Development Studies Commons^™

Adolescent Students’ Adaptability During The Covid-19 Pandemic Impacting Their Academic Preparedness In College: A Qualitative Exploration Of Resilience In Secondary School Disruptions, Nicole Tyanne Jameson

Dissertations

This study, conducted several years after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, takes a unique approach to investigating the long-term effects of the pandemic-induced disruptions on adolescents during secondary schooling and their academic preparedness in college. The study combined a descriptive qualitative analysis of academic routine data with quantifiable resilience scores, providing a comprehensive understanding of the challenges students faced, their adaptability and resilience, and the overall impact on their education journey into college. This comprehensive descriptive qualitative study utilizes triangulation of quantitative data and qualitative approaches to understand the subject matter thoroughly. The quantitative scores meticulously analyzed resiliency and …

The Demand For Educational Functions Of Study Tour Products: From Students’ Perspectives, Yaqi Yu, Azizan Marzuki

Journal of Educational Technology Development and Exchange (JETDE)

Few academic studies have comprehensively examined the actual demands of students regarding the educational function of study tours. This paper develops a demand index system based on three dimensions: cognitive, affective, and behavioral demands. A questionnaire survey was administered to 397 students. Initially, student demands were categorized using the Kano model. Subsequently, the “dependence” and “expectancy” characteristics were analyzed through the dissatisfaction index (DI) and satisfaction index (SI). The impact of fulfilling each demand on dissatisfaction and satisfaction levels was then determined. The results indicated that among the three dimensions, there were 7 must-be demands, 6 one-dimensional demands, 8 attractive …

Infidelity And The Bioecological Protective Factors For Mental Health: A Longitudinal Investigation, Lindy Williams

Master's Theses

Infidelity is an important topic of research due to the profound effects on the individual experiencing the trauma. Through the lens of bioecological systems and betrayal trauma, the impact of infidelity on mental health is examined in relation to the most proximal systems to an individual which include personality traits such as agreeableness and neuroticism as well as support from friends, family, and community. This research explores the hypotheses that more support leads to more positive mental health outcomes after the experience of infidelity and the possibility that support from friends, family, and community may buffer specific personality traits and …

Towards Economic Growth And Development: The Role Of Development Finance Institutions In Fostering Foreign Direct Investment In Sub-Saharan Africa, Carmen Cagiza

Doctoral Projects

This dissertation contributes to the debate on economic development in developing countries through the analyses of four related strands of literature – the FDI and growth literature, the literature on finance and development, the DFI and growth literature, aid, institutions and economic development. The present research seeks to contribute to the debate on the effect of DFIs on FDI and consequently on economic development in developing economies to bridge the existing funding gap and thus ensure these economies achieve the global shared vision of sustainable development of the United Nations 2030 agenda. We acknowledge that development is triggered by economic …

An Exploration Of Black Church Leaders' Intentions To Develop Critical Consciousness Among African-American Students, Taheesha Quarells

Dissertations

African-American students experience human capital opportunity and achievement gaps. Researchers have called for culturally relevant strategies to help close the gaps. The historic Black Church, a part of many African-American students’ culture and community, is a historic and current source of social capital for positive human capital development outcomes. Critical consciousness develops positive human capital outcomes, such as academic achievement, in African-American and other minority students. Much of the literature on critical consciousness is quantitative in nature and therefore does not include the intentions or the willingness of organizations to develop critical consciousness. Therefore, there is a need to understand …

Water Elites’ Perceptions Of Water Security In The Middle East And North Africa Region, Ghaleb Akari

Dissertations

The Middle East and North African region continues to face significant water security challenges. The purpose of this dissertation is to gain a deeper understanding of water elites’ perceptions of water security in the MENA region. It is not meant to generalize the findings. Instead, the intention for the research is to identify, explain, and analyze by national elites' contrasting perceptions in Jordan, Iraq, Egypt, and Tunisia.

