AURA - Antioch University Repository and Archive

Servant Leadership in Higher Education: The Influence of Servant-Led Faculty on Student Engagement

Anthony J. Scardino — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 12:40:36 PDT

Franciscan education has a long tradition of educating the whole student—educating to make better citizens. The focus of this research was to examine the success of that tradition, namely, whether a positive correlation exists between servant leadership of faculty members and higher levels of engagement with their students. Full-time professors at three Franciscan institutions of higher education completed the Servant Leadership Questionnaire (SLQ), which measures participants’ level of servant leadership, and the Faculty Survey of Student Engagement (FSSE), which measures the engagement of the students with faculty. The results of the SLQ and FSSE were organized to answer two research questions: (1) To what extent do faculty in these institutions exhibit the qualities of servant leadership? (2) Among full-time professors teaching at Franciscan institutions of higher education, what is the relationship between servant leadership and deep approaches to learning? This study captured the effects of self-identified faculty “servant ” leaders and their potential to encourage deeper approaches to learning for students, with the hope of creating an environment more squarely within the Franciscan tradition of this learning community. The study’s results indicated a link between servant leadership and deep approaches to learning with a strong correlation to emotional healing. The electronic version of this Dissertation is at OhioLink ETD Center, www.ohiolink.edu/etd.

Sites of Passage: Art as Action in Egypt and the US-- Creating an Autoethnography Through Performance Writing, Revolution, and Social Practice

Tavia La Follette — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 10:41:04 PDT

As a performance artist and arts activist I present my research project to the audience in performative writing, a postmodern research style that advocates the integration of the artist/researcher identity. In the summer of 2010, I left for Egypt to teach a performance and installation art workshop at Artist Residency Egypt, the first step of the Firefly Tunnels Project, a virtual and tangible exchange between artists in the United States and Egypt. This venture began with the awareness that the 10th anniversary of 9/11 was approaching. What I could not have foreseen were the other world events that would have a direct impact on the project: Arab Spring and the Egyptian revolution, the Occupy Wall Street Movement in the United States, the execution of Osama Bin Laden, and presidential elections in both the United States and Egypt. Sites of Passage, the final exhibition, ran from September 9, 2011-February 14, 2012 (extended) at the Mattress Factory Museum, one of the only installation art museums of its kind. The exhibit included site-specific works, curatorial tours, discussion panels, workshops, community outreach, and a performance series. I curated all of the artists into the three workshops held in Egypt and the United States, which were compulsory to the exchange process. This document is a performance ethnography that includes an auto-ethnography providing thick description of the experiences and events of this bicultural journey. There are eight videos in mv4 format, plus images to help give dimension to the work. Theoretical dispositions will also be performed throughout the document. The electronic version of this Dissertation is at OhioLink ETD Center, www.ohiolink.edu/etd.

Higher Education, Citizens Engagement and Economic Development Work at the Grassroots: A Case Study of Dayton, Southwest Ohio

Olatokunbo A. Awoshakin — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 10:15:31 PDT

This qualitative case study focused on the efforts of the Southwestern Ohio Council for Higher Education (SOCHE) to work with citizens and use existing community assets along with Dr. Richard Florida's 4T model to spur economic growth in the area of Dayton, Ohio. This study provides a unique opportunity to closely examine how innovative approaches and nontraditional alliances might fare in the face of a declining economic growth with a view toward creating an environment that can support sustainable economic development. Multiple interview data, archival documents, and participatory observation were utilized during the study. Analysis of transcripts from structured interviews with a sample of the Community Catalysts, drawn from citizens of the region, and members of the Creative Task Force, drawn from participating institutions, were conducted. The study found that economic development planning models that integrate interaction, dialogue, deliberation, and even heated arguments and debates, if properly facilitated, can more effectively help participants move toward shared goals. Sustainable economic change can be achieved by fundamentally changing the working relationship in the community through purposeful citizens-stakeholder engagement. Findings reinforce the value of grassroots learning and SOCHE’s process of working with nontraditional stakeholders in the Dayton area to generate a momentum that multiplied through social and organizational networks and connections. While the 4T model in the Dayton initiative had benefits, the inability of the SOCHE effort to fully engage participation on the broader issue of race and poverty may have limited the transformational potential of the process. In this research, I propose an adaptation of the 4D-cycle, an appreciative inquiry model to illustrate how multiple stakeholders can talk and work together toward shared economic goals. Recommendations include encouraging higher education and other institutions to work on economic development that is more intentional in seeking non-traditional alliances that help communities move beyond politics as usual and solve problems by aggregating interests. It is further recommended that leading institutions integrate evaluation parameters in community economic development work. The electronic version of this Dissertation is at the Ohio Link ETD Center at http://ohiolink.edu/etd.

