Digital Commons Network^™

What Does Time Management Mean To You? Exploring Measures Of Time Management And Group Differences., Allison Burrus

Dissertations

For centuries people have been trying to find ways to effectively manage their time. Meanwhile, research in this area has lagged and provided inconsistent results about the outcomes (i.e., well-being and job performance) of the use of time management behaviors. A potential reason for the inconsistent results is the lack of a universal conceptualization of time management making it difficult to compare results. Further, it may be that certain groups use and/or interpret time management behaviors in different ways. This study investigated three of the most popular measures of time management concurrently. First, the measures were examined for statistical artifacts, …

Quality Of Life Of Adults With Congenital Heart Disease, Lynn M. Simko

Dissertations

Adults with Congenital Heart Disease (CHD) are a new and growing population of patients who pose a challenge to both medicine and nursing. Medical and surgical advances have increased the number of adults with CHD. These advances may create Quality of Life (QOL) issues which were not previously considered. The purpose of this study was to collect data describing the QOL of adults with CHD in order for health professionals to develop appropriate information, counseling, and anticipatory guidance. This study was a case-control study design utilizing a QOL assessment tool, the Sickness impact Profile (SIP), along with a demographic questionnaire.

African-American Baccalaureate Nursing Students' Perceptions Of Nursing Programs And Factors That Support Or Restrict Academic Success, Sharon Marie Mills-Wisneski

Dissertations

The nursing literature is limited in reporting African-American nursing students' perceptions of nursing programs and factors that are viewed as supportive of or restrictive to academic success in this selected population. Bean and Metzner's (1985) conceptual model of Nontraditional Student Attrition proposed that there are four sets of variables that have a direct affect on whether nontraditional students will persist in their educational endeavors: (1) background and defining variables, (2) academic variables, (3) environmental variables, and (4) psychological outcomes. The National agenda to increase workforce diversity and leadership succession is critical to improving access for a culturally diverse society. The …

The Role Of Multidrug Resistance Regulators Mara, Soxs, Rob And Rama In Regulating Virulence Traits In Salmonella Enterica, Srinivas Thota

Dissertations

Enteric pathogens sense numerous signals specific to the anatomical location in the intestine and integrate them with the complex regulatory networks to temporally and spatially regulate their virulence genes. MarA, SoxS, Rob and RamA are homologous transcription factors that belong to AraC family of proteins in Salmonella enterica that primarily were thought to be involved in rendering antibiotic resistance to bacteria by up regulating efflux pumps and down regulating outer membrane porins. The fact that these transcription factors respond to the same intestinal compounds that regulate virulence genes in Salmonella motivated us to look for other roles of these transcription …

Regional And Historical Influences On The Spatial Distribution Of Neotropical Trees, Maria Isabel Loza

Dissertations

At small spatial scales, the composition of species assemblages depends on local conditions and the dispersal of propagules from surrounding regions. In turn, processes taking place at broad temporal and spatial scales, including changes in regional physiography and climate, shape the species pools in these source regions. This dissertation seeks to understand the effects of regional and historical processes on the spatial distribution of Neotropical tree species. In chapter 1, I investigate regional enrichment of local species assemblages testing two hypothesis: i) local species assemblages are enriched by unfiltered species pools, which are composed of all species that can …

Improving Access To Mental Health Care With Nurse Practitioners, Jessica Whelan

Dissertations

Problem: Over 40% of those with mental illness are untreated since the supply of psychiatrists does not meet the demand. The psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner (PMHNP) may be an adjunct in providing those services. The purpose of this quality assurance study was to evaluate outcomes of care between a PMHNP and a psychiatrist (medical doctor [MD]).

Methods: An observational, descriptive design with a retrospective medical record review of adult patients over a six-month period in a suburban, Midwestern, privately owned psychiatric practice.

Results: A total of 787 individual patients encountered at least one visit (N=787) although 3,679 …

Supervisory Working Alliance As A Predictor For Counselor Burnout: The Potential Mediating Role Of Supervisee Nondisclosure, Amanda Bohnenstiehl

Dissertations

Clinical supervision sometimes lacks the elements necessary for a rigorous, helpful, and meaningful experience for the supervisee. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships between the supervisory working alliance, supervisee nondisclosure (i.e., when a supervisee does not communicate information that would otherwise be shared with the supervisor), and counselor burnout, specifically in a sample of counselors, social workers, and psychologists pursuing their original state licenses. Nondisclosure was examined to determine if it was a mediator of the relationship between the supervisory working alliance and burnout. Participants (n = 288) completed a demographic questionnaire, the supervisee form …

