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- Title
- The Rise of the Smooth Jazz Format: An Exploratory Study of Kenny G and his Gang of Smooth Operators.
- Creator
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Mader, William, Grauerholz, Elizabeth, Lynxwiler, John, Gay, David, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
-
The purpose of this study is to explore the development and rise of the smooth jazz radio format. It is an exploratory study which aims to illustrate the confluence of forces that contributed to the immense success of the smooth jazz genre through the 1980s and well into the 1990s. Artists, such as the saxophonist Kenny G, popularized this style of music that is often described as instrumental-pop music, happy-jazz, or easy listening. Others might draw comparisons to the music we often hear...
Show moreThe purpose of this study is to explore the development and rise of the smooth jazz radio format. It is an exploratory study which aims to illustrate the confluence of forces that contributed to the immense success of the smooth jazz genre through the 1980s and well into the 1990s. Artists, such as the saxophonist Kenny G, popularized this style of music that is often described as instrumental-pop music, happy-jazz, or easy listening. Others might draw comparisons to the music we often hear inside of elevators and shopping centers. This is a process that is not unique to the genre of jazz nor to the time period I will be focusing on but is a niche in the music world in which I am intimately involved. This study delves into how the smooth jazz genre developed, the key player(s) involved with its proliferation, and most importantly, this study demonstrates that in spite of the meteoric rise and immense commercial success of smooth jazz, it was not a trend that could withstand the continuously changing tastes of the public.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2012
- Identifier
- CFE0004314, ucf:49483
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0004314
- Title
- CULTURAL RELEVANCE IN MEDICINE: AN EVALUATION OF CULTURAL COMPETENCE CURRICULUM INTEGRATION IN SOUTHEASTERN MEDICAL SCHOOLS.
- Creator
-
Gannon, Leslie, Mishtal, Joanna, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
-
Cultural competence in health care provision has been broadly identified as the need for providers to acknowledge, address, or incorporate an understanding of the cultural and social context of patients' lives into the process of treating and managing patient's illnesses. However, how cultural competence can be incorporated has been the subject of debates in biomedicine and anthropology, and has often been met with difficulties in physician practice. These challenges arise from differing...
Show moreCultural competence in health care provision has been broadly identified as the need for providers to acknowledge, address, or incorporate an understanding of the cultural and social context of patients' lives into the process of treating and managing patient's illnesses. However, how cultural competence can be incorporated has been the subject of debates in biomedicine and anthropology, and has often been met with difficulties in physician practice. These challenges arise from differing perspectives about how cultural competence is understood and institutional neglect of culturally relevant education. While the need for cultural competence integration into health care practitioner training during medical school education has been discussed for over six decades, effective incorporation of cultural competence into medical curriculum remains a multifaceted topic of interdisciplinary debate and a challenging task. The purpose of this project is to evaluate cultural competence integration in Southeastern medical school curriculum. Theoretically, this research utilizes critical medical anthropology as developed by anthropologists Arthur Kleinman, Janelle Taylor and Nancy Sheper-Hughes as a theoretical lens through which cultural competency implementation in Southeastern medical school curricula can be examined curricula Southeastern. This research also fills an interdisciplinary gap in both anthropological and medical scholarly knowledge bases. Methodologically, multiple project parameters have been explored utilizing qualitative data collection methods of cultural competence background and evaluation. This research combines primary data collection and secondary data analysis. Primary data collection involved interviewing individuals from Florida medical institutions concerning their experience and personal views of the benefit of cultural competence integration. The analysis of secondary data explored the integration of cultural competence into medical school curricula. These analyses include an examination of the content, format, and language of Southeastern medical school curricula, demographic trends as related to cultural competence in health care, federal grant allocation as related to cultural competence in health care, and institutional perspectives on incorporating social science concepts in medical education. This thesis makes three distinct but interrelated claims: (1) I argue that based on the provided descriptions of medical institution curriculum guides, there is a substantial discrepancy between the cultural competency incorporation claims made by the schools and what is actually integrated into their curriculum; (2) I argue that cultural competence integration must be delivered vertically across disciplines and horizontally across the entire four year span of medical education, and (3) Available ethnographic guides are presented with too narrow of a focus to apply to all medical school curricula. Understanding the shortcomings of medical school curricula in incorporating cultural competence training is significant because it draws attention to the need to develop more effective and systematic ways to train future health care providers to address the needs of an increasingly diverse patient population.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2014
- Identifier
- CFH0004717, ucf:45370
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFH0004717
- Title
- Same Fight, Different Player: An Insight into Culture, Information Sharing, and Team Performance.
- Creator
-
McCoy, Cecily, Fritzsche, Barbara, Salas, Eduardo, Mouloua, Mustapha, Mangos, Phillip, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
-
The purpose of this study was to examine the relations among culture, information sharing, and performance among culturally-homogeneous NATO Officer teams. Forty-eight teams participated from five countries, namely, Bulgaria, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, and USA. Teams of four participants were randomly assigned to a role and the task was an interdependent computer-based mission using an adapted version of Neverwinter Nights(TM) (Bioware, 2003), where they had to communicate among teammates...
