Communication Commons^™

Contradictions In Policies And Practices: A Case Study Of Educational Opportunities For Transfer Students, Brystal Nevins

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Mission statements are a representation of an organization’s identity and can serve as a guiding factor for the development of policies and practices. However, in a setting of higher education where population demographics can shift over time, it may be necessary for periodic policy evaluation and adjustments to occur. A significant portion of the California State Universities’ students are being excluded from participating in their education to the best of their potential and excluded in a way that does not align with the overall California State University (CSU) mission. Through structurating activity theory, contradictions within policy processes can be used …

Double, Double, Toils And Troubles: Analyzing The “Magical” Relationships Between University Leaders’ Personality Traits And Their Self-Efficacy In Leadership Situations, Fay Ludvine Boudreaux

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

This present study investigated the relationship between higher education leaders’ personality traits and their self-efficacy in leadership situations. A total of 151 leaders employed across the nine institutions within the University of Louisiana System completed a survey that prompted them to identify their personal values, traits, and skill sets, as derived from the online Pottermore quiz, the official Harry Potter Hogwarts House sorting instrument. This niche personality metric was chosen to cater to higher education’s evolving landscape, as it welcomes an influx of Millennials into leadership positions. Participants’ responses were eventually recoded to “sort” them into their respective Houses: Gryffindor, …

Framework For Enhanced Intergenerational Connectivity (Eic): A Professional Program Development Report, Amanda Michelle Reigle

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

This program development report documents the implementation and facilitation of the Sages and Seekers pilot program at California State University, San Bernardino (Palm Desert Campus) from 2022 to 2025. Grounded in communication theory, intergroup contact principles, and instructional design, the report outlines a structured intergenerational intervention aimed at enhancing empathy, connection, and understanding between older and younger adults. Drawing from facilitator observations and program implementation experiences, this work led to the creation of the Framework for Enhanced Intergenerational Connectivity (EIC), a five-point planning model emphasizing leadership, facilitation, administrative support, participant continuity, and structured program design.

The EIC framework is accompanied …

Equipping The Saints For The Work Of Ministry In The East London Church, Andrew C. Fleming

Doctor of Ministry Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this project was to implement a qualitative evaluation process to measure the progress of the East London Church’s transition toward a flatter team-based ministry model. The research evaluated the effectiveness, fitness for purpose, and procedural weaknesses of the church's articulated leadership goals, which included equipping members for ministry, increasing member involvement, forming ministry teams, and sharing power and resources. The study employed a mixed-methods approach, integrating quantitative data from two Church Health Assessment (CHA) surveys separated by a three-year interval with qualitative insights from focus groups to provide a comprehensive understanding of the transition process. The CHA …

Hearing God's Word Through Ecclesial Listening, Nathan Burrow

Doctor of Ministry Theses and Dissertations

This project dissertation was designed to enhance ecclesial listening when sermons are preached at the Hillcrest Church of Christ. The challenge of listening to the Word of God in a way that forms community is not unique to Hillcrest. It is a common problem for preachers and churches today. Our context, marked by shifts in church membership, societal division, and the isolating effects of digital culture, calls for a renewed emphasis on listening as a church community. This project explores the ways in which we can cultivate practices that encourage ecclesial listening—a way of hearing the preached Word that draws …

The Digital Incorporated Worker Narrative: A Mixed Methods Study Of Digital Capital, Work Selection, And Outcomes In The Fourth Industrial Revolution, Tracie King

Dissertations

Digital technology permeates society and industry, making digital-ready workers necessary for firms of all sizes as a firm seeks competitiveness in the market (Bergson-Shilcock et al., 2023; de Ruyter et al., 2018; Gorski et al., 2022; Karaboğa, 2023; Kim et al., 2017; Qureshi Zia, 2019). Firms seeking digital-ready workers face a complex digital divide that creates a worker shortage (Bergson-Shilcock et al., 2023; Karaboğa, 2023; Qureshi Zia, 2019). This study aims to describe workers' work selection, work experience, and outcomes in a complex digital society.

