abstract: Resettled refugees face numerous challenges including unsafe living conditions, loss of permanent shelter, adjustment to a new culture, loneliness, and separation from family, friends, and community. Of particular importance is the lack of a feeling of sense of community (SOC) within their new surroundings. SOC is not only worthwhile as an outcome of its own, but may also predict additional positive outcomes such as resilience and cultural adjustment. Literature has shown participation in sport can develop youth positively and build social skills, while studies in other regions of the world have also found a sport team setting to be a place for immigrants to experience SOC. In this study, I use a congruent mixed methods approach to both explore the experience of SOC for youth refugees in a soccer club, and examine the relation of SOC to resilience and cultural adjustment. Using photo-elicitation and semi-structured interviews with 11 youth participants, the qualitative portion of the study explored SOC among youth participants. Findings note the presence of SOC as matched to theoretical frameworks both specific to sport, and to a more general theory of SOC. Further data were collected through questionnaires distributed to club members. Results from the quantitative analysis indicate a significant positive relation between SOC and resilience, and SOC and perceived acculturation. This study’s contribution is to illustrate how refugee youth in a sport club in the United States experience SOC, and the impact of that SOC. Results suggest practical implications for sport managers who wish to provide positive sport experiences for youth refugees. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Community Resources and Development 2018

Thesis advisor: Jean M. Bartunek / In certain professions, members are routinely exposed to situations where their life or the life of someone else is on the line. Workers in these professions are exposed to traumatic situations over the course of a career and are likely to experience certain feelings such as sadness, emotional pain, and fear in response to these traumatic events. Through two inductive qualitative studies, this dissertation builds theory around how individuals involved in life-and-death work (police officers), process the emotions that are elicited by traumatic events without violating the emotional norms of their profession that encourage suppression. These two studies show how individuals create a trusted group of “safe others” with whom they experience a psychological sense of community. Together, community members imbue certain physical spaces with meaning (“safe places”). When safe others come together in safe places, community holding spaces are created which enable the enactment of safe emotional processing. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2022. / Submitted to: Boston College. Carroll School of Management. / Discipline: Management and Organization.

Despite the continued growth of K-12 online learning, there remains a need for additional research addressing roles of online facilitators and how they can improve the sense of community at K-12 online schools. The first article of this dissertation presents a case study illustrating how online facilitators can provide the same level of support for their students that on-site facilitators provide students in blended environments. Data was gathered from teachers at Mountain Heights Academy (MHA), a fully online high school. MHA implemented a "Shepherding Program" to provide student with online facilitators. Each teacher, or shepherd, was responsible for 20 to 25 students. Teacher focus groups and one-on-one interviews were used to examine the perceived effects of a shepherding program on shepherd-student relationships. Additionally, the teacher roles in the shepherding program were compared to the roles of on-site facilitators. Teachers were largely satisfied with the perceived impact of the shepherding program on their relationships with their students. Findings also highlighted strong similarities between the support the shepherding program provided online students and the support on-site facilitators provide blended learning students. The second article was a continuation of the case study from the first article. A key addition to the case study for the second article was the inclusion of student interviews. This article examined how teachers and students perceived that the shepherding program influenced instructor-student relationships. The analysis exposing similarities and differences between teacher and student perspectives of the shepherding program was conducted based on the four dimensions of Rovai's online sense of community: spirit, trust, interaction, and learning. Findings illustrated shepherd-student relationships consisting of all four elements of community in some degree.

This design-based research study explored whether Sense of Community was maintained while flexibility in the course was increased through an adoption of a unique blended learning model. Data collected in this study show a significant drop in the sense of connectedness score from a mean of 50.8 out of 66 to a mean of 39.68 in the first iteration. The score then began to gradually increase, reaching 50.65 in the third iteration. Results indicate that transitioning to a blended learning environment may be a suitable option to increase flexibility while maintaining a Sense of Community in a project-based course. Future research into specific aspects of course design such as maturity of design, age-level of participants, and context would further develop understanding in this area.

Many older adults are electing to age in place within their communities. Even though they may be frequent consumers of community programs and services, their role as contributors to community well-being should not be overlooked. Sense of community is a core dimension of well-being because the connections associated with sense of community are important for everyday life. The model in this study was developed to explore the effects of community connections (community capacity, ease of making connections, active participation in the community, and informal supports) and demographic variables on sense of community. A probability sample of 1,499 adults 65 years and older that resided in rural areas responded to questions concerning their sense of community and community connections. Using multiple regression analysis, results indicate that community capacity, ease of connecting with others in the community, and having an informal support network are significant in predicting sense of community. Nonsignificant associations were found with regard to participation in community activities, age, sex, health status, and length of time living in the county. These findings suggest that key dimensions of aging (age, sex, health status) are less relevant when addressing sense of community when compared to associations and connections. Factors that predict sense of community may be amenable to community-level interventions, thus allowing for the development of sense of community among community members, which could ultimately lead to their participation as community resources. / Master of Science

