Digital Commons Network^™

Is The Public Invited? Design, Management And Use Of Privately Owned Public Spaces In New York City, Te-Sheng Huang

Dissertations

Researchers in urban planning, urban design, landscape architecture and sociology often criticize the increasing privatization of public space in the US for limiting the diversity of uses and users. Privately owned public spaces in New York City have received this critique. However, careful empirical research, with onsite observations of specific spaces and interviews with building managers, architects and city officials, is still largely lacking. Nor have researchers systematically investigated the full range of design features and management regulations and practices that do, or do not, serve to exclude certain kinds of activities and occupants. This study does precisely that as …

An Exploration Of Volunteer Experiences For Third Level Students In Ireland From A Student Volunteer And Volunteer Manager Perspective., Caitriona Mcgrattan

Dissertations

Since the establishment of Campus Engage in 2007, student volunteering and student-led activities have received more attention on a national scale. Despite this, the area remains under researched; to date there has been no nationwide review of student volunteerism. This research aimed to explore the volunteer experiences of third level students across in a number of Higher Education Institutions in Ireland. For this qualitative study, in-depth interviews were carried out with five student volunteers and three volunteer managers across a spectrum of voluntary activity. The participants were asked to discuss their personal experiences and perceptions of student volunteering. The findings …

Authenticity: Theoretical Considerations, Instrument Development, And Implications For Leaders, Lyn Taylor Peyton Roberts Phd

Dissertations

The adage, "To thine own self be true," captures the essence of authenticity and is age-old. Yet the issue of being true to the self remains highly relevant today, particularly for organizational leaders who operate within complex, globalized, and competitive environments that regularly challenge their personal authenticity. For those interested in assessing and developing authenticity in the workplace, additional research on the topic is needed. In response, this study strengthens existing theoretical work on authenticity by offering an alternative approach to the concept, and creates a corresponding measure suitable for evaluating authenticity within the context of leadership. The work began …

Towards A Missiological Model For Worldview Transformation Among Adherents To African Traditional Religion In Yorubaland, Kelvin Okey Onongha

Dissertations

Seventh-day Adventist missions in the western region of Nigeria are a century old, yet reversion to pre-Christian practices such as divination and sorcery are reported, especially during periods of personal crises. This study sought to understand the influence of the traditional worldview on the practices of divination and sorcery and to develop a model that would move the Yoruba Adventists from dependence on these practices to a biblically shaped faith and praxis. A grounded theory approach was adopted for conducting this qualitative research. Data were collected from two focus group discussions and from face-to-face interviews with five pastors, five diviners, …

Benchmarking The Use Of Learner-Centered Teaching Practices In Missouri Community Colleges, Vivian Kathleen Elder

Dissertations

Learner-Centered (LC) teaching focuses on shifting the role of an instructor from a provider of information to a facilitator of learning. Several Missouri community colleges have declared themselves LC institutions through use of the term in their mission statements and/or strategic goals. Although a metric for demonstrating this commitment, in the form of a rubric created by Dr. Blumberg (2009) existed, it was not in common use at the time this study was conducted. Additionally, a void existed on how the traits of LC instructors differed, if at all, from the traits of more traditional instructors. This quantitative, causal-comparative study …

Improving The Service Design Process: Process Integration, Conflict Reduction And Customer Involvement, Sameer G. Tabbakh

Dissertations

Service design is the science of creating service experiences based on the customer's perspective, to make it useful, enjoyable and cost-effective for the customer. Although the field of service design is relatively new, it has been rapidly expanding in research and practice. Most researchers focus on the usefulness of the service, cost efficiency, meeting customers' needs, or service strategy. However, all service elements can benefit from improving the service design process. Current service design processes are suffering a lack of integration of activities, conflicts in decision-making processes, and exclusion of practitioners' methods. In prior research, information models were created to …

Culturally Responsive Leadership: A Case Study To Explore Stakeholders’ Perceptions Of Culturally Responsive Leadership In A K-12 Public Charter School In North Carolina, Kimberly Michelle Jones Goods

Dissertations

The purpose of this instrumental case study was to explore stakeholders’ perceptions of the culturally responsive leadership practices of charter school leaders. The goals were: (a) to explore how the school leadership team perceived culturally responsive leadership in a K-12 charter school in North Carolina, (b) to explore how the teachers perceived culturally responsive teaching and learning in a K-12 charter school in North Carolina, and (c) to explore how parents perceived a culturally responsive home-school connection in a K-12 charter school in North Carolina. Because this study involved an examination of stakeholders’ perceptions of culturally responsive leadership in a …

The Representativeness Of Traditionally Underrepresented Populations In Appointed Policy-Level State Government Leadership Positions In North Carolina 1973-2012: "Who Gets In, Who Stays In, Who Gets Appointed, And Who Gets Disappointed.", Steven Eric Hairston

