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Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences

Enhancing The Resilience Of Vulnerable Groups Through Participatory Climate Change Adaptation Planning: A Case Study With The Elderly Community Of Bridgeport, Connecticut, Jason L. Rhoades Jan 2016

Enhancing The Resilience Of Vulnerable Groups Through Participatory Climate Change Adaptation Planning: A Case Study With The Elderly Community Of Bridgeport, Connecticut, Jason L. Rhoades

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

Recent reports highlight the vulnerability of the elderly to climate change. Unfortunately, a lack of research incorporating the perspectives of the elderly on this topic could cause their needs to go unrecognized and unaddressed. To promote adaptation planning that is responsive to the concerns of the elderly, this dissertation presents the results of a participatory research and adaptation planning process conducted in partnership with the elderly community of Bridgeport, Connecticut. The process combined a five-step climate change adaptation planning model with a community-based action research approach that placed the elderly participants as key drivers in the research and planning processes. …


Distress Among Psychologists: Prevalence, Barriers, And Remedies For Accessing Mental Health Care, Kimberly Patterson-Hyatt Jan 2016

Distress Among Psychologists: Prevalence, Barriers, And Remedies For Accessing Mental Health Care, Kimberly Patterson-Hyatt

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

This study completed a critical review of psychologists’ mental health by developing a conceptual analysis based on the current empirical literature of the mental health needs of clinical psychologists. Distress among psychologists was explored by examining the following domains: (a) examining the prevalence of mental illness and psychological distress that exist among them, (b) examining the barriers they encounter to seeking treatment when experiencing this distress, and (c) reviewing current interventions and integrating remedies for access to mental health care that best meets psychologists’ needs. Results included several themes within each domain shaping a contextual picture of some of the …


Identifying Therapeutic Alliance Patterns Among A Feasible Clinical Measure To Improve Treatment Outcome, Tara Marie Staehlin Jan 2016

Identifying Therapeutic Alliance Patterns Among A Feasible Clinical Measure To Improve Treatment Outcome, Tara Marie Staehlin

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

Background: Research has shown a link between therapeutic alliance and treatment outcome, but the definition of alliance and the focus of research has varied across studies. The present study evaluated a possible association between the alliance strength and treatment outcome, which is operationalized by participants’ outcome scores and the difference between their first and last self-reported alliance scores, in a sample of children and adolescents seeking treatment at a community mental health facility. Method: 96 children and 239 adolescents who received mental health treatment at a local community clinic were asked to complete two feasible self-reported measures during each therapeutic …


Frequencies Between Serial Killer Typology And Theorized Etiological Factors., Leryn R. Messori Jan 2016

Frequencies Between Serial Killer Typology And Theorized Etiological Factors., Leryn R. Messori

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

This study examined the association between serial killer typologies and previously proposed etiological factors within serial killer case histories. Stratified sampling based on race and gender was used to identify thirty-six serial killers for this study. The percentage of serial killers within each race and gender category included in the study was taken from current serial killer demographic statistics between 1950 and 2010. Detailed data was gathered about each case, including past experiences and details of their crimes using publicly available primary and secondary source material. Etiological factors identified for this study include military experience, alcohol use, drug use, whether …


The Happy Boomer: Baby Boomer Life Satisfaction Through Affect And Feeling Of Belonging, Brooke Christina-Marie Massey Jan 2016

The Happy Boomer: Baby Boomer Life Satisfaction Through Affect And Feeling Of Belonging, Brooke Christina-Marie Massey

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

The age cohort of 65 years and older is a growing population. It is part of the group referred to as Baby Boomers, the generation born between the years 1946-1964. It will be the largest population to reach late adulthood to date. In the United States alone, the Baby Boomer cohort is expected to reach 70 million by 2030. In response to this growing elderly population much research has been conducted on Baby Boomer quality of life issues. Such research uncovered the phenomenon known as the well-being paradox. The well-being paradox refers to the findings that older adults' life satisfaction …


