Digital Commons Network^™

Enhancing Spiritual Care In Medical Missions Through A Contextual Apologetic Workshop, Jacob G. Caraotta

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

There is a lack of resources and a gap in the literature for training prayer teams for medical mission endeavors. The Contextual Apologetic Workshop, an intervention project, was designed to fill the gap in the literature by training participants in prayer, evangelism, and apologetics. It utilized the Contextual Apologetic System, a framework built around the Contextual Triad, which includes the cultural context, setting, and endemic religions that inform outreach dynamics and preparation. The cultural context identifies if the population is high- or low-context, and includes the subcultures. The setting refers to outreach types, such as medical missions or construction projects. …

The Influence Of Leadership Development On Organizational Citizenship Behavior: Moderated By Leader-Member Exchange, Christopher Houston

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This research study addressed the problem of lacking leadership development in the higher education industry and the reduction of organizational citizenship behavior (OCB). Increasing demands on higher education resulted in a need for improved leadership acumen across the industry, but inefficient and lacking development persists. This study evaluated a regional higher education institution of higher education in the Southwest to better understand how specific leadership development opportunities relate to organizational behavior. The research utilized the 24-item OCB survey and the LMX-7 survey to capture participant responses in combination with different leadership development participation responses. The findings indicated that while leadership …

Grief Disrupted: A Phenomenological Study Of How African Americans Experienced Grief Without Traditional Rituals During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Jacqueline Williamson-Webb

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

In recent times, the dominant psychological understanding of grief is as an emotion (Gravesen & Birkelund, 2021; Meiselman, 2021). However, grief is also socially constructed, meaning that the emotions and behaviors labeled as grief have their beginning in the social space. Grief, then, is a performative act shaped by cultural traditions and public rituals (Murrell et al., 2023). Consequently, the purpose of this interpretative phenomenological study is to understand the lived grief experiences of African Americans (AAs) living in New Jersey who experienced a personal loss through the death of another person during the COVID-19 pandemic. Erving Goffman’s dramaturgy guides …

The Positive Influence Of Minority Male Educators: A Phenomenological Study On Their Role And Necessity In Education, Mark V. Sanders

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This phenomenological study examined the perceptions and experiences of minority male students in their educational journeys, focusing on the influence of teacher familiarity and cultural awareness. Teacher familiarity referred to shared cultural backgrounds, lived experiences, and relational accessibility that fostered meaningful connections between students and educators. Cultural awareness was examined in relation to minority male educators, who comprised less than 3% of the national educator workforce. Guided by Tinto’s Student Retention Theory, the study explored how academic and social integration influenced student retention and success. The central research question was: What were the experiences of minority male college students regarding …

Training Timothy: An Analysis Of Discipleship And Leadership Development In Multicultural Churches, Philip Thomas

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

As America’s social and cultural landscape continues to diversify, churches face the challenge of fostering contextually relevant, biblically grounded communities characterized by unity in Christ. Church leaders play a crucial role in this process by articulating a shared mission that transcends humanistic cultural differences and working towards a unifying biblical culture, based on a common understanding and vocabulary. The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to examine how church leaders were selected, developed, and mobilized in Protestant multicultural churches in America to create a unifying biblical culture through biblical discipleship in a multicultural context. For this study, discipleship was …

Ancient Astronaut Theory And Christian Belief Among Evangelical Millennials: A Quantitative Exploratory Cross-Sectional Study, Richard Barry Bazzell

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this quantitative, exploratory, non-experimental, cross-sectional study was to explore the possible influence of the Ancient Astronaut Theory upon Evangelical Christian millennials in the aspects of their biblical worldview, belief in the triune God, and Christian praxis. The researcher structured the study upon four pillars: (a) Evangelical millennials, (b) Evangelical theology, (c) Lev Vygotsky’s social constructivism, and (d) Eric Von Däniken’s Ancient Astronaut Theory. The study population was Evangelical millennials in the state of Texas. The study’s instrumentation was a researcher-designed 5-point Likert scale survey titled Ancient Astronaut Theory–Evangelical Christian Millennials (AAT–ECM). Because the respondents were fewer in …

