Digital Commons Network^™

Fostering Resilience: Leader Strategies And Practices For Overcoming Adversity In Military Organizations, Eugene Coughlin

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this research study was to identify leadership strategies and practices for overcoming adversity in military organizations. This entailed determining what challenges military leaders face in implementing practices aimed at fostering resilience in their organizations. Also examined was how military leaders measure success at fostering resilience in their organizations. Finally, this study considered what recommendations military leaders would make to aspiring leaders wanting to foster resilience in their own organizations in the future. The researcher used a phenomenological approach that incorporated interviews and content analysis. The population for this study was United States Marine Corps infantry officers who …

Volunteer Leader Behavior Of Doctors Within A Large Health Care Provider Association, Charles M. Fischer

Theses and Dissertations

The health care expenditures in the United States are nearly 18% of the GNP and the industry employs over 12 million workers nationwide. Health care doctor associations play an important role in determining policy, research, cost, access, quality, and methods of delivery within the industry. An association’s success is dependent upon competent leadership, from both salaried executive staff and volunteer member leaders. Assessing and analyzing preferred leader behavior in a prominent health care association is, therefore, the subject of this study. Evaluating leadership styles and behaviors can reveal where gaps in leadership skills and training might exist. Using the DISC …

Self-Care For Leaders: Cultivating Extraordinary Functioning & Psychological Well-Being; A Quantitative Study Examining Burnout And Self-Care Practices Of Small-Business Owners, Sundra Ryce

Theses and Dissertations

This quantitative research study was developed in response to challenges small-business owners face with high stress, corporate devastation, and burnout. The research examines burnout and self-care practices among small-business owners to foster psychological well-being. Many studies exist on professional burnout; however, to date, the researcher has not been able to uncover published research related to small business owners’ exhaustion and burn out. Theories in academic literature on self-care, managing transitions, and psychological well-being can be applied to small-business owners experiencing burnout, while leading through corporate life cycles. This research study utilizes a quantitative, correlational, design approach to examine the levels …

Leadership That Scales: A Phenomenological Inquiry Into Facilitated Peer-Grouping Coaching, Kenneth P. Mcfarland

Theses and Dissertations

The global marketplace, with its complexity, immediacy, and ubiquitous disruptions places almost impossible demands on its leaders and its leadership ranks. For many years, a top, perennial contender for the "what keeps CEOs up at night" list has been a severe lack in both the quantity and quality of effective leaders. The war for talent has been figuratively bloody and literally protracted. Leadership development and coaching modalities abound, but demand appears to be much greater than the supply of effective and measurable solutions. Nowhere does there appear to be a scalable approach to accelerate into this demand curve. This descriptive …

Mindfulness And The Toxic Triangle: Reducing The Negative Impact Of Toxic Leadership In Organizations, Gary Cheng

Theses and Dissertations

Toxic leadership costs organizations millions at a time in lost employees, lost customers, lost productivity, and even lost health. The literature shows toxic leadership extends beyond just leaders into an interconnected "toxic triangle" of destructive leaders, conducive environments, and susceptible followers. This study explored, "Can a free, online mindfulness-based stress reduction course reduce the negative impact of toxic leadership on the organization?" Ten volunteers self-identified as currently working under a toxic leader. The study used an explanatory sequential mixed methods design to measure resistance, compliance, and core self-evaluation along with interviews and journals. The results indicated mindfulness did reduce the …

Corporate Activism In The Age Of Lgbt Equality: The Promise And Limitations Of The Modern Executive Champion Of Lgbt Rights, Nii-Quarterlai Quartey

Theses and Dissertations

Over the course of the last 60 years, the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender (LGBT) rights movement in the United States has become a beacon of light around the world where LGBT persons continue to face intolerance, discrimination, persecution, and death. As this qualitative phenomenological study was being written, LGBT Americans taking advantage of their legal rights to marry, still face employment discrimination, housing discrimination, adoption discrimination, immigration discrimination, and discrimination in public accommodations including a Presidential Executive Order, state, and local legislation forcing transgender people to use the restroom that reflects their assigned gender at birth. In fact, in almost …

The Role Of Mezirow's Ten Phases Of Transformative Learning In The Development Of Global Leaders, Scott William Beckett

Theses and Dissertations

The demand for leaders able to navigate the complexity of multinational circumstances working with and through people of multicultural backgrounds is greater today than ever before. Corporations, non-governmental organizations, and governmental agencies and operations are all dealing with a globalized marketplace and economy. Work and the dynamics at play are more complex than ever; the coordination and interplay between people of different nationalities, customs, backgrounds, and languages is at an all-time high. People who live and work in global contexts have reported experiencing transformational moments as well as the development into a global leader. Such transformational, or crucible, experiences have …