Positive Organizational Leadership And Pro-Environmental Behavior: The Phenomenon Of Institutional Fossil Fuel Divestment, Abigail Abrash Walton Jan 2016

Positive Organizational Leadership And Pro-Environmental Behavior: The Phenomenon Of Institutional Fossil Fuel Divestment, Abigail Abrash Walton

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

Climate change is one of the most significant dynamics of our time.The predominant contributor to climate change is combustion of fossil fuels by humans.This study deepened understanding of organizational leaders’ role in enacting one approach to addressing climate change:institutional fossil fuel divestment.The study used a qualitative research design to explore U.S.-based foundation leaders’ readiness to pursue fossil fuel divestment by their institutions.The study examined leaders’ motivations and actions in pursuing divestment, while simultaneously exercising their fiduciary duty to steward institutional assets.Research questions focused on the divestment behavior change process and the outcomes of divestment on leaders and their organizations.Data collection …


Leading By Design: Physicians In Training And Leadership Awareness, Meridithe Anne Mendelsohn Jan 2016

Leading By Design: Physicians In Training And Leadership Awareness, Meridithe Anne Mendelsohn

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

Patient-centered care requires robust physician leadership in all aspects of healthcare in order to lead organizations to this ideal.Programs in Graduate Medical Education provide inconsistent and limited exposure to formal leadership development experiences for physicians in their final year of residency training.Literature addressing leadership training for residents focuses on the scarcity of effective programs that deliver adequate training and provide measurable outcomes.The purpose of this study was to explore how chief medical and surgical residents develop leadership awareness and experience training in leadership and engage chief residents, faculty mentors, and program administrators in a collaborative process, developing a leadership training …


Supporting Student Veterans Utilizing Participatory Curriculum Development, Bryce A. Doehne Jan 2016

Supporting Student Veterans Utilizing Participatory Curriculum Development, Bryce A. Doehne

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

An organizational level program utilizing Participatory Curriculum Development (PCD) (Taylor, 2003) is presented to assist postsecondary institutions with development, implementation, and evaluation of programs to support student veterans. Postsecondary institutions are provided with a “how to” program manual that includes literature-based core and supplemental programs, trauma-informed theory, and a methodological framework to implement programs. Practical program evaluation measures are offered to assist postsecondary institutions with evaluating the outcomes of their efforts to support student veterans. The electronic version of this dissertation is at AURA: Antioch University Repository and Archive, http://aura.antioch.edu/ and OhioLink ETD Center, https://etd.ohiolink.edu


"One Narrow Thread Of Green": The Vision Of May Theilgaard Watts, The Creation Of The Illinois Prairie Path, And A Community's Crusade For Open Space In Chicago's Suburbs, Anne M. Keller Jan 2016

"One Narrow Thread Of Green": The Vision Of May Theilgaard Watts, The Creation Of The Illinois Prairie Path, And A Community's Crusade For Open Space In Chicago's Suburbs, Anne M. Keller

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

Women's environmental activism prior to the early 1960s in America focused on women's roles as municipal housekeepers or emphasized wilderness conservation. I offer in this dissertation the story of the Illinois Prairie Path, the country's first rails-to-trails conversion to apply for National Recreation Trail status, and the innovative women who fought for nature preservation in a suburban setting rather than in a wilderness area. Led by renowned writer and naturalist, May Theilgaard Watts, these women built support for the public footpath project by fostering an ecological awareness throughout their region. I place them in the tradition of Chicago female reformers …


Peer-Mediated Sandplay And Symbolic Play In Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Meagan Adley Jan 2016

Peer-Mediated Sandplay And Symbolic Play In Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Meagan Adley

