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Self-Esteem, Personal Control, Optimism, Extraversion, And The Subjective Well-Being Of Midwestern University Faculty, Shawn Lee Zimmerman

Dissertations

Problem and Purpose

Although recent summaries of subjective well-being have illuminated four primary covariants, little research has been done that addresses the interaction and combined effects of these variables, limiting the development of theory and practice, especially in the population of university faculty. This research sought to address the interaction of self esteem, personal control, optimism, and extraversion when measured together, and how they combine in relation to subjective well-being in a sample of Midwestern university faculty.

Methodology

A total of 233 surveys was collected from two Midwestern university faculty populations. These surveys measured self-esteem, personal control, optimism, extraversion, subjective …

Panther Stories: A Gendered Analysis Of The Autobiographies Of Former Black Panther Members, Monica Marie White

Dissertations

Literature on the influences and contributions of women within the Black Panther Party has been scant. Much of the documentation is written by and is about males. This dissertation uses the autobiographies of former Black Panther members, both male and female, to explore their experiences while in the organization. Each author's political ideology and his/her perceptions of sexism and racism and distinctions in the writing style of men and women are considered. Seven single-authored autobiographies written by former Panther members were analyzed both individually and comparatively. There were similarities among all members of the group, such as their support of …

The Effects Of Social Skills Training And Reciprocal Social Skills Training With Parent/Guardian(S) On Behavior And Recidivism Of First Time Adjuncted Youth, Kathleen A. Bailey

Dissertations

This research investigates the effect of social skills training on 46 first-time adjudicated males, ages 13 through 15 and placed on traditional probation. The independent variable was the type of group. Three types of groups were conducted: Group I (youth who received social skills training with their parents or guardians), Group II (youth who received social skills training without parents’ or guardians’ participation), and Group III (a control group of youth who did not receive social skills training). The dependent variable was the Jesness Inventory scales and subscales scores, and the type of offenses (status, misdemeanor, and felony). The research …

Loss Of The Lifelong Partner: Implications For Social Adaptation, Anora Ackerson Grinwis

Dissertations

The death of a partner has long been recognized for its ability to alter the lifestyle of the survivor. This life event can be even more significant for older adults who may be facing loss in several areas of their lives simultaneously. The focus of this qualitative study is on how older adults socially reconstruct their lives following a partner's death. The social construction of reality (Berger and Luckmann, 1966) guides design and analysis. Semistructured interviews were conducted with 29 individuals following the death of a lifelong partner, described as a relationship of 45 or more years. Participants had been …

California African-American Infant Mortality Prevention: A Prospective Study, Clara H. Eder Edd

Dissertations

Infant mortality continues to be a significant national public health problem. African-American infant mortality in the United States remains as high as or higher than those of some developing countries. In the state of California the continuing gap between African-American and Caucasian infant mortality rates is cause for alarm among public health providers. Studies repeatedly indicate that the underlying causes of infant mortality are social, economic, environmental, cultural, political, racial and historical, though not in equal measure. Children born at a socioeconomic disadvantage have less chance of survival than have children of any particular race. To address the disproportionate gap …

The Impact Of Women' S Traditional Caregiving Roles On Their Paid Labor Force Participation Throughout Their Lifecourse, Paulina X. Ruf

Dissertations

Since women are the majority of caregivers to older and/or disabled relatives, the increasing number of women in the labor force has meant that more caregivers are also employed. In an effort to expand our understanding of the perils and benefits of women's caregiving roles, the present study examines the impact of women's traditional caregiving roles on their paid labor force participation throughout their lives. This qualitative study involved semistructured, in-depth interviews with sixteen women (i.e., six in their 50s, four in their 60s, and six women in their 70s), to answer the question, "how do family caregiving roles cumulatively …