The Phenomenal Characteristics of the Son-Father Relationship Experience

Chris L. Hickey — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 10:05:25 PDT

The purpose of this exploratory study is to examine what the son-father relationship experience feels like (the phenomenology of the son-father relationship), and how the relationship experience affects leadership development, specifically in the son. I chose to reverse the order of the typical reference on this topic (father-son) in order to emphasize the significance of the son (role) being the central character or object of interest, even in instances where the character is a father in addition to being a son. Additionally, it should be noted that all fathers are sons, but not all sons are fathers (biologically, and/or socially, and/or conceptually). My central research question is: How is leadership development influenced by the phenomenological characteristics of the son-father relationship experience? I address this question through a series of interviews with adolescent boys age 17 and men between 18 and 45 years of age. The foundation of my interview protocol is built on a series of theory-based questions (Wengraf, 2001) that are outlined below. Analysis of these interviews is presented along with a comparative review of the scholarly literature on leadership development in adolescents. The primary value of this research is its applicability to youth leadership development programs with respect to the potential to add an emphasis on values and practices that cultivate healthy sustainable relationships that are consistent with responsible and effective parent involvement and planning, family leadership, and community support. While there is considerable consideration being acknowledged to an anecdotal connection between how boys are, or should be, affected by the leadership qualities of their fathers, very little was articulated about how the participants felt their own leadership development was influenced by the relationship experience, particularly juxtaposed to the amount of attention the participants spent on describing their feelings and emotions about their son-father relationship experience. In this respect, what is particularly noteworthy is the richness of the interviews with respect to the participant’s accounts of the phenomenal characteristics of the son-father relationship experience, including how sons articulate their feelings about the relationship, at and over time. This dissertation is accompanied by an Author’s Introduction supplemental file [mp4]. The electronic version of this Dissertation is at OhioLink ETD Center, www.ohiolink.edu/etd

5.507 Human Subjects Protection (IRB)

Fri, 05 Apr 2013 11:00:18 PDT

Researching Critical Incidents of Transformation

Paul R. Scheele — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 12:30:42 PDT

This study examined transformation within individuals in a collaborative adult learning context. Using a combination of methods—surveys and critical incident technique (CIT)—the study explored in depth the experiences of 28 subjects from a population of 100 participants in an open-enrollment workshop, the Awakening the Dreamer, Changing the Dream Symposium produced by the Pachamama Alliance. The program employs high-impact training approaches to inform participants about social injustices and environmental practices that threaten the planet, and to encourage them to act on that information. The research focused on critical incidents at or shortly after the workshop that produced significant and meaningful change in the subjects. It also examined the stimuli and the internal processes experienced and reported by the subjects that appear to be most transformative. Its objective was to help inform the way in which transformative learning is studied. The study found that the research method was effective for examining transformative learning in adults. Six significant findings emerged from the data, among them that the critical incidents of transformative learning were the internal changes subjects described: initial changes in awareness or perspective, in connections, in decisions about future action, and in emotions or sensory perceptions. An understanding of this finding and the others can help educators and organizational leaders facilitate transformation within individuals and organizations. Limitations of the study are discussed and suggestions for future studies are offered. The electronic version of this Dissertation is at OhioLink ETD Center, www.ohiolink. edu/etd.

