MA, Kent State University, 2024, College of Arts and Sciences / Department of Philosophy

Amid the current climate crisis and the scientific consensus on its anthropogenic causes, one task left to the humanities and social sciences is to understand why we humans have failed to effectively act on addressing the issue. I intend to show how the work of Edmund Husserl and Bruno Latour is especially relevant to this topic, bringing their ideas to bear on questions of the climate crisis and the lack of faith in science seen in certain populations in America. I will argue that the crisis of the sciences which Husserl identifies in his last work highlights the Modernist roots of our situation where we separate ourselves from nature, which sheds light on our lack of action. I will augment this analysis with Latour's studies of science and climate change, as well as work done on the phenomenon of lack of faith in science in America, to help furnish a better understanding of the global predicament we are in.

Committee: Gina Zavota (Advisor); David Kaplan (Committee Member); Deborah Barnbaum (Committee Member); Matthew Coate (Committee Member) Subjects: Environmental Philosophy; Philosophy; Philosophy of Science

Doctor of Organization Development & Change (D.O.D.C.), Bowling Green State University, 2023, Organization Development

With more than 11 million meetings happening every day at an estimated cost of $399 billion annually, it is important to study conditions that promote or inhibit employee voice behavior within meetings. This research study takes a multidisciplinary approach incorporating research in the areas of meeting science, psychological safety, trust, trusting relationships, and storytelling to explore the effects of storytelling on employee voice behavior within the context of a meeting environment. The question guiding the research is, when elements of storytelling are present in a meeting, what impact is there on meeting participants' inclination to speak up? Specifically, this study examined the effects on the perception of psychological safety, trust, and relationships among meeting participants and those constructs relationships with storytelling and their correlational relationship on employee voice behavior in meetings. The participants used in the project came from a variety of industries, including for-profit, non-profit, and academia. The findings of the study are encouraging around the relationship of storytelling with psychological safety, trust and employee voice behavior when you compare groups that indicated they experienced elements of storytelling in their focal meeting when compared to those who indicated they did not experience storytelling. The results of the study indicate a positive correlation when storytelling is incorporated in a meeting environment with the three dependent variables of psychological safety, trust, and employee voice behavior. This study also examined the extent of the singular impact on the three dependent variables with those participants who indicated they experienced elements of storytelling in their focal meeting. Within this context, the results indicate storytelling has a positive correlational effect on perceptions of trust and employee voice behavior at a significance level of < .05. While the results did not indicate a i (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Michael Zickar Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Mihai Staic Ph.D (Other); Margaret Brooks Ph.D (Committee Member); Jane Wheeler Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Organization Theory; Organizational Behavior

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Ohio University, 2019, Experimental Psychology (Arts and Sciences)

Prior research suggests that people perceive scientists as having both humanizing (e.g., trustworthy, rational) and dehumanizing (e.g., robotic, emotionless) qualities. The present research examined if cultural stereotypes of scientists as utilitarian decision- makers predict evaluations of scientists' humanness. In a series of studies, participants evaluated how they believed scientists and other target groups would resolve different moral dilemmas. Participants perceived scientists (relative to other target groups) as more likely to make utilitarian decisions (Studies 1-5), an effect predicted by scientists' greater perceived competence (Study 2). Further, scientists who were perceived to make appropriate utilitarian decisions were dehumanized less and trusted more than other target groups (Studies 3-4). Finally, dehumanization ratings had downstream consequences on people's acceptance of scientific evidence and solutions for two real world problems: climate change (Study 6a) and support for vaccinations for children who have mild illnesses (Study 6b). Implications for perceptions of scientists in moral decision-making are discussed.

