<p> The problem that was addressed by the study is whether teachers working in blighted schools experience higher levels of secondary traumatic stress due to indirect exposure to students&rsquo; trauma and higher rates of anxiety due to direct exposure to a blighted school building than teachers working in non-blighted schools. The purely quantitative study that utilized two validated instruments and an objective checklist was conducted via Qualtrics on the internet. Study results were based on an internet survey of 172 high school teachers who work directly with students. Scores on the SDI, the STSS and the STAI-AD were analyzed. Teachers were assigned to a group, blighted or un-blighted, based on his or her qualifying scores on the SDI. Those with scores of 4 or higher were assigned to the blighted group whereas those teachers with a score of less than 4 on the SDI were assigned to the non-blighted group. Final numbers of participants for each group were 84 for the un-blighted group and 88 for the blighted group. Composite scores for the STSS and the STAI-AD were calculated. Hypothesis 1 results indicated there is a significant difference in STS, as measured by the STSS, between high school teachers who work in blighted school buildings and a control group of high school teachers who work in non-blighted school buildings (t = -6.340, p &lt; .001, df = 170). Hypothesis 2 results also indicated there is a significant difference in state symptoms of anxiety occurring during exposure to school building disrepair, as measured by the State subscale of the STAI-AD, between high school teachers who work in blighted school buildings and a control group of high school teachers who work in non-blighted school buildings (t = -4.233, p &lt; .001, df = 132.757). The findings of the study are consistent with previous studies on the negative effects of community blight and STSS in the helping professions.</p><p>

<p> The purpose of this study was to understand the implications of management support and employee engagement on the improvement of organizational efficiency, as a byproduct of employees adopting organizational Project Management Methodologies (PMMs). Previous PMM-based research has not focused on assessing the (a) influence of management support and employee engagement on PMM adoption or (b) effect of PMM adoption on organizational efficiency. The PMM adoption and resistive factors researched included: PMM practices, training, coaching, PMM design involvement, PMM feedback, project type, employment type, and PMM practitioner experience level. An exploratory qualitative research method was supported by an online survey data collection method and thematic analysis data analysis method. Two Project Management Institute (PMI) Chapters comprised a sample population of over 2400 professionals. A sample size of 29 surveys was acquired through data collection that produced five key themes: (a) PMM tailoring, (b) vetting of PMM best practice, (c) good communications, (d) management support via PMM training and coaching, and (e) employee engagement via proactive involvement and reactive feedback with the caveat of receiving fair treatment. These themes promoted PMM adoption and accumulatively support higher levels of organizational efficiencies. Research findings enrich existing knowledge surrounding PMM adoption and organizational efficiency due to the pre-existing research gap.</p><p>

<p> Loneliness is a human experience that often influences the individual&rsquo;s mood, perception, self-concept, relationship, and physical heath. The existing body of research on loneliness often associates loneliness with a mental illness (e.g., anxiety or depression) and/or a cognitive deficit. Moreover, although, researchers have identified different types of loneliness, there is limited research on the experience of profound loneliness while in the company of another person with whom one is in a close relationship. Therefore, this study was framed to contribute information in the field by exploring the meaning of this particular type of loneliness as a lived experience. The question this research sought to answer through narrative inquiry was: &ldquo;What is the meaning of participants&rsquo; experience of loneliness while in the company of another person with whom they were in a close relationship?&rdquo; </p><p> The current study examined oral narratives of adult participants. Five participants were recruited and interviewed. The transcribed data was analyzed following Gee&rsquo;s (1991) structural analysis of oral narrative. Through analysis of the narrative data this study aimed to gain an understanding of subjective, psychological meanings of this particular loneliness experience. </p><p> The results of the analysis showed that participants, in relationship with another, characterized as close but not experienced as intimate, was retrospectively experienced as loneliness and was lived with a sense of profound hopelessness in a multidimensional manner, which implied the participant&rsquo;s desired ideals for intimate relationship. </p><p> Many factors appear to influence the loneliness experience while in the company of a close other for adults, including the individual&rsquo;s desire to avoid experiencing pain and loss. The findings indicate that increasing the individual&rsquo;s awareness of their multidimensional experience through non-pathologizing reflection in a clinical context could allow him or her to reach a deeper understanding of the experience.</p><p>