Show moreThe purpose of this study was to examine the relations among culture, information sharing, and performance among culturally-homogeneous NATO Officer teams. Forty-eight teams participated from five countries, namely, Bulgaria, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, and USA. Teams of four participants were randomly assigned to a role and the task was an interdependent computer-based mission using an adapted version of Neverwinter Nights(TM) (Bioware, 2003), where they had to communicate among teammates and with non-human players to find weapons caches and other mission objectives. Not one individual had all of the information needed to perform the tasks; thus, they needed to share information with each other. The results of the study suggested that total information sharing was related to both team performance and cultural values (Power Distance, Individualism, and Uncertainty Avoidance). Specifically, Situation Update was the information sharing dimension that was significantly related to team performance. In addition, culture moderated the relations between information sharing and team performance. Specifically, there were hypotheses regarding Individualism moderating the relations between (a) Supporting Behavior, (b) Information Exchange, and (c) Reinforcement / Punishment and team performance. The results were that for high Individualists, the more supporting behavior, the better the teams performed. For low Individualists, the more supporting behavior, the worse the teams performed (-)a finding that was in the opposite direction than hypothesized. In support of the hypotheses, for high Individualists, as Information Exchange and Reinforcement / Punishment increased, team performance also increased. Conversely, for low Individualists, as Information Exchange and Reinforcement / Punishment increased, team performance decreased. A Task Direction x Power Distance interaction was also hypothesized and supported. Task Direction was positively related to team performance for high-Power Distance teams. For low-Power Distance teams, an increase in task direction was associated with a decrease in team performance. In addition, the effective teams exchanged more information and communicated similarly during the beginning, middle, and end of the missions. Moreover, high-Individualist teams were more successful and spent more time communicating about Planning in the beginning, and Situation Update for both the middle and end of the task. In contrast, teams low on Individualism spent more time communicating about Planning for all three phases of the task. There were also interesting rank differences in Information Sharing between senior and junior Norwegian Officers that are noteworthy. Study limitations, contributions, and practical implications for military teams and similar career fields were discussed.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2013
- Identifier
- CFE0004716, ucf:49806
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0004716
- Title
- THE GENDERED ALTAR: WICCAN CONCEPTS OF GENDER AND RITUAL OBJECTS.
- Creator
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Sloan, Jesse, Zorn, Elayne, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
-
Many ethnographic accounts within the annals of anthropological literature describe the religious beliefs and magical rituals of peoples throughout the world. Fewer scholars have focused on the relatively young Neo-Pagan religious movement. "Neo-Pagan," explains Helen Berger in Voices from the Pagan Census (2003), "is an umbrella term covering sects of a new religious movement, the largest and most important form of which is…Wicca" (Berger et al. 2003: 1). This thesis examines the...
Show moreMany ethnographic accounts within the annals of anthropological literature describe the religious beliefs and magical rituals of peoples throughout the world. Fewer scholars have focused on the relatively young Neo-Pagan religious movement. "Neo-Pagan," explains Helen Berger in Voices from the Pagan Census (2003), "is an umbrella term covering sects of a new religious movement, the largest and most important form of which is…Wicca" (Berger et al. 2003: 1). This thesis examines the relationship between practice and ideology by analyzing the material culture of Wiccan altars as used by Wiccans in Central Florida, USA. Particular attention is paid to beliefs concerning concepts of gender associated with ritual objects, and concepts of gender and sexuality as understood by practitioners. Many Wiccans see divinity as manifested in two complementary beings: the Goddess and the God. The fertility that these divine beings achieve through sexual union is the subject of an elaborate ritual called the Great Rite. A pair of Wiccans, often a masculine High Priest and a feminine High Priestess, conduct this ritual by manipulating specific objects, which are believed to be strongly gendered. I argue that Wiccan rituals reflect, construct, and reinforce the Wiccan precept of a gender-balanced cosmos through the interaction of these primary ritual actors and the gendered objects they manipulate. As a practicing Wiccan, my theoretical approach is aligned with that of the native scholar. The native scholar faces challenges distancing her or himself from research, but gains opportunities from insider knowledge. Wiccan ideology stands in contrast to heteronormative conventions of gender and sexuality. However, gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender Wiccans may need to actively negotiate for representation in this movement, where fertility is stressed. Wiccans continuously reinvent established practices in an attempt to create a more satisfying religious community.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2008
- Identifier
- CFE0002176, ucf:47525
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0002176
- Title
- THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SCHOOL CULTURE AND STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT IN MIDDLE SCHOOLS.
- Creator
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Vislocky, Karen, Pawlas, George, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
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This study was developed to produce data about the cultures of selected Florida middle schools. The research was intended to contribute to the existing body of knowledge on collaboration, collegiality, and self-determination/efficacy as related to student achievement. The focus for this study was provided through three research questions: (a) to determine to what extent middle schools scoring in the top half and the bottom half on the modified version of Wagner and Masden-Copas' School...
