Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Role Of Civil Society Organisations In Sweden For The Immigrants, Surabhi Singh

International Journal on Responsibility

Various factors like globalisation and conflicts in many countries have led to a dramatic increase of immigrants in Sweden. Since the year 2000, fewer seekers have arrived in other Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, and Norway) compared to Sweden which has experienced a significantly higher number of asylum seekers. The number of asylum seekers in Sweden is highest after Germany in all of Europe. The influx of migrants has put significant pressure on the country’s social services. Civil society is an important institution is plays a major role in the successful integration of migrants in the labour market and society with …

An Overview Of Organizational Citizenship Behavior: Searching For Balance Between The Positive And Negative Effects, Courtney K. Fusting

Senior Honors Projects, 2020-current

Organizational Citizenship Behavior (OCB) is the behavior of taking on extra roles in the workplace outside of one’s explicit duties. There are many reasons why one may be motivated to aid his/her organization in this way. Motivation may come through one’s personal values towards volunteerism, desire to build social capital, increase in self-esteem and flow, or even due to the commonality of organizational citizenship behavior among the workplace culture. Contributing to one’s workplace through OCB has the potential to positively impact an individual. However, taking on too many extra roles in the workplace can become detrimental. Role overload, stress, and …

Dynamic Return Relationships In The Market For Cryptocurrency: A Var Approach, Julian Gouffray

James Madison Undergraduate Research Journal (JMURJ)

This paper examines how the Bitcoin-altcoin return relationship has evolved in periods between 2015 and 2020. To understand this relation, we observe data on the cryptocurrency Bitcoin and prominent altcoins Ethereum, Litecoin, Ripple, Stellar, and Monero, which collectively represent over 90% of the market throughout the observed period. We employ a vector autoregressive model (VAR) to produce forecast error variance decompositions, orthogonal impulse response functions, and Granger-causality tests. We find evidence that Bitcoin return variation has increasingly explained altcoin returns and that market inefficiency increased between 2017 and 2020, as shown by increased Granger causality between Bitcoin and altcoins. These …

A Historical Analysis Of Brand Activism And Its Impact On Company Success, Katy Sharon

Senior Honors Projects, 2020-current

Corporate activism is a growing area of study that has become more important as the political climate becomes increasingly divided. This project evaluates how corporate activism affects company success. Four significant political events were chosen and within each event two to three companies with varying responses were analyzed to determine best practices for organizations looking to engage in corporate activism in the future. Going forward, companies should deliberate with employees and upper-level management to determine the best course of action, respond to the event in a timely manner, acknowledge previous company actions that may contradict its current position, and lastly, …

Where The Rainbow Ends: The Hidden Humanitarian Crisis For Members Of The Lgbtqia+ Community In International Business, John R. Krendel

Senior Honors Projects, 2020-current

Before pursuing an international career, members of the LGBTQIA+ community must be aware of the hardship that may be exacerbated by living and working abroad. This study addresses the trends in laws, including employment and anti-discrimination laws, that provide and restrict certain rights of members of the LGBTQIA+ community in eight countries. These nations, both progressive and discriminatory, include the United States, England, Switzerland, Germany, Taiwan, China, the Philippines and Kazakhstan. Eight LGBTQIA+ business professionals spoke on their experiences living and working in each of these countries and provided advice to members of the community wishing to pursue an international …

Frameworks Used To Measure The Societal Influences & Effectiveness Of Impact Investing, Mya E. Baptiste

Senior Honors Projects, 2020-current

The purpose of this thesis is to learn how capital generates positive returns for society through impact investing. I address the different forms of impact investments along the spectrum and examples of companies that are grouped into each category. Afterward, I highlight the various pre-existing frameworks being used by the industry to properly measure their social returns and then provide insight into my personal experience working with Citigroup, Inc. Impact Fund. This paper includes an empirical study to address my hypothesis that companies who invest in producing social returns receive a positive impact on their financials. It was concluded that …

Experiencing The Pull And Push: Influences On Independent Contractor Motivation And Job Satisfaction, Andrew D. Miller

Dissertations, 2020-current

Over the past few decades, the number of individuals engaging in non-standard employment has been increasing. Drawing on self-determination theory (SDT), this study examines the motivation and job satisfaction of independent contractors, the largest form of these alternative work arrangements. Specifically, I examine how the rationale for workers entering contracting work arrangements affect in-role contractor motivation and job satisfaction. Based on a sample of N = 241 adjunct instructors from two universities, I find that the positive relationship between those entering contracting because the work offers autonomy, flexibility and the ability to pursue personally interesting work (pull factors) and their …