Generation Z And The Church: A Phenomenological Study Of Perceptions, Barriers, And Opportunities For Church Engagement, Hector Albert Soto

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to examine the perceptions, barriers, and opportunities that shape the relationship between Generation Z and the Christian church, with particular attention to how these factors influence patterns of engagement. Recent trends indicated a significant decline in church engagement among Generation Z, contributing to the erosion of vital resources necessary for the sustained vitality of contemporary Christian congregations (Barna, 2020; Braddy, 2021; Earls, 2020). The study was guided by three research questions: 1) What Generation Z variables did the church need to focus on to attract and retain Gen Z (e.g., social concerns, leadership …

Building Stability Through Compassion: A Study Of City Gates Ministries’ Impact On Homelessness And Resource Distribution, Bryan Christopher Pruitt

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This Dissertation-in-Praxis focused on how City Gates Ministries, a nonprofit organization in Thurston County, Washington, improved its support for individuals and families facing homelessness and poverty by refining its operational systems. The initiative aimed to strengthen donation intake, inventory management, and furniture delivery, which had previously strained resources and hindered organizational consistency. Guided by biblical leadership principles, the project introduced cost-effective solutions like a barcode-based digital inventory system, color-coded signage, and modular volunteer training sessions. Outcomes included a 30% reduction in inventory duplication errors, a nearly 45% decrease in retrieval times for high-demand items, and a decrease in misplaced inventory …

Telehealth Therapist’S Satisfaction And Commitment, Justin C. Trout

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Job satisfaction and commitment have been important topics for Industrial-Organizational psychologists for decades. However, little research has examined these concepts within the world of telehealth therapists. Due to COVID-19 and social distancing, the mental health field has expanded over into remote platforms, giving therapists the opportunity to work from home. The impact of COVID-19 on remote work was significant, and when in-person services resumed, therapists expressed continuing to work remotely, valuing flexibility and autonomy. Recognizing the importance of understanding this phenomenon from the perspective of the individuals who have experienced it, this study used a phenomenological approach to explore the …

Preparing New Life Pentecostal Ministries Young Adults For God’S Design Of Marriage Through Identity Development, Ameerah Brown

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This thesis project, Preparing New Life Pentecostal Ministries Young Adults for God’s Design of Marriage Through Identity Development, addresses the growing crisis of identity, purpose, and relationship instability among young adults within NLPM and beyond. The purpose of this action-oriented research is to provide a theological and spiritually formative framework that prepares young adults for marriage by biblical principles. The project identifies key spiritual and emotional barriers, including unresolved wounds and distorted self-identity. Lack of discipleship and cultural confusion hinder spiritual maturity and readiness for God-ordained relationships. Grounded in Scripture and supported by human development theory and spiritual formation scholars, …

The Relationship Between Nursing Faculty Sense Of Belonging And Faculty Intent To Stay, Heather M. Bowers

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this quantitative causal-comparative and correlational study was to evaluate the relationship between workplace sense of belonging and intent to stay in the current nursing faculty role among full-time nursing faculty. The shortage of nursing faculty impacts the ability to prepare the next generation of nurses needed to meet worldwide nursing demands. Strategies to effectively recruit and retain nursing faculty are important considering the current shortage and increasing retirements of nursing faculty. While sense of belonging has been studied for student retention and studies are beginning to explore the importance of workplace belonging, the impact of organizational sense …

“The Church Is Not Going To Close Until God Closes It”: Survival Of The Neighborhood Church, Karen Kay Warren

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

There are churches in working-class neighborhoods throughout America that were built by the community’s residents. Some of these churches are close to or more than 100 years old and still function as places of worship. Riverdale Baptist Church in Roanoke and Fairview Christian in Lynchburg are two such churches. During the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries something changed about the Riverdale Farm and Fairview Heights neighborhoods. New neighbors arrived who were not interested in attending these corner churches, or in having close-knit relationships with their neighbors. The children of the older members had moved to other neighborhoods, and although …