Show moreThis study was developed to produce data about the cultures of selected Florida middle schools. The research was intended to contribute to the existing body of knowledge on collaboration, collegiality, and self-determination/efficacy as related to student achievement. The focus for this study was provided through three research questions: (a) to determine to what extent middle schools scoring in the top half and the bottom half on the modified version of Wagner and Masden-Copas' School Culture Triage Survey differed on various demographic elements; (b) to determine what differences, if any, existed between the cultures of the selected Florida middle schools and student achievement as measured by the percentage of middle school students scoring at level 3 and above on the 2004-2005 Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT) reading portion; and (c) to determine what relationships, if any, existed among the three key areas of school culture (collaboration, collegiality, and self-determination/efficacy) and student achievement. The population of this study was comprised of instructional personnel employed at one of the six participating middle schools in Osceola County School District, Florida during the 2004-2005 school year. One middle school chose not to participate in the study. Data were generated from the six middle schools using a self-administered survey. Based on an extensive review of literature and the research findings, it was concluded that sixth, seventh, and eighth grade students that attended schools with higher culture scores produced higher FCAT reading scores. The reverse was also true: sixth, seventh, and eighth grade students that attended schools with lower culture scores produced lower FCAT reading scores. There was a relationship between the three key areas of school culture (collaboration, collegiality, and self-determination/efficacy) and the reading achievement of sixth, seventh, and eighth grade students.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2005
- Identifier
- CFE0000905, ucf:46732
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0000905
- Title
- EXAMINING HETEROSOCIAL AND SOCIAL ANXIETY IN PAKISTANI AMERICAN AND EUROPEAN AMERICAN WOMEN:A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS.
- Creator
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Mirza, Zehra, Negy, Charles, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
-
This present study will examine the psychopathology of Pakistani American females through the context of cultural means. Research in the past has shown that Asian Americans report higher levels of distress as well as higher levels of anxiety relative to their European American counterparts. Thus, social anxiety may manifest itself differently among Asian Americans because of the cultural and ethnic variations in psychopathology. This study will aim to examine cultural differences in social...
Show moreThis present study will examine the psychopathology of Pakistani American females through the context of cultural means. Research in the past has shown that Asian Americans report higher levels of distress as well as higher levels of anxiety relative to their European American counterparts. Thus, social anxiety may manifest itself differently among Asian Americans because of the cultural and ethnic variations in psychopathology. This study will aim to examine cultural differences in social anxiety because it may help explain the etiology of social as well as heterosocial anxiety and facilitate in forming better diagnostic assessments, scales and treatments for non-mainstream cultural groups such as Pakistanis and potentially other South Asian groups living in the United States. Additionally, Pakistani women have limited interactions with the opposite sex because of the religious and cultural background that emphasizes modesty and arranged marriage. Medical research suggests that Muslim women of Asian backgrounds, have requested female health care service providers rather than male providers. Given the cultural and sociological influences that impact psychopathology, it was hypothesized that Pakistani American women will report more heterosocial anxiety than European American women and that their heterosocial anxiety will be related to parental influence on mate choice and American acculturation. Results indicated that European women reported higher levels of heterosocial and social anxiety in comparison to Pakistani women. This may have occurred due to the Pakistani women in this sample not being truly representative of the Pakistani population as they were all young, college students. Also, a lower level of heterosocial anxiety was found to be negatively correlated with assimilation to U.S culture, which may have attributed to less heterosocial iv anxiety was found to be negatively correlated with assimilation to U.S culture, which may have attributed to less heterosocial anxiety in Pakistani women.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2013
- Identifier
- CFH0004350, ucf:45010
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFH0004350
- Title
- NONVERBAL CUES' IMPACT ON LEADERSHIP ACROSS CULTURES: A REVIEW AND PROPOSITIONS.
- Creator
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Vazquez, Melissa, Salas, Eduardo, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
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Body language is a part of everyday life and the nonverbal cues associated with body language provide important sources of interpersonal information in a variety of environments and especially in the context of cultural diversity. The intent of this thesis is to understand how certain nonverbal cues can affect leadership within different cultures. The nonverbal cues studied will be body posture, facial expressions, and distance. The cultural regions studied are represented by China, France,...
Show moreBody language is a part of everyday life and the nonverbal cues associated with body language provide important sources of interpersonal information in a variety of environments and especially in the context of cultural diversity. The intent of this thesis is to understand how certain nonverbal cues can affect leadership within different cultures. The nonverbal cues studied will be body posture, facial expressions, and distance. The cultural regions studied are represented by China, France, Brazil, and Egypt. The appropriate nonverbal cues were identified and discussed based on the cultural context.Research suggests that positive and erect body posture would be beneficial for leaders in all four regions in regards to self-perception and workers' perceptions of leadership. Careful selection of specific facial expressions and direct eye contact would be favorable in all regions for self- and workers' perception of leadership. Considering distance, having less distance and initiating a handshake for self- and workers' perceptions of leadership would be an advantage, but friendly touching is culturally specific. Becoming aware of how certain nonverbal cues may influence the display and interpretation of body language serves to enhance the development of leadership and the promotion of positive attitudes and loyalty in business settings.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2014
- Identifier
- CFH0004549, ucf:45206
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFH0004549
- Title
- MEMORIES AND MILESTONES: THE BRIGHTON SEMINOLE TRIBE OF FLORIDA AND THE DIGITIZATION OF CULTURE.
- Creator
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Van Camp, April, Kitalong, Karla, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
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This dissertation project discusses individual photographs of the Brighton Seminole Tribe of Florida from the early 1900s to the current period, each organized by way of their institutional significance, not their place in chronological history. Following Jean Mohr and John Berger's model in Another Way of Telling, I create a narrative for the pictures with a discussion of historical information, current data from interviews, Tribal members' stories, and my own personal story as it is...
