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Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences

Leadership Adapted: Towards An Understanding Of How Western-Developed Leadership Theories Are Translated And Practiced In The Modern Arab Middle East, Derek R. Olson May 2020

Leadership Adapted: Towards An Understanding Of How Western-Developed Leadership Theories Are Translated And Practiced In The Modern Arab Middle East, Derek R. Olson

Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to understand how western-developed leadership theories are translated and practiced in the Modern Arab Middle East (MAME). Over the past century the notion of leadership has progressed through phases of understanding, definition, and practice. This evolution continues today and is no longer contained to the academic and practice-oriented institutions of North America and Europe. Through western-styled educational institutions and professional industries, western-developed leadership theories have stretched around the globe, including the MAME. While this is known, what is much less understood is how these theories are adopted and adapted. This study’s objective is to …


A Multi-Level Investigation Of Leadership Effectiveness And Systems Awareness In The Leadership Circle Profile, Crystal L. Dujowich Phd May 2014

A Multi-Level Investigation Of Leadership Effectiveness And Systems Awareness In The Leadership Circle Profile, Crystal L. Dujowich Phd

Dissertations

Leadership is a complex and multifaceted phenomenon, with scholarly literature that documents the progression from leaders focused on inspiring transformation in others, to leaders who can engage entire systems towards more globally conscious and ethically focused actions. Such leadership involves increasingly complex relationships, perspectives and context. Empirical contributions to the study of leadership, however, have remained focused on the individual and thus limited to a single level of analysis. As researchers acknowledge the dynamic process of leadership, it is paramount that studies identify and investigate the multiple layers of analysis present. This study sought to uncover patterns in leadership effectiveness …


Coaching Teachers On Instruction: Developing Instructional Leadership Capacity Within A Principal Preparation Program, John J. Franey Phd May 2013

Coaching Teachers On Instruction: Developing Instructional Leadership Capacity Within A Principal Preparation Program, John J. Franey Phd

Dissertations

Over the last several decades, the role of the school site principal has shifted from a focus on school management to one on school leadership. Integral to this new focus is the ability of the principal to be an instructional leader, tasked with improving the instructional practices of teachers. Many principal preparation programs have adopted new methods to support aspiring school leaders including the development of effective coaching skills. This qualitative study examined one principal preparation program designed with this goal in mind. The primary research questions that guided this study were: (a) How does the coaching program support the …


The Motivation Beliefs Inventory: Measuring Motivation Beliefs Using Four Motivation Theories, David C. Facer Jr. Phd May 2012

The Motivation Beliefs Inventory: Measuring Motivation Beliefs Using Four Motivation Theories, David C. Facer Jr. Phd

Dissertations

Among organizational consultants, human resources practitioners, and organizational leaders, there has been a resurgence of interest in the subject of employee motivation, in part due to the best-selling book, Drive (Pink, 2009). In this book, the author challenged readers to question their beliefs about what motivates employees; this challenge was based on research that questions the validity of widely used management approaches to employee motivation, particularly those based on reinforcement theory. Answering this challenge was difficult, however, given the lack of instruments designed to measure motivation beliefs at all, much less beliefs from a range of prevalent theories. Using principal …


Understanding Charter School Governance: A Case Study Of A Conversion Charter School Board Of Directors, David Mark Silver Phd May 2010

Understanding Charter School Governance: A Case Study Of A Conversion Charter School Board Of Directors, David Mark Silver Phd

Dissertations

The charter school movement has been at the forefront of educational reform since the 1990s. The majority of charter school research has focused on academic achievement and issues of access, equity, and funding. Less attention has focused on charter school governance, yet evidence suggests that governance challenges represent a significant impediment to the long-term sustainability of this movement. This qualitative case study examined the operations of a board of directors in a conversion charter school. The study included observations of monthly board of directors meetings over a 16-month period (February 2008–June 2009), interviews with members of the board of directors …


Strategic Planning: Contextual Factors That Facilitated And/Or Challenged The Implementation Of Strategic Planning In Two Nonprofit Organizations, Devadhasan Masilamony Phd May 2010

Strategic Planning: Contextual Factors That Facilitated And/Or Challenged The Implementation Of Strategic Planning In Two Nonprofit Organizations, Devadhasan Masilamony Phd

