Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Factors Predicting Academic Achievement Among Hispanic Community College Students, Lisa Marcelino

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Hispanic college students are more at risk of poor academic performance and dropping out than any other racial group. The Hispanic college population continues to grow, yet rates of retention and achievement for this group continue to decline. Previous research on Hispanic college students has examined factors that contribute to underachievement and declining graduation rates, but they are limited to students attending 4-year institutions. This study examined if grade point averages (GPAs) were affected by levels of self-efficacy, resiliency, and sensation seeking. Bandura's self-efficacy and social cognitive theories along with Zuckerman and Kuhlman's theory of sensation-seeking were the theoretical frameworks …

A Meta-Analysis Of Video Based Interventions In Adult Mental Health, Lauretta Kaye Montes

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Symptoms of mental illness such as anxiety and depression diminish functioning, cause distress, and create an economic burden to individuals and society. This meta-analysis was designed to evaluate the effectiveness of video based interventions (VBIs) for the treatment of adults in mental health settings. VBIs comprise four different ways of using video in mental health therapy, including video modeling, video exposure, video feedback, and videos used for psychoeducation. Bandura's social learning theory, Beck's cognitive theory, and Dowrick's theory of feedforward learning form the theoretical framework for understanding how VBIs work. The research questions were: (a) what is the range of …

Locus Of Control, Poverty And Health Promoting Lifestyles, Cara Stephenson-Hunter

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Despite increased access to care and interventions aimed to change health behavior, socioeconomic health disparities have remained unchanged, even for preventable illness and disease. Health behavior theories and interventions heavily rely on perceptions of control over one's fate and thus ignore populations with low perceptions of personal control. Poverty is associated with an external locus of control (LOC), while both poverty and external LOC are associated with less health protective behavior. The purpose of this quantitative study was to explore the role of LOC as an adaptive response to poverty and to discover the risks and benefits to physical and …

Social Worker Engagement Of Substance Abusing Rural Young Adults: An Action Research Study, Samantha L. Cole

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

There has been a dramatic increase in opioid-related overdoses and deaths that have had extensive health impacts in Delaware County, New York. Social workers play a crucial role in working with individuals who have substance use and co-occurring disorders. The study was guided by ecological systems theory and the generalist intervention model focused on the engagement process between social workers and local young people. The current action research study explored the social work practice problem of challenges encountered by clinical social workers who engage in services with young adults ages 18-25 who have or are at risk for substance use …

Strengthening Jamaica's Anticorruption Policy With An Independent Agency, Curt Brown

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Corruption is a kind of behavior that undermines good governance. Current research has suggested that Jamaica's present anticorruption policy is ineffective, and needs strengthening. A civic organization in Jamaica has advocated for an independent anticorruption agency, with both investigative and prosecutorial powers to strengthen Jamaica's anticorruption policy. Little is known about the perspectives from the Jamaican business community on this concept. The purpose of this study was to discover and understand perspectives from the Jamaican business community on this concept. A framework included in this study is the principal-agent theory, which provides an understanding of the essence and relevance of …

Dynamics Of Household Role Performance And The Culture Of Child Health Production In Igbo-Ora, Southwestern Nigeria, Kabiru K. Salami, Ayodele S. Jegede, Frederick O. Oshiname

Journal of Social, Behavioral, and Health Sciences

Studies about production of health for children have mainly concentrated on the behavior of one or two key household members compared to the dynamics in households involving three or more members. Health production refers to the process of directing available knowledge, skills, and resources towards ensuring, maintaining, and sustaining the health of the members. This cross-sectional design study explored how the dynamics of household structure and members’ roles influence the process of health production in a rural Nigerian community. An interviewer-moderated questionnaire was administered through a panel survey approach in 576 households. Twelve in-depth interviews and eight group discussion sessions …

Lived Experiences Of Women Facing Domestic Violence In India, Shreya Bhandari, Jennifer C. Hughes

Journal of Social Work in the Global Community

This article describes the lived experiences of domestic violence victims among a convenience sample of 21 low-income Indian women. The experiences of abuse are drawn from in-depth, face-to-face interviews conducted in Mumbai, India. The qualitative analysis describes four major categories of their lived experiences: (a) types of abuse, (b) family involvement in abuse, (c) treatment of children, and (d) abandonment. Domestic violence in Indian culture includes violence from the husband as well as the in-laws. Women are expected to endure violence for fear of bringing shame to their families. Social and financial support for abused woman is lacking.

