Digital Commons Network^™

Students In Alternative Public High Schools: Educational Histories Prior To Alternative School Entry, Carolyn Moilanen

Dissertations and Theses

The study was designed to describe an urban district's alternative high school population in terms of a conceptual framework drawn from three bodies of literature: dropout studies, supplementary/compensatory education, and alternative schools studies. Educational histories prior to alternative school entry were traced through district records and documents for 757 students and a focused interview was conducted with 81 students in order to obtain their perceptions of both regular and alternative educational experiences during their school careers. A qualitative data analysis was conducted to determine the study population fit with traditional descriptors for high-risk, to examine district responses in terms of …

Values Of Oregon Community College Faculty In Selected Instructional Areas, John Francis Bohan

Dissertations and Theses

The following question was investigated for each of several biographical variables: Are there significant differences in the work values, as measured by the Ohio Work Values Inventory (OWVI), and personal values (terminal and instrumental), as measured by the Rokeach Value Survey (RVS), of instructors in Oregon community colleges? Comparisons were made by job status (part-time/full-time), teaching assignment, sex, number of years teaching, age, degree held, other employment of instructor, geographic location of college, and vocational certificate held. A multivariate ANOVA (followed by univariate ANOVAs and Modified LSDs as needed) was performed separately on the OWVI scales, the RVS Terminal Values, …

Adolescent And Parental Perceptions Of Adolescent Self-Disclosure Communication And Relational Satisfaction, Diane S. Lund

Dissertations and Theses

As children approach adolescence, their communication relation&hip with their mothers and fathers undergoes significant transformation. Research has hitherto been conducted on family communication as an isolated variable. This study analyzed adolescent and parental perceptions of adolescent self-disclosure and relational satisfaction by adolescents and parents.

Mmpi Discrimination Of Incest Offenders : A Validity Study Of The Ic, Sv, And Pe Subscales, B. Joann Scheck

Dissertations and Theses

This study examined the hypothesis that a set of MMPI items could be derived which would discriminate male incest offenders from male alcoholics.

Effects Of Stress And Social Support On Maternal Attachment With A Handicapped Infant, Cecelia Ostien Capuzzi

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study was to compare the attachment process of mothers with and without a handicapped infant and to examine the effects of stress and the social support network on this process. The research was a prospective, longitudinal study comparing two different mother-infant groups on the dependent variable, maternal attachment. The independent variables handicap-nonhandicap, maternal characteristics, perinatal events, and other stressors were analyzed for their effect on maternal attachment. The social support network was examined to determine its direct and indirect effect on the attachment process. The sample was composed of 36 mother-infant dyads. Data were gathered in …

Elderly Stroke Patients And Their Partners: A Longitudinal Study Of Social Support And Well-Being Changes Associated With A Disabling Stroke, Marie Therese Rau

Dissertations and Theses

This investigation explored the relationship of demographic, social network, social support, and stroke-related factors to depressive symptomatology and well-being in 50 elderly individuals who had recently suffered a first, completed stroke and their partners. Data were gathered at two points in time, with interviews scheduled six months apart. Outcome measures included the CES-D depression scale and the Index of Psychological Well-Being. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, correlational procedures, multiple regression, and change-focused regression analyses. For the caregivers, lower depression levels at Time 1 were associated with better subjective health, less concern about being able to care for the patient …

Job Satisfaction Of Administrators In A Public Suburban School District, Linda Cartier Borquist

Dissertations and Theses

The two research questions of the study were: (1) Is the job satisfaction of school district administrators related to the personal factors of group membership and sex? (2) What are the sources of overall job satisfaction? Do they confirm findings from previous studies in which autonomy, responsibility, the work itself, growth, recognition, feedback, achievement, and interpersonal relationships were found to be major contributors to job satisfaction? Utilizing the Job Diagnostic Survey (JDS) developed by Hackman and Oldham and free response questions, ratings of job satisfaction were obtained to determine if sex and group membership (elementary principal, secondary principal and vice …

Networks For Staff Development In The State Of Oregon, Vida Sumner Taylor

Dissertations and Theses

This study documents and describes efforts by Oregon school districts to network in order to improve schools and provide resources for staff development. There are at least 41 networks linking school districts, institutions of higher education, and Educational Service Districts in both rural and urban areas of the state. These networks, collaboratives, and consortia have the common purpose of improving education, and the belief that they can accomplish more cooperatively than they can individually. These networks are described in terms of purposes, benefits and problems, and desire for assistance. Comparisons showed that large school districts are much more likely to …

Enhanced Computer Graphics For Decision Makers, Floyd James Brock Jr.

