Digital Commons Network^™

Accreditation As An Organizational Response: Exploring The Influence Of Leadership And Institutional And Task Environments On The Accreditation Process In Communication Sciences And Disorders Programs, Jeffrey Charles Adams

Theses and Dissertations

Influences on the accreditation process in communication sciences and disorder (CSD) programs were examined using a cross case comparative qualitative analysis among four successfully accredited academic departments in the southern United States. Program chairs, CSD administrators, clinic directors and faculty were interviewed. Four institutional sites were selected for the case studies based upon the outcome of the program’s most recent accreditation site visit, the date of the accreditation site visit, number of available faculty, and institutional type. The four institutions included one master’s granting private institution, one master’s granting (larger) program, one doctoral/research medical university, and one doctoral/research university (very …

Edmodo: A Collective Case Study Of English As The Second Language (Esl) Of Latino/Latina Students, Michael Taylor

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The population of English as the Second Language (ESL) students continues to rise throughout the United States especially among those of Latino/Latina heritage. An important aspect to help these students succeed is to build a sense of community through a social constructivist framework. By using and developing 21st century skills through social networking, students can develop a sense of community which could lead to an increase in academic achievement. Utilizing a philosophical assumption of methodology allowed for flexibility and ongoing reflection for the current study, and it was applied in the conceptual framework of social constructivism and sense of community. …

Rural Older Adults And Functional Health Literacy:Testing Self-Efficacy, Knowledge And Skills Resulting From Hands-On Health Promotion, Michele L. Dugan-Day, Susan C. Dollar, Wafaa A. Kaf

Contemporary Rural Social Work Journal

Functional Health Literacy (FHL) involves the knowledge, skills and belief in self-efficacy to use health care information in self-care. FHL is critical for rural older adults since they are at risk of poor health care outcomes. As part of the Senior Health University project, we measured the FHL of rural older adults before and after educational sessions that included hands-on skill building. Ninety-eight participants aged 60 and older were recruited from five rural congregate meal sites over two years. Survey methods allowed for paired sample t-tests of FHL variables. Findings included significant post-training increases in FHL, suggesting the potential benefit …

Overcoming The Loss Of Nonverbal Cues Encountered By The Adventitiously Blind: Reconstructing Relationships And Identity, Vernon Floyd Humphrey

Dissertations

In this study, couples shared their experiences adjusting to one of the members loss of sight. Through interviews, their narratives expressed their values, actions, inactions, successes, failures, needs, obstacles, and feelings. Participants explained their standpoint/perspective about vision loss, when it happened, how it affected them, how they reacted and responded, through hindsight how they thought they should have responded, and how they reconstructed a shared interpersonal relationship. Narratives about situations and events after the loss of sight revealed descriptions of their relationships and interactions with each other and other people in their circle. Through constant comparative analysis the individual narratives …

Online Gender Discussions: Student Experiences In Discussions Of Gender Diversity, Rory Andrew Mckenzie

Communication & Leadership Dissertations and Theses

This thesis examined graduate level students’ experiences of (mainly gender) diversity in the online classroom. The philosophical framework for this study came from John Rawls’ work utilizing the veil of ignorance as a strategy to create more objective determinations free from situational and circumstantial biases. Both critical pedagogy and the theory that individuals construct social and cultural meaning through communication provided the theoretical foundations for the thesis. The study analyzed experiences of the students via their contributions to the online discussion boards.. The study also utilized interviews of current and former students to discuss their experiences with diversity in their …

Reel Women: Gender Stereotypes In Film, Kayla Marie Krahn

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

Horror films portray female characters as sexual, helpless victims. When horror films attempt to portray female characters as the hero, this sends a message to audiences that women can be strong and independent. An experiment was conducted to test an audience's perceptions gender stereotypes of women in the horror film, Scream. Results indicate that stereotypes present in the horror film effected the participants' perception of women as competent heroes. Female participants were also more likely to perceive women as more competent than male participants. Then, from a qualitative standpoint, five individuals were interviewed about their perceptions of characters in their …

Satisfaction In Similarity: The Association Between Perceived Communication Styles And Relational Satisfaction, Rachal Marquez, Lily Zhao, Kathrine Kuhlmann, Kyrstin Riley

Pepperdine Journal of Communication Research

In our research, we hypothesized that partners in romantic relationships who reported higher levels of similarity in communication would also express higher levels of relational satisfaction. We used Martin Buber’s theory of dialogic communication to establish the idea that people are attracted to others who are similar to them and are therefore attracted to those who share similar communication styles. To test this theory, we surveyed perceived similarity in communication using the following aspects: humor, introversion, conflict management, and criticalness, followed by a measurement of relational satisfaction, in a sample of people in dating relationships at Pepperdine University to examine …