Accessibility To Resources For Homeless Documented Immigrant Families: A Case Study, Antaniece P. Carter

Dissertations

This study seeks to explore the experience of a homeless documented immigrant family attempting to access school and community resources. Research has shown that due to disadvantages including but not limited to lack of economic mobility, employment access, lone parent families, and cultural background, some immigrant families may face challenges accessing services (Arnold, 2004). Difficulty accessing services then can inhibit adjustment and may lead to homelessness.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the issue of homelessness as experienced by immigrants within an urban community. A case study will highlight the experience of a homeless immigrant family, as defined …

Can Free College Programs Level The Playing Field? An Exploratory Study Of Understanding Non-Economic Persistence Barriers For Low-Income Students, Alan Byrd

Dissertations

The rising cost of higher education has created substantial access and persistence barriers for low-income students. Consequently, gaps in educational attainment between low-income students and their middle- and high-income peers have continued to widen over the last few decades. Colleges and universities have taken notice of these growing disparities, and several institutions have responded by developing need-based financial aid programs to close unmet need gaps for Pell Grant recipients. These last-dollar financial aid programs have opened doors for more low-income students to attend selective institutions, but it is unclear how these programs will influence their persistence and completion rates. The …

The Effect Of Union Affiliation On Salary For Female Community College Faculty, Kathleen Kanz White

Dissertations

There is a substantial pay disparity between the highest and lowest paid full-time community college faculty members, more so for women. Faculty unions, which are common at community colleges, are believed to increase pay equity, although research on unions is limited. This study provided evidence addressing gaps in the literature regarding the community college workforce and unionization in higher education. No previous research has been conducted at the community college level examining specific union affiliation and the role it plays in salary.

The purpose of the study was to examine salary variables for female community college faculty members employed in …

Recover Data In Sparse Expansion Forms Modeled By Special Basis Functions, Abdulmtalb Mohamed Hussen

Dissertations

In data analysis and signal processing, the recovery of structured functions (in terms of frequencies and coefficients) with respect to certain basis functions from the given sampling values is a fundamental problem. The original Prony method is the main tool to solve this problem, which requires the equispaced sampling values.

In this dissertation, we use the equispaced sampling values in the frequency domain after the short time Fourier transform in order to reconstruct some signal expansions, such as the exponential expansions and the cosine expansions. In particular, we consider the case that the phase of the cosine expansion is quadratic. …

Perceived Social Support, Coping, And Psychological Distress In Advanced Cancer Patients, Adelaida Zabalegui

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the extent to which perceived social support and coping mechanisms contribute to explaining psychological distress in advanced cancer patients receiving chemotherapy. The Lazarus and Folkman stress and coping model (1984a) provided the framework.

Peripherally Inserted Central Catheters (Picc) And The Efficacy Of Tip Placement Confirmation With Ecg Ultrasound-Guided Technology And Chest Radiography, Elizabeth A. Morrell

Dissertations

The aim of this study was to appraise the efficacy of peripherally inserted central catheters (PICC) tip placement confirmation using a fully-integrated magnetic tracking system and ECG ultrasound-guided insertion technology performed at the patients' bedside by venous access nurses and validated by the post-insertion chest radiography (CXR) report. Labor costs and time were compared with the interventional radiology (IR) team and the venous access nurses to determine if there was a noteworthy cost difference with PICC insertions. PICCs have gained popularity due to improved ECG ultrasound-guided tip navigation technology. Real-time ECG ultrasound-guided technology is the safest, most accurate method of …

Testing An Intervention To Decrease Catastrophizing In Persons With Fibromyalgia, Pamela Jean Nelson

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to test the effectiveness of a brief psychoeducational nursing intervention to alter catastrophizing and improve coping with fibromyalgia, a syndrome of chronic, widespread pain. Catastrophizing is defined as a negative way of thinking about pain that interferes with the development of pain coping self-efficacy, the confidence a person has in their ability to manage pain. In fibromyalgia, catastrophizing has demonstrated a strong relationship to pain severity and daily functioning, but brief interventions targeting catastrophizing have not been tested. Theoretical framework. Bandura's social cognitive model emphasizing self-efficacy as a determinant of behavior was used as …

Purpose In Life, Appraisal, And Coping Behaviors In Black, Hispanic, And White Anglo-Saxon Pregnant Adolescents, Bertha Cruz Enders

Dissertations

The purposes of this descriptive study were: (1) to identify differences in perceptions of life purpose, appraisal, and coping behaviors based on ethnicity; and (2) to describe the interrelationship of these variables, among Black, Hispanic, and white Anglo-Saxon pregnant adolescents.

