Digital Commons Network^™

The Outcomes Of A Quality Circle Program In An Electronics Manufacturing Firm, Martin L. Abbott

Dissertations and Theses

The literature on worker participation generally assumes that worker participation programs lead to positive work outcomes (e.g., job satisfaction) in more or less direct fashion. The current study challenges this assumption and posits that "desire for participation," and "attitudes toward participation," may affect the participation-satisfaction relationship. Data were gathered from a quality circle (QC) program at a large electronics manufacturing firm, using both quantitative (survey questionnaire), and qualitative (interviews, observation, meeting attendance) means. QC members and non members were compared on all attitude measures, and on general job satisfaction. The results indicated the following: (a) the participation-satisfaction thesis was not …

Survey Of Language Acquisition Techniques Provided By Parents Of Talented And Gifted Children, Sharon Engen

Dissertations and Theses

Most of the studies on language acquisition techniques provided by parents have been addressed to the training of parents for prevention of language disabilities and disorders (Latzke, 1975). Few investigations have involved language acquisition of the superior functioning child (Patterson, 1981). Hence, the purpose of this study was to survey language acquisition techniques provided by parents of talented and gifted children (TAG) who were enrolled in the Beaverton School District Number 48 TAG program. The first question dealt with what materials and/or equipment did the parents use in aiding their child's language development. The second question dealt with which particular …

Quaternary Volcanology Of The West Crater-Soda Peaks Area, Southern Washington Cascade Range, David R. Polivka

Dissertations and Theses

The West Crater-Soda Peaks area covering about 100 km is located 35 km southeast of Mount St. Helens in southern Washington State. It is one of several Quaternary monogenetic High Cascade volcanic centers overlying the Ohaaapecosh Formation of the Western Cascade Group and interstratified glacial till.These volcanic centers are the most westerly of the range.

The Psychological Intervention Of Group Therapy For Women Coping With Genital Herpes, Susan D. Ferguson

Dissertations and Theses

Three groups of women who had been diagnosed as having genital herpes completed a series of psychological assessments over the course of the four-month research period. One group received two-hour weekly group psychotherapy sessions for eight consecutive weeks as a mode of treatment intervention. Two control groups were used for efficacy of treatment comparison. One control group consisted of regular members of a local self-help chapter for herpes victims. The second control group was formed from those volunteers willing to participate, but who did not choose, or desire, any form of treatment, Outcome measures reflected a greater improvement in psychological …

Enhancing Impact Assessment With Extrapolative Fiction, Ruth-Ellen Miller

Dissertations and Theses

This dissertation proposes the use of fiction as models to enhance the process of impact assessment (IA) and to improve the quality of IA reports. It demonstrates that works of extrapolative fiction (EF), a subset of science fiction, raise issues and clarify concerns not currently included in the IA process, suggesting the potential for improving the relevance of IA results for decisionmakers. The dissertation also demonstrates that EF stories can enhance the presentation of IA results, making those results more readable. Through literature review and content analysis, the current IA process is shown to lead to results lacking in specific …

Forecasting Interest Rates Using Pattern Recognition Techniques, John S. Pearson

Dissertations and Theses

Much depends on the future course of interest rates. The decisions of families to make major purchases, the willingness of businesses to expand and invest, the rise and fall of the economy and stock market, the ability of lesser developed countries to repay their debts, the tenure of presidents and prime ministers--all of these may turn on whether interest rates increase or decrease in the months ahead. Several decision functions developed in the dissertation permit the direction of change of interest rates on long-term U. S. government bonds to be forecast correctly about 60% of the time. When the different …

The Contribution Of Social Support To The Successful Functioning Of Men With Epilepsy, Diane L. Pancoast

Dissertations and Theses

One hundred men with epilepsy were interviewed about the history of their illness, employment history and personal support network. Included as sources of support were: household members, close friends and relatives, more distant relationships and general forms of social participation such as church membership. Four potentially supportive aspects of these relationships were assessed: structural features of the pattern of relationships; characteristics of the individual ties; exchanges of helping resources and subjective assessments of the supportiveness of ties. The social support networks of the men who were satisfied with their lives were large, diverse, active and generally helpful. Church membership was …

An Investigation Of The Relationship Between Biographical Characteristics And Job Satisfaction Among Middle School Teachers In Four Suburban School Districts, Susan Scott-Miller