Leading Change: A Case Study Of A Transparent, Scaffolded Process For Rebalancing Workloads Across Liaisons, Carolyn Schubert

Libraries

Campus and internal position reorganizations changes had created significant imbalances across workloads of liaison librarians. Some people were experiencing burnout, some were feeling unengaged due to underutilization. To build buy-in for the change process and ultimate change decisions, the interim Director developed a multi-step process for scaffolding change and creating transparency across the decision points. Working within the constraints of existing personnel, we had to be creative. The presentation will describe the techniques the interim Director used to identify the problem, facilitate open communication, and engage shared leadership to resolve the imbalances.

An Analysis Of Technological Components In Relation To Privacy In A Smart City, Kayla Rutherford, Ben Lands, A. J. Stiles

James Madison Undergraduate Research Journal (JMURJ)

A smart city is an interconnection of technological components that store, process, and wirelessly transmit information to enhance the efficiency of applications and the individuals who use those applications. Over the course of the 21st century, it is expected that an overwhelming majority of the world’s population will live in urban areas and that the number of wireless devices will increase. The resulting increase in wireless data transmission means that the privacy of data will be increasingly at risk. This paper uses a holistic problem-solving approach to evaluate the security challenges posed by the technological components that make up a …

To Discovery And Beyond: Using Workflow Automation As An Opportunity For Collaboration And Education, Rebecca B. French

Libraries

This poster describes a project to automate portions of JMU Libraries' workflow for distributing Special Collections finding aids to various discovery platforms. Through the development of a custom Python app called Spaceport, we were able to greatly improve the efficiency and sustainability of this process while also providing a more consistent discovery experience for our patrons. The project also had broad impacts in other areas. Our incremental and collaborative approach provided space for professional development related to the project, supported evolving project goals and the process of adapting to the new workflow, and strengthened relationships between departments. In addition to …

Theatre As An Intervention For Empathy Development Among Undergraduate Students, Jonathan Stewart

Dissertations, 2014-2019

Empathy is the ability feel into, or put oneself in the place of another. It is the ability to walk in someone else’s shoes. Studies have shown that this ability is decreasing among today’s college students and on the rise as a desired trait for today’s leaders. This dilemma provides an interesting opportunity to explore how institutions of higher education can help develop the leaders of tomorrow by increasing empathy among students. Specifically, this research explores theatre as an intervention for empathy development among college students.

Theatre, as a program of study, is unique within the college experience in that …

Empowering Your Staff To Solve Problems: Evidence-Based Training For Strategic Thinking, Rebecca B. French, Jennifer A. Keach

Libraries

Are you teaching procedures or are you teaching problem solving? Discover an approach to help develop your staff’s strategic thinking skills to meet the needs of the 21st-century library workplace. Explore how to apply learning theory and walk away with actionable steps for training independent problem solving.

5 Steps To Creating Quality Educational Programs: Lessons From The Field Of Instructional Design, Jennifer A. Keach

Libraries

Whether you are developing a staff training program or programming for your community, the field of instructional design offers valuable advice if your goal is to help your attendees to learn. Learn how to build your own programs from scratch with easy-to-implement steps based on learning science.

Cause Campaign For Dating Abuse In College, Isabel Elaine Kerr

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

Through a cause campaign and partnership with the James Madison University (JMU) Health Center (UHC), this project confronts the widespread social issue of intimate partner violence (IPV), or dating abuse, in college-aged relationships. Encompassing all forms and subsets of dating abuse, the campaign intends to initiate conversation, facilitate awareness, and express support within the university community. The campaign is scheduled for implementation in October 2019, National Domestic Violence Awareness Month, in conjunction with the UHC’s other awareness efforts.

Great Libraries Open Doors: Collaborating With Career Services To Support Library Employees At James Madison University, Jennifer A. Keach, Chandra Lane

Libraries

Supporting the career development of your library faculty and staff can help you retain highly qualified employees and develop your next leaders. In 2017, the presenters’ university library embraced a new initiative to support our employees in their career goals. Through a partnership with the university Career & Academic Planning office, the mid-sized academic library developed and implemented an immersive program focused on the participants’ career goals. The blended program included self-assessments, 360-degree feedback, expert panels, informational interviews, networking strategies, resume reviews, and interview practice during in-person class sessions and online. This poster provides details about the program objectives, curriculum, …

"Expanding That Story": How Nonprofit Leaders Portray The Populations They Serve, Sarah Koth

