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Organizational Learning Among Strategic Leaders in an International Transportation Organization
No full textThis study examines the strategic leaders’ perception of organizational learning in an international mass transportation organization by using the Dimensions of the Learning Organization Questionnaire (DLOQ)-developed by Watkins and Marsick and a demographic/occupational survey. The Mass Transportation Industry in the United States has recently undergone major changes. The industry was once owned and operated by private individuals and small companies. Today, the major mass transportation companies are owned by billion dollar global organizations. The industry has become very competitive, and rapid change is paramount. This study focuses on strategic leadership and organizational learning as effective tools that can be used to gain a competitive advantage. Many scholars have argued that organizational learning may be the only source of sustainable competitive advantage. The DLOQ, using a quantitative research methodology, is used to examine the seven dimensions of organizational learning and its association with organizational performance. Further, it explores moderating and mediating variables from the demographic/occupational survey
Exploring Spirituality: Midlife Christian Women\u27s Experiences of Spiritual Growth and Formation and the Impact on Their Influence of Others
No full textThis research explored midlife Christian women’s experiences of spirituality and processes of spiritual growth. The researcher also examined the impact of those experiences on the women’s influence of others. The theoretical framework was adult learning theory, including theory about women’s ways of knowing, the concept of women developing voice, and transformative learning theory. Theories of adult development related to women’s spiritual development and women’s midlife development also shaped this study. Increased understanding of midlife women’s spiritual growth processes, greater understanding of the ways spiritual growth and spirituality inform women’s leadership of influence, guidance for program development, and adding to the theory and literature on midlife women’s learning were the primary areas of significance for this research. The method of inquiry was phenomenological research using the strategies of individual in-person interviews with 14 women from three United Methodist Church sites in a large southwestern United States city, a questionnaire, and one focus group session. The analysis focuses on profiles of each participant’s story to reveal the variety of their spiritual growth experiences, and a discussion of V-O-I-C-E-S, representing the themes of Variety, Others, Internal Focus, Creative Expression, External Focus, and Self-creation. The researcher offers conclusions and recommendations for listening to women’s stories, mentoring in the church setting, and program development
The Relationships Among Physical Activity Participation, Health Related Self-Efficacy, and Levels of Stress of College Students in Taiwan
No full textThe purpose of this study was to investigate the relationships among physical activity participation, health related self-efficacy, and levels of stress of college students in southern Taiwan. Self-efficacy theory as a theoretical framework explains individuals’ beliefs about themselves. Participants were 117 female and 323 male college students randomly selected from five schools. The participants were asked to complete a single survey booklet including three instruments and a demographic questionnaire. The Global Measure of Perceived Stress Scale was used to assess levels of stress. The Health- Specific Self-Efficacy Scale measured students’ self-efficacy in the health domain. The Physical Activity Identity was used to understand the degree of role-identity in physical activity. Data analysis revealed that students with higher stress levels had good intentions to exercise, but did not act on them. The physical activity self-efficacy proved to be a major factor to predict perceived stress but did not reveal a significant relationship with physical activity behaviors. Physical activity identity and total health related self-efficacy were cognitive factors influencing students’ perceptions and behaviors in physical activity. A combination of cognitive factors including perceived stress, nutrition self-efficacy, physical activity self-efficacy, alcohol resistance self-efficacy, and physical activity identity predicted students’ healthy or unhealthy coping mechanisms with an average overall percentage of correct classification of 73%. Nearly 21% identified physical activity as a major strategy to cope with stress. Gender and students’ majors showed significant differences in health domains. The results suggest that physical education courses enable students to experience an enjoyable and valuable learning setting
The Relationship Between Coaching Leadership Behaviors and Taiwanese Collegiate Tae Kwon Do Competitor\u27s Satisfaction