Most digital divide research focuses on the individuals excluded from owning, accessing, and having skills …

Community Voices, Climate Action Choices: Working Towards A Resilient Monterey County, Lesley A. Solano Alonso

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

Vulnerable communities in Monterey County face disproportionate environmental and health impacts due to climate change, yet many residents remain unaware of the tools and resources available to support local action. This capstone project was implemented in partnership with Ecology Action (EA) and the Resilient Central Coast (RCC) campaign to increase awareness and engagement with the RCC platform. Serving diverse communities across Monterey County, the project included bilingual outreach efforts, community tabling, educational presentations, and a climate action survey. Over 650 residents were engaged directly, resulting in 99 new household sign-ups on the RCC website, a major milestone for the agency. …

The Complete Message Is The Best Message: The Case For Standardizing Wireless Emergency Alerts, Jeannette Sutton, Micki Olson, Hugh Walpole, Lauren B. Cain, Nicholas Waugh, Michele M. Wood

Emergency Preparedness, Homeland Security, and Cybersecurity Faculty Scholarship

Standardized messaging for alerts and warnings has been made possible through the use of the Warning Lexicon and workflow. The effectiveness of this approach to motivate protective action behaviors, in comparison with the current standard of practice, has not yet been tested. Using an experimental design to test the effectiveness of the Warning Lexicon, we tested three message types for five hazards: blackouts, law enforcement incidents, infectious diseases, heavy snow, and chemical releases, and found that messages created using the Warning Lexicon contents and workflow produced better messaging outcomes than the current standard of practice. Specifically, participants who received the …

Organizational Care: The Formation And Reproduction Of Social Support Structures In Nonprofit Organizations, Ella Stanley

Communication Undergraduate Honors Theses

Through past literature it has been established that nonprofit employees are prone to experience increased levels of stress and burnout due to the emotionally taxing nature of their jobs. Social support is a communicative transaction between individuals that has been proven to mitigate the negative impacts that both stress and burnout can cause employees to face. Previous studies on social support have focused on healthcare workers and nonprofit volunteers, while this study aims to understand the specific social support structures that are prominent within nonprofit organizations to provide support for employees. This study utilizes structuration theory to explore the structures …

A Qualitative Study Exploring Senior Leaders’ Experiences And Perceptions In Addressing Workplace Sexual Harassment In The U.S. Federal Government: A Systems Perspective, Karen Jane Dean

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Sexual harassment (SH) is a prevalent, costly, and often unreported problem in the U.S. Federal Government. Despite decades of research from multiple perspectives and recommendations to address SH, the problem persists and remains complex. While some researchers and U.S. Government agencies have called upon leaders to commit to eliminating workplace SH, others have suggested using an integrated conflict management system (ICMS) to manage the complexity, nuances, and conflicts. Even though there is a call for leadership to address SH, there is limited documentation in the literature about leaders’ experiences and perceptions in addressing the problem. Therefore, this qualitative study was …

Transformational Leadership And Its Impact On Team Success: A Detailed Chronicle Of Bellarmine University Men's Lacrosse, Ella Beames

Undergraduate Theses

This thesis uses a journalistic approach to explore the intersection between leadership, transformational leadership, in particular, and forms of success through the lens of Kentucky's only NCAA Division 1 Men's Lacrosse program. Interviews, written survey, and observation were utilized to gauge a community-wide perspective about the team and the holistic nature of the student-athlete experience within Bellarmine University Men's Lacrosse. Observation followed the team for three years and engaged players and coaching staff in telling the story of the team's shifting culture and the management process of the team's newfound success. Methods aimed to draw a connection between the change …

Integrating Library Support Into Montclair State University's Student Management System, Jacob Bilek, Perri Moreno

University Libraries Scholarship and Creative Works

Although many universities have adopted student management systems (SMS) such as Navigate or Starfish to track and communicate with students about their academic progress, libraries have had little involvement with these platforms. This poster presents a case study of a Library’s integration as a referral point in Navigate. Faculty are now able to raise ad-hoc alerts that refer students to research support at the library. In addition to providing another avenue of research support, librarians are also able to keep faculty informed throughout the process, something not integrated into other systems of library support.

Objective 1: Observe a case study …

Variation And Selection During Pandemic: Toward A Multiplex Framework For Understanding Nonprofit Community Network Evolution In Crisis Time, Yiqi Li, Aimei Yang, Wenlin Liu, Jingyi Sun, Michigan State University, Lichen Chen

iSchool - All Scholarship

This study examines how the communication network structure of a community of U.S. nonprofits evolves in response to the COVID-19

pandemic by examining their multiplex strategic communication network- building on Twitter/X. This study identifies two types of networks:

representational ties (for third-party audiences) and substantial ties (for direct resource exchange). Our findings suggest that organizations remain consistent with network strategies through different crisis stages, and the crisis provides opportunities for nonprofits to maintain existing substantial networks while building more extensive substantial networks. Representational ties, even the ones formed pre-crisis, hold the potential to turn into substantial relationships. Theoretically, this research …

Newsletter, Wku Staff Senate

Staff Council

Newsletter created by WKU Staff Council to report on work accomplished.