Workplace Dignity: Communicating Inherent, Earned, And Remediated Dignity, Kristen Lucas

Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Extant research on dignity at work has revealed conditions that contribute to indignity, employees’ responses to dignity threats, and ways in which employees’ inherent dignity is undermined. But while dignity – and specifically indignity – is theorized as a phenomenon subjectively experienced and judged by individuals, little research has privileged workers’ own perspectives. In this study, working adults reveal how they personally experience and understand meanings of dignity at work. I describe three core components of workplace dignity and the communicative exchanges through which dignity desires commonly are affirmed or denied: inherent dignity as recognized by respectful interaction, earned dignity …

An Evaluation Of The Impact Of A Couples Enrichment Program On Relationship Satisfaction, Communication, Conflict Resolution, And Forgiveness, Chelsi A. K. Davis

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Relationship enrichment programs serve to promote the development of healthy intimate relationships (Halford, Markman, Kling, & Stanley, 2003). There are hundreds of relationship enrichment programs available in the United States, alone (smartmarriages.com, 2013). Weekend to Remember is a faith-based relationship enrichment program which has not yet been the subject of empirical evaluation. This is not unusual. A select few of these types of interventions have received research attention, and little of this research has been published in peer reviewed journals. This study aims to contribute to this small body of existing literature by examining the effectiveness of the Weekend to …

Development Of A Support Approach For 911 Call Centre Work With A View To Preventing Musculoskeletal Disorders And Psychological Health Problems, Georges Toulouse, Louise St-Arnaud, Mariève Pelletier

Rapports de recherche scientifique

La présente étude constitue un prolongement des recherches antérieures ayant pour objectif de réduire les risques psychosociaux associés aux troubles musculosquelettiques et de santé psychologique chez les préposés des centres d’urgence 9-1-1. Elle se fonde plus précisément sur la précédente recherche (Toulouse et coll., 2011) dont les résultats suggéraient la nécessité de mieux soutenir les préposés aux prises avec des situations d’appels difficiles. En effet, les résultats montraient que les situations, qui génèrent une charge de travail ou une charge cognitive plus élevée sont corrélées à l’augmentation de l’intensité des douleurs au cou et aux épaules, alors que les douleurs …

Testing The Pub Principle: A Look At Push And Pull Communication On Facebook, Tyler Grant Page

Theses and Dissertations

This research tests the value of push and pull communication on Facebook in the first effort to test the validity of the Pub Principle and Social Intrusion Theory. This theory explains how audiences engage in a tug-of-war with commercial forces during mass communication and that commercial messaging is ultimately dependent upon the acceptance or rejection of its intended audience. The pub principle explains that social media is unlike traditional mass media and that the rules commercial forces must play by are different than for other mass media. Using a mixed-method approach, this research confirms the validity of this principle and …

Communication Risk And Strategy In Temporary Organizations, Shelley R. Mcivor

Theses

Communication is a critical and emerging metric for successful outcomes in the high-stakes field of project management. Professional management societies have quantified financial losses caused by ineffective communication. Consulting project management exemplifies a maximum communication risk environment - misunderstanding threatens project finances, strict deadlines, and technical benchmarks - exacerbated by the complexity of a temporary organization structure.

The context of work in a temporary organization adds layers of ambiguity to project communications - an ill-structured domain in technical communication terms. Formal study of communication in temporary organizations is relatively new. Recent studies are derived from engineering and business management perspectives. …

The Effects Of Home Country, Gender, And Position On Listening Behaviors, Deborah B. Roebuck, Reginald L. Bell, Reeta Raina, Cheng Ean Lee

Faculty Articles

Regardless of national culture, often listening is mentioned as an important component for effective business operations. In addition, understanding how individuals of different national cultures perceive and process listening is fundamental to our global world of work. The present study used Glenn and Pood (1989) Listening Self-Inventory to examine the distracted and attentive listening behaviors of male and female managers and non-managers who worked full time inthe countries of India, Malaysia, and the United States of America (USA). Findings in this study suggestUSA females and males, in general, are less likely to be attentive listeners than the Indian and Malaysianrespondents …

Sharing Ideas At Work: Workstation And Empathic Design, Yolegmma Marquez

Theses

In anywhere people want to promote interaction and cooperation, the furniture system "Common" provides a versatile alternative to improve the collaboration between team members. By using empathy as inspiration, this system promotes communication, adaptability, expansion and connectivity among people in office workspaces. The main theoretical premise behind this product is empathic design whose user-centered approach attends the user's feelings toward a product.

