Digital Commons Network^™

Graphological Analysis: A Potential Psychodiagnostic Investigative Method For Deception Detection, Michelle R. Doscher

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

False confessions and unproductive criminal investigations have resulted in misidentification of verbal and nonverbal deceptive cues. Further, the association of deceptive behavioral responses has not been confirmed based upon quantifiable graphological discrepancies. Guided by the 4-factor model for deceptive behavior, the purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between psycholinguistic cues and graphological spacing discrepancies. Handwriting samples were gathered from a stratified group of college students and law enforcement officers in rural Illinois and Tennessee (n = 113). The research was designed to determine whether graphological spacing discrepancies were evident in left margin indentions, word spacing, and sentence …

Factors That Cause Repeated Referral To The Disciplinary Alternative Education Program, Koury A. Avery

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Students are referred to alternative schools such as the Disciplinary Alternative Education Program (DAEP) for violations against the student code of conduct. Students who are referred and attend DAEPs are more likely to make failing grades and drop out of school permanently. However, a lack of understanding existed about why some students repeatedly receive referrals to the DAEP.The purpose of this case study was to gain an understanding about why some students are repeatedly being sent to the DAEP in a school district in north central Texas. The conceptual framework was based on Catalano and Hawkins' social development theory which …

Awareness Of Clinical Laboratory Sciences And Shortage Of Clinical Laboratory Scientists In The 21st Century, Cynthia Funnye Doby

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Retiring baby boomers and the lack of interest and awareness among college students to enroll in an accredited Clinical Laboratory Science (CLS) program have created a shortage of CLS professionals in the 21st century. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts 18,000 CLS vacancies by 2018. However, only about 5,000 students graduate from accredited CLS programs each year. The purpose of this study was to explore students' perceptions of allied health professions and factors that influenced students and CLS professionals to select CLS as a profession. Bandura's social cognitive career theory served as the theoretical framework for this phenomenological study. …

Understanding A School's Response To Childhood Obesity, April Dawn Goins-Jones

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Childhood obesity has become a national epidemic. Although many of the consequences of childhood obesity are known, such as physical, social, emotional, and academic effects on a student's development, there is a lack of literature on the topic of childhood obesity in Native American tribes. The purpose of this case study was to explore how school personnel address the effects of obesity on students' social, emotional, academic, and physical development in an elementary school in the southwest United States where 90% of the students are Native Americans. Bronfenbrenner's socioecological model served as the theoretical foundation. The research questions explored strategies …

Parent Support And Retention Of Rural First-Generation College Students, Edna E. Mcculloh

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

A small, private university was the focus of this study, where rural first-generation college (FGC) students withdraw at higher rates than their continuing-generation counterparts. An objective of the university leadership is to increase student retention to foster a greater likelihood of degree completion. The research problem was the inability to retain rural FGC students. The purpose of the study was to explore parental support that promoted rural FGC student retention. The research questions addressed the students' perceptions about parental support and their decisions to remain enrolled. The research methodology was a qualitative case study design. Data were collected through semi …

Education And Mentoring Of Staff Nurses In Evidence Based Practice, Sherri L. Smith-Keys

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Current gaps in nursing practice can decrease by the translation, implementation, and dissemination of evidence-based practice (EBP). The purpose of this project was to provide staff nurses with EBP education and mentoring in identifying and addressing nursing practice issues using EBP to manage patient care. The Advancing Research & Clinical Practice through Close Collaboration (ARCC) and the social cognitive theory were used as a framework to guide this project development, which addressed if medical surgical nurses receiving education in EBP practice led to improved use, implementation, and improved best practice outcomes. Seven randomly selected medical surgical nurses from a local …

Impact Of Simulation Training On Novice Nurses, Sheila Marjean Moore

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

In 1999, the Institute of Medicine released its report on building a safer health system. Since then, safety in patient care has become a paramount interest. Given the growing support for increasing patient safety, simulation training has become a common part of novice nurses' orientation program. This simulation training is designed to mimic situations in the acute care setting where novice nurses can practice in a patient safe environment. In this DNP project, a stroke simulation scenario and supporting patient chart was developed as an addition to a novice nurses' orientation program. The National League for Nursing simulation template was …

The Relationship Of Students' Perceived Levels Of Self-Efficacy And Language Development, Alisa Ann Wargo

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The problem addressed by this study was the relationship created by mandated English language curricula and state standardized tests and students' perceived levels of self-efficacy. Vygotsky's theories on thought and language development and Bandura's theories on self-efficacy were used as a theoretical lens for this study. The research question concerned the relationships between students' perceived levels of self-efficacy, gender, age, and grade point average (GPA) and language development when learning within a standards-based test-driven environment. The ELA portion of the State High School Exit Exam (SHEE) generated language development scores. The General Self Efficacy (GSE) scale was the survey instrument …