Dissertations

As the nonprofit sector continues to grow in size and importance in American society, successful organizations proactively initiate strategic planning so they can be more responsive to changing circumstances, underlying trends, and shifting demands. At times, however, organizations develop elaborate plans that are never implemented. Unfortunately, there is less systematic research about strategic planning in the nonprofit sector than in the for-profit sector and even less research documenting whether or not the plans that get developed in nonprofit organizations actually get implemented. The purpose of this qualitative study was to understand how strategic planning improves the effectiveness of two nonprofit …


The Impact Of A Simulation Based Leader Development Training Program On Transformational And Transactional Leadership Behavior, Robin Louise Mccoy Phd Nov 2009

The Impact Of A Simulation Based Leader Development Training Program On Transformational And Transactional Leadership Behavior, Robin Louise Mccoy Phd

Dissertations

Organizations devote considerable resources developing employees' capacity for leadership because they believe that "leaders" are essential in the operations of their organizations. Unfortunately, organizations do not have the time or resources to send their employees off for lengthy leader development training programs. This has contributed to the growing popularity of short-term training programs which are relatively inexpensive to conduct. However, researchers are increasingly requesting more empirical studies that examine the impact of these programs, yet these requests have remained largely disregarded. Additionally, there is a lack for developing methodologies to determine whether or not involvement in a short-term program facilitates …


How Spirituality Impacts Ethical Leadership: A Cross-Case Analysis Of Eleven Corporate Chief Executive Officers, Mary Rose Johnson Edd May 2008

How Spirituality Impacts Ethical Leadership: A Cross-Case Analysis Of Eleven Corporate Chief Executive Officers, Mary Rose Johnson Edd

Dissertations

Almost weekly, there are news accounts of corporate and government leaders breaching ethical and moral standards. Indeed, in recent years, corporate corruption and misrepresentation of the truth have appeared overwhelming. At the very least, corporate and government scandals suggest that there is currently a crisis in leadership. A Spiritual Audit of Corporate America by Mitroff and Denton, a book called a “landmark contribution” by prominent leadership scholar Warren Bennis, found that individuals and organizations that have a strong sense of spirituality are “far less likely to compromise their basic beliefs and values.” Their data suggested that spirituality may serve as …


The Nonprofit Ethics Survey: A Contextual Approach, Audrey Dawn Barrett Phd Apr 2008

The Nonprofit Ethics Survey: A Contextual Approach, Audrey Dawn Barrett Phd

Dissertations

Organizational ethics require the attention of nonprofit leaders as regulatory trends and accountability measures increase. In spite of this interest, little empirical research has been conducted on ethics assessment within the nonprofit sector and more importantly, no survey instrument currently exists exclusively designed for nonprofit organizations to assess the perceptions of ethics within their organization. This lack of tools and information prohibits comprehensive self-assessment, and forces a reactive, single-loop approach to ethical issues, rather than a feedback system based on actual data. To address this need, the Nonprofit Ethics Survey provides a practioner-friendly survey designed to assess the perceptions of …


Emerging Elements Of Leadership In A Complex System: A Cognitivist Approach, Kirsten Suzanne Hanson Edd May 2007

Emerging Elements Of Leadership In A Complex System: A Cognitivist Approach, Kirsten Suzanne Hanson Edd

Dissertations

As our world grows increasingly complicated at an intensified pace, leaders must be facile managers of complexity if organizations and society are to productively and peacefully evolve. Today’s global corporations are microcosms of complexity and have the potential to affect life for almost all other species. However, many organizations have not yet become aware of themselves as “living” and still operate as industrial age institutions with rationalist thinking traditionally dominating management practice. Many factors impact an organization’s overall effectiveness. Yet, executive leaders are seen as having the ability to influence change and play a vital role in helping people navigate …


Building Management Bench Strength: A Qualitative Look At A Job Rotation Program, Paige Litton Creager Phd May 2007

Building Management Bench Strength: A Qualitative Look At A Job Rotation Program, Paige Litton Creager Phd

Dissertations

Job rotation programs are known in the organizational development field as one of the primary components used in a successful employee development program. To date little research has gone beyond the quantifiable reporting of practices. The view of program participants has been unaccounted for, and consequently the organizational development field has lacked a holistic understanding of how employees succeed and fail in these programs. This research offers a current perspective on job rotation: A means of accelerating the development of high potential employees in order to build a strong management bench. A qualitative grounded theory approach was used to investigate …


From Warriors To Wingtips: The Leadership Transition Of Retired Officers Into The Public Sector, Lynn M. Eldred Edd Jan 2000