The concept of trust in human relationship has gained much attention over the past decade. The majority of the trust literature focuses on the definition of trust and the development and maintenance of trust. Most scholars agree that trust is developed and maintained through dialogue and socialization, including verbal and nonverbal social cues. The literature suggests that individuals share information and build communities with persons they trust. Within an organizational environment, higher degrees of trust enhance the discovering processes and, ultimately, the ability of groups and organizations to fully function. A "sense of community" is created in environments that encourage open and honest communication among their members. Despite the research supporting a link between socialization, communication, and trust, there is almost no research that specifically addresses the relationship between communication technologies that eliminate face-to-face interaction and organizational trust and sense of community. E-mail, a tool that enables members of an organization to communicate with one another despite differences in time and location, is used by a vast majority of corporations to communicate with its organizational members. While e-mail communication provides many advantages, the literature in this area suggests that this tool may limit the amount of "human moments" at work, which may relate to decreased levels of trust and feelings of community in the workplace. This study was aimed at learning more about this phenomenon. Using a questionnaire developed that included three valid and reliable instruments of trust and sense of community, responses were collected from members of selected teams within a large, international organization to examine the relationships between trust, community, and e-mail communication. Other demographic and organizational data was also collected. Although no relationship was found between e-mail use, organizational trust, and psychological sense of community in the workplace, the results suggest that factors other than communication medium influence feelings of trust and community. Implications of the findings as well as recommendations for practice and future research are provided. / Ph. D.

Bakgrund: Relationsmarknadsföring har under de senaste 20 åren blivit ett populärt begrepp inom marknadsföring. Facebooks betydelse diskuteras även flitigt bland marknadsförare som ett verktyg för relationsmarknadsföring. En ökning har skett i antalet sidor och grupper på Facebook kopplade till företag. För att företag ska lyckas med att skapa attraktiva grupper och sidor på Facebook måste de förstå facebookanvändarnas preferenser. Syfte: Syftet med denna studie är att utifrån ett användarperspektiv beskriva och undersöka vilka fördelar facebookanvändare upplever som viktiga med att vara medlem i grupper och sidor på Facebook. Dels kommer dessa fördelar att beskrivas och undersökas ur ett relationsperspektiv och dels som olika fördelar med att tillhöra ett nätverk. Studien syftar även till att identifiera vilka övriga fördelar medlemmar i en grupp eller sida på Facebook kan uppleva med sitt medlemskap. Vi kommer därmed att förklara, ge förslag på och konstruera en modell för vilka huvudsakliga fördelar medlemmarna finner är viktiga med olika grupper och sidor på Facebook. Genomförande: Vi har genomfört tre fokusgrupper med facebookanvändare, samt en intervju med chefen för sociala medier på Junkyard, som är en onlinebutik som har varit mycket framgångsrika på Facebook. Resultat: Vi har i vår studie kommit fram till att det finns ett antal viktiga fördelar med att vara medlem i grupper och sidor på Facebook ur ett användarperspektiv. En gruppering av de funna fördelarna har gjorts i definitiva fördelar och potentiella fördelar och konstruerats i en modell. De definitiva fördelarna förekommer i de flesta grupper eller sidor och består av specialbehandling, underhållning samt sense of community. De potentiella fördelarna är inte lika vanligt förekommande men ger potentiellt starka fördelar för facebookanvändare när de hanteras på rätt sätt. De består av förtroendefördelar samt lärande i nätverk. Fördelarna som resulterat utifrån studien kan ge företag en fingervisning om hur de bör utforma grupper eller sidor på Facebook, för att tillfredsställa användarnas behov. / Background: Relationship marketing has in the past 20 years become a popular concept in marketing. Facebook's role is also discussed widely among marketers as a tool for relationship marketing. An increase has occurred in the number of pages and groups on Facebook. For companies to succees in creating attractive groups and pages on Facebook, they must understand the Facebook users' preferences. Objective: The purpose of this study is that from a user perspective describe and investigate the benefits of Facebook groups and pages from a user´s perspective. Firstly, these benefits will be described and examined from a relational perspective, and as different benefits in belonging to a network. The study also aims to identify what other benefits members of a group or page on Facebook can experience with their membership. We will therefore suggest and construct a model of the main benefits that members of Facebook finds important. Method: This study was conducted with data collected through qualitative methods. We conducted three focus groups with users of Facebook, and an interview with the head of social media at Junkyard, which is an online store that has been very successful on Facebook. Results: The study shows that there are a number of important benefits of being a member of groups and pages on Facebook from a user´s perspective. A grouping of the benefits have been found in definite benefits and potential benefits and are explained in a model. The definite benefits exist in most groups and pages and is: special treatment, entertainment and sense of community. The potential benefits are not as common, but potentially provide strong benefits for Facebook users when they are handled properly. They consist of the benefits confidence benefits, and community of practice. The benefits that resulted from the study can give companies an idea of how they should design groups or pages on Facebook, to satisfy users' needs.

