Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Women's Empowerment By Group Sewing Training: A Microfinance Study In El Salvador, Sharleen Andrews

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This case study explored the lived experiences of 8 participants in a microfinance sewing program in El Salvador. Numerous studies focused on empowering women by employing microfinance projects or programs in many countries; however, a lack of empirical data exists regarding Salvadoran women's perceptions about how a sewing program with teamwork affects women's empowerment. The purpose of this case study was to understand the women's personal stories, their obstacles as well as any factors they saw as empowering them. Guided by a constructionist framework, a sample of 8 participants: 5 who were sewing students and 3 who were employees, who …

Social Workers' Perceptions Of Barriers To Substance Abuse Treatment In Mississippi, Catherine Pacher

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Addiction is a national problem in the United States that impacts public health and social and economic welfare. The purpose of this case study was to identify barriers that impede treatment and hinder the success of client recovery from addiction. The research question focused on social work clinicians' perceptions of barriers to effective treatment with substance abuse clients in Coastal South Mississippi. The theoretical framework for this research was the reasoned action theory. Data was collected from a focus group, personal interviews, and the review of literature. Purposeful sampling was used to select 13 social workers for interviews and for …

Influence Of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Policy On Army Families' Food Insecurity, Kathleen Anne Van Voorhis

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Food insecurity (not having continuing access to nutritious food to maintain health) is common in the United States, especially in working poor households. The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is a well-documented safety net for individuals and families struggling with food insecurity. Little is known about the effect of SNAP policy on food insecurity in working poor military households. The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to investigate the lived experiences of food-insecure Army families and the perceived influence of SNAP policy on their food-insecurity. The theoretical framework was policy feedback theory. Data were collected from semistructured interviews with …

A Phenomenological Examination Of Heterosexual Men Who Experience Psychological Abuse, Raymond Carson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Although sexual and physical abuse have clear definitions, psychological abuse is difficult to define and conceptualize. Though men can and have experienced psychological abuse, there is limited research on heterosexual men's experiences with psychological abuse and much of the research on abuse has been on women. Therefore, this qualitative phenomenological study, grounded on control theory, the social choice framework, and narrative theory, was conducted to investigate how heterosexual men describe their experiences with psychological abuse. A phenomenological qualitative approached with purposeful sampling was used to draw a sample of heterosexual male participants (N = 6), ages 30 to 42 were …

Lived Experiences Of Women Receiving Substance Abuse Treatment From Male Counselors, Robert C. Bennett

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The cost of the misuse of drugs is significant. The impact is felt across multiple systems across America and is covered mostly by federal, state, and local governments. Women comprise a significant portion of the persons using illicit drugs. Treatment is an effective way of reducing substance misuse. However, research into the efficacy of treatment for women lag that of men. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration reported that women receiving substance abuse treatment from a man had shorter stays in treatment and poorer outcomes than those who had a female counselor while in treatment. Phenomenological and relational-cultural …

Recent Parolees Participating In An Adult Basic Education And Work Skills Program, Charles Jenkins

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Abstract

The issue addressed in this study was the increasing number of prisoners in U.S. prisons and the related issue of recidivism after release. The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine the experiences of 8 formerly incarcerated adults. The conceptual foundation of this study was based on Bandura's self-efficacy theory and Vygotsky's concept of the zone of proximal development and transformational learning. The research question for this study inquired about how released prisoners perceive their educational experiences in the MTM program. Participants were selected among adults who were incarcerated for at least 12 months and living in the …

Surgical Perioperative Leadership: The Association Between Leadership Style And Team Job Satisfaction, Corey Louise Jamison

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Abstract

The perioperative operating room (OR) is a highly complex, fast-paced environment where countless transactions must be executed with efficiency, speed, and accuracy, and where mistakes of any kind could lead to adverse patient outcome, injury, or death. The surgeon, as leader of the procedure and the OR team, sets the overall climate of the OR and determines how willing (or unwilling) team members are to speak up about potential errors or unsafe patient conditions. This exploration of the relationship between perioperative surgeon leadership style and OR team member job satisfaction fills a gap unaddressed in the literature using items …

Understanding Of Self-Confidence In High School Students, George Ballane

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Students at a private high school in New Jersey exhibited low academic self-confidence as compared to other indicators on the ACT Engage exam. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to gain an understanding of academic self-confidence, academic performance, and learning within a sample of students. This research explored students' and teachers' perceptions of self-confidence and their impact on academic performance. The research was guided by Weiner's attribution and Bandura's self-efficacy theories. The research questions focused on 3 areas: students' and teachers' perceptions of academic self-confidence as factors impacting students' academic performance; and the perceived relationship between academic self-confidence, …