Servant Leadership and African American Pastors

Clarence Bunch — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 17:40:21 PDT

Robert Greenleaf (1977) took a follower’s, rather than a leader-centric, point of view of leadership by describing a leader as one who leads by serving. He identified a leader as one who sets other people’s needs above his or her own. He argued that motivation of leaders must begin with the conscious choice to serve others. Greenleaf’s concept provides the basis for a theoretical model of servant leadership. This dissertation examines the extent to which African American pastors exhibit servant leadership characteristics, using the Servant Leadership Questionnaire (Barbuto & Wheeler, 2006). A sample of 358 African American pastors from 11 denominations across the United States was included in this study. This study uses a non-experimental quantitative approach to examine the behaviors and attitudes of African American pastors through Barbuto and Wheeler’s (2006) Servant Leadership Questionnaire, which has five factors (altruistic calling, emotional healing, organizational stewardship, persuasive mapping, and wisdom). The results of this study showed that African American pastors sometimes see themselves as servant leaders: that is, they fall into the middle range of the scale. Among various demographic variables, including age, gender, denomination, and years in service, a statistically significant difference in SLQ score was found only in size of church. Contrary to the study’s initial expectations, African American pastors reported highest subscale scores on persuasive mapping and not altruistic calling. This finding invites further qualitative research. The electronic version of this dissertation is available through the OhioLink ETD Center at http://ohiolink.edu/etd.

Understanding Faculty Perceptions of the Future: Action Research for Academic Librarians

Kara Josephine Malenfant — Fri, 08 Mar 2013 16:50:16 PST

The intent of this study was to aid academic librarians in examining their perceptions of the future of higher education, engaging disciplinary faculty members to understand their views, and determining actions to take to shape the future. In this mixed methods study, scenarios about the future of higher education served as the basis for collecting quantitative (survey) and qualitative (focus group) data at one institution. During this study, staff, faculty, and administrators at one library developed new ways to craft strategies and make decisions, shifting their focus from strategic planning as an event to strategic thinking as a process, a way of organizational learning. Most traditional strategic planning processes operate from foundational beliefs that planning is rational, the future is predictable, and change is linear. Futures work, however, is not grounded in these assumptions. Creating and using scenarios as the basis to set strategic directions aided the group in thinking more broadly and more creatively about how they will approach the changing nature of higher education. This study, with its orientation toward action research and futures research, is issued under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States License. This document is accompanied by a brief audio interview with the author in MP3 format.

The Relationship of Parent Involvement and Student Success in GEAR UP Communities in Chicago

Wendy M. Stack — Fri, 08 Mar 2013 12:05:27 PST

Nationally, the education pipeline is not preparing enough students for success and high school dropout rates in the nation’s urban areas are alarming. This mixed methods (QUAN→qual) empirical study examines the influence of parent involvement on the academic success of 1,774 GEAR UP (Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs) students matched to their parents in 21 high schools in Chicago. The results of the regression analyses were presented to focus groups composed of GEAR UP parents and staff to assist in making meaning of the data and to gain deeper insight and understanding of the results. The study results were viewed through the lens of social capital and implications for leadership were drawn for marginalized stakeholders. Parental involvement was measured by the amount of time parents engaged in GEAR UP program activities and the degree to which this involvement is related to their child’s achievement and aspirations for college was studied. The study focused on students and their parents who have been involved in GEAR UP in 8^th grade and 9^th grade. Student success was measured by 9^th grade GPA and 10th grade PLAN Composite Score and Aspirations for College measured by the postsecondary intent question on the PLAN. Regression analysis showed a significant relationship between parent involvement and 9^th grade GPA (p

The Reintegration Myth: An Interpretive Phenomenological Inquiry into the Reentry Experiences of Air Force Reservists Returning from Afghanistan

