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Succession Planning Strategies In Family Businesses, Vivian Akosua Dwumor Amanquah

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Only one-third of family businesses remain operational into the second generation and approximately one-eighth into the third generation. Succession planning is critical to family-owned businesses, as most businesses will collapse moving to the fourth generation and beyond. Grounded in the family systems theory, the purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to explore strategies family business leaders use to implement a succession plan. The participants included six senior executives from three family businesses in Ghana who implemented successful strategies for succession planning. The data sources were semistructured interviews and a review of organizational documents, including statutes; articles of incorporation, …

Exploring Quality Management Strategies To Mitigate Culture Shock Among Cochlear Implant Users, Victor Mulume' Ambila

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractAfter the cochlear implant (CI) activation period and therapy, adult CI users who travel overseas encounter culture shock factors that paralyze their coping capability, which need normalization through management strategies during the post-cochlear-implantation process (PCIP). In the structure of the conceptual framework, a plan is presented for addressing the management strategy. An integrated system of product-process-service-care portrays the product as an active implant within an individual bearer fostering a CI user’s physical, physiological, and psychological traits. The problematic aspects alter the end users’ coping capability in an unfamiliar host environment abroad. The qualitative research approach used was a single case …

K-12 Principals, Instructional Leadership, And Equitable Gifted Program Placements For Students, Rochelle Marie Archelus

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

School leaders struggle to implement best instructional leadership practices to enhance student diversity in gifted programs. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to understand how K-12 school principals implement instructional leadership practices regarding equitable placements of students in gifted programs. Three elements of Hallinger and Murphy’s instructional leadership model, (a) developing and promoting expectations, (b) assessing and monitoring student performance, and (c) supervising and evaluating instruction, informed this study. The research questions addressed instructional leadership practices and behaviors of K-12 school principals regarding placements of students in gifted programs. Ten K-12 school principals who worked in a large …

Exploring The Millennial’S Work Meaning And Job Engagement Experience: A Transcendental Phenomenological Study, Monique Simone Anderson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The millennial generation is now most of the workforce population. This generation’s engagement behaviors, expectations, and mindsets differ from those of other generations, and directly impact organizational performance. Despite existing generalizations about Millennials, there is a gap in the literature relative to how this generation experiences meaning and engagement in the workplace. The overarching research question was developed to broaden the understanding of the work experiences across this cohort, and further inform solutions that affect Millennials’ meaning and engagement with their jobs. To address this transcendental phenomenological study’s research problem and purpose, qualitative data were collected from multiple sources of …

The Experience Of Childhood Sibling Violence And Partner Violence In Adult Relationships, Chelsey Almond Barger

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Victims of sibling violence may be at increased risk for revictimization in peer and dating relationships, and sibling violence may influence how the young adult reacts to conflict in their interpersonal relationships. The purpose of this study was to explore the effects of childhood sibling violence with adults who later experienced intimate partner violence. Bandura’s social cognitive theory was the conceptual framework of this study. The research question was how individuals perceive and describe the effect of sibling violence in childhood as this relates to the experience of intimate partner violence as adults. Five individuals who experienced childhood sibling violence …

Total Quality Management Practices For Improving Procurement Performance Of Petroleum Producing Companies, Patrick Ottah Awoke

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

In a petroleum producing company in Nigeria, a continual rise of procured technicalmaterials' quality-related problems increased costs in the procurement overheads and technical services from $10.45M in 2012 to $19.00M in 2017, which is an 82% increase, aside the substantial financial outlay in implementing total quality management. Inquirers have attributed the continual quality-related problems to little attention given to total quality management practices (TQMP), employee training deficiencies, reduced quality control, and indecorous process management. This phenomenological study explored managers' lived experiences about total quality management practices connected to procurement performance. Less is known how managers' experiences contribute to quality performance …

Terrorism And Social Media: Extremist Groups And College Student Recruitment, Marion Donald Bell Iii

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

College students are particularly vulnerable to recruitment by terrorist organizations. Social media is the primary tool used by extremist groups to target college students. This research was conducted to examine the extent to which college students are affected by extremist groups on social media. A qualitative research design was implemented to collect data from a diverse group of college students. Participants consisted of five experts in homeland security or law enforcement and 12 individuals who were students or recent graduates in fields related to law enforcement and homeland security. Social learning theory provided the theoretical foundation for this research. Results …

Clinical Practice Guidelines For Nursing Orientation At A Small Clinic, Elizabeth Bemah