From Warriors To Wingtips: The Leadership Transition Of Retired Officers Into The Public Sector, Lynn M. Eldred Edd

Dissertations

For personal and financial reasons some retired military officers seek second careers in the public sector. In entering local government, they are leaving a unique organization, and encountering a very different organizational culture. This study used grounded theory methodology to identify the key military leadership strategies and behaviors learned by military officers and to examine their applicability to local government. It focused on eleven retired naval and marine officers who served twenty or more years, attained a rank of lieutenant commander or major and above, and had worked in local San Diego government at the mid-management or executive level less …


Leadership: Personal Narratives Of Practitioners, R. Daniel Israel Edd Dec 1994

Leadership: Personal Narratives Of Practitioners, R. Daniel Israel Edd

Dissertations

Leadership scholars and researchers have still not come to an agreement as to what the nature of leadership is. Most research within leadership studies has been grounded in preconceived or stated definitions of leadership. However, very little information exists about people's experiences of leadership. This project addresses the lack of experiential clarification of the leadership relationship. It utilizes a new leadership research method grounded in the experience of people. Leadership narrative research uses the stories people tell about their leadership experiences as a form of data collection This study is designed to discover if Rost's (1991) definition: "Leadership is an …


Affecting Change Synergistically: An Interpretative Case Study Of Leadership Relationships At Southwest Airlines, Jacquelyn A. Freiberg Edd Jan 1994

Affecting Change Synergistically: An Interpretative Case Study Of Leadership Relationships At Southwest Airlines, Jacquelyn A. Freiberg Edd

Dissertations

As we move into the 21st century it becomes increasingly more important to move beyond what we have come to know as leadership--great man and position/authority-based, excellent management. Instead, what organizations are in need of is a postindustrial model of leadership. Rost defined 21st century leadership as "an influence relationship among leaders and followers who intend real changes that reflect their mutual purposes" (p. 102). This study sought to operationalize 21st century leadership in Southwest Airlines Co., a Texas-based corporation that is recognized as one of America's most successful airlines. This company has a 22 year history, over 10,000 employees, …


Bicultural Women In Monocultural Organizations: Professional Hispanic Women's Experiences Of Diversity And Their Recommendations For Organizations, Carmen Mestas Bárcena Edd Jan 1993

Bicultural Women In Monocultural Organizations: Professional Hispanic Women's Experiences Of Diversity And Their Recommendations For Organizations, Carmen Mestas Bárcena Edd

Dissertations

The composition of the work force in this country is changing from one in which the White male was dominant to one in which by the year 2000 women and ethnic minorities will be dominant. Work force diversity will impact organizations at all levels, including top management, which has been closed to women and minorities, and in particular, minority women. The diverse work force's expectation for advancement into top levels of management will present challenges to organizations. Some organizations have recognized that to remain competitive they need to manage a more diverse work force. The purpose of this study is …


The Leadership Process And Its Effects On Self-Managed Work Groups In American Manufacturing Companies, Stephen R. Wirkus Edd Jan 1991

The Leadership Process And Its Effects On Self-Managed Work Groups In American Manufacturing Companies, Stephen R. Wirkus Edd

Dissertations

Over the past 75 years, leadership has become a widely studied phenomenon, with many theories and models offered to assist the layman to become an effective leader. Most of these theories have been based on management models, that is, models that adapt management behaviors and goals into what the authors call leadership. These theories fall into several categories: great man, trait, contingency and situational among others. While these theories have provided practitioners some valid ideas on how to improve their managerial effectiveness, they have done little in the way of expanding the knowledge of the process of leadership. This study …


The Labyrinth Of Challenge To Change: An Analysis Of Community College Leaders' Thinking Styles And Behavioral Practices In The Current Environment, Mary Elizabeth Scott Edd Jan 1989

The Labyrinth Of Challenge To Change: An Analysis Of Community College Leaders' Thinking Styles And Behavioral Practices In The Current Environment, Mary Elizabeth Scott Edd

Dissertations

The present research addressed a concern of both urgent and profound dimensions in the modern world: the current and compelling need for a radically different kind of leadership to meet the challenge of turbulent change. This need has been crystallized by a new and emerging paradigm shift which at once reflects, confronts and shapes the realities experienced today. This study sought to set in relief the current thinking styles of nominated California community college leaders and to see if and how these correlated with their leadership behavioral practices. The Human Information Processing Survey (HIPS) and the Leadership Practices Inventory-Self (LPI-S) …