Brent French — Tue, 05 Mar 2013 13:05:18 PST

This project documents the 18-month reentry trajectory of nine (including the author) United States Air Force Reservists returning home from a six-month deployment to Afghanistan in 2009 and 2010. Compared with their Active Component peers, members of the Reserve Component are more likely to be diagnosed with adaptive disorders and have an elevated risk of unemployment, substance abuse, and suicide. Since a critical difference between Active and Reserve Component members is the dual-status of reservists as both military members and civilians, this project sought to better understand this duality within the context of nonpathological reentry. This required an interdisciplinary approach that included medical perspectives (psychological trauma), political science, economics, and sociology (the adjustment approach), research by change and transition theorists, and literature on cultural crossings. The author used interpretive phenomenology to a) foreground his own experiences with return, b) explore existing theories relevant to reentry, and c) conduct a deep exploration of reentry over time. Semi-structured interviews occurred six, 12, and 18 months after return. Three main findings emerged from this project. First, participants paradoxically experienced the combat zone as ordered and predictable compared to their civilian lives in which competing demands overwhelmed depleted adaptive capacities. Second, the longitudinal design revealed participants gradually became less certain about their own reintegration prospects. Finally, the method created reflective space for the participants during a period when opportunities for reflection were especially rare. Several potential guidelines for policy merit consideration in light of the data. First, reservist reentry is sudden and spent among civilians, employers, and family members who find it difficult to understand the reservist's experiences. By ramping reentry and making the return more gradual some of the turmoil and isolation experienced after returning from the combat zone can be avoided. The more intractable issue identified in this dissertation concerns the widening gap between the two domains (military and civilian) reservists occupy and broader levels of mutual engagement are needed to reverse this trend. The electronic version of this dissertation is at the OhioLink ETD Center, www.ohiolink.edu/etd

Through the Eyes of the Family: A Collective Case Study of Family Business Consulting

Cynthia L. Waisner — Tue, 05 Mar 2013 12:45:28 PST

Interest in family businesses has increased over the last 50 years. Little empirical research, however, has been devoted specifically to the study of family business consulting. Various practitioners have offered their insights regarding approaches and tools, and a few empirical studies have offered the practitioners’ viewpoints regarding the practice area. The purpose of this study was to add to this small body of research by providing a view of family business consulting through the lens of the family business member. The chosen method of inquiry was collective case study, to allow for both contextual understanding and cross-case comparison. A total of nine participants across three cases were involved in the study. Several primary themes emerged from the study. To be considered a family business consultant by family members, a consultant needed to have entered the family business system through the family portal. The work of family business consultants was focused on inter-generational issues. Factors important to a successful consultation included chemistry with the family business leader, trust, values, and the involvement of non-business spouses. Finally, family members identified the maintenance of intact family member relationships as an important component of success in a family business consultation. Themes suggested by this study both supported and extended findings exploring family business consulting from the practitioner's point of view. The electronic version of this dissertation is at OhioLink ETD Center, www.ohiolink.edu/etd

Generations Apart: A Mixed Methods Study of Black Women’s Attitudes About Race and Social Activism

Carolyn D. Love — Tue, 05 Mar 2013 07:35:14 PST

Since the beginning of slavery in the United States, Black women have been actively involved in the creation and formation of Black civil society. The abolitionist, Black women’s club, and civil rights movements challenged White supremacy and created institutions that fought for political, social, and economic justice. Historically, Black women have engaged in the struggle for group survival while at the same time fighting for institutional transformation to eliminate or change discriminatory policies, practices, and procedures. With each passing generation, Black women have led efforts of resistance against racial discrimination, gender bias, and class exploitation. However, with each passing generation, the concept and meaning of race has changed. Immigration, colorblind ideology, post-racial and post-civil rights attitudes influence the meaning and relevance of race. While some Black women have moved into the middle class and beyond, a majority of Black women remain poor and the objects of both racial and gender discrimination. The purpose of this study is to examine how race influences the activities of Black women in search of political, social, and economic justice. The research design was an exploratory sequential mixed-methods study that investigated the generation differences in racial attitudes and social justice involvement among Black women. The study consisted of a total of 183 participants and included six personal interviews, four focus groups, and a survey. Twenty African American women participated in the personal interviews and focus groups. In total, 163 African American women participated in the survey. An analysis of the qualitative data indicated that regardless of the generation cohort, the African American women participating in this study perceive race as a relevant issue and an issue that influences the life chances of African Americans in general. Additionally, there is a perception amongst the participants that there is a crisis of follow-ship rather than a crisis of leadership in the African American community. An analysis of the quantitative data indicated that gendered racial stereotyping of African American women remains a problem within the African American community and the broader society. While African American women continue to play a critical role in social justice initiatives, gendered racial stereotyping influences the perception of their leadership. This document is accompanied by one video file (MP4) that contains the author’s introduction to the dissertation and 11 audio files (MP3s) that contain selected responses from personal interview and focus group participants. Follow this link to connect to the author’s introduction. The electronic version of the Dissertation is accessible in the open-access Ohiolink ETD Center