The Meaning-Making Structures Of Outsatnding Leaders: A Comparison Of Conative Capability At Conventional And Postconventional Leader Development Levels, Aidan Patrick Harney

PhDs

The majority of managers and leaders do not advance to postconventional stages of ego development (Boyd & Laske 2018), yet increased leader effectiveness has been correlated with the quality of personal meaning-making acquired at postconventional levels of maturity. This dissertation provides an original contribution to knowledge regarding the differences in personal meaning-making structure which are found by comparing conventional- with postconventional-stage leaders. This study focuses on the elements which make up a leader’s conative capability i.e. their conative intelligence and their conative complexity. Along with cognition and affect, conation is one of the three traditionally identified components of mind (Vandenbos …

4e’S Socratic Model: A Grounded Theory For Managing Team Creativity In An Organisational Context, Philip Dennett

Theses

There has been considerable research on identifying the antecedents of creativity and the determinants of organisational creativity, but researchers are yet to develop an effective model for managing creativity within a traditional hierarchical management structure. It has been suggested that using the Socratic Method to create a learning environment within an organisation is a way to foster creativity in an uncertain environment. In this context the Socratic Method is defined as a directed questioning technique to encourage critical thinking. This thesis proposes that taking a Socratic approach to champion creativity enables management to increase creativity in their teams. It also …

Promoting Conflict Management Competencies Within Informal Structures And Informal Networks, Roslynn Almas

Theses and Dissertations

Conflict typically is associated with negative and destructive connotations within organizations. However, a shift is taking place in workplaces to view conflict through a positive frame and to consider conflict as an opportunity to establish an environment that is more creative and innovative while identifying ineffective policies, behaviors or actions. This study was developed to examine how organizations can enhance conflict management competencies to empower leaders and employees to manage conflict by employing problem-solving tactics and collaborative approaches. Furthermore, this study was designed to understand what strategies and practices leaders and specialists in the field of Alternative Dispute Resolution utilize …

Ne Maquixtia: A Mixed Methods Exploration Of Leaders’ Dispositions And Their Impact On The Organizational Cultures They Lead, Georgina Yvette Garcia

Educational Leadership and Policy Studies: Doctoral Research Projects

The aim of this field-based research study was to explore and examine the importance of leader dispositions and their impact on organizational culture and sustained success. It focused on answering the following research question: What leadership dispositions, whether in education or in business, transcend organizational boundaries and most likely lead to organizational cultures that sustainably impact results and support continuous improvement?

This study spotlights the urgent need for leaders in all organizational contexts to immerse themselves in a profound and meaningful manner with developing greater awareness of the dispositions related to their leadership and the cultures they directly impact and …

The Impact Of A Peer-Teaching Instructional Approach On A Student’S Self-Confidence, John Corral

Theses and Dissertations

This study examines a problem of practice stemming from students not given the same opportunities to use and develop self-confidence and take on higher levels of responsibility in the classroom as they prepare for the 21st century workforce in our society. Recognizing a problem of practice evident in our high school with low-selfesteem in students, this paper studies the effects of implementing a peer-teaching instructional approach to help develop students’ self-confidence and emerging leadership skills (Lockie & Van Lanen, 2008). The central research question addressed in this study is: what is the impact of implementing a peer-teaching instructional approach on …

Open Innovation In Small And Medium-Sized Enterprises: Executive And Employee Perception Of Processes And Receptiveness, Bethany A. Davidson

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

This study explored open innovation activities in small and medium-sized enterprises. Most open innovation research to date has focused on large organizations; however, how large organizations engage in open innovation is very different from that of small and medium-size enterprises. The embedded design, mixed methods study utilized a survey delivered to owners or other organizational executives and employees of small and medium-size enterprises to solicit information regarding whether small and medium-size enterprises are actively engaging in inbound open innovation activities, their motivation for engaging in open innovation, and the sources they are utilizing to obtain new ideas for products and …

High People-High Mission: The Power Of Caring Leadership As Experienced In The Air Force, Winfield F. Tufts

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

On the surface, caring and the military appear to be opposites. The stereotypical image of the military giving and obeying orders does not conjure up images of leaders caring for their subordinates. In reality, caring for subordinates and caring for the mission could help leaders form stronger relationships with subordinates, because subordinates may have confidence that their leaders will not recklessly send them into harm’s way. Subordinates may develop confidence in their leaders based on their leaders’ care during non-combat environments. Yet, empirical studies of caring in the military are sparse. This study investigates how Air Force retirees characterize “great …

Interpretative Analysis Of Adult Learners’ Lived Experiences In A Uniquely Designed Higher Education Program, Latonya M. Branham

