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Rhetorical Strategies in Reports for Policy: A Multi-Case Study of Intermediary Evidence-to-Policy Communication on Antimicrobial Resistance
(2025-08-01) Ackerley, Christine; Ceccarelli, Leah
A major challenge to evidence-informed policy is effectively communicating the results of research between multiple communities of experts and policymakers. Each year, hundreds of thousands of “grey literature” documents — such as reports, briefings, and discussion papers — are produced to inform public debate and strengthen the knowledge base for good policy decisions. Yet despite their ubiquity, the creation and effects of grey literature are relatively understudied in evidence-to-action research. In this dissertation, I focus specifically on grey literature authored by intermediaries — a diverse group of actors such as think tanks, non-profits, and review commissions — that function as go-betweens for research producers and policymakers. Because intermediaries play a central role in mobilizing policy-relevant research, they are increasingly recognized as key actors in evidence communication. However, little attention has been paid to the rhetorical strategies they use to establish credibility and influence policy through these documents.This dissertation combined textual–intertextual rhetorical analysis with a multiple-case study design to better understand how intermediaries created and used grey literature reports. Focusing on antimicrobial resistance (AMR) policy, I conducted three case studies of AMR-focused reports by analyzing their production context, textual features, and reception over more than five years post-publication. This approach identified a range of rhetorical strategies and theorized their function using concepts from rhetoric, expertise studies, public policy research, and technical communication. I examined the rhetorical challenges faced by intermediaries, who had to establish credibility in complex, multi-stakeholder contexts. I found that successful intermediaries used specific rhetorical strategies to cultivate an ethos of interactional expertise. Next, I integrated rhetorical theories with insights from the Multiple Streams Framework, in order to identify three promising rhetorical moves to advance policy agenda-setting and theorize how they worked. Lastly, through analysis of reception evidence, I proposed that an underappreciated function of these reports is how they serve as enduring rhetorical resources for readers to use over time. I illustrated three ways the reports promoted ongoing use by others, and proposed practical heuristics intermediaries can use to operationalize these observations. Together, the strategies I identified contribute to the rhetorical repertoire available to intermediaries working to influence policy. This dissertation illustrated that these reports operate not as static artifacts, but as dynamic rhetorical efforts before and beyond the moment of publication.
Interdisciplinary Health Research: Examining Research and Programmatic Methods for Supporting Refugees
(2025-05-12) Ozeryansky, Larisa; Almquist, Zack
Support interventions for refugees in resettlement contexts are often perceived differently by the refugees than by those who design or facilitate them. Sociocultural nuances can shape both the ways refugees engage with support and how data on their needs is interpreted. While practical aspects of resettlement–such as healthcare, housing, or financial assistance–are often emphasized, deeper psychosocial needs like belonging, identity, and emotional well-being may be overlooked. Three interconnected themes can be used to explore these incongruencies: 1) post-migration psychosocial health, 2) the role of belonging during resettlement, and 3) the potential of nature experiences (NEs) to support inclusivity and well-being. This study uses surveys and interviews to explore how refugees experience and seek support, while also examining how providers view the provision of support and its intended benefits—highlighting potential gaps between these perspectives. The research further critically examines research methods as well as nature-based social support programs, exploring their potential to promote wellness while questioning provider assumptions about their results and benefits. Chapter 1 examines the influence of sociocultural and contextual factors on survey responses from Ukrainian refugees, highlighting the need for reflexive, mixed-method research approaches. Chapter 2 investigates the concept of belonging as experienced by resettled Ukrainian refugees, detailing structural and interpersonal barriers that exacerbate feelings of exclusion and exploring how social support efforts could better foster a sense of community and inclusion. Chapter 3 presents friluftsliv/nature-based initiatives in Norway as a case study, exploring their potential to address the compounded stresses of displacement and the challenges of resettlement, while also critiquing the normative cultural frameworks that may limit their inclusivity. Together, this dissertation explores and underlines the importance of cultural awareness and participatory approaches to refugee support, as well as the need to address systemic barriers to belonging and well-being.
