<p> This dissertation is presented in a three-article format. Article 1, &ldquo;The impact of disability on body esteem: A review of the literature,&rdquo; is a review that examines the existing literature regarding body esteem in individuals with various disabilities. The purpose of the article was to highlight principal findings and identify areas that require further research.</p><p> Article 2 is entitled, &ldquo;Qualitative research contributions to military post combat transition and reintegration: A review of the literature.&rdquo; The purpose of this review was to examine the existing qualitative literature regarding military postcombat transition and reintegration. Four categories were identified, which included (1) psychosocial adjustment and coping; (2) physical disability adjustment; (3) protective factors; and (4) transition challenges. Several themes were also distinguished within each category. </p><p> Article 3, &ldquo;A qualitative study of military veterans&rsquo; resilience and body esteem following combat-related limb amputation,&rdquo; included semistructured interviews with six former service members who had sustained a military combat-related limb amputation, and their spouses. Semistructured interviews provided an opportunity to explore the resilience and body esteem of each amputee, as well as the views of the respective spouses. The Metatheory of Resilience and Resiliency was utilized to guide content analysis of the interviews. Open, axial, and selective coding were used to analyze the data. </p>

This study investigated female students’ practices and experiences of using mobile technology for learning in Saudi higher education during the period of 2014-2017, and built a theoretical framework for mobile learning in this context. The rapid expansion of higher education in Saudi Arabia, coupled with the rapid increase in student numbers, is raising the need to find more effective ways to teach, reach and communicate with such a large student body. Mobile technology has been widely used in the context of Saudi higher education by both students and university teachers, but little is known about female students’ experiences of using mobile technology to support their learning. A better understanding of the context of mobile use in higher education in Saudi Arabia might help in exploiting the affordances of mobile technology for learning purposes and uses. As a contribution to innovations in Saudi higher education, this study explored mobile learning experiences of Saudi female students at one of the universities in Saudi Arabia, King Saud University. The study implemented a case study methodology and used a qualitative-led mixed methods design. A large-scale online survey of 7,865 female students provided information about the ownership and practices of mobile technology among higher education students; the extent of Internet access via mobile technology, as well as times, locations, and purposes of the use. The study also investigated the opportunities provided by mobile technology that enhance and foster learning experiences for higher education students through an in-depth investigation of 52 participants through personal diaries, group interviews and in-depth, semistructured interviews. The contribution to knowledge lays in the development of a theoretical framework for mobile learning to describe contemporary practices and experiences in Saudi higher education. Themes of mobile learners’ ubiquitous use, mobile learners’ movement, and mobile learners’ strategies for achieving learning goals emerged through the analysis. One major conclusion of the research is that, as a country with a gender segregated education system and very strong cultural demands on women, mobile learning enables Saudi females to negotiate their way through the different constraints, restrictions and boundaries that prevent or hinder them in their learning process, while maintaining their own cultural values, principles and traditions. The research concluded that the mobile learning framework, in the context of Saudi females in higher education, is about active learners showing their agency through appropriating tools and resources, crossing boundaries of contexts, and personalizing their learning with and through the use of their mobile technology as a cultural resource and boundary-crossing tool to accomplish learning tasks, purposes and goals.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Indiana University, Dept. of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies, 2009. / Title from PDF t.p. (viewed on Feb. 10, 2010). Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 70-06, Section: A, page: . Advisers: Margaret R. Sutton; Donald R. Warren.

Thesis (Ed.D.)--University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2009. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 70-06, Section: A, page: . Adviser: Debra D. Bragg. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 158-164) Available on microfilm from Pro Quest Information and Learning.

<p> The organizational socialization literature identifies specific needs of newly hired employees: role clarity, occupational self-efficacy, and social acceptance. Organizations help meet these needs by providing onboarding (orientation and engagement) practices that facilitate newcomer adjustment. This leads to increased employee satisfaction and retention. The purpose of this qualitative study was to identify the benefit of onboarding practices that nursing programs use with adjunct clinical nursing faculty and determine if these practices contribute to organizational socialization. Eight nursing adjuncts from three universities completed an online pre-interview survey and participated in a semi-structured interview where they rated the benefit of best and common onboarding practices. An administrator from each university also completed an online version of the survey. Findings from the study revealed consistent benefit ratings of the majority of practices by participants. Some practices were deemed essential and their absence was detrimental for the adjunct, students, and institution. Administrator perceptions of benefit were equal to, or higher than, adjunct ratings. Adjunct participant responses supported their need for an onboarding process that promotes role clarity, self-efficacy, and social acceptance. Those who experienced quality onboarding expressed feelings of satisfaction with their jobs and greater allegiance to their programs than those with poor experiences. This study has implications for nursing education because retention of engaged, satisfied adjuncts is a cost-effective way to supplement the limited pool of full-time nursing faculty. Both adjuncts and administrators identified benefits of the majority of practices, so nursing programs would be well-served by offering a thorough and efficient onboarding process to adjunct faculty. This study also adds to the limited literature that examines the impact that specific onboarding practices have on organizational socialization of new employees.</p>

