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Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons™

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Leadership Studies

University of Richmond

2022

Articles 1 - 17 of 17

Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences

Coping In The Time Of Covid-19: Mindsets And The Stories We Tell, Whitney Becker, Jeni L. Burnette, Crystal L. Hoyt Oct 2022

Coping In The Time Of Covid-19: Mindsets And The Stories We Tell, Whitney Becker, Jeni L. Burnette, Crystal L. Hoyt

Jepson School of Leadership Studies articles, book chapters and other publications

Across two studies (N = 803), we explored how meaning-making systems (i.e., mindsets and narrative identity) are related to each other as well as to coping in the wake of challenges faced during the COVID-19 pandemic. In Study 1, we find that struggle-is-enhancing, relative to struggle-is-debilitating, mindsets predicted stories defined by elements of personal control with opportunities for growth (agency) and an emphasis on the positive, rather than on the suffering (redemptive). Stronger enhancing mindsets and agentic as well as redemptive narratives predicted more adaptive coping, including less negative affect, less avoidance, and positive expectations for future success. In …

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Pro-Integration Policies And The Occupational Expectations Of Immigrant Youth, Volha Chykina Aug 2022

Pro-Integration Policies And The Occupational Expectations Of Immigrant Youth, Volha Chykina

Jepson School of Leadership Studies articles, book chapters and other publications

Europe is experiencing heightened public attention toward anti-immigration policy reforms and restrictions. Despite the potential importance of these policy changes, we do not know whether these policies influence how immigrant children perceive their futures in their host countries. Employing secondary data analysis of the Program for International Student Assessment and the Migrant Integration Policy Index data, I show that a decrease in policy support for immigrant integration is associated with a decrease in how good of a job immigrant children expect to have when they are adults. Since students’ occupational expectations influence their eventual status attainment, this article shows that …

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Myth, Fiction And Politics In The Age Of Antiheroes: A Case Study Of Donald Trump, Igor Prusa, Matthew Brummer Jul 2022

Myth, Fiction And Politics In The Age Of Antiheroes: A Case Study Of Donald Trump, Igor Prusa, Matthew Brummer

Heroism Science

In this article, we demonstrate that the antihero archetype informs our understanding of Trump in important ways, including his rise to and fall from power. We introduce an analytical framework for analyzing Trump’s antiheroic traits based on his social positioning, individual motivation, and personal charisma. We argue that Trump is fascinating because he is powerful, amoral, and charismatic, and suggest that the American public was primed for Trumpism through a zeitgeist hospitable to antihero worship. That is, Trump’s dogged popularity with nearly half of the American public was foretold by decades of pop-cultural obsession with, and adulation for, the antihero.

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Coercion Or Influence? Ethical Strategies Leaders Should Use To Increase Covid-19 Vaccination Uptake, Olivia Podber Apr 2022

Coercion Or Influence? Ethical Strategies Leaders Should Use To Increase Covid-19 Vaccination Uptake, Olivia Podber

Honors Theses

The COVID-19 pandemic, which has led to millions of cases and deaths around the world, persists, in large part, due to vaccine hesitancy. Through interrogating the harm principle and exploring ethical justifications of influence, this thesis seeks to determine justifiable strategies leaders should use to increase COVID-19 vaccination uptake. I will argue that lesser forms of coercion—such as vaccine mandates—are justifiable, in principle, but ought not to be used by agents due to concerns for liberty and trust, and the presence of less restrictive alternatives. Thus, leaders should use influence strategies to motivate behavior change from the vaccine hesitant.

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Calls To Action Impact: Consumer Behavior And Attitudes Regarding Factory Farming, Haley Huamani Apr 2022

Calls To Action Impact: Consumer Behavior And Attitudes Regarding Factory Farming, Haley Huamani

Honors Theses

The average American eats roughly 143 pounds of meat each year. This amount of meat-eating is a record high, and over 20 more pounds than the average American ate in 1970. 1 To supply this increasing demand for meat, the United States pumps out around 52 billion pounds of meat, including 26 billion pounds of beef and 25 billion pounds of pork, each year The U.S. produces an additional 48 billion pounds of poultry each year.2 Yet, how often do we consider the impact of the meat we are eating?