A Model of Social Norm Dynamics
(2025-05-12) Overbo, Kristopher; Hechter, Michael
This paper introduces a deterministic model of social norm dynamics, with foundations in rational choice and methodological individualism. The model complements traditional game-theoretic approaches by addressing how individual decisions aggregate to form societal norms. While game theory provides important insights into coordination and cooperation, insofar as it is formalized, it often focuses on static outcomes and small-scale situations. In contrast, the proposed model scales effectively and features temporal dynamics of norm development and stabilization. This utility-theory approach incorporates three primary forces to explain agent-level behavior: native preference, social influence, and habit formation. Native preference represents intrinsic and heterogeneous motivations, which ensure some behavioral variety, even in environments characterized by high conformity. Social influence reflects the pressure to change that individuals feel from observing the behaviors of others, which drives conformity. Habit formation stabilizes behavior over time, encouraging actions consistent with past decisions. These forces interact to explain how individuals embedded in a social environment contribute to the emergence of macrosocial patterns. A key feature of this model is the concept of "support," which captures the degree to which chosen behaviors align with a given social norm. Importantly, support is not just a measure of a single behavior; it reflects the interrelation between various behaviors with respect to the norm. A norm is formally defined in the context of this model, and simulated environments are presented that demonstrate how changes in network structure affect the overall level of conformity to a norm within a population. While the work presented here is theoretical, the model provides a foundation for future empirical exploration and contributes to ongoing discussions on social norms.
A Possible Self Program for the Foreign Language Class
(2024-09-09) Farrell, Ginger H; Nurius, Paula
In this dissertation, I present social-cognitive frameworks that support the use of mental imagery for possible self enhancement; and articulate and evaluate a pedagogical intervention designed for the foreign language class. This intervention will allow students to explore and develop prominent and vivid mental representations (self-schemas) of their L2 possible selves (L2 referring to foreign, second language) using guided mental simulation, also called task-guided imagery. The desired aim of this intervention is to help activate students’ social cognitive repository in order to elaborate the foreign language part of their self-schemas and thereby increase their L2 competency beliefs and their desire and effort to continue learning a foreign language.
Optimizing Risk Mitigation with Advanced Interpersonal Skills Training
(2024-09-09) Perkins, Kimberly Sabrina; Aragon, Cecilia; Hall, Crystal
This dissertation presents a novel approach to improving aviation safety that focuses on the sociotechnical framework of the flight deck. By analyzing data from 1,600 experienced pilots from a leading US airline, I find that advanced interpersonal skills training plays a pivotal role in safety improvement by optimizing risk mitigation strategies in reducing pilots' self-silencing behaviors. Teaching pilots previously untaught skills such as bias literacy, psychological safety, interpersonal communication, and resilience can optimize risk mitigation and improve the efficacy of Crew Resource Management (CRM) and Threat and Error Management (TEM). I utilize a mixed-methods approach, combining quantitative data from a longitudinal analysis of survey data centered around a lecture-based training intervention with qualitative insights from semi-structured interviews. The intervention led to a statistically significant greater endorsement of interpersonal skills, particularly among non-prototype pilots (women and non-White male aviators). A model I call the “Safety Voice Reduction Sequence” illustrates the detrimental impact of certain captain behaviors on psychological safety in the flight deck microculture. Another model I term the “Optimized Risk Mitigation Model for Sociotechnical Systems” (a model emphasizing advanced interpersonal skills training to increase the resilience of the sociotechnical system) introduces a transformative approach to pilot human factors training rooted in empirical research findings. This model advocates for the inclusion of specialized training content aimed at bolstering interpersonal skills capabilities within flight operations, directly contributing to enhanced safety outcomes and optimized risk mitigation strategies. This dissertation underscores the critical importance of enhancing interpersonal skills among pilots through specialized training interventions, revealing how addressing self-silencing behaviors and fostering psychological safety can significantly improve aviation safety by optimizing risk mitigation within the sociotechnical framework of the flight deck.
A Possible Self Program for the Foreign Language Class
(2024-09-09) Farrell, Ginger H; Nurius, Paula
In this dissertation, I present social-cognitive frameworks that support the use of mental imagery for possible self enhancement; and articulate and evaluate a pedagogical intervention designed for the foreign language class. This intervention will allow students to explore and develop prominent and vivid mental representations (self-schemas) of their L2 possible selves (L2 referring to foreign, second language) using guided mental simulation, also called task-guided imagery. The desired aim of this intervention is to help activate students’ social cognitive repository in order to elaborate the foreign language part of their self-schemas and thereby increase their L2 competency beliefs and their desire and effort to continue learning a foreign language.