Does Ai Help Or Harm? Why And How Ai Use Influences Workplace Outcomes And Employee Well-Being, Haille Trimboli, Reka Lassu

Education Division Scholarship

Although the recent surge in excitement surrounding artificial intelligence (AI) might suggest it is a new development, AI has been applied in organizations for over forty years (Fanti et al., 2022; Markelius et al., 2024). Indeed, the term "artificial intelligence" itself emerged in the 1950s during a research project at Dartmouth College, where it was used to describe "machines able to simulate human intelligence" (Haenlein & Kaplan, 2019, p. 3). Most recently, in 2022, the landscape of AI use for laypeople greatly changed when OpenAI introduced ChatGPT, a generative AI tool, to the public; ChatGPT is an advanced AI language …

Exploring The Web And Language Accessibility Of Medical Tourism Providers’ Websites: Implications For Online Marketing And Patient Recruitment Practices, Alicia Mason, Elizabeth Spencer, Kristen Livingston, Treyton Meyers

Faculty Submissions

Background: Web accessibility as an attribute of the digital presence of organizations has been studied across domains and contexts. Our study aims to add to existing lines of research inquiry by examining the web and language accessibility of medical tourism provider (MTP) websites commonly used to market and promote international medical tourism treatments and services globally.

Objective: This study aims to (1) systematically analyze the web and language accessibility of MTP online health messages and (2) discuss challenges and implications for medical tourists’ user experiences when seeking health information online.

Method: We conducted an exploratory quantitative content analysis of web …

Interactive Pathways: Designing Accessible Museum Experiences, Bryce M. Christian

Senior Theses

This research examines the educational strategies employed by the Columbia Museum of Art in addition to similar institutions to explore how museums can optimize their educational impact on K–12 students by applying human-centered design strategies that prioritize accessibility, engagement, and real user needs. Many museums struggle to fully serve K–12 students due to physical, financial, and perceptual barriers. While digital platforms have expanded reach in some institutions, others prioritize in-person experiences and community engagement. This research uses artificial intelligence tools such as supervised data to accelerate and enhance the analytical process. The study evaluates these approaches through the lens of …

Internal Communication And Organizational Culture: A K–12 District Office Phenomenological Study, Jessica Coleman Scogin

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This phenomenological study utilized motivating language theory to explore the experiences that K–12 district office staff had with internal communication. The purpose of the study was to find how these experiences impacted an employee’s feelings of safety, value, and positive emotions in the workplace. The lens of motivating language allowed for a view of how empathetic language, meaning-making language, and direction-giving language shaped experiences for employees. Communication is an integral part of the culture of an organization; yet it is often overlooked as an influencing factor in job satisfaction and well-being. In fact, poor internal communication can lead to negativity …

On The Provenance Of Software Systems: Automating Software Traceability With Knowledge Graph And Large Language Model Synergy, Tyler Procko

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

The present dissertation delineates a system that enables those engaged in software development to automatically generate and maintain project life cycle provenance. All projects are implemented and made manifest with the development of artifacts, e.g., papers, code files, etc. Tools exist to accelerate artifact creation, but little focus is paid to the processes that produce them. In terms of Ontology, or, from Ancient Greek, the study of being, the two most basic entities in reality are Continuant and Occurrent, or, roughly, “Artifact” and “Process”. This dissertation posits that for any created artifact, its process of creation, i.e., its life …

Anchored Networks: Navigating Formal And Informal Pathways To Access Educational Resources In Transient And Military Families, Lara Ray

Dissertations

This study examines how Navy families in San Diego establish and use formal and informal networks to access educational resources for their children following relocation. Grounded in social capital theory, the research employed a multiple-case study approach, integrating data from interviews, focus groups, and digital analysis of Navy-affiliated social media platforms. The study explores how parents navigate these networks to promote their children’s academic success, with particular attention to key decision-making moments, resource negotiation, and equity considerations. Participants included Navy spouses from diverse ranks (E-3 to O-6) and socioeconomic backgrounds, providing insight into disparities in resource access. Findings reveal that …

Newsletter, Wku Staff Senate

Staff Council

Newsletter created by WKU Staff Council to report on work accomplished.

Ethics In Digital Marketing: A Gen-Z’S Perspective, Suruchi Bhatt

School of Business

Almost 72% of Americans report they have a sense of being tracked online through their cellphones, by their advertisers or companies they follow, around 20% think their activities across their days are tracked, with almost 47% reporting the government tracks their cellphones, behaviors, and everything they do online. (Atske, 2019) It is no secret that when people say privacy is a myth, it is upon the behaviors of the companies to inform the customers of what, where, and why their activity is being tracked. Answering how the activity is tracked and when it will be tracked are key factors that …

Building Blocks For New Kinship Partnerships And Coalitions, Kathy L. Dial, Daniel J. Koltz, Janet Salo, Erin Beasley

