Leadership Studies Commons^™

Accessing Campus Mental Health Services In A Nigerian Southwestern University: Barriers To Academic Success, Caroline Dada

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Mental health disorders are a significant health concern among higher education institutions in sub-Saharan Africa, including Nigeria. A substantial treatment gap exists in the Nigerian healthcare system, and this gap is further worsened by cultural and religious barriers, which reinforce stigma that discourages students from seeking professional help. This qualitative narrative inquiry explored the barriers students encountered when accessing mental health services at a university in Southwestern Nigeria, to increase service access. Qualitative semistructured interviews were conducted with seven professional mental health providers at a university counseling center between March and April 2025. Inductive thematic analysis was used to identify …

Building A Digital Altar For The Justice-Centered Torch-Bearers: The Role Of Digital Networks In Supporting Contemporary Racial Justice Activists Through Contemplative Practices, Renée L. Bradford

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

This mixed-methods study aimed to identify factors critical in building a digital support network employing contemplative practices to support activists engaging in racial justice work in the United States. The research question that guided this study was: What factors do racial justice activists regard as critical in building a digital support network employing contemplative practices? The study’s importance lies in addressing the evolving landscape of digital activism while honoring the spiritual and relational foundations that have historically sustained social justice movements, particularly as contemporary activists navigate new technological tools while seeking to maintain authentic connection and contemplative grounding. Key findings …

Examining Challenges For Sociology Master’S Degree Students At California State University, David Ortuno

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to identify the lived experiences of CSU sociology graduate students pursuing a master’s degree. Seven sociology graduate students from six of the eight (75%) total sociology MA programs throughout the entire CSU system were interviewed. Their responses were designed to analyze the support systems and challenges they face while pursuing a master's degree, as well as to investigate whether their experiences correlate with or fail to correlate with the promises in the CSU mission statement, and to answer the study’s research questions and achieve the purpose of this qualitative study.

Four themes emerged from …

Graduate Student Retention: Examining Why Master’S Students Leave And What Motivates Their Return In A Large Public University System, Sonja Prophete

Theses and Dissertations

Graduate student persistence is a relatively unexplored area in the literature of higher education studies; specifically, at a multi-institutional scale at the master's level. This research study examines the factors which cause students to discontinue their master's degrees, and what conditions could possibly support them returning to their program at a large urban public university system. The current study was guided by Hoyt and Winn's (2004) distinction between non-returning students, and Bean & Metzner's (1985) theoretical model of student attrition. A sequential mixed-methods study was conducted to examine the institutional and environmental influences on students' decision-making processes.

The quantitative data …

Beyond The Brotherhood: Exploring Communal Leadership In Masculinity Contest Cultures, Scott A. Metzler

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

This phenomenological study explores the lived experiences of formal and informal leaders who exercise communal leadership, characterized by collaboration, inclusion, and relational focus, within the masculinity contest cultures of law enforcement and the fire service, where strength, competition, and hierarchical leadership often rule the day. Through in-depth qualitative interviews with 19 participants across the United States, this research investigates how and why leaders choose to challenge organizational norms, how they perceive the effects of their decisions on themselves and others, and how they navigate the tensions and contradictions between communal leadership and hypermasculine cultural expectations. The findings reveal that leaders …

Feeling Seen By Being Heard: A Constructivist Critical Incident Study Of The Listening Experiences Of Ciswomen Of Color For The Development Of An Inclusive Listening Praxis For Leaders, Christina Zhong-Wen Chang

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

This study examines how listening shapes inclusive workplaces by exploring the listening experiences of 23 professional cisgender women of color working in predominantly white institutional spaces. Although listening is a fundamental part of communication, it is frequently undervalued and overlooked in leadership literature. Using the constructivist critical incident technique (CCIT) methodology, the research analyzed 88 significant moments when participants felt distinctly heard or unheard by leaders. Findings reveal that listening operated as a relational practice signaling respect, affirmation of voice, and anchoring leadership in accountability, while enabling leaders to engage perspectives beyond their own. Four listening types emerged: Listening Withheld, …