Committee: Keith Markman (Advisor) Subjects: Psychology

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Ohio University, 2018, Experimental Psychology (Arts and Sciences)

With the large number of controversies surrounding some recent topics in science, such as vaccinations or climate change, science skepticism in the United States is growing. This research aims to examine one group, Christians, and how their evaluations of scientists are influenced by both the scientist's religiosity and the type of research the scientist conducts. Two pilot studies showed that Christians are less trusting of science focused on policy change (i.e. impact science) than of science focused on producing technology (i.e. production science), and that Christians distrust Atheist scientists more so than other religiously-identified scientists. Three studies further examined the relationship between religious affiliation and trustworthiness by exploring science type and information type (morality/competence) respectively as moderators, as well as potential mediators (e.g. perceived threat from science to religion, inferred scientists' motives). Findings indicated a consistent main effect of religious affiliation on trustworthiness, an effect mediated by perceived benevolence motives. Specifically, Atheist scientists were found to be less trustworthy than any religiously affiliated group, due to the belief that Atheist scientists were less motivated to help humanity.

Committee: Kimberly Rios Dr. (Advisor) Subjects: Experimental Psychology; Psychology; Social Psychology

PHD, Kent State University, 2013, College of Arts and Sciences / Department of Political Science

Social networking services are used by a large segment of society; Facebook claims that 1 billion users are active on their website. The potential role for social networking in civic engagement is substantial, and this dissertation expands upon previous research in its examination of the relationship between social networking use and civic engagement. Prior research into the effect of social networking services on social capital creation is limited in terms of generalizability and predictive power. The dissertation explores the determinants of social networking service use, the impact that social networking services have on the creation of social capital, and how social networking website use modifies a respondent's level of generalized trust and political efficacy. The sample utilized in this dissertation includes 2,303 respondents from the Social Side of the Internet Survey, conducted in November and December of 2010. The dissertation utilizes this data to examine social networking intensity as a hypothesized determinant of indirect and direct forms of social capital. Models explore the decision to utilize the internet, social networking services (SNS), and to join traditional groups, evaluating the hypothesis that SNS usage creates social capital through a different pathway than online or physical interactions. Results provide early support for this hypothesis, as the factors influencing the decision to utilize social networking are separate from those modifying online or group activity. The explanatory power of social networking intensity is compared to demographic and group-centered conceptions of social capital generation. The data supports the conception that SNS intensity is a significant determinant of external political efficacy and social capital, but is unable to identify a relationship between social networking intensity and generalized trust. By examining the role that social networking services play alongside factors such as age, education, inter (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Ryan Claassen PHD (Committee Chair); Renée Johnson PHD (Committee Member); Aroon Manoharan PHD (Committee Member); Richard Serpe PHD (Committee Member); Kevin Floyd PHD (Other) Subjects: Political Science

Doctor of Philosophy, Miami University, 2004, Educational Leadership

Sustained, widespread changes in educational practices have been elusive due to focus on positional and individual leaders and the conservative nature of school culture. Sustained, high quality professional development has been found to increase standards based science teaching in isolated classrooms, but leadership that distributes power and emphasizes relationships could create change throughout entire schools or districts. In Discovery's Schoolwide Reform Initiative, school based teams of teachers and administrators created professional development plans to spread standards based science instruction throughout their school or district. Two leadership teams, one from an urban middle school and the other, a small suburban district, were selected for this study based on high student achievement and history of successful innovation. Symbolic interactionism was used to study relationships among team members. The interactions at team meetings and professional development activities were recorded over a two year period and coded for emergent themes related to the development of team culture and the spread of reform. The urban middle school team was derailed by overwhelming change. The school lost its critical mass of experienced teacher leaders as the project began. This loss, combined with budget cuts, changes in superintendents, and a district wide reorganization that forced the school to change from middle school to a junior/senior high school, virtually eliminated opportunities for team culture to develop or reform to spread. The small suburban district team developed trusting relationships and successfully implemented a professional development plan that increased standards-based science teaching, contributed to the development of a learning community and increased teacher leadership. The team culture included rituals and symbols that increased solidarity, differentiation of roles based on voluntarism, and a sense of shared responsibility. The team exemplified dist (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Nelda Cambron-McCabe Jane Butler Kahle (Advisor) Subjects: