Digital Commons Network^™

Theory Versus Practice: A Study Of Strategy Making In Five Public Mba Programs, Michael Alwyn Wilde

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This study examined whether coercive, normative and mimetic isomorphic mechanisms contribute to the strategies public MBA programs develop and implement in their quests to differentiate themselves. An additional purpose was to examine whether influential environmental elements impact strategy development in ways that make these organizations more similar than different.

In depth interviews were conducted in an attempt to discover the experiences and perspectives of five current directors of MBA programs in public institutions of higher education. Purposeful sampling, in the form of convenience sampling within a clearly defined population, was used.

The findings suggest that none of the five MBA …

The Uses And Gratifications Of Dance Reality Television Shows, Heather M. Yuille

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The Uses and Gratifications of Dance Reality Shows

Competition based dance reality shows are a sub-category under the reality television show genre. One way to add to the growing body of research about reality television shows is to study each sub-category individually in terms of uses and gratifications theory. Therefore this research looked into the reasons why people watch dance reality shows. Since dance is an art form that has deep historic roots, has experienced highs and lows in terms of public perception and has experienced a strong resurgence recently within the realm of reality television, it proves to be …

Health And Relationship Variables Impacting Psychological And Social Well-Being Among Predominantly White Middle Class Adults 65 And Older Who Receive Assistance With Their Care From Family Members, Alyssa C. Ford

Dissertations

The majority of care to persons 65 and older in the United States is provided by family members. Previous research among older adults who receive assistance with their care from family or friends, while sparse, has identified variables that appear to impact the well-being of such persons. These variables include reciprocity, dignity, self-perceived burden, mental health status, and physical health or disability status. However, these variables have not been studied together. The purpose of this dissertation research was to examine these variables individually and collectively as they relate to well-being.

A sample of 71 adults, ages 68 to 97, who …

Effects Of Stereo And Screen Size On The Legibility Of Three-Dimensional Streamtube Visualization, Jian Chen, Haipeng Cai, Alexander P. Auchus, David H. Laidlaw

Faculty Publications

We report the impact of display characteristics (stereo and size) on task performance in diffusion magnetic resonance imaging (DMRI) in a user study with 12 participants. The hypotheses were that (1) adding stereo and increasing display size would improve task accuracy and reduce completion time, and (2) the greater the complexity of a spatial task, the greater the benefits of an improved display. Thus we expected to see greater performance gains when detailed visual reasoning was required. Participants used dense streamtube visualizations to perform five representative tasks: (1) determine the higher average fractional anisotropy (FA) values between two regions, (2) …

Personality And Religiosity: The Influence Of Normative Personality On Black Sunni Muslims' Religious Attitudes And Practices, Halim Khidher Naeem

Dissertations

There is a dearth of literature on Black Sunni Muslims in the field of psychology. More so, there is no literature specifically analyzing the influences upon Black religiosity. The literature has established that personality has significant influence upon religiosity. The literature also says that females are more religious than their male counterparts. The present study analyzed the influence of personality, gender and social class upon religiosity for Black Sunni Muslims. The following hypothesis was investigated: Personality, gender, and social class will affect religious attitudes and practices.

A canonical regression analysis using SPSS revealed that personality, gender and social class had …

Attitudes Toward Science And Stem Cell Research Based On Religious Worldview: Comparing The Views Of Theists, Naturalists, Skeptics, And Dualists Toward Science As An Institution, Method, And Application Of Knowledge, Jon Van Wieren

Dissertations

This dissertation is a study of attitudes toward science and stem cell research based on religious worldview. This study examines the relationship through General Social Survey data (2006).

Religious worldview is measured here through some of the most common measures of religiosity. This study differs from many other sociological studies of religiosity in that it includes the view of naturalism alongside other religious worldviews, including theism, dualism, and skepticism. Science is understood and measured here as multidimensional. Comparisons are made between attitudes toward science as a social institution, a research method, and as an application of knowledge - where attitudes …

From Expulsion To Success: Perceptions Of Expelled Students About Their Expulsion Process And Resumption Of Education, Julie Slocum Dahlgren

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

This mixed-methods study examined expelled students in a Northwest public school district of 3,400 students. The purpose was to analyze perceptions of expelled students from 2003-2010 (N-68) regarding their expulsion process and experiences relating to the resumption of educational pursuits. Data was collected from a questionnaire designed by the researcher and distributed to 44 students and from transcribed and coded testimony from four students. The research centers on the whys and wherefores of student expulsions, asking questions that could help schools and school districts penetrate more deeply into the expulsion process, questions that focus on how students perceive their own …