From Belief To Action: An Exploratory Study Of Theological Perspectives In Influencing Credibility-Enhancing Displays, John Chambers

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this two-phase qualitative research design was to explore the relationship between faith and works, as evidenced by manifest Credibility Enhancing Displays (CREDs), for electronic survey participants in the orthodox Christian community. Exploring the potential links between specific aspects of the theological narratives and the intentions that precede behavior was the central focus of the study. An expert panel was used to develop the Phase One survey. Phase Two retained the same expert panel members but presented them with the Phase One survey analysis to expand the interpretation of the results. At this stage in the research, CREDs …

Parallel Lives: Revitalization Of An Ancient Method Of Inquiry, Geoffrey Thomas Uhal

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The Parallel Lives style examination and biography is one of the oldest forms of historical inquiry, providing a comparison between a foreign subject and a more familiar subject as a frame of reference. This style of examination was popular for dissertations in the 19th century among military historians writing about generals who were stylistically known as “Great Captains” for much of history. While the moral comparisons of such histories in bygone eras possess less utility, multimodal comparisons of lives that readers have more and less contextual background to provide a model to bridge the gap between foreign and familiar subjects. …

A Phenomenological Study Of Overcoming School Experiences Of Disability-Related Stigma To Gain Competitive Employment For Individuals With Learning Disabilities, Katherine Lamont

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this hermeneutical phenomenological study was to interpret the experiences of overcoming disability-related stigma to gain competitive employment for individuals with learning disabilities (LDs) who have previously received special education services in public schools in the United States. Goffman’s stigma theory framed the investigation of the research question: What are the lived experiences of individuals with LDs who have received special education services in public school settings with overcoming disability-related stigma to gain competitive employment? This study was conducted with 12 participants, who each received special education services in public schools in the United States for a specific …

The Catholic Church And The Acculturation Of Immigrants To The United States: Pittsburgh And The Slovak Community During The Gilded Age And Progressive Era, Thomas Frank Demharter

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The Catholic Church and the Acculturation of Immigrants to the United States: Pittsburgh and the Slovak Community During the Gilded Age and Progressive Era.” Throughout the nineteenth century, hundreds of thousands of immigrants arrived in the United States from southern and eastern Europe, marking a radical change in the cultural and social background of those who arrived in search of work in the industrial world that had come to dominate the economy of the nation. This dissertation will examine the role that the Catholic Church played in aiding these mostly Catholic immigrants in their attempt to conform to and assimilate …

Working With Different Generations In The Post-Covid Remote Workplace: The Millennial Perspective, Rhys Morgan Alexander

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Generational theory proposes that generations are inherently different from one another based on the events that occur within their lifetimes at various developmental stages. These differences have been studied in many contexts, including within the work environment. As older generations continue to remain employed, and with the shift to remote work post-COVID 19, this topic remains an important concentration for developmental and organizational researchers. The differences between generations have been found to impact on job satisfaction and general work value priorities to varying degrees. Based on this, a literature review was conducted followed by a phenomenological, interview-based study to explore …

Egalitarianism: A Hermeneutical, Biblical-Theological And Logical Evaluation, Martin Nyanzu

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

There are several sensitive and polarized issues confronting the church in our day, one of them has turned egalitarians and complementarians into warring camps – men and women’s role in the home, church, and society. The last twenty years have seen an intensification in egalitarian publications. However, a critical examination of egalitarian theology in some major works presents a concerning deficit in adhering to the principles of biblical theology, hermeneutics, and logic. This literary research is a biblical canonical survey of egalitarian theology based on existing scholarly perspectives among North American evangelicals. It is apparent that egalitarian biblical theology lacks …

Describing The Lived Experiences Of Professional School Counselors: Providing And Advocating For Services To Address Childhood Trauma, Toawondia T. Underwood