Dissertations and Theses

Quality Circles (QC) took root in Japan during the 1960s and was introduced into the U.S. in 1974. Today, many people believe QCs can increase teacher and school effectiveness. Beyond the realm of opinion, however, little research supports this belief. This study had three purposes. The first was to review QCs' literature. The second was to identify QC structures and problem solving procedures. The third was to test QCs in an educational setting and to analyze their effects on the attitudes of teachers. Methodology. QC groups and comparison groups were established at four school sites. Two measurement instruments, the Work …

Stratigraphy And Sedimentology Of Paleogene Arkosic And Volcaniclastic Strata, Johnson Creek-Chambers Creek Area, Southern Cascade Range, Washington, Warren Jon Winters

Dissertations and Theses

Over 1150 m of middle to late Eocene nonmarine arkose, lithic arkose, mudstone, and siltstone, referred to here as the Chambers Creek beds, are int~r.stratified with, and overlain by over 1600 m of late Eocene-Oligocsne(?) andesitic volcaniclastic and subordinate volcanic rocks assigned to the Ohanapecosh Formation, in a dissected structural high in the southern Washington Cascade Range, about 18 km south-southeast of the town of Packwood.

Fringe Area Growth In Metropolitan Portland: An Analysis Of Space-Time Variations In Residential Housing And Land Conversion, 1970-1980, Sheku Gibril Kamara

Dissertations and Theses

Urban ecological problems have hitherto been addressed using one of two major approaches. The first has a social impetus directed at ethnic, economic and family characteristics and their relationships with the spatial distribution of urban residential housing. The second approach emphasizes the influence of the physical environment and the services available to subareas. The sociological method has had much more attention in modeling applications than the physical analytic technique. This study adopts the physical approach with a focus that is emphatic on infrastructural factors and land attributes, and their influence on the differential rates of fringe area residential growth in …

Urban Housing Policy Evaluation In The Kingdom Of Saudi Arabia, Tarek Ali Fadaak

Dissertations and Theses

The rise in wealth for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia led to an increase in demand for more and better housing. In response to this rising demand, and as part of an overall development policy, a housing 60a1 and several housing objectives were identified. To attain the goal and objectives, a formal housing policy was designed and authorized. It involved direct and indirect assistance to the private sector, a subsidized financing program for new housing construction, a serviced land program for the low income, and public housing. This thesis is an evaluation of the urban housing policy in the Kingdom …

Retirement Satisfaction And The Timing Of The Retirement Age: An Analysis Of Retirees And Older Workers From A Fortune 500 Firm, Donna Elaine Stuteville

Dissertations and Theses

This study focuses the effects of demographic characteristics, health status, income, work attitudes, and leisure activity involvements have on satisfaction in retirement and the retirement timing decision. The review of the literature revealed that no single variable alone is the predictor of retirement satisfaction and the timing of the retirement decision. Therefore, a conceptual model was developed to measure the two central research questions. The conceptual model is based on five categorical factors as the determinants of retirement satisfaction and timing. The five main factors in the model are: demographic characteristics, health status, income level, work attitudes and leisure activity …

State Space Approach To Flood Stage Estimation, Gregory Allen Jones

Dissertations and Theses

A flood routing and stage prediction model is developed using the techniques of State Space and Kalman filtering. The governing equation is the physically based hydrologic method of flood routing with the output being an optimal estimate of stage given known inputs of streamflow. These equations are developed in state space and the Kalman filter is employed to estimate the flow and river stage.

The model is applied to the Toutle and Cowlitz Rivers in the State of Washington, where the stage is affected by a shifting bed elevation. With the deterministic inputs at Mayfield Dam on the Cowlitz and …

A Theoretical And Experimental Examination Of Sodium Chloride Hydration, Debra Conway Modra

Dissertations and Theses

A Hitachi Hu 125C transmission electron microscope in which the standard specimen holder was replaced by an environmental cell was used to observe the hydration of sodium chloride crystals. To observe Kelvin curvature and solubility effects sodium chloride crystals which were 0.1u or smaller were of special interest. An electrohome video system attached to the electron microscope was used to record the sodium chloride hydration for subsequent particle measurement and viewing.