Navigating Financial Futures: A Case Study Of A Targeted Financial Literacy Program For African American College Students, Michael L. James

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

This dissertation presents a qualitative analysis of a targeted financial literacy program designed for African American college students. The dissertation examined how African American college students describe and make meaning of their participation in a targeted financial literacy program, particularly in relation to the program’s structure, content, and delivery. Despite growing interest in financial literacy education, interventions that acknowledge the persistent wealth gap and systemic financial inequities faced by African Americans remain underexplored. Employing a case study research method within a program understanding framework, this study investigated a program at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). Findings reveal that the …

Approaching Social Cohesion And Social Progress From A Systems Perspective: A Mixed Methods Analysis Of The Canadian Multiculturalism Act, Melissa Kimmel

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Social cohesion plays an important role in supporting stable, equitable, and resilient societies. Growing social division and polarization have weakened collective trust and challenged progress in many nations. Understanding how social cohesion can be strengthened has become increasingly important as societies face rising inequality, political partisanship, and declining institutional legitimacy. This study examines how social cohesion can function as a systemic driver of social progress through the example of Canada’s Multiculturalism Act. The Act provides a lens for understanding how national policy can serve as a way to strengthen inclusion, equality, and belonging within diverse societies. This study utilizes a …

Weaving Leadership: A Participatory Narrative Inquiry Into Alaska Native Women’S' Relational And Intersectional Leadership, Aleesha Ikayuk Towns-Bain

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Alaska Native women have long supported their families, Tribes, and communities through leadership that is relational, adaptive, and rooted in Indigenous cultural values. In recent years, Alaska Native women have assumed significant leadership roles within a diverse range of Western sectors—including government, business, higher education, and nonprofits—while maintaining roles as critical culture holders and community builders. Despite their contributions, the leadership experiences of these women are poorly understood in both leadership practice and scholarship. The purpose of this research project was to explore how Alaska Native women make meaning of their leadership experiences through Indigenous relational values and at the …

The Efficacy Of International Conflict Feminism In Postconflict Peacebuilding: Learning From The Lived Experiences Of Liberian Women Through A Decolonial Lens, Kristen N. Mcnutt

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Focusing on Liberia, this study investigates the efficacy of governance feminism (GF) and international conflict feminism (ICF) in postconflict liberal peacebuilding, specifically analyzing United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 and the Women, Peace, and Security (WPS) agenda to reveal critical gaps between policy narratives and the lived realities of Liberian women. Grounded in decolonial feminism and the coloniality of gender and peace frameworks, the research integrates ideographic narrative analysis of UN Women and Liberian government policy reports, a day-in-the-life study with 13 Liberian women, and surveys and interviews with multilevel actors across international organizations, government, and grassroots organizations, guided by …

She Leads: A Phenomenological Study Of Women's Leadership Experiences In Nonprofit Organizations, Trisha W. Lee

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Women comprise a significant portion of the nonprofit sector workforce but are underrepresented in leadership, particularly among executives in larger revenue nonprofit organizations (NPOs). This phenomenological study explored the lived experiences of women who led large, local NPOs (those with annual revenues between $1 million and $5 million) in Ohio. Addressing a gap in understanding the intersection of gender and leadership in large revenue NPOs, this research compared women who were founders of their NPOs with women who ascended to leadership in established organizations. Did founding one’s own NPO provide an advantage in leading it once it grew? How did …

Against Audiepistemic Injustice: Claiming Deaf Futurity, Pamela R. Conley

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

This dissertation proposes a new theoretical framework: Audiepistemic Injustice (AEI). Expanding upon existing theories of epistemic injustice (EI), I identify AEI as the systemic marginalization and dismissal of deaf ways of knowing. AEI is a multidimensional phenomenon rooted in the nineteenth century, when auditory and linguistic biases became codified across education, law, and literature. This interdisciplinary study interrogates three nineteenth-century literary narratives as primary case studies to examine AEI: (1) Ivan Turgenev’s “Mumu,” (2) Guy de Maupassant’s “The Deaf Mute,” and (3) Abigail Bradley Hyde’s “The Deaf and Dumb Child: A True Narrative.” I synthesize these literary works with legal …