Show moreThis dissertation project discusses individual photographs of the Brighton Seminole Tribe of Florida from the early 1900s to the current period, each organized by way of their institutional significance, not their place in chronological history. Following Jean Mohr and John Berger's model in Another Way of Telling, I create a narrative for the pictures with a discussion of historical information, current data from interviews, Tribal members' stories, and my own personal story as it is tethered to the tribe. The research addresses the following questions: Can photography offer a technological means to communicate culture in a vital, organic way? Can photos communicate culture as identity and not something merely to identify with? Can this cultural identification include me, an outsider, and is it possible that a colonialist viewpoint is actually beneficial to the tribe? John Berger, Roland Barthes, and Gregory Ulmer's theories allow opportunity for new perspectives, and even would-be answers at times. Admittedly, there is no frame large enough to hold all of the truth, but these theorists' works push the frame's boundaries to look at the pictures from other perspectives, other as both different and from the outside. These critics offer light and air, posing questions such as, what assumptions help a viewer transcend the normally limited perspective of a superficial observer? What possible contributions might an outsider bring to the interpretation?
Show less - Date Issued
- 2008
- Identifier
- CFE0002243, ucf:47924
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0002243
- Title
- DETERMINANTS OF TURKISH POILICE OFFIERS' PERCEPTION OF INTEGRITY: IMPACT OF ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE.
- Creator
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Kucukuysal, Bahadir, Wan, Thomas, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
-
The purpose of this research was to examine the influence of police organizational culture on officers' perception of integrity in the Turkish National Police (TNP). Adopting an organizational rather than an individualistic perspective, this study focused on police organizational culture to investigate the causes of integrity problems in the TNP. While focusing on police organizational culture, this study also aimed to determine to what extent officers' perceptions of integrity are...
Show moreThe purpose of this research was to examine the influence of police organizational culture on officers' perception of integrity in the Turkish National Police (TNP). Adopting an organizational rather than an individualistic perspective, this study focused on police organizational culture to investigate the causes of integrity problems in the TNP. While focusing on police organizational culture, this study also aimed to determine to what extent officers' perceptions of integrity are influenced by personal and occupational attributes such as age, gender, rank, income, educational level, years of employment, and assignment type. The research was conducted in Turkey's two largest cities, Istanbul and Ankara, as well as the largest city of southeastern Turkey, Diyarbakir. Three hundred officers, consisting of 200 regular police officers and 100 ranked officers, were selected from each city, making a sample size of 900 in total. With a total of 507 respondents, after eliminating cases with missing values, the study achieved a 57% response rate. Structural equation modeling was used to test the hypothesized relationships, since it is the most appropriate statistical method for testing hypotheses based on relations among latent and observed variables. This method enabled the researcher to measure the perception of police integrity and the perception of police organizational culture with their multiple indicators, providing rigorous measurements for both constructs. The results of the statistical analysis supported the research hypothesis. The findings showed that officers' perception of police organizational culture negatively influenced their perception of integrity. It was also found that officers' age and educational level also had a statistically significant influence on their perception of integrity.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2008
- Identifier
- CFE0002242, ucf:47898
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0002242
- Title
- Non-state Actors in Jamaican Economic Policy.
- Creator
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Jarrett, Matthew, Young, Kurt, Wilson, Bruce, Gibbs, Warmoth, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
-
The relevance in understanding local dynamics or political culture is that as Neuman has pointed out, many traditional theories have not taken them into account and have thus failed in explaining political occurrences in the lesser developed world. For example as she has stated, (")domestic factors(") have not been considered into (")systems theories("). (Neuman, 1995, p.16) On this basis, it is necessary to point out these local factors, and furthermore, the role of non-state actors within...
Show moreThe relevance in understanding local dynamics or political culture is that as Neuman has pointed out, many traditional theories have not taken them into account and have thus failed in explaining political occurrences in the lesser developed world. For example as she has stated, (")domestic factors(") have not been considered into (")systems theories("). (Neuman, 1995, p.16) On this basis, it is necessary to point out these local factors, and furthermore, the role of non-state actors within the realm of internal dynamics, since international relations theory also aims to understand the formation and motivation behind economic policy. Therefore, to produce a proper understanding of Jamaican economic policy, specific areas are examined: the political culture of Jamaican politics and the role of non-state actors as they function within the Jamaican state. The two sets of non-state actors are defined as internal and external. The internal consists of two political parties: the People's National Party and the Jamaica Labour Party; and also one social class group: the urban poor. And also, the external consists of: the International Monetary Fund and World Bank. The relationships between these groups and their relationships with the state are examined in order to identify how they affect economic policy. The constructivist theory due to its flexibility in its units of analysis, and its emphasis on (")culture("), and (")worldview(") helps to provide a useful framework for the discussion.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2011
- Identifier
- CFE0004476, ucf:49307
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0004476
- Title
- The Relationship Between Identity and Intimacy as Moderated by Culture.
- Creator
-
Jhingon, Garima, Berman, Steven, Dunn, Stacey, Upchurch, Rosaria, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
-
Several important developmental processes occur in the young adulthood period. Young adults form their identities, determine trajectories regarding careers, and typically they form intimate relationships. Erikson (1963) stated that healthy identity development during adolescence is a necessary precursor to intimacy in romantic relationships during emerging adulthood. Although findings from cross-sectional and short-term longitudinal studies somewhat confirm the proposed link between identity...