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

In the United States, the registered nurse turnover rate was 17.2% in 2018, a 0.4% increase from 2017. The nursing turnover rate at a small out-patient clinic in the northeast United States was 19.1% in 2019 and has not improved to date. The administrator at the out-patient clinic further indicated that the turnover rate has been approximately two nurses per month for the last 6 months and that the facility did not have a formalized nurse orientation program. Nursing orientation is one of the strategies for increasing the confidence levels and retention of newly hired nurses. The purpose of this …

Perceived Learning Needs Of High School Teachers Regarding Suicide Prevention, Miranda Lynne Bevilacqua

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Suicide is the second leading cause of death among youth in Canada. Though school-aged youth are surrounded by teachers, mentors, and school mental health nurses (SMHN), little is known about what teachers want to know regarding suicide and whether the teachers have the knowledge to recognize youth at risk. The purpose of this generic exploratory qualitative study, guided by the health belief model, was to explore the perceived learning needs of high school teachers in northwestern Ontario (NWO) regarding suicide prevention. The data collection process involved semistructured virtual interviews with 14 high school teachers in NWO recruited via social media. …

Relationship Between Nurse-To-Patient Ratios, Patient Satisfaction Scores, And Hospital Profitability, Patrick Ross Bumstead

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

In 2019, hospital profitability margins were at their lowest levels since the great recession due to a declining volume of patients. Hospital executives who fail to improve profitability are at risk of sustainability. Grounded in the service-profit chain theory, the purpose of this quantitative correlational study was to examine whether nurse-to-patient ratios and patient satisfaction scores significantly predict hospital profitability. Data were collected from 74 hospitals in Southern California from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services government database and publicly available financial statements. Results from multiple regression analysis were not statistically significant. A key recommendation is for hospital executives …

Preschool Teachers’ Perspectives On Engaging Fathers In Their Child’S Education, Jawan Marquis Burwell

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Preschool environments set the educational foundation for children in the early years. Despite the positive effects that preschool environments have on children and families, previous studies have shown that preschool teachers are challenged to engage fathers in their child’s education. The purpose of this basic qualitative study was to investigate preschool teachers’ perspectives on engaging fathers in their child’s education. The conceptual framework was based upon Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems theory. The research question focused on the challenges that teachers encounter in engaging fathers in their child’s education. This qualitative study included individual one-on-one interviews with 12 teachers using an open-ended …

Relationship Between Criminal Behavior And High School Equivalency Program Completion, Lashawnda Cabey - Washington

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

High School Equivalency (HSE) Programs operate in response to the national increase in high school dropout rates. These alternative learning methods are attractive to nontraditional high school students because they are designed to accommodate students who are unable to complete their high school diploma via the traditional classroom setting. However, even though these programs continue to thrive in many communities, many students are still unsuccessful at completing these programs. Therefore, there is a need to research the possible factors that prevent students from earning the equivalent of a high school diploma or general education diploma (GED) via these programs. Grounded …

Lived Experiences Of Nurses Caring For Limited English Proficient Patients During A Pandemic, Thomas Cain

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This study addressed the need to better understand how a patient’s healthcare is influenced by lack of health literacy for limited English proficient patients during the COVID-19 pandemic. While registered nurses are a key component in the patient care continuum, there is a lack of evidence to understand the experiences caring for this vulnerable population during a pandemic. Framed by Roy’s adaptation model and Orem’s self-care deficit nursing theory, the purpose of this interpretative phenomenological study was to explore the lived experiences of registered nurses who cared for limited English patients diagnosed with COVID-19 in 2020. Seven registered nurses participated …

Formative Needs Assessment Evaluation Of Nontraditional Student-Parents At A Private 4-Year University, Athea Vanzant

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Nontraditional student-parents compose approximately one-quarter of the student body on college and university campuses. Student-parents face unique challenges, have unique needs, and graduate at lower rates than other nontraditional students. Yet many campuses, like the local study site, focus support on traditional students. The purpose of this formative evaluation was to assess the needs of student-parents in their persistence to graduation at a private 4-year university in the Southeastern United States. Astin’s I-E-O model was the conceptual framework used to identify student-parents’ characteristics (input), services needed (environment), and intended outcomes. A basic qualitative design and interviews yielded narrative data from …

Reducing Stress And Burnout In Hospice And Palliative Care Through Education, Marvet Wint

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractBurnout, a syndrome described as a state of mental and or physical exhaustion, impacts the workforce of hospice and palliative nurses where employees’ behaviors and professional efficacy reflect poorly on their work. The prevalence of burnout among hospice nurses led to the development of this project. The Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) served as a reference guide for developing the content, which addressed whether a staff education program at this Southeastern United States facility, would affect a change in knowledge among hospice nurses reduce burnout. Knowles’s theory of adult learning framed this education program on self-care and stress management. Focus was …