Expressing Gratitude in a Foreign Language: Concept-Based Language Instruction to Teach Thanking in L2 Japanese
(2023-08-14) Tsujihara, Rie; Ohta, Amy Snyder
In the field of L2 pragmatics instruction, there have been calls to re-consider how L2 pragmatic competence is evaluated. L2 pragmatic competence consists of pragmalinguistic and sociopragmatic knowledge. The former refers to the ability to use linguistic items to realize speech intentions, while the latter refers to the knowledge of the appropriate selection and usage of language in accordance with social conventions. L2 learners’ pragmatic competence is usually assessed based on L2 learners’ pragmalinguistic choices in comparison to native speaker data. In other words, L2 learners are expected to produce the target L2 pragmatic features in the same way as native speakers do. In reality, there are variations in native speakers’ pragmatic choices, and native speaker data do not capture the diversity of native speaker choices and pragmatic behavior. In the foreign language classroom, pragmatics materials are often developed based on the writer’s or teacher’s intuitions, and the full meaning of sociopragmatic information is not adequately provided. This may risk creating a sense of “this is how people behave in the target culture” and simply following native speaker norms without cultivating a way for L2 speakers to fully express themselves. Extensive reliance on native speaker norms also ignores L2 learners’ agency and personal pragmatic choices. Sometimes, L2 learners refuse to conform to L2 norms when the norms do not accord with their identities, beliefs, and personalities. Resisting L2 norms does not always mean a lack of L2 competence. Other times, L2 learners find a creative way to supplement the lack of their proficiency and make pragmatic choices different from the L2 norm. However, their L2 pragmatic competence is considered to be “problematic,” if they do not follow these norms. These learners may possess proper sociopragmatic knowledge but intentionally select different pragmalinguistic choices from L2 norms. Assessing L2 pragmatic competence based on native speaker norms risks overlooking L2 learners’ subtle development that is not related to native speaker norms. This dissertation explores a novel way to teach L2 pragmatics through concept-based language instruction (C-BLI), grounded in L.S. Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory of cognitive development. Vygotsky claimed that systematic and abstract knowledge, which he called scientific concepts, can be applied to a wide range of situations and raise the likelihood of successful task completion. Derived from Vygotsky’s claim, C-BLI aims to develop L2 learners’ pragmatic competence by first teaching scientific metapragmatic concepts and the meaning potential of language. Bringing language socialization theory into the C-BLI unit, the present study focuses on the speech act of thanking in Japanese and promoting the internalization of metapragmatic concepts. Through the analysis of various internalization tasks, the study examines (1) the development of learner production; (2) the development of sociopragmatic conceptual understanding; (3) the impact of language socialization opportunities; (4) the development of L2 learner agency; (5) the proper proficiency level for the C-BLI unit; and (6) the impact of language proficiency. The results show development in understanding scientific concepts of the target pragmatic feature and abilities to perform the target speech act. The development was promoted by various mediational means, including instructional materials and language socialization opportunities. I also found that the development of sociopragmatic knowledge provided L2 learners with tools to make pragmatic choices that achieve their communicative goals. Both third- and fourth-year learners benefitted from the C-BLI unit. Third-year learners benefitted more in concept development and less in the development of pragmalinguistic skills, while fourth-year learners benefitted in both sociopragmatic concept development and in their ability to use a range of thanking strategies and expressions in Japanese.
Listening to Earth: Experiments in the Sonification of Climate and Environmental Data
(2023-08-14) Twedt, Judy R; Frierson, Dargan M
Climate change is a geologic event in which we are both witnesses and participants. It defies straightforward categorization yet increasingly alters daily life and poses an existential threat to species around the world. And so there is an urgent need for transdisciplinary approaches to promote collective understanding of the staggering changes that are recorded in, and predicted by, environmental data. This document outlines a multi-year creative experiment making music compositions with climate data from ice cores, weather stations, and satellites. These compositions have been performed for live audiences, played on public radio stations in multiple countries, displayed in museum exhibits, and discussed in popular media articles. This dissertation surveys the theory and practice of data sonification, situates environmental data sonification in historical context, and describes the collection of compositions made from environmental data: the process, techniques and outcomes. Part I of the dissertation gives an orientation to the body of work. Chapter one provides historical context and situates the global network of climate data monitoring sites within its tangled history of colonialism, by outlining two threads in the development of meteorology in Britain and the United States. Chapter two describes features and methods of sonification, and describes a range of environmental sonifications by contemporary sound artists and scientists, to show the breadth of this interdisciplinary approach to environmental communication. Part II of the dissertation describes the extant collection of sonifications that comprise this multi-year experiment: documenting the intentions, methods, and process of the different compositions. Each chapter focuses on a different set of compositions. Chapter three outlines three early works which I composed after completing a masters degree in Atmospheric Sciences and prior to studying digital sound synthesis. These digital pieces are a sonification of the Keeling Curve, documenting the concentration of atmospheric carbon dioxide, a sonification of the record of global mean surface temperature, and a sonification of Arctic sea ice. Chapter four presents an acoustic composition and score of the satellite record of Arctic Sea Ice written for piano. I describe the process and structure of this composition, as well as the youth-led workshop which this piece inspired. Chapter five outlines a multi-artist, multimedia project which blends environmental health data with recordings of human breath and interviews, as part of an exhibition called “Breathing in a Time of Disaster.” Chapter six presents the Timescales Collection, a four-piece collection which sonifies the record of atmospheric carbon dioxide on multiple different timescales, spanning weeks to hundreds of thousands of years, showing the different layers of change that is recorded in this geologic record.