http://etd.ohiolink.edu.

Leadership: Native Narratives on Building Strong Communities

Carolyn Kenny et al. — Thu, 28 Feb 2013 09:05:21 PST

"Indigenous scholars strive to produce accessible research grounded in the daily lives of Native peoples, research that will improve their communities in meaningful and sustained ways. They also recognize that long-lasting change depends on effective leadership. Living Indigenous Leadership showcases innovative research and leadership practices from diverse nations and tribes in Canada, the United States, and New Zealand. The contributors, all women, use vibrant stories and personal narratives to offer insights into the unique nature of Indigenous leadership. "--Publisher's website.

Dr. Carolyn Kenny is a professor of Human Development and Indigenous Studies in the PhD Program in Leadership & Change at Antioch University.

Students and graduates of the PhD Program in Leadership & Change have contributed chapters in this book:

Raquel D. Gutierrez, Gail Cheney, Annette Squetimkin-Anquoe, Michelle Archuletta

Link to Table of Contents

In Situ Vision: The Student Experience of Collaborative Learning in a Virtual Drawing Class

Annette Cohen — Wed, 27 Feb 2013 16:00:35 PST

The purpose of this study was to elucidate the construct of collaboration and the co-construction of knowledge in a distance learning drawing class. Distance learning drawing classes are rare, due to resistance by fine arts departments holding onto traditions that date back to Renaissance times. As a result, there is a paucity of literature on the subject. This multiple method study seeks an understanding of how students collaborate in critiques, form virtual communities and socially construct knowledge about learning how to draw. The study commences with the following three research questions: what social processes facilitate learning to draw from the perspective of the student in a computer mediated drawing class, what factors contribute to collaboration and the formation of a virtual learning community in a computer mediated drawing class as measured by the participative, interactive and social dimensions of a content analysis model, and how can the phenomenon of online collaboration be further delineated, defined or explained? The study consists of a grounded theory dimensional analysis of student and instructor interviews and a content analysis of discussion boards. Two core domains emerged from the dimensional analysis, Visual Learning and Virtual Culture. The content analysis located the frequency and quality of collaboration across three different discussion board forums; asynchronous critiques, synchronous critiques and asynchronous discussion topics. Triangulating the data resulted in three theoretical propositions: drawing is a visual medium, and students need to “see” demonstrations of the process and examples, virtual culture mediates collaboration and the co-construction of knowledge in critiques and finally, the inclusion of both synchronous and asynchronous tools provides students with balanced support for learning to draw. Literature from the domains of art education, distance learning pedagogy and virtual culture support an understanding of the research question. The results are demonstrated in a final model entitled In Situ Vision. The animated version of the model in this document requires a Flash player to view and plays on the page while reading. An author’s video introduction accompanies this dissertation, presented in mp4 format. The electronic version of this Dissertation is at OhioLink ETD Center, www.ohiolink.edu/etd.

The New Woman and the Empire

Iveta Jusova — Tue, 26 Feb 2013 14:30:16 PST

Returning Questions

Joseph Cronin — Tue, 26 Feb 2013 14:25:11 PST

This text presents a broad scope of philosophical issues and primary sources from the history of philosophy with the intent of providing students with a general introduction to significant and relevant questions in philosophy, the humanities, and the history of thought.

