Digital Commons Network^™

Thriving Through Experience: A Phenomenological Inquiry Of Community-Engaged Learning, Katharine O'Connor

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Community-engaged learning is a high impact educational practice that has been proven to aid in retention rates and overall student success (Kuh, 2008). As an educator, I have had many students tell me that their community-engaged learning experiences helped them develop leadership skills. And while there have been many quantitative studies considering the grade point averages and retention rates, there is a need for research that focuses on the lived experience of people who participate in community-engaged learning. This dissertation focused on young adult women who have emerged as leaders through their community-engaged learning experiences. Through the use of interpretive …

Exploring The Leadership-As-Practice Of Middle Managers Engaged In Organizational Changes In An Asia Pacific Multinational Setting, Eric Kung

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

There has been a great need for leadership studies on middle management, particularly in the Asia Pacific context. This study explored the leadership practices of middle managers engaged in leading organizational changes of multinational corporations (MNCs), within the Asia Pacific context. Organization ethnography was used as the research method. The ethnographer observed and analyzed the actual practice of middle managers of a multinational manufacturing company located in China for six months. The findings showed that middle managers played significant roles in communication and execution in leading organizational changes. The study also showed that change management could be a dynamic process …

Reframing Leadership Narratives Through The African American Lens, Marion Missy Mcgee

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Reframing Leadership Narratives through the African American Lens explores the context-rich experiences of Black Museum executives to challenge dominant cultural perspectives of what constitutes a leader. Using critical narrative discourse analysis, this research foregrounds under-told narratives and reveals the leadership practices used to proliferate Black Museums to contrast the lack of racially diverse perspectives in the pedagogy of leadership studies. This was accomplished by investigating the origin stories of African American executives using organizational leadership and social movement theories as analytical lenses for making sense of leaders’ tactics and strategies. Commentary from Black Museum leaders were interspersed with sentiments of …

From Me To We: A Phenomenological Inquiry Into Group Beingness, Stacey K. Guenther

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

To be human is to be a member of myriad groups. The universality of groups in our lives poses an important area of study for social scientists investigating human flourishing. Additionally, inquiring into the evolutionary potential of groups may begin to inform new ways of addressing the intractable issues we face as a human species. While most empirical studies of groups focus on group performance, or group doingness, this study explored group beingness and the experience of manifesting deep union and oneness, which is an intersubjective phenomenon that has been called coherence. Intersubjective coherence is often written about from a …

Preceptorship Practice In Healthcare Institutions In Ghana: A Situational Analysis, Ivy E. Sackey

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Preceptors play a vital role in supporting nursing/midwifery students and new employees’ transition and assimilation into their new role. Furthermore, with the increasing focus on educating more qualified nurses and midwives to meet health-related United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, there is a need for a more standardized and coordinated approach to preceptorship training. As former Head of the Nursing/Midwifery Training Institution in Ghana, I observed first-hand that the system of preceptorship needs improvements. Published literature on preceptorship has shown that the practice plays a vital role in healthcare delivery. However, most of the existing literature preceptorship is from developed countries, …

Traditional Healing In Psychology On The Caribbean Island Of Montserrat, West Indies, Yvette Adelcia Cabey

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

In Montserrat, traditional healing medicines consist of herbal treatments and customary therapeutic methods such as ritual practices and herbal teas also known as “Bush and Weed” (Duberry, 1973, p.1). The purpose of this study is to discuss herbs known as “Bush,” in Montserrat, and how they benefit psychological wellbeing among the communities in Montserrat. A subsequent intention of this study is to address how an understanding of Montserratian Traditional Healing remedies can be beneficial to Western Psychological practice and enhance the efficacy for psychological healing. The gap in the literature indicates that few studies are examining mental health methods in …

Youth Leadership Through Adventure: Alums' Perspectives On The Experience Of Leadership, Raynalde Schagen

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

In this study, I examined the perspectives that emerging adult alums of a program called Youth Leadership Through Adventure (YLTA) have of their adolescent experiences of being a leader. Eight YLTA alums engaged in semi-structured interviews focusing on the research questions: What are the lived experiences of leadership in emerging adult alums of YLTA? What factors of their adolescent involvement were most influential in their emerging adult lives? As a youth development program, YLTA is supported by Adapt and the North Country Health Consortium (NCHC), two nonprofit organizations devoted to improving health conditions and habits of individuals residing in the …

Integrating Interpersonal Neurobiology In Healthcare Leadership And Organizations, Lynn Redenbach