<p> Self-forgiveness is an emotion focused coping mechanism that increases positive emotions and behaviors. Self-forgiveness has been found to be moderated by guilt and shame in support of Hall and Finchman&rsquo;s theory on the emotional components of self-forgiveness. Men and women recovering from alcohol addiction have been found to struggle with shame and guilt, however, little is understood about this association. This quantitative correlational non-experimental research study investigated the relationship between self-forgiveness and risk of relapse in adults who were recovering from alcohol abuse, how shame and guilt moderated this relationship and how this relationship differed by gender. Anonymous surveys were conducted in two treatment centres and two Alcoholic Anonymous recovery meetings in the city of Calgary. Participants completed a demographic questionnaire, The Heartland Forgiveness Scale, Alcohol Risk of Relapse Scale, and the Guilt and Shame Proneness Scale. Multiple regression and moderation analyses were conducted to test the study hypotheses. Self-forgiveness was found to have a non-significant relationship with risk of relapse (&beta; = .040, <i>p</i> &lt; .720) and the scores did not differ by gender [Male (&beta; = &ndash;.061, <i>p</i> &lt; .641), and Female (&beta; = &ndash;.0.17, <i>p</i> &lt; .937)]. Shame (<i>F</i> (3, 79) = .614, <i>p</i> = .608), and guilt (<i>F</i> (3, 79) = 7.244, <i>p</i> = .000) did not have a moderating effect on the relationship between self-forgiveness and the risk of relapse. When shame and guilt interacted with self-forgiveness in predicting risk of relapse, the results did not differ by gender [Male (<i>F</i> (4, 55) = 5.770, <i> p</i> = .001), and female (<i>F</i> (4, 18) = .580, <i> p</i> = .681)]. However, a result not hypothesized in the study was found among male participants that guilt was predictive of risk of relapse (<i> F</i> (3, 56) = 7.595, <i>p</i> = .000). This study highlights the impact of maladaptive guilt that maintains the cycle of addiction. Clinicians can utilize this knowledge to employ strategies of eliminating maladaptive guilt in psychotherapy. Further research is needed to determine if these results could be replicated with other demographic groups to identify other plausible mechanisms between self-forgiveness at risk of relapse.</p><p>

<p> A noted discrepancy between the skills demanded by industry and the skills engineering graduates are proficient in has engendered a push for reform in undergraduate engineering curriculum. As a result, many institutions are now implementing supplemental leadership development programs to better prepare students for the collaborative work and leadership roles they will encounter on the job. The present study aimed to evaluate the efficiency of one such program, and then to measure self-perceived success of program alumni when compared to a non-leadership-program control group. Archival survey data and focus groups were utilized to confirm proposed hypotheses. Obtained results suggested significant improvements in engineering undergraduate students following leadership development exposure. Following graduation, these improvements persisted as increased self-perceived competency and a heightened awareness of the importance of leadership, teamwork, and communication in the workforce. This research suggests formalized leadership development training as a complimentary curriculum for engineering undergraduates facilitates the successful transition into the workplace following graduation.</p><p>

<p> The purpose of the present study was to explore the influence of trust, help seeking/help giving, and relation-inferred self-efficacy on the onset of flow experience in a dyadic relationship between an elite athlete and their coach. The social cognitive theory of triadic reciprocal determinism was used to examine the relationship of the elite athlete and their trusted coach in a high-pressure athletic environment as it related to the ability of the elite athlete to achieve a flow state. Using a multiple case study approach, semi-structured interviews were conducted with five coach-athlete dyads. Data were analyzed using thematic network analysis (i.e., looking for thematic ties to established theory, as well as emerging themes). Prior research has focused on flow as a personally experienced phenomenon arising due to constructs that are largely self-controlled (e.g., loss of self-consciousness, merging of action and awareness, autotelic nature, centering of attention, feeling in control). Findings of this study, based on the triadic reciprocal determinism model, showed support for a more expansive model for flow in elite sport dyads, including behavioral, personal, and environmental influences, particularly in the area of trust. Based on findings of this study, recommendations are made for further research, including the necessity for sports flow research to move to a more applied focus using social cognitive theory. Implications of this line of research include uncovering the method by which an elite coach might create an environment in which flow experiences and improved performance outcomes might ideally occur for the athlete. </p><p>