The study examines water elites’ perceptions in four areas: current knowledge level of water security, water resource management, water service delivery, and water-related risk mitigation. These elites’ perceptions of water security will help …

No More Shade: Deforestation And Rural-Urban Migration In Nigeria, Kambre Sims

Master's Theses

Some of the most well-documented motivating factors of migration in Nigeria include education, employment opportunities, and cultural conflicts. However, as the deforestation crisis has not improved and Nigeria has maintained its spot as the country with the most deforestation on Earth, access to critical forest resources may be in danger. In light of this crisis, this paper attempts to determine if deforestation has become a new motivating factor for migration as those in rural communities seek other avenues of obtaining those vital resources. Subsequently, Nigeria is also experiencing a housing crisis within its rapidly growing urban centers; obtaining and keeping …

The Haitian Diaspora As Human Capital And Agents Of Change: Perceptions And Attitudes Of The Haitian Diaspora As An International Development Actor, Alain Pompilus

Dissertations

For decades, Paul Romer’s endogenous growth theory has enriched the discussion regarding human capital in development. Romer posits that human capital is a vital resource and critical component of macroeconomic growth. With emigration identified as the leading cause of human capital loss for developing countries, Romer recommends growth policies focus on accessing knowledge in more developed parts of the world. As a way to achieve sustained development, institutions like the United Nations have proposed strategies similarly aligned with Romer’s theory. These institutions suggest the diaspora, as a source of human capital, can go beyond remittances and serve as integral actors …

Non-Traditional Church Involvement As A Life-Course Turning Point: Qualitative Interviews With Religious Offenders, William Hunter Holt

Dissertations

This research project conducted and then analyzed qualitative interviews from former and current addicts and criminal offenders who are voluntarily participating in the Christian faith at the same non-traditional, Protestant church. An abridged case study of this church is also provided for background and context. Life-course theory and grounded theory are utilized.

Both the offenders and this church were chosen in an attempt to better understand how the offenders’ involvement at this house of worship, along with their faith in general, have impacted them. Obtaining the perspectives of the offender is essential for three reasons. First, qualitative research conducted in …

Exploring Scale In Ocean And Coastal Governance In The Wider Caribbean, Robin C. Mahon

Gulf and Caribbean Research

An early childhood attraction to the sea led to a career in marine ecology, fisheries and ocean and coastal governance. This paper tracks the development of my career from tertiary education, through a variety of jobs and positions with government, private sector, international and academic organizations. These positions took me from national to regional levels of governance, then down to local levels and ultimately back up to regional and global levels. At each stage new concepts join those already there to build what is ultimately a multilevel perspective on ocean and coastal governance. This perspective is built around ideas of …

Winning Public Hearts And Minds: Security And Development Aid In The 21st Century, Mohammad Ashraf

Dissertations

In the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 attacks against the United States, foreign aid has focused on winning public hearts and minds in the aid recipient states as a hedge against insecurity and means to achieve progress in the “war on terror.” Western donors, especially the United States, argue foreign aid is an effective tool to expand government capacity and control over territory, win public hearts and minds, and ultimately mitigate the need and significant military costs of deployment to counter insecurity, extremism, and terrorism in weak, fragile and failing states.

This dissertation uses case studies to explore the …

The Diffusion Of Telehealth: System-Level Conditions For Successful Adoption, Danika Tynes

Dissertations

Telehealth is a promising advancement in health care, though there are certain conditions under which telehealth has a greater chance of success. This research sought to further the understanding of what conditions compel the success of telehealth adoption at the systems level applying Diffusion of Innovations (DoI) theory. System-level indicators were selected to represent four components of DoI theory (relative advantage, compatibility, complexity, and observability) and regressed on 5 types of Telehealth (Teleradiology, Teledermatology, Telepathology, Telepsychology, and Remote Monitoring) using multiple logistic regression.

Analyses included data from 84 states leveraging data from the World Health Organization, World Bank, ICT Index, …

Discrepant Self-Perceptions As Predictors Of Rule Violating Behavior Among Juvenile Offenders, Kimberly Barajas

Master's Theses

Numerous studies have examined discrepancies between youths’ self-perceptions and others’ ratings across different domains of competence (i.e. academic, behavior, social) (e.g., Jia, Jiang, & Mikami, 2016; Kistner, 2006; Owens et al., 2007) and it is well-established that discrepant self-perceptions are risk factors for maladaptive outcomes (e.g., aggression, depression) in children and adolescents (David & Kistner, 2000; Jia et al., 2016; Kistner et al., 2006). Only one study has examined discrepant self-perceptions (e.g., perceptual bias) in a sample of male juvenile offenders (JOs) (Smith, Lynch, Stephens, & Kistner, 2015). This study sought to extend the literature examining discrepant self-perceptions within juvenile …