Show moreSeveral important developmental processes occur in the young adulthood period. Young adults form their identities, determine trajectories regarding careers, and typically they form intimate relationships. Erikson (1963) stated that healthy identity development during adolescence is a necessary precursor to intimacy in romantic relationships during emerging adulthood. Although findings from cross-sectional and short-term longitudinal studies somewhat confirm the proposed link between identity and intimacy development, none of them addresses the role of culture in moderating Erikson's tenets of developmental ordering. The primary goal of the present investigation was to determine the role of cultural orientation in identity and intimacy development among emerging adults today.Participants included 422 university students (mean age = 20.80, sd = 3.63) were recruited from one urban university in Delhi, India (n = 96), two urban universities in Beijing, China (n = 180), and one urban university in Orlando, USA (n = 146). Among this sample, 36.7% were males, and 63.3% were females. All participants completed a battery of measures, including a Demographic Questionnaire, the Ego Identity Process Questionnaire, the Experiences in Close Relationships Scale, and the Cultural Orientation Scale. Our first hypothesis that identity would predict intimacy in relationships was confirmed. Our second hypothesis that identity development will be a negative predictor for both relationship anxiety and relationship avoidance in romantic relationships was also confirmed. The third hypothesis that females would endorse more collectivistic cultural values compared with males, who will endorse more individualistic cultural values was also confirmed. Finally, our fourth hypothesis that the relationship between identity and intimacy would be moderated by cultural orientation, such that it will be stronger among those that endorse more individualistic cultural values compared to those who endorse more collectivistic cultural values was not supported. Results from the multiple regression analysis indicated that although identity and cultural orientation considered alone were significant predictors of intimacy in relationships, the relationship between identity and intimacy were moderated by cultural orientation only for relationship anxiety, such that a strong sense of identity along with a collectivistic cultural orientation predicted less relationship anxiety. Further analyses and implications for professional practice are discussed.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2012
- Identifier
- CFE0004388, ucf:49383
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0004388
- Title
- LATINO CULTURAL COMPETENCY IN SOCIAL WORK EDUCATION: A REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE.
- Creator
-
Menendez, Liana, Leon, Ana, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
-
Cultural competence serves as resource for social workers and other helping professionals to improve service delivery by using approaches that are compatible with the client's cultural values and beliefs. As the Latino population continues to grow, understanding the culture has important implications for social work practice, advocacy and research. There is a dearth of cultural competence training and educational programs that seek to effectively identify, address and meet the unique cultural...
Show moreCultural competence serves as resource for social workers and other helping professionals to improve service delivery by using approaches that are compatible with the client's cultural values and beliefs. As the Latino population continues to grow, understanding the culture has important implications for social work practice, advocacy and research. There is a dearth of cultural competence training and educational programs that seek to effectively identify, address and meet the unique cultural and linguistic needs of Latinos. With the growing population and a lack of culturally responsive services, clinicians familiar with the Latino culture and Latino cultural competency training and education programs, disparities among Latinos will continue to steadily rise. It is important for social work students and clinicians to receive advanced training in understanding the diverse needs of Latino populations. The purpose of this thesis is to review the existing literature to identify culturally competent practice methods and examine efforts to prepare social work students and clinicians to work with the Latino population. A search was conducted using PsychINFO, PubMed, Education Resources Information Center (ERIC) and Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL) databases. Key terms used in the searches were"cultural competency training", "cultural competency education" and/or "social work/clinician" coupled with terms Hispanic or Latino. This thesis concludes with some considerations for integrating Latino cultural competency into the social work curriculum.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2015
- Identifier
- CFH0004747, ucf:45346
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFH0004747
- Title
- THE USAGE OF YOUNG ADULT LITERATURE AS A VEHICLE TO TEACH CULTURAL EMPATHY.
- Creator
-
Voltaire, Samuelle, Wharton, Tracy, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
-
Social Work education is focused on helping students identify triggers and biases prior to entering the workforce, with an aim towards cultural competence. Class discussions and homework assignments are particularly intentional: through various assignments, students are urged to work on those issues before entering clinical practice. Young Adult (YA) literature has been successfully used in the field of Education to teach empathy and reflectivity regarding diversity to preservice teachers....
Show moreSocial Work education is focused on helping students identify triggers and biases prior to entering the workforce, with an aim towards cultural competence. Class discussions and homework assignments are particularly intentional: through various assignments, students are urged to work on those issues before entering clinical practice. Young Adult (YA) literature has been successfully used in the field of Education to teach empathy and reflectivity regarding diversity to preservice teachers. The use of YA literature may hold promise for Social Work education as a teaching tool, but the extent of current use in Social Work education is unknown. An anonymous survey of Social Work faculty at Florida universities was conducted using Qualtrics. The survey was sent to approximately 250 instructors of undergraduate and graduate courses. Eighteen surveys were completed, and 17 were used in data analysis. It was found that the majority of respondents used non-textbook and print material at least some of the time in their courses. Of those who used YA Literature in their courses, more than half the time it was used to facilitate cultural and diversity learning. Based on the data, YA literature holds promises for social work education in the area of development of cultural empathy. This study lays the groundwork for further research on how YA literature can be incorporated into cultural competency coursework.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2016
- Identifier
- CFH2000006, ucf:45590
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFH2000006
- Title
- DE NERUDA A PARRA: UN ANALISIS DE LOS ASPECTOS ESTETICOS Y SOCIO-POLITICOS QUE CONSTRUYEN LA CHILENIDAD EN LA EPOCA CONTEMPORANEA.
