With increasing life expectancy and global population of older adults, preserving cog- nitive function throughout life represents a growing priority. Numerous approaches to cognitive enhancement exist, but few have scientific merit. Among the most preva- lent – and commercialized – approaches are cognitive training (“brain training”) and non-invasive brain stimulation through electric currents applied at the surface of the scalp. The present dissertation describes a collection of work contextualizing the appeal of these cognitive enhancement methods and addressing some of the most pervasive limitations of research in this field thus far. One largely ignored issue in cognitive intervention research pertains to people’s expectations of programs and their relationship with intervention outcomes. In a series of initial studies, we developed and validated the Expectation Assessment Scale (EAS), a tool created to measure as well as prime expectations of outcomes in the context of cognitive enhancement interventions. In our first two studies, we probed expectations of cognitive training or non-invasive brain stimulation in over 1,000 young, middle-aged, and older adults. Ratings on the EAS suggested that older adults may have particularly high expectations of cognitive training, but that expectations can be primed to increase or decrease – at least in hypothetical scenarios. We used these data to assess the psychometric properties of the EAS with item-response theory, and confirmed its internal consistency. Next, we incorporated the EAS into two cognitive enhancement trials, one in- vestigating a computerized cognitive training intervention in nearly 100 older adults and another examining non-invasive brain stimulation in nearly 100 young adults. Both trials had a double-blind balanced-placebo design in which participants were assigned to the intervention or control condition, and then subdivided to receive ei- ther high or low expectation priming (i.e., primed to have high or low expectations of the program’s effectiveness). Although expectation ratings replicated our previous findings, results from these trials suggest little, if any, effect of either expectations or the intervention on performance outcomes. We nevertheless found that participants enjoyed their assigned program and that those who received high expectation prim- ing tended to report a more positive experience. Our findings put into question the effectiveness of such interventions and support the need for more rigorous trials of cognitive enhancement.

The goals of this research study were to determine if clergy members were prone to experiencing compassion fatigue and to identify the self-care methods they currently employ. Compassion fatigue can affect anyone in a helping profession and is considered to be a component of burnout. With the use of qualitative interviews, the views of pastors will be used to explain their understanding of compassion fatigue and their implementation of self-care. Data will also be collected to describe the methods of self-care the clergy members utilize when their levels of compassion fatigue presentation are prominent. Audio information gathered from the interviews, and demographic, compassion satisfaction and self-care surveys will be used, and a thematic and phenomena analysis will be created to analyze the data collected. This research will contribute to the collaborative efforts of churches and social workers to increase public awareness of compassion fatigue and self-care deficits that pastors are experiencing and that churches are observing within their faith communities. This can be beneficial in helping communities to effect positive change within the community.

A perceived discrepancy exists in understanding between nursing educators' and hospital nurse leaders' views on job performance expectations and the reality of current job performance that may contribute to the difficulty experienced by novice nurses during their transition period. Lack of clarity in expectations may lead novice nurses to change jobs or leave the nursing profession within the first year of practice. The purpose of this descriptive study, guided by Benner's novice to expert theory, was to determine whether a difference exists between hospital nurse leaders' beliefs and nursing educators' beliefs about the frequency and competency levels, including leadership for novice nurses transitioning into practice, critical care nursing performance, teaching and collaboration, ability to plan and evaluate, interpersonal relations and communications, and professional development. Survey data were collected from 52 nursing educators and 52 hospital nurse leaders using the Schwirian's 6-dimension scale of nursing performance and analyzed using MANOVA and independent t tests. No differences were identified between hospital nurse leaders' and nurse educators' beliefs on the frequency and competency level in all areas examined for novice nurses transitioning into practice. Hospital nurse leaders' and nurse educators' expectations for novice nurses aligned. Further research should focus on ways to strengthen novice nurses' knowledge, critical thinking, and skills so they are better prepared to enter the transition period. Outcomes from this study may be used to improve education and transition to practice for novice nurses, which can result in positive social change.