Fabrication Of Solid Solution Tungsten-Rhenium Alloys By High Energy Ball Milling And Spark Plasma Sintering, Cory C. Sparks

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Tungsten-rhenium powders of varying compositions were fabricated by spark plasma sintering (SPS). In initial exploration of the parameter space, W-25 at% Re powders were blended and consolidated by SPS at 1500 to 1900°C with sintering dwell times of 0 to 60 minutes. In addition, the influence of milling was investigated. W-25 at% Re powders were high-energy ball milled at 200 to 400 rpm for 5 hours and consolidated at 1700°C with sintering dwell times of 0 to 60 minutes. The sample densities, grain sizes, porosities, contamination level, and hardness values were measured. The intermetallic content, specifically the fraction of σ-phase, …

Stretching A Surface Having A Layer Of Porous Medium In A Viscous Fluid, M. Sajid, Z. Abbas, N. Ali, T. Javed

Applications and Applied Mathematics: An International Journal (AAM)

The present analysis deals with the steady, incompressible flow of a viscous fluid over a stretching sheet having a layer of porous medium of uniform thickness. The two-dimensional flow equations are derived in a Cartesian coordinate system. The semi-infinite region filled with a viscous fluid is divided into two regions namely, a clear fluid region and a region having a uniform pores. Darcy's law has been used for the flow of fluid in the porous medium region. An exact similar solution of the problem is obtained. The obtained solution is constrained by a relation between the porosity parameter and the …

Living A Parallel Life: Memoirs And Research Of A Transnational Korean Adoptee, Mary C. Robinson

Master of Liberal Studies Theses

This thesis project consists of two parts: a memoir of my experience as a Korean adoptee, and a research paper examining how transracial, transnational adoption affects identity development in Korean adoptees. The memoir, as a first person narrative, gives voice to the research as one example of the findings. The majority of research on Korean adoptees has focused on levels of adjustment within a short time frame after adoptees’ placement in their adoptive homes. While the overwhelming majority of the prior research has declared positive and overall satisfactory adjustment for most adoptees, serious flaws exist in the methodologies that do …

New Forms Of Contemporary Aesthetics: A Review Article Of New Works By Camerotti And Quaranta, Marina Mantini

CLCWeb: Comparative Literature and Culture

No abstract provided.

Evans's The Turducken And Chekhov's The Seagull, Brian R. Johnson

CLCWeb: Comparative Literature and Culture

In his article "Evans's The Turducken and Chekhov's The Seagull" Brian R. Johnson approaches The Turducken as a travesty of The Seagull, examining six iconic scenes from The Seagull, in order to explore the satirical effect of the altered scenes. In December of 2008, Bedlam Theatre of Minneapolis presented The Turducken, "a holiday dinner theater spectacular inspired by Anton Chekhov's The Seagull." Playwright Josef Evans takes Chekhov's 1895 work and turns the classic piece into a musical and farcical satire. The plot of The Turducken follows the plot of The Seagull, and some scenes …

Barthelme's "Paraguay," The Postmodern, And Neocolonialism, Daniel Chaskes

CLCWeb: Comparative Literature and Culture

In his article "Barthelme's 'Paraguay,' the Postmodern, and Neocolonialism," Daniel Chaskes explores the analytic opportunities afforded by conjoining globalizing critical approaches with a story by an author who has often been circumscribed by the postmodern rubric. Donald Barthelme's "Paraguay," written the summer after Nelson Rockefeller's fact-finding mission to South America in 1969, provides a chance to consider modes of anti-colonial critique in Barthelme's work. It also offers examples of a more self-reflective criticism aimed at the U.S. counterculture and the indeterminacies of postmodernism. Chaskes reads "Paraguay" with the aim of understanding Barthelme's hemispheric interest and he investigates the multiple cultural …

Ferlinghetti On Trial: The Howl Court Case And Juvenile Delinquency, Joel E. Black

Journal Articles

In spring 1957 the Juvenile Division of the San Francisco Police Department seized copies of Howl and charged the poem's publisher, Lawrence Felinghetti, with obscenity. Tried in summer 1957 and defended by the American Civil Liberties Union, Ferlinghetti was exonerated by a District Court judge. Scholars typically place the Howl trial at the beginning of a cultural and social revolution that flourished in the 1960s or place it amid the personal lives and rebellions of the actors composing the Beat Generation. However, these treatments do not fully consider the ways the prosecution reflected trends in law, shaped debates over juvenile …