Digital Griots Playing Lottery Tickets: A Study Of Hip Hop And Social Transformation In Ghana's #Fixthecountry Movement, Jaime M. Kowlessar

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

On June 28, 2021, activist Ibrahim Mohammed (Macho Kaaka) was murdered in Ejura, Ghana, after using social media to criticize government failures. When protesters demanding justice were shot by security forces, politically engaged Ghanaian hip hop artists refused silence, contributing to Ghana’s #FixTheCountry movement—the nation’s largest youth mobilization in a generation. Yet scholarly debates about how hip hop contributes to social change remain unresolved, divided between those celebrating its activist potential and those critiquing its limitations. This dissertation introduces the lottery ticket theory as an alternative framework for understanding cultural activism’s relationship to political transformation. Rather than asking whether hip …

From Margin To Mandate: Examining Community Development Strategies That Support Black Lgbtq+ Youth Experiencing Homelessness, Martel Okonji

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Black LGBTQ+ transitional-aged youth (TAY) experiencing homelessness navigate intersecting systems of marginalization that shape their access to safety and stability. While community development organizations play a critical role in addressing these inequities, limited research examines how these strategies are implemented. This study explored how a community development organization supports Black LGBTQ+ TAY experiencing homelessness. Using a qualitative single case study design, data was collected through semi-structured interviews with leadership, staff, and youth, and analyzed using thematic analysis. Grounded in community development theory and ethical leadership, the study examined how organizational practices shape outcomes. Findings revealed an affirming, relational approach centered …

The Journey To Generative Conflict: An Action Research Study In A Community Action Agency, Maya Townsend

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Countries around the world face unprecedented levels of polarization and discontent, creating conditions that encourage organizational conflict as employees replicate patterns present within the environment. Organizational conflict can be a source of anxiety, a distraction from work, and an impediment to innovation, sound decision making, and quality outcomes. However, conflict need not be destructive. With that background, this dissertation is guided by the following primary research question: How can an organization develop a generative conflict culture that strengthens relationships and contributes to positive outcomes? The single-case study follows one community action agency as it seeks to develop and implement more …

Good News For The Poor And More: Reclaiming Martin Luther King, Jr.'S Radical Gospel Of Economic Justice In Pursuit Of The Beloved Community, Lester A. Mccorn

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

This dissertation, Good News for the Poor and More: Reclaiming Martin Luther King Jr.’s Radical Gospel of Economic Justice in Pursuit of the Beloved Community, argues that Martin Luther King Jr.—one of the most transformational American leaders of the 20th century—should be best understood as a central figure within the Black Social Gospel tradition whose rhetoric constitutes a sustained socio-political and theological critique of economic injustice. Moving beyond interpretations that limit King to racial integration and civil rights, this study demonstrates that his preaching confronts the structural realities of poverty, racial capitalism, and militarism as interrelated forms of systemic …

Exploring Leadership In A Changing Church, Tanya Varner

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

The present phenomenological study investigated the experience of leaders and leadership among active Lutheran clergy serving congregations in the Eastern Synod of the ELCIC in a time of change. Eleven rostered leaders of the Eastern Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada (ELCIC) were interviewed individually using a semi-structured interviews addressing leadership and changes in the church to facilitate the conversation. Participants also completed a participant questionnaire in advance of the semi-structured interview to make sure the sample was diverse in gender, years of ordination and geographical context of ministry. Participants were able to articulate what values and requirements …

Case Study: The Economic And Legal Challenges Moving From A Township To A City, George F. Dierberger Dr., Ibrahim Keita Dr., Cory Erickson

Journal of the North American Management Society

The paper examines the economic and legal challenges moving from a township to a municipality in the state of Minnesota. One of the authors was a member of the township board as they went through the process of educating the citizens on the risks and rewards of changing from a township to a municipality.