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

The lived and collegiate experiences of adult learners, who are among the fastest growing student population in 21st century higher education, is the essence of this study. The study was conducted using interpretative phenomenological analysis. Fifteen baccalaureate level degree-seeking study participants consented to share their respective journeys. Twenty-one interviews were conducted for the study. Code-listed categories, themes and sub-themes emerged from two interview sessions, and member-checking sessions. Several themes were aligned to two research questions: In what ways, if any, are the distinctive needs and expectations of adult learners fulfilled through a baccalaureate level adult learner program; and, what does …

Perceptions Of Followers About Ethical Leadership And Attendant Effects On Organizational Success, Adejobi S. Odeneye, Stephanie N. Hoon, Karla S. Phlypo

Journal of Sustainable Social Impact

Attainment of goals without consideration for the needs of stakeholders remains the focus of leaders. Ethical leadership (EL) studies’ focus on leaders’ perspectives represented a research gap that necessitated this study. Followers are the least researched among stakeholders; thus, this study explored EL from their viewpoints. Stakeholder theory, social learning theory, eudaimonia, and utilitarianism were the conceptual frameworks that guided this study. Twenty participants drawn from followers in a public organization in New Jersey were questioned about their experiences and expectations of EL using open-ended interview questions. Participants with shared experiences were selected based on convenience, snowball, and criterion sampling …

The Relationship Between The Perceived Implementation Of Green's Four-Dimensional Model Of Educational Leadership And Students' Proficiency In Basic Skills, Josie Currie

Electronic Theses and Dissertations Archive

The purpose of this study is to investigate relationships between elementary-level educators perceptions of their schools implementation of Greens four-dimensional model of educational leadership and the percentage of students proficient in Language Arts and in Mathematics, averaged over three years. Represented by responses to twenty items selected from the 2013 state-wide administration of the Teaching, Empowering, Leading, and Learning survey in Tennessee (TELL Tennessee), school-level means at 1,187 elementary schools were obtained for each of four five-item scales that were intended to measure each dimension of Greens model. Along with a grand mean computed across all twenty items and denoting …

Perception Of Supervisory Styles And Satisfaction, Stephanie M. Schaaf

Murray State Theses and Dissertations

Supervision is a dynamic and challenging leadership process that remains an essential element within the field of speech-language pathology. This study utilized a descriptive research design in attempt to amass quantifiable information that can be used to statistically analyze elements within the supervisor-supervisee relationship. Agreement of perceived supervisory styles and satisfaction between supervisor-supervisee dyads (n=74) were examined. External and personal characteristics including age, clinical setting, experience, and previous training were also examined in relation to supervisee satisfaction and agreement of supervisory styles within dyads. Data was collected through completion of a demographic questionnaire as well as the Supervisory Style Inventory …

[Introduction To] Leadership And Sexuality: Power, Principles And Processes, James K. Beggan, Scott T. Allison

Bookshelf

Although both leadership and sexuality are important and heavily researched topics, there is little work that addresses the interaction of the two areas. Leadership and Sexuality: Power, Principles, and Processes is a scholarly synthesis of leadership principles with issues related to sexuality and sexual policy-making. The authors' multi-disciplinary analysis of the topic examines sexuality in the context of many different kinds of leadership, exploring both the good and the bad aspects of leadership and sexuality. These integrated topics are examined through three broad areas of study. The first involves individuals who become leaders in sexual domains by advancing new views …

Instructional Behavior And Its Impact On Student Engagement, Debra Joan Crumpton

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The purpose of this quantitative study was to expand understanding of leadership behaviors and their influence on follower engagement. Researchers have shown that engagement is a predictor of retention and organizational performance. Leadership theory and the conceptual framework of worker engagement were the study's theoretical anchors. Despite a proliferation of leadership studies, engagement antecedents are largely unknown. The aim of this study was to narrow the gap in the literature by examining the extent to which there may be a relationship between college instructors' behaviors and student engagement. Although not traditionally regarded as frontline leaders, extant leadership literature affirmed college …

A Grounded Theory Of Emergent Leadership In Nonhierarchical Virtual Teams, Randall Fleming

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

A Grounded Theory of Emergent Leadership in Nonhierarchical Virtual Teams

by

Randall David Fleming

MS, Colorado Technical University, 2008

BA, The Ohio State University, 1984

Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment

of the Requirements for the Degree of

Doctor of Philosophy

Management

Walden University

November 2018

Leadership Development Strategies To Build Leaders Through Mentorship Programs, Devin Bradley

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Developing employees to assume leadership positions has never been more critical for organizational leaders given the competitive climate and the shortage of executive leaders. Organizations must develop future leaders at unprecedented rates to assume roles and responsibilities of the current executive leaders who will leave the organization due to retirement and other forms of attrition. Using mentorship theory, the purpose of this multicase study was to explore strategies that business leaders use to successfully improve their mentoring programs for employee leadership development. The target population consisted of 3 business leaders located in central Florida with successful experience in improving their …

Hotel Manager Strategies To Reduce Voluntary Employee Turnover, Christl Arwen Kroeten