The Myth of Intellectuality and Development: Exploiting the Feebleminded Subject in Discourses of American Philanthropy
(2023-08-14) Thibault, Ronnie; Gardner, Benjamin R.
This dissertation is a polyvocal archive that approaches developmental and intellectual disability as a category of historical analysis, with a central focus on comparing how U.S. charity and philanthropy discourses have drawn upon, reinforced, or contested configurations of intellectuality and development. This dissertation is a political and intellectual project that seeks to explain the material ways in which the cultural discourses that conjured what I contextualize as the ‘exemplary feebleminded subject’ have influenced historical and current-day geopolitical practices. Newspaper stories at the onset of the twentieth century normalized the exemplary feebleminded subject while magazines, print advertising, books, science journals, and motion pictures popularized the idea that the so-called feebleminded class was both a burden and a threat to national and global progress. Institutions linked the feebleminded, idiot, imbecile, and moron classifications to physical, mental, developmental, and intellectual disabilities, and the exemplary feebleminded subject was endlessly adapted in discourses of race, ethnicity, religion, gender, and sexual orientation.
The Reported Processes and Outcomes of Supervisor Social Identity Verbal Self-disclosure and Social Identity Topic Management in Social Work and Higher Education
(2021-03-19) Meoz, Benjamin Christopher; Manusov, Valerie
This research is concerned with client/student facing supervisees’ supervision experiences in social work and higher education settings and focuses on their reported experiences with supervisory dyads in which they have perceived social identity differences. The primary goal of this dissertation is to better understand the relationship of reported supervisor self-disclosure about identity and directing dyad conversations to supervisor and supervisee social identities (a form of topic management) with supervisee perceived psychological safety and optimal distinctiveness in these settings. The dissertation utilized a sequential explanatory mixed-method approach of internet-based survey (Study 1: N = 376) and computer-mediated interviews (Study 2: N = 25) to explore these associations. Results of Study 1 revealed curvilinear relationships between communication forms and optimal distinctiveness measures. The survey also found perceived supervisor cultural competence to be a powerful mediator and moderator of communication, identity, and distinctiveness with psychological safety. In Study 2, participant interviews supported Study 1’s quantitative findings and provided greater detail on the reported processes and outcomes of 1-on-1 supervisor social identity communication. Supervisor social identity communication process themes that emerged from participant interviews were (1) acknowledgement, (2) related to work and efficacy, (3) assumptions and biases, (4) lack of discussion, (5) boundaries, norms, and expectations, (6) frequency and timing, (7) power management, (8) process attributes, and (9) outside 1-on-1. Supervisor social identity communication outcome themes that emerged from participant interviews were (1) boundaries, norms, and expectations, (2) intimacy, (3) power sharing and management, (4) role efficacy, and (5) safety, support, and satisfaction, and (6) salience.