Maximizing Online Intersession Enrollment Through Targeted Course Offerings, Heather S. Mcmillan, Charles D. Mcallister

Journal of the North American Management Society

Abstract

Online winter intersession courses have become an increasingly important strategy for universities seeking to support accelerated student progression while generating incremental tuition revenue. This study examines ten years of winter intersession enrollment data from a public, master’s-level comprehensive university in the Midwestern United States to identify course characteristics associated with higher student enrollment. Using 12,520 individual enrollment records, the analysis focuses on course type (general education versus major requirement), course classification (lower level, upper level, blended undergraduate/graduate, and graduate), and course discipline. A series of ANOVAs and Bonferroni post-hoc tests reveal significant differences in enrollment across these dimensions, with …

Reflections At The Close Of My Freshman Year As Editor, Heather S. Mcmillan

Journal of the North American Management Society

No abstract provided.

Ai Ethics And Governance For Leaders In Higher Education: A Hermeneutic Phenomenology Of Faculty Early Adopters’ Sensemaking, Pedagogical Innovation, And Transformation, Freddie Seba

Doctoral Dissertations

Artificial Intelligence (AI), especially Generative AI (GenAI), is transforming how we work, learn, acquire, produce, and deliver knowledge, as higher education experiences existential pressures, including demographic changes that reduce enrollment and revenues, as well as shifting public and government perceptions of higher education's value.

This hermeneutic phenomenology dissertation study explores how faculty early adopters critically engage, innovate, and experiment with this nascent transformational technology in their pedagogies amid multilevel pressures: macro—market-driven (neoliberalism) logic, Big Tech, and demographic change; meso—institutional policy, broader faculty community, and pedagogical innovation; micro—widespread student adoption, pedagogical experimentation, and innovation.

This dissertation study centers on shifting AI …

Exploring Themes In Leadership Transition At A Rural Nonprofit Community Theatre: An Accidental Research Project, Elise Lael Kieffer

Journal of Nonprofit Innovation

Leadership transitions in nonprofit organizations present both challenges and opportunities, particularly in rural community-based theatres where organizational identity is often deeply connected to individual leaders. This study employs narrative inquiry, guided by the lens of Feminist Pragmatism, to explore leadership change at Playhouse in the Park, a long-standing rural community theatre in Murray, Kentucky. Through interviews, reflections, and observations, the study identifies five emergent themes shaping directors’ experiences: expectations, programming content, personality, relational expectations, and the balance between cautiousness and freedom. Findings suggest that the tensions inherent in rural nonprofit leadership transitions—rather than serving as obstacles—function as necessary forces that …

Innovative Philanthropy And Community-Based Approaches: Bridging Access To Sustainable Solutions In Low-Infrastructure Settings, Stephanie Zabriskie

Journal of Nonprofit Innovation

Nonprofits operating in remote or low-infrastructure environments often encounter structural barriers that undermine social impact, especially for women and girls. These barriers are frequently attributed to funding shortages or lack of innovation. However, evidence from practice suggests that many social problems in these contexts persist not because solutions do not exist, but because they do not reach the communities who need them. This thought paper examines the role of nonprofit organizations as bridging agents that connect existing solutions to underserved communities, using women’s health access in East Africa as a case example. The analysis highlights the limitations of episodic philanthropic …

“A Leader Or A Teacher”: A Latent Theory Of Transformative Education In James Macgregor Burns’S Transforming-Transactional Leadership Paradigm, Evan Rw Dutmer

Interdisciplinary Journal of Leadership Studies

The purpose of this paper is to uncover a latent theory of transformative teaching and learning to be found in James MacGregor Burns’s account of transforming leadership and place it in interdisciplinary conversation with transformative education. The importance of this interdisciplinary exploration consists in this: Burns’s view that good leadership and good teaching are nearly indistinguishable has powerful implications that have been too little recognized. For, if right, teachers ought to view their work as exemplifying leadership (of a mutually beneficial, elevating sort); similarly, leaders across organizations ought to look to transformative teachers as paradigmatic models of good leadership. Expanding …

The Perception Of Leader Identity: The Impact Of The Covid-19 Pandemic On Interfaith Hospital Chaplains, Zachary C. Wooten, Jocelyn R. Brown

