Communicating Necessary Evils: The Role of Expressive and Diffusive Capabilities

Communicating harmful messages in order to accomplish organizational goals is an unfortunate, yet unavoidable part of organizational life. Because “necessary evil” messages are often of personal consequence to the receiver, it is important the communication process be designed in a way that will minimize harm caused to both messengers and receivers without compromising communication performance. This can be difficult to accomplish. When designing necessary evil communication, messengers may select from a variety of media with multiple features. In this paper, I distinguish between two types of media capabilities, expressive and diffusive, and explain how features of the media selected for message communication differentially affect the messenger and receiver, as well as the clarity and fidelity of the message. The objective of this paper is to explain how the psychological and physical challenges faced by the messenger and receiver affect the relationship between expressive and diffusive media capabilities and communication performance

Caregiving and Commitment: Stories of Finding Value Through Raising a Child with a Disability

Honors (Bachelor's)AnthropologyUniversity of Michiganhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/120605/1/ambyoung.pd

Barriers and Facilitators to Completion of an Undergraduate Nursing Program: Exploration of Mindfulness, Mindlessness, and Retention Among Ethnic Minorities

As the United States population continues to grow and diversify, so too must the nursing workforce in order to meet the challenging healthcare needs of a diversifying population. Currently the nursing profession is overwhelmingly White, with only 25% of registered nurses identifying as ethnic minority (Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF), 2016). Research suggests that a diverse nursing workforce benefits many segments of the population, where better care is provided because the nurse reflects the ethnic or racial background of their patient (Glazer, Clark, & Bankston, 2015; RWJF, 2016). In order to continue to diversify the nursing profession, a pipeline of qualified ethnic minority students must be recruited and trained by colleges and universities. The challenge however, is to ensure ethnic minority students that are recruited in these programs are provided adequate resources to assist them in completing their program of study. The purpose of this study was to explore perceptions of barriers and facilitators to successful completion of an undergraduate nursing program among a sample of ethnic minority undergraduate nursing students. Suggestions of strategies to enhance retention and completion of an undergraduate nursing program were also gathered from participants. Because many of these young adults are faced with a myriad of challenges in completing their nursing program, some of which may be developmentally and psychologically related, a secondary aim of this study was to explore the concepts of mindfulness and mindlessness within the context of ethnic minority nursing students’ struggles and successes while enrolled in a nursing program. Cross-sectional qualitative in-depth interviews were conducted with undergraduate nursing students (N=20) who self-identified as ethnic minority. Participants were recruited from a large Midwestern urban university’s college of nursing and were interviewed. The transcripts of interviews were analyzed using thematic analysis. Findings emerging from data analysis were grouped into three broad themes: 1) Barriers to successful completion of an undergraduate nursing program; 2) Facilitators to successful completion of an undergraduate nursing program; and 3) Strategies to assist in program completion. While experiences in their nursing programs were positive, the study findings captures a process of traveling to a foreign country unprepared and not knowing all of the rules that govern the country. Participants shared stories of feeling lost and isolated and having some difficulties in navigating the ‘country’ of college and a larger university with only a faulty compass to guide them. Having a map to ease their navigation would help alleviate the barriers they encountered moving through their nursing program. With the current implementation of the Affordable Care Act in which many individuals including ethnic minorities are now beginning to have access to health care, there is a need for diversifying the nursing workforce (American Nurses Association, 2014). Recruiting and training more ethnic minority nurses will also be critical in caring for an aging diverse population. Amidst the budget cuts at many state universities, one finding from this study suggest the need to maintain and expand existing support services for ethnic minority students in order to increase the number of ethnic minority students graduating and entering the nursing workforce. Finding ways however, to ensure that these programs are cost-effective is an important factor to consider. Gathering information from the students themselves is an important way for university administrators to develop culturally appropriate programs that would provide rich learning experiences to support and retain ethnic minority students

Exploration of Mindfulness Among Ethnic Minority Undergraduate Nursing Students

Background. Meeting projected needs for ethnically diverse nurses depends on a strong pipeline of diverse students within nursing programs. Colleges assume students readily navigate the university; however, this may not be the reality especially among ethnic minority students. Purpose. The purpose was to explore the concept of mindfulness among ethnic minority nursing students. Exploring mindfulness, and a lack thereof, may provide strategies for overcoming challenges ethnic minority students experience in prelicensure nursing programs. Methods. A qualitative study using thematic analysis of semistructured in-depth interviews was conducted with 20 ethnic minority undergraduate nursing students. Results. Themes that emerged reveal positive associations of mindfulness and negative implications when there is a lack of mindfulness. Conclusion. Based on the findings from this study, using consistent mindfulness techniques could positively influence coping skills for dealing with the stressors of college, resulting in overall success and retention of ethnic minority and first-generation students in a nursing program

Support Structures and Their Impacts on Work Outcomes of Online Workers in Developing Countries

Online labor platforms (OLPs) are transforming how firms operate and how people work. While much attention has been paid to understand how OLPs use algorithms to match workers with consumers and how OLPs are different from traditional firms, little is known about how this new form of firm impacts marginalized populations. Likewise, little is known about what factors lead to online workers’ work success. This short paper aims to explore the support structures for online laborers in developing countries. Drawing on the literature, we distill two types of support structure, namely, formal support from the platform firm, and informal support from peers. The current study seeks to develop in-depth understanding of support structures for online workers in developing countries and how support structures impact their work outcomes

Is the digital media a panacea for the ills of mass media concentration?

Digital platforms facilitate public discourse, but discourage competing views, write Shaila Miranda, Amber Young, and Emre Yetgi