A theoretical model was also developed. Thermodynamic properties such as the Kelvin curvature and solubility effects were considered as well as the kinetic expressions for salt dissolution/recrystalization and water …

The Relation Of Economic Diversity To Levels, Growth Rates, And Stability Of Unemployment And Income, Mohsen Attaran

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study is to investigate some widely-held assumptions regarding the value of diversification as an economic strategy. It has ofien been suggested that economic diversity enhances economic performance, either by promoting higher levels of economic well-being or by improving the ability of regions to cushion the adverse effects of economic cycles. This is the conventional wisdom, but it has not been adequately tested, although some attempts have been made to relate measures of diversity to other economic indicators (e.g., Rodgers, MacLaughlin, Conkling). The current study explores this particular issue, and the results obtained should be of interest …

Evaluating Urban Containment Programs, Arthur C. Nelson

Dissertations and Theses

Urban containment programs may be evaluated in terms of a theory unifying contributions from the economic, geographic and political science disciplines. The unified theory shows that successful programs will segment the urban-rural land market, remove speculative use value of rural land, and result in the urban land market valuing greenbelt proximity as an amenity. A general model to test urban containment programs against the unified theory is developed and then modified for application to Salem, Oregon. Results are fourfold. First, a gap in the locus of urban and rural land values at the UGB indicates that segmentation of the urban-rural …

The Effects Of A Combined Weight Training And Running Program On Body Composition In College Males, Robert L. Hesslink Jr.

Dissertations and Theses

The present study attempted to investigate whether a combined weight and endurance training program can elicit more favorable changes in body composition than either method of training alone. Body composition parameters (absolute fat and fat-free weight) were evaluated using circumference measurements, skinfolds and hydrostatic weighing. Cardiorespiratory fitness was evaluated via a modified Harvard step-test. All tests were administered before and after 10 weeks of training. Exercises were performed 3 days/week for 40 minutes/day. Male volunteers (n=21) were randomly assigned to one of three treatment groups (weight training only, endurance running only, combined weight training and endurance running).

Geophysical Strain And Tilt: Measurement Methodology And Analysis Of Data, Robert Mackay

Dissertations and Theses

Tilt and strain meters were installed on the Portland State University campus in the summer of 1982 and data was collected for 4 months. Instrument selection, operation, installation and performance are discussed.

Suggestions that could enhance data quality and data collection efficiency are presented.

An analysis procedure is suggested and an example of this procedure for an interval of data is discussed. The influence of the temperature, pressure, rainfall and solid earth tides on the signal is investigated, as well as the correlation between similar channels of the different tilt instruments. The temperature, rainfall and solid earth tides were all …

The Application Of Exact Electrodiffusion Theory To Ion Transport Across Lipid Bilayer Membranes, Scott Cohen

Dissertations and Theses

The question of how ions interact with each other and with the potential energy barrier in thin lipid bilayer membranes has interested investigators for several years. The application of electrodiffusion theory to the study of this question is the central theme of this work. We have calculated current-voltage curves for barriers of various shapes and heights, in each case by means of numerically integrating the exact electrodiffusion equation as well as this same equation in the constant field approximation. We have also calculated the total charge in the membrane for the same conditions under which we have calculated the current-voltage …

Derivation And Test Of Predictions Of A Discrete Latent State Model For Signed Number Addition Test Performance, Kentaro Yamamoto

Dissertations and Theses

This study is an investigation of the performance of a discrete latent state model devised by Paulson (1982) to account for signed-number arithmetic test data gathered by Birenbaum and Tatsuoka (1980). One hundred twenty nine students took a test which consists of sixteen item types with four parallel arithmetic items of each type. The present study utilizes the five addition item types of four items each; hence, there are four parallel subtests. Responses to the addition items can be analyzed in terms of two components: the sign component (is the sign correct?), and the absolute value component (is the size …

Depositional Model Of The Antelope Coal Field, Wyoming, Christine M. Budai

Dissertations and Theses

The coal-bearing sediments of the Antelope coal field in the southcentral Powder River Basin, Wyoming were deposited in paludal and tributary subsystems of the fluvial system that existed in the basin during the early Tertiary. A depositional model for the Antelope coal field was constructed from data collected from approximately 500 drill holes that penetrated the upper 90 meters (300 feet) of the Fort Union Formation. The depositional environments were interpreted from lithologic descriptions and guidelines established in the literature.

The two main coal seams at the Antelope coal field are the Anderson and stratigraphically lower Canyon coal seams. They …

Development Of An Mmpi Scale To Predict Therapeutic Response To Lithium Carbonate, Neal Allen Hayden

Dissertations and Theses

Common medications utilized in the treatment of psychosis include lithium carbonate and the major tranquilizers. The efficacy of lithium is well established in the treatment of manic-depressive patients exhibiting symptoms of mania. The major tranquilizers treat a broader range of psychotic disorders including schizophrenia.