Ethics For Helping Professionals: Teaching A Framework That Supports Collaborative Ethical Decision-Making, Laura E. Kaplan, Valerie Bryan, Scott Sanders

Barbara Solomon School of Social Work Publications

Social work professionals are often employed in interdisciplinary settings with nursing, psychology, medical, and psychiatric professionals. All of these professions have commonality in their codes of ethics such as the primary principle that we work for the client or patient’s benefit. However, we also know that these same codes do not specifically address ethical dilemmas and their resolution (ACA, 2014, ANA, 2011, AMA/ APA, 2013, AMA,2001, APA, 2010, NASW, 2015). There are numerous decision making models that can be used as a step-by-step process in deciding what to do when confronted by a dilemma (Congress, 1996; Strom-Gottfried, 2007). All of …

Ethics For Helping Professionals: Teaching A Framework That Supports Collaborative Ethical Decision-Making, Laura E. Kaplan, Valerie Bryan, Scott Sanders

Walden Faculty and Staff Publications

Social work professionals are often employed in interdisciplinary settings with nursing, psychology, medical, and psychiatric professionals. All of these professions have commonality in their codes of ethics such as the primary principle that we work for the client or patient’s benefit. However, we also know that these same codes do not specifically address ethical dilemmas and their resolution (ACA, 2014, ANA, 2011, AMA/ APA, 2013, AMA,2001, APA, 2010, NASW, 2015). There are numerous decision making models that can be used as a step-by-step process in deciding what to do when confronted by a dilemma (Congress, 1996; Strom-Gottfried, 2007). All of …

The Social, Economic, And Public Health Consequences Of Global Population Aging: Implications For Social Work Practice And Public Policy, Mitchell A. Kaplan, Marian M. Inguanzo

Journal of Social Work in the Global Community

Human populations around the world are growing older at the most astounding rate in the history of humanity. Advances in technology are enabling health care providers to deliver the latest innovations in treatment and prevention services to a broader spectrum of adult populations across the lifespan making longevity increasingly more commonplace rather than the exception to the rule in most of the industrialized world. This article provides an overview of the key social, economic, and public health costs and consequences that aging populations will exact upon international communities in the years ahead. It also examines the most significant social challenges …

Way Out Voices: A Phenomenology Of Interbeing, Beth Hagens

Walden Faculty and Staff Publications

Interbeing is a foundational teaching of Thien Su (Zen master) Thích Nhất Hạnh, beloved Vietnamese Buddhist monk and peace activist who has worked closely with Chan Khong, an expatriate Vietnamese Buddhist nun. Together they founded Plum Village retreat center in the Dordogne region of France. This volume of invited essays—taken as a whole—reveals the inspirational power of the word interbeing as a focus for creating common ground within scholarship for voices not so often heard. Metaphorically, this phenomenology is what Nhất Hạnh might call a “hugging meditation.”

Crying And Attachment Style: The Role Of Romantic Relationships, Katherine L. Fiori, Jessica Buthmann, Christy A. Denckla

Journal of Social, Behavioral, and Health Sciences

Crying is an attachment behavior that functions to elicit support from others (Nelson, 1998); the context in which the crying occurs is important in understanding whether it is adaptive or maladaptive (Hendriks & Vingerhoets, 2006). However, very little research has examined whether and how attachment style is associated with adult crying, and if this association might vary by an individual’s relationship status. Using a sample of 305 first-year college students and a series of hierarchical regressions, we examined the moderating effect of relationship status on the associations between attachment style (measured using the Revised Experiences in Close Relationships Scale; Fraley, …

Risky Sexual Behavior And Knowledge Of Hiv/Aids Transmission In A Community Sample: Sexual Orientation, Race, And Gender, Dustin K. Shepler, Kevin P. Johnson, Alicia A. Width

Journal of Social, Behavioral, and Health Sciences

New cases of HIV/AIDS are disproportionately diagnosed among men who identify as lesbian, gay, and bisexual and Black. Reasons for this disparity may be related to differences in knowledge of how HIV/AIDS is transmitted and differences in willingness to engage in risky sexual behaviors. In this study, we examined whether differences in knowledge of HIV/AIDS transmission and engagement in risky sexual behaviors differed among men and women; lesbian, gay, and bisexual and heterosexual people; and White and Black people. Findings indicate knowledge of HIV/AIDS transmission was not related to sexual orientation or gender; however, White participants had higher scores on …

Lived Experiences Of Mothers Raising Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder In Nigeria, Joyce Itseme Ulofoshio