Interdisciplinary Journal of Leadership Studies

This article showcases the results of one research question in a multi-question study, specifically, “How do interfaith hospital chaplains perceive themselves leaders or part of the leadership process?” To answer this question, researchers interviewed ten interfaith hospital chaplains and employed interpretive phenomenological analysis (IPA). The analysis revealed the participants’ views that interfaith hospital chaplains are part of the leadership processes in hospital systems. A significant opportunity exists for chaplains and the healthcare system at large to engage in a more expansive, interdisciplinary understanding of leadership with the work of healthcare chaplaincy at the center of such discourse. This understanding moves …

Beyond Charisma: A Critical Theory Perspective On Populist Leadership In A Post-Covid Age Of Crisis, Samuel Fianko-Ofori, Stephen Apolima

Interdisciplinary Journal of Leadership Studies

This paper argues that the digital communication environment has qualitatively transformed the dynamics of populist leadership, moving it beyond a reliance on personal charisma. While the affective bonds between leaders and followers—explored by classical theorists like Weber, Freud, and Adorno—are not new, their operation within the platformed public sphere marks a distinct shift. We introduce the concept of Affective Populist Leadership (APL) to conceptualize this shift. APL is a mode of leadership sustained through the strategic cultivation and digital amplification of collective emotions. It operates through three mutually reinforcing mechanisms: (1) the perpetual theatrical framing of politics as crisis, (2) …

Book Review: Growing Women In Ministry: Seven Aspects Of Leadership Development, Beth Ann Fisher, Victoria Blondeau

Discernment: Theology and the Practice of Ministry

Growing Women in Ministry: Seven Aspects of Leadership Development, by Anna R. Morgan. Grand Rapids: Baker, 2024. 272 pages, $30.

Black Women And Latinas In Stem: A Systematic Review Of Literature, Karin Moore

The Scholarship Without Borders Journal

This systematic review of literature examines scholarly studies conducted on Black women and Latinas in STEM fields and in STEM higher education. Women are underrepresented in STEM, and on average they comprise 27% of the STEM population (National Science Foundation, 2017). Black women and Latinas are even further underrepresented in STEM by making up only 14.58 % and 3% of the employees in STEM industries (Hispanic Heritage Foundation, 2020; National Science Foundation, 2021). Barriers for all women are the focus of much of the body of literature in STEM (Beach et al., 2024; Moore, 2024). Isolating specific challenges Black women …

Marooned: A Western Frontier Dismal Swamp Narrative, Professor Meya E. Hargett

The Scholarship Without Borders Journal

Marooned: A Western Frontier Dismal Swamp Narrative centers the erased figure of Samuel Mars, a lost Black station master whose movements through the Great Dismal Swamp have been excluded from dominant Underground Railroad cartographies. Here, the term “Marooned” refers not to abandonment, but to the maroon geographies of Black and Indigenous resistance encoded in land, lineage, and fugitive infrastructure.

Guided by Diasporic Maroon Memory Theory, Lineage as Method, and the Maroon Geographies Framework, this research reconstructs Mars’s trajectory through oral testimony, spatial patterning, and ancestral land memory. Rather than casting the Dismal Swamp merely as a site of refuge, this …

Extending The Emotional And Multiple Intelligence Theories: Integrating Cultural And Spiritual Intelligence Constructs To Fill Research Gaps, Kimberly J. Mcdonald

The Scholarship Without Borders Journal

This proposed mixed-methods convergent research study aims to explore extending the Emotional Intelligence (EI) and Multiple Intelligences Theories by integrating Spiritual Intelligence (SI) and Cultural Intelligence (CQ) constructs. The goal is to explore the interconnectedness of these intelligences to bridge existing research gaps concerning leadership, EI, SI, and CQ. By employing both quantitative and qualitative data collection methods from organizational leaders, this study seeks to develop a more comprehensive and holistic understanding of leadership efficacy across various organizational contexts. The anticipated outcomes aim to contribute to the body of knowledge and potentially impact leadership development in business, education, and other …