Dissertations and Theses

Words need a context to be understood. Visual patterns also need a context to convey their meaning. When patterns represent quantities in business graphics, decision makers (DMs) depend on contrasting visual contexts to discern patterns and discover relationships. Depending on the context in which DMs see trends, differences between two trends may point to a problem, to continuity, or to an opportunity. Can enhancing the context in computer graphics help DMs visualize problems? To answer this research question, three experiments were done in the field on computer graphics. One hundred five DMs tried 17 different contexts for time-series trends displayed …

Internal External Locus Of Control And The Choice Of Therapy, Marlene Eid

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study was to determine whether a relationship exists between the scores subjects obtain on Rotter's Internal-External Locus of Control Scale and the type of therapy they prefer. Two hundred and fifty-four students in general psychology classes were given Rotter's Scale. Considering their upper- and lower-third scores, 54 were classified as " Internals," 53 as "Externals." Subjects also were given written descriptions of both psychoanalytic and behavioristic therapies. Each of these descriptions dealt with the goal and the specific therapeutic procedure of the respective therapies. Subjects were asked to identify which therapy they preferred and to provide …

The Effects Of Maternal Support And Non-Support On The Family Concepts Of Sexually Abused Girls, Sharon R. Hitchens

Dissertations and Theses

Incest, and the problems arising from it, have increasingly come under the scrutiny of therapists and researchers. All family members are affected by incest and all have been studied. Victims are particularly devastated by sexual abuse by a family member but it is a commonly held belief that having a supportive mother can mitigate the trauma a victim experiences. In this study, girls between the ages of ten and eighteen who were the victims of sexual abuse by a father-figure were compared to a group of girls not thought to be incest victims. The incest victims were divided into two …

Cultural Characteristics Of Learning And Perceptual Skills Of Southeast Alaskan Native 5-Year-Olds, Thomas J. Turkon

Dissertations and Theses

This study examined the use of cognitive skills by 5-year-old Alaskan Native children on a standardized testing instrument. The Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scales of Intelligence (WPPSI) were administered to 23 boys and 17 girls of predominantly Tlingit, Tsimshean, and Haida ancestry. A standardized parent interview was used to collect bio-demographic data. Mean scores for the sample displayed significant differences between the Performance and Verbal scales, with the strongest performance in the Spatial subtests, and lowest in the Sequential subtests. Scores were significantly associated with variables representing culture-specific self identity and behavior, but were most strongly associated with family size. …

An Assessment Of The Incorporation Of Established Guidelines And Intercultural Communication Concepts Into U.S. College-Sponsored Study Abroad Programs, Thomas Thaxter Bacheller Iv

Dissertations and Theses

This research project had the following goals:

1) To locate, describe, and synthesize recognized authoritative standards of performance and guiding principles of effective good practice for study abroad programs that have been established, endorsed, and supported by professionals and national organizations in the study abroad field.

2) To review selected literature on intercultural communication that has been published in the last fifteen years and examine intercultural communication theories and strategies applicable to the study abroad field to identify aspects which can most clearly benefit the study abroad experience of a sojourner through improved communication competence.

3) To assess the extent …

The Communication Of Wellness Concepts Interculturally In An Alaskan Health-Care Context, Janet A. Allan

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study is to investigate in what ways cultural value differences between Alaskan Native clients and non-Native health professionals affect the communicating of "wellness" concepts. Specifically, this study focuses on possible difference in the cultural value orientation of "Man's Relationship to Health."

A Comparison Of The Effects Of Emg Biofeedback And Relaxation Training On Chronic Back Pain Patients, Pam W. Vredevelt

Dissertations and Theses

This experiment examined the effects of EMG biofeedback and relaxation training as compared with biofeedback alone. The following dependent variables were examined: manifest anxiety, perceived pain, perceived relaxation, EMG activity, and locus of control. Back pain patients were assigned to one of two treatment groups. Group 1 was treated with both EMG biofeedback and relaxation training. Group 2 was treated with biofeedback alone. It appears that both biofeedback combined with progressive relaxation and biofeedback training alone are effective in lowering muscle activity and perceived pain, and in increasing perceived relaxation. However, from the results of this study, it is impossible …