Nanoplasmonics And Metamaterials, Zhaolin Lu, Xiaoyue Huang, Mark Mirotznik, Georgios Veronis, Qiwen Zhan

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

The International Atomic Energy Agency's Decision To Find Iran In Non-Compliance, 2002-2006, Nima Gerami, Pierre Goldschmidt

WMD Case Studies

On August 14, 2002, at a press conference in Washington, DC, the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), an exiled Iranian opposition group, drew worldwide attention when it publicly accused Iran of clandestinely developing nuclear weapons. Alireza Jafarzadeh, then-U.S. media spokesperson for the NCRI, described two “top secret” nuclear facilities being constructed in Iran at Natanz and Arak under the guise of front companies involved in the procurement of nuclear material and equipment. Noting that media attention had focused on Iran’s publicly declared civilian facilities, Jafarzadeh claimed that “in reality, there are many secret nuclear programs at work in …

Informing Parents And Educators About The Importance Of Preschool For English Language Learners: A Guideline, Marinique Simone Perry

Dissertations, Masters Theses, Capstones, and Culminating Projects

The importance of pre-kindergarten experience for English Language Learners is that it gives them a foundation for their kindergarten experience. Many Hispanic families are hesitant in putting their child in the care of someone who is not a family member, which then puts these children behind others who had an academic experience in pre-kindergarten. This not only brings the Hispanic children down academically but also fails to teach them about the social aspect of school. The purpose of this study is to give people involved with these children a guideline to help them understand the importance of pre-kindergarten education for …

The Update, December 2012, University Of Northern Iowa. College Of Humanities, Arts And Sciences.

Update

Inside this issue:
-- Having a Field Day: UNI Students Attend Geology Camp in Wyoming
--Contents December 2012
-- Department News
-- Art Students Present Research Papers at Midwest Humanities Conference
-- School of Music Events
-- Challenging Bullying Through Art
-- Alumni Spotlight: James Arns: Physics
-- UNI Forensics Team

The Effects Of Color Concentrates On The Rheology Of Tint Bases, Doug James Herrick

Master's Theses

ABSTRACT

THE EFFECTS OF COLOR CONCENTRATES ON THE RHEOLOGY OF TINT BASES

Douglas James Herrick

Waterborne coatings are formulated with a number of different ingredients; water, latex polymers, pigments, surfactants, dispersants, defoamers, biocides, coalescing aids, and rheology modifiers or thickeners. Rheology modifiers are necessary in order to improve the physical properties of the coating before, during, and after application to a substrate. There are two kinds of rheology modifiers used in waterborne coatings; associative thickeners and non-associative thickeners. Coatings formulated with associative thickeners are quite sensitive to coating variations; the slightest change in the formulation has profound effects on the …

Controlling Nanoparticle Dispersion For Nanoscopic Self-Assembly, Nathan S. Starkweather

Master's Theses

Nanotechnology is the manipulation of matter and devices on the nanometer scale. Below the critical dimension length of 100nm, materials begin to display vastly different properties than their macro- or micro- scale counterparts. The exotic properties of nanomaterials may trigger the start of a new technological revolution, similar to the electronics revolution of the late 20^th century. Current applications of nanotechnology primarily make use of nanoparticles in bulk, often being made into composites or mixtures. While these materials have fantastic properties, organization of nano and microstructures of nanoparticles may allow the development of novel devices with many unique properties. …

From Oxford To Williamsburg, Ruth Bird, James S. Heller

Library Staff Publications

No abstract provided.

Real Women? Gender And Race In Prime Time Police Shows, Rondrek Juwayne Cowans

Dissertations

For the past 25 years, reality shows, in particular, police reality shows has figured prominently in American culture as a true representation of police/criminal interactions. This dissertation is a case study that examined the portrayal of African Americans as criminals on the police reality show entitled The Police Women of Cincinnati, Memphis, Dallas, Maricopa County (Phoenix, AZ) and Broward County (Ft. Lauderdale, FL). The cities were chosen because they represent the entire five seasons that the series has been on television. This particular police reality show was also chosen due to its mirror image of local and national television newscasts. …

Leadership And Corporate Governance: Challenges For Bank Regulators, Lucy Surhyel Newman

Economic and Financial Review

Given likely challenges to obtaining legislative approvals on acceptable behaviour as foundational to good corporate governance practices, this paper recognizes the attendant challenges for bank regulators and recommends measures that Nigerian bank regulators can explore in enhancing their effectiveness in advocating for and where necessary, enforcing good corporate governance practices, based on universally defined pillars and elements of corporate governance.

