Leadership Studies Commons^™

Exploring Efforts On Two College Campuses To Cultivate A Culture Of Vocation, Mark Peters Phd

Dissertations

Young adults today experience an extended adolescence, a period of time now commonly referred to as emerging adulthood, in which they delay undertaking the roles traditionally associated with becoming an adult in contemporary society. College has the potential to become the mentoring environment needed for emerging adults to consider their future life choices grounded in the context of their deepest beliefs, shared values, and personal passions. Since 2000, the Lilly Endowment, Inc. has invested over $2 million in 88 select religiously affiliated colleges to fund Programs for the Theological Exploration of Vocation (PTEV). These Programs were designed to help students …

An Experimental Study Of Instructor Immediacy In The Wimba Virtual Classroom, Lorah Wood Bodie Edd

Dissertations

The social underpinnings of learning make it important to understand how people experience themselves and form relationships in web-based educational environments. Social presence is a critical factor of a communication medium that plays an important role in building community and improving the effectiveness of instruction. The components of social presence include words conveyed, verbal and nonverbal immediacy cues, and the context of the communication. The immediacy component of social presence is most often defined as perceived psychological closeness which is created in part by nonverbal cues (e.g., smiling and using gestures) and verbal cues (e.g., utilizing humor and inclusive pronouns). …

The Effects Of Different Types Of Prompts On Achievement And Attitude In Mathematics, Barbara R. Greer Edd

Dissertations

This study examined the effects of three different types of writing prompts, procedural, summary, and self-monitoring, on achievement and self-concept of ability in mathematics. Participants included 81 eighth grade students taking a course designed to prepare students for algebra in the ninth grade in a large urban school district in Southern California. Data were gathered using a quasi-experimental design, teacher-researcher created pre-and post-tests, the Minnesota Mathematics Attitude Inventory, teacher field notes, student responses to prompts, and individual and group interviews. Controlling for demographic and other variables identified in the study, simultaneous regression analysis revealed that only summary writing had a …

Ua77/1 Wku Spirit, Wku Alumni Relations

WKU Administration Documents

WKU's alumni magazine. Contents:

• Ransdell, Gary. President’s Letter
• WKU’s Comprehensive Energy Policy
• WKU Honored for Work at Upper Green River Biological Preserve
• Five Inducted into Kentucky Teacher Hall of Fame
• Regents Change Minimum Number of Hours Needed for Baccalaureate, Associate Degrees
• Students Likely to See Smaller Tuition Increase; Campus Budget to be Reduced
• WKU Engineering Students Demonstrate Submersible Device
• WKU’s Center for Gifted Studies Awarded $2 Million Grant for Project GEMS, Will Partner with Warren County Schools
• WKU One of Two Public Universities Recognized for Excellence in Teacher Education
• Gatton Academy, Center for Gifted Studies Among Partners for Commonwealth Institute …

Nicaraguan Women And Their Leadership Style, Laaitu Marie Sabiya

Theses and Graduate Projects

When meeting the women in Nicaragua and considering their country’s history, one would surmise the complexities and what would seem like a difficult future. This research analyzed three aspects of Nicaraguan women and their leadership styles: 1) self-empowerment, 2) ability to bring change to women with limited resources socially, politically and economically in their communities, and 3) Transformation of women’s leadership.

Five Nicaraguan women were invited to participate because they have a unique understanding of their traditional ways of life and demonstrate leadership. Culture pervades their entire social, political and economic existence, and these women have a positive inclination toward …

Developing Core Leadership Competencies For The Library Profession, Shorlette Ammons-Stephens, Holly J. Cole, Keisha Jenkins-Gibbs, Catherine Fraser Riehle, William H. Weare Jr.

University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries: Faculty Publications

The development of competencies, competency lists, or competency models has become a popular way to assess the strengths, needs, and potential contributions of individuals in an organization. The success of libraries as organizations is determined by the actions of the individuals who work in those libraries; the success of those individuals in carrying out the missions of those libraries is in large measure a reflection of the type and quality of leadership. Successful library leaders demonstrate certain skills that are instrumental in the delivery of desired outcomes. We usually think of the demonstration of these skills as competencies.

