Thesis (M.B.A.)--Naval Postgraduate School, December 2003. / "MBA professional report"--Cover. Thesis advisor(s):Donald R. Eaton, Michael W. Boudreau, Brad R. Naegle. Includes bibliographical references (p. 41-42). Also available online.

Attitude and motivation, two central concepts in the domain of educational psychology, have not been attended to as required in the literature on English language teaching and learning in Iraq. Consequently, the current study aims at launching a theoretical and empirical investigation into the role of both concepts in bringing about the current discouraging situation of teaching and learning English as a foreign language in Iraq. The theoretical part of the work subsumes the first four chapters. Chapter One is the introduction where the problem to be investigated, the hypotheses, the aims of the research, and the reasons behind the choice of this topic for research have been stated. Chapter Two describes the educational system and the current situation of English language teaching and learning in Iraq. Worth mentioning in this respect are the different pre- and in-service training establishments, English textbooks and tests, and the supervision of teachers of English. Chapter Three is on attitude. The concept has been initially considered from a purely psychological viewpoint with focus on the historical review of attitude development, definition, basic components, main characteristics, formation, and change. Attitude in education forms a second point of departure with emphasis being laid on the role of the concept in teaching and learning foreign languages. Chapter Three ends with attitude measurement. Motivation, the topic of study of Chapter Four, is tackled in terms of its historical development, definition, and different theories. Reference is also made to the role of motivation in education in general, and in foreign language teaching and learning in particular. Accordingly, types of motivation, factors affecting pupils' and teachers' motivation, and teachers' role in motivating pupils form main subjects of discussion. Chapter Four ends with two sections; the first of which tackles the facets of difference between attitude and motivation, while the second deals with the differences between interest on the one hand, and attitude and motivation on the other. Chapter Five is on the method of research adopted to gather the data for the current study. It also contains the analysis of the Pupils' and Teachers' Attitudes and Motivation Questionnaires. Finally, some general remarks about the empirical part of the work are also made. Chapter Six presents the statistical analysis and survey results. It also contains some hypotheses on pupils' and teachers' attitudes and motivation. There is further analysis of some responses made by pupils and teachers which could not be hypothesized. This chapter ends with the analysis of headteachers' and supervisors' perceptions of English language teaching and learning in Iraq. The final chapter titled 'conclusion' contains the general conclusions arrived at by the researcher, followed by some implications for future work.

Since the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, military personnel participating in combat operations in Afghanistan and Iraq have been plagued by traditional barriers to successful labor market attachment such as health and mental health concerns, employer stigma, and difficulty translating military training and experience to the civilian market, but also by a lagging economy. Veteran status since Vietnam has historically been linked to negative employment outcomes over the life course. Currently, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports an unemployment rate of 9.5% for male Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans, and a 12.1% rate for their female counterparts. Veterans aged 20-24 have a 20.1% unemployment rate, nearly five points higher than that of their civilian peers. To compound the problem, an overly passive labor market policy prevents access to education and training that civilian employers value most. As Veterans continue to separate from the armed forces the United States, employers and policymakers can choose to capitalize on their skills, experience, and willingness to serve, or risk alienating another generation of young service members. This paper addresses five key categories that serve as barriers to successful labor market attachment and summarizes both governmental and private-sector programs designed to assist military personnel in their transition to civilian work. Finally, it provides policy options for remedying the post-9/11 Veterans labor market transition problem through improving service coordination and delivery, deliberately developing human capital through military service, and increasing employer responsibility for skill development and labor market attachment. / text

This dissertation explores the resettlement and integration of Iraqi refugees coming to the United States, and particularly to Austin, TX, from 2008-2012. On a broad level, it seeks to understand how peoples, organizations, and government actors combine to negotiate the controversial practice of third-country refugee resettlement. Data is drawn from 16 months of participant observation at a local refugee resettlement agency in Austin with Iraqi refugees and from one-on-one interviews with many of those refugees and with local agency service providers. The research seeks to explore what (and how) federal, state, and local policies shape the everyday resettlement and integration experiences of Iraqi refugees in Austin. In addition to policy and other structural obstacles in place in the current American resettlement paradigm, the dissertation also seeks to understand aspects of agency utilized by Iraqi refugees and how, if at all, cultural, social, and political factors contextualize and impact their experiences upon arrival to the United States and throughout their first few months in this country. The study finds that Iraqi refugees are highly impacted both by political and social structural issues already in place within the receiving society but also by cultural and social factors and frameworks which they “bring with them” from Iraq. The study also illustrates that the current literature on refugees underemphasizes refugees’ voices. These voices depict the experience of resettlement and integration in the United States as one where many feel a sense of being caught “between here and there” and constantly trying to “catch up with life” but without enough help, support, or guidance. The voices underscore the human experience and struggle of forced migration generally and specifically that of third country resettlement of Iraqi refugees to the United States. / text