Dissertations

This study applies the theory of representative bureaucracy to state level political appointees over the course of five gubernatorial administrations in North Carolina. The theory of representative bureaucracy holds that the demographic diversity of the workforce of public sector organizations or bureaucracies (passive representation) leads to policy decisions and outcomes that reflect the beliefs and interests of the groups that are represented (active representation), including underrepresented populations (e.g. minorities and women) that have historically been disadvantaged. Using measures of representativeness, the study determines the extent to which members of underrepresented populations have been appointed to leadership positions by each of …

Modeling And Applying Biomimetic Metaheuristics To Product Life Cycle Engineering, Patrick Tchapdiã© Wanko

Dissertations

Due to its potential for significant impact, interest continues to grow in the assessment of products from a life cycle perspective. As the nature of products shifts from mechanized and Newtonian to more adaptive and complex, the behavior of products more closely resembles biological organisms in community. The change in product nature is increasingly mirrored at the component level. The work presented in this dissertation is twofold. First, the research proposes a general, systematic and holistic classification of life cycle data to transform the design problem into an optimization problem. Second, the research proposes two new metaheuristics (bio-inspired and socio-inspired) …

A Grounded Theory Exploration Of The Connection Between Stressful Life Events And Spiritual Identity For Women Leaders, Margaret A. Brunson

Dissertations

Much of the research related to the leadership of women relates to development through mentorship and the gaps or disparities that exists throughout various fields and disciplines. In the United States, women continue to be underrepresented in leadership, and those in leadership continue to struggle to find the balance between their work and lives. Not only are women having different leadership experiences from their male counterparts, they are also experiencing various life events that impact their experiences as leaders, as well as the spiritual and psycho-social dimensions of their lives. The spiritual identity of women leaders who work outside of …

Project Managers’ Use Of Lateral Influence Tactics To Achieve Team Commitment, Rochelle Evangeline Cook

Dissertations

Building on transformational leadership theory, 43 individuals from various new product development (NPD) teams were studied to understand the relationship between the project managers’ use of lateral influence tactics and team commitment as perceived by new product development team members. An explanatory correlational study was conducted to examine these relationships. Data were collected via questionnaire about each NPD team member’s view of the project manager’s use of lateral influence tactics and the NPD team member’s perception of team commitment. Perceptions of procedural justice were also tested for mediation. The study found that there is a moderate positive relationship between each …

Neighborhood Effects And Mobility Patterns Among Residents Of Chicago's Residential Homeless System, Julie Frances Hilvers

Dissertations

This study explores the effects of location and neighborhood characteristics on the probability that residents in shelters, Interim, and Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH) programs in Chicago's homeless system move to market-rate housing or intend to leave their communities in the near future. The study uses survey data collected in 2009-2011 by Loyola University Chicago's Center for Urban Research and Learning in cooperation with the Chicago Alliance to End Homelessness and the City of Chicago. These data were collected as part of the Evaluation of Chicago's Plan to End Homelessness.

Within the literature exists an extensive body of research examining neighborhood …

Factors That Relate To Registered Nurses' Readiness For Interprofessional Learning In The Context Of Continuing Professional Development, Collette Williams

Dissertations

Today’s health-care professionals practice in a highly technological, multidisciplinary environment. In order to provide safe, effective, and high-quality patient care, collaboration is required among all professionals. Traditionally each profession has operated independently in regard to continued professional development. The purpose of this study was to assess practicing registered nurses’ readiness toward interprofessional learning in order to align learning with current practice.

Method. An ex post facto study design was used to gather data to examine if there is a relationship between variables of demographics and readiness for interprofessional learning. The Readiness for Interprofessional Learning Scale (RIPLS) assesses the readiness for …

The Impact Of Accreditation On The Teacher Education Curricula At Two Historically Black Colleges From 1920-1940, Denise J. Shaver

Dissertations

Problem. Many historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) are experiencing major challenges in meeting accreditation requirements. Without good accreditation status they are in jeopardy of losing student enrollment and facing closure. Concern about accreditation has become a growing topic of interest within the African American higher education community. This study explored the topic by looking at some of the historical origins of the accreditation movement in HBCUs. It uses various experiences of two higher education organizations to detail some of the original challenges and the impact on HBCUs from regional accreditation. It focuses on HBCUs through the time period 1920-1940. …

Teacher Perceptions On Teacher Leadership And Shared Vision In Nc Schools: A Correlational Study Using The Nc Teacher Working Conditions Survey, Mary M. Hemphill

