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The Effects of Demographic and Church Related Factors on Burnout Among Ministers and Church Leaders.
Get PDFChurch leaders met with increasing workload demands, meeting high expectations and being able to manage their time are subject to elevated and prolonged levels of stress leading to burnout. The burnout phenomenology evolved from observations made of helping professionals working with chronic drug users while becoming increasingly fatigued and experiencing a daily loss of motivation. In a similar fashion, ministers’ emotional, physical, cognitive, and even spiritual reserves may be depleted when faced with elaborate demands. Meanwhile, few studies have been conducted to examine job satisfaction and implications for burnout within ministry. The purpose of this study was to examine the predictability of selected demographic and church-related variables on the burnout rates among ministers and church leaders. Specifically, this study was concerned with the predictability of selected demographic and church-related factors: marital status, age, educational level, number of children, years in ministry, prior ministry training, church congregation size, formal education or training in counseling, employment status within the church and minister (mentorship) support. A correlational research design was employed for this empirical investigation. The convenience sampling method was used in this study. The sample population for the present study consisted of 150 ministers and church leaders from the Southern Region of the United States. The data collection instrument used in this study was the Francis Burnout Inventory. Three hypotheses were formulated and tested at the .05 level of significance or better. Multiple Logistic Regression was utilized to examine the predictive validity of the demographic variables and church related variables. Overall, the findings revealed that the demographic variables for hypotheses one was found to have a linear relationship with emotional burnout. Additionally, hypothesis two revealed that there was a linear relationship found between emotional burnout and church related factors. The findings also identified the independent predictors for both demographic and church related variables. Finally, a statistically significant linear relationship was also found to exist between the ten independent variables and the emotional burnout rate of ministers and church leaders. The results of this study support the critical need for identifying factors that promote burnout
The Truth in Our Stories: Immigrant Voices in Radical Times
No full textImmigration has long been a controversial issue in American politics and remains one of the country\u27s most pressing issues, dividing the nation along political, economic, moral, and ethical lines. Critics have long distorted the view of immigrants, depicting them as criminals who corrupt our neighborhoods, depress our wages, overpopulate our prison systems, and drain our economy. This misshapen narrative persists in our present time.
The Truth in Our Stories presents twelve compelling stories that highlight the immigrant experience and hopefully begin to change that perception. The testimonies are unapologetically honest and reveal the horrid conditions and crippling fear that continue to characterize the lives of immigrants. We learn, for example, that immigrants cannot obtain a driver\u27s license in most states and that they have unequal access to health care; they receive no benefits and work multiple jobs for unscrupulous employers who frequently exploit them. Yet, there is hope because these stories challenge the public narrative about immigrants and dismantle the myths that lead to their persecution. While the stories shared in this book are full of hardship, the immigrants who share them shine with resilience and fortitude. They reveal, for instance, that immigrants are entrepreneurial, create jobs, pay taxes, and build infrastructure, thereby improving the economy
An Analysis of the Environmental and Security Risks Related to Crude Oil Transportation
Get PDFThis paper informs and reviews the environmental and security risks related to crude oil transportation. The necessity for oil in various nations has increased the volume of oil transportation, resulting in the exponential change in the maritime oil transportation business. As a result, the vulnerabilities and the demand for safety have grown in importance. Today, transportation oil spills account for roughly 13% of all oil contamination in the world\u27s waterways. This paper aims to understand how oil spills happen, the major contributors\u27 factors, and prevention methods. To complete my goal, I interviewed 20 people, 4 of them independently and the rest in 3 focus groups on collecting data. As in this study, the use of both one-on-one interviews and focus group discussions can be beneficial in ensuring the accuracy of the collected data. While conducting this research, the researcher encountered a few obstacles. The inability to locate an interview time and date that works for everyone is expected to be the first obstacle. Because this research is aimed at oil experts, securing an interview with one was not easy. Due to the ongoing covid-19 restrictions, meeting with most professionals for face-to-face interviews may not be easy. This study concludes that the use of inspectors (federal, local, or private) and monitoring systems are the most effective risk prevention mechanism for oil spill management. The recommendation, therefore, is that all oil transportation mediums or vessels, for instance, trucks, ships, pipelines, transshipment stations, and tankers on railways, should have a monitoring system installed or in the case of stationary facilities like transshipment stations and railway stations hire the services of inspectors (oil experts/engineers) who understand the system, functions, and routes involves in the movement of crude oil from one source to the other