The primary purpose of this study was to examine differences in the attributions teachers make toward students in the child welfare and juvenile justice systems. The study utilized vignettes and asked teachers to attribute the responsibility for declines in behavior and academic performance to one of five sources (the student, the parents, the teacher, the court system, or the student's friends). The study further asked teachers to identify the extent to which the changes were due to the student's internal traits and external factors, the likelihood of changes in behavior and academic performance with and without intervention, the teachers' beliefs about their ability to impact change, the amount of time the teachers reported being willing to spend with the students outside of class, and the likelihood of the student pursuing post-secondary education. Teachers were also asked to identify to whom they would first refer the student in the vignette for outside assistance due to declines in behavior and academic performance and then provide all referrals they would make. A total of 224 certified 6th -12th grade teachers in the state of Iowa completed the vignette survey between January 2014 and April 2014. Results indicated that teachers made different attributions toward students on the basis of their involvement in either the child welfare or juvenile justice system. Specifically, teachers attributed the reason for behavioral and academic declines to different sources for students in the child welfare system, the juvenile justice system, and the control condition. Teachers were more likely to attribute academic and behavioral declines to internal factors for students in the juvenile justice system and external factors for students in the child welfare system. Teachers reported students in the juvenile justice system as least likely to change without intervention. The majority of teachers across the three conditions indicated their first referral would be to mental health services within the school. Teachers did not differ in the total number of referrals made, the amount of time until making the referral, the amount of time they would be willing to spend with the student outside of class time in order to impact change, their feelings of efficacy to impact change, and the likelihood of the student obtaining post-secondary education. Finally, limitations of the study are presented, suggestions for future research are discussed, and the implications of this study for teachers and school psychologists are discussed.

Adult attachment theory offers a promising conceptual framework for understanding the psychological and contextual factors that contribute to marital satisfaction. A consistent association has been found between adult attachment dimensions and marital satisfaction. The current study examined several mediating mechanisms that may explain the relationship between adult attachment dimensions and marital satisfaction. Specifically, relationship expectations, four types of responses to accommodative dilemmas (exit, neglect, voice, and loyalty), and three forms of empathy (empathic concern, perspective taking, empathic personal distress) were hypothesized to mediate the relationship between adult attachment and marital satisfaction. Self-report data were collected from both partners of 193 heterosexual, married couples. The attachment dimension of avoidance for husbands and wives was consistently associated with each couple member's respective marital satisfaction. Attachment anxiety was never directly associated with either husbands' or wives' marital satisfaction. Wives' marital satisfaction was explained by their own relationship expectations and exit responses. Additionally, wives' marital satisfaction was explained by their husband's relationship expectations, exit responses, empathic perspective taking, and loyalty responses. Husbands' marital satisfaction was explained by their own relationship expectations, exit responses, neglect responses, voice responses, loyalty responses, and empathic perspective taking. Results are discussed in light of current theories of adult attachment and marital satisfaction.

This graduate project was part of a group project completed by five school and district administrators in Hillsborough County, Florida. The project began because of our passion for teachers who are able to establish a culture of care in their classrooms that support students academically but transform their learning through experiences that enable them to be more highly engaged and productive students, regardless of ethnicity, socioeconomic status, perceived academic abilities, and backgrounds. My project component looked at research on teacher expectations and their effects on student success. Why does the color of a child's skin tone trigger lower expectations by some teachers? Why does this occur? How can school leaders and teachers confront preconceived notions that create barriers for high expectations for marginalized students? Selected literature was reviewed that concentrated on perspectives on teacher attitudes, systemic biases, and teacher expectations. I applied what I learned to exploring gaps in district emphasis on diversity and equity and potential approaches to engaging teachers and school leaders in collaborative and challenging conversation. In an examination of four major district documents, the terms ‘diversity of students’, ‘cultural diversity’, ‘high expectations for all students’, ‘multicultural awareness and equity’ each appeared only once. Professional development for teachers and school leaders was needed to focus on inquiry, self-reflection, curriculum development, and instructional approaches to surface and address implicit biases that contribute to low expectations for marginalized students.

The purpose of this study is to examine and contribute the understanding on how male and female employees expect and experience male and female leadership. The aim of this study is to get a better understanding on how leadership and gender is socially constructed in organizations. In order to answer the study’s purpose, the study is based on qualitive methods where semi-structured interviews were conducted with two focus groups. The aim of this method was to create a discussion between the group members which could illustrate the groups opinions on male and female leadership. The study shows that male and female employees experience different type of female leadership, but similar experience of male leadership. The study also shows that male leadership is still the ideal leadership.