When The Injured Nurse Returns To Work: An Institutional Ethnography, Laurie Clune

Dissertations

Nursing is a high risk profession for injury. A Canadian survey reports many nurses are in poor physical and emotional health; they sustain more musculoskeletal and violence related injuries than other occupational groups. In Ontario, an injury management approach called Early Return to Work (RTW) requires injured workers, including nurses, to go back to work before full recovery. The Workplace Safety and Insurance Board cite this approach as beneficial to both the employer and employee. This study uses an institutional ethnographic approach to examine critically the RTW process from the standpoint of injured registered nurses. Through interviews and mapping activities …

Emerging Adults' Lived Experience Of Perinatally Acquired Human Immunodeficiency Virus, Angela Marie Wright

Dissertations

The purpose of this qualitative heuristic study was to explore the emerging adults' lived experience of PAHIV. The aim of this study was to determine if the emerging adults were meeting the benchmarks of their developmental stage as their unaffected peers and to elucidate their voices to understand their essence of the experience of PAHIV. This study answered the questions: What is the emerging adults' lived experience of perinatally acquired HIV (PAHIV)? What benchmarks of the developmental stage are the emerging adults with PAHIV meeting? Philosophical Underpinnings: This study utilized the qualitative research approach with interpretivism and constructivism as the …

Preferences For Information And Self-Care, Stress And Coping With Outpatient Surgery: A Descriptive Correlational Study, Linda Marie Caldwell

Dissertations

Outpatient surgery is a rapidly growing phenomena in the health care field; however, little is known about the stressful aspects of the experience of how patients cope with this type of surgery. The purposes of this descriptive, correlational study were: to identify what aspects of the outpatient surgical experience are appraised as stressful and how patients cope with these stressful experiences, and to examine the influence of preferences for information and self care on stress and coping. The study was based on the theory of stress and coping as proposed by Lazarus. Data were collected from a convenience sample of …

A Study Of The Effect Of Nursing Student Preceptorship Programs On The Development Of Clinical Competence In The Senior Baccalaureate Nursing Student, Linda Jean Scheetz

Dissertations

Many new graduate nurses lack clinical competence in the practice setting. The purposes of this study were (a) to examine the differences in the gains in clinical competence between those students who participated in summer preceptorship programs and those students who worked as nursing assistants in noninstructional clinical settings, and (b) to describe how students in each group perceived various factors of their summer work experience relative to their preferences.

Social Support, Psychological And Physical States Among Japanese Women With Breast Cancer, Reiko Makabe

Dissertations

In Western cultures, it has been reported that social support has effects on health outcomes among women with breast cancer. However, little is known about social support and the effects on health outcomes among Japanese women with breast cancer. In addition, there are no instruments with established reliability and validity to measure social support specific to Japanese populations giving consideration to cultural differences. A cross-sectional study was designed incorporating quantitative and qualitative approaches for the purposes of: (1) testing the reliability and validity of instruments developed to measure social support with Western populations when used with Japanese women with breast …

Assessing The Impact Of Practice Transition On Advance Practice Registered Nurse's Job Stress And Job Satisfaction., Patricia E. Hendrickson

Dissertations

The impact of the transition to full practice authority (FPA) on job satisfaction and job stress has not been previously described in the literature.

Job satisfaction, job stress, and practice transition stress data was collected from a sample of 33 Advance Practice Registered Nurses (APRN) working at the VA St Louis Health Care System using Misener Nurse Practitioner Job Satisfaction Survey (MNPJSS), National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health Generic Job Stress Questionnaire (NIOSH-GJSQ), and student-developed practice transition stress questionnaire during the initial phase of FPA transition.

Maternal Attitudes, Feeding Practices And Child Weight-For-Length Percentiles: Maternal Participation Vs. Non-Participation In A Prenatal Infant Nutrition Education Session, Connie S. Lewis

Dissertations

Obesity has reached epidemic proportions nationally and internationally. All ages are affected resulting in physiological and psychological health consequences. Obesity-related habits that begin in childhood may continue into adulthood suggesting the need for developmentally targeted approaches. Efforts to reduce obesity should begin early in life with interventions targeting infants and young children. Is there a difference in infant feeding attitudes, the initiation of breastfeeding practice, the introduction of solid foods practice, and child weight-for-length percentiles at 12, 18, and 24 months between mothers who participated in a prenatal infant nutrition education session and mothers who did not participate? The purpose …

Selected African American First-Time Teenage Mothers' Perceptions Of Nurse Caring Behaviors During The Postpartum Period, Danita R. Potter