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The voluntary turnover rate in the United States hotel industry is among the highest of all industries, resulting in lost revenue. The purpose of this multiple case study was to explore strategies hotel managers use to reduce voluntary employee turnover. The targeted population consisted of 6 managers from hotel businesses operating in the MidAtlantic region of the United States who successfully used strategies to reduce voluntary employee turnover. Job embeddedness theory, this study's theoretical framework, was used to describe reasons employees remained in organizations. Data were gathered via semistructured interviews, observational notes, and public business records regarding turnover or retention …

Career Challenges Faced By Professional Black Women In Sweden, Herta Boakye-Yiadom Dahl

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Academically and professionally qualified Black women who immigrated to Sweden from the United States and the continent of Africa encounter barriers that may hinder their career opportunities. The unstable labor market position of foreigners required efforts by the Swedish government to address the problem. Little is known about the unique and specific challenges that qualified Black immigrant women experience when integrating into the Swedish labor market with foreign qualifications and professional experience. Guided by Durkheim's social integration theory, the purpose of this phenomenological study was to evaluate the lived experiences of Black immigrant women as they integrated into the Swedish …

Employee Engagement From The Viewpoint Of Employees In Academia, Stephanie Giles-Merrick

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Research does not address how staff in the United States perceive employee engagement in the university system. Leadership training and communication for managers are essential processes that help staff become highly engaged in universities. The purpose of phenomenological study was to explore the views of employees in a selected university within the state of Georgia in an attempt to address positive employee engagement in the academic environment. The engagement theory and social exchange theory were used as the conceptual frameworks to explore how employees engaged in their department working with their managers. To address this question, a purposeful sample of …

Understanding The Potential Of University Teachers To Become Unit Coordinators, Karim.Salhani Rafic Salhani

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Current reports estimate that 1 in 5 unit coordinators at universities resign each year. When it comes to management of talent, universities lag behind other industries. The problem is university leaders lack empirical ways of identifying future leaders to ensure the survival and growth of the institution. The purpose of this study was to understand how university teachers demonstrate formal leadership potential by uncovering the main behavioral patterns, personal characteristics, tasks, and relationship-building activities of teachers that enable them to become excellent candidates for leading a department. With the Leadership Potential BluePrint as a conceptual framework, a multiple-case study design …

Causes Of Burnout Among Church Leaders: A Qualitative Phenomenological Study Of Pastors, Craig Fee

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

After 30 plus years of research, clergy burnout is an ongoing concern; as such, it is important to identify the causes of this phenomenon. Researchers have already demonstrated that internal factors such as personality types, personal mastery, or conflict management and external factors such as role conflict, excessive activities, or unrealistic expectations, can lead to burnout. The problem that led to this study was that more exploration is needed about clergy's perceptions on leadership and burnout within the church. The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to explore clergy within the Wesleyan Church in the Midwest to discover their …

Factors That Encourage Unethical Practices By Organizational Leaders In Nigeria, Ebenezer Bankole Odole

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The underlying concern for this research was the increasing numbers of reported culpability of organizational leaders' involvement in unethical practices, and the lack of previous literature on organizational factors that encourage unethical practices by organizational leaders in Nigeria. The purpose of this case study was to gain an understanding of the factors that encourage unethical practices by organizational leaders in Nigeria despite having ethical leadership skills and knowledge. This study was grounded in the framework of moral development theory by Lawrence Kohlberg, also known as the cognitive developmental theory of moralization. Data were gathered from document reviews from public library …

Strategies For Increasing Volunteer Engagement In Nonprofit Healthcare Organizations, Sanja Katina Hudson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Implementing effective strategies to address the challenges of volunteer engagement is critical for helping ensure the sustainability of nonprofit healthcare organizations. Nonprofit healthcare leaders seek strategies to increase the volunteer workforce and enhance volunteer engagement. Through the conceptual lens of Deci and Ryan's self-determination theory, the strategies nonprofit healthcare leaders used to reduce volunteer turnover were explored in this single-case study. Data were collected using semistructured interviews with 5 nonprofit healthcare leaders from a single organization in the southwestern United States. Analysis of internal and external organizational documents and publicly available data were manually coded and thematically organized. The use …

Strategies Hospitality Leaders Use To Reduce Employee Turnover, Borislav Perev

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Employee turnover is a global problem with adverse effects on financial performance and sustainability of organizations. In the hospitality industry, employee turnover levels increased to 58.8%, and the associated cost of turnover may be more than 100% of an employee's yearly wage, with a total loss of over $25 billion a year. The purpose of this single case study was to explore strategies used by hospitality leaders in the southeastern United States to reduce employee turnover. The conceptual framework was the transformational leadership theory. Purposeful selection of participants included leaders with experience in developing and implementing strategies for reducing employee …