<p> Leader capacity is threatened by a projected gap in corporate leadership as a result of retirements of the baby-boomer cohort necessitating a need to develop effective leaders. Authentic leadership, underpinned by people's sense of self-awareness, has been found to increase employee performance. The purpose of this quantitative, quasi-experimental study was to examine changes in self-awareness and authentic leadership among volunteers and controls over a 40-day period during which a national breast-cancer walk occurred. A Pearson's correlation was conducted as a control to determine whether self-awareness and authentic leadership are independent constructs. Forty-six volunteers were selected from publicly posted lists of volunteers matched by age and gender to 46 controls that were recruited from Survey Monkey&trade;. Self-awareness was measured using the Leader Self Awareness Scale and authentic leadership was measured using the Authentic Leadership Questionnaire. Both questionnaires were self-administered as a pretest 7 days prior to the event, as a posttest 7 days after the event, and as a follow-up 30 days after the event. Mixed ANOVAs were used to reveal a significant interaction effect of volunteerism by time on self-awareness, <i>F</i>(2, 180) = 59.43, <i> p</i> &lt; .001, and authentic leadership, <i>F</i>(2, 180) = 57.62, <i>p</i> &lt; .001, while no significant main effects for volunteerism were found for either self-awareness, <i>F</i>(1, 90) = .007, <i>p</i> = .93, or for authentic leadership, <i>F</i>(1, 90) = .04, <i>p</i> = .84. There was a significant positive correlation between self-awareness and authentic leadership among volunteers, <i> r</i>(44) = .70, <i>p</i> &lt; .001, 30 days after the event, which was not found in the controls, providing additional confidence in the interpretation of the study results in that self-awareness and authentic leadership were independent constructs. Overall, these findings suggest that volunteerism over time may have functioned as a trigger event leading to enhanced self-awareness and increased authentic leadership. To expand the value of this study beyond the specific venue of the 3-day cancer walk, investigations into other volunteer events are needed as well as investigations into the reflection process. Recommendations for organizations include cultivating employees, who volunteer, in order to develop self-awareness and authentic leadership potential.</p>

<p> This study examines how personal characteristics of a team facilitator (transformational leadership, agreeableness, conscientiousness, and emotional stability) impact team members' stress level, trust in leadership, and team climate. Participants comprised assessment teams in the student affairs of higher education, providing a unique perspective on a leadership role in which hierarchical positioning between the leader (facilitator) and follower was minimized.</p><p> Hypothesis 1 examined transformational leadership and three of the subscales of the Five-Factor Model (FFM)&mdash;agreeableness, conscientiousness, and emotional stability&mdash;as predictors of team stress. It was hypothesized that team facilitators who achieved higher scores would elicit lower team stress. This hypothesis was not supported.</p><p> Hypothesis 2 examined emotional stability and conscientiousness as predictors of team climate. It was hypothesized that higher-scoring facilitators would elicit a more positive team climate. This hypothesis had partial support on two of the independent variables. The higher the facilitator scored on conscientiousness, the higher the members rated Team Climate Inventory (TCI) subscale of Vision. The higher the facilitator scored on emotional stability, the lower the members rated the TCI subscale of Participant Safety.</p><p> Hypothesis 3 examined emotional stability as a predictor of trust: the higher the score elicited on emotional stable qualities, the higher the trust level. This hypothesis was not supported by the data.</p><p> Hypothesis 4 examined transformational leadership as a predictor of trust: the higher the score, the more trust gained. This hypothesis had full support, with transformational leadership being a reliable predictor of trust.</p><p> Hypothesis 5 examined agreeableness in predicting stress: those scoring moderately would alleviate stress. This hypothesis was not supported by the data.</p><p> Analyses were also conducted on team satisfaction and team performance. Trust, team climate, and stress were examined to predict team satisfaction and performance. For both satisfaction and performance, only one of the three predictors, the TCI, contributed significantly. As the team climate became more positive, team satisfaction and team performance also increased.</p>

<p> Given society's increasingly technology centric play and workplace environment, Massively Multiplayer Online Games (MMOs) can be an excellent sandbox to develop future leaders of teams, which are the lifeblood of any organization. MMOs like World of WarCraft provide rich immersive experiences that allow leaders and followers the ability to create highly complex ecosystems that can mimic some of the largest out of game organizations. In game they can potentially gain valuable insights, which can later be applied to the workplace. This study explores Leadership characteristics appearing in and out of game. A combination of identity theories and leadership characteristics provide a greater understanding of possible relationships that may be occurring between leaders and followers; and in and out of multiplayer video game environments. Using transformational leadership as a framework, 6 leaders were interviewed, and assessed with the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ). Also, their guild communities were examined for evidence of leadership behaviors. The results found relationships between a leader's in and out of game characteristics with values and contexts in the workplace between leader, community, and follower. These relationships create and shape the lived experiences of leaders providing them the insights to create connections between relevant contexts in game with their workplace environment. This study identifies leadership stories, that can been employed in the workplace for the benefit of the organization; and the use group play spaces as a place to practice leadership operations of a business. Through these narratives, leaders can better understand the values that shape their identity; the relevant contexts that enabled the appearance of leadership characteristics in and out of game; and an opportunity to connect with a community aligned to teach leaders how to be.</p>