Dissertations

As the landscape of public education continues to evolve, so does the leadership and vision required to meet the needs of this ever-changing academic platform. No longer is academic research focusing solely on school leadership required to lead 21st century students and educators toward success, but rather it is focused on the plethora of factors that inform the development of thriving learning communities across our nation. While much of the educational discourse on leadership and vision speaks to the development of strategies, pedagogies, and leadership preparation for school leaders, there are deficiencies in the literature on teacher leadership and shared …

Wheel Of Innovation : How Leaders' Attitudes And Behaviors Drive Disruptive Technology In The U.S. Navy, Eddy Wayne Witzel

Dissertations

Problem and Purpose

Innovative solutions in national defense are needed to respond to national security threats in our uncertain environment. Leader attitudes and behaviors have a substantial impact on innovation. Unfortunately we did not completely understand the effect of leader attitudes and behaviors on innovation and the team dynamics that lead to innovation, especially in the military. The purpose of this study was to determine how leadership attitudes and behaviors contribute to product innovation within the U.S. Navy and how leadership emerges within this complex adaptive system of innovation.

Method

The research was a qualitative design based on a multiple …

Effects Of Cultural Awareness Training In Conjunction With An Established Bullying Prevention Program, Megan Kallie Polanin

Dissertations

While many school bullying prevention programs have been designed to thwart school bullying perpetration, victimization, and physical aggression, empirical support is limited. To date, few researchers have addressed bullying within the context of children's cultural systems, and cultural awareness training has not yet been utilized as a mechanism to decrease bullying behaviors in the context of school bullying prevention programs.

This study examined the utility of incorporating multicultural training aimed at reducing prejudice within the context of school bullying prevention programming efforts within a diverse educational setting. This researcher hypothesized that the addition of meaningful culture curriculum would further reduce …

Evaluation Of A Conceptual Model Of Student Retention At A Public Urban Commuter University, Hoa Khuong

Dissertations

A new conceptual model of student retention was developed and evaluated for first-year retention and for second-year retention of students at an urban, mid-western commuter university. The model captured the joint effects of academic engagement and environmental factors on academic performance and persistence of commuter students in their first two years of college attendance. The academic engagement and environmental factors incorporated into the model included: pre-college academic achievement, Deep Learning, Study Time per Week, College Math Readiness, Major Selection, Hours of Employment, receiving (or not receiving) a Pell Grant Award and Financial Concerns. Structural equation modeling techniques were utilized to …

The Relationship Of Family, Church, School, Peers, Media, And Adventist Culture To The Religiosity Of Adventist Youth In Puerto Rico, Edwin P. Alicea Santiago

Dissertations

Problem. No formal study that considers the influence of the family, church, school, peers, media, and Adventist culture on the denominational loyalty, Christian commitment, and religious behavior of Adventist young people of Puerto Rico has previously been conducted. Therefore, pastors, parents, teachers, church leaders, and administrators have no data on which to base their assessment of the religiosity of Adventist young people.

Method. This study used youth ages 14 to 21 from the youth sample of the Avance PR study conducted in 1995 in Adventist schools and churches in Puerto Rico. For the analysis, the sample was divided. When studying …

The Pastor As Vital Link : A Study In How Seminary-Educated Pastors Engender Engagement With Scripture In Select Congregations, Jewel Gingerich Longenecker

Dissertations

Problem. The problem this study sought to address was the tendency of “ordinary readers” of Scripture to misuse the Bible on the one hand, or to give up reading it entirely, on the other hand. The purpose of this study was to develop a grounded theory that describes how seminary-educated pastors are successfully leading ordinary readers to informed, enthusiastic engagement with the Bible. The conceptual lenses through which research data were compared to literature in the field included teaching methodologies proposed by Wink, Blair, and Borsch.

Method. The study used a qualitative research design. It was field focused, utilized …

Relationship Between Involvement In Institutional Activities And Christian Life Commitment Among Undergraduate Students Of A Christian University In Mexico, Esteban Quiyono

Dissertations

Problem

A considerable gap in knowledge exists regarding religious commitment among young people in Mexican Christian colleges, where many institutional resources are invested to foster such commitment. This study attempted to identify the extent to which Christian commitments of undergraduate students in a Mexican Christian university are related to their involvement in institutional activities, influential agents, and selected demographic variables (gender, grade level, place of residence, and field of study).

Method

A descriptive cross-sectional and correlational design was conducted using survey research methodology with a stratified sample of 332 undergraduate students enrolled during the fall term of the 2002-2003 college …

Toward Christian-Identity Response Theory : Exploring Identity, Spirituality, And Response To Adversity Among African American Males Placed At Risk, Charity Hannah Garcia

Dissertations

Problem: A lack of research integrating spiritual development as a central component of human development does not reflect an understanding of the whole person across multiple contexts throughout the life span. Such a limited-capacity view of African American males disproportionately disadvantaged, both historically and currently, has been detrimental. A theoretical model for how a relational journey with Christ may offer insights that lead to transformative practice in various educational settings.

