Report (M.S.)--Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. M.S. 1991. / Vita. Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 62-63). Also available via the Internet.

The specific problem of this study was to determine common characteristics of midlife professional, technical, and managerial workers who have made voluntary radical career changes, to identify positive and negative experiences faced by these individuals, and to identify coping strategies used by the career changer and families of the career changers. Data were gathered by the participant observation method of qualitative research. Twenty purposively selected career changers were interviewed using semi- structured interview questions. Questions were categorized as follows: personal background, schooling, career history, the career change, and after the career change. The interview sessions were tape recorded. Responses to the interview questions were assembled, codified, and examined for similarities. A profile of a middle-aged professional who has made a radical career change was developed. Excerpts from the profile follow. This individual: (a) is about 43 years old, (b) has worked in the same career for about 13 years prior to the change, (c) experienced no major traumatic event before the change, (d) received no assistance from a "help" agency during the time of change, (e) had few barriers to overcome in making the transition, (f) adjusted to the change with a minimum of effort, and (g) remained financially stable after the change. A major finding of the study was that 17 of the 20 subjects said they were better off psychologically after making the career change. / Ed. D.

Thesis (M.U.R. Pl.)--Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, 1984. / Vita. Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 127-130). Also available via the Internet.

This theses compares the benefits of energy self reliance strategies with the benefits of industrial development strategies to determine which strategies create greater benefits as a method of economic development. A critical factor, which is examined, is the probability of success for industrial development strategies as opposed to the near certain benefits from the self-reliance strategies. The methodology employs a Virginia input-output model using a regional purchase coefficient technique to regionalize the model for the New River Valley Region of Virginia. The strategies are developed based on two distinct expenditure levels, acting as resource constraints on the strategy selection, in order to compare the return on additional expenditures. / Master of Science

The present study involved the implementation of one component, Community Health Status Assessment, of a comprehensive, strategic planning tool, Mobilizing for Action through Planning and Partnerships (MAPP), to qualitatively uncover the perceptions of the quality of life and local health care system of 28 residents in New River Valley (NRV), Virginia. The current study represents the initial qualitative study utilizing MAPP in Virginia. Interviewees perceived an overall good quality of life (e.g., ample green space, safe neighborhoods), with an urgent need for health care reform, affordable insurance, and transportation, particularly for after-hours medical care. The current study also reviews the specific findings from the one-on-one interviews, and provides a step-by-step look at the MAPP process for potential users as applied to a real-world community, specifically, the NRV. / Ph. D.

The present study implemented Mobilizing for Action through Planning and Partnerships (MAPP), a comprehensive, multi-component, strategic planning model and tool, in the New River Valley (NRV), Virginia to mobilize the NRV community to improve its own health status and the quality of life of its residents. The current mixed methods study represents one of the first to utilize MAPP in southwest Virginia and Virginia and is the most comprehensive community health needs assessment and strategic planning effort to date in the NRV. Through MAPP, the NRV community strived to determine the most effective ways to achieve optimal community health by considering its unique circumstances and needs, prioritizing public health system issues, identifying resources, and then developing integrated plans and forming effective partnerships for strategic action. The NRV MAPP process provided a solid framework for creating a community-driven needs assessment and strategic planning approach and initiative that brought together diverse public, private, non-profit, and voluntary organizations/agencies, businesses, faith communities, academia, local government, community members, and others who shared the commitment to and had a role in the NRV community's health and overall well-being. The current study also reviews the specific findings, summarizes the benefits and successes, and highlights lessons learned (including challenges and limitations) from the NRV MAPP experience, as well as makes recommendations for current practice and future research. Additionally, it provides a step-by-step overview of the entire MAPP process for potential users as applied to a real-world community, specifically the NRV. / Ph. D.

The Appalachian Power Company is an operating company of the American Electric Power Company, the largest electricity producing private electric system in the United States since 1953. The Appalachian Power Company held almost exclusive development rights along the New River since its 1911 charter. From then until the 1940s, it built a few small dams, a very large hydroelectric dam with the highest generating capacity of its time, and the largest steam plant in Virginia on the New River. Besides a few navigation issues, conflicting developments, and brief clashes with the federal government, seen in Chapter Two of this thesis, the Appalachian Power Company's developments along the New River went largely unchallenged until the late-1960s. The Blue Ridge Project was the utility's next large hydroelectric project on the New River. It was slated to impound the waters of the upper New River in Grayson County, Virginia, with two reservoirs extending into the river's headwaters in the counties of Ashe and Alleghany in northwestern North Carolina. Though the initial project met no serious opposition, environmental lawyers and the State of North Carolina defeated a considerably enlarged version of the proposal after a legal battle lasting over a decade. Why was this double impoundment not successfully constructed? What had changed in the last decades to influence Appalachian Power's previously unchallenged right to generate electricity along the New River? The purpose of this thesis is to answer these questions. / Master of Arts

Since the dawn of industrialization, many authoritarian regimes have taken on massive public works projects which seem impressive or farfetched. Few onlookers are surprised when these projects are not completed or are completed at such a high cost that they appear to be an exercise in futility. Usually these failures are written off as dictatorial incompetence and overambition, but the initial motivations for beginning them are rarely addressed. This paper will argue that, rather than being a symptom of precipitant development or front for embezzlement, many of these projects were designed to fail because the regime received the largest benefit by starting them—not by completing them. Empirically this research will focus on the Toshka ‘New River Valley’ project in Egypt, which is Egypt’s largest development project and is designed to create a second Nile River Valley in the South and eventually be home to 20% of the Egypt’s population. In this report I explore the governments’ motivations, their intentions, the resulting symbolism and the repercussions of the Toshka project. / text

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the Quality of Life~Contribution Model (QOLC) developed by Murrell and Norris (19S3) as a mental health needs assessment technique for the rural elderly. In this field survey method, measures of mental health areas and program targets within each mental health area are compared and prioritized according to their relative contributions to a subjective index of quality-of-life (QOL). An in-home survey of 60 older adults was conducted. Needs were defined in terms of problems, services, and community support and were measured across the following mental health areas: 1) Depression; 2) Organic Brain Syndrome; 3) Alcohol and Drug Abuse; 4) Anxiety; 5) Caregiver Problems; 6) Schizophrenia; and 7) Health Habits. The utility of the QOLC model was evaluated via the descriptive conclusions generated by multiple regression analysis of the sample survey data, with QOL as the dependent variable and the different need measures and mental health areas as the independent variables. A cost analysis was also completed comparing the net total cost of the QOLC with the hypothesized net total cost of a more traditional mental health needs assessment (consisting of a key informant plus a service use statistics component). The results suggest that although the QOLC mental health needs assessment costs more than simpler needs assessment techniques, it can yield important information that can prevent wasteful spending on increased direct mental health services and can also be used to determine the criteria that should be used to segment the target population. / Master of Science