<p> Middle Eastern individuals represent a heterogeneous group comprised of different nationalities, languages, and religious identifications. Yet, Middle Eastern Americans are widely underrepresented in the psychotherapy literature. Extant literature appears to focus on professional opinions about what psychotherapists should do when working with this population, including understanding cultural factors, such as incorporating family in treatment and acculturation status. Considering cultural communication patterns among this population, emotion is generally understood to be inhibited or suppressed, as disclosing personal problems and expressing emotion outside the family sphere can be viewed as disloyal and/or shaming. Thus, one of the many areas mental health clinicians should consider when working with Middle Eastern clients is how to recognize emotional communication patterns and identify and assist their clients with emotion regulation and/or dysregulation in a culturally sensitive manner. </p><p> To address the need for research on how emotions are expressed and regulated in psychotherapy with Middle Eastern clients, this study qualitatively analyzed three psychotherapy cases from a university&rsquo;s community counseling center&rsquo;s archival research database. More specifically, the researchers used an inductive content analysis approach with emotion, emotion regulation and InVivo codes to observe themes of emotional expression, regulation and dysregulation that emerged from the gathered data from a course of psychotherapy with these Middle Eastern American clients to further classify the observable phenomena (Elo &amp; Kyng&auml;s, 2008; Hsieh &amp; Shannon, 2005; Salda&ntilde;a, 2009; Weber, 1990). </p><p> Consistent with previous literature, results indicated that negative emotions were coded more frequently in psychotherapy sessions than positive emotions, as was the emotional regulation strategy of <i>Experiential Avoidance</i>. Surprisingly, data emerged revealing positive emotion regulation strategies (e.g., acceptance and emotional identification) that were not identified by literature describing this population. By obtaining a better understanding of how Middle Eastern American clients expressed and utilized their emotions in treatment, this study may be useful to the future work of clinicians and researchers targeting treatment of these individuals in a culturally sensitive manner and in an approach that emphasizes positive emotion regulation strategies.</p><p>

<p> This thesis explores different ways the media influences the psyche and society. Although research has found some positive effects, it points to primarily negative impacts, including manipulating emotions, instilling fear, promoting racism, influencing social control, and ultimately impacting peoples&rsquo; perceptions of reality and the world, which can extend into problematic effects on the electoral process and the shaping of popular culture. North Americans can be adversely impacted by media images and content to which they are exposed daily. Negative and fear-producing content can contribute to mental illness as well as societal degeneration. This thesis uses a hermeneutic methodology to identify ways in which the media may be negatively impacting the psyche. The research suggests connections between media and the contents of the cultural unconscious related to the American dream, female objectification, and fear of the other. It posits that fear-producing media can be seen as a form of psychological abuse.</p>

<p> Limited research has attempted to quantify Fear of Missing Out. Only one prior study has examined adolescents&rsquo; experience of Fear of Missing Out and did so with a small, homogenous Belgian sample. In order to expand upon this limited research base, the present study sought to examine Fear of Missing Out with an American adolescent sample. Specifically, the purpose of the present study was to analyze the reliability and validity of the Fear of Missing Out Scale (Przybylski, Murayama, DeHaan &amp; Gladwell, 2013) that was originally developed with an adult population, as well as strengthen understanding of Fear of Missing Out as it pertained to specific demographics. Students (grades 5&ndash;12) participating in a large, urban school district after school program in North Texas were surveyed on their experience with Fear of Missing Out and frequency of social media engagement (<i>n</i> = 961; 55% male). Results of a principal components analysis confirmed the presence of a 1-factor model, maintaining all 10 original scale items with strong internal consistency (&alpha; = 0.93). Regression analysis suggested Fear of Missing Out was predictive of increased social media engagement (<i> p</i> = .003). Gender and ethnicity were not related to Fear of Missing Out; grade level and Fear of Missing Out were inversely related, such that the older a student was, the less Fear of Missing Out was reported. Future researchers should utilize intentional and purposeful methodology for measuring social media engagement and focus on strengthening the validity and reliability of Fear of Missing Out as a unique construct. Further, theorists should consider updating their developmental perspectives related to adolescence based on advances in technology, media consumption, and interpersonal communication, particularly via social media. Practitioners are encouraged to understand and disseminate this information as it pertains to educating adolescents and their families about the benefits and costs of mobile technology and social media engagement.</p>

<p> Profiling has its traditions in criminal investigations where it is used to assist in apprehending an offender by examining and attempting to understand his or her psychological motivations and personality. Terrorist specialists and theorists have applied traditional profiling techniques in hopes of distinguishing nonterrorists from terrorists and in an endeavor to understand the motivators for radicalization. However, these attempts have created a divide between the theorists resulting in contradictory data and debate. With the rise of social media, the methods of terrorism have changed. The Islamic State (IS) in particular has tapped into using media, not only to recruit, but as a form of technological combat, which in turn has added to their success and strength. This dissertation introduces the theory of Combat Branding. The findings of this dissertation suggest that it is possible to create a deductive profile of Western IS recruits by beginning with the examination of IS&rsquo;s Combat Brand. This is a qualitative visual narrative study of official IS media consisting of video and still images. It is my hypothesis that starting with an analysis of the Combat Brand is a missing link to approaching a deductive profile of the intended target audience.</p><p>