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

This manuscript describes an exploratory study that assessed whether play with typically developing peers increased the use of symbolic play in children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). A version of a sandplay intervention previously investigated by Lu, Petersen, Lacroix, and Rousseau (2010), and modified to include peer-mediated play was used. The intervention explored the effects of sandplay with typically developing peers on engagement in symbolic play by children with ASD. A multiple-case intervention design was used with three children with ASD with varying degrees of severity in functioning. While use of symbolic play by two of the children did increase …


The Remembered Experience Of Adoption: Factors Supporting Healthy Adjustment, Crystal R. Gonsalves Jan 2016

The Remembered Experience Of Adoption: Factors Supporting Healthy Adjustment, Crystal R. Gonsalves

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

This qualitative research study is designed to explore ideas, customs, and practices related to adoption from the perspective of adult adoptees. While many studies seek to explain the negative impact of adoption, minimal literature exists with regard to a phenomenological exploration of adoption practices that successfully promote healthy adjustment and a sense of resilience and well-being in adopted children. Existing research on adoption has largely been conducted quantitatively, which can fail to capture the personal, lived experience of a positive adoption experience that leads to healthy adjustment. Specifically, little is known about which factors of the adoption experience adoptees perceive …


Secondary Traumatic Stress, Compassion Fatigue, And Burnout: How Working In Correctional Settings Affects Mental Health Providers, Nykia S. Johnson Jan 2016

Secondary Traumatic Stress, Compassion Fatigue, And Burnout: How Working In Correctional Settings Affects Mental Health Providers, Nykia S. Johnson

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

Over the last three decades, there has been a sharp increase in the number of people incarcerated within the United States. A significant number of those incarcerated have been diagnosed with a mental health disorder. Subsequently, as the incarceration rate rises, so does the need for qualified mental health professionals who are able to treat mentally ill prisoners. Correctional mental health providers work in very dangerous, oppressive, and often-chaotic settings, with very little control over their environment. They must address daily episodes of violence and threats from inmates with histories of murder, rape, and assault, while still maintaining their ability …


Does Teaching Parents Emotion-Coaching Strategies Change Parental Perception Of Children's Negative Emotions?, Eric Labass Jan 2016

Does Teaching Parents Emotion-Coaching Strategies Change Parental Perception Of Children's Negative Emotions?, Eric Labass

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

The purpose of this study was to explore if parental perception of children's negative emotions changes after participating in the parenting program How to Talk to Kids So Kids Will Listen-Video Series (HTK) (Faber & Mazlish, 2002). The HTK workshop comprises six sessions designed to teach parents to identify and empathize with children's feelings and learn emotional communication skills that facilitate a respectful relationship between parent and child. The Coping with Children's Negative Emotions Scale (CCNES) (Fabes, Eisenberg, & Bernzweig, 1990) was given to parents before and after participation in the HTK workshop. The CCNES revealed that a total of …


The Drive To Write: Inside The Writing Lives Of Five Fiction Authors, Emily S. Fine Jan 2016

The Drive To Write: Inside The Writing Lives Of Five Fiction Authors, Emily S. Fine

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

Authors of fiction often describe writing as a psychologically meaningful and emotionally charged process. While ample research has provided evidence for the mental and physical health benefits of writing (e.g., Pennebaker & Seagal, 1999), few studies have methodically examined the inner life of the fiction writer. This study explored two primary questions: (a) Why do authors write? and (b) How does the act of writing affect them in turn? This study employed Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) as a guiding methodology. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with five authors of fiction, then transcribed and analyzed to generate a rich interpretative account. The …


Demographic Characteristics And Trauma Symptomology In Juvenile Justice Residents At Echo Glen Children's Center, Britta L. Bergan Jan 2016

Demographic Characteristics And Trauma Symptomology In Juvenile Justice Residents At Echo Glen Children's Center, Britta L. Bergan