Acts Of Resistance: Nurses' Personal Narratives, Maryanne Garon Dnsc

Dissertations

Acts of resistance can be expressions of creativity, protest or non-cooperation by oppressed groups. Resistance is seen as always present in the face of domination. Acts of resistance can help us to understand how the powerless mediate power relations, and they can actually give hope to the powerless. This study looked at the issues of power and resistance through critical and feminist perspective. A central concept of feminist theory is that women, and thus nurses as a women's profession, are oppressed. This study looked at female nurses' acts of resistance, which were defined as speaking up or taking action about …

Conceptual Metaphor In The Health Care Culture, Cheryl D. Glennon Dnsc, Ms, Rn

Dissertations

The conceptual metaphor has meaning only when understood within the cultural framework which gives rise to the conceptualization. The purpose of this study was to investigate the interaction of cognition (conceptual metaphor) and culture as manifest during intercultural communication in teaching-learning sessions between health care providers and patients. An ethnography of communication (Hymes, 1974; Saville-Troike, 1989) was the method employed to investigate the use of metaphor by patients, nurses and other health care professionals. Patients were viewed as a sojourner group in the health care culture; nurses and their health care partners were seen as a host group. Data were …

Influence Of Psychiatric Diagnostic Training On Counseling Students’ Development Of A Model-For-Helping And Professional Identity, Jerry E. Mclaughlin

Dissertations

Over the years, numerous proposals have been made in the counselor education (CE) literature about what counseling philosophy can best lead the profession to a distinctive professional identity (Bauman & Waldo, 1998; Fong & Lease, 1994; Guterman, 1994). An issue in this debate is whether psychiatric diagnostic training forms a part of a counseling philosophy (i.e., model-for-helping) and professional identity that is more focused on client psychopathology than on normal developmental issues. This study explored how training and experience in psychiatric diagnostic categories (PDCs) influenced counselors’ development of their counseling philosophy and professional identity.

Focus-group interviews were held at four …

Mdma And Learning: Effects Of Acute And Neurotoxic Exposure, Thomas P. Byrne

Dissertations

In two experiments, the effects of MDMA were examined on the acquisition of lever-press responding by rats exposed to procedures in which water delivery was delayed by 0, 10, or 20 seconds. In the first experiment, naive, water-deprived rats received an intraperitoneal injection of MDMA (0, 1.0, 3.2, or 5.6 mg/kg) prior to one experimental session. Response acquisition was observed under all conditions at all drug doses. MDMA increased both response rates and reinforcers earned in a dose-dependent fashion, but only when reinforcement was immediate. Under conditions of delay, MDMA had no effect on the number of lever presses emitted …

The Impact Of Selected Barriers On Students Completing Community College In Michigan, Terri Lynn Burt

Dissertations

Research studies have been conducted to investigate barriers that inhibit the ability of adult students to obtain a postsecondary education (Powell, 1989; Shields, 1990). These studies suggest that there are three distinct categories that could be used to describe this phenomenon: (1) situational, (2) dispositional, and (3) institutional. The overall purpose of this study was to determine what barriers, if any, are experienced by nontraditional African-American students in selected Midwest community colleges in comparison to White adult students according to selected demographic variables (e.g., age, sex, marital status, number of children, employment, status, income, and race). More specifically, this study …

The Relationship Between Organizational Culture And The Practice Of Program Evaluation In Human Service Organizations, Lorraine Marais

Dissertations

There are many obstacles for human service organizations in evaluating programs. Some of these barriers are the difficulty in defining human behavior and the change that needs to be evaluated, human service programs that take a long time to show results, agency capacity to do evaluation, and cost (Young, Hollister, Hodgkinson, & Associates, 1993). Another subtle yet powerful influence on the practice of evaluation in nonprofit organizations may be organizational culture (Schein, 1990). If an organization is going to employ self-evaluation, an organizational culture may be needed that will support such efforts. This study was designed to assess the relationship …

Market Values In Education: A Case Study Of Its Effect On The Principal's Model For School Governance In Alberta, Dean G. Lindquist Edd