- Creator
-
Lindberg, Julia M., Villanueva, C. Alberto, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
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Espanol: Esta investigacion tiene el proposito de buscar, identificar y resaltar caracteristicas esteticas y socio-politicas en la literatura chilena que unen o explican factores constituyentes de la chilenidad en la epoca contemporanea. Mas en concreto, comenzare por introducir un panorama actualizado del Chile de hoy, ahondando un poco en la historia del pais empezando con la Guerra del Pacifico en 1879, cuando se nota por primera vez que el caso chileno es fundamentalmente divergente de...
Show moreEspanol: Esta investigacion tiene el proposito de buscar, identificar y resaltar caracteristicas esteticas y socio-politicas en la literatura chilena que unen o explican factores constituyentes de la chilenidad en la epoca contemporanea. Mas en concreto, comenzare por introducir un panorama actualizado del Chile de hoy, ahondando un poco en la historia del pais empezando con la Guerra del Pacifico en 1879, cuando se nota por primera vez que el caso chileno es fundamentalmente divergente de los demas paises del continente. Este antecedente militar y politico germinal es suficiente para alcanzar la epoca en que me he de entrar en esta investigacion, en torno a los sucesos del 1973 donde se discutiran las circunstancias que rodeaban la dictadura de Pinochet y como estas marcaron profundamente la sociedad chilena, hasta la actualidad. Asi intentare fomentar una base para empezar a analizar cautelosamente fragmentos y similitudes que exhiben una naturaleza est�tica o socio-politica en la poesia de Pablo Neruda, Enrique Lihn y en la antipoesia de Nicanor Parra. English: The purpose of this investigation is to find, identify, and highlight aesthetic and socio-political characteristics in Chilean literature that unite or explain constituent factors of chilenidad in the contemporary era. More concretely, it will begin by introducing a current panorama of today�s Chile, delving into the history of the country starting with the War of the Pacific in 1879, when it first becomes apparent that the Chilean case is fundamentally divergent of that of the rest of the countries in South America. From there, it will jump to the year 1973 where the circumstances that surrounded the dictatorship of Pinochet will be discussed and examined in regards to how deeply it impacted Chilean society in the past and how it continuously affects Chile in the present. This will form the necessary base to initiate a careful analysis of fragments and similarities that exhibit an aesthetic or socio-political nature in the poetry of Pablo Neruda, Enrique Lihn, and the antipoetry of Nicanor Parra.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2016
- Identifier
- CFH2000033, ucf:45596
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFH2000033
- Title
- DEVELOPMENT AND VALIDATION OF THE CROSS-CULTURAL COMPETENCE INVENTORY.
- Creator
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Thornson, Carol, Fritzsche, Barbara, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
-
Understanding the factors responsible for successful interactions between cultures has been an ongoing investigation among anthropologists, social workers, and organizational psychologists. The need for employees who are able to function effectively across cultures has resulted in a great deal of research examining which factors enable expatriate effectiveness. Despite the necessity of a workforce that is able to function across cultures in todayÂÂ's global economy, an...
Show moreUnderstanding the factors responsible for successful interactions between cultures has been an ongoing investigation among anthropologists, social workers, and organizational psychologists. The need for employees who are able to function effectively across cultures has resulted in a great deal of research examining which factors enable expatriate effectiveness. Despite the necessity of a workforce that is able to function across cultures in todayÂÂ's global economy, an even greater case can be made for cross-cultural competence (3C) in the U.S. military. The potential for loss of life and international-level consequences is high if our military forces are not adequately prepared. This is why the Department of Defense has identified 3C as a critical determinant of success for military missions. Despite the critical need for military 3C, a review of the literature found no validated instruments developed to assess the readiness of our troops to work closely with foreign nationals and coalition forces in the context of military deployments. As such, the overarching goal of this validation study was to enable the U.S. military to prepare and train its forces in 3C, specifically allowing the military to: (1) better assess troop readiness to engage other cultures; (2) target training to those skills that help achieve missions in the field; (3) design more authentic cross-cultural training exercises; (4) assess the effectiveness of cross-cultural training; and (5) guide the development of future cultural training efforts. To that end, a blended approach to scale development was undertaken, whereby critical-incident interviews with subject matter experts informed which of the individual difference predictors from the civilian literatures would likely be applicable to the military domain. Initial administration of the prototype instrument to 792 military members, followed by exploratory factor analysis, revealed six hypothesized factors of 3C. Following scale development, the Cross-Cultural Competence Inventory (3CI) was administered to almost 5,000 service members, and the six-factor structure was confirmed as well as cross-validated. Another data collection effort focused on assessing the stability of the six factors over time, via test-retest reliability analysis. A final validation study revealed Cultural Exploration to be a significant predictor of three of the four performance criteria, as rated by supervisors on deployment. Furthermore, this study offered the unique perspective gained by administering two popular civilian instruments along with a military-based tool, providing insight into the nature of military 3C and the ways in which it is similar to, and distinct from, civilian 3C. Additionally, important theoretical contributions may help guide future empirical research and military applications. This study is the initial step in assessing readiness for cultural interaction in the military. The results may serve to guide future efforts in military research in order to support our forces in the field as well as to guide the military establishment in making decisions on training, education, and operations in the context of mission success.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2010
- Identifier
- CFE0003437, ucf:48388
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0003437
- Title
- Assessing Safety Culture among Personnel in Governmental Construction Sites at Saudi Arabia: A Quantitative Study Approach.