Evaluation of Diaphragmatic Movement in the Respiratory System of an Emphysema Patient
Get PDFRespiration is an essential part of life. The diaphragm is the main muscle involved in the process of respiration. However, respiratory diseases such as emphysema alter the function of the diaphragm which sometimes leads to respiratory failure and death. This review compiles studies concerning emphysema and how the morphological changes in the lungs (i.e. hyperinflation) caused by the disease affect the diaphragm. The first major point covers the risks associated with developing the disease as a component of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). Next, the paper outlines the pathophysiology of emphysema within the lungs, the methods used to diagnose emphysema, and different therapies implemented to alleviate many of the complications associated with the disease. Finally, the paper explores how emphysema can induce changes in the function of the diaphragm through a systematic journal review. The goal of this paper is to elucidate the ways in which hyperinflation of the lungs caused by emphysema alters the mechanics of the diaphragm
Review on Corporates COVID Collapse: Profits and Pandemic
Get PDFWith the advent of COVID 19, there was widespread adaptation of various measures meant to alleviate the spread and risks associated with the disease. Businesses were adversely affected by the regulations adapted by governments such as the requirements for social distancing which translated to mandatory temporary closures of boarders and business. There has been fragmented research regarding the impacts of COVID 19 on the collapse of corporates within the United States. The current research evaluates the role of COVID 19 on the collapse of corporations and their profitability by evaluating various indicators of profitability such as the stock market valuation during the period. My research identifies that the stocks for corporations in the US were adversely affected by COVID 19 as a result of low business activities. The results have implications for the management of similar situations in the future including adaptation of crisis management teams, as well as leveraging on government funding programs to sustain businesses that might experience challenges with cash flow
Underground Man: The Ever -Evolving Existentialist in the Fiction of Fyodor Dostoevsky, Richard Wright and Ralph Ellison.
Get PDFExistential philosophers Fyodor Dostoevsky and Jean Paul Sartre sought answers concerning man’s placement and subsequent importance in the universe. From a Eurocentric perspective, western man, his being, position, and influence emanate from the center of thought and existence in the western hemisphere. Dostoevsky’s existential crisis exhibited in the protagonist from his Notes from Underground, and Sartre’s concepts of facticity which gives man a direct philosophical link to his freedom, are two popular viewpoints of contemporary existentialism. However, French West Indian Frantz Fanon, counters the European tenets of existential philosophy as it pertains to black people. The conclusions reached in Black Skin, White Masks open literary and philosophical pathways to Black Existentialism and Africana Critical Theory. The gulf or great divide between European existentialism and Africana Critical Theory seems mainly unchartered and apparent, especially in the subgenre of existential literature. This paper will attempt to bring forward and narrow the gap by analyzing the works of Ralph Ellison and Richard Wright, and their usage of existential anti-hero characterization within their novels. This thesis will examine the narrator of Ralph Ellison’s Invisible Man and how his meaning of life experiences differ existentially from Fred Daniels, the protagonist in Wright’s The Man Who Lived Underground, the former being an heir to the Dostoevskian model, and the latter as the precursor to Fanon’s ideologies in the afro-centric views on existentialism. A defining of Africana Critical Theory and Black Existentialism will be given, including similarities and differences. The evolvement of existentialism through Ellis and Wright through their works from the philosophical viewpoints of Dostoevsky and Fanon will be explored
The Impact of Teachers\u27 Social Emotional Competency and Reading Pedagogy on the Emergent Literacy of Children in Early Childhood Classrooms
Get PDFAccording to the study, teachers\u27 beliefs significantly shape the instructional practices they choose to employ in the classroom. The study\u27s overarching goal was to ascertain whether children’s emergent literacy development (ages 3 and 4) is positively influenced by their early childhood teachers\u27 social-emotional instruction, reading pedagogy, phonological awareness activities, and educational qualifications. This study focuses on early childhood centers across the southeastern jurisdiction of the United States. The researcher selected participants from a comprehensive list of over 2,300 regional non-governmental financed early childhood programs that were publicly available through the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS), a state-managed database. One hundred seventy-four early childhood teachers participated in the research. Multiple regression statistics were utilized to investigate the predictability of the research hypotheses at the .05 level of significance, with a primary emphasis on four independent variables. According to the findings of this study, early childhood teachers\u27 beliefs and practices regarding phonological awareness, social-emotional learning, and reading pedagogy improved the emergent literacy development of prekindergarten children (ages 3 and 4) participating in non-government-sponsored childcare centers
An In Depth In Vitro and In Vivo Analysis of Metabolism and Pharmacokinetics of Polydatin and Its Active Metabolite, Resveratrol: In Rats.