Method: Constructivist grounded theory was utilized throughout this research process. Thirty-four African American males in three age groups (13-17; 18-25; 26+) who were placed at risk during adolescence and connected …

Abrasive Teachers And Principal Response ; A Mixed-Methods Exploration Of Administrative Decisions Regarding Teachers Who Bully Students, James Clayton Weller

Dissertations

Problem and Purpose. The American K-12 school principal is responsible for providing a learning environment that is physically and emotionally safe. An abrasive teacher who displays bullying behaviors towards students is a threat to that environment, impeding student academic progress and decreasing student perceptions of safety. Principals intervene, with risk to themselves. This study sought to understand principal intervention by: (a) estimating the prevalence of abrasive teachers, (b) asking how principals identify abrasive teachers, (c) classifying situational elements that enhance or inhibit the principal’s motivation to intervene, (d) exploring the interventions principals used, (e) examining the effects those interventions had …

Mindful Mending: The Repair Of Thought And Action Amidst Technologies, Bryan Kibbe

Dissertations

My thesis is that the concept and practice of repair, properly understood and circumscribed, can serve to: (1) specify a responsibility to care for individuals who are cognitively dependent on particular configurations of technologies and suffer cognitively significant harms following damage to various technologies, and (2) to act as a standard by which to regulate the design, implementation, and selection of technologies available for human use and appropriation. I begin (Chapters One and Two) by providing a critical investigation of the concept and practice of repair. In Chapters Three and Four, I set forth a proposal to consider what I …

Reporting Methods And Analyses In Higher Education Research: Hierarchical Linear And Ols Regression Models, Kimberly Quandt Fath

Dissertations

This study examined the reporting practices used by higher education scholars to communicate the methods and analyses of studies using hierarchical linear and OLS regression models. The study consisted of three parts: (a) a citation analysis of sources associated with methods of hierarchical linear models, (b) a content analysis of reporting practices associated with studies that used hierarchical linear models, and (c) a content analysis of the arguments and corrections used by scholars who have used OLS regression techniques on nested data. When possible, results were compared to similar research. The data for this research was drawn from Journal of …

Urban Agriculture And Sustainability In Chicago, Matthew Hoffmann

Dissertations

Sustainability is increasingly informing the organization of urban life. In the past 15 years, cities have sought to alleviate the dual effects of environmental degradation and a changing economy by introducing sustainable development initiatives. Policy makers and environmental activists have often praised these efforts, pointing to the enhancement of quality of life, the mitigation of industrial pollution, and these initiatives' capacity to address poverty in a post-welfare state. Most popular depictions of the experiences of sustainability come from the perspective of white, middle class, college-educated volunteers and, increasingly, social entrepreneurs such as artisans, farmers, and other producers connected to "local" …

Investigating The Professional Values Of Teachers: The Differential Impact Of Accountability On Teachers' Career Decisions, Cortney Rowland King

Dissertations

Education reform and policy efforts have focused a great deal on teachers over the past decade or more. Reform efforts focused on accountability have altered how teachers are paid, how they spend their time, how they are evaluated, what they are accountable for, and what sort of control they have over their daily tasks. At the same time, teacher attrition continues to rise. This study employed principal component analysis (PCA) on a subset of questions from the National Center for Education Statistics' (NCES) 2007-2008 Schools and Staffing Survey (SASS) and 2008-2009 Teacher Follow-up Survey (TFS) data. I examined the extent …

Social Media And Reflective Thinking: A Case Study Of Generation Y Business Students, Stacy Neier

Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Some Of My Best Dolls Are Black: Colorblind Rhetoric In Online Collecting Communities, Rebecca Joan West

Dissertations

While dolls are beloved play objects, they have also been the subject of social critique for many years. From the generic "baby" to the sexualized Barbie, they have been alternately praised and vilified for their role in forming the behaviors and identities of the children who play with them. However, such criticism overlooks a key component of doll play: the element of the adults who purchase the dolls, for children as well as for themselves, and the ways in which such toys are used to express engagement with larger social structures.

My research focuses on the American Girl Dolls Collection, …

Speaking Of Right And Wrong: Black Girls And Moral Development, Tonya Bibbs

Dissertations

Our current approaches to moral development were generalized from the experiences of white males and females. This study draws upon existing theory in order to consider its relevance to Black girls' everyday lives. The study draws upon the moral reasoning gathered from ethnographic dilemma interviews with 8-11 year old girls and their mothers to develop a grounded theory of moral development. The contents of the resulting theory suggest that, while there are aspects of existing moral development theory that appear to be consistent across contexts, the particularity of Black community and middle childhood culminate in a theory of moral development …