The Power of We

Julie K. Biddle — Tue, 26 Feb 2013 14:15:13 PST

The Power of We: The Ohio Study Group Experience traces the work of a network of early childhood educators who are inspired by and engaged in the study of the early childhood programs and practices of Reggio Emilia, Italy. The text describes how the network of study groups began, expanded, and sustained their work. It explains how study groups serve as professional development and are integral to the shaping of learning communities and making an impact on classroom practices in early childhood programs. It chronicles some of the specific experiences of study groups as well as initiatives of Ohio Voices for Learning (OVL), the organization formed by study group facilitators. This book is important for the uniqueness of the organization it describes and the direction it provides for others interested in replicating the study group experience in their geographic area. The targeted audience is the general early childhood education field. It is also appropriate for any educator engaged in or interested in study groups and professional learning communities.

Clones, Fakes and Posthumans. Cultures of Replication.

Philomena Essed et al. — Tue, 26 Feb 2013 12:55:10 PST

Clones, Fakes and Posthumans: Cultures of Replication explores cloning and related phenomena that inform each other, like twins, fakes, replica, or homogeneities, through a cultural prism. ? ...We also explore possible relations between a cloning mentality and a consumer society that fosters a brand-name mentality. The construction and (coercive) implementation of copy-prone technological and symbolic items are at the very heart of the consumer society and its modes of mass production as they have emerged from and seek to articulate, define, and refine modernity and modernization .. from the publisher's website http://www.rodopi.nl/functions/search.asp?BookId=THAMYRIS+25

An internationally known scholar, Dr. Philomena Essed is a Professor of Critical Race, Gender & Leadership Studies in the PhD Program in Leadership and Change at Antioch University.

This book is available in our Ebrary Ebook Collection.

Museums, Leadership, and Transfer: An Inquiry into Organizational Supports for Learning Leadership

Julie I. Johnson — Tue, 26 Feb 2013 08:35:18 PST

Given the rapid changes that 21st century museums must manage, flexible thinking about leadership forms and purposes is needed. Today's complex leadership landscape necessitates that staff engage in enacting leadership with positional leaders. Limited empirical literature exists that describes how the next generation of museum leaders is being nurtured and developed. The purpose of this study was to: describe museum professionals' perceptions of leadership practices; investigate museums as sites of organizational and leadership learning; and consider the experiences of museum professionals who have participated in leader development programs. The study involved an on-line survey with 310 professionals working in U.S. museums and follow-up interviews with a subset of 13 survey participants. Bolman and Deal's (1990) Leadership Orientations Inventory (BDLO) was used to assess museum leadership practices; Marsick and Watkins (1999) 21-item version Dimensions of a Learning Organization Questionnaire (DLOQ-A) was used to assess supports for learning in the museum. Findings based on bivariate correlation and multiple regression analysis show a significant relationship between ratings for leadership effectiveness at the department and organization levels and scores on the BDLO and the DLOQ-A. While leadership effectiveness at both levels tended to be positive, over 60% of middle and non-managers did not perceive their museum’s leadership as mastering any of the BDLO Leadership Orientations Inventory frames. Statistically significant differences in the perception of museums as learning organizations were found with decreasing support from senior managers to middle managers to non-managers. With regard to learning leadership, findings indicate that the DLOQ-A Strategic Leadership for Learning dimension, Organization Support, and Peer Support are important for facilitating continued learning and application of new knowledge and skills derived from leader development programs. Finally, most leader development program participants indicated that they were immediately able to apply some skills learned; however sustaining incorporation of new knowledge was difficult. Implications for museum professionals, leader development program providers, museum studies programs, leadership and change, and future research are discussed. A digital introduction accompanies this dissertation. The electronic version of this dissertation is at OhioLink ETD Center, www.ohiolink.edu/etd.

Theme park safety failures

Jeffrey P. Stoneking — Tue, 26 Feb 2013 08:30:20 PST