<p> Using a two phased mixed method this researcher sought to investigate the relationship between student success and online orientation quiz scores as well as to describe the characteristics of successful students in an online learning environment. The findings of the quantitative phase indicated that the quiz scores differed between the successful versus non-successful students. Although the relationship was statistically significant it was considered weak due to the confidence interval. However, it did provide a basis for determining the qualitative sample. During the qualitative phase student interviews brought a deeper understanding to the concept of success, where locus of control emerged as the most important underlying motivator in the students' concept of achievement. The findings corroborated prior research indicating that students with internal locus of control have better success in their personal and professional lives, though not always academically. The current research was important because prior research on locus of control and online education was inadequate. The relationship between locus of control and leadership was also explored, though prior research was limited there as well. Recommendations for leadership in higher education or businesses to increase an awareness of locus of control during orientations may increase overall performance, satisfaction and retention of students and employees. </p><p> <i>Keywords:</i> online education, locus of control, leadership, orientation, online orientation, Mindsets, retention, persistence, motivation, resilience, mixed methods</p>

<p> Throughout human history, music has served as a coping mechanism when people have endured extreme hardships in life. Music and songs in prisons have been written and sung to express the pain of the incarceration. Research has suggested that songwriting is a powerful educational and therapeutic catalyst, and that songwriting may facilitate the processing of difficult emotions. </p><p> The purpose of this study was to gain a greater understanding of the emotions expressed in the songs of incarcerated men, and how songwriting as an outlet for emotional expression influenced the writers. Data collected for this study included 47 songs written by 17 incarcerated men, written observations and reflections by participants and three facilitators, transcriptions of four workshop sessions, and sound recordings/transcriptions of 16 spoken introductions and 13 songwriter-performed pieces. An additional 32 songs were collected from a case-study participant for examination. All data were collected using ethnographic methods. Modified grounded theory techniques, including initial coding, focused coding, and memo writing were used to analyze the data. </p><p> Findings revealed that although the lyric themes categorized expressed more happy than sad emotions, the most frequently expressed emotion was desperation, and desperation was usually expressed in songs with a context of incarceration. In addition, songs that expressed humor were often a way to cope with incarceration, and songwriting was also a way express the pain of addiction. Examining the songs of the case-study participant revealed that his writing changed over time. His most frequently expressed emotion in 2008 was fear, and song concepts usually involved sinister, otherworldly figures. In 2011, his most frequently expressed emotion was closeness, and song concepts focused on determination to build a better life. </p><p> Throughout the workshop sessions, the men experienced feelings of psychological comfort in routines established over time. Data analyses indicated that group interactions and opportunities to perform were primary motivators in participants' decisions to participate in the Songwriters' Workshop. For most men, group response processes generated new ideas for songs, and greater song quality. Some of the men further stated that participating in the Songwriters' Workshop helped them to foster better relationships, and re-envision their futures. Difficulties that occasionally arose were both pedagogical and social in nature. </p><p> Based upon these findings, I suggest that aspects of Cohen's Theory of Interactional Choral Singing Pedagogy pertains to songwriting contexts. I propose a theory of the expressive community, in which the community influences individuals, and individuals influence the community. I further suggest collective-actualization, in which individuals in a group realize their collective potentials, capabilities, and talents, and seek the achievement of these potentialities.</p>

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Pacific Graduate School of Psychology, 1990. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 51-07, Section: B, page: 3612. Chair: Karl J. Mueller.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Pacific Graduate School of Psychology, 2000. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 60-10, Section: B, page: 5249. Adviser: Phillip Akutsu.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2007. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 69-02, Section: B, page: 1379. Adviser: Julian Rappaport. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 168-171) Available on microfilm from Pro Quest Information and Learning.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2008. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 69-05, Section: A, page: 1666. Adviser: Philip C. Rodkin. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 85-94) Available on microfilm from Pro Quest Information and Learning.

Thesis (Psy.D.)--Fairleigh Dickinson University, 2004. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 65-06, Section: B, page: 3210. Chair: Ronald Dumont. Available also in print.,