Effect Of Violent And Nonviolent Risk Factors On Depression In Postpartum Mothers, Brandi Reliance Spaulding

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The purpose of this quantitative, nonexperimental study was to analyze and explore the predictors for postpartum depression (PPD) and the strength of these predictors using a secondary data set from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study from Princeton, Pennsylvania State, and Columbia Universities. By incorporating the biopsychosocial model and feminist theory as the theoretical frameworks for this research, PPD was conceptualized as a serious, multidimensional psychological condition. Using logistic regression, many predictors were identified as etiological for PPD, including subjective attitudes about ideal and introjected characteristics ascribed to women as primary caretakers. These beliefs prevent the extension and acceptance …

Entrepreneurial Qualities For Successful Development And Sustainability Of New Small And Medium-Sized Enterprises, Brock Allyn Zehr

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Entrepreneurial small businesses are significant to the U.S. economy, as they represent 99% of employer firms and employ 49% of the private sector. Nearly half of new businesses fail within the first 5 years of operation. While external factors beyond the control of business owners account for some failures, many occur because of managerial inadequacies. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore the lived experiences of successful entrepreneurs to understand the qualities needed to create and sustain new small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) beyond 5 years. The sample consisted of 21 entrepreneurs from Northeastern Indiana who created and …

Psychological Stress In Critical Care Nurses, Oladele Augustine Odunayo Akinwolere

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Increased levels of stress in the workplace have led the American Psychological Association to predict a looming public health crisis. Critical care nurses (CCNs) are highly exposed to stressors in the workplace, more than other nurses. Tens of billion dollars were reported lost in productive work time yearly due to ill health from depression alone. An important gap remains in understanding the relationships of stressors with the amount of stress. Supported by the biopsychosocial stress theory, the purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between frequencies of perceived stressors (IVs) as a source of perceived levels of stress …

Financial Strategies And Resources For Sustaining Small Business In Kumba, Cameroon, Ngalle Joseph Awasume

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

In 2014, there were 75% new small businesses failed within the first 3 years of operation in Cameroon. Small businesses contribute to generate jobs and drive innovation that is vital to the Cameroon economy. The purpose of this multiple exploratory case study was to explore the financial strategies and resources that small lodging business owners use to help their businesses survive beyond 3 years. Fiedler's strategic contingency theory was the conceptual framework. There were 5 owners from 5 separate successful small lodging businesses in Kumba, Cameroon, who participated in the face-to-face interviews. The results from computer-aided qualitative data analysis, methodological …

Exploring Leadership Strategy Influence On Nursing Personnel Retention Within Safety-Net Hospitals, Carl Brown

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Frequent turnover among a hospital's nursing staff can profoundly impact organizational operating costs. With a national turnover rate of 17% in 2015, understanding the impact of management approaches on nurse attrition is vital to business success. Guided by Homan's social exchange theory, the purpose of this single case study was to explore leadership strategies used by safety-net hospital leaders to increase nursing personnel retention. Data collection consisted of semistructured interviews from a purposive snowball sampling of 8 senior directors working at a safety-net hospital in southern Maryland. Additional information collected involved documents and artifacts related to human resources management policies …

Emergency Room Utilization Of Participants With Mental Health Conditions Enrolled In Health Home Services, Amanda Duff

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Large numbers of individuals utilize the ER each year for mental health reasons. The health home agency in this study was designed under the Affordable Care Act with the intention of increasing patient self-management thus decreasing high-cost service utilization. The effectiveness of health homes in reducing mental health-related ER visits has remained unexplored. In this study, the relationship between participation in this program and ER utilization was examined, using the theoretical framework of the Health Belief Model. The sample of 128 health home participants with documented mental health conditions was selected using systematic random sampling. A one-way, repeated-measures t-test and …

Strategies To Improve Data Quality For Forecasting Repairable Spare Parts, Uyi Harrison Eguasa

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Poor input data quality used in repairable spare parts forecasting by aerospace small and midsize enterprises (SME) suppliers results in poor inventory practices that manifest into higher costs and critical supply shortage risks. Guided by the data quality management (DQM) theory as the conceptual framework, the purpose of this exploratory multiple case study was to identify the key strategies that the aerospace SME repairable spares suppliers use to maximize their input data quality used in forecasting repairable spare parts. The multiple case study comprised of a census sample of 6 forecasting business leaders from aerospace SME repairable spares suppliers located …