Dissertations

Nurse caring behaviors are essential to improving health outcomes. However, there has been little research conducted that has investigated nurse caring behaviors during the postpartum period, particularly behaviors directed toward African American first-time teenage mothers. The purpose of this study was to explore and describe African American first-time teenage mothers' perceptions of nurse caring behaviors during the postpartum period. Watson's (1985) Theory of Human Caring was the conceptual basis of this study. Data were collected using the Caring Behaviors Assessment (CBA) instrument, a 63-item questionnaire that included two open-ended questions that were used to identify themes, and a 9-item demographic …

Creative Thinking Ability Of Women In Nursing, Patricia Leona Richard

Dissertations

A nonexperimental, descriptive, correlational design was used to determine the level of creative thinking ability of 60, randomly selected, baccalaureate junior and senior female nursing students. The relationship between creative thinking ability, perception of creative thinking ability, self-concept and perceived stress was also explored to assess the amount of variation in creative thinking ability accounted for by each independent variable. Instruments were the Torrance Test of Creative Thinking, Figural form B, the Khatena-Torrance Creative Perception Inventory which included two parts, What Kind of Person Are You? (WKOPAY), and Something About Myself (SAM), the Coopersmith Self-Esteem Inventory (SEI), the Perceived Stress …

Decision-Making Between Nurse-Midwives And Clients Regarding The Formulation Of A Birth Plan, Mary Ellen Doherty

Dissertations

This descriptive qualitative study examined the interaction between nurse-midwives and clients during prenatal visits in the third trimester as they formulated a birth plan. The study was concerned with decision-making and the participative behaviors exhibited by the participants while engaged in the process. The theoretical framework undergirding the study was Kim's (1983b, 1987b) theory of collaborative decision-making in nursing practice. This field study was conducted using the participant observation approach of Schatzman and Strauss (1973) and the analytic ethnography perspective of Lofland (1995).

Compensation Of Staff Nurses Employed In United States Hospitals From 1960 To 1990, Pamela Frances Cipriano

Dissertations

Compensation for registered nurses employed as staff nurses in nonfederal hospitals from 1960 to 1990 was studied. Significant events of hospital financing, professional efforts to improve wages and working conditions, and the changing demand for nurses were also examined. Historical method was used to gather and interpret data, construct a salary time series, and describe events affecting the interaction of supply, demand, and wages in the nurse labor market.

Development Of An Instrument To Measure Quality Of Nurses' Worklife, Beth A. Brooks

Dissertations

This study reports the development process and factor structure of a questionnaire to measure quality of nursing work life for registered nurses in hospital settings. Included is information on item generation, content validation, initial pilot testing, and results from the full study.

Right Heart Hemodynamics During Weaning From Mechanical Ventilation, Susan Kay Frazier

Dissertations

It is estimated that 9-37% of all mechanically ventilated patients experience difficulty during weaning from mechanical ventilation (MV). Weaning may be problematic for individuals with co-existing cardiac dysfunction, since hemodynamic instability is one proposed cause of weaning failure. Hemodynamic instability during weaning may develop with transition from positive intrathoracic pressure (ITP) during inspiration with MV to the negative ITP with spontaneous ventilation. This ITP shift may induce changes in right ventricular preload, afterload and contractility. The purpose of this study was to describe changes in right heart hemodynamics associated with weaning. Twenty instrumented, anesthetized, canines were randomly assigned to Group …

Community Schools In St. Louis Then And Now: Exploring The Influence Of Family, School, And Community Engagement On Student And Community Outcomes, Kimberly Ann Carothers

Dissertations

All children should have access to the American Dream by receiving a meaningful and equitable educational opportunity that prepares them to be successful in school and life thereafter. Today, many children are denied this dream over and over again. Minority and low-income children often face multiple barriers that stagnate their growth; resulting in equity and achievement gaps. Schools that implement the community schools strategy integrate resources and services from family, school, and community partners to prepare students for success in meeting the demands of the twenty-first century. Community schools are hubs with evening and weekend hours that bring together a …

The Role Of Bro Culture In Exploration Of Why Women Leave It, Ana Krasteva

Dissertations

The goal of this exploratory study is to investigate ways in which whether the phenomena called the ‘bro culture’ may influence on women in the information technology (IT) workforce. It specifically seeks to determine whether bro culture has an impact on why women in IT move from one IT company to another; leave IT for a non-technical field; or leave the workforce entirely.

Although there is a plethora of studies on why women leave positions in IT, less understood is the impact and influence of bro culture on the decision.

My findings suggest that bro culture in the workplace is …