Creating a …

Obesity And Magazines: A Frame Analysis Of The Top Three Circulating Magazines, Sarah K. Doxey

Communication & Leadership Dissertations and Theses

Over the past two decades the rate of obesity has increased dramatically in the United States. Awareness of obesity as a public health issue has garnered more attention with American mass media. The purpose of this research study is to determine how the top three circulating magazines in America frame the issue of obesity in relationship to cause and solution and to determine the frame used to present the information to the readers. This qualitative study uses frame analysis to identify dominant frames within these news magazines from November 1, 2006 through November 1, 2008. Results indicate that the magazines …

Improving Board Communication: An Assessment Of Interpersonal, Small Group And Organizational Communication Of A Ten-Month-Old Nonprofit Organization, Martha C. Johnson

Communication & Leadership Dissertations and Theses

People who lead community organizations as volunteers may be successful by engaging in dialogue, building consensus and making decisions in order to accomplish the organization’s mission. This communication audit of a 10-month-old, 17-member nonprofit group employed questionnaires, interviews and participant observation to study the idea that information members receive about interpersonal and small group communication during the study would improve the effectiveness of their meetings and decisions. Grounded in social construction and coordinated management of meaning theory (e.g. Berger & Luckmann, 1966; Cronen, Barnett & Harris, 1979; Pacanowsky & Trujillo, 1982; Pearce, 1989; Maside, 1990; Shotter, 1993; Miranda & Saunders, …

The Role Of Angel Investors In Strategy From The Perspective Of Communication Theory, Kevin V. Mcconnaghy

Communication & Leadership Dissertations and Theses

The degree to which corporate directors are involved in strategy is subject to a wide range of influences and therefore is best viewed in the context of a continuum that extends from minimal involvement to perhaps the formulation of strategy. While studied extensively, the role of boards in strategy suffers from definitional issues, lack of access and other control related parameters. The purpose of this thesis is to explore the role of the board in a selected population that controls for many of the major factors influencing board engagement in strategy. As an exploratory study, this research is directed toward …

Identifying The Key Factors In The Effectiveness And Failure Of Virtual Teams, Matthew P. Earnhardt

Publications

Virtual teams, “individuals collaborating in geographically dispersed work teams who may reside in different time zones and countries” (Horwitz, Bravington, & Silvis, 2006, p. 472), are continuing to increase in frequency in today’s global economy. These teams have become a vital option for organizations that need to work in multiple locales at once and draw on vast global expertise. In fact, virtual teams and e-collaboration is considered an alternative to previously traditional formats, because of the cost savings and lack of space limitations associated with operating via virtual means (Kock & Nosek, 2005).

Ua3/9/5 Wku Energy Policy Announcement, Wku President's Office

WKU Administration Documents

Remarks and announcement by WKU president Gary Ransdell regarding WKU's energy policy and enumerating conservation efforts.

An Investigative Study Of The Difficulties Experienced By Engineers Transitioning Into Leadership/Management Positions, Joseph Alan Wilde

Theses and Dissertations

The traditional engineering career has been defined by two career paths: technical and managerial. An entry level engineer typically did not elect his/her career path until at least five years into a career. This meant that only a portion of engineers needed to learn management and leadership skills and then usually not until in the professional environment. Since this career distinction was not made until years into an engineer's professional life universities were not developing leadership/management skills in their students. Times have changed. With the globalization of the economy, and the increased competition in the marketplace, companies have realized that …

Effective Leadership In A Service Center Setting: An Analysis Of How To Increase Tenure Among Employees Through A Blended Leadership Model, Larissa Martin

Theses and Graduate Projects

Service Centers experience high turnover rates among employees. Creating a healthy working environment through effective leadership in a service center setting can be difficult due to the particular features of a service center. This analysis of the organizational literature on service centers leads to the development of a blended leadership model. Using the Transformational and Transactional Leadership models with an emphasis on role clarity, empowerment, trust, approachability of the leader, employee/leader relationship, contingent versus non-contingent behavior, and monitoring, the blended leadership model incorporates these concepts to provide an ideal type that would guide a call center leader in helping the …

A Formative Experiment Investigating The Use Of Reflective Video Journals To Increase High School Students' Metacognition, Brian Jeffrey Dixon Edd

Dissertations

This study sought to determine the factors that enhance the effectiveness of reflective video journals to increase the metacognition of adolescent students. To achieve this pedagogical goal, this study followed the six-phase methodology of a formative experiment. Twelve high school students participated in a six- session after-school reflective video journaling program. Diverse data collection methods were used to determine the factors in the educational environment that enhance or inhibit students' metacognition, how the intervention and its implementation were necessarily modified to more effectively achieve the pedagogical goal, the potential impact of feedback and peer response, and any unanticipated positive or …

Understanding Arts-Based Methods In Managerial Development, Steven S. Taylor, Donna Ladkin

Faculty Articles

With the rising use of arts-based methods in organizational development and change, scholars have started to inquire into how and why these methods work. We identify four processes that are particular to the way in which arts-based methods contribute to the development of individual organization managers and leaders: through the transference of artistic skills, through projective techniques, through the evocation of "essence," and through creating artifacts such as masks, collages, or sculpture, a process we call "making." We illustrate these processes in detail with two case examples and then discuss the implications for designing the use of arts-based methods for …

Seward Casa Board Development Workshop, Heartland Center For Leadership Development

Heartland Center for Leadership Development Materials

Agenda from the Seward CASA Board Development Workshop, February 21, 2009, presented by the Heartland Center for Leadership Development.