This study examines how community was created in a community college FYE 105 Achieving Academic Success course and the impact of classroom community on students’ perceptions of transition and persistence. Community colleges increasingly are focusing on student success as measured by persistence and goal completion such as transfer or attainment of credentials. The classroom learning environment is critical to student success but is a neglected area in retention research. Therefore, it is important to expand the research on initiatives that support students in their quest for success and educational goal completion. This research focused on one course section of FYE 105 taught at a community college; the students and the professor of the class are the participants for the study. New insight and understanding into classroom sense of community was gained through classroom participant-observations throughout the duration of a semester (16 weeks), faculty and student interviews, and review of materials related to the course. The data generated from the study were analyzed using thematic analysis. In order to explore how community is constructed and the role it plays for students, McMillan and Chavis’s sense of community theory and the academic communities component of Braxton, Hirschy, and McClendon’s conceptual model of student departure in commuter colleges and universities were used as the theoretical and conceptual frameworks for the study. Study results reveal that the professor concentrated efforts during the first class sessions on communicating the classroom rules, engaging in active learning, establishing emotional safety and belonging, and facilitating student interdependence, which were critical elements in establishing a sense of community in the classroom. Additionally, the findings show that students perceive the professor, classmates, classroom environment, active learning, and course content as components that contribute to a sense of community that impact their transition. Students were less clear of the role that sense of community played in their college persistence. Findings suggest that faculty would benefit from professional development to enhance their pedagogical skills. Suggestions for future research include a focus on students’ external and campus support systems,electronic technology, classroom diversity, and longitudinal and departure data collection.

The world has been transformed through the internet into a "global village",and social media platforms have possibly transformed the world into a larger neighborhood covering many regions of the world. Social networks such as Facebook and Twitter came into people’s lives through the Internet, growing daily at a large rate, and it has been proven that they are very popular. This study examines links between different phenomena through social media platforms (e.g. Facebook, Twitter, blogs, etc.). It is discusses cohesiveness, desire to belong, sense of community, beliefs and opinions about different forms of these phenomena in popular virtual platforms in correlation with trust in social media, criticism of information that is spread by these virtual platforms, and if people are influenced in consumer decision making. A questionnaire has been distributed to a convenient sample of 159 international and Swedish students in Sweden in October-November 2012 in both English and Swedish versions. According to the peoples’ answers, tendencies were observed such as to not trust the platforms, and also the information received, beliefs such that social media are "controlled", negative critique, but also an expression for a need for ‘membership’.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-08-10T10:55:40Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 IRACEMA GONZAGA MOURA DE CARVALHO.pdf: 1458540 bytes, checksum: 441b607115d00d17b2f0ae34b8961297 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2009-05-29 / Understanding the factors that influence health has widened its concept, and has contributed to a vision of complexity involving physical, economic, social, cultural, individual and collective aspects, that are interrelated and distributed in time and space, as socio-historically built phenomena. This study examined the relationship between environment and health from the perception of the residents of Village Mutirão in the Northwestern region of Goiânia. The method was correlational. Participants were chosen randomly among the inhabitants of the region that lived in the region for over ten years. The sample comprised 140 women and 30 men who answered a questionnaire with open and closed questions. The data showed that most of the participants were sedentary, with health problems (hypertension and diabetes) and unsatisfied with public health services and transportation. Statistical analysis of data collected indicates a median index of well being of residents since they move to the neighborhood and a median sense of community. Taken together, these results show that the determinants of health such as housing, security, transport, social support and leisure activities, was identified as elements which are correlated with the welfare and quality of life, and that interfere with the health of a community. / A compreensão dos fatores que influenciam a saúde tem permitido a ampliação do seu conceito, além de contribuir para uma visão da complexidade envolvendo aspectos físicos, econômicos, sociais, culturais, individuais e coletivos, que se interrelacionam e se distribuem no tempo e no espaço, como fenômenos constituídos sócio-historicamente. O objetivo deste estudo foi analisar a relação entre ambiente e saúde a partir da percepção dos moradores da Vila Mutirão na Região Noroeste de Goiânia. O método utilizado foi correlacional. Os participantes foram escolhidos aleatoriamente entre os moradores da região que habitavam a região há mais de dez anos. A amostra foi composta por 140 mulheres e 30 homens que responderam em suas respectivas residências um questionário formado por questões abertas e fechadas. Os dados demonstraram que, em sua maioria, os participantes eram sedentários, com problemas de saúde (hipertensão e diabetes) e insatisfação com os serviços de saúde e transporte. As análises estatísticas dos dados coletados apontam para índice mediano de bem estar dos moradores a partir de sua mudança para o bairro, bem como mediano sentimento de comunidade. Tomados em conjunto, os resultados encontrados permitem concluir que os determinantes de saúde, como moradia, segurança, transporte, apoio social e lazer, foram identificados como elementos que se relacionam com o bem estar e a qualidade de vida, e que interferem na saúde de uma comunidade.