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

Exposure to traumatic and stressful events has become increasingly commonplace and the impact of such experiences has been well documented. Trauma events in childhood have been associated with a number of factors, including maladaptive emotional and behavioral responses, increased vulnerability for exposure to additional traumatic events, and adverse experiences later in life. Juvenile justice youth have been found to have higher rates of trauma exposure, when compared to community samples of same-aged peers. The population of youth residing at Echo Glen Children’s Center, in Snoqualmie, Washington, exhibit unique characteristics for a juvenile justice population, including age (the youngest juvenile offenders …


Intercultural Competence Development Through Civic Engagement, Ruta Shah-Gordon Jan 2016

Intercultural Competence Development Through Civic Engagement, Ruta Shah-Gordon

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

Today, the field of intercultural communication is becoming even more important.People are increasingly interacting more with others from around the globe, whether for work or recreation.Globalization is creating an increased interdependency between nations; it is critical that institutions of higher education develop leaders who are competent in cross-cultural awareness and practice, have a solid understanding of cultural differences and their effects on leadership performance, and are culturally sensitive to different perspectives (Northouse, 2010).Since many studies of intercultural competence development focus on study abroad experiences, this dissertation focuses on developing intercultural competence in college-aged students through civic engagement experiences.Through a mixed …


The Development Of The Creative Synergy Scale, Amy E. Climer Jan 2016

The Development Of The Creative Synergy Scale, Amy E. Climer

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

This study developed a scale for teams to assess their behaviors related to creative synergy. Creative synergy is the interactions among team members where the collective creative results are greater than the sum of their individual efforts. When a team achieves creative synergy they have the potential to solve difficult problems with innovative solutions leading to positive impacts on our communities, societies, and even our world. This study looked at the internal-process variables of teams to determine what factors impact creative synergy. The research process involved two phases.In Phase 1, a survey was taken by 830 adults who were members …


Experiencing The Death Of A Formerly Abusive Parent, Heather Spence Jan 2016

Experiencing The Death Of A Formerly Abusive Parent, Heather Spence

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

It is well documented that approximately 25–33% of children experience abuse, many of those at the hands of a primary caretaker. Within the literature on child maltreatment, there exists a paucity of research about the long-term effects of early maltreatment on adult attachments with the previous abuser, including the experiences of adults who experience the death of their previous caretakers. Additionally, most of the research on grief and bereavement assumes positive affect for the deceased by survivors. This dissertation is an in-depth examination of five adults, aged 50–70 years old, who experienced the recent death of a parent or stepparent …


Can The Complex Care And Intervention (Cci) Program Be Culturally Adapted As A Model For Use With Aboriginal Families Affected By Complex (Intergenerational) Trauma?, Chipo Mcnichols Jan 2016

Can The Complex Care And Intervention (Cci) Program Be Culturally Adapted As A Model For Use With Aboriginal Families Affected By Complex (Intergenerational) Trauma?, Chipo Mcnichols

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

Despite living in a country with a world renowned healthcare system, Canadian Aboriginal children, youth and their families, consistently have poorer access to healthcare as well as higher mortality and morbidity rates, in comparison to non-Aboriginal Canadians (Tang & Browne, 2008). Among factors including their history of residential school and intergenerational trauma, the lack of a culturally specific treatment intervention for complex trauma, is identified as a key factor in maintaining this health disparity. This study used participatory action research within an identified Aboriginal community, to develop a culturally adapted complex trauma intervention model. This was based on an existing …


A Review Of Factors Contributing To The Shortage Of Palliative Care Service For Adolescent And Young Adult Oncology Patients, Erin K. Harper Jan 2016

A Review Of Factors Contributing To The Shortage Of Palliative Care Service For Adolescent And Young Adult Oncology Patients, Erin K. Harper

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

Adolescent and young adult oncology (patients aged 15–39 years old) is an emerging group of patients that are recognized to have distinctive qualities concerning their cancer treatment, including intensified psychosocial needs compared to their adult and child counterparts (Bleyer, 2012). The quality of life for adolescent and young adults during and after cancer treatment is disproportionally worse than what is reported by adults and children and the incidence of cancer in this population is steadily growing (Bleyer, 2011, 2012; Pritchard, Cuvelier, Harlos, & Barr, 2011; Rosenberg & Wolfe, 2013; Siegel, Naishadham, & Jemal, 2013; Wein, Pery, & Zer, 2011). Palliative …