Engineering to Care: Exploring Engineering in Humanitarian and Social Justice Contexts through a Lens of Care Ethics
(2017-02-14) Campbell, Ryan C.; Wilson, Denise M; Bell, Phil L
Engineering and technology have changed the lives of many on this planet. However, technical solutions are not the value-neutral panaceas we might imagine them to be. If we engineers are unaware of the values driving our efforts, we are unlikely to create lasting solutions to the problems we hope to address. In fact, engineers may have inadvertently helped create many of the problems that plague the world today, such as those associated with environmental pollution and anthropogenic climate change. Without examining our values and perhaps even adopting new ones, we may create as many problems as we solve for society. In this dissertation, I contribute to the thought and dialogue needed to create change in the value system of engineering by exploring an ethical framework that has received little attention in the engineering-related literature to date. Care ethics, also known as the ethics of care, is a normative ethical theory emphasizing care, compassion and context rather than impartiality and universal standards. As part of a pluralistic approach to ethics, it contributes important perspectives that are missed by other theories. By actively striving for equity rather than implicitly presuming equality, care ethics helps us to account for real-world differences in power and autonomy, and to give additional consideration to the vulnerable or disadvantaged. This work was guided by three overarching questions: one conceptual, one empirical, and one directed at implications. The conceptual question read “How might care ethics manifest in engineering?” In addressing it, the key outcomes were the identification of a suitable care ethics framework for use in the empirical work, and the demonstration of its applicability to engineering, especially in humanitarian and/or social justice contexts. The empirical question was “In terms of care ethics, how do students in traditional engineering programs respond to problems of humanitarian or social justice nature?” and was broken down into three, more specific sub-questions, each directed at a different engineering context and associated data set. The implications question read “What are the implications of the above (e.g., on course design, curricular change, educational policy, engineering practice)?” and was explored for each of the three sub-questions. The empirical research was conducted under an interpretive conceptual framework using qualitative methods of thematic analysis and comparative case study analysis; however, a more innovative approach to the analysis was also taken, one that involved using the empirical data to iteratively co-develop operationalizations of specific elements of the adopted care ethics framework, namely Attentiveness and Responsibility. Thus, the concepts from care ethics theory both constrained and were clarified by the findings over the course of analysis and writing. Consequently, the outcomes of the empirical analyses were comprised of multiple components, including (a) findings that were descriptive and ostensibly “close to the data”, (b) findings that were more interpretive, based on an evolving understanding of care ethics and how it applies in these engineering contexts, and (c) practical operationalizations of care-ethics that are useful for teaching, learning, assessment, and further research. An example of a descriptive outcome from the first data set (n = 73) was that most engineering students reported their knowledge of Hurricane Katrina as having affected their responses to a conceptually related design task (performed nine months after the hurricane); however, a large minority of the students said it had no effect. When it was a factor, students said it helped them consider people, the natural environment, and aspects of design approaches in addition to technical details. From an interpretive perspective, this suggests that doing design in a context that has humanitarian and/or social justice dimensions may result in better, more care-ethically attentive engineering work, but only if the necessary connections between the context and the task at hand are made. Educators will need to help students learn to make these connections. An example finding from the second data set (n = 30) was that most engineering students associated engineers with responsibility for the problem of “backyard” e-waste recycling in the “developing world” in some way, but some students seemed inclined to limit or deflect that responsibility toward others. This can be interpreted as a strength in some cases, where it demonstrates a realistic sense of the complexity of the problem and the many stakeholders that must necessarily be involved in its solution. However, it can also be interpreted as a weakness in other cases, where it may suggest notions of engineers as lacking a sense of agency to affect change in an area they clearly have influence. Key implications are that educators should raise awareness of the problems of backyard e-waste recycling in general and help students learn to consider a broader range of stakeholders so that important solution approaches are not missed. The third data set—a comparative case-study of two group design project reports—illustrated contrasting approaches to design in the developing world context. One group demonstrated care-ethical awareness, sensitivity, and appreciation of the expressed needs of the end user, while the other group adopted a more paternalistic approach suggestive of technological imperialism. The findings also revealed differences in the way responsibility was discussed, which may be indicative of varying levels of commitment and/or notions of agency. A key curricular implication is for educators to bring user-centered and participatory design approaches into more engineering disciplines, such as electrical engineering and civil engineering. An example of a useful operationalization of care-ethics that came out of the work was the idea to assess aspects of care-ethical attentiveness and responsibility with different measures of stakeholder identification. For example, to assess the care-ethical quality of one’s design considerations, one might look for indications of awareness of disadvantaged (i.e., vulnerable, powerless, and/or underprivileged) stakeholders and their needs. This work has provided some necessary first steps toward understanding the concepts and constructs needed for further investigations into the neglected area of care ethics in engineering. The simultaneously top-down and bottom-up approach used in this research has both facilitated a deeper understanding of the ethical responsibilities of engineers and provided a baseline for understanding the ethical thinking of engineering students, who are the next generation of engineers. This work has also shown how care ethics might be applied to engineering and suggested ways engineering might need to change to become more open to and consistent with the ideals of care ethics.