James Madison Undergraduate Research Journal (JMURJ)

This paper examines how nonprofit leaders talk about the populations they serve, specifically financially disadvantaged populations in food pantries and homeless shelters. Previous literature exploring the nonprofit sector considers volunteers and their experiences, although leaders set the tone for the organization’s language, and ultimately the quality of service. Five nonprofit organization leaders from different organizations participated in semi-structured, in-depth interviews that lasted between 36 to 72 minutes. Questions inquired about their average workweek, their contact with clients and volunteers, and how they break stigmas about their clientele. Findings suggest that nonprofit leaders consider their clients as individual cases, and their …

Gender Differences Associated With The Evolution Of Attributes Sought In Sports Apparel, Jami Adler

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

Since the turn of the century, many things have changed around the world, with a focus on the athletic apparel and fashion industries. Using Fowler’s (1999) research regarding the attributes sought in sports apparel, this study serves as a replication to determine how attributes sought in sports apparel have evolved. Online surveying through Qualtrics was utilized for data collection. The research explored the trend of Athleisure and the rising demand for versatile clothing. The role of gender and its associated differences significantly influenced the attributes sought in sports apparel. In addition, this study explored three additional attributes that consumers evaluate …

A Cross-Cultural Examination Of The Effect Of Employer Support On Employee Productivity, Shawn Tuman, Haley Lipton

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

The purpose of this creative, collaborative, capstone project is to conduct a cross-cultural examination of the effect of employer support on employee productivity by compiling, examining, and synthesizing conclusions from existing research. In a world of growing globalization and technological innovation, the speed of productivity is often the cornerstone that differentiates successful businesses from unsuccessful businesses, providing a competitive advantage to the quick while the others fall behind. Often this increased level of efficiency comes at a cost beyond the price of the product and the salary of employees, a deeper, psychological cost. By reviewing research focused in the United …

The Role Of Leadership In Student Organizations, Samantha Mcanallen

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the extent to which the leaders of the Eta Delta chapter of Beta Alpha Psi (BAP) and the JMU Women’s Rugby club embody the characteristics of the leaders of successful organizations by examining these two organizations in the context of the characteristics of successful organizational cultures. In order to conduct an appropriate examination of the cultures of these two organizations, I chose to compare them to the characteristics of successful group cultures presented in Daniel Coyle’s The Culture Code: The Secrets of Highly Successful Groups. Throughout his book, Coyle highlights the …

Examining The Impact Of Transformational And Transactional Leadership Style On Work Attitudes, Motivation, And Work Outcomes In Nonprofit Organizations, Kim Hartzler-Weakley

Dissertations, 2014-2019

In an effort to better understand leadership and turnover in the nonprofit sector, this study investigated the impact of transactional and transformational leadership style on work attitudes, motivation, and work outcomes in nonprofit organizations. Hierarchical multiple linear regression analyses were conducted. Neither transactional leadership nor transformational leadership were significant predictors of turnover. Only transactional leadership was found to be a significant predictor of organizational citizenship behaviors. Transactional leadership was a significant predictor of perceived organizational support, affective commitment, procedural justice, and continuance commitment. Transformational leadership was a significant predictor of job satisfaction, perceived organizational support, and procedural justice. Finally, mediation …

I Heart Communication In The Library: Exploring Communication Satisfaction, Jennifer A. Keach

Libraries

This poster presents findings about organizational communication within a mid-sized academic library. Discover if demographic differences, the number of connections, attendance at events, or use of technology helped or hindered communication. Learn about ways to do a communication audit at your own library.

You Are Welcome Here: The Genesis And Evaluation Of A New Employee Orientation Program Within The Library, Rebecca French, Jennifer A. Keach, Elizabeth Price, Susan Thomas, Michael Trocchia

Libraries

Your library may hire new employees throughout the year, but do you prepare them to succeed in your environment? Learn how James Madison University Libraries developed a new employee orientation program designed to meet the needs of new employees, their supervisors, and the entire organization.

The Price Revolution In The Ottoman Context: Economic Upheaval In The Sixteenth Century, Dylan Lawrence Russell

Middle Eastern Communities and Migrations Student Research Paper Series

The inflationary pressures of the Price Revolution had an impact on Ottoman agricultural organization, state finances, industry, and the growth of corruption. This analysis will examine the causes, effects, and scope of inflation in the sixteenth century. Inflation alone did not cause these drastic changes, as other very significant developments also contributed to the turbulent economic environment. However inflation did, in fact, influence many basic transformations, including shifts in wealth, power, and the enrichment of specific social classes at the expense of others.