Transcriptome Analysis Of Vaccine Responses To Francisella Tularensis Or Venezuelan Equine Encephalitis Virus, Rebecca Ann Erwin-Cohen

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The lack of vaccines for emerging and re-emerging diseases highlights technical gaps and indicates a need for innovative approaches to produce new vaccines. Vaccines may be improved by knowledge of host responses to vaccination, disease pathogenesis, and the effect of age and genetics on vaccine outcome. This study's purpose was to quantitatively assess the molecular epidemiology of Francisella tularensis (Ft) and Venezuelan Equine Encephalitis Virus (VEEV). Study results support the Epidemiology Nexus model which holds that association of changes in gene expression to vaccination facilitate understanding the mechanisms of immune development and link public health and disease epidemiology. My research …

Impact Of Distance, Diagnosis, And Demographics On Attendance For Rural Outpatient Treatment, Trey Howard Jensen

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Missed psychotherapy appointments inhibit mental health treatment, limit the availability of treatment to those waiting for care, and reduce clinician revenue. Previous research has revealed that the factors that predict missed appointments vary depending on the geographic location in which that research is conducted. There is not a complete understanding of the characteristics of people who miss appointments in a rural context. This study used information from 281 client records to examine the predictive relationships among missed appointments and the distance traveled to the clinic, mental health diagnosis, age, and gender at a rural outpatient mental health clinic. The purpose …

Exploring Strategies To Gain Frontline Employee Buy-In During Change Initiatives In Manufacturing, Charles James Iv

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The high failure rates of change initiatives threaten the sustainability of commercial printing operations. The focus of this qualitative multicase study was to research the strategies commercial printing managers use to succeed in gaining frontline employee buy-in during change initiatives to improve productivity and profitability in a manufacturing environment. The participants included four commercial printing managers from the Midwestern United States. Each manager had implemented successful change initiatives in the past 2 years and maintained profitability of the business for 12 months before the study. McGregor's (1960) Theory Y served as the basis for the conceptual framework. Data collection included …

Consequences Of The Niger Delta Amnesty Program Implementation On Nigeria's Upstream Petroleum Industry, Chisomaga Ihediohanma Ezeocha

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The Niger Delta militancy ravaged the Nigerian upstream petroleum sector between 2004-2009, bringing it to a standstill. In response, the Nigerian state adopted an amnesty policy―a globally recognized tool for conflict resolution and peacebuilding―to protect the sector and the economy from collapse. Little is known, however, about the unintended consequences of the amnesty implementation for the Nigerian upstream petroleum sector. Thus, the purpose of this study was to fill this gap in the research literature on the Niger Delta amnesty program. Polarity management was the conceptual framework applied; relative deprivation and polarities of democracy constituted the theoretical foundation for this …

Strategies Small Restaurant Owners Use To Reduce Food Waste And Increase Profits, Fabian Lusichi Makani

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

There were 133 billion pounds of food that went to waste in the United States in 2014, leading to $161.6 billion in economic loss. Of this waste, 89 billion pounds occurred in restaurants and other food service facilities. A case study was used to explore the strategies small, independent, family-owned restaurants owners used to reduce food waste. Four small independent, family-owned restaurants owners located in the Washington, DC, metro area participated in the study. These owners were selected based on their revenue and years of survival. Stakeholders theory was the conceptual framework in which the study was grounded. Face-to-face interviews …

Career Mobility Patterns Of Aspiring Female Leaders At California Community Colleges, Tracy Lynn Johnson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Many women struggle to move up the career ladder. Women aspiring to executive positions in community colleges within the United States may face gender barriers, family-work life barriers, and barriers regarding their leadership ability. The problem studied was a gap in knowledge of how women succeeded in attaining executive positions in community colleges. The purpose of this study was to examine ways that female leaders at Southern California community colleges assumed executive-level roles at their institutions and the barriers they faced to attain those positions . The theory of upward mobility and the concept of self-efficacy comprised the study's conceptual …

The Development And Content Validation Of An Adult Obesity Educational Program, Abel Okuma

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Overweight and obesity in patients with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) are at epidemic levels in the United States. The problem identified for this DNP project is the incidence of overweight and obesity in IDD. The framework used involved the quality model for improvement. For this DNP project a new program called the Daily-Enhanced Physical Activities Program (DEPA) was developed to promote weight loss, reduce sedentary activities, and optimal body mass index (BMI) for IDD patients. Local experts consisting of two registered nurses, two physical therapists, and one direct support personnel working with IDD patients were recruited. Each expert reviewed …