GrandFamilies: The Contemporary Journal of Research, Practice and Policy

Building successful kinship partnerships and coalitions requires intentional effort to establish trust, align goals, and foster inclusivity. These collaborations are essential for addressing the unique and evolving needs of kinship families, who often face limited access to resources due to the informal nature of many caregiving arrangements. Effective partnerships prioritize clear missions, open communication, and active engagement with stakeholders, particularly those with lived experiences such as kinship caregivers. Research demonstrates that coordinated efforts among organizations enhance resource availability, improve advocacy capabilities, and strengthen service delivery. By integrating diversity, equity, and inclusion principles, coalitions can ensure that diverse perspectives shape solutions …

Podcasting Towards Togetherness: Utilizing Podcasts To Improve Departmental Camaraderie And Well-Being, Michael Petrauskis, Colleen Gutman, Rosemarie Fernandez

Journal of Wellness

Introduction: Physician burnout is on the rise, and this is of particular concern in emergency medicine. Burnout is associated with medical errors, adverse events, poor professionalism, and litigation. A sense of community can build engagement and mitigate workplace stressors on well-being. Emergency physicians may have trouble connecting due to the nature of shift-work and various practice settings. Communication technology, and particularly podcasting, has the potential to help overcome these barriers and positively impact relatedness and well-being.

Approach: We developed an inward-facing podcast, “The ER Break Room” within the Department of Emergency Medicine at the University of Florida. Through the …

Newsletter, Wku Staff Senate

Staff Council

Newsletter created by WKU Staff Council to report on work accomplished.

Leadership Practices For High-Performing Teams: Insights From Senior Military General Officers And Flag Officers, Kimberly Mitchell

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this mixed methods study was to identify and describe how senior military general officers and flag officers (GOFOs) used the three competencies of high-performance teams (HPTs; clarity, connection, and communication) to achieve objectives in their organizations. The second purpose of this study was to determine the degree of importance that senior military GOFOs perceived the three high-performance team effect (HPTE) core competencies impacted their leadership for creating HPTs.

Methodology: This mixed methods study identified and described nine senior military officers’ perceptions of strategies to lead HPTs while focusing on the three core competencies: clarity, connection, and …

A Multilayer, Multimethod Web And Language Accessibility Analysis Of U.S. Nonprofit Organization Websites: Considerations For The Marketing And Promotion Of Online Giving, Alicia Mason, Lauren Baldwin, Tatum Ahring

Faculty Submissions

In lieu of recent declines in individual giving to US nonprofits focused on social causes, education, environment, and animal welfare, this study examines the web and language accessibility of US nonprofit websites. By examining potential accessibility design barriers, we seek to understand whether US nonprofit organizations are limiting their outreach to online donors, specifically persons with disabilities (PwDs). Nonprofit websites were systematically and randomly sampled from Charity Navigator's Alphabetical Listing of the Top 1000 Most Visited Charities database. Using a multimethodological approach consisting of manual verification and computer-automated analysis techniques, we assess the web and language accessibility of leading US …

Strategic Business Communication: A Competency-Based Approach To Writing, Speaking, And Research., Rose Helens-Hart

All Open Educational Resources

This text is for the Honors section of BCOM301 at Fort Hays State University. Business Communication: A Competency-Based Approach to Writing, Speaking, and Research is a practical, engaging book designed to help undergraduate students and business professionals develop competence and build confidence in their business writing, research, and presentation skills. Readers will learn about the five core competencies of business communication: professional, clear, concise, evidence-driven, and persuasive. They also will learn strategies for applying each of these competencies across a range of real-world business documents. This text is a remixing of the following four OER textbooks and original content authored …

Redefining Success: Insights From Lebanese Women Leaders In Higher Education, Lina H. Safa

Education Division Scholarship

This presentation explores how Lebanese women leaders in higher education define and measure success, emphasizing their innovative approaches and transformative impact. By examining personal narratives through a phenomenological lens, the study reveals how these leaders navigate cultural challenges, offering insights into leadership dynamics in a patriarchal society and contributing to global discussions on gender equity and academic leadership.

“I’M Anywhere In The Country That Has A National Park”: Seasonal National Park Service Employee Organizational Identification Targets, Rachel Taylor

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Organizational Identification research is well established and explores the concept of individual oneness to a larger human collective yet often focuses on traditional types of work. Seasonal work carried out by National Park Service (NPS) employees is a non-traditional form of work entirely dependent on the organization's needs in a particular season, typically summer. Literature regarding seasonal work often focuses on types of hospitality organizations, rather than the NPS. This study sought to understand how the unique situation of seasonal workers may have influenced their identification with multiple organizational targets. Through qualitative interviews with 12 individuals who have been seasonal …