<p> A college education is, for many in America, part and parcel of the American Dream, and is certainly achievable. For countless reasons, students may enroll at community colleges underprepared, unprepared, anxious, and destined for a high risk of failure. Although community colleges are higher education institutions open and accessible to all who want to pursue an education, some degree programs are selective enrollment programs, such as nursing. Considering the stringent admission criteria and rigors of an associate degree in nursing (ADN) program, few are admitted. However, due to the pending shortage of registered nurses, assistance programs to help high risk nursing students succeed in school and pass their licensure exams to become RNs are needed for the future of the profession. </p><p> The purpose of this exploratory study is to identify factors of the successful Gateway/HRNS program embedded in the community college Associate Degree in Nursing program that fostered student retention, graduation and passing of the NCLEX-RN licensure exam on the first attempt. A qualitative case study methodology was utilized for this comprehensive program evaluation of one very successful ADN nursing program in a Midwest community college. Interviews of graduates of this high risk nursing program, focus groups of faculty teaching in the program, and archival and current document analysis were used to determined program factors that have helped high risk students over the past twenty years to succeed and become licensed, employed RNs. </p><p> Findings revealed that students and faculty highly valued three components of the high risk nursing student assistance program. These components were a) a pre-nursing summer introduction to nursing component comprised of many small courses; b) a mid-curricular second summer LPN option component; and c) regularly-scheduled weekly tutoring sessions throughout the two years of the ADN program. The most valued experience, according to program graduates, was the mid-curricular LPN Option course, which is mandatory for these high risk students and optional for other nursing students. It was felt this second summer component in the assistance program helped students to integrate nursing theory coursework and clinical which provided a substantial benefit as they entered their final year of the ADN program. </p><p> As a result of this study's findings, the O'Sullivan Strive to Thrive (S2T) Model for Student Success was developed to enable community college nursing leaders to develop assistance programs for high risk nursing students. There are eight steps in the Strive to Thrive (S2T) Model, designed to help ADN leaders and faculty promote and orchestrate the successful persistence and graduation of high risk students. Also included are directions for each of the steps as well as corresponding useful forms. This model to plan and design assistance programs for high risk students can be adapted by nursing department leaders in community colleges, as well as other nursing program venues and degree programs.</p>

<p> Despite the rapid growth of online learning and student enrollment at for-profit colleges, previous research has found that employers are wary of job applicants with credentials earned from these sources. This study compared the attitudes of health care recruiters toward four different RN-to-BSN degree options based on the method of instruction (classroom, online) and the type of college (traditional, for-profit). A sample of 116 health care recruiters from across the United States completed an online survey. The study revealed that there were significant differences in the perceived advantage in the hiring process, credibility, concerns about credentials and likelihood to recommend hiring. Applicants with RN-to-BSN degrees from traditional colleges and via classroom instruction were clearly most favored and those with degrees earned through online instruction at for-profit colleges were perceived the least favorably. An online degree from a traditional college was determined to be more acceptable than an online degree from a for-profit college but still less acceptable than a degree earned through classroom instruction at a traditional college. The implication of these findings is that the return on education for students earning college degrees online or from for-profit colleges may be inhibited by employer perceptions regarding the quality of credentials earned in these environments.</p>

<p> The purpose of this project was to create a tool to evaluate web-based educational sources that are geared towards Latino parents with preschool children to combat childhood obesity and to promote healthy lifestyles. The goals of this project were to increase awareness of the Latino childhood obesity problem and provide a tool to web developers to aid in the development of culturally appropriate nutrition education websites for preschool Latino children. </p><p> The primary evaluation tool is organized into eleven groups: site content, site functionality, site design, layout, readability, user learning experience, type style, use of color, photos and illustrations, non-English site development, and site evaluation. All criteria were included based on evidence-based research and a review of literature. A feasibility study was conducted to review the primary evaluation tool and a content evaluation form for users provided feedback. </p>

<p> Forty years after Kramer's (1974) seminal work, Reality Shock, new graduate nurses continue to have difficulty transitioning to the registered nurse (RN) role. The purpose of this phenomenological study explores the lived experience of new graduate nurses who completed a Veterans Affairs externship program in their senior year of nursing coursework and its perceived impact on their successful transition into the practice role 3-24 months following graduation. Benner's (1984) Novice-to-Expert Model, Karmer's (1974) Reality Shock Theory, and Selder's (1989) Life Transition Theory support a framework for this study. Twelve telephone interviews were conducted using van Manen's (1990) method for researching the lived experience. One overarching theme "feeling confident" and three main categories, "transitioning to the RN role," "making decisions," and "interacting with professionals," were identified from the data. Externship programs assist the student to comfortably and smoothly transition as a new graduate nurse by offering additional clinical and practice experiences. Given the complexity of today's health care environment, there is a growing need to better prepare the graduate nurse for their transition into nursing practice. Externship programs can serve this purpose. </p>

<p> <b>Background:</b> Approximately 25% of newly hired nurses are deficient in critical thinking skills. <b>Purpose:</b> The purpose of the study was to determine if the hybrid design course assisted nursing students to improve critical thinking skills as compared to the traditional face-to-face lecture. <b>Methods:</b> This quasi-experimental study utilized pre- and post-test Assessment Technologies Institute, LLC (ATI) score analyses, course grades, and a demographic survey for students in the hybrid design course and students in the traditional course. The sample size consisted of 26 students in the hybrid design course and 25 students in the traditional lecture course. <b>Results:</b> No statistically significant differences were found between the critical thinking skills of students in the hybrid design section versus the traditional lecture section of the medical-surgical course. Course grades were statistically higher in the hybrid design course when compared to the traditional lecture section of the course.</p>