Get PDFUpon oral administration, polydatin undergoes hydrolysis by intestinal microbial b- glucuronidase, releasing its active metabolite, resveratrol. Resveratrol is easily absorbed by the gut lumen and is further metabolized in the liver, producing a glucuronide conjugated metabolite. Following conjugation, the metabolite is actively secreted through the bile duct back into the small intestine. There, the microbiota may again hydrolyze the compound, releasing resveratrol back into the gastrointestinal tract for absorption, a process known as enterohepatic recycling. A sensitive, specific, and reproducible ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) method was developed and validated. This method was applied for the determination of both resveratrol and polydatin following pharmacokinetic studies in rats, permitting a comprehensive evaluation of total drug concentrations within the system. A Shimadzu Ultra performance liquid chromatography (UPLC) system coupled to an AB Sciex QTrap 4000 mass spectrometer was used for analysis. Separation was achieved using an Aquity UPLC BEH C18 column (2.1 x 50 mm) in acetonitrile and 0.1% formic acid v/v in water. Analysis was performed under negative ionization mode using the multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) approach, with the Transitions of m/z 389àm/z 227 for polydatin, m/z 227àm/z 185 for resveratrol, and m/z 283à162 for wogonin (as internal standard). Rat plasma samples were extracted by protein precipitation in acetonitrile for quantification. The method was linear in the range of 9.77–1250 nM for both resveratrol and polydatin with correlation coefficient values \u3e0.99. The method has been shown to be reproducible, with intra- and inter-day accuracy and precision ±10.4% of nominal values, for both analytes. Extraction recovery, matrix effect, and stability tests were performed at low, medium, and high concentration levels of 20 ng/mL, 400 ng/mL, and 800 ng/mL, respectively. The average extraction recovery rates were 81.78–98.3% for polydatin and 86.4–103.2% for resveratrol. Matrix effect was in the acceptable range (\u3c15%) and the analytes in plasma were found to be stable under bench-top, freeze- thaw, and storage (21 days, − 20 oC) conditions. Polydatin hydrolysis by intestinal microflora was determined using fecal S9 fraction following the protocol published by us previously. To determine hydrolysis rates, different concentrations of polydatin were incubated with fecal S9 fractions for 1 hour, after which the reaction was terminated using 6% acetic acid in acetonitrile. Samples were prepared and the concentration of polydatin and resveratrol in the reaction system was determined using UPLC quantification. Multiple assays were carried out to evaluate differences in the rate of hydrolysis based on various animal conditions (age, gender, sex, Dss induced colitis, and PRIC rats). A significant difference in the kinetic parameters of hydrolysis was found only between male and female wild-type rats. The previously developed LC-MS/MS method was applied to multiple pharmacokinetic studies in male and female rats (n = 4/group). Polydatin (50 and100 mg/kg) was administered through oral gavage. Additionally, polydatin (10 mg/Kg) was administered intravenously through the tail vein to male and female rats. Blood samples (50 ~ 80 μL) were collected into heparinized microcentrifuge tubes at predetermined time points for 24 hours following administration. The oral bioavailability of polydatin was evaluated using a crossover study design. The pharmacokinetic parameters were calculated using Phoenix WinNonlin® 8.0 software
Factors Related To Teachers, Students, And Schools And Reading Achievement Of Middle School Students
Get PDFLow reading achievement is an issue that plagues school systems across the United States. It is well established that students, teachers, and school styles have an impact on students’ reading ability and performance. This study aims to determine whether student and teacher demographics along with school-related factors significantly predict reading achievement in middle school. Specifically, this study investigates student gender, student ethnicity, teacher gender, teacher ethnicity, school curriculum, and school schedule as it relates to middle school scores on the reading component of the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) test. To test whether or not three hypotheses pertaining to student and teacher demographics along with school-related factors significantly predict middle school STAAR reading scores, data were randomly selected from a school district in north Texas and analyzed using standard multiple regression. Results showed no significant predictability: student and teacher gender and ethnicity along with school schedule and curriculum did not predict STAAR reading scores. Results suggest that other factors are likely to influence the predictability of STAAR reading scores. On this basis, the concept of contextual factors should be taken into account when exploring reading achievement