Despite the widespread prevalence of bombing in Iraq, no study has investigated its psychological impact on civilians. This thesis aimed to address this gap in the literature. Four studies were conducted consequently using civilians in Iraq. The first study aimed to explore the subjective experience in response to the bombing attack. A qualitative approach was taken and twenty semi-structured interviews were employed and analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA). This identified seven categories including interpersonal relationships, loss of self, changes in attachment, shattering of world assumptions. Subsequent studies were then conducted to understand these themes as possible predictors of PTSD and psychiatric comorbidity in regards to bombing attacks. The second study was a prospective longitudinal design aimed to investigate the trajectory of PTSD symptoms, psychiatric comorbidity, and attachment styles among survivors. It also aimed to examine the role of a variety of variables, namely shattering of world assumptions, altered self-capacity, perceived social support to predict PTSD and psychiatric comorbidity. One hundred and eighty Iraqi civilians were recruited and assessed approximately 1 month and 5 months after their experience of being in a bombing attack using a battery of questionnaires. A control group data (n=178) of people who had not been exposed to a bombing was also collected. Results indicated that 19.4% and 57.2% of the participants met the screening criteria for partial and full PTSD symptoms at T1, which declined overtime. The bombing group displayed significantly higher rates of psychiatric comorbidity and insecure attachment than the control group. After controlling for the severity of bombing attack, controllability of events and affect dysregulation significantly predicted both PTSD and psychiatric co-morbidity symptoms. None of these dimensions predicted PTSD and psychiatric co-morbidity at T2. The complementary study 3 looked further at selected predictors indicated by the findings of study 1, namely death anxiety, coping strategies, religious coping and meaning in life. This study employed a longitudinal design in which 185 participants were recruited and assessed approximately 2 months and 7 months after bombing using a package of self-report questionnaires. Results indicated that religious coping and cognitive avoidance had a significant role to play in predicting PTSD and psychiatric comorbidity shortly after the bombing. Death anxiety was also emerged another picture in predicting PTSD and psychiatric comorbidity through mediators, namely religious coping and searching for meaning in life. Literature showed that PTSD and psychological distress are treatable after people had received various forms of professional and personal strategies. Study 4 employed mixed methods in order to provide further understanding regarding the helpful coping strategies that participants had attempted to use to manage their psychological distress. Six participants (n=3 recovered well, n=3 still struggle) were recruited for the qualitative phase and 243 for the quantitative. Social support was found as the most frequent and helpful strategy to manage post-bombing distress, followed by avoiding thinking about the bombing and religious strategies. Different psycho-social factors that hinder or foster recovery between participants were also highlighted. In conclusion, the findings confirmed related studies that, following bombing, there is a high risk that victims develop PTSD and psychiatric co-morbidity symptoms which decline to some extent over time. A variety of factors, such as social support and religious strategies were identified as helpful. However, these were also related to the victims’ prior attachment strategies. Implications for assisting victims and the population of Iraq are offered, in particular the need to support families and friends (social networks) in the context of very limited professional sources of support in a country where terrorism is rife.

During the Iran-Iraq War of 1980-1988, the Iraqi Baʿth party engaged in the production of historical narrative, which defined the party's ideal of Iraqi nationality and statehood, while promoting the legitimacy of its military efforts. Public intellectuals played an important role in the manufacture of such historical narrative. This thesis examines two works produced in the service of this project, Al-Ṣirāʿal-ʿIrāqiyy Fārisiyy, or "The Iraqi-Persian Conflict," and Tārīkh al-Munāzaʿāt wa-l-Ḥurūb Bayn al-ʿIrāq waʾĪrān, or "The History of the Conflicts and Wars Between Iraq and Iran." It will be demonstrated that these works reflected, and rarified a wartime nationalist discourse permeating the public sphere, in which an ideal of Iraqi nationality and statehood was defined through the demonization of an essentialist Persian other. Pre-Islamic and medieval Islamic history was employed to emphasize episodes of violence and cultural conflict between Iraqis and Iranians, in doing so illustrating the characteristics of both peoples. Iraqi nationality was defined as embodying superlative qualities of governance, military prowess, cultural achievement, and religiosity. Iraqi nationhood was defined and elevated in contrast to an opposite, malicious Persian nationality, rooted in anti-Arab hostility and characterized by inferiority in piety, culture, leadership, and warfare. Direct parallels existed between this nationalist narrative, and public sphere expressions of Baʿthist nationalist discourse, such as government statements, school textbooks, and monument construction.

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