No full textThe purpose of this research is to explore what relationship exists between Tae Kwon Do coaching leadership behaviors and Taiwanese collegiate Tae Kwon Do competitors’ satisfaction and determine whether there were differences in satisfaction with regard to demographics, experience, and achievement levels. This study will also investigate whether the coaches’ leadership skills have an impact on their competitors’ satisfaction with training and competing in Tae Kwon Do. The Leadership Scale for Sports (LSS) translated into Chinese by Cheng, Hsiao, and Mo (1997) was used to measure coaches’ behaviors; the Athlete Satisfaction Questionnaire (ASQ) translated into Chinese by Wang (2004) was used to measure competitors’ satisfaction. The results showed that there were significant correlations between the coaches’ leadership behaviors and total satisfaction score with Tae Kwon Do competition. All of the competitors’ perceptions o f coaches’ leadership behaviors in the LSS had significant strong positive correlations, but only degree of autocratic behavior had a negative correlation with the other leadership behaviors. Coaches’ leadership behaviors had strong relationships to affect Taiwanese collegiate Tae Kwon Do competitors’ satisfaction
Diabetes Prevention Education for Mexican American Women With Gestational Diabetes: Pilot Testing a Videotape
Get PDFThe purpose of this study was to examine the effect of a culturally sensitive educational videotape on the knowledge of prevention of Type 2 diabetes after pregnancy, in pregnant gestational diabetic (GDM) women over 18 years old, who attended the Diabetes in Pregnancy Program at a university health center in a large southwestern city. Mexican American GDM women have a high risk for Type 2 diabetes, 80% in 5 years if their diabetes status is reclassified pre-diabetes or impaired glucose tolerance during their early postpartum exam (Kjos. 1995). But the return-to-clinic rate for the women who attend this clinic is 17.6% for the post partum exam (Conway, 1999). Research Design, Sample, and Methods—Forty-six Mexican or Mexican American GDM women were recruited into this quasi-experimental study. Subjects signed a consent, filled out a 13 question demographic questionnaire, completed a 27 question knowledge pre-test, watched a 23-minute educational videotape in Spanish with English subtitles, and re-took the knowledge questionnaire in one clinic visit. The informed consent and questionnaires were in both Spanish and English. The educational videotape, demographic and knowledge questionnaires were investigator created and validated during the study process. The educational message of the videotape was the importance of making lifestyle changes for prevention of Type 2 DM. It took a life stage approach with the child reminding his or her mother to take care of herself. Results—The knowledge instrument had a Kudor-Richardson reliability coefficient 20 score of 0.7896. The comparisons of the pre and post intervention knowledge scores were done on a 21 item test with the mean paired difference of the post test percent score and the pre test percent score of 11.08% (SD 13.58) and a 2-tailed significance of p\u3c0.0001. The study hypothesis, use of an educational video about Type 2 Diabetes risk factors was positively associated with increased knowledge levels in Mexican American women with GDM, was supported with the data
LOVE OF NEIGHBOR AS THE ESSENCE OF SOCIAL JUSTICE AND OF CHRISTIANITY
Get PDFChristianity in the 2 I 51 century runs the risk of becoming just another religion fit keeps distancing itself.farther and farther from its Jesuan and apostolic origins which must always remain as the benchmarks for evaluating its authenticity. The lemptation has always been, and continues to be, to accommodate itse(f to the ways of the world, to go for earthly success, numbers of converts, power, security etc. Already in the early 3rd century this accommodation began to shape the Constantinian turnaround that made the Christian church an ally of the Roman state and of the rich and powerful in the early 4th century. It encountered resistance, however, and the Good News of Jesus announced to the poor and the weak was preserved intact by many Christian communities; hence the many reform movements and saintly lives which, throughout the centuries, have constantly tried to return to the pristine example of the church of the first two centuries. The church\u27s faithfulness to the Good News of the Reign announced to the poor, now usually referred to as the preferential option for the poor, will always remain as the one unique trait that translates Jesus\u27 central command to love thy neighbor as thyse(f (Mt 5: 42-48; 12: 19; 19: 22, 39-40; Jn 13: 34-35; 15: 12-17; Rm 13: 8-10; 1 Cor 13: 1- 18). This faithfulness in fashioning God\u27s Reign cannot be genuine unless Christianity upholds and exempl[fies the example of Jesus in terms of insisting that the wealth of the earth must benefit all ofGod\u27s children and that poverty is the result of injustice
THE SHAME OF BEING NUMBER ONE
Get PDFAmericans are accustomed to saying and hearing that the United States is the greatest, most powerfi1l nation in the world Citizenship is considered to be a source of pride. Although the United States is, in fact, number one in many areas, not all are something Americans should he proud of There appears to be a greater concernfor. andfocus on, those at the lop than those at the boltom. The result is great inequality. The United States. which claims to be the world leader, should attempt to be the leader in social justice. To accomplish this, policies and actions should be guided hy the principles of social justice, and all Americans should spend more effort in societalizing our youth as we are socializing them
Characteristics of Some U.S. Army Generals: An Exploratory Study