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Interpersonal Neurobiology (IPNB) is an interdisciplinary, science-based field that seeks to understand human reality including the nature of mind, brain, and relationships. IPNB has been used extensively by mental health practitioners as well as child development and parenting experts. While practitioners and scholars have described ways that IPNB can be used in leadership and organizations, there has been no systematic inquiry into the practical and phenomenological experience of this application. IPNB offers an alternative to dominant models of care and leading in healthcare settings and fields, which are characterized by disconnection, objectification, and separation. It offers a relationally centered approach …

Life Stories Of Older Chinese Immigrant Women In The U.S., Lijun Li

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

This study is an effort to turn to older Chinese immigrant women aged 60 and above, one of the most marginalized groups in American society, to recognize their humanity and rediscover the unseen and unheard. It asks what we can learn from their life stories, particularly from the ways in which each experience(d) being a woman in different societal systems. Using in-depth life story interviews supplemented with secondary sources of information, this study crafts four women’s stories that are first read and interpreted individually to capture the whole person in context, and then are looked at thematically. Nine themes are …

Women Seeking The Public School Superintendency: Navigating The Gendered And Racialized-Gendered Job Search, Rachel M. Roberts

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

I have been an educator for my entire career. First, as a teacher and over the last decade as a school administrator. During my tenure, I have continually noticed the underrepresentation of women in the highest office: the school superintendent. This has vexed me over the years, and as a scholar practitioner in leadership and change, I have devoted my research to unearthing the inequalities and disproportional realities that exist within high-profile leadership, particularly the public school superintendency. Utilizing a grounded theory approach, this dissertation sought to better understand what happens at the micro-level, especially during and after the superintendent …

University Of Richmond Magazine - Autumn 2022

University of Richmond Magazine

The University of Richmond's Alumni Magazine was first published as The Alumni Bulletin in 1936 and continues to this day as the University of Richmond Magazine.

Leadership For Change: Teacher Education In Afghanistan: A Decade Of Challenge In Reconstruction, Reform, And Modernization In A Post Conflict Society, Susan Wardak

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

This dissertation used interpretive case study methodology focused on the story of rebuilding the national education system of Afghanistan destroyed by decades of conflict. The study documents the challenges and progress in preparing adequate and qualified teachers for the nation. The dissertation is based on critical analysis of available documents tracing events, policies, and programs. The research asks: What are the critical leadership strategies and organizational frameworks that promote or impede institutional change? What are the barriers to change in teacher education in a conservative Islamic society? The dissertation is unique in that this story of educational intervention in a …

Seeking Treatment For Ptsd: The Post 9/11 Service Member's Experience, Stephanie A. Bowser

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Posttraumatic-stress disorder (PTSD) remains one of the most pervasive health conditions to affect the 2.7 million United States service members deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan since 2001. Untreated and/or inadequately treated PTSD can further lead to an array of health risks including anxiety, depression, substance abuse, social and occupational impairments, poorer quality of physical health, decreased overall perception of quality of life, and increase the risk of suicide. Considering these risks, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and Department of Defense (DoD) created the VA/DOD Clinical Practice Guidelines (CPGs) for the Management of PTSD and Acute Stress Reaction (ASR), highlighting …

"Because God Said So": A Thematic Analysis Of Why People Denounce Black Greek-Letter Organizations, Mea Ashley

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Today, Black Greek-letter organizations (BGLOs) struggle to use empirical data to address financial burden, elitism, hazing, relevance in social justice issues, and the anti-BGLO movement. The anti-BGLO movement frames this study. The movement stems from beliefs that secret societies, fraternities, and sororities are anti-Christian. Society will continue to question the relevance and importance of BGLOs if they cannot overcome the issues plaguing them. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to ascertain why members are leaving BGLOs, in case the organizations find the anti-BGLO movement to be a threat to organizational vitality. Through thematic analysis, 18 YouTube testimonials from denouncers …

How Should Bosses Lead? New Revelations From Frontline Managers, Bonnie A. Curtis

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Strategic business change in the 21st century has been fraught with issues, resulting in failure for more than half of all attempted efforts to transform companies. Frontline managers (FLMs) are key to successful corporate change, transforming a company’s direction into action and results and the COVID-19 pandemic has presented a unique business challenge for every Consumer Products Group (CPG) company and FLM by interrupting supply chains. The aim of this grounded theory study was to create theory by conducting open-ended interviews with 20 frontline managers to determine how they viewed themselves and their roles, teams, and bosses during change. Results …

The Relationships Between Dimensions Of Inclusive Leadership And Aspects Of Employee Engagement: Crucial Connections For Organizational Success, Rosalind F. Cohen