The result of this research was applied to development of an Office Desk, main product of the furniture system called Common. The Desk is a versatile structural solution that allows attaching accessories in an elegant and easy way. …

Suggestion, Perception, Reality: A Study Into The Relationship Between Suggestion And The Reality It May Produce, Perception, Reality: A Study Into The Relationship Between Suggestion And The Reality It May Produce., Scott Whippo

Communication & Leadership Dissertations and Theses

Suggestion is a part of communication that cannot be stripped from or be considered separate from verbal and nonverbal communication. It is through the need to view the communication processes from a complete understanding that this study investigated the possible influence that suggestion may have on an individual’s perception of reality. The existing literature was reviewed with various results from different researchers, however, much of the literature supported previous research done by Spanos et al. (1984) and Bartels et al. (2006). Their research showed some indications that suggestion, and possibly priming may have an influence on an individual’s perception. Using …

Exploring Supportive And Defensive Communication Behavior And Psychological Safety Between Supervisors And Their Subordinates, Mary E. Strehl

Communication

This project explores the relationship between supportive and defensive communication behavior and psychological safety in the organizational setting. A paper and pencil survey measuring team psychological safety and supportive and defensive communication behaviors was administered to participants in the northwestern region of the United States. Supervisor use of supportive communication behavior was hypothesized to be positively correlated with employee psychological safety. Support was found for the hypothesis. This research sought to expand the scope of our understanding of psychological safety in an organizational setting while highlighting the benefits of using supportive communication behavior.

Efficacy Of The Picture Exchange Communication Systemin Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Reagan Blason

Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters

The increasing diagnoses of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) each year affect many families worldwide and are a major concern to therapists, healthcare workers, and educators. Many children diagnosed with ASD will never go on to develop functional speech or will have limited communication, as well as impaired social-communication skills. Limited communication makes education and therapy difficult for these children and their caregivers. Language therapy and interventions aim to improve social-communication and speech in these children, so it is crucial to find the most efficient interventions. The Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS) is a common tool used to assist communication in …

Names Are Words: A Study Of Age, Gender, Class And Race, Alexandria Michelle Baker

Communication & Leadership Dissertations and Theses

Just over 4 million babies are born in the United States each year, and as many people know each baby eventually gets a name. In an extension of research demonstrating both Symbolic Interaction Theory and the Coordinated Management of Meaning, through the use of semantics and pragmatics, the present study examined what names communicate about age, race, gender and class. Using data obtained from the first group of participants in Survey 1(i.e. names of each individual and their demographics), Survey 2 participants, a random sampling of Americans, were asked to look at 14 names and determine what those names communicated. …

Success From The Sideline: How Communicative Processes Of Coaches' Decision-Making Styles Relate To Rugby Team Success, Kelley Sullivan

Theses and Dissertations

This study investigates the relationship between communication processes collegiate rugby coaches utilize when making decisions and team success. Along with measuring coaches' collaborative decision-making levels, this study explored various communication opportunities coaches report offering to players during decision-making processes. The results show there is no linear relationship between collaborative decision-making levels and winning percentage, nor is there a linear relationship between offering communication opportunities and winning percentage. Analysis revealed no one specific communication opportunity was a significant predictor variable of team success. While the variables tested did not have any correlation with college rugby winning percentage, it was found that …

Human-Animal Communication In Captive Species: Dogs, Horses, And Whales, Mackenzie K. Kelley

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

My hopes for this project are to collect and analyze the current research in the field of animal communication. In the first part, my goal is to define animal communication, specifically within human contexts. I will look at how the history of humans and certain species have intertwined to result in their modern day relationships. I will also explain why we should care about animal communication. In the second part, I will look at three specific species I have chosen to study: dogs, horses, and cetaceans. I will provide a brief history of our roles as humans in the evolution …

Organizational Change In Volunteer-Based Organizations: Communication Change Strategies In Church Congregations, Daniela Viviana Fuentes Riffo

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The current study fills a gap in the communication and management literature by providing additional insight regarding the effective communication strategies used by church leaders during organizational change. The researcher sought to find out how beliefs held by church members predicted their receptivity to change and their intent to leave their organization. Participants from diverse church denominations (N = 208) completed an online survey questionnaire asking them to think about a particular change they had experienced in their current or former church. The results of statistical analysis showed: (a) Church members´ beliefs regarding discrepancy, efficacy, principal support, and valence, positively …

The Use Of Exemplars In Audio-Based Media To Increase Behavioral Intent In Adopting Preventive Skin-Cancer Behaviors, Christine M. Lemme

Master of Arts in Communication

Skin cancer is a growing concern in the young-adult population due to the popularity of indoor ultraviolet (UV) tanning and the acceptance of numerous myths that skin cancer is not a major health concern. This thesis aims to look at the use of media exemplar perceived to be similar and credible to the target population in order to persuade the target population to adopt preventative skin-cancer behaviors. College students of both genders and various ethnicities (N = 170) were surveyed after listening to different radio exemplars on skin cancer. Results indicated that similarity and credibility play a key role in …