In the treatment of manic-depressive illness, lithium produces normalization of affect with few side effects. However, since the interval between therapeutic and toxic dosages is narrow, lithium treatment must be closely monitored to avoid severe physical problems and even death. When a schizophrenic is incorrectly diagnosed as manic-depressive, and is treated with lithium, the patient does …

An Internal Review Of A Discipline: Journal Editors' Opinions Of Paradigm Development Within Speech Communication, Laurie A. Houghton

Dissertations and Theses

A review of the literature on paradigm development within academic fields revealed that researchers have drawn distinctions between disciplines with greater paradigm development (discussed as discipline-wide consensus) and disciplines with lesser paradigm development. Several of these investigations centered on paradigm development and evaluative criteria used by academic journal editors for judging scholarly work. The purpose of this study was to ascertain Speech Communication journal editors' opinions of paradigm development within their field.

A two-part survey was developed and mailed to eleven editors of the major Speech Communication journals. Data generated from the survey were analyzed using a descriptive methodology. Part …

The Combined Effect Of Cu And Zn On Selenastrum Capricornutum, Helmer Colonia-Roque

Dissertations and Theses

It has been demonstrated that the toxicity of heavy metals depends on their chemical speciation and can be related to their free ion activities, rather than the total metal concentrations. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of combined free ions of zinc and copper on the toxicity to the green alga Selenastrum capricornutum. This alga was grown in a defined medium, under controlled laboratory conditions, with a varying range of zinc and copper concentrations. The growth rate of the alga was inhibited at pZn = 5.93 or at pCu = 7.24. The results suggest that …

Image Development Through Process, Jean Handwerk Lee

Dissertations and Theses

No abstract provided.

The Correlation Between Expressive Language Delay In Children And Their Motor Abilities, Gail G. Cunningham

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of the present study was to determine the correlation between expressive language delay in children and their gross and fine motor skills. Twenty children five years through six years, eleven months with a diagnosed expressive language delay, were selected to participate in the study. Each was screened on the basis of normal hearing, receptive vocabulary skills, motor functioning, and an expressive language delay of one year or more. After screening procedures, each child was administered the Preschool Language Scale-PLS (Zimmerman, et al., 1969) and the short form of the Bruininks-Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency-BOMP (Bruininks, 1978). …

Justice Brennan And The Bill Of Rights, David B. Brownhill

Dissertations and Theses

The research problem examined in my thesis is stated clearly in the title: Justice Brennan and The Bill of Rights. In my examination, I relied primarily on Brennan's opinions, and secondarily, on scholarly commentaries authored by Brennan and others. I located the cases through a combination of sources. Initially, I consulted the Harvard Law Reviews' "Supreme Court Term, (1956-1981) Term(s)," which is published annually in its November edition, and then, I turned to the writings by, and about, Brennan my findings show that Brennan's approach in these cases has evolved over the years toward a more absolutist one.

The Effects Of Various Chemical Treatments On The Surface Area Of Coals, Maria Margaret Ludvig

Dissertations and Theses

Surface areas of most American coals are small when measured by N₂ adsorption at 77 K and large when measured by CO₂ adsorption at 298 K, implying that the majority of the pores are less than 5 Å in diameter. This small pore size would restrict many gaseous and liquid reactants from entering the internal pore system of the coal, and hence, reduces the efficiency of coal conversion. Therefore, if the surface area, as measured by N₂ (77 K), could be increased, that is, to increase the pore size, the conversion of coal into useful products should …

Holocene Geologic History Of The Clatsop Plains Foredune Ridge Complex, David Karl Rankin

Dissertations and Theses

This research formulated a recent geologic history of the Clatsop Plains dating from 3500 years BP to present. Research consisted of geomorphic mapping, near-surface stratigraphic evaluation, carbon dating and subsurface interpretation of available data.

Effect Of Tinnitus Maskers On Speech Discrimination Among Those Wearing Tinnitus Maskers, John Alexander Chonka

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect(s) of tinnitus maskers and tinnitus instruments on speech discrimination utilizing a population of subjects who currently have tinnitus and are presently wearing these devices. The hypothesis which guided this investigation states that there is no difference between discrimination scores with and without tinnitus maskers. In an attempt to test this hypothesis, speech discrimination scores were obtained from 26 listeners both in quiet and in the presence of cafeteria noise, with and without use of their tinnitus maskers.