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Autism has no cure, but early and appropriate diagnosis and intervention may increase outcomes for individuals affected. The level of awareness, acceptance, and support for autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in Nigeria is very low. There is a gap in the literature regarding a detailed account of the experiences of parents raising children with ASD within the Nigerian environment and culture. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore the perceptions and lived experiences of mothers raising children with ASD in Nigeria including the impact of Nigerian culture on their experiences. Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems theory was the guiding conceptual framework …

The President Management Agenda: An Examination Of Federal Employees’ Perceptions, Famane Brown

Walden Faculty and Staff Publications

Under United States President Barack Obama’s administration, the President’s Management Agenda mandated several actions to respond to the problem of poor relationships between and among federal government managers and employees. The purpose of the study was to examine whether a difference in perceptions of employee empowerment and organizational excellence, existed between the employees of higher and lower performing federal agencies, as measured by the Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey (FEVS). The theoretical framework of public choice theory posited that performance in public sector organizations could be improved by emulating the business sector by prioritizing performance, cost, efficiency, and accountability in an …

The Effects Of The Foreclosure Crisis On The Black And Hispanic Population In Lee County, Florida, Stenia K. Reid-Hall, Stenia K. Reid-Hall Ph. D

Walden Faculty and Staff Publications

The housing foreclosure crisis of 2007-2010 in the United States disproportionately affected persons of color. Some states, such as Florida, were heavily impacted by property value losses yet little is known about the experience of losing a home and recovering from that loss from the perspective of the homeowner. Using Carlson’s conceptualization of resiliency theory, the purpose of this phenomenological study was to assess the impact of housing foreclosure and the experience of recovery from foreclosure on Black and Hispanic people in Lee County, Florida. Data were collected through in-depth interviews with 15 people in Lee County who experienced foreclosure …

Home As Workplace: A Qualitative Case Study Of Online Faculty Using Photovoice, Lee Stadtlander, Amy Sickel, Lori Lacivita, Martha Giles

Journal of Educational Research and Practice

The present study examined how online faculty members structure their workspace in their homes and how their work situation affects their home environment. The case study’s goal, guided by an extension of Vischer's user-centered model of the work environment, was to address this research gap through interviews and using PhotoVoice, a technique in which participants take photos and are interviewed about them. Eighteen faculty members from a large online university were recruited through ads in the faculty newsletter. The inclusion criterion was that the individual must only work online. Interested individuals completed an email interview and emailed a photo of …

Immigrating To Northeast America: The Kenyan Immigrant's Experience, Jane Kabuiku

Journal of Social, Behavioral, and Health Sciences

Immigrants lose their unique psychosocial context when their experiences are subsumed under panethnic labels such as Hispanic, Latina/o, Asian, or African. The stress from navigating different cultural contexts becomes problematic when immigrants operate within mainstream cultural norms that are in conflict with their traditional values. The number of Kenyan immigrants to the United States has steadily increased since the 1980s. The purpose of this descriptive phenomenological study was to study the lived experience of Kenyan immigrants by focusing on their integration experience and how the integration processes may have affected their mental functioning. Transition theory and social constructionism theory were …

Birth Weight As Destiny? How Parental Investment Reinforces The Birth Weight Educational Gap, Leah Gillion

Journal of Social, Behavioral, and Health Sciences

Through numerous studies, scholars have come to view birth weight as having a lasting impact on educational outcomes. Normal birth weight is associated with greater educational attainment; however, much of the literature ignores the role of parental investment. Using data from the Fragile Families Child Well-Being Study, it was found that birth endowments alone do not produce varying levels of cognitive development, but these birth endowments do lead parents to make different choices for their children, choices that potentially exacerbate the educational divide. Children with normal birth weight receive more parental investment from birth to age 3 than children with …

Sleep Quality And Its Health Correlates Among Egyptian Secondary School Students, Dalia M. Ismail, Dalia G. Mahran, Ali H. Zarzour, Ghaydaa A. Sheahata

Journal of Social, Behavioral, and Health Sciences

The objective of the recent study was to determine the prevalence of poor sleep quality and to assess its psychological and general health correlates among secondary school students in the city of Assiut, Egypt. A cross sectional study was conducted among 829 secondary school students (selected by multistage stratified random sampling) aged 15–19 years in Assiut. Students filled in a self-administered questionnaire that included demographic data, Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), Epworth Sleepiness Scale, general perception of health, and the short form of Depression Anxiety and Stress Scale. The prevalence of poor sleep quality (PSQI >5) was 72.5%. The mean …

Attitudes Of Women Offenders Towards Medicaid Enrollment And Coverage Under The Affordable Care Act, Morrisa Barbara Rice

2017 Program & Posters

This phenomenological study explored the attitudes of women offenders in jail about Medicaid enrollment and coverage under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). This understanding provided insight for jail leadership and other stakeholders to address barriers and incorporate facilitators identified to make it simpler for women offenders to enroll before released from jail.

