The purpose of this study was to determine new international students' perceptions of United States professors upon entrance into the university and after two months in class, and if differences in expectations exist between groups of students based on demographic variables. A survey designed to assess these expectations was administered to 81 new international students during the fall 1997 international student orientation sessions. The survey was readministered to respondents of the pre-test after two months to evaluate changes in their perceptions of U.S. professors. During winter term 1998 follow-up interviews were conducted with several students to confirm and expand upon the statistical data. Student responses to 12 of the 25 items changed significantly over time. Significant change occurred on items related to the value of international exchange, cultural adaptation, academic adaptation, and on some non-clustering items. In general, new international students held positive views of professors in the United States on both the pre- and post-tests. Of the demographic variables considered in the research, region of origin yielded the greatest number of significantly different responses between groups. European students generally held more positive views of professors in the United States than did Southeast Asian or East Asian students. Graduate status and prior experience in the United States also affected student response rates to certain items. Gender did not significantly affect response rates. Changes in pre- and post-test response rates indicate that students enter the university with expectations for U.S. professors that somewhat inaccurate. The findings also indicate that demographic variables significantly affect the expectations which new international students have upon arrival. The most effective manner to address these issues is to expand upon the information currently presented to new international students during orientation on topics such as classroom and academic expectations and student-faculty interaction. Addressing different perceptions based on demographic variables would require either multiple sessions to meet the needs of diverse student groups, or sessions which cover the above topics expansively. / Graduation date: 1998

This study examined the utilization of selected student services by domestic and foreign students in their sophomore, junior, or senior year at Oregon State University during Winter 1994 to find out if differences in awareness, usage, and satisfaction existed between them. It also examined if differences in awareness, usage, and satisfaction existed between groups within the variables of gender, age, and academic status; marital status was included in the questionnaire for demographic profile purposes only. Thirty-one services provided by the six departments under the Vice Provost for Student Affairs were selected for the study. A comparison of quality ratings was made between Student Affairs Departments that used a formal process of evaluation and those that did not. The Student Services Awareness and Usage Questionnaire was developed and used. A sample of 150 domestic students and 150 foreign students were randomly selected, with equal representation by gender and academic status. A total of 193 questionnaires (64%) were returned, 116 from domestic students and 77 from foreign students. The five null hypotheses were tested using either the chi-square test, t-test, or Fisher's exact test. The study found that a majority of domestic respondents (97%) were aware of more services than a majority of foreign respondents (77%). A majority of each group used only about one-third of the services, with the domestic respondents using one service more than the foreign respondents. Seventeen percent of the domestic respondents and 20% of the foreign respondents were satisfied, while 83% of the domestic respondents and 80% of the foreign respondents were neither satisfied nor dissatisfied. Neither group indicated being very dissatisfied, dissatisfied, or very satisfied with any of the services. The findings from the other variables yielded varying results. The use of a formal process of evaluation by some service departments did not result in their obtaining higher quality ratings than the rest. Recommendations for administration and further research were included to address the issues involving student services and how they can be delivered more efficiently and effectively to benefit the university's diverse student population. / Graduation date: 1998

The under-representation of women in higher hierarchical positions and company boards today is a fact that affects not only the women striving for these positions but also the companies that face a loss of competent personnel in their companies. We found it interesting to find out whether or not women are striving for leading positions, in the first place and what factors motivate and discourage them to strive for a career and what incentives companies could offer to increase their motivation. We adopt a company perspective in this thesis since we want to study this matter for the benefit of companies. If they knew more about what women want, they would be able to emphasize these conditions and motivate more women to strive for a career. Motivation theories as Maslow’s hierarchy of needs and Herzberg’s two-factor theory are used to give us a basic understanding of motivation and they also function as a foundation for our survey. Consequently, we follow a deductive approach. This study is focusing on Swedish female business students and a survey among the female students of the USBE has been carried out to generate emprical data. We defined career in this thesis as: “striving for high hierarchical positions with high responsibility and decisive power”. The majority of respondents stated to be striving for a career but not everyone was striving according to our definition. We found almost half of the respondents to be to some extent striving for a career according to our definition and 42 percent agreed to completely strive for a career. The most important motivating factors were found to be “to have a stimulating job” and “to be financially independent”. The strongest factors that have a negative influence on the respondents’ career motivation were “to have little time for family” and “to have a low salary in relation to work effort”. Furthermore, “equal salary for both men and woman”, “professional training” and “good promotion possibilities” were ranked the highest of the alternatives for incentives that companies could offer. As the data suggested that the vast majority of our respondents can be encouraged in their career striving, companies should consider offering incentives and improving the general job conditions. The most promising strategies are adjusting the women’s salaries to those of their male colleagues, providing full-time day care near the workplace and offering professional training. The Swedish government could contribute in this field by enforcing the law that requires equal salries for both sexes, by stronger controlls and more severe punishments. Suggestions for further research are, for instance, to study what companies actually do today to motivate women in their career striving.