Stressors Of Special Education Teachers Working With Autistic Students With Behavioral Challenges, Malisa Anderson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

In special education there are disabilities and health concerns teachers have to keep at the forefront when working with autistic students. The purpose of this hermeneutic phenomenological study was to gain knowledge and understanding regarding special education teachers’ perceptions of the stressors they experience when interacting with students diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and who also have behavioral challenges. This study was grounded in transactional theory. Six participants were included, and semi-structured interviews were conducted via social media calls and phone calls. The following themes emerged: Participants believed that autistic students, while having behavior challenges, were capable of calming …

Educational Attainment And Growth Among Individuals With Absent Fathers, Angelica Yolanda Barrera

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

There are more than 20 million children who are growing up in a fatherless home. It is understood that this population is more likely to experience a variety of intrapersonal and interpersonal issues when compared to children who grow up in a home with both parents. These issues include being twice as likely to drop out of school. Although few of these individuals pursue a higher education, very little understanding of the underlying variables that contribute to such education-seeking behaviors is available for this population. Guided by the theory of positive disintegration and the posttraumatic growth conceptual model, the purpose …

Strategies To Reduce Costs Caused By Medication Errors In Us Hospitals, Janice Leah Chobanuk

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Medication errors result in patient harm, including deaths, costing American hospitals over $20 billion annually. The financial impact and reduced public confidence in safe patient care create a business problem for hospital leaders trying to contain costs, maintain a competitive edge, and sustain patient satisfaction. Grounded in the sociotechnical conceptual framework, the purpose of this generic qualitative study was to identify strategies hospital leaders use to reduce costs caused by medication errors in hospitals. Data collection involved semistructured interviews with 10 hospital leaders from various high-reliability hospitals across the United States and a review of documents related to medication management …

Nurse Executives’ Intuitive Decision Making And Leadership Personality Styles During Organizational Change, Chaudron Carter Carter Short

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Within the complex and multifaceted health care environment, nurse executives are challenged to effectively make decisions and lead organizations through change. How nurse executives make those decisions is determined in a variety of ways, one being through intuitive decision making. The purpose of this quantitative correlational study, guided by the dual process theory, was to examine nurse executives’ intuitive decision making and leadership personality styles during organizational change. The Agor Intuitive Management Survey and the Multifactorial Leadership Questionnaire were administered to 70 nurse executives recruited by direct email obtained from public hospital organizations’ websites and social media platforms. Regression analysis …

Exploring The Dating Experiences Of Biracial Women, Camela Callaway-Higgins

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Census data highlight swiftly changing demographics in the United States with over 9 million people self-identifying as multiracial. Scholars agree that the multiracial population has been historically understudied, and that this population may have differing experiences from the majority and other minorities. The purpose of this study was to gain a better understanding of the dating experiences of women who self-identify as Latina and Caucasian. This study was grounded in literature pertaining to the unique experiences of multiracial individuals, with emphasis on biracial relationship experiences, family influence on biracial identity and experiences, and the history of biracial identity theory development. …

Social Workers' Perspectives Of Depression In Baby Boomers Born Between 1946 And 1955, Karen Cohen

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractAs the leading-edge baby boomer (L-E boomer) cohort continues to age, demands of mental health services in treating diagnosed depression in this cohort are increasing. Licensed clinical social workers (LCSWs) are the most likely social workers to provide services to L-E boomers diagnosed with depression. LCSWs were the chosen participants for this generic qualitative study to gain knowledge of their perspectives of working with L-E boomers diagnosed with depression. Grounded in generational theory, this study used a generic qualitative approach allowing for nonrestrictive measures for capturing the data. NVIVO assisted in coding the data and identification of common themes, words, …

Fetal/Infant Mortality: Understanding Race And Ethnicity, Birthing Location, And Prenatal Care, Chelsea Collum

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This study addressed whether race and ethnicity, birthing location, the month the mother begins prenatal care, and pregnancy risk level impact fetal/infant mortality. Infant mortality is a gauge by which the efficacy of the healthcare system and the overall health of the country is measured. The United States falls behind most other developed countries in terms of infant mortality rates. The ecological perspective was used as the theoretical framework. The study design was a cross-sectional cohort design using a sample of births and infant deaths from U.S. Vital Statistics data. Binomial logistic regression analyses were carried out to calculate odds …

Student Perceptions About Metacognitive Learning Strategies In Introductory Biology Courses, Traci Collier