Education Policy Adoption In A Child Welfare Agency: Frontline Perspectives On Leadership, Jennifer Lea Williams

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This study focused on a policy that promotes educational stability for foster children in a southern state in the US. At the time of this study, this policy had not been fully adopted across the state which resulted in foster children not routinely receiving the interventions necessary for improving academic outcomes. Using the diffusion of innovation theory as a framework, the purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore how local-level leaders impacted the successful adoption of education policy in one county office of a statewide child welfare agency. Data were collected from a sample of 5 case managers …

Effect Of Model Of Care And Comorbidities On Multiple-Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis Treatment In Nigeria, Oluremilekun Comfort Kusimo

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) is a public health problem in several countries such as Angola, India, China, Kenya, and Nigeria. Due to the increasing high burden of MDR-TB, most of these countries do not have adequate capacities to manage MDR-TB patients effectively. This study investigated the effect of model of care; human immunodeficiency virus comorbidity; and demographic factors such as age, gender, and marital status on the treatment outcomes of MDR-TB patients in Nigeria. The study was based on the analysis of secondary data of 402 MDR-TB patients accessed from the data systems of the National Tuberculosis, Buruli Ulcer, and Leprosy …

Post-Ebola Case Management Of Orphaned Young Adults In Rural Sierra Leone, Augustine Frazer

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The 2014-2016 Ebola pandemic in Sierra Leone significantly increased the orphan population and the need for social support programs, especially for student-orphans in higher education. Poorly prepared disaster response managers have little knowledge about how college student-orphans experience social services. The purpose of this transcendental phenomenological study was to explore how post-Ebola student-orphans enrolled in an agricultural university in rural Sierra Leone experienced post disaster specialized case management to enhance student performance. Criterion sampling techniques including specific inclusion and exclusion criteria guided the recruitment, that included 10 research participants taking part in the semi structured interviews. Ecological system theory and …

Admission Members' Perceptions Of Predictive Validity Of The Graduate Record Examinations, Janet Thompson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Disparate student academic outcomes and program access is a problem at Master of Public Administration (MPA) programs in the Northeast United States The current admission committee members at the case university did not know institution leaders' rationale for eliminating the Graduate Records Examination (GRE) criterion. The decision to exclude the GRE as an MPA admission requirement was enacted prior to their respective tenures. The program leadership expressed interest in exploring research-based admission criteria to enhance student access and predictive outcomes. Supported by critical pedagogy and humanist theories, the purpose of this case study was to investigate admission committee members' viewpoints …

Female Sexual Abuse Survivors And The Therapeutic Relationship, Tracy J. Hollingworth

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Childhood abuse can impact the survivors' life in many ways. Children learn various skills from their caregivers, such as the tools needed to develop and maintain healthy relationships. When a child is abused by their caregiver, there can be a drastic impact on how the child perceives the world, and the therapeutic relationship is important in the healing process. This interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) study explored the lived experiences of therapists who work with adult women who are survivors of childhood sexual abuse to better understand the effects that childhood sexual abuse has on the therapeutic relationship. The theoretical base …

Exploring How Divorce-Related Communication Affected Relationships Between Same-Sex Parents And Their Offspring, Madonna Siao

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Communication styles used during divorce-related conversations may negatively influence the quality of parent-child relationships. Researchers have not examined how communication styles used in divorce-related communications affect parent-offspring relationships in same-sex parented families. The purpose of this generic qualitative study was to examine offspring perceptions of how divorce-related communication styles affected relationships between the children and their same-sex parents. The research question for this study addressed how the perceived communication styles of same-sex parents in divorce-related conversations influence the parent-offspring relationship. Principles from communication privacy management theory provided the conceptual framework. Two 21-year-old females whose same-sex parents dissolved their relationships participated …

Microlevel Fragility Of The African American Lgbt Community In North Carolina After House Bill 2, William Flozell Clements

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Social marginalization and isolation of target populations are growing areas of concern for policy administrators. African American Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (AA LGBT) individuals are not permitted full political, economic, or moral citizenship and thus are in society but not completely of it. Legislation such as North Carolina's House Bill 2 (HB2) has the potential to dissolve the social contract connecting life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness at the microlevel. The emerging U.S. trend of moving societally from universal access in microlevel institutions toward more market-based strategies poses a formidable challenge for this target population. The purpose of …

Funding And Allocation In School Districts Educating Children With Impact Aid, Jamee M. Lynch-Moore