White Face, Black Space: My Journey as a Chief Diversity Officer at an HBCU
(2015-09-29) Greenfield, Derek; Bilaniuk, Laada
Considerable attention has been paid to the matter of diversity in higher education in recent years. Yet, the discourse around this critically important phenomenon has typically failed to include experiences regarding the diversity agenda at historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs), serving as yet another example of how these historic institutions continue to be underappreciated in mainstream society. It is argued here that HBCUs provide a dynamic context for implementing this work, including serving as fertile territory for non-Blacks to grow in their understanding of racial issues as “temporary minorities.” In addition, while the chief diversity officer (CDO) position has become increasingly popular, little attention has been paid to the possibility that serving in this capacity can shape CDO’s own sense of the racial self. This dissertation incorporates the phenomenological tradition to deliver an autoethnographic account of the author’s own journey as the first and only White CDO at an HBCU institution. I present stories and reflections that explore how my status as a White male profoundly impacted my work as a CDO at an HBCU and the responses to it, and ultimately, the way in which these encounters reciprocally influenced my own sense of the racial self. Through this reflexive account, I endeavor to demonstrate the challenges and possibilities inherent in diversity efforts at HBCUs, the dimensions of “racial being” exploration, and the complex needs and realities of the CDO position. Implications for policy and practice are also discussed.
A Post-Conflict Assessment of Breast Cancer in Kuwait Using Mixed Methods
(2013-07-23) Cange, Charles W.; Grembowski, David E.
The Gulf War oil well fires lasted over eight months in 1991. The subsequent environmental contamination has had real, yet poorly documented impacts, on Kuwait health. The chemical fallout from the war makes it a unique case study of conflict, environmental degradation and health. The life course approach serves as the conceptual basis for this dissertation. By developing a modified ethnographic approach suitable for Kuwait, I was able to collect and procure qualitative and quantitative data in a site-specific, systematic manner. From the cancer registry data, we notice a significant shift in breast cancer rates which began around 1999, increases 7-10 additional cases/100,000, and continues until present. Leukemia and thyroid cancers are also increasing more rapidly than in other Arab countries not affected by the war. From the clinical case-control study, we identified an association between stress and the appearance of breast cancer in Kuwaiti women. Also, women who self-identified as trauma victims were more likely to have breast cancer than healthy women. From the qualitative study, we learn about the environmental health community's concerns around breast cancer. One woman stated that "it's like the flu...every family has it." Since the late 1990s breast cancer has become a common occurrence in Kuwaiti households. Many of the participants felt that their voices had not been heard by the government. In fact, they felt that the government was actively downplaying the role of the residual Gulf War pollution on the development of cancer in Kuwait. It is suggested that the government carry out further monitoring and surveillance of leukemia and breast cancer in Kuwait in addition to executing a full clean-up of the Kuwaiti desert.
The World in Miniature: The Interrelationship of Humans and Landscape in G. Mend-Ooyo's Altan Ovoo
(2013-02-25) Wickham-Smith, Simon; Cirtautas, Ilse D
The leading Mongol writer G. Mend-Ooyo's poetic novel <italic>Altan Ovoo</italic> offers a vision of nomadic literature based as much on the history and worldview of Mongol nomadic herders as on the late twentieth century Mongolia, poised between Soviet-influenced socialism and Euro-American democratic capitalism, in which it was written. This dissertation has two aims, namely to offer an overview of Mongol nomadic society and culture and to show the place of literature - and poetry in particular - within this worldview, and then to present <italic>Altan Ovoo</italic> as a prism through which the ideas on which nomadic culture is based can be shown as being central to the self-image of Mongolia's people, both in relation to the past and to the future.
Formation and function of industrial districts in the rural Northwest: two cases
(2001) Fossum, Harold L
One of the great contributions of recent research into industrial districts is the elaboration of how clusters of small firms in relatively peripheral places can and do generate new competitive advantages. Relatively unexamined in the American research is how flexible specialization is playing out within sectors that are deeply embedded in, and indigenous to, American rural areas.This study is based on intensive interviews in the log home manufacturing district around Hamilton, Montana, and the boat building district of Port Townsend, Washington. In general, the districts appear to have emerged in a rough sequence of three development "moments" or processes: (1) prior location advantages were exploited by a few firms, (2) external economies fostered the growth of the industries, and (3) localized agglomeration effects developed that fostered an accumulation of benefits to clustering.In both cases, businesses began to cluster in these locations in the mid-1970s at the impetus of a few businesses, with the division of firms through worker departures an important factor in the early proliferation of firms. Craft organization of the local industries appears central to in these cases, as it both fosters "firm fission" and "circles" of firms whose interaction fosters specialization and exchange.In neither case does district development appear to have been an accident of external forces, but rather came about through early efforts to foster location and agglomeration benefits. The role of inter-firm local contracting as a primary driver of agglomeration effects is clear in only one of these cases; in the other, contracting appears as one facet of supportive relations within peer circles of firms. Also markedly different between cases is the rule of institutions in fostering location advantages and lowering barriers to entry by new firms.