As students begin secondary school, they are charged with learning more content, at a faster pace and with increased pressure from accountability measures (Dreschler, Shumaker, & Woodruff, 2004). If secondary students' reading difficulties are not identified and remedied, the gap between struggling readers and their peers widens every academic year (Edmonds, Vaughn, Wexler, Rutebuch, Cable, Tackett, and Schnakenberg, 2009). The task of reading instruction primarily falls on English teachers, but Strickland and Alvermann (2004) note that while secondary English Teachers do have more preparation in reading instruction compared to other content area teachers, they are not as prepared as they need to be and do not provide reading instruction even when given the opportunity. Additionally, little attention has been given to how teacher should be taught to teach reading (Moats & Foorman, 2003) and even less attention has been given to reading instruction at the secondary level (Edmonds, et al., 2009). Pre-service teacher's beliefs influence how they take in information presented in their teacher education program and classroom instructional decisions (Holt-Reynolds, 1992; Richardson, 2003). However few studies have examined English education pre-service teachers beliefs about teaching struggling readers at the secondary level. The purpose of this study is to describe and explain secondary English education pre-service teachers' beliefs about teaching struggling readers using Photovoice. This study uses a combination of constructivism, Lakoff and Johnson's concept of metaphor, and interpretivism as the theoretical framework. Research methods examining beliefs often involve using surveys or interviews (i.e. Sadaf, Newby, & Ertmer, 2012; Sandvik, van Dall, & Ader, 2013). However, these methods may not provide as representational responses as a method that allows participants to respond through multiple mediums and through metaphor. This study uses a modified version of the Photovoice method to examine secondary English education pre-service teachers' beliefs. Because Photovoice has not been used to examine beliefs of this population, an additional aim of this study is to examine Photovoice as a reflection method. The research questions guiding this study are: 1. What are English education pre-service teacher beliefs' about teaching struggling adolescent readers? 2. What are English education pre-service teacher beliefs about themselves as readers? 3. In what ways, if any, did Photovoice facilitate reflection on beliefs about reading instruction? Findings suggest English education pre-service teachers had not considered struggling readers as part of their classrooms, did not understand the complexities of the reading process, held a deficit view of struggling readers, assumed a teacher's identity, saw reading as an experience/event, found the discussion in the Photovoice process helpful in reflection, Photovoice helped address some issues with teacher reflection, and Photovoice helped develop as well as capture beliefs. Implications for teacher education are discussed.

The focus of this research is the learning of host families participating in the curricula of student exchange programs. The role of the host family is central to the exchange event, but hosting is often a problematic experience during which the host family faces may dilemmas. The research substantiates the relevance of family systems theory in relation to the host family and positions the host family in an intercultural context. Phenomenographic techniques are used to describe the different ways of experiencing a hosting event and to account for how these ways occur. The phenomenon of Hosting is described by the conception of Synergy. A Spectrum of Experience, rather than a hierarchy, is defined by the four components of :fit, responsibility, investment and learning. Host family dilemmas and discernment are related to prior experience of hosting and the Synergy between expectations and learning outcomes. Intercultural learning in a hosting event is identified as participants' understanding of themselves, the process of hosting, communication skills and an appreciation of cultural heritage. Host family expectations have an impact before, during and after the hosting event while realistic expectations recognise the potential for learning moments as well as the contribution that conflicts, confrontations and challenges make to learning and growth in an intercultural context. Best preparation and best practice for host family participation involves an understanding of experiential learning, training program design and strategies for ongoing support systems / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

This thesis covers years of field work in Malawi, Africa by the author as a Research Agronomist (Tree Nuts) for the Government of Malawi. The thesis is an action research type with core and thesis projects which are closely linked. The client group are large estate managers who control the tree nut industries in Malawi. The political, economic and historical perspectives are different from those commonly faced by Australian agronomists and the isolated location of the work make this a unique study. The thesis includes sections on plantation or estate agriculture, farming systems approaches to research and problem solving, systems concepts in agricultural settings and action research concepts. These provide a framework for the study within the constraints of the government research system and industry expectations. The body of the thesis is a review paper presented to estate managers and co-researchers after one year's work. Relevant outcomes of the study are presented. The discussion draws together the outcomes through reflection on the process and methods used. Advantages and disadvantages are considered and risks, such as the dangers to the researcher of this type of study, are highlighted. / Master of Science (Hons)