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Budgeting and allocation decisions made by school districts have a direct impact on education in local communities. Little, however, is known about budgetary allocation and decision-making practices involving federal Impact Aid received by military-connected districts as no national guidelines exist to guide the allocation of this funding source. Using Sielke's garbage can decision model as the foundation, the purpose of this multiple case study of 5 school districts located throughout the United States was to explore how school districts use Impact Aid to achieve educational adequateness for military-connected children. Research questions focused on how school districts make budgetary decisions in …

Evaluating The Effectiveness Of Public Sector Interventions In Entrepreneurship Development In Nigeria, Michael Kalu Mba

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Entrepreneurship is significant to the production process for economic growth and development. The Nigerian government supports entrepreneurial development by providing business training for entrepreneurs across the country; however, the impact of such programs in current entrepreneurship in Nigeria has not been researched. This study was designed to examine the impact of the training on entrepreneurial outcomes such as profitability, revenue, and access to finance using the social construction framework and the theory of external control of organizations. Based on a quantitative quasi-experimental design involving a posttest comparison group, the impact of government support on randomly selected beneficiaries and nonbeneficiaries with …

Public Servants' Perceptions Of The Cybersecurity Posture Of The Local Government In Puerto Rico, Julio C. Rodriguez

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The absence of legislation, the lack of a standard cybersecurity framework, and the failure to adopt a resilient cybersecurity posture can be detrimental to the availability, confidentiality, and integrity of municipal information systems. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to understand the cybersecurity posture of municipalities from the perception of public servants serving in information technology (IT) leadership roles in highly populated municipalities in the San Juan-Carolina-Caguas Metropolitan Statistical Area of Puerto Rico. The study was also used to address key factors influencing the cybersecurity posture of these municipalities. The theoretical framework was open system theory used in combination …

African American Fathers Raising An Autistic Child, Shannon Latoya Burns-Darden

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Parents of a child diagnosed with autism have a high risk for physical and emotional stress with mental health difficulties. Little research exists regarding fathers with an autistic child, and less information exists on African American fathers who struggle with coping and finding appropriate interventions and resources for raising an autistic child. The purpose of this interpretative, phenomenological study was to analyze the lived experiences of 12 African American fathers raising their child diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. This study's theoretical lens was Bowen's family systems theory. The data from this study consisted of 12 interviews with African American fathers …

Sextortion: Psychological Effects Experienced And Seeking Help And Reporting Among Emerging Adults, Tonya Howard

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Sextortion is a phenomenon that has made an impact on the digital technology domain. Sexting is a transmission of sensual messages or performances, provocation, and schemes exhibited through an array of sexual behaviors. The purpose of this cross-sectional study was to examine the psychological effects experienced of sextortion and to uncover the willingness to seek help and report the incident to authorities. Arnett's emerging adulthood theory provided the framework for this study. The sample consisted of N = 27 responders between 18-24 years of age who have engaged in sexting behaviors and may or may not have experienced sextortion. Simple …

Employing Persons With Disabilities In Madagascar, Lila Hanitra Ratsifandrihamanana

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

In Madagascar, the barriers to persons with disabilities' employability are multifaceted and relate to accessibility, funding, attitudes, and policies. Managers lack knowledge on disability and still perceive disabled persons as incompetent and associate them with costly accommodation needs. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to examine the management strategies and leadership styles that managers could use to enhance the employability chances of persons with disabilities. The conceptual framework featured the concepts of empowerment, employability, disability identity, and relevant transformational leadership theories. Semistructured interviews were conducted with 28 managers in private companies, institutions, cooperatives, and organizations in 3 regions …

Community Engagement And Diverse Representation In Planning For An Immigrant Neighborhood In A U. S. Pacific Northwest City, Christopher Amba Ndifon

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Traditional avenues of influencing planning decisions are not intuitive for diverse, historically underrepresented community residents in many neighborhoods and many immigrant residents come from societies where engaging in public discourse is discouraged or dangerous. The focus of this study, the Planning Outreach and Engagement Liaison (POEL) program, was designed to address these discrepancies, yet whether the program was successful is unknown. Using participatory democracy as the theoretical framework, the purpose of this case study was to explore whether the POEL program brought diverse residents together to participate in the neighborhood planning process. Data were collected through semi structured interviews with …

A Phenomenological Exploration Of Mindfulness Meditation And The Creative Experience, Sheryl Christian Morrissey

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Creating is the highest level of intellectual functioning in the cognitive domain. As standardized testing has increased, U.S. K-12 education has shown a decline in creativity for students. Mindfulness meditation (MM) increases creativity and could serve as a solution to this dilemma. This study's purpose was to enrich findings regarding MM's role in enhanced creativity by conducting an exploration regarding lived experiences of creating for individuals who practice MM. A gap in the literature exploring the topics of MM and creativity together using qualitative methods was identified; therefore, research understanding lived experiences of creating within the experiential context of MM …