Amelia Earhart On Nikumaroro: A Summary Of The Evidence, Thomas King

Pacific Studies

The fate of American aviation pioneers Amelia Earhart and Fred Noonan, who disappeared over the Pacific in July 1937, is a continuing Pacific historical mystery. Twenty-three years of interdiSciplinary research by The International Group for Historic Aircraft Recovery (TIGHAR) has produced results supporting the hypotheSiS that Earhart and Noonan landed their Lockheed Electra IDE safely on Nikumaroro in the Phoenix Islands, made repeated efforts to radio for help, but eventually expired. This paper summarizes TIGHAR's data relevant to the "Nikumaroro HypotheSiS."

The Impact Of Computer-Based Educational Technology On English As A Second Language (Esl) At University Level: Instructor Perceptions, Mohammed Mohammed

Masters Theses

This study used a quantitative descriptive survey research design to examine university-level English as a second language (ESL) instructors’ perceptions of computer-based educational technology, as well as their personal views on the value this technology adds to their instructions and teaching. The study is designed to reveal both general perceptions on how computer-based educational technology (CBET) can facilitate teaching and learning, and specific perceptions on how the technology can improve instructors’ and learners' performance in terms of meeting 21st century skills and needs. The target population of this survey research was all ESL instructors at the Center for English Language …

The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program For Women, Infants, And Children (Wic) And The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (Snap): Comparing Policies And Suggesting Changes, Regina T. Cucurullo

Journal of Food Law & Policy

National concerns, such as obesity, should be addressed through national efforts. Considering the national reach of the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and their ability to influence the diets of a significant amount of the nation's population, changes to these programs should be made to encourage healthy nutrition.

Food Sovereignty In The United States: Supporting Local And Regional Food Systems, Allison Condra

Journal of Food Law & Policy

Today, perhaps more than ever, an increasing portion of U.S. society is paying attention to and asking questions about our food and agricultural system. We are recognizing the immense consequences of the agricultural "efficiencies" we valued and wrote into our policies in the seventies-for example, growing corn "fence row to fence row" and the ease of microwaved meals and prepackaged foods. 3 The increasingly global nature of our food system and its consequences are becoming more apparent. Food safety concerns-prompted by a growing number of foodborne illness outbreaks and the government's response in the 2009 Food Safety Modernization Act-loom large …

The Real Toy Story: The San Francisco Board Of Supervisors Healthy Food Incentives Ordinance, Cortney Price

Journal of Food Law & Policy

Obesity among children in the United States has tripled over the last thirty years. Incidentally, the world's largest fast food restaurant, McDonald's, first introduced its children's Happy Meal thirty-two years ago. Shortly thereafter, the first Disney inspired toy found its way into Happy Meals and the hearts of the "billions and billions served." Although the iconic Happy Meal and accompanying toy have become "a staple of Americana akin to baseball and apple pie," the continued existence of the practice is being threatened in light of the powerful influence toys have on children's food choices, thus contributing to the current obesity …

The Happy Memories Of North Korean Defectors: Discovering Personal Narratives Of Hidden Happiness Through Disintegrative Inquiry, Eric P. Foley

Student Scholarship

Thirty North Korean defectors were interviewed and asked to share happy memories from across their lifetimes. A "disintegrative" photo-album technique was used to facilitate rich descriptions while reducing pressure for narrative consistency. Eight narrative voices were identified: four master cultural narratives and four personal narrative constructions. Nineteen respondents initially reported life segments devoid of happy memories but each discovered "hidden happinesses" in response to simple reconsideration prompts from the interviewer. Hidden happinesses were primarily narrated in personal voice, with positive correlation found between hidden happiness discovery and time interval between leaving North Korea and arriving in South Korea. A grounded …

Work-Life Fusion: A Paradigm Shift In Understanding Work And Life Management: Scale Development, Validation, And Multigenerational Analysis, Donna L. Haeger

Student Scholarship

A Work-Life Fusion scale is introduced and developed to measure the extent to which people leverage technological tools both virtually and in face-to-face exchanges to concurrently manage work and life issues while at work. Subscales emerge from the data with strong reliability measures and rigorous techniques are employed to achieve validation. The scale is used as a resource to explore its impact on Work-Life Satisfaction, Job Satisfaction, and Psychological Job Control. Multi-group analysis across generations surfaces clear indication of a shift to a fused approach toward work and life management as cohorts become younger.