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The Impact of CenteringPregnancy Implementation
Carole Ann Moleti
Evaluation of 6 Centering Pregnancy Group Prenatal Care cycles showed the logic models supported implementation and expansion of Centering Groups at 2 federally qualified health centers. There was adequate progress toward site approval with favorable method fidelity scores in addition to patient and staff satisfaction ratings using the Centering Counts data collection system. Outcomes in 33 participants demonstrated beneficial effects on key indicators.
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Predictors of Non-Adherence to Medical Follow-Up Care Among African Americans with HIV/AIDS
Phyllis D. Morgan, Cynthia B. Banks, and Joshua Fogel
Persons living with Human Immunodeficiency Virus/Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (HIV/AIDS) who do not adhere to their medical follow- up appointments tend to have poorer health outcomes compared to HIV/AIDS patients who adhere to their medical follow-up appointments (Lima et al., 2009). This study examined factors that influence non-adherence of African-Americans with HIV/AIDS to medical follow-up appointments.
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Modeling Risk Management in Banks: Examining Why Banks Fail
Daniel O. Okehi
The aim of this research was to determine why there have been persistent bank failures in Nigeria and to investigate whether ineffective risk management in banks, coupled with poor corporate governance practices and nonadherence to regulations (independent variables), play a significant role in the banks' performance(dependent variable).
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Financial Resources and Technology to Transition to 450mm Semiconductor Wafer
Thomas Earl Pastore
Financial models that can be applied by management to build giant wafer foundries to manufacture low cost semiconductor products are demonstrated. This advanced semiconductor technology will likely drive a new frontier called the Internet of Everything, an expected $14 trillion market that will likely contribute to global positive social change.
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CEO Duality and Performance of Not-For-Profit Hospitals
Anh Ngoc Pham
Depending on their needs for enhancing and sustaining their business and market values, some firms choose to operate with a corporate governance structure of CEO duality, in which an executive serves as the CEO and the chairperson of the board of directors. This study used multiple regression data analyses of financial indicators from 146 U.S. not-for-profit hospitals selected from the Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development database of California, for the period from 2009 to 2012. The results of this study suggested CEO duality and presence of physicians on healthcare governance were not related to financial performance of not-for-profit hospitals.
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Understanding Distinctive Beliefs and Perceptions about Depression among Haitian Men
Darlyne Richardson
This is a quantitative analysis exploring the relationship between levels of depression in Haitian men as related to restrictive emotionality, self-reliance, subjective masculine stress, spiritual well-being, and length of time in the United States. The data were obtained from demographic questionnaires and surveys among 90 Haitian men residing in the United States.
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Measuring Engagement of Online High School Students
Beth A. Robelia Ph.D.
The purpose of this mixed methods study was to explore why online learners do not engage with their studies. Online high schools can create social change by creating learning environments that can flex place, pace, path and time. Theoretical constructs of student engagement were based on recent work in brick and mortar schools and adapted for an online context. Over 400 high school students were surveyed for their perceptions of what are the most engaging aspects of online learning. Twenty three teachers were interviewed about how they engaged students. Students who were engaged showed a pattern of having and keeping a work schedule, communicating with teachers, feel confident about their reading skills, and have involved parents. Teachers engaged students by personalizing lessons, communicating frequently through multiple channels, learning about their students personal lives, and understanding school is not the most important thing in many students lives. The research affected social change by raising awareness among students and faculty about the importance of staying connected to school for academic success.
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Health Behaviors, Hardiness, and Burnout in Mental Health Workers
Jeremiah Brian Schimp
This study addressed the connection between health behaviors, hardiness, and burnout in 223 mental health workers who completed online surveys of burnout, demographics, hardiness, and health behaviors. The results suggest mental health workers are better able to maintain their emotional energy through the cultivation of hardiness and management of stress.
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Gender Differences & Mental Health Stigma
Amy Sickel, Jason D. Seacat Ph.D., and Nina A. Nabors Ph.D.
While much is known about the impact of Mental Health Stigma, the relationship between stigma and gender is unclear. This study examined gender differences in four stigma variables using a non- clinical, adult population. Significant gender differences were found on one of the four stigma variables. Additional research utilizing equal sized samples is suggested.
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Success Factors of Small Business Owners of Independent Financial Planning Firms
Joanne Snider
Small Business Administration (SBA, 2014) statistics indicate 20% of small businesses fail within 2 years and 50% fail within 5 years. Interviews with 12 successful small business owners of independent financial planning firms revealed these success factors: (a) training in business operations, (b) business differentiation, and (c) website marketing.
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The Truth about Humans: The Decision to Adopt Dogs & Cats
Leann Stadtlander
Millions of dogs and cats are adopted from animal shelters every year, however, little is known about why specific animals are adopted. This study examines the qualitative comments given by adopters of cats and dogs for selecting specific animals. Differences between the species and insights into human/animal interactions are discussed.
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Validation of the Health Efficacy and Assertiveness Scale
Lee Stadtlander, Amy Sickel, and Martha Giles
Recently, health care has required the role of “patient" to change from a receptive role to an active one. Patients' responsibilities for discussing health with their physicians require greater health assertiveness and efficacy. There is not a validated survey examining patient assertiveness and self-efficacy. This study addresses this issue.
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Prostate Cancer and Afro-Caribbean Men: Experiences, Perceptions, and Beliefs
Harold E. Taitt Jr.