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The Effect Of Rhetoric On Progressive Health Care Reform Policies’ Public Perception, Megan Geher Apr 2022

The Effect Of Rhetoric On Progressive Health Care Reform Policies’ Public Perception, Megan Geher

Honors Theses

Health care is one of the most contentious issues in United States politics today, and there are a variety of reform plans on the table. In order for these reform plans to be politically feasible, it is fundamental that the rhetorical framing strategies utilized are done so with caution. In this paper, I seek to understand to what extent rhetorical framing plays a role in how Americans perceive progressive health care reform plans. While there are many factors that go into public support of policies, rhetoric is one factor that cannot be ignored, as it has shown to have significant …

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Crime Pays: How Black Americans Became Central To The Carceral State, Will Brooks Apr 2022

Crime Pays: How Black Americans Became Central To The Carceral State, Will Brooks

Honors Theses

Over the course of American history, Black Americans have been intentionally criminalized at moments of ostensible social progress. This legacy of intentional criminalization of minority communities has both created the perception that African Americans are innately criminal and given rise to a prison-industrial complex that now depends on Black bodies. Now, predictive policing technology reinforces perceptions of Black criminality necessary for the justification of the carceral state and the survival and expansion of the prison-industrial complex.

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The Impact Of Segregation And Desegregation Policies On Academic Achievement Of Black Students In Delaware Public Schools, Kayla Woods Apr 2022

The Impact Of Segregation And Desegregation Policies On Academic Achievement Of Black Students In Delaware Public Schools, Kayla Woods

Honors Theses

Through a mixed-methods research study that incorporates some data analysis and interviews, I explore the impacts of segregation and desegregation policies on the educational outcomes and experiences of Black students in Delaware Public Schools. I aim to discover differences in achievement and experiences between students that went to Delaware Public Schools during federally-enforced desegregation and the more current era of resegregation of schools. My research questions revolve around the impacts desegregation policy has on educational outcomes, the impact of interracial relationships within schools and out-of-school activities, and cultural capital transfer and acquisition and its impact on educational outcomes. Data analysis …

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Does Civic Engagement Predict Moral Behaviors? A Test Of Moral Theories, Ally Osterberg Apr 2022

Does Civic Engagement Predict Moral Behaviors? A Test Of Moral Theories, Ally Osterberg

Honors Theses

For various reasons, many students at institutions of higher education choose to partake in civic engagement. Evidence suggests that civic engagement may make students better people. This study tests that hypothesis under the competing frameworks of moral licensing and moral consistency through donation behavior and self-reported scores on various games. Additionally, this study seeks to understand if involvement in civic engagement impacts schemas of leadership. This study supports the theory of moral consistency and concludes that there is a correlation between involvement in civic engagement and perceptions on whether leaders should be civically engaged. We found that the amount of …

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Understanding Why Some Whistleblowers Are Venerated And Others Vilified, Christopher D. E. Atkinson, Eric D. Wesselmann, Daniel G. Lannin Apr 2022

Understanding Why Some Whistleblowers Are Venerated And Others Vilified, Christopher D. E. Atkinson, Eric D. Wesselmann, Daniel G. Lannin

Heroism Science

Whistleblowers are individuals who witness a moral infraction committed within their organization and report this infraction publicly to hold the group accountable. Whistleblowers often face ridicule, vilification, and exclusion both within their group and sometimes within broader society. Thus, whistleblowers put themselves at personal risk to adhere to their moral code and protect others; these criteria commonly classify someone as a hero. We argue diverse reactions to whistleblowers are influenced by numerous situational factors that influence perceptions of a whistleblower’s intentions as well as the expected consequences of their whistleblowing. Whether a whistleblower is viewed as a virtuous reformer (i.e., …

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The Gamification Of Well-Being, Matthew Barnes Apr 2022

The Gamification Of Well-Being, Matthew Barnes

Honors Theses

The rise of the digital era has caused digital domains to become increasingly prevalent and impactful in people’s lives. This thesis explores the threats, as well as possible benefits of one type of digital system: a gamified app. It examines how gamification can impact people and society in positive and negative ways. An experimental model was tested to examine the potential impacts of such apps. The project also considered the ethical implications of gamified systems and suggests that if ethical frameworks are created, gamified systems can have a positive effect on people’s lives and be tools for positive social change.

