Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

All I Am: Defining Music As An Emotional Catalyst Through A Sociological Study Of Emotions, Gender And Culture, Adrienne M. Trier-Bieniek

Dissertations

This dissertation, "'All I Am': Defining Music as an Emotional Catalyst through a Sociological Study of Emotions, Gender and Culture", is based in the sociology of emotions, gender and culture and guided by symbolic interactionist and feminist standpoint theory. A primary focus is on understanding the emotional and empowering relationships women build with music that is written and performed by women, especially if they are using the music for emotional support or as a means to heal themselves. This study examines the cultural, emotional and gendered role music plays in day-to-day social life using data collected during forty-two semi-structured interviews …

Understanding The Dimensions Of Spirituality In Caucasian Lesbian, Gay, And Bisexual College Students, Michele L. Mcgrady

Dissertations

Spiritual development is a critical task for college students, but there is a paucity of information about how college students understand the construct of spirituality. Historically, organized religion has been oppressive to the lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) community. Furthermore, little is known about the spiritual understandings and spiritual experiences of lesbian, gay, and bisexual college students. This quantitative investigation sought to understand the underlying dimensions of spirituality for Caucasian LGB college students through the use of multidimensional scaling. Sixty Caucasian LGB college students were recruited through purposeful and snowball sampling. Findings indicate three dimensions of spirituality for this sample: …

The Relationship Between Spirituality And Personality, Kimberly C. Koessel

Dissertations

Current literature is lacking a theoretical framework for understanding spirituality within the context of psychological functioning. Despite empirical support for the potential psychological benefits of spirituality, conceptual differences underlying definitions and measurements of spirituality have impeded theory development. Additionally, very few studies have explored spirituality from a secular perspective. The purpose of this dissertation is to examine the relationship between spirituality and personality within a population of undergraduate and graduate students. This research obtains sample data through a demographic questionnaire, a measure of humanistic spirituality, and an inventory of normal personality. Quantitative statistical analyses are employed to explore a variety …

Latina Women’S Reasons For And Experience Of Sexual Assault Disclosure: A Qualitative Investigation, Melissa Villarreal

Dissertations

This study describes Latina women’s experiences of sexual assault disclosure. The research questions are: (1) What reasons do Latinas give for choosing to disclose, not to disclose, or to delay disclosure of their experiences of sexual assault? (2) Can patterns be detected regarding to whom Latinas disclose and under what circumstances? (3) What feelings and consequences do Latinas remember experiencing during their initial disclosure? (4) In retrospect, how do Latinas interpret their self-disclosure decisions? Participants for this study agreed to be interviewed about their sexual assault experiences. Seven interviews were gathered in 2005 and six in 2011. A constant comparison …

How Politics, Economics, And Technology Influence Evaluation Requirements For Federally Funded Projects: A Historical Study Of The Elementary And Secondary Education Act From 1965 To 2005, Maxine R. Eversley-Gilling

Dissertations

Program evaluation does not take place in a vacuum. Its context is the interaction of political, economic, and technological developments that influenced the formation of federal policies for mandated evaluation requirements. The Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) of 1965 established policies to provide “financial assistance to local educational agencies serving areas with concentrations of children from low-income families to expand and improve their educational program” (Public Law 89-10—Apr. 11, 1965). This legislation also had another consequence: it helped drive the establishment of educational program evaluation and the field of evaluation as a profession.

The purpose of this study is …