Retention Issues For Native Students, Ryan A. Bench

Theses and Graduate Projects

This research focuses on the history of Native Americans in higher education and the challenges that they are currently facing. The research also goes into detail regarding programs that benefit at risk students in higher education such as TRIO, Upward Bound, mentoring programs, and Student Support Services. The central question of these programs to the issues Native students face in higher education and use them to increase retention of these students.

Giving Circles, Roger A. Lohmann

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

A giving circle is a group of members pool their funds and information in collective or joint donations to organizations, causes or individuals. The article reviews some of the research on giving circles in the first decade of the 21st century.

The Virtue Of Profit (Mclean, Va), C. William Pollard

C. William Pollard Papers

In this speech delivered to the Workforce Ministry Group of McLean Presbyterian Church (McLean, VA), Pollard contends that profit can be considered virtuous when it allows servant leaders to invest in employees, thereby contributing to the moral and spiritual formation of human beings.

The Impact Of Authentic Leadership And Ethical Organizational Culture On Auditor Behavior, Janice Taylor Morris Phd

Dissertations

Recently, unprofessional behavior resulted in several high-profile financial scandals and business failures. Many blamed external auditors of these companies' financial statements for failing to detect and/or report errors and fraud that led to the failures. Leaders within major audit firms have been urged to foster more ethical firm environments as a means of inhibiting dysfunctional auditor behavior (DAB) such as premature sign-off, gathering insufficient audit evidence, and the underreporting of time spent conducting an audit. This advice is based on two assumptions: (1) auditor behavior is one element of audit quality and (2) the behavior of employees is influenced by …

Ethical Leadership, C. William Pollard

C. William Pollard Papers

Pollard based this speech on an afterword he had written for Scott A. Quatro and Ronald R. Sims, Eds., Executive Ethics: Ethical Dilemmas and Challenges for the C-Suite (Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing, 2008). In it Pollard contends that businesses can be moral communities if leaders understand themselves as moral entities, dedicated to the well-being of their employees.

Destructive Goal Pursuit: The Mount Everest Disaster [Review] / Kayes, D. Christopher, Becky A. De Oliveira

Journal of Applied Christian Leadership

No abstract provided.

Playing Second Trombone, Kevin Wiley

Journal of Applied Christian Leadership

No abstract provided.

Surprised By Joy: What Seniors Teach Us About The Meaning Of Leadership, Rhonda Louise Whitney

Journal of Applied Christian Leadership

No abstract provided.

The Success Delusion: Why It Can Be So Hard For Successful Leaders To Change, Marshall Goldsmith

Journal of Applied Christian Leadership

No abstract provided.

Ethics In The Workplace: Tools And Tactics For Organizational Transformation [Review] / Johnson, Craig E., Arne P. Nielsen

Journal of Applied Christian Leadership

No abstract provided.

On Growing Your Own Future Leaders: Succession Planning Practices Of Hospices, Paul D. Longenecker

Health and Sport Sciences Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Management As A Liberal Art: Putting People At The Center, C. William Pollard

C. William Pollard Papers

This article was published in the December 2008/January 2009 issue of the Christian Leadership Alliance's journal Outcomes. In it Pollard provides the broad contours of people-centered leadership, noting in particular how such leadership requires interaction with the humanities and social sciences as well as the ability to recognize the spiritual aspect of the human condition.

A Meta-Analytic Review Of Leadership Impact Research: Experimental And Quasi-Experimental Studies, Bruce J. Avolio, Rebecca J. Reichard, Sean T. Hannah, Fred O. Walumbwa, Adrian Chan

United States Army: Publications

In this study we set out to conduct a comprehensive quantitative research analysis of literature reporting results on the causal impact of leadership by focusing on examining what we refer to as ‘leadership interventions.’ We defined leadership interventions as those studies where the researcher overtly manipulated leadership as the independent variable through training, assignment, scenario or other means. Our focus included both examining experimental and quasi-experimental as well as lab and field studies conducted in public and private organizations. Our goal was to address a simple question: do leadership interventions have the intended impact and if so to what degree …

Leading The Church Into World Mission: The Life And Leadership Of John Nevins Andrews, Erich Baumgartner

Journal of Applied Christian Leadership

No abstract provided.