Focus groups as a method for accessing stakeholder voice in public sector community mental health
(2002) Caverly, Susan Elizabeth
This research represents a secondary analysis of a series of thirty focus groups addressing the topic of public sector community mental health services. These groups were conducted with four designated constituency groups (Consumers and Advocates, Children's Service Providers, Health and Social Service Providers, and Justice Service Providers) in three geographic locations in Washington state.The purpose of this secondary analysis was to explore the potential for using focus groups as a method for gathering information from the public stakeholders in the community mental health delivery system. The significance of this hinges on the reality that the citizenry funds public sector community mental health services yet few citizen stakeholders participate in the determination of service need, planning or evaluation. Professional expertise and voice has historically been privileged thereby diminishing community ownership of public mental health services and jeopardizing funding allocations. A trustworthy, cost-effective method is needed if a broad range of stakeholders are to be included in the processes noted above, even if only to educate those who have the authority to make public mental health policy. Focus groups hold potential to be this method.This research developed a model for planning and conducting focus groups that was shown to yield trustworthy data that was generalizable to similar constituencies or regions. Transcripts of focus groups were analyzed using ATLAS.ti and Excel. Patterns of consistencies were found in transcript themes among and across constituency clusters; these supported the validity and usefulness of focus groups for accessing stakeholder voice and public opinion. Limitations of the research include transcription quality, coding issues, and most importantly the lack of ethnic diversity of participants. Further study is recommended to evaluate the application of focus groups in other public service arenas and to explore ways in which this method might be more effective with regard to involving a diverse and representative population in the public discourse.
Police stress: value disparity, self-esteem and occupational strain
(1983) Pendleton, Michael R
Comparative studies demonstrate that police officers suffer disproportionately from occupational stress and strain. Yet, few studies have examined the causes of observed health problems. One source of strain, previously unexplored, is the work attitudes and values that characterize police officers. Evidence from non-police studies, guided by the Person-Environment Fit Theory of Stress, suggest that value disparities among individuals and various groups which comprise the work environment can lead to strain. Additional data also suggest that the amount of strain observed may be moderated by an individual's level of self-esteem. Similar causal relationships between value disparities, self-esteem and selected measures of occupational strain have been suggested in the police literature but remain untested.This study examines three questions: Do value disparities lead to strain? Does self-esteem moderate strain? and Does individual level strain lead to occupational strain?Two hundred fifty-three police officers in a major urban department from both patrol and administrative ranks were paid to participate in this field study. Questionnaires, administered in two hour testing sessions, included the Rokeach Value Survey, the Cornell Medical Index, Spielburger Anxiety Measure, Rosenburg Self-esteem Measure, the Family APGAR, and others. Organizational data were collected from department files including the number of auto accidents and citizen complaints. The data were analyzed using multiple regression and correlational statistical procedures.The results demonstrate that value disparity does not contribute to strain. However, low self-esteem is significantly associated with high scores on the various strain measures. Individual measures of strain are also significantly associated with occupational measures of strain. Additional analysis demonstrates that high strain officers are distinguished by a high ranking of the value courageous while low strain officers are distinguished by a high ranking of the value imaginative.Both the theoretical and practical implications of the results are considered. Particular attention is devoted to organizational means to raise officer self-esteem and the utility of the Rokeach value enhancement technique for police stress control. The study concludes with an Epilogue describing the "opossum incident," a stress related event which occurred in the police department during the field research.
The impact of the Seljuq invasion on Khuzestan: an inquiry into the historical, geographical, numismatic, and archaeological evidence
(1982) Pyne, Nanette Marie
The political, social, and economic changes associated with the Seljuq invasion of Iran in the fifth century A.H./eleventh century A.D. have long been considered pivotal developments in Middle Eastern history. But scholars, while agreeing that the invasion was momentous for the history of the Middle East, have disagreed on its specific effects.This dissertation focusses on one of the component regions of the ('c)Abbasid Empire, the southwestern Iranian province of Khuzestan, during the fourth/tenth and fifth/eleventh centuries and incorporates data from contemporary historical and geographical documents, from archaeological surveys and excavations, and from medieval Islamic coinage.These data indicate that many of the political and economic developments traditionally ascribed to the Seljuq era, such as the institution of iqta('c) (a system of making military pay incumbent on land-tax revenues), the shift in power away from the Caliph to a secular ruler (e.g., the Sultan), or the decrease in international trade, had their origins in historical and economic factors that long preceded the Seljuqs.In addition to analysing the relative usefulness of the various types of evidence and to reconstructing the political and economic history of medieval Khuzestan, maps of settlement patterns and trade routes have been constructed, and appendices provide a catalogue of known coin production in Khuzestan, annotated translations of crucial sections of Arabic and Persian geographies, and an analysis of the chronological and literary relationships of various medieval authors.
