In response to the nursing shortages, hospitals in the U.S. have been filling nursing positions by hiring foreign nurse graduates (FNGs). Filipino nurses represent the majority of all FNGs recruited to work in the U.S. Although Filipino nurses are not new to U.S. hospitals, very few studies have detailed how Filipino nurses have adjusted to U.S. nursing practice. The purpose of this study was to explore how Filipino nurses' perceived their role performance in the U.S. Using grounded theory as the methodology and symbolic interactionism as the philosophical underpinning, the principal investigator (PI) developed a substantive theory using a constant comparative method as the analytical approach. The PI used convenience and theoretical sampling to recruit 31 English-speaking female Filipino RNs practicing in Texas. One interview was conducted with each participant and the data were transcribed verbatim. The PI followed Strauss and Corbin's analytic steps to examine all cases, and the rigor of the theory was safeguarded by following the criteria of evaluation. All participants experienced challenges while adjusting to the U.S. healthcare system and American society due to differences in cultural expectations and experiences. The theory explains the processes of Filipino nurses' transition to U.S. nursing practice. The core variable was "transitioning from Filipino to U.S. nursing practice," which was shaped by nine relational categories. Based on descriptions from these Filipino nurses, it was clear that role transitioning from the Philippines to the U.S. is a complex phenomenon influenced by the meanings and expectations derived from these nurses' prior context in the Philippines. This theory should be beneficial to the many entities involved with or invested in Filipino nurses' migration by providing knowledge about their role transitioning. However, these findings cannot be applied to all Filipino nurses. Future research studies are needed to expand the scope of this theory and to empirically test it. Filipino nurses perceived that unethical actions were constantly taking place, regardless of existing rules and regulations. However, these nurses did little to correct or address the problems or ethical lapses themselves. Advocacy efforts are needed to ensure full understanding of immigration laws and policies to ensure fair work practices for Filipino nurses working in the U.S. / text

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In this thesis I explore women's engagement with body, weight and eating from a socio-cultural perspective. I discuss the limitations of current research on body dissatisfaction and propose that women's negative appraisal of their body needs to be understood as an active engagement with their social context. Research that focuses on the interaction of ethnic/cultural differences and body dissatisfaction seeks to clarify the interrelationship between femininity, gender and culture and suggests that women's dissatisfaction with their body is linked to levels of global Westernisation. My criticism of this research is that it conceptualises culture and social knowledge in a simplistic way. I propose social representations theory and the principles of dialogicality as an alternative research paradigm and argue that such an approach can overcome the dichotomy of individual and social, inner and outer. In order to explore the interaction of the subjective with the social in relation to the negative and positive appraisal of the body an interview study was conducted in two distinct cultural contexts. In depth interviews were conducted with 14 women in the UK and 12 women in Tobago, WI. The thema recognition/disrespect was used as an interpretative frame. The results show that the meanings that were assigned to the body interlinked with socially enacted representations of self, other and femininity. While the thema recognition/disrespect could be seen to be problematised through contradictory conditions of worth in the UK, it was the notion of 'disrespect' in interrelation with representations of others that was foregrounded in women's reflections in Tobago. In both research locations women negotiated constraining or contradictory demands of femininity and 're-presented' themselves through the construction of alternative identities.

A dearth of research exists to explain the disproportionately high level of academic achievement by Asian-Americans. Little attempt has been made to investigate indepth the relationship of several proposed factors to Asian achievement. The purpose of this study was to explore differences between Asian-Americans and Caucasian-Americans in cognitive ability, language proficiency, and achievement in reading, mathematics, and general knowledge. Forty-six Asian-Americans and forty-six Caucasian-Americans from the norming sample for the Woodcock-Johnson Psychoeducational Battery-Revised (WJ-R) (1989) were matched on the basis of school, gender, and number of years of school attendance. Broad Cognitive Ability scores of the WJ-R as well as scores from the WJ-R Tests of Achievement were then used to compare aptitude and achievement of each member of the two groups. No significant differences in Cognitive Ability were then used to compare aptitude and achievement of each member of the two groups. No significant differences in Cognitive Ability were found between Asian-Americans and Caucasian-Americans. There were also no significant differences found between the two groups in language proficiency or reading achievement. Significant differences did exist in mathematics and knowledge achievement but the superiority of Asian-Americans in those two areas could not be attributed to community socio-economic status (S.E.S.), school curriculum, or aptitude. Implications for future research on achievement indicate the need to refocus, not upon school curriculum and socio-economic status, but rather upon home process variables.

published_or_final_version / Public Administration / Master / Master of Social Sciences

published_or_final_version / abstract / Psychology / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

published_or_final_version / abstract / toc / Sociology / Master / Master of Philosophy

No description available.

No description available.

Research suggests that the eating disorders (anorexia nervosa and bulimia) represent a caricature of the sociocultural values placed on young women to achieve thinness and beauty ideals. Although eating disorders have long been thought to occur only in White, "Western" cultures, more recent research suggests that women from different cultural groups are presenting with unhealthy eating attitudes and behaviours. In South Africa's pluralistic cultural context, the effects ofcontinuous first-hand contact between cultures (acculturation) is an important area of research, especially in light ofthe hypothesised etiological role ofsociocultural factors in eating disorders. The present study aims to address the association between acculturation and disordered eating in a non-clinical sample of nursing students in Pietermaritzburg. Additionally, it aims to contribute to the development of a local acculturation instrument. The South African Acculturation Scale (SAAS) was developed based on the work of Berry (1976), Berry, Trimble and Olmedo (1986) and Berry (1997). The Individualism-Collectivism (INDCOL) scale (Hui, 1988) and the Eating Disorder Inventory (EDI, Garner & Olmsted, 1984) were included in the questionnaire profile A pilot study was undertaken on 28 students in the health arena, in order to assess the psychometric properties of the assessment instruments. The results of the pilot study yielded adequate reliability co-efficients for the SAAS, although the INDCOL scale yielded unexpectedly inconsistent results. The formal study adopted a cross-sectional design on a population of 155 nursing students. The sample consisted of37 Blacks, 33 Whites, 11 Indians and 7 Coloureds between 19 and 28 years of age. Additionally, the sample included 49 Blacks, 3 Whites, 11 Indians and 4 Coloureds greater than, or equal to 29 years ofage. The research findings suggest that both Black and White respondents display a propensity towards disordered eating. Black respondents scored higher on measures of the psychological correlates of eating disorders, and Whites scored higher on the attitudinal and behavioural measures of disordered eating. Partial support was obtained for the hypothesis that assimilation and individualist values are correlated to eating disorder pathology. The findings suggest that acculturating young women from diverse cultural and racial backgrounds present with a degree of risk for the development of eating disorders. / Thesis (M.Soc.Sc) - University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2000.