Dissertations

Political bodies, facing, increased pressures to improve the quality of education offered to students, are shifting to a philosophy that imposes large scale market forces such as parental choice and school competition onto educational systems in order to coerce school improvement. This shift may be prompting school-based administrators to shift school governance practices to reflect these market values. This shift, occurring in Alberta (Canada), is founded in government policy that articulates the option of educational choice for parents. Presently the government policy promotes these market values in education by providing full funding to public, separate, and charter schools, and partial …

The Relationship Of Self-Esteem, Learned Resourcefulness And Social Support To Health-Related Quality Of Life In Long-Term Cancer Survivors, Leli W. Pedro Dnsc, Ms, Rnc, Ocn

Dissertations

Increased survival and advances in oncology research demand that health professionals attend to the gap in knowledge regarding health-related quality of life (HRQL) variables associated with the unique sequelae of cancer in the long-term (LT) cancer survivor. Research in this area may direct the development of effective interventions to increase the HRQL of LT cancer survivors. The study's purpose was to describe the relationships between self-esteem, learned resourcefulness, and social support to HRQL as well as their predictive value to HRQL for LT cancer survivors. A quantitative, descriptive, correlational, and noninterventional design was used to describe the relationship of self-esteem, …

The Influence Of Promise Keepers On Fathers’ Involvement With Their Children, Michael J. Walcheski

Dissertations

This study explores the influence of Promise Keepers (PK) on fathers’ involvement with their children. The large numbers o f men involved with PK and the anecdotal success of fathers and their families have created considerable dialogue in the popular press. However, there have been no empirical studies to date that contribute data about the influence of PK on father involvement.

The conceptual framework informing this study combined father involvement and postmodern feminist perspectives. A father involvement perspective emphasizes fathers’ presence, their capability and strengths, the moral dimension to fathers’ responsibility for their children, and factors that establish responsible fathering. …

Disruption Of The Discriminative Stimulus Effects Of (+)-3, 4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (Mdma) By (± )-Mdma Neurotoxicity: Protection By Fluoxetine, Thomas B. Virden Iii

Dissertations

It is well established that repeated, high doses of 3, 4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) result in the long-term depletion of serotonin levels and destruction of serotonergic terminals in various locations in the brains of a variety of species. Further, it is also well known that concomitant injections of the serotonin reuptake inhibitor, fluoxetine, prevents this deterioration. It has recently been noted that such MDMA neurotoxicity disrupts stimulus control in rats trained to discriminate MDMA from saline in a drug discrimination procedure (Schechter, 1991a).

In order to extend Schechter's findings to the optical isomers of MDMA and to explore the potential of fluoxetine …

Relationships Between Posttraumatic Stress, Acculturation, And Maternal Sensitivity In Vietnamese And Hmong Mothers, Gwendolyn F. Foss Dnsc

Dissertations

The purposes of this study were to determine if posttraumatic stress (PTS), depression, and anxiety occurred in a community sample of Vietnamese and Hmong mothers and to describe relationships between PTS, depression, anxiety, acculturation and maternal sensitivity. Transition theory (Bridges, 1980), and a conceptual model of parenting in immigrant populations building on Belsky's (1984) work, provided the theoretical framework (Foss, 1996). The sample was divided evenly between Vietnamese and Hmong participants. Ages ranged from 17–43 years, time lived in the United States ranged from 3–21 years, and education ranged from no formal education to completion of college. Maternal sensitivity was …

Automobile Air Bag Inflation System Using Pressurized Carbon Dioxide, Bart Adams

Dissertations

A novel air bag inflator based on the evaporation ofliquefied carbon dioxide was developed. A detailed qualitative model wasestablished on the basis of an extensive experimental study. An integratedquantitative model of this inflator was constructed.

The system was studied by discharging the inflatorinto a tank and measuring pressure and temperature evolution (0-50 ms). Thedispersion of the two-phase spray duringinflation was investigated by high-speed cinematography.