- Creator
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Alrehaili, Omar, Karwowski, Waldemar, Elshennawy, Ahmad, Hancock, Peter, Mikusinski, Piotr, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
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Safety is an essential issue for organizations to survive, especially for hazardous industries such as the construction industry. The construction industry is considered to be one of the major industries that help in the growth of the economy and the infrastructure of all countries. Recently, scholars have paid increasing attention to the concept of safety culture due to its role in decreasing the occurrences of accidents and injuries. Safety culture has become the focus of all industries and...
Show moreSafety is an essential issue for organizations to survive, especially for hazardous industries such as the construction industry. The construction industry is considered to be one of the major industries that help in the growth of the economy and the infrastructure of all countries. Recently, scholars have paid increasing attention to the concept of safety culture due to its role in decreasing the occurrences of accidents and injuries. Safety culture has become the focus of all industries and has received much attention in recent years, especially within the construction industry. Absence of this culture is a major cause of injuries and accidents in the construction field. In the construction industry, personnel's perception of safety culture is vital to prevent accidents or behavior misconduct. Also, focusing on personnel's safety culture on construction sites provides an opportunity to decrease risks and unsafe behaviors to improve the overall safety level. Workers' performance and behaviors are shaped by their awareness and view of safety culture inside their work environment. Generally, safety performance in the construction field is still unsatisfactory based on reporting records.The present study observed the influence of safety culture on construction's personnel's safety performance on large governmental construction projects in Saudi Arabia. Construction personnel's safety performance is measured by their attitude toward violations and error behaviors. This research also exams the role of personnel's motivation toward construction safety as a mediating variable between construction safety culture and safety performance constructs, including error and violation behaviors. The research adopted a quantitative method by using a questionnaire for the purpose of data collection and analysis. A total of 434 questionnaires were collected from construction personnel including project managers, engineers, and supervisors through their voluntary participation in this study. Statistical analysis was used to analyze the data collected including descriptive statistics, confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and structural equation modeling (SEM) techniques. Confirmatory factor analysis is used for validating each factor with its measurable items. Finally, this study applied the concept of structural equation modeling (SEM) to evaluate the correlation between all latent variables in the study's conceptualized model.The outcomes of the study show that safety culture has a direct influence on construction personnel's attitudes toward violations and an indirect effect on construction personnel's error behavior. Furthermore, safety culture has a significant effect on improving safety motivation, as well. Safety motivation for construction safety has a direct effect on errors behaviors. Conversely, safety motivation does not have a mediating effect on construction personnel's attitudes toward violations. Therefore, safety motivation's mediating role was significant only between safety culture and errors behaviors.This research has added to the existing knowledge about the important part of safety culture as a key interpreter of safety performance in construction field. The current study contributes to psychological safety through examining the influence of safety culture as the interpreter for enhancing motivation for construction safety. Additionally, this research evaluated safety culture's influence on construction personnel's attitudes toward violations and construction personnel's error behavior. The outcomes of the study are useful and recommended to be used by construction management to better pinpoint the reasons for unsafe behaviors within the construction industry. The results of this research highlights management's role in determining, and affecting, workers' behaviors.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2016
- Identifier
- CFE0006434, ucf:51470
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0006434
- Title
- Virtual Teams and Intercultural Ethics: Preventative Measures for Ethical Dilemmas.
- Creator
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Blanton, Rebecca, Flammia, Madelyn, Jones, Daniel, Dombrowski, Paul, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
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This thesis examines the ethical challenges faced by technical communicators working in global virtual teams. Virtual teams usage are becoming increasingly more popular and diverse. As a result, it is valuable for technical communicators to understand and recognize the challenges that are faced within global virtual teams in order to find solutions and preventive measures for these challenges. The ethical challenges present in global virtual teams were determined by examining the literature...
Show moreThis thesis examines the ethical challenges faced by technical communicators working in global virtual teams. Virtual teams usage are becoming increasingly more popular and diverse. As a result, it is valuable for technical communicators to understand and recognize the challenges that are faced within global virtual teams in order to find solutions and preventive measures for these challenges. The ethical challenges present in global virtual teams were determined by examining the literature on virtual teams and intercultural ethics and conducting a survey of practicing technical communicators who have experience in virtual teams. The purpose of the survey was to determine the ethical challenges that are present for technical communicators and how these issues were resolved. The survey results reveal valuable approaches to resolving and preventing ethical challenges in virtual teams. This thesis contributes to a better understanding of virtual teams and intercultural ethics and examines the ethical challenges that are faced by technical communicators. Furthermore, the thesis presents preventive measures for addressing ethical challenges. Finally, the thesis also provides suggestions for future research into the ethical challenges that are faced within global virtual teams, particularly those related to cultural differences.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2013
- Identifier
- CFE0004653, ucf:49887
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0004653
- Title
- GUKUNDANA.