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractActive learning and argumentation are metacognitive teaching strategies that have demonstrated an effect on conceptual change in the sciences. Previous research studies have illustrated an association between active learning and argumentation, increased comprehension of content as well as improved academic performance and self-efficacy. However, there is a gap in literature about the perceptions of students on whether these teaching strategies are successful in increasing scientific conceptual understanding and self-efficacy. The first conceptual framework used for this study was Flavell’s theoretical and empirical research on metacognition, which provides a process for individuals to regulate their cognitive activity for increasing comprehension. A …

Manufacturing Business Leaders’ Strategies For Achieving Diversification And Sustainability, Tracye Weeks

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Manufacturing businesses can fail due to not implementing diversified business strategies. Some manufacturing business leaders lack strategies to diversify lines of business for achieving business sustainability. Grounded in the resource-based view theory, the purpose of this qualitative single case study was to explore strategies three manufacturing business leaders in the northeastern region of the United States used to diversify lines of business to achieve sustainability. Data were collected via semistructured interview recordings, company documents, and internal archived documents, as well as public documents found on the internet. Thematic analysis of the data revealed the importance of implementing (a) servitization strategies …

Strategies To Expand And Obtain Funding For Nonprofit Organizations, Topaz Lonia Walton-Good

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Expanding a nonprofit organization (NPO) can be beneficial to the community; however, such expansion comes with challenges, including finding ways to obtain additional funding and understanding which additional services to provide. A single-case study was conducted to explore the challenges facing a nonprofit behavioral health organization as it seeks to obtain funding to expand current services and identify new services for underserved communities. Data were collected through interviews with the behavioral health leader (BHL) and five staff members using the Baldrige excellence framework. Five themes emerged from the data analysis: access, programs, services, funding, workforce, and leadership. Although leadership was …

Effective Digital Marketing Strategies For Small Businesses In The Caribbean, Nicole Renee Williams Smith

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

A thriving small business sector is vital to Caribbean countries’ economies; however, nearly 60% of small businesses fail within the first 10 years, partially because of poor marketing. Caribbean small businesses with ineffective digital marketing strategies may fail to attract the buyers necessary to sustain their organization. Grounded in the competitive advantage theory, the purpose of this study was to explore the digital marketing strategies that Caribbean small business owners use to sustain their organizations beyond 10 years. Using the case study research design, the participants consisted of 7 small business owners who operate in a Caribbean Community and Common …

The Cbt Program "Thinking For A Change"And Its Impact On Offenders, James Wesson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractThe CBT Program “Thinking for a Change” and its Impact on Offenders By James Wesson

Forensic Psychology MS, Walden University, 2014Criminal Behavior MS, Tiffin University, 2012 Criminal Justice Administration BS, Tiffin University, 2011

Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy General Studies –Criminal Justice with a specialization in Law and Public Policy

Walden University May 2021

Abstract One of the major problems that the United States criminal justice system faces regarding corrections is an exceedingly high rate of recidivism. The state of Ohio has been highly proactive in trying to address this …

Applying A Staff Education Project To Increase Telemedicine Patient Safety, Kristy Michelle Wolff

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

A telemedicine education module (TEM) was designed and developed for this staff education project to improve the knowledge of nurses and providers about best practices in telemedicine and patient safety. A pretest and posttest design was used to evaluate if a gain in knowledge occurred after participants reviewed the TEM, which was designed and developed using Knowles theory of andragogy for adult learning outcomes. Thirty-seven potential participants who currently work as clinicians that provide telemedicine services were provided access to the pretest, TEM, and posttest. Nine participants responded, but only three participants’ scores could be used for analysis since there …

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Intervention For Prevention Of Anxiety And Mood Disorders In Public Safety Personnel, Jacquelyne Yan Wong

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Due to repeated exposure to highly stressful work environments, public safety personnel (PSP) are at risk for developing symptoms of anxiety and mood disorders. The present study employed a quantitative, randomized-controlled trial (RCT) design to examine the impact of a novel cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) psychoeducational intervention on symptom levels of anxiety and depression. Participants were recruited from police, firefighters, paramedics, and emergency communications personnel. A total of 60 participants were randomly assigned to either the intervention arm or the waitlist comparison arm. General linear mixed models were used to examine the difference in symptom outcomes for those who participated in …

Profitability Strategies Of Solar Energy Businesses In Lagos, Nigeria, Mayowa Ezekiel Akeju

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Some solar energy companies in Nigeria are not profitable because of ineffective marketing and sales strategies on the part of the business leaders and challenging operating environments. The ability to craft strategies that ensure the adoption of solar energy solutions by households is pertinent to the profitability of the solar energy business. Grounded in Rogers’s diffusion of innovation theory, the purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to explore strategies solar energy business leaders in Lagos, Nigeria, use to maintain a profitable business. The participants included six solar energy business leaders in two companies from Lagos, Nigeria. Data were …