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The professional school counselor’s role is to enhance student success by implementing a comprehensive school counseling program. Professional school counselors often focus on addressing the needs of students impacted by trauma, who exhibit increased absences, behavioral challenges, and diminished academic performance. The purpose of this hermeneutic phenomenology study was to understand the lived experiences of professional school counselors providing and advocating for services to address childhood trauma. The American School Counselor (ASCA) National Model served as the structural framework, and the theory guiding this study was Urie Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems theory. The research engaged 15 practicing professional school counselors from …

The Impact Of Psychological Well-Being, Gratitude, And Self-Efficacy On Resiliency In High School Students: A Predictive Correlational Study, Jennifer Nevard-Blanco

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this quantitative predictive correlational study was to examine the impact of psychological well-being, gratitude, and self-efficacy on resiliency in high school students in a northeastern state. This study is important because the promotion of positive psychological factors such as gratitude, self-efficacy, and psychological well-being have been identified as predictors of increased resilience, buffering the negative effects of stressors and adverse circumstances. The sample was composed of 110 high school students from a public school in the northeastern part of the United States. Data was collected using four self-report instruments: Ryff's Psychological Well-being 18-item scale, the Gratitude Questionnaire …

Navigating Legal Constraints: A Phenomenological Study On Black Educators’ Experiences With Integrating Race-Related Topics In K-12 Education In North Central Texas, Christa H. Hicks

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore the lived experiences of Black educators in North Central Texas as they navigated the legislative restrictions placed on teaching race-related topics in public schools. The theory guiding this study was the critical race theory framework, which provided insights into how societal structures contribute to inequalities and shape the professional experiences of Black educators working within the constraints of laws that limit the teaching of race-related topics. The central research question was: What are the lived experiences of Black educators in North Central Texas on navigating the legislative restrictions of teaching race-related …

The Leader And Employee: A Public Administration Study On Legitimacy In Small To Medium-Sized Municipal Governments, Dustin Bovee

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this empirical study was to investigate how municipal government administrative leaders’ effectiveness, value creation, innovation, ethical behavior, fairness, contributions, role alignment with duty expectations, trust, and support influence their employees’ perceptions of leader legitimacy. The target population consisted of public service employees working in two county governments and four city governments in Western Colorado. The theory guiding this study is the Leader-Member Exchange (LMX) theory, which offers a nuanced framework for examining factors influencing employees’ perceptions of legitimacy for their leaders. The study explored the factors that influence employees’ perception of leader legitimacy within municipal government departments. …

Do Males Use Ai Tools Differently Than Female Students When Conducting Social Science Research?, Marsha A. Donaldson

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This quasi-experimental, cross-sectional, applied, relational study aimed to explore how male graduate students used AI tools differently from female graduate students when conducting social science research. The sample for the study was collected using the Prolific application. The inclusion criteria were that participants had to be adults aged 18 years or older, English-speaking, graduated between 2020 and 2024, social science majors, and had utilized AI tools in their research. The study’s total sample consisted of 210 participants, which were disaggregated into 50% female and 50% male participants. T-test, correlation, and regression analyses were conducted to examine the relationship between multiple …

Motivation And Retention In Music Education: A Phenomenological Study On Socioeconomic Status Impact, Bracy C. Martin Jr.

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The retention of middle and high school students in music education programs remains a persistent concern, particularly when disparities in motivation are shaped by socioeconomic status (SES). This hermeneutic phenomenological study investigated how intrinsic and extrinsic motivational factors such as funding, parental involvement, off-campus performance opportunities, and student engagement are influenced by SES and how these influences affect student retention in school music programs. Grounded in Deci and Ryan's Self-Determination Theory and Vroom’s Expectancy Theory, the study examined how motivation and SES intersect to either support or hinder student persistence in music education.