The Impact Of Childhood Trauma And Personality On Kinkiness In Adulthood, Kaitlyn Hillier

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Historically, kinky sexualities and sexual behaviors have been understood as pathological or perverse. Such misunderstandings and misrepresentations have contributed to the development and perpetuation of kink stigma. The aim of this retrospective, cross-sectional, correlational research study was to explore the potential relationship(s) between pathology, personality, and kinky sexual behaviors/roles in adulthood. Guided by queer-feminist theory, the research questions addressed whether personality traits, experiences of childhood trauma, or a combination thereof, were predictors for kinky behaviors/roles in adulthood. A multi measure, anonymous, and confidential survey was distributed online including the Childhood Traumatic Events Scale as a childhood trauma questionnaire, the Mini-IPIP, …

Competency Development And Implementation Among Direct Support Professionals In New York State, Johanna Loporto

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Direct support professionals (DSPs) serve an important function in the daily supervision and care of clients with intellectual and developmental disabilities (ID/DD) through standardization of technical, cognitive, and ethical competencies for all DSPs. It is not clear, however, how these DSPs and managers perceive the implementation process and utility of these competencies or whether implementation results in meeting the desired outcomes for clients. Using Donabedian's quality of care model as the foundation, the purpose of this qualitative case study in New York State to understand how DSPs perceived the implementation of the DSP core competencies under the direction of front-line …

Metropolitan Young Adult American Muslims Perceptions Of Discrimination Post American Patriot Act, Ronald Mcdaniel

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Several researchers have identified discrimination and profiling as examples of oppression and threats to the democratic process. Scholarly literature provides little evidence on the experiences, beliefs, and attitudes of young adult Arab American Muslims post-9/11. This study addressed the attitudes and lived experiences of young adult Arab American Muslims between the ages of 18 and 25 regarding discrimination and profiling experienced in the District of Columbia Metropolitan area since the passage of the American Patriot Act. A phenomenological research study was conducted using Benet's polarities of democracy as the theoretical framework with a focus on diversity and equality. Data were …

The Ferguson Effect On Police Officers' Culture And Perceptions In Local Police Departments, Rarkimm K. Fields

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The Ferguson effect is a recent hypothesis that suggests police officers have been influenced by negative media coverage of police conduct. The problem this study addressed is how policing continues to deal with perception, civil liability, and accountability issues related to police misconduct when interacting with Latino and African-American communities. The research was conducted to examine influence the Ferguson effect may have had on the culture and perceptions of police officers in local police departments. With a phenomenological qualitative approach, the research data were collected from interviews with 7 police officers across 3 police departments. The theoretical background of Merton's …

Self-Efficacy, Decision Latitude, And Work Ethic Among Educated Women, Elisa Harris

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Although women are more likely to seek advanced degrees, there are substantial gaps between men and women in terms of employment rates, wages, and positions of power. This cross-sectional study aligned with the social cognitive career theory and investigated how specific demographic variables (age and education level) interacted and influenced work-related characteristics (decision latitude, self-efficacy, and work ethic) to address issues women experience in the workplace. Females who identified as working a minimum of 15 hours per week and over the age of 18 were contacted via social media or in person. A snowball effect occurred when participants invited peers …

Acculturative Stress And Adaptability Levels Between Documented Versus Undocumented Hispanic College Students, Philippe Charles

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Hispanic students often suffer from acculturative stress as they adapt to U.S. college environments; however, few scholars have examined the acculturative stress relationship among undocumented versus documented Hispanic college students. In this quantitative, correlational study design, adaptation levels related to acculturative stress between both statuses were examined. The theoretical foundations of this study are based on the social cognitive career theory. This investigation focused on determining how adaptation levels predict Hispanic college students' acculturative stress and whether this realtionship differ between documented and undocumented college students. The I-Adapt measure was used to measure participants' level of adaptability and the social, …

Physician Collaboration And Improving Health Care Team Patient Safety Culture: A Quantitative Approach, Jay J. Spitulnik

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Studies have found links between physician relationships with nurses, patient safety culture, and patient outcomes, but less is known about a similar link between physician relationships with allied health professionals (AHPs), patient safety culture, and patient outcomes. The purpose of this exploratory quantitative, survey study was to investigate whether physician interactions with AHPs contribute to improved patient-safety culture, AHP empowerment, and self-efficacy. Based on a theoretical framework consisting of structural empowerment, psychological empowerment, and self-efficacy, it was hypothesized that self-efficacy is predicted by structural and psychological empowerment and self-efficacy predicts a positive patient safety culture. The AHP Survey of Physician …