Coping Mechanisms Of Children With Atopic Dermatitis, Whitney A. St. Mary

Honors Theses

This was a qualitative study that explored the lived experience of parents who had children with atopic dermatitis, otherwise known as eczema. The study had seven volunteer participants and the objective of this study was to determine any coping mechanisms used to overcome the negative aspects of atopic dermatitis. Volunteers were obtained from the Oak Grove Family Clinic. Phone interviews were then conducted and the participants were asked a series of eight questions. After the interviews concluded the researcher then transcribed the interviews and determined common themes from parents’ responses. All of the parents discussed how using unscented lotion, preventing …

A Correlational Study Of The Handoff Communication Process As A Result Of Variation In Staffing Levels, Rebecca Leigh Cook

All Theses

The patient handoff is an intricate process that takes on many forms within the healthcare domain. One incredibly common, yet complex handoff is that from the Emergency Department (ED) to the respective floor unit for the extended care of a patient upon hospital admission. While the specifics of the protocol for this process vary between institutions, the importance of a successful handoff for patient safety is universal. This study will examine the effects of the variation in staffing levels on the effectiveness of communication handoff process.

Seriously Playful And Playfully Serious: The Helpfulness Of Humorous Parody, Michael Richard Lucas

All Dissertations

In the following work I create and define the parameters for a specific form of humorous parody. I highlight specific problematic narrative figures that circulate the public sphere and reinforce our serious narrative expectations. However, I demonstrate how critical public pedagogies are able to disrupt these problematic narrative expectations. Humorous parodic narratives are especially equipped to help us in such situations when they work as a critical public/classroom pedagogy, a form of critical rhetoric, and a form of mass narrative therapy. These findings are supported by a rhetorical analysis of these parodic narratives, as I expand upon their ability to …

The Cowl - V.79 - N.22 - Apr 9, 2015

The Cowl

The Cowl - student newspaper of Providence College. Vol 79- No. 22 - April 9, 2015. 21 pages.

Troubles Musculosquelettiques Et Santé Psychologique : Démarche De Soutien Aux Activités De Prise Et De Répartition Des Appels D’Urgence 9-1-1, Georges Toulouse, Louise St-Arnaud, Mariève Pelletier

Rapports de recherche scientifique

La présente étude constitue un prolongement des recherches antérieures ayant pour objectif de réduire les risques psychosociaux associés aux troubles musculosquelettiques et de santé psychologique chez les préposés des centres d’urgence 9-1-1. Elle se fonde plus précisément sur la précédente recherche (Toulouse et coll., 2011) dont les résultats suggéraient la nécessité de mieux soutenir les préposés aux prises avec des situations d’appels difficiles. En effet, les résultats montraient que les situations, qui génèrent une charge de travail ou une charge cognitive plus élevée sont corrélées à l’augmentation de l’intensité des douleurs au cou et aux épaules, alors que les douleurs …

A Teacher’S Toolbox For Building Communication - Among Professionals Who Service Students With Moderate To Severe Disabilities, Bingta E. Francke

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

The purpose of this project is to observe and document the communication and collaboration between new special education teachers and veteran support staff; culminating in the creation of a resource, describing effective communication skills and strategies. A quick-reference communication guide will be designed according to the feedback gathered from the professionals within the education field as well as from special education teachers. The data included is applicable to seasoned teachers being relocated to new sites, as well as individuals new to the teaching profession. Initial implementation and access to the guide will be available through the local County Office of …

Organizational Communication: Perceptions Of Staff Members' Level Of Communication Satisfaction And Job Satisfaction, Priti Sharma, James Lampley, Donald W. Good

ETSU Faculty Works

The purpose of this research study was to explore the topic of organizational communication in higher education and examine staff members’ perceptions about their level of communication and job satisfaction in their workplaces. This study was also designed to test the relationship between communication satisfaction and job satisfaction by analyzing the significance of different dimensions of Communication Satisfaction with the view that satisfaction is multifaceted.

The results of the study indicated that gender differences and the number of years in service do not seem to make a significant difference in the level of satisfaction among staff members, but the level …

Architecture As Communication: A Study Of The Role Of Form, Function And Context In Evoking Meaning, Priyanka Sondhi

Theses

The aim of this thesis is to understand and design an architecture that includes as part of its program, the function of communication of a certain encoded idea(s) through the public's everyday interaction with it. This thesis is divided into two parts - exploration and design project. The exploration part studies the methods and history of communicating meaning through architecture. Based on this study a design project was defined which included picking an appropriate site, identifying the meaning to be communicated for the site context, studying the context for such communication and designing a building program and form.

Rochester, being …