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

In light of the current economic conditions in the United States brought about by the COVID pandemic, the war for talent is at a high point, and the acquisition and retention of qualified employees are highly competitive. Because employees want to feel challenged by their work and need to feel a sense of belonging, organizations that create engaging and inclusive cultures are at an advantage and need to understand how leadership behaviors can impact these cultures. This three-phased exploratory concurrent mixed-methods research study posed two questions to bring light to the relationship between Inclusive Leadership, Employee Engagement, and individual or …

Love And Learn: Creating Space For Authentic Caring In Family Child Care, Katherine Kelly Hart Meehan

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Children benefit from engagement in early education and care (ECE) programs that support their learning and development while also providing a point of connection to critical resources for their families. For children from economically disadvantaged families, the lack of access to high-quality ECE results in a persistent achievement and opportunity gap (García & Weiss, 2015). A significant portion of ECE occurs in home-based early learning environments, also known as family child care (FCC) programs, which play a critical role in supporting children from low-income and immigrant families (Layzer et al., 2007; Porter et al., 2010). Unfortunately, this sector of ECE …

Psychological Impact On Probation Officers Supervising Individuals With Mental Illness, Janelle Hickey

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Every year, millions of adults in the United States are ordered to participate in supervised community probation and parole (Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2021). Probation and parole supervisees with serious and persistent mental illness (SPMI) are overrepresented in the criminal justice system and, therefore, probation and parole officers (PPOs) can expect to work with supervisees with mental illness. While there is extensive research on the impact of working with individuals with SPMI on community support professionals, there is little research focusing specifically on PPOs (Whitehead, 1985). The limited research that exists suggests PPOs who supervise individuals with SPMI endorse symptoms …

Mothers Leading By Example: Maternal Influence On Female Leadership In Kenya, Catherine Chege

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

This qualitative research aimed to study the experiences of Kenyan female leaders and explore Kenyan maternal influence in their lived experiences. It examined how maternal influence shapes female leadership in Kenya by embodying relational and transformational leadership qualities and proves that maternal influence makes women congruent with leadership roles. Despite global advances recognizing the principle of women’s political, economic, and social equality, Kenyan women continue to be marginalized in many areas of society, especially in leadership and decision making. Kenyan women also continue to rank very low in their communities’ social hierarchy, yet they play a critical role in their …

Education For Citizenship: A Study Of The Effects Of Cocurricular Student Philanthropy Education On Prosocial Behavior, Félix José Alonso

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

The purpose of this concurrent mixed-methods study is to explore the use of student engagement and cocurricular student philanthropy education as an approach to awareness raising and as a mechanism for creating a culture of philanthropy among college students. This dissertation is a synthesis of the review with a consensus that student engagement and cocurricular student philanthropy education create greater awareness, learning, and intentions around philanthropy and prosocial behavior, as well as increased instances of making charitable contributions and civic engagement. The study concludes that student engagement and cocurricular philanthropy education are effective mechanisms for creating a culture of giving. …

What Factors In The Life Experience Of African Americans Cause Them To Comply With Or Confront Law Enforcement Officers?, La'shelle Jefferson-Mcdonald

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Widespread availability of cell phones has given most Americans the ability to record events as they happen. This has included recordings of increasing instances of police brutality directed at African Americans by White officers, including the shooting and killing of unarmed People of Color, particularly males. With such encounters being recorded and widely viewed by the general population, there is an increased need to focus on stopping this serious social problem. This study gives historical context on how this came about, what common stereotypes are associated with African Americans, and examples of several cases where unarmed African Americans were killed …

Locating Uncertainty In Hospital Leader Sensemaking And Sensegiving Of Organizational Change: A Single Case Study, Sara E. Barry

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Leaders planning strategic change face significant ambiguity and uncertainty due to the complex, fast-paced, and volatile nature of organizational life. What one leader sees as an opportunity, another may view as a threat depending on their past experiences, their existing mental models, and their perceptions of uncertainty. Sensemaking and sensegiving theories provide a framework for how leaders retrospectively make sense of new and disorienting information through recursive cycles of interpretation, action, and learning, and seek to influence the meaning-making of others towards a shared vision of the strategic change. Despite decades of research using these theories, studies have yet to …

Toward Socially Equitable Conditions: Change In Complex Regulatory Systems, Katherine A. Hoffman

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

The purpose of this qualitative participatory action research was to explore how complexity is engaged and experienced in complex regulatory systems, and to understand how cannabis might be regulated in ways that lead to socially equitable conditions. This was accomplished by studying the lived experiences of governmental leaders charged with the responsibility of establishing regulatory frameworks for legalized cannabis where none previously existed. Using the learning history methodology, the study deeply explores the ways that complex systems coexist by capturing the lived experiences of research participants and enhance theoretical understanding of complex regulatory systems. Data collection occurred through reflective interviews, …