The Effect Of Subject Expectations Of "Hypnosis" Upon The Vividness Of Visual Imagery, Kayla Mae Nilsson

Dissertations and Theses

There is no consensus of how hypnosis works. The two major theorists in hypnosis research, the Phenomenologists and the Behaviorists, disagree on this issue. The Phenomenologists consider individual talent and change of the state of consciousness the key to how hypnosis works. The Behaviorists consider the social situation and the roles taken by the experimenter and subject, especially the subject's expectations of hypnosis, the mainspring of the hypnotic process. Subject expectations of hypnosis have been found to affect the final results of hypnosis experiments. An experiment was conducted to gain further insight into subject expectations of hypnosis, and how these …

Eye Contact Perception At Distances Up To Six Meters, Daniel L. Scarl

Dissertations and Theses

Common experience suggests that most people can tell whether they are being looked at by another person who is about 8 m away. However, the results of past experiments, which used distances of no more than about 3 m, have implied that this cannot be done if the person looked at (Receiver) judges only by the iris-sclera configuration of the person looking (Sender). This is true even if eye contact is defined simply as identifying on-face gazes (FGs). It has been suggested that in everyday experience eye contact is accompanied by cues other than iris position, and that these non-iris-position …

A Comparative Study Of The Developmental Sentence Scoring Normative Data Obtained In Canby, Oregon, And The Midwest, For Children Between The Ages Of 6.0 And 6.11 Years, Stacy Ann Tilden-Browning

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of the present study was to investigate the effect of geographical differences on the Developmental Sentence Scoring normative data for children ages 6.0 to 6.11, by comparing the original DSS normative data with that obtained in Canby, Oregon. A collateral purpose was to develop norms for the geographical area of Canby, Oregon, using the DSS procedure. Forty children, ten within each of the four, three-month age subgroups between 6.0 and 6.11, were chosen. All of the children came from monolingual, middle-class families and had normal hearing, normal receptive vocabulary skills, and no known unusual social, developmental, or behavioral …

A Comparison Of Pedophiles And Incest Offenders On Mmpi Scales And Demographic Data, Linda Darmer Ladd

Dissertations and Theses

This study compared one group of pedophiles, two groups of incestuous fathers, and two groups of incestuous stepfathers on their individual MMPI scale scores and self-reported demographic data. Past research on sex offenders has shown that patterns of variables are better indicators of offender typology than single variables. A nonrandom sample of male abusers (N=177) was drawn from two separate sources, a clinic that screens offenders for treatment disposition and an unrelated outpatient treatment clinic in the Portland, Oregon area. Scores from the 13 MMPI scales as well as data from 17 demographic variables were drawn from clinic …

Subsidized Housing For Seniors: A Comparative Study Of Management Styles, Thelma Lofquist

Dissertations and Theses

Studies at the Urban Institute in Washington, D.C., during the 1970's, defined a management style already existing for high-performance, assisted housing. Project performance in those studies was based in part on: (a) tenant satisfaction with management, (b) tenant turnover rates, (c) rent delinquency rates, (d) vandalism rates, and (e) operating cost per unit. For this dissertation an attempt was made to evaluate the use of high-performance management guidelines with a newly-opened, assisted-housing project for elderly and handicapped residents. The guidelines used for this study were (a) authority for the project was based on-site, (b) maintenance responsibilities were based on-site, (c) …

Physical Illness And Depression: Changes Over Time In Middle Aged And Elderly Persons, Ann K. Williams

Dissertations and Theses

Recent research in gerontology and geriatrics has identified that one factor repeatedly associated with depression in the elderly is the presence of physical illness. The increasing numbers of elderly persons in the population and their high rate of chronic physical illness make it important to identify critical disease and individual characteristics that play a role in the association of depression and physical illness. In order to investigate and clarify these relationships and concerns, a panel survey of 133 middle aged and elderly persons with recent exacerbations of various physical illnesses was completed. Subjects were referred by medical offices and agencies …

The Measurement Of Change In Well-Being In A Longitudinal Study Of Pre- And Post-Retirees, Marie P. Beaudet

Dissertations and Theses

The primary focus of this dissertation is an empirical investigation of three approaches to the measurement of longitudinal change. For the present study, difference scores, residual change scores, and percentage gain scores are compared to determine if their use results in similar findings when the relationships between three resource areas (health, social, and financial) and subjective well-being are analyzed. The propositions which are tested were derived from current aging theories. Meta-analysis procedures were employed to synthesize past research findings in gerontology. The data which were analyzed are those of the Longitudinal Retirement History Study (LRHS), a research project sponsored by …

Social Structure, Health Orientation And Health Behavior, Khalifa Ali Baej

Dissertations and Theses

An attempt has been made to examine the relationship between social structure and medical factors in a framework which links cosmopolitanism to health orientation and behavior. Specifically, this study has attempted to investigate the variations in health knowledge, beliefs, attitudes and behavior among individuals whose social structure varies in terms of cosmopolitanism.