The optimal storage pressure of the liquid CO₂was found to be 2000 psig (at 22 °C). Two distinct inflator behaviors wereidentified. First, at conditions corresponding to an initial entropy below the critical point, atwo-phase …

Removal Of Volatile Organic Compound (Voc) Vapors In Biotrickling Filters : Process Modeling And Validation With Chlorinated Aromatic Compounds, Christos J. Mpanias

Dissertations

This study dealt with the removal of vapors of volatile organic compounds from airstreams in biotrickling filters (BTFs). A detailed general model was developed for describing the process under steady-state conditions. The model accounts for mass transfer between phases (air, liquid, biofilm) and biodegradation of pollutants in the biofilm. It also accounts for potential kinetic interactions among pollutants as well as potential process limitations by oxygen availability.

The general model was experimentally validated using mono-chlorobenzene (m-CB) and ortho-dichlorobenzene (o-DCB) as model compounds either alone or in mixture with each other. Before BTF experiments were undertaken, a systematic kinetic study was …

Major Trauma Outcomes: At What Cost? And For Whom? A Cost-Effectiveness Analysis, A. Elaine Bond Dnsc, Msn, Aprn, Ccrn

Dissertations

The purpose of this triangulated descriptive study was threefold: (a) to identify the financial costs for acute trauma care, including costs for those who die early in treatment, and who pays those costs; (b) to identify the relationship between costs and severity of injury; and (c) to identify survivor functional and psychosocial costs, or quality of life, not only by current health care outcome criteria, but also from patients' and families' perspectives. Retrospective review determined the financial differences (total charges of $9,945,973 and institutional costs of $7,089,962) for 370 patients' severity of injury and functional outcomes at discharge, using the …

Testing A Theoretical Model Of Critical Thinking And Cognitive Development, Jane Rapps Dnsc, Ms, Msed, Rn

Dissertations

The goal of nursing education is to educate individuals in such a way that they become self-determining, independent thinkers who are prepared to keep pace with the rapidly changing demands of today's health care system. Nurses must utilize critical thought and reasoned action in clinical practice in order to render state of the art health care for individuals, families, groups, and communities. The purpose of this study was to test a proposed theoretical model of critical thinking and cognitive development. Perry's theory of adult cognitive development and Kataoka-Yahiro and Saylor's Critical Thinking Model for Nursing Judgment guided this research. Data …

Being Alone: The Experience Of Elderly Homebound Females, Sharon Davis Burt Dnsc, Msn, Rn

Dissertations

Elderly women comprise one of the fastest growing segments of the population in the United States. This growth is due in large part to increasing longevity, and a woman's life expectancy has now reached 79 years. However, along with those added years comes an increase in morbidity and a greater likelihood of living alone. This study describes the life experience of a specific group of elderly women, those who are homebound and living alone. When elderly women are included in research, the same combination of descriptors used for the participants in this study has not been incorporated. Consequently, while much …

The Journey Through Perspective Transformation: Learning Nursing Theory, Judith R. Heggie Dnsc, Ms, Rn

Dissertations

Through the use of grounded theory, educational methods most useful for nurses to achieve a perspective transformation, as exemplified by learning nursing theory were examined. Perspective transformation is a theory originally developed by Mezirow (1978) in a study of older women returning to college for additional education. Mezirow defined perspective transformation as the alteration or change of meaning perspectives. Perspective transformation in an individual can be compared to a paradigm change within a scientific community. Within the nursing literature on perspective transformation, most articles related to the perspective transformation needed for nurses to learn to use nursing theory as the …

The Experience Of Decision-Making Among Telephone Advice/Triage Nurses, Ann Mayo Dnsc, Msn, Rn

Dissertations

The role of the telephone advice/triage nurse is both complex and demanding. All decisions are made while assessing patients without seeing or touching patients. In addition, the role is often developed to decrease health care costs which can be perceived by nurses as being in conflict with their nursing beliefs. The ambiguous nature of the role makes these nurses' daily experiences with decision-making a challenge. Using a phenomenological method, the lived experience of decision-making among telephone advice/triage nurses was explored by conducting multiple interviews with ten nurses. The internal structure of the lived experience was identified through the philosophical perspective …