Introduktion: Nyligen utkomna rapporter visar en ökning i incidensen för nya HIV-infektioner i Thailand och HIV är fortfarande ett av de största hälsoproblemen. Anledningarna till denna utveckling är flera och HIV/AIDS-relaterad stigmatisering och diskriminering poserar som en av de största. Syfte: Syftet med föreliggande arbete var att undersöka karaktärsdragen gällande HIV/AIDS relaterad stigmatisering och diskriminering bland thailändska universitetsstudenter, samt att undersöka förekomsten av eventuella skillnader mellan könen. Metod: En deskriptiv tvärsnittsstudie genomfördes på ett universitet i Prathomthani provinsen, Thailand. Ett bekvämlighetsurval användes. 150 studenter, både män och kvinnor, deltog och svarade på frågor om karaktärsdragen gällande HIV/AIDS-relaterad stigma och diskriminering. Resultat: En låg nivå av rädsla för smittöverföring och sjukdom observerades av majoriteten av studenterna, även om bristande kunskap gällande smittöverföring observerades. Både hög och låg associering med skam, skuld och dom rapporterades och mest utmärkande var frågorna för kvinnliga prostituerade och promiskuitet.  Även lågt personligt stöd för diskriminerande åtgärder och principer, och lågt stöd för upplevelse av samhällets inverkan av diskriminerande åtgärder eller politik rapporterades. Slutsats: Studenterna hade en låg nivå av rädsla för smittöverföring och sjukdom, dock uppvisades bristande kunskap gällande smittöverföring. Studenterna rapporterade hög nivå av skam, skuld och dom relaterat till kvinnlig prostitution. Resultaten implicerar behov av vidare interventionsprogram med fokus på kunskap. / Introduction: Resent reports indicate an increasing incidence rate of HIV in Thailand and it is still one of the main public health problems. The reasons for this development depend on many different factors where HIV/AIDS-related stigma and discrimination acts as one of the major ones. Aim: The aim of this study was to examine the characteristics of HIV/AIDS-related stigma and discrimination among Thai university students and to investigate if there is any difference in the characteristics with regard to gender. Method: A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted at a university in Prathomthani Province, Thailand. A convenience sample was used. The 150 students, both male and female, participated to answer questions concerning the characteristics of HIV/AIDS-related stigma and discrimination. Results: Fear of transmission and disease was reported rather low level by the majority of the students, though inaccurate knowledge regarding transmission was observed. The level of shame, blame and judgment were low and high, most distinctive concerning women prostitutes and promiscuity. Low levels of personal support of discriminatory actions and policies, and perceived community support of discriminatory actions or policies were reported. Conclusion: The students had a low amount of fear of transmission and of the disease, though they still demonstrated a lack of knowledge regarding transmission. Women prostitutes related to shame blame and judgment were reported high level by the students. The results imply the need for further intervention programs focusing on information.

Recent research has proposed a new stage in human development, termed emerging adulthood by Jeffrey Arnett, which is characterized by a prolonged journey to adult roles and responsibilities. This thesis explores the experience of Chinese emerging adults, university students aged 20-25 years using Erikson’s and Levinson’s developmental theories as a theoretical framework. These authors proposed that three major developmental tasks are necessary for the transition to adulthood: separating from family of origin, forming an adult identity and finding the place for the self in the larger society. Qualitative interviews were conducted virtually with 12 Chinese university students to understand their perceptions and lived experience. Qualitative thematic analysis was used to analyze the interview transcripts. The results suggest Chinese emerging adults (a) have a low level of separation from parents; (b) have not formed a clear sense of identity and have not achieved a self-definition in adulthood; and (c) have not made initial commitments to love and work. It is speculated that the Chinese sociocultural context may further postpone its young adults’ independence and autonomy, and this prolonged transition to adulthood is both positive and problematic to Chinese young adults. This study lends support to Arnett’s emerging adulthood theory through its exploration of emerging adulthood in China, where, to date, little research has been done on this subject. It provides rich descriptions of the experience of Chinese emerging adults’ lives and enhances understandings of the role of culture in influencing the emerging adulthood period.