Clicks, Likes, And Shares: Using The Theory Of Planned Behavior, Self-Efficacy, And Impression Management To Predict Digital Activism Activities, Aaron Noland

Dissertations, 2014-2019

Social media has evolved as a space for connection, advocacy, and commerce in recent years. Nonprofit organizations have been called to engage stakeholders on the Internet generally, and social media specifically as the pervasiveness of online presence has increased. In addition, nonprofit organizations have struggled to sustain engagement with the millennial population over the same time. Millennials have been termed digital natives and use social media proficiently. The convergence of these two mandates for nonprofit organizations – to engage via social media and to engage millennials – represents the importance of this study. To begin to help nonprofit organizations develop …

What Happens At Camp Does Not Stay At Camp: A Rhetorical Analysis On The American Camp Association's 'Mission And Vision' Page, Abigail W. Fiege

SCOM Undergraduate Research Conference

Research on mission statements as a genre of rhetoric and evaluation of the American Camp Association's mission and vision webpage based on found criteria.

“Expanding That Story:” How Nonprofit Leaders Portray The Population They Serve, Sarah N. Koth

SCOM Undergraduate Research Conference

This research aims to understand how nonprofits leaders portray the populations they serve, specifically populations in low-economic status who receive material resources. Previous literature exploring the nonprofit sector considers volunteers and their experiences, although leaders set the tone for the organization’s language, and ultimately the quality of service. Five nonprofit organization (NPO) leaders from different organizations participated in semi-structured, in-depth interviews that lasted between 33 to 72 minutes. Questions inquired about their average week on the job, their contact with clients and volunteers, and how they want the public to view the population they serve. Accounts showed that nonprofit leaders …

Ngo Collaboration In Natural Disaster Response Efforts- A Comparative Case Study Of Earthquakes In Asia, Richelle S. Grogg

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

This paper examines the response of NGOs to natural disasters, specifically in regards to collaboration efforts. The study utilizes a comparative case study methodology of most-similar design to look at three specific disasters- The Kashmir Earthquake, The Sichuan Earthquake, and The Japan Earthquake. Within each of these earthquakes the organizations Doctors Without Borders, the International Red Cross, and Oxfam International’s specific responses will be highlighted. The collaboration efforts will be examined utilizing general questions focusing on willingness to collaborate, commitment, and compatibility of objectives. Ultimately, this study found that all three components seem to be hypotheses worthy of further study.

Leading From The Center Out: The Joint Library Services Leadership Team At James Madison University, K.T. L. Vaughan, Kristen S. Shuyler, Kelly N. Miller-Martin, Erika Peterson

Libraries

In a system with multiple service points, how can leadership work together to keep the library as a whole relevant and central to students? James Madison University Libraries created the Joint Library Services Leadership Team, which works outside traditional departmental silos to provide coherent, consistent, and collaborative services regardless of location.

Three major service points of James Madison University Libraries, the two main library circulation/reference departments and the media resources center, have historically been both physically and philosophically separate from each other. Although the departments shared common goals of providing excellent student learning-focused services, they did not systematically work together …

Critical Analysis Of The Confounding Of Clinical Trials, Eleanor L. Jordan

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

To provide a comprehensive overview of issues confounding clinical trials, Chapter 2 will discuss the parties involved in the research and development of medications and detail the individual responsibilities of each. However, the ambition of these individual entities often produces a conflict of interest especially when profits are involved [9]. Organizations and individuals such as insurance corporations, pharmaceutical companies (sponsors), pharmacy benefit managers, investigators (doctors/medical professionals) and most importantly patients, are all involved in carrying out clinical research and have definitive responsibilities they are required to follow for unbiased results. However, many rules are overlooked and biases go unrecorded causing …

The Effects Of Quantitative Easing In The United States: Implications For Future Central Bank Policy Makers, Matthew Q. Rubino

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

The purpose of this thesis is to examine the effects of the Federal Reserve’s recent bond buying programs, specifically Quantitative Easing 1, Quantitative Easing 2, Operation Twist (or the Fed’s Maturity Extension Program), and Quantitative Easing 3. In this study, I provide a picture of the economic landscape leading up to the deployment of the programs, an overview of quantitative easing including each program’s respective objectives, and how and why the Fed decided to implement the programs. Using empirical analysis, I measure each program’s effectiveness by applying four models including a yield curve model, an inflation model, a money supply …