Grit, Student Engagement, And Academic Performance At A Historically Black Community College, Sharonica Marie Nelson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Obtaining a college degree benefits individuals and society, yet only 20% of students are graduating from community colleges. At many institutions, graduation rates have decreased over the last 5 years, including one historically Black community college in the southern United States. To explore possible causes of low graduation rates at this unique and understudied type of college, this correlational study examined the relationships among student engagement, academic performance, and grit-persistence and passion toward long-term goals. Tinto's theory of student persistence served as the theoretical framework for this study. The convenience sample included 116 college students who already had a first-year …

Professional Development To Enhance Instructional Leadership And Practice Of Central Office Administrators, Cheryl A. R. Mccue

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Professional Development to Enhance Instructional Leadership and Practice of

Central Office Administrators

by

Cheryl A. R. McCue

M. Ed., Lehigh University, 1990

BS, Kutztown University, 1987

Doctoral Study Submitted in Partial Fulfillment

of the Requirements for the Degree of

Doctor of Education

Walden University

June 2016

Decades of research and practice suggest that educational administrators need to experience opportunities for professional development and continuous learning. This project study addressed the problem regarding the lack of a formal or systemic plan for professional development of central office administrators in a large suburban school district in northeastern United States. Supported by Lave …

How Tenure In Higher Education Relates To Faculty Productivity And Retention, Cindy Kay Manjounes

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Some public university systems are considering abolishing tenure as a cost-saving mechanism, but little is known about how this change may impact organizational outcomes related to faculty retention and research productivity. Using Almendarez' human capital theory, the purpose of this concurrent mixed methods study was to explore how tenure relates to faculty retention and productivity at a convenience sample of public universities in mid-western states. Qualitative questions focused on faculty perceptions of factors that affected retention and productivity. Quantitative data from the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System and publicly available information from institutions was used to explore questions about relationships …

Success Strategies Among Immigrant Small Business Owners In The Southeastern United States, Tony Nnabue

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Although considerable concern exists regarding immigrant businesses, few studies address immigrant small business owners' strategies for success and sustainability. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore the strategies that immigrant small business owners in metro Atlanta, Georgia can use to sustain their business beyond 5 years. Cultural theory formed the conceptual framework for this study. A purposeful sample of 20 immigrant small business owners in metro Atlanta provided the data garnered from semistructured interviews for this research study. Using open coding, and modified van Kaam analysis of the interview data, 5 themes emerged for immigrant small businesses that …

An Examination Of African American Women With Hiv And Health Care Barriers, Robert Salvatore Petralia

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

For over 40 years, HIV has been seen as an epidemic and problem on health care that disproportionately affects the African American women (AAW) and population. This epidemic represents 12% of the total U.S. population, yet accounts for 37% of the commutative HIV cases, and 45% of the new HIV cases reported since 1998. Research in this case was needed for increased understanding to this health care problem, between AAW and HIV. A review in the literature indicated the problem and found new alternatives that helped support aspects on today's health care. The purpose of the study was to help …

Job Satisfaction In Law Enforcement Officers According To Generational Cohorts, Johnathon Michael Sharp

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Job satisfaction in law enforcement is important because it promotes continuity of a professional and cohesive police force that works well together, follows proper policy and procedures, and provides the services needed to the public. Given multigenerational law enforcement officers are now working together, its impact on job satisfaction is not known. This study focused on how generational cohort membership impacts the job satisfaction of law enforcement officers based on Mannheim's theory of generations and Locke's range of affect theory. It utilized a survey design where job satisfaction was assessed using the Job Descriptive Index, Organizational Commitment Questionnaire, and Job …

Small Retail Business Owner Strategies Needed To Succeed Beyond 5 Years, Colonel Jaime Solis

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Small businesses accounted for 99% of the firms in private industry, provided 38% of the goods and services sold in the United States, and hired 55% of the labor force each year between 2012 and 2015. From 1993 to 2013, small firms accounted for 63% of new work generated while more than 50% of U.S. small businesses failed inside of 5 years and at least 20% failed during the first year. The purpose of this multiunit case study was to explore the strategies small retail businesses used to achieve sustainability beyond 5 years in a purposefully selected county in Virginia. …

Parental Perceptions Of Childhood Overweight And Obesity In Four-Year-Olds In Northeastern North Carolina, Crystal Keyes Terry

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Childhood obesity has increased due to factors such as more television time, less outside play, parents' lack of education about nutritious meals, and eating more fast food versus home cooked meals. Research has been performed on many school-aged children; however, there is a gap in research as it pertains to preschool children. Preschool age learning is when children are most receptive to habit-forming activities. The purpose of this transcendental phenomenological study was to assess the parental perceptions of 11 preschool parents in rural Northeastern North Carolina of 4-year-old children who have been told by a health care professional that their …