Narratives Of Aging And Patient Activation, T. A. Hulslander Jan 2016

Narratives Of Aging And Patient Activation, T. A. Hulslander

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

I highlight the generally negative social discourse on aging in the United States, which is often characterized by themes of marginalization and stagnation, and I advocate for a more developmental view. I propose a conceptual framework of social constructionism to consider how the intersection between social discourse and personal narrative regarding aging might influence older adults’ patient activation; Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) is an appropriate qualitative methodology through which to understand these relational dynamics. Key constructs are defined and evidentiary, social justice, and pragmatic rationales are provided. In a discussion of the application to clinical psychology I suggests that how …


The Behavioral Ecology And Population Characteristics Of Striped Skunks Inhabiting Piper Plover Nesting Beaches On The Island Of Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts, Luanne Johnson Jan 2016

The Behavioral Ecology And Population Characteristics Of Striped Skunks Inhabiting Piper Plover Nesting Beaches On The Island Of Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts, Luanne Johnson

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

We studied coastal striped skunks (Mephitis mephitis) on the island of Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts, USA to gather information on the population characteristics of this mesopredator on Atlantic coast beaches with nesting piping plovers (Charadrius melodus). From 2004 – 2008, we captured and marked 138 skunks and fitted 51 adults with VHF radio-collars. Capture rates ranged from 1 – 7 individuals/100 trap nights (TN) in the spring and 4 – 21 individuals/100 TN in the fall. Spring capture rates were highest at Dogfish Bar (DB), a beach with abundant wrack in the intertidal zone in close proximity to low-density housing, where …


Collaboration In Conservation Networks: Regional Conservation Partnerships In New England, Jill L. Weiss Jan 2016

Collaboration In Conservation Networks: Regional Conservation Partnerships In New England, Jill L. Weiss

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

Environmental problems are becoming increasingly complex and harder for any one discipline or approach to address. In the case of land conservation, there is an incongruity between how we view and manage social and natural systems even though each is reliant on the other. Adaptive co-management of these socio-ecological landscapes by a cross section of stakeholders and disciplines is necessary. In New England this is happening through Regional Conservation Partnerships (RCPs). RCPs are conservation networks comprised of land trusts, local governments, landowners, and localized conservation action groups. The geographic range of each RCP varies in size from a few hundred …


Making Meaning Together: The Role Of Interpretation During A Short-Term Nature Excursion, Kate Jurow Jan 2016

Making Meaning Together: The Role Of Interpretation During A Short-Term Nature Excursion, Kate Jurow

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

Interpretive nature walks are an important tool for conservation organizations, which use them to educate, and to connect visitors with their sites. Interpretive studies often focus on program outcomes. However, less research exists on how the experience itself is perceived by visitors. Is it primarily a learning process? What role does the guide play, and how does the process of interpretation affect the visitor experience? What implications might this have for interpretive techniques, and for organizations seeking to build supportive stewardship communities? The purpose of this study was to explore how the process of interpretation affects a short-term nature experience …


Nature As Spiritual Lived Experience: How Five Christian Theologians Encounter The Spirit In And Through The Natural World, Brad A. Martell Jan 2016

Nature As Spiritual Lived Experience: How Five Christian Theologians Encounter The Spirit In And Through The Natural World, Brad A. Martell

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

This qualitative study explored five Western Christian theologians’ religious lived experience of God’s Spirit in and through Nature. The hermeneutic phenomenological research method was utilized. Rich descriptions of lived experience were collected through 60-90 minute long phenomenological interviews which were recorded and transcribed verbatim into a text for analysis. Analysis included repeated readings of the text, identification of themes, and validation and/or correction of themes. Synthesis looked at the research as a whole and established implications and applications for Christian theology, particularly ecotheology. The study contributes to the literature of phenomenology and theology, calls for a place for lived experience …