No full textThis exploratory qualitative study investigated the relationship between retired Army general officers as they related to seven specific elements. Through interviews, this researcher explored the role of religion, family, mentorship, education, culture, combat, and assignments in the lives of these three men. Structured data analysis and models were provided to display the results of the theme-based research questions. Themes that were important or deemed significant were emphasized. Recommendations to soldiers and educators were made based on the findings. In general, religion, family, and mentorship proved to be the most important elements to these participants in their ascension to the rank of general. Of lesser importance were the elements of education and cultural context. O f least importance were the elements of combat and assignments. All three participants achieved the rank of general and all three had combat experience. A better sense of importance of this element may have emerged if one participant had not been in combat. Another area that seemed insignificant was the element of assignments. One participant placed a great deal of importance on assignments, but the significant element based on the interviews was on how well the job is done and not where the job or assignment was. All the participants shared a common goal of becoming a general. Some of the elements were shared by all three while others were not. Although they took different approaches, all three achieved their goal and had very successful military careers
Self-Identification of Non-Cognitive Factors That Lead to Educational Success
No full textThis study utilized an ethnographic case study design methodology using in-depth interviews as the primary research strategy. The focus was on the participants’ perceptions of their experiences in the educational system, the meanings they gave and how they evaluated their experiences as they moved through that system. The study was conducted on the campuses of two small universities in the southwest United States. The participants were members of the McNair Scholars Program on these campuses. As the need for post-secondary education increases, issues of retention continue to be of importance, especially among minority populations in the U.S. The focus on “at-risk” students has stimulated discussion on how to keep these students from dropping out, concentrating on students who succeed despite the odds against their success. These students are often low-income first-generation students who have minimum preparation for college coursework and no role models for college success within their families. While academic efficacy is often associated with school success, other non-cognitive factors such as persistence, self-efficacy, resiliency, and social support, have also been identified as factors in students’ success. While academic efficacy is often associated with school success, other non-cognitive factors such as persistence, self-efficacy, resiliency, and social support, have also been identified as factors in students’ success. Four dominant themes emerged from the analysis of the interviews conducted: internal factors, external/social factors, resiliency factors, and relationship and responsibility to others. All of the participants identified persistence as an important factor in their educational success. Mentoring and having a support network was mentioned the most often by the participants as being of significant value in their educational success. Resiliency and giving back to others were also identified by the participants in relationship to other factors
An Exploration of Job Stress Impacts and the Organizational Commitment of Clinical Nursing Instructors at One University in Taiwan
No full textThe purpose of the two-phase sequential explanatory design of this mixed research was to explore the impact of job stress on the organizational commitment of clinical nursing instructors in Taiwan. This research was guided by Hardy and Conway’s theory of role strain. Seventy-two clinical nursing instructors participated in the survey. The reliability coefficient alpha of the Role Strain Scale of Clinical Nursing Instructors was .96 and for the Organizational Commitment Scale was .80. A qualitative approach was used to follow up with eight quantitative nursing participants to explore the nature of work-related stressors. The majority of participants had a slight to low role strain in clinical teaching. Role conflict and role overload were the main causes of role strain. Educational levels, rank levels, and the type of the clinical setting generated different levels of stress. The educational levels of clinical instructors significantly caused different levels of Normative Commitment. The Eta Squared showed a small effect .055 (q = .055). Continuance Commitment was identified as a factor predicting role stress excluding Role Conflict. Work-related stressors include inadequate role occupancy, increasing work demands, deficient role preparedness, lowered role control, insufficient role support, and role bargain. When a clinical nursing instructor with lowered role control experiences more stressors, the situation of role stress will deteriorate. Role support and role bargain are the buffers o f work-related stress that help clinical instructors adapt to a rapidly changing work environment. Consequently, adequate role credibility for role occupancy is a necessary strategy for reducing clinical instructors’ work-related strain