of Fantasy Baseball And Social Media Engagement, Bomin Paek

Dissertations

Digital technology transformation within the sports industry has led to increasing attention being given to how digital services can influence fans’ positive psychological perspectives. In particular, through this study I aimed to understand the effects of fantasy sports and social media engagement on positive psychological benefits, such as perceived value and flourishing. In the current study, regulatory engagement theory was applied to understand whether the digital engagement of sports consumers is positively associated with perceived value and flourishing as a form of well-being. In the implementation of the pre-, mid-, or post-consumption model, three groups were created based on the …

Entre Dos Mundos: Understanding The Experiences Of Latinx Adolescent Language Brokers, Miranda Kristine Martino

Dissertations

Every day, across the United States, there are families who rely on their children to perform the essential task of facilitating communication between themselves and others who do not share their language; this process is referred to as language brokering. Eleven participants who identified as Latinx child language brokers were interviewed. The purpose of this study was to explore the stories of these youth to better understand how they came to be language brokers in their families, their perspectives on their roles within their families and their culture, and the perceived positives and challenges of this practice. From these lived …

Attachment And Older Adults In Psychotherapy: A Latent Profile Analysis Of Psychological Distress Across Treatment, Brian Michael Stran

Dissertations

Older adults have been largely underrepresented within the psychotherapy literature. Given the unique social and emotional changes associated with older age (Carstensen et al., 1999) and the perceived gap in training that trainees report in working with older adults (Woodhead et al., 2015), there is a pressing need for research that can aid mental health practitioners in the conceptualization, treatment planning, and treatment of their older adult clients.

In the first part of this manuscript, an integrated theoretical model, consisting of socioemotional selectivity theory (SEST; Carstensen et al., 1999) and attachment theory (Bowlby 1969), was developed to provide psychotherapists with …

Graduate Students' Self-Determination As Writers, Need For Cognition, And Sense Of Belonging As Predictors Of Confidence In Program Completion, Mary Ebejer

Dissertations

This study explored graduate student self-determination as a writer, need for cognition, and sense of belonging as predictors of their confidence today in their program completion. The data set consisted of 2,390 graduate students at universities across the United States. The data analysis was conducted using hierarchical linear modeling (HLM), with students nested in programs, nested in universities.

The analysis found that both self-determination as a writer and sense of belonging contributed to student confidence in program completion. Need for cognition did not. Seven statistically significant student-level demographic and program-related variables remained in the final model, including: PhD student, returning …

The Impact Of The Black Student Excellence And Enrichment Program On The Retention Of Black Students, Angie Royal

Dissertations

This mixed-methods study investigated a retention program for Black students on a small, private liberal arts campus in the Midwest, to determine if the program increased the retention of Black students. It also examined why students chose to (or not to) participate in the program, what components of the program students found helpful, the challenges Black students faced on campus, and whether they would recommend the program to future students.

The gap in the retention rates of Black students compared to other ethnic groups has continued to be a topic of concern on college campuses. At the research site, this …

Esports Curricula In U.S. Post-Secondary Institutions: A Case Study, Debra L. Bell

Dissertations

Although the concept of Esports competency has been widely recognized, it is not yet well understood by the various educational institutions that have started offering certification programs in this field. This study aims to provide a comprehensive analysis of the multiple principles that have been established to promote this specialization.

The increasing popularity of gaming and esports has led to the development of a wide range of educational programs that are geared toward addressing the needs of the future workforce. Although the goal of these programs is to provide a comprehensive view of the various facets of this field, the …

A Qualitative Case Study Of Health-Related Baccalaureate And Graduate Web-Based Simulated Clinical Learning Platforms, Kathrine Choura Branch

Dissertations

Simulation has been recognized as a teaching, learning, evaluation, and research strategy based on learning theories, that has come to play a significant role in healthcare education (Beal et al., 2017; La Cerra et al., 2019). Health-related academic programs in higher education have traditionally used simulation to fill gaps in learning and strengthen students’ clinical and critical thinking skills in conjunction with didactic classroom content, laboratory practice, and clinical education in the community setting (Hayden et al., 2014). With the onset and unpredictability of COVID-19, there was almost an immediate need for health-related academic programs across the world to transition …