No description available.

Graduation date: 1994

Chinese higher education has achieved a remarkable expansion in recent years but few studies have examined the civic perceptions and civic participation of contemporary university students. This study aims to fill the gap in the existing literature by accomplishing four main goals: first, to investigate how students view citizenship, civic issues, and civil society; second, to examine how they participate in civic activities, both on and off campus; third, to understand how their civic attitudes and behaviours are being influenced by society, university and family, also by such factors as formal citizenship education curricula, informal educational experiences and the mass media; and fourth, to analyze the impact of higher education expansion on civil society in China. This study adopted a mixed methods approach, and combined findings from a large-scale national student survey across 12 universities and 34 face to face interviews conducted in 3 selected institutions among the 12 that were surveyed. The conceptual framework drew upon social capital theory and both ecological and cognitive psychological theories to generate two analytic frameworks for analyzing the quantitative and qualitative data. The major findings were: (1) university students demonstrated strong patriotism, and a serious commitment to social justice and civic participation, which was partly the result of the distinctive form of citizenship education they received in the Chinese context; (2) half of the survey participants were found to be inactive participants in civic activities, which showed a disconnect between their civic attitudes and civic behaviours; (3) higher socio-economic status (SES) was associated with more active civic participation; (4) the mass media, especially the Internet was found to have a profound impact on students’ civic perceptions; (5) interview participants in the three qualitative case institutions revealed distinctive patterns of civic engagement, which confirmed the importance of university environment, policy, history and culture on student civic participation and citizenship development. This study has made a significant contribution to the existing literature on citizenship issues in contemporary Chinese universities. It has also added to current knowledge on trends of civil society development and the democratization process in China, from the perspective of university students.

The object of this study was to determine the current attitudes of Ball State University students toward hazardous waste disposal. A survey questionnaire was used to collect data on political affiliation and ideology, knowledge of the hazardous waste issue. and environmental attitudes. A total of 103 freshmen and 77 seniors returned usable questionnaires for an overall response rate of 49%. Computer analysis of returned questionnaires answering six research questions and forming conclusions. It was determined that there were measurable differences in attitudes between freshmen and senior students. While both groups expressed environmental concern, seniors were more knowledgable of the issues and more thoughtful in their choices. However, several indications were discovered that environmental concern in this survey group will probably not lead to political action.Ball State UniversityMuncie, IN 47306

Chinese higher education has achieved a remarkable expansion in recent years but few studies have examined the civic perceptions and civic participation of contemporary university students. This study aims to fill the gap in the existing literature by accomplishing four main goals: first, to investigate how students view citizenship, civic issues, and civil society; second, to examine how they participate in civic activities, both on and off campus; third, to understand how their civic attitudes and behaviours are being influenced by society, university and family, also by such factors as formal citizenship education curricula, informal educational experiences and the mass media; and fourth, to analyze the impact of higher education expansion on civil society in China. This study adopted a mixed methods approach, and combined findings from a large-scale national student survey across 12 universities and 34 face to face interviews conducted in 3 selected institutions among the 12 that were surveyed. The conceptual framework drew upon social capital theory and both ecological and cognitive psychological theories to generate two analytic frameworks for analyzing the quantitative and qualitative data. The major findings were: (1) university students demonstrated strong patriotism, and a serious commitment to social justice and civic participation, which was partly the result of the distinctive form of citizenship education they received in the Chinese context; (2) half of the survey participants were found to be inactive participants in civic activities, which showed a disconnect between their civic attitudes and civic behaviours; (3) higher socio-economic status (SES) was associated with more active civic participation; (4) the mass media, especially the Internet was found to have a profound impact on students’ civic perceptions; (5) interview participants in the three qualitative case institutions revealed distinctive patterns of civic engagement, which confirmed the importance of university environment, policy, history and culture on student civic participation and citizenship development. This study has made a significant contribution to the existing literature on citizenship issues in contemporary Chinese universities. It has also added to current knowledge on trends of civil society development and the democratization process in China, from the perspective of university students.