Negative Behavior Exhibited By Preschool Children In Same-Age Versus Mixed-Age Groups, Laura Janine Sheppard

Dissertations and Theses

Perhaps due to the increase in the workforce of mothers with young children, much attention has been directed in the past decade towards the subject of out-of-home child care.

In order to gain further understanding of the socialization of preschool children, an observational study was carried out which was designed to measure the amount of negative behavior expressed by children participating in mixed-age versus same-age preschool groups.

A Social-Psychological Case History : The Manson Incident, Judith Elaine Bullis

Dissertations and Theses

This study examines the social-psychological impact of of the Manson incident; which begins with the Tate-Labianca murders, continues with the arrest of Charles Manson and some of his followers, continues with the trial of Charles Manson and the co-defendants, and results in a popular image.

Special Education Labeling Relationships With Learning Disabled Student Self-Concept, Nancy Kathryn Godinet

Dissertations and Theses

The intent of this research was to explore special education labeling interactions with measured student self-concept on the Piers-Harris Self-Concept Scale. An extensive literature review revealed that there are eight major variables which have been found to exert an influence upon student self-concept: achievement, age, sex, socioeconomic status, ethnic origin, place in family, significant others, and special class placement. This study was designed to examine these major self-concept variables and control for any significant variations between groups of learning disabled (LD) labeled students and nonlabeled regular students with equivalent math and reading achievement. Collection of data for use in this …

An Assessment Of A Training Program Designed To Teach Staff Nurses In An Acute Care Facility To Transfer Nursing Process Theory To Practice, C. Frances Johnson

Dissertations and Theses

A training program was developed to help registered nurses in an acute care facility to learn nursing process theory and to transfer that theory to nursing practice. A total sample of 102 newly-hired nurses who had participated in this training program were pre- and post- tested on class content; they also filled out a questionnaire which provided demographic and attitudinal data related to the use of nursing process as a model for nursing care. An audit sample of 82 nurses, who were a part of the total sample, were audited one month after the training program to collect data on …

Socialization And Ideal Expectations For The Health Professional Role In The Provision Of Quality Terminal Care For The Urban Elderly, Margaret B. Neal

Dissertations and Theses

This study investigates socialization and ideal expectations for the health professional role in the provision of quality terminal care. Guiding the research are role theory, socialization theory, and Talcott Parsons' (1951) pattern variables. The research was conducted in three phases. The first phase involved development of an analytical framework elaborating upon Parsons' five pattern variables, which were first conceptualized as dimensions describing the ways in which roles could vary. Specific indicators for each of the pattern variables were developed. Typologies characterizing (1) the medical, or conventional, model and (2) the holistic model (specifically, the hospice model) for the provision of …

The Impact Of Social Networks On Mortality, Disease Incidence, And Disease Progression, Mary Bahner Maxwell

Dissertations and Theses

Several recent longitudinal studies of large community populations have revealed that people with more extensive network resources live longer. However, it is not known whether this occurs because social ties prevent disease or retard its progression once it occurs. The purpose of this research was to: (1) determine the relationship between social network indicators and mortality in an urban sample; (2) extend that knowledge by addressing the relationship between networks and disease incidence and disease progression; (3) delineate which specific network sectors were the strongest predictors of the health related outcomes. This was uniquely possible because measures of the three …

Growing Old And Going Straight: Examining The Role Of Age In Criminal Career Termination, Annette I. Jolin

Dissertations and Theses

This study was designed to investigate mid-life desistance from crime as a function of general mid-life change. Adult developmental theory postulates that major occupational or lifestyle changes occur during mid-life, more so than during other developmental periods in adulthood. Such changes are said to occur in conjunction with specific transitional processes experienced by the middle-aged male. The abandonment of a criminal career at mid-life is viewed as a significant occupational and lifestyle change. It is examined in relation to the postulated transitional processes affecting aspects of the life areas of work and social relationships, as well as health and psychological …