Internal Strategies For Assessing Communication Channel Effectiveness, Melvin E. Murphy

2017 Program & Posters

This qualitative multiple case study was designed to explore communication assessment strategies used in three law firms to improve message dissemination and channel efficiency. The findings revealed informal assessment strategies can sustain operations, indirect assessment strategies have a role, and efficient versus timely assessments could improve employee performance and morale.

Multiple Roles As Predictors Of Subjective Well-Being In African American Women, Sha-Rhonda Michea Green-Davis

2017 Program & Posters

Through multiple regression analysis of the NSAL archival data, this study examined how the subjective well-being (SWB) of African American women ages 18-44 (n = 1,877) can be predicted by their age, years of education, household income, number of children, and marital, parental, and employment statuses.

Rapport Development And Native Language Use Between U.S. Advisors And Afghan Counterparts, Sean Ryan Ryan

2017 Program & Posters

This phenomenological symbolic interactionism study of rapport and native language use between 15 Afghan counterparts and their U.S. advisors involved semi-structured interviews informed by social exchange theory, servant leadership theory, role theory, and the Army conceptual rapport framework. Native language appeared to contribute to perceptions of respect, understanding, commitment, and trust supporting rapport.

Successful Implementation Of Pharmacy Retail Store Loyalty Reward Programs, Cristina D. Reinert, Jill A. Murray

International Journal of Applied Management and Technology

Loyalty reward programs are utilized within various industries as a key marketing strategy. A successfully implemented loyalty reward program benefits both the consumer and the company. The purpose of this multicase study was to explore strategies that pharmacy retail managers use to deliver loyalty reward programs. The theory of planned behavior was used as the conceptual framework to guide the study. Mobile technology, customer involvement, brand management, and tier-based rewards were the themes that emerged during data analysis. The findings are of interest to pharmacy retail managers and marketers because they are instrumental in implementing a successful loyalty reward program.

Perceptions Of Women Receiving Services From Domestic Violence Advocacy And Counseling Programs, Lisa Y. Proby

Walden Faculty and Staff Publications

Abstract

The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine domestic violence victims’ perceptions of advocacy and counseling programs that provide women with safe refuge, prevention education, mental health treatment, and other services. Many women in the United States are victims of intimate partner violence. Review of existing literature found that little is known about the extent to which the needs of these victims are met from available advocacy and counseling services. The health belief model was used to theorize victims’ perceptions of services and risk factors for re-abuse. A phenomenological design was used to answer research questions, and in-depth …

Crafting A System Of Profound Knowledge Management In Long Term Care, Charlotte Johnston

2017 Program & Posters

Healthcare industries face regulatory and funding challenges to improve quality and close knowing-to doing gaps in healthcare. The study presents a substantive conceptual theory for crafting knowledge management (KM) in long-term-care (LTC); and extends Deming’s theory of profound knowledge from an organizational to the individual level of action and decision making.

Communication Strategies As Drivers Of Nonprofit Donor Retention, Tamieka Jameson

2017 Program & Posters

Retaining loyal and engaged donors is a critical component of sustainability for nonprofit organizations. The purpose of this single-case study was to explore communication strategies used by senior leaders of a nonprofit organization. The findings of this case study may ensure leaders’ ability to serve and improve their communities by engaging at-risk youth in programs and activities designed to help them acquire performance arts skills, develop leadership skills, and improve their lives.

Perceived Threats To Food Security And Possible Responses Following An Agro-Terrorist Attack, Lamesha Lashal Craft

2017 Program & Posters

Terrorist attacks against food and water supplies (agro-terrorism) are a national security threat due to the assessed fear, economic instability, and social instability that could occur following a food shortage. Findings indicate that a comprehensive response plan does not exist and perceived fears and the lack of knowledge in a society with high social capital can still create conditions for chaos and anomie.

Employee Lived Experiences And Initiative Success In Arkansas Quality Award Recipient Organizations, Carol Barton

2017 Program & Posters

Employee experiences and their stories about their experiences influence quality management and continuous improvement initiatives. Transcript analysis of semistructured interviews revealed the most meaningful experiences were those with people, then materials, feelings, time, and space. The study findings also showed that people transferred problem solving methods from the workplace to their homes and communities.