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There Goes My Antihero: How Wendy Byrde Broke Bad, Melissa Vosen Callens Apr 2022

There Goes My Antihero: How Wendy Byrde Broke Bad, Melissa Vosen Callens

Heroism Science

Despite the increase of male antiheroes in popular culture, the number of female antiheroes is sparse, particularly when female characters are romantically involved with male antiheroes. There are several reasons for this disparity, partially which can be explained by affective disposition theory. First, female characters are rarely given agency and adequate backstories. Second, in order for female characters to be antiheroes, they typically must challenge gender role stereotypes, especially as they pertain to motherhood. Finally, they are often treated poorly by other characters in the series. All of these reasons have a profound effect on how audiences perceive female characters …

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Consensus, Convergence, And Covid-19: The Ethical Role Of Religious Reasons In Leaders’ Response To Covid-19, Marilie Coetsee Mar 2022

Consensus, Convergence, And Covid-19: The Ethical Role Of Religious Reasons In Leaders’ Response To Covid-19, Marilie Coetsee

Jepson School of Leadership Studies articles, book chapters and other publications

Focusing on current efforts to persuade the public to comply with COVID-19 best practices, this essay examines what role appeals to religious reasons should (or should not) play in leaders’ attempts to secure followers’ acceptance of group policies in contexts of religious and moral pluralism. While appeals to followers’ religious commitments can be helpful in promoting desirable public health outcomes, they also raise moral concerns when made in the contexts of secular institutions with religiously diverse participants. In these contexts, leaders who appeal to religious reasons as bases of justification for imposing COVID policies may seem to fail to show …

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In Pursuit Of Important Goals: Nostalgia Fosters Heroic Perceptions Via Social Connectedness, Margaret A. Kneuer, Jeffrey D. Green, Scott T. Allison Mar 2022

In Pursuit Of Important Goals: Nostalgia Fosters Heroic Perceptions Via Social Connectedness, Margaret A. Kneuer, Jeffrey D. Green, Scott T. Allison

Heroism Science

Research on the theoretical order causally linking heroism to social connectedness and inspiration does not exist to our knowledge (Allison & Green, 2020). We propose that nostalgia is a source of heroism because of the social nature of nostalgic memories. We designed two studies, one correlational and one experimental, to test how nostalgia relates to pursuit of an important goal, through increasing social connectedness, heroic perceptions, and inspiration. Online participants completed an ordinary writing task (Study 1) or were randomly assigned to either a nostalgic or ordinary writing task (Study 2), followed by measures of social connectedness, heroic perceptions, inspiration, …

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Curb Your Heroism: How Larry David, An Old, Bald Misanthrope, Won The Hearts Of Millions, Scott T. Allison, James K. Beggan, Olivia Efthimiou Mar 2022

Curb Your Heroism: How Larry David, An Old, Bald Misanthrope, Won The Hearts Of Millions, Scott T. Allison, James K. Beggan, Olivia Efthimiou

Heroism Science

For eleven television seasons, viewers of the series Curb Your Enthusiasm have been witness to a main character in Larry David who paradoxically displays attributes that are both endearing and revolting. This article offers an analysis of Larry David’s character with the goal of ascertaining his heroic nature, specifically focusing on whether he best meets the scientific criteria for a hero or for an antihero. Drawing from the literature of heroism science, we examine a large body of evidence from episodes of the series supporting arguments for both heroism and antiheroism in Larry’s character. Consistent with definitions of heroism, Larry …

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Jepson School Of Leadership Studies Dean's Report 2021 - 2022, Sandra J. Peart Jan 2022

Jepson School Of Leadership Studies Dean's Report 2021 - 2022, Sandra J. Peart

Jepson School of Leadership Studies Dean's Reports

University of Richmond's Jepson School of Leadership Studies Dean's Report for 2021 - 2022.

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The Dynamic Negotiated Exchange Model Of Heroism And Heroic Leadership: Lessons From The Covid-19 Pandemic, Scott T. Allison, James K. Beggan Jan 2022

The Dynamic Negotiated Exchange Model Of Heroism And Heroic Leadership: Lessons From The Covid-19 Pandemic, Scott T. Allison, James K. Beggan

Interdisciplinary Journal of Leadership Studies

This article proposes a new model of heroism and heroic leadership that conceptualizes the exchange relationship between heroic leaders and the recipients of heroic action as dynamic and negotiated. Previous exchange models portraying heroic leadership exchange as static and passive are shown to be inadequate under conditions of major societal upheaval. Underlying the Dynamic Negotiated Exchange (DNE) model is the idea that equitable hero–recipient exchange during times of societal crises becomes strained and subject to negotiated revision. The terms of the negotiation are first manifest in media dialogue and then translate to individual or structural reforms offering more equitable exchange …

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