Implementation Planning To Increase Treatment Integrity For Check-In/Check-Out With An Electronic Dbrc, Caitlyn Weaver

Dissertations

The present investigation assessed the effectiveness of Implementation Planning (IP) as a strategy for improving the treatment integrity of a commonly implemented behavioral intervention, Check-In/Check-Out (CICO). An electronic daily behavior report card (E-DBRC) was used to monitor intervention effectiveness for three students across a non-concurrent multiple-baseline design. IP was not associated with consistent improvements in treatment integrity for teachers who served as mentors within the CICO intervention. Teacher treatment integrity improved for one student’s teacher but had no sustained functional relation for the other two teachers. Student behavioral data were collected to determine if the implementation of CICO was associated …

Power, Privilege, And Permission: A Qualitative Study On The Perspectives Of Vocational Rehabilitation Counselors Who Serve Racially Diverse Clients, Cherrelle Singleton

Dissertations

This qualitative study explored the experiences of vocational rehabilitation counselors (VRC) serving racially diverse clients and how VRCs are trained and educated to work with racially diverse clients. VRCs are typically employed by federally funded state or federal rehabilitation agencies. In their role, they aim to provide individualized tools and services that empower people with disabilities by alleviating barriers to being successful when preparing for and maintaining employment and being independent in their adult life (Donnell et al., 2013). Often tasked to work with clients who have marginalized identities including race and disability, VRCs must be able to understand and …

Alternative Education Programs: An Exploration Of Programs And Supports To Reduce Juvenile Recidivism Among At-Risk Youth, Sarah Elizabeth Vanrensselaer

Dissertations

An exploration of alternative education programs and their relationship to juvenile recidivism was the focus of this narrative analysis. A constructivist epistemology and an interpretivist paradigm formed the conceptual framework, both of which aligned with the theoretical framework of Zimmerman’s (2008) self-regulated learning theory. The research questions focused on how alternative education programs impacted juvenile recidivism with a focus on 10 alternative education participants in Southeast, Wyoming, who have participated in the juvenile justice system. The use of multiple cases, coding, and collaboration between the researcher and the participants were used to ensure trustworthiness of this research. Results indicated the …

The Influence Of Chemistry Instructors’ Knowledge And Beliefs About Learning On The Implementation Of Evidence-Based Instructional Practices, Brittney J. Morgan

Dissertations

In this dissertation I explore characteristics which influence the implementation of evidence-based instructional practices of six post-secondary chemistry instructors in Colorado who report current use of these practices. The purpose of this study was to identify these characteristics to recognize areas of focus for future professional development. Knowledge and beliefs were also explored, as characteristics are often a culmination of these individual beliefs. Using a qualitative case study approach, a survey, classroom observations, and semi-structured interviews were used to collect the data for this exploration. Instructors were observed using the Classroom Observation Protocol for Undergraduate Science, Technology, Engineering and Math …

Examining The Effect Of Gratitude On Intolerance Of Uncertainty And Loneliness, Adam John Paul Mackenzie

Dissertations

Loneliness has been demonstrated to have significant negative effects on overall well-being in the general population. Previous literature has demonstrated a significant association between loneliness and various demographic variables such as gender, age, educational attainment, relationship status, living arrangements and income. Because of the unique impact that the disease caused by the coronavirus, COVID–19, has had on a global scale in relation to physical distancing and increasing physical and psychological distress, the purpose of this study was to examine the role that gratitude played in the relationship between intolerance of uncertainty and loneliness among the general adult population of the …

The Social Ecology Of Academic Achievement: Risk And Protection, Jannessa Lynn Kitchin

Dissertations

There is an academic achievement gap consistently observed in the literature between differential socioeconomic groups. Students who do well academically despite risk are academically resilient. Researchers investigating academic resilience have failed to incorporate contemporary resilience models into their research. The purpose of my study was to determine how dispositional, social, and school-based social protective factors interact and to evaluate their relationship with academic achievement as well as to examine cross-sectional differences in protective factors and academic achievement between students who were reared differential socioeconomic groups. Seven Structural Equation Models as well as Multivariate Analysis of Variance was used to investigate …