- Creator
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Van Stone, Lindsay, Rushin, Pat, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
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Twenty years after the 1994 Rwandan Genocide, Violet Walters makes her way to the tiny village of Murumba to fulfill her dream of becoming a philanthropist. In addition to the shock of a new culture, Violet must now contend with Bret Calloway, a hardened philanthropist whose ten years at Murumba have made him less than happy about the arrival of Violet and her optimistic new perspective. Amid the mounting tension of their relationship, war looms in the background. What ensues is a testament...
Show moreTwenty years after the 1994 Rwandan Genocide, Violet Walters makes her way to the tiny village of Murumba to fulfill her dream of becoming a philanthropist. In addition to the shock of a new culture, Violet must now contend with Bret Calloway, a hardened philanthropist whose ten years at Murumba have made him less than happy about the arrival of Violet and her optimistic new perspective. Amid the mounting tension of their relationship, war looms in the background. What ensues is a testament to the transformational nature of a culture and its people. Gukundana seeks to illuminate injustices related to civil strife and genocide from an outsider's perspective. The character of Violet acts as a stable lens from which western viewers can engage with cultural hardships very different from their own. Within this, the connection between the warring ideologies of Bret and Violet against the background of the mounting violence around them serves as another window into greater emotional engagement with themes of violence and war. Ultimately, this screenplay's mission is to bridge cultural barriers in order to endear viewers to the unity, resiliency, and power of the Rwandan people, thus sparking change within a viewing audience's surrounding community.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2013
- Identifier
- CFH0004371, ucf:44977
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFH0004371
- Title
- THE INFLUENCE OF CULTURAL DIVERSITY ON INITIAL DECISIONS TO TRUST IN NEWLY FORMING TEAMS: A POLICY CAPTURING APPROACH.
- Creator
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Priest Walker, Heather, Salas, Eduardo, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
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This study investigated the impact of diversity on the decision to trust at team formation when no history or prior relationship exists. The study consisted of two phases: 1) a selection phase and 2) a policy capturing phase. The first phase consisted of demographics, propensity to trust, and prejudice scales that were used to select participants for phase 2. The second phase consisted of a full factorial design, policy capturing study which consisted of 64 scenarios which varied the level (i...
Show moreThis study investigated the impact of diversity on the decision to trust at team formation when no history or prior relationship exists. The study consisted of two phases: 1) a selection phase and 2) a policy capturing phase. The first phase consisted of demographics, propensity to trust, and prejudice scales that were used to select participants for phase 2. The second phase consisted of a full factorial design, policy capturing study which consisted of 64 scenarios which varied the level (i.e., high and low) of 6 variables: cultural diversity, attribution, perceptions of risk, trustworthiness, third party information, and role clarity. The policy capturing study was used to identify the weights given to these variables when deciding whether or not to trust a new team member. Propensity to trust scores and prejudice ratings were used as moderators of the relationships between these 6 variables and the decision to trust. Findings showed that there was a strong moderating affect of the diversity of the simulated team member on the participant's decision to trust. However, there was no direct relationship between diversity and the decision to trust. The weight given to each variable, as well as the interaction of variables, was different based on the diversity of the new team member. Findings suggest that when forming teams, the diversity of new team members will impact what factors individuals consider in deciding to trust that other person. In addition to future research needs, the impact of these results is discussed in terms of both training and selection in teams.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2008
- Identifier
- CFE0002358, ucf:47800
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0002358
- Title
- FRAMING RACIAL INEQUALITY: REASSESSING THE EFFECT OF RELIGION ON RACIAL ATTITUDES.
- Creator
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Kaufman II, Jerrold, Carter, J. Scott, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
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Building on previous work on racial attitudes among the religious, this study reassesses the effects of religion on individuals' beliefs about racial inequality. This study relies on recent developments in the sociology of culture, which conceives of culture as a frame through which individuals interpret the world in which they inhabit (Benford and Snow 2000; Harding 2007; Small 2002, 2004). Religion is held to be an important social institution that provides substance to the frames that...
Show moreBuilding on previous work on racial attitudes among the religious, this study reassesses the effects of religion on individuals' beliefs about racial inequality. This study relies on recent developments in the sociology of culture, which conceives of culture as a frame through which individuals interpret the world in which they inhabit (Benford and Snow 2000; Harding 2007; Small 2002, 2004). Religion is held to be an important social institution that provides substance to the frames that individuals employ for interpreting racial inequality. Two particular developments from this literature inform this study: first, that individuals can employ different, even contradictory, frames simultaneously, and second, that frames are dynamic processes that can change over time. This study utilizes the General Social Survey from 1985 to 2008 and uses a theoretically informed and improved methodology for assessing beliefs about racial inequality. Three conclusions are drawn: 1) religion continues to play a role in shaping individuals' beliefs about racial inequality, 2) it is important to differentiate between "pure" frames and frames that combine different explanations for racial inequality when understanding the role of religion in forming beliefs about black-white inequality, and 3) frames for racial inequality undergo change over time, though the pattern of change depends upon the frame for racial inequality.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2011
- Identifier
- CFE0003650, ucf:48842
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0003650