Eight music educators from urban, suburban, and …

A Journeys End: A Phenomenological Approach To End-Term Buyer-Supplier Relationship Performance Management, James M. Capps

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The incumbent research study examines the lived work experiences of buyer-side buyer-supplier relationship managers as they seek to optimize supplier performance while navigating the end-term buyer-supplier relationship. While contemporary literature has explored several topics on supplier performance management and end-term, buyer supplier relationships separately, no research has explored detailing the experiences of supplier relationship managers within this phenomenon. Utilizing a qualitative, phenomenological design with hermeneutical analysis, the incumbent study utilizes multi-stage random sampling techniques to recruit sample participants (N=7) in various industries. Research participants were interviewed on their lived experiences navigating end-term buyer-supplier relationships and how they optimized supplier performance …

A Chaplain-Specific Care Plan For Addressing Moral Injury And Promoting Holistic Well-Being In Nurses That Have Transitioned From Hospital Care To Hospice Care, Franklin Hicks

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This thesis project, “A Chaplain-Specific Care Plan for Addressing Moral Injury and Promoting Holistic Well-Being in Nurses That Have Transitioned from Hospital Care to Hospice Care,” addresses the lack of chaplain-led interventions for nurses suffering from moral injury. Many nurses who transitioned from hospital to hospice care reported ongoing moral residue from ethically distressing events in acute settings. The purpose of this project was to evaluate the effectiveness of a spiritually grounded care plan, developed and facilitated by a board-certified chaplain, to address these moral wounds and promote holistic well-being among hospice nurses.

Twelve hospice nurses in West Tennessee participated …

Evaluating Inclusion Rates Of Oral-Systemic Health Connection Coursework In Dental And Medical Professional Programs' Admissions Requirements, Wendy Marie Carry

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Oral systemic health connections (OSHC) are bidirectional, life-threatening, and a significant public health concern. Studies have identified over 200 OSHCs; however, the prevalence of foundational OSHC education in dental and medical professional programs remains unknown. This quantitative descriptive comparative pilot study aimed to explore the prevalence of predictor variables, dental and medical professional programs in the United States, and the criterion variable, including an OSHC admissions requirement for the 2025 academic year. The point-in-time count methodology served as the theoretical framework guiding this study and the development of the PiT-PARCI instrument. The proposed testing was replaced with alternative testing based …

Experiences Of First-Generation Nursing Students After Their First Year At An Hbcu: A Transcendental Phenomenological Study, Ari L. Cuffee

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this transcendental phenomenological study was to explore the lived experiences of first-generation nursing students (FGNS) after their first year at a Historically Black College or University (HBCU). The central research question asked, “What are the lived experiences of first-generation nursing students who have completed one year at a Historically Black University?” The theoretical framework that guided this study was Banks’ theory of multicultural education. This theory demonstrated how educators taught FGNS using the multicultural education paradigm with strategies and procedures to make provisions for culturally, racially, and ethnically diverse students. Data were analyzed using Moustakas’ interpretive phenomenological …

Notifying The Public In Crisis Situations, Deborah Jean Link

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The messages that are provided to the public when there is an imminent or ongoing crisis are of extreme value to individuals, primarily to have information by which to base decisions upon. The sense of urgency during imminent or ongoing crisis is the factor that differentiates the need for information about the crisis from the need for information for other types of events. There is messaging during other, less critical types of incidents, but often there is little to no messaging to the public at a time when it is most needed and sought after, during a crisis. Erik J. …

Shame And The Cult Survivor As Viewed Through Erikson’S Theory, Devin Marie Seltz

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This study investigated the manifestations of shame in cult survivors using Erikson’s theory of psychosocial development as its framework. According to Erikson (1959), individuals evolve through eight stages of development, each stage being met with a unique social and psychological crisis. If that psychosocial crisis is met and overcome, the individual advances to the next stage of development with additional psychosocial resilience. Erikson’s theory focuses on the importance of achieving these developmental tasks throughout the eight stages in order to build personal identity and resilience. Cults are known for exerting excessive control over individuals by employing techniques and strategies that …