Reflections Of Reflections Of Reflections: A Multi-Case Study Of Women Educators' Callings To The High Arctic, Judith Knapp Edd

Dissertations

This study examines the stories of six women educators who were called to teach in remote Aboriginal communities in the Northwest Territories, Canada, from 1970 to 1985. Placed within a historical context, I set out to understand what called each educator to teach in a cultural context so different from her own in Canada's Arctic. In order to arrive at a deeper, more intrinsic understanding of her career decisions, I explored each educators calling through three, increasingly deeper levels of reflection. In Reflections, as “in an instance of reflecting,” I explored each participant's call to teach, specifically her calling to …

The Relationship Of Saudi Managers’ Characteristics And Their Support Of The Transfer Of Training To The Workplace, Khalid M. Alhazmi

Dissertations

Many HRD professionals have pointed out that one of the most important elements for transfer of training to the workplace is management support. However, there is little discussion concerning management characteristics that support the transfer of training to the workplace. The purpose of this study was to investigate management characteristics that inhibit or promote the transfer of training to the workplace and to provide information regarding those characteristics to companies.

This study focused on one main question: Do management characteristics have an effect on management support of the transfer of training to the workplace? To answer this question, a study …

The Role Of The Parish Pastor As Mental Health Provider: Counseling Competency And Personality Characteristics, John Phillip Burgess

Dissertations

United Methodist pastors, serving churches in the State of Michigan, were surveyed regarding their participation in counseling and referral to other mental health providers. In addition to a demographic questionnaire, each pastor completed two standardized instruments, the Counseling Self-Estimate Inventory (COSE) (Larson, et al., 1992) and the Edwards Personal Preference Schedule (EPPS) (Edwards, 1959). Dependent variables of amounts and types of counseling being conducted, scores from the COSE and EPPS, and four satisfaction ratings, were compared across several independent variables including: pastor's gender, age, race, length of service, theological orientation, and amount of academic preparation specifically related to mental health/counseling …

A Study Of Local-Cosmopolitan Orientation With A University Support Staff, Sharon Carr

Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to identify the local-cosmopolitan orientation of a subset of university support staff members and to examine the relationship between that orientation and (a) gender, (b) age, (c) years of service, (d) percentage of business/financial tasks in one’s job, (e) percentage of time spent in direct contact with students, and (f) the self-perception of how essential one’s job is to the mission of the university. The local-cosmopolitan concept used was based on the definition by Qouldner (1957) and includes his three elements: loyalty, operational style, and reference group use. Each one of these elements, as …

Health Care Beliefs Of Nursing Students As Predictors Of Intentions To Care For A.I.D.S. Patients, Catherine Ellen Earl

Dissertations

The purposes of this study were (a) to determine if information about AIDS taught using two different formats, lecture discussion and video discussion, results in differential retention of content about AIDS; (b) to determine if health care beliefs about AIDS change after exposure to a lecture or a video about AIDS among first year nursing students in rural community colleges; and (c) to examine whether the differences in intentions to provide care for AIDS patients are associated with health care beliefs about AIDS. In this study, both qualitative and quantitative research methods were used. The study was conducted over two …

Direct Service Staff's Perceptions Of Psychotropic Medication In Noninstitutional Settings For Individuals With Developmental Disabilities, Leeann Christian

Dissertations

Approximately 35-55% of individuals with mental retardation who live in the community are prescribed psychotropic and/or antiepileptic medication (Aman, Saphare, & Burrows, 1995; Singh, Guernsey, & Ellis, 1992). As more individuals with severe behavior challenges are transitioned from institutions into the community, these rates are likely to increase. Given these prevalence rates, it is important to determine whether staff who serve people with mental retardation are adequately educated about psychotropic medications. Previous studies (Aman, Singh, & White, 1987; Gadow, 1983; Singh, Epstein, Stout, Luebke, & Ellis, 1994; Singh et al., 1996) surveyed a variety of service providers in school and …