Building & Measuring Psychological Capacity For Biodiversity Conservation, Kayla A. Cranston Jan 2016

Building & Measuring Psychological Capacity For Biodiversity Conservation, Kayla A. Cranston

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

Capacity building has become the centerpiece of recent attempts to strengthen regional biodiversity conservation. Many conservation organizations aim to increase this capacity by training local conservation professionals. While many practitioners will agree that these trainings presumably have a psychological effect on their participants that may benefit long-term local action toward conservation goals, there also seems to be a resignation that these effects are difficult if not impossible to measure and target, especially within diverse cultures. The common result is a perfunctory evaluation of observable behaviors or basic knowledge, which may be easy to count but undoubtedly fails to represent the …


Designing For Online Collaborations And Local Environmental Action In Citizen Science: A Multiple Case Study, Ruth Kermish-Allen Jan 2016

Designing For Online Collaborations And Local Environmental Action In Citizen Science: A Multiple Case Study, Ruth Kermish-Allen

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

Traditional citizen science projects have been based on the scientific community’s need to gather vast quantities of high quality data, neglecting to ask what the project participants get in return. How can participants be seen more as collaborative partners in citizen science projects? Online communities for citizen science are expanding rapidly, giving participants the opportunity to take part in a wide range of activities, from monitoring invasive species to identifying far-off galaxies. These communities can bring together the virtual and physical worlds in new ways that are egalitarian, collaborative, applied, localized and globalized to solve real environmental problems. There are …


Clinician Perspectives On Community Reentry For Mentally Ill Offenders In New York, Lauren C. Meath Jan 2016

Clinician Perspectives On Community Reentry For Mentally Ill Offenders In New York, Lauren C. Meath

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

The prevalence of individuals with serious mental illness (SMI) in prisons has risen in recent years. While incarcerated, individuals with SMI face many challenges, such as difficulties with peers and staff, and potential exacerbation of mental health symptoms. These difficulties do not subside when reentering their communities upon release. These individuals encounter unique challenges upon release, such as facing the difficult task of finding mental health services and other resources, housing, and health insurance. This study aimed to gather the perspectives of clinicians who worked for the Office of Mental Health in New York State regarding community reentry for inmates …


On Contemporary Leadership And Branded Organizations, Mark Bloemhard Jan 2016

On Contemporary Leadership And Branded Organizations, Mark Bloemhard

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

This qualitative study examined a leader’s enigmatic decision-making process guiding innovative and complex organizations—organizations that are not able to rely on market research or the precedence of industry emulators for making strategic decisions. Leaders of highly creative organizations regularly make catalytic decisions that have fateful outcomes; their ability to recognize and appropriately adjudicate complex and unpredictable market forces determine the consequences. Such influential choices often require a deep level of intuition with very little research and time to decide. The purpose of this dissertation has been to develop a framework that presents Brand Leadership as a distinct and viable leadership …


A Method To My Quietness: A Grounded Theory Study Of Living And Leading With Introversion, Leatrice Oram Jan 2016

A Method To My Quietness: A Grounded Theory Study Of Living And Leading With Introversion, Leatrice Oram

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

Leadership scholar-practitioners must create a more sustainable, diverse, and equitable future, fostering emergence and development of resilient, competent leaders, including those who may have been previously overlooked.Leadership studies, particularly those situated in early trait and behavior paradigms, have long privileged extraverted leaders as ideal.The scholarly conversation is limited on introverted leaders; moreover, most of that literature depicts introversion as either a pathological construct associated with shyness and social anxiety, or includes introversion only by omission, as a state of deficit-of-extraversion.This study instead began with positive inquiry, framing introversion as a positive individual difference, and explored the lived experiences of introverted …