The incidence of prostate cancer is high among men of African descent. Research questions in this phenomenological study considered the perceptions and beliefs of Afro-Caribbean men. Participants conveyed low disease awareness, but believed that early diagnosis increased survival chances. Findings revealed strategies to help reduce mortality from the disease.
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The Effect of Textbook Format on Mental Effort and Time on Task
Antonio Tango Thomas
Using Astin’s theory of student engagement as a framework, the purpose of this study was to determine whether a significant difference in engagement, as indicated by mental effort and time on task, existed for college students who used a digital game-based textbook versus students who used a traditional print based textbook. The results showed a statistically significant difference in engagement, Hotelling’s T2 (2, 52) = 25.11, p < .001, D2=1.86.
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Small Business Leaders Perceptions of Factors Facilitating Successful Performance in Government Contracts
Tamara P. Williams
This descriptive study explored factors in leadership used by some small business leaders for successful performance in government contracting and was conducted by interviewing small business leaders in Washington, DC. Clustering themes according to Moustakas’s modified van Kaam method were used to organize, analyze, interpret, and provide meaning to participant accounts of the phenomenon and how they succeed.
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Relationships Between Specific Health-Related Fitness Components and Standardized Academic Achievement Tests
Tona Wilson
Guided by self-efficacy theory, this study assessed the impact of optimal versus minimal physical fitness on student academic achievement. Independent variables were optimal and minimal physical fitness based upon completing 6 or 5 FITNESSGRAM components, respectively. Optimally fit students scored significantly higher (p < 0.05) in math and ELA tests.
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Barriers to Microenterprise Initialization, Growth, and Success
Marie Bakari
Entrepreneurs are vital to the economic stability of any community. This applied business research was an exploration of the coping strategies of African American microentrepreneurs to the barriers that impede business initialization, growth, and success. Participants’ narratives were the sources of data. Findings revealed ways to change the business support dynamic for this group.
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A Case Study of the United States Veterans’ Disability Compensation Policy Subsystem
Tanya Rosemary Brinkley
In public policy literature, there is a lack of research that integrates social construction theory within the advocacy coalition framework. Far less is known about how these theories address policy change and processes related to programs for disabled veterans (DVs).
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Dr. Condoleezza Rice’s Leadership Strategies While Overcoming the Glass Ceiling
Erica J. Butler
A qualitative case study delineating the leadership strategies used by Dr. Rice to overcome the glass ceiling. Transformational leadership and glass ceiling conceptual frameworks informed the study. Primary and secondary archival data revealed three emergent themes that are characteristic of African American women and indicate a need for implementation of diversity among business practices to facilitate the appointment and promotion of African American women to higher levels of leadership.
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How Robotics Programs Influence Young Women’s Career Choices: A Grounded Theory Model
Cecilia D. Craig
Women in college, alumnae of a well-known high school robotics program, shared how it influenced their career choices and who they have become in this qualitative study. A general system theory model was developed using grounded theory practices, after conducting online focus groups and interviews.
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Self-Regulation Efforts and Cognitive Load Concerns within a Developmental Learning Environment
Caroline M. Crawford and Richard A. Smith
People new to the higher education learning environment, and without posessing the abilities sometimes described as ”learning how to learn”, delve into either gateway courses or developmental courses. In this case study, a developmental course instructor integrates self-regulation tools and cognitive load sensitivity into her developmental course, with positive outcomes.
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Examining the Effect of Medical-Surgical Nurse Manager Leadership on Employee Organizational Citizenship
Cheryl B. Cullen
An intriguing question in a hospital is “What makes one medical-surgical nursing unit more desirable to nurses, physicians, and patients than another?” This quantitative, correlational research study identified a moderately positive correlation (r = .35, p = .000 between the leadership and communication behaviors of the nurse manager and the organizational citizenship of the nurses and nursing assistants who worked on the medical-surgical nursing units studied. The social impact of this positive correlation is better patient care outcomes.
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Factors Affecting Mobile Banking Adoption in the United States
Michel N. Engwanda
This quantitative correlational study was focused on how consumers’ perceptions affect their intention to use mobile banking in the United States. Among U.S. consumers with smartphones, Internet access, and a bank account; 68% used Internet, 33% used telephone-based banking, and only 21% engaged in some type of mobile banking activities in 2011. The web-based survey used in this study was derived from the technology acceptance model extended by the innovation diffusion theory. Data were collected by email from a random sample of 398 people in the United States. The structural equation modeling technique was used to analyze data. The results indicated that, perceived compatibility, credibility, and costs were the significant predictors of mobile banking adoption in the United States.
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The Relationship Between Emotional Intelligence and Leadership Styles of African American Law Enforcement Executives
B. Bernard Ferguson
Ineffective leadership within police organizations has resulted in worker disengagement, absenteeism, and high turnover. This quantitative study examined the relationship between ethnicity, emotional intelligence (EI) and leadership styles of African American law enforcement executives. Hypotheses were tested using data collected from 130 members of the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE), and comparing results to data from a prior similar study using Caucasian law enforcement executives. Results indicated that ethnicity had a statistically significant relationship with EI and leadership style factors.
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Anxiety and the Imposter Phenomenon Among Graduate Students in Online Versus Traditional Programs
Christy B. Fraenza
This study compared online and traditional students on measures of imposter phenomenon (IP), anxiety, and perfectionism. Traditional students had significantly higher IP scores. Perfectionism was the strongest predictor of IP scores. Because the scale for perfectionism explored socially prescribed perfectionism, it seems to suggest an underlying social component to IP.