Behavioral and biochemical mechanisms of olfactory imprinting and homing by Coho salmon
(1994) Dittman, Andrew Harris, 1959-
The final freshwater phase of the Pacific salmon's homing migration is governed primarily by the olfactory discrimination of homestream water. Prior to their seaward migration, juvenile salmon learn site-specific odors associated with their home stream and later use these odor memories for homing. Experimental evidence suggests that olfactory imprinting by salmon occurs during a sensitive period associated with surges in plasma thyroxine levels during smolting. Life-history studies, however, suggest that imprinting may occur prior to smolting. To examine the timing of olfactory imprinting, hatchery-reared coho salmon were exposed to site-specific or artificial odorants at specific developmental stages and their subsequent abilities to respond to these odors as adults were tested behaviorally. These studies indicated that smolting may be a particularly important period for olfactory imprinting but that salmon reared exclusively in a hatchery may have impaired imprinting ability. Further studies indicated that rapidly rising plasma thyroxine is not required for imprinting but that migration may play an important role. The behavioral responses of precociously mature salmon to a putative pheromone was also examined.The biochemical mechanisms underlying olfactory recognition of amino acids and imprinted odorants was also examined. Adenylyl and guanylate cyclase in imprinted coho salmon olfactory cilia were characterized and their roles in olfactory signalling were examined. The properties of adenylyl and guanylate cyclase were consistent with a role in olfactory transduction. Adenylyl but not guanylate cyclase was stimulated by high concentrations of amino acid odorants. Both enzymes were slightly stimulated by the imprinted odorant phenylethyl alcohol but a difference in enzyme sensitivity between imprinted and unimprinted fish was only observed with guanylate cyclase activity in maturing fish. In higher vertebrates, olfactory transduction is mediated by the type III adenylyl cyclase enriched in olfactory cilia. The regulation of this enzyme and other adenylyl cyclase isoforms by the m4 muscarinic receptor was also examined. Activation of m4 muscarinic receptor is thought to inhibit adenylyl cyclase activity but co-transfection studies indicated that crossover from inhibitory to stimulatory G protein coupling can occur.
Clinical and organizational impact of multiple changes in critical care: a case study
(1991) Mitchell, Pamela Holsclaw, 1940-
This research evaluated the impact of a natural cluster of change in one community hospital division on clinical and organizational performance of the hospital's critical care units. The divisional changes were comprised of multiple changes in physical facilities of the critical care units, technology and divisional leadership. Their combined impact was evaluated by comparing post change data to an existing database of nurse and physician perceptions of the critical care units and of patient care outcomes. Variables of interest included selected indices of critical care unit clinical performance (mortality and patient satisfaction with nursing care) and critical care unit organizational performance (nursing retention, nurse and physician ratings of unit effectiveness, patient length of stay, and nurse perceptions of the work environment and beliefs about role in patient welfare). These effects were interpreted from differing theoretical points of view: the system-structural viewpoint that emphasizes the value of formal structure in stabilizing organizations during change, and the strategic choice perspective that emphasizes the social creation of meaning surrounding organizational events. Data were obtained through paper and pencil surveys, interviews, participant observation, and medical records, with data collected in 1986-87 compared to those obtained in 1990.Because the first line nursing managers remained constant, the system-structural perspective predicted that the multiple divisional changes would have no effect on clinical and organizational performance. These hypotheses were supported in that patient mortality ratio remained below 60 percent of predicted; patient satisfaction with nursing care remained high; nursing retention did not drop significantly; nursing satisfaction did not change significantly. Patient length of stay did decrease significantly, which is consistent with improved efficiency of unit functioning.There was also support for the hypotheses derived from the strategic choice perspective. This view, as expressed in the concept of constructed organizational meaning, posits that unit-level attributes, such as beliefs and values will change to the extent that environmental changes induce differences in the meaning that staff assign to these changes. Unit nurses' aggregate ratings of beliefs about the meaning and importance of their work did not change over time, despite the influx of a large number of new staff nurses. Interviews suggested that staff devoted considerable energy to maintaining the values of high standards of patient care, hard work and of being part of a professional team. The data affirm the importance of individual actors in mediating change, but within a context of stable organizational structures.

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