Exploring The Career Advancement Experience Of Black Women On Their Journey To Executive Levels In Large American Corporations, Pamela J. Viscione

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Corporations began hiring Black people into management positions in the 1960s and 1970s following the passage of the Civil Rights Act (1964) which made it unlawful to discriminate in hiring based on race, gender, religion, or country of origin. Black men were the first to benefit from this change in the law and Black women began to appear in entry level management roles in the 1980s. Forty years later, there have only been four Black women CEOs in the history of the Fortune 1000, the largest American companies based on reported revenues. This level of representation is closer to zero …

Click-Enter-Send: The Relationship Experiences Of People Who Are Blind Or Visually Impaired In Text-Based Workspaces, Kelly Bleach

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Companies have increasingly turned to text-based communications to recruit, hire, and manage a distributed remote workforce. For people who are blind or visually impaired, this movement presents both challenges and opportunities for attaining and retaining employment. Does the potential isolation of telework have a negative effect on workplace relationships for people who are blind or visually impaired? Does participation in text-based workspaces mitigate stereotypes and stigmatization experienced by people with visible disabilities? Using a constructivist grounded theory framework, this study explored how people who are blind or visually impaired experience relationships in text-based workspaces. Building and maintaining social connections and …

Developing The Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Power, And Privilege Assessment In Cft/Mft: A Delphi Study, Carrie Hatch

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Marriage and Family Therapists (MFTs) and Couple and Family Therapists (CFTs) engage in clinical practice from a systemic framework. This framework positions MFTs to consider the impact of social systems on the MFT/CFT field and their clients. Issues related to diversity, equity, inclusion, power, and privilege (DEIPP) impact all of the systems in which we operate. Currently, there is no consensus on a tool measuring training clinicians’ competencies related to DEIPP beyond self-report. There is a need for a DEIPP competency measure because, currently, the most widely used measure is self or observer report, which may not provide a complete …

Social And Cultural Considerations In Accessing Mental Health Treatment In The Gambia, West Africa, Safiya Njai

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

This study examines the social and cultural considerations in accessing mental health treatment in The Gambia, West Africa. Participants were recruited from The Gambia for a qualitative study that included semistructured interviews (N = 17). A team of analysts identified five themes. The results highlighted social and cultural conceptualizations of mental health and mental illness, sociocultural determinants of health, interventions, barriers to care, and the legal framework to support mental health change. These findings are important for counselors to understand different perceptions of mental health and mental illness and the associated stigma. Furthermore, several opportunities for advocacy in The Gambia …

Speaking Of Transformation: Discourse, Values, And Climate Adaptation Planning In San Antonio, Texas, Lindsay Ratcliffe

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

As climate change accelerates and social inequity grows, adaptation planning and policy must respond to both problems. Adaptation scholars increasingly call for transformative solutions that not only address problems with the status quo but articulate ethical commitments to justice and equity. City climate action and adaptation plans (CAAPs) have begun to center these commitments, but little is known about how such responses become articulated and change as CAAPs are developed and passed. This dissertation, a critical case study of San Antonio’s first CAAP, SA Climate Ready, addresses this gap by focusing on changes to the discourse of climate equity during …

Role Of Morphological Awareness In Language And Literacy In Children With And Without Developmental Language Disorder, Melissa Phelan

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Past research has shown phonological awareness is highly correlated with language and literacy success in children with and without Developmental Language Disorder (DLD), but a less examined area of language and literacy is morphological awareness. Delayed morphology in children with DLD has been studied extensively in spoken language, but relatively little in written language in the DLD population. This study explored two research questions: 1) Is morphological awareness related to language and literacy success in children with and without DLD, and 2) Is morphological awareness impaired for those children with DLD and dyslexia similarly to that of phonological awareness. A …

The Influence Of The First-Year Seminar Participation On Student Retention, Sahar Sanavi

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

College student retention is a complex phenomenon influenced by a myriad of factors and with wide-ranging implications for university function. First-year seminar is one approach to increase first-year student retention through involvement, engagement, and integration. This quantitative study examines the influence of first-year seminar on retention of first-year, full-time, four-year degree-seeking students who matriculated during the fall 2016, 2017, 2018 semester and remained enrolled for fall 2017, 2018, 2019 semester at six institutions in two Northwest states in the United States.

This study utilized an odds ratio to investigate whether first-year seminar participation had a statistically significant influence on the …