Forming and Maintaining Intimate Friendships as a Twentysomething

Emerging adulthood is a life stage of great change, and often instability in relationships and attachment (Demir et al., 2015; Lane et al., 2017; Shulman & Connolly, 2013). Intimate friendships can be a moderating factor and assistance in gaining stability and increasing life satisfaction (Demir, 2021; Demir et al., 2015; Sanchez et al., 2020). This study used grounded theory methodology (Creswell & Poth, 2018) to develop a model of the process which Twentysomethings undergo while forming and maintaining intimate, or best, friendships. Through interviews with best friend pairs, this study found three main phases of the best friend process: forming friendship, deepening friendships, and maintaining friendships. Each of these phases also include sub-processes which push the overall process forward. The goal of this research is to assist clinicians working with Twentysomethings have a clear framework for establishing deep social connections, as well as to increase overall knowledge of friendship formation and maintenance after adolescence

The Social Responsibility Of Labor

In the ongoing discussion about corporate social responsibility, little attention has been paid to the social responsibility of the other factor of production - labor.  The modern perspective is that major economic players have an external impact on society that generates social costs that are paid by the community. The emerging view is that, for the sustainability of the community, these players must contribute in a positive way by covering these social costs and participating in the life of the community.  This paper examines the extent to which unionized labor, as a major economic player, is assuming positions of social responsibility in the national and local communities. It suggests that by developing a boarder social vision, the American labor movement could revitalize itself

Learning Effectiveness Using Different Teaching Modalities

There is much discussion about whether online instruction is as effective as face-to-face instruction.  To address this question, a comparative study was made of two sections of an MBA  organizational theory course, one taught online and the other face-to-face. The content covered by both sections was the same with similar assignments and a common final examination. There was little difference between the sections on the results of the final examination or the student course evaluations. This study suggests that neither modality is more effective than the other with regard to student achievement or their perceptions of course effectiveness.&nbsp

MEMS 411: Softball Pitching Machine

This report includes our complete final project for MEMS 411 in the Fall 2022 semester. For this project, we chose to fill the need for a pitching machine solely focused on the needs of softball players. For this project, our customer is a collegiate softball player named McKenna Jablonske

A Case Of Social Entrepreneurship: Tackling Homelessness

Social entrepreneurship integrates the resourcefulness of traditional entrepreneurship with the compelling drive to mitigate social ills. The focus of this study is on one social entrepreneurial organization that has changed the lives of the poor and homeless in a large urban area. The case study describes the dilemma the organization faces in deciding whether to enter into a joint venture with another non-profit social service entity. The joint venture would increase the number of at-risk people it could serve but threatens to change the unique nature of its operation and could compromise the organization’s brand

An Empirical Investigation of a 21st Century Career Development Program for Business Majors

When a small, Midwestern business school launched a required, four-year career development curriculum, robust practicum courses, and a dynamic, co-curricular program, it proved itself to be in the vanguard of career development practices. Due to the extensive experiential learning this program provides, greater numbers of business and accounting majors are graduating with raised employment aspirations and the knowledge, skills, and confidence to begin their professional lives. Using quantitative measures, the results suggest the positive impact of these career development activities on students’ certainty about career direction, assessment of the quality of their resumes and LinkedIn profiles, and confidence in interviewing

New England Food Vision: Healthy Food for All, Sustainable Farming and Fishing, Thriving Communities

A New England Food Vision proposes changes in food production, distribution, and consumption reaching from the most rural areas to the densest cities—across the entire food system. The New England Food Vision Writing Team has been working since 2011 to produce a bold vision that calls for our region to build the capacity to produce at least 50% of clean, fair, accessible and just food for New Englanders by 2060. The Vision includes a set of guiding assumptions and calculations that sketch a future in which diverse local and state food systems are supported by and in turn support a regional sustainable food system. The roles of the writing team include production of a New England Food Vision document, including input from regional stakeholders at the annual New England Food Summits, discussions at various meetings, presentations, and via an online survey

Training may enhance early childhood educators’ self-efficacy to lead physical activity in childcare

Background: Early childhood educators (ECEs) play a critical role in promoting physical activity (PA) among preschoolers in childcare; thus, PA-related training for ECEs is essential. The Supporting PA in the Childcare Environment (SPACE) intervention incorporated: 1. shorter, more frequent outdoor play sessions; 2. provision of portable play equipment; and, PA training for ECEs. An extension of the SPACE intervention (the SPACE-Extension) incorporated only the shorter, more frequent outdoor play periods component of the original SPACE intervention. The purpose of this study was to explore the individual impact of these interventions on ECEs’ PA-related self-efficacy and knowledge. Methods: ECEs from the SPACE (n = 83) and SPACE-Extension (n = 31) were administered surveys at all intervention time-points to assess: self-efficacy to engage preschoolers in PA (n = 6 items; scale 0 to 100); self-efficacy to implement the intervention (n = 6 items); and, knowledge of preschooler-specific PA and screen-viewing guidelines (n = 2 items). A linear mixed effects model was used to analyze the impact of each intervention on ECEs’ self-efficacy and knowledge and controlled for multiple comparison bias. Results: The SPACE intervention significantly impacted ECEs’ self-efficacy to engage preschoolers in PA for 180 min/day (main effect), and when outdoor playtime was not an option (interaction effect). Further, the interaction model for ECEs’ knowledge of the total PA guideline for preschoolers approached significance when compared to the main effects model. Participants within the SPACE-Extension did not demonstrate any significant changes in self-efficacy or knowledge variables. Conclusions: Findings from this study highlight the benefit of ECE training in PA with regard to fostering their PA-related self-efficacy and knowledge. Future research should explore the impact of PA training for ECEs uniquely in order to determine if this intervention component, alone, can produce meaningful changes in children’s PA behaviours at childcare

A deep wound under my heart”: Constructions of complex trauma and implications for women’s wellbeing and safety from violence

This project sought to develop a comprehensive picture of how complex trauma is being constructed in public policy and practice, and how it is viewed by women with experiences of complex trauma. The research took the form of a multi-method study that combined policy and service analysis with qualitative research with women with experiences of complex trauma and the professionals who work with them, via: a policy audit of approaches to complex trauma service documentary analysis and qualitative interviews with professionals in Queensland and New South Wales qualitative interviews with women with experiences of complex trauma in Queensland and New South Wales online workshops in which professional stakeholders and women with experiences of complex trauma provided feedback on the findings of the study. The research found that at the policy level, complex trauma overlaps with frameworks on violence against women and mental health. However, the impact of complex trauma is not comprehensively addressed by these frameworks, which contributes to the fragmented response to women in distress. It demonstrated that there is a strong need for a whole-of-government commitment to the implementation and coordination of trauma-informed practice across sectors. The report includes recommendations for policy and practice