Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 1968, Graduate School

Committee: Not Provided (Other) Subjects: Business Administration

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 1984, Graduate School

Committee: Not Provided (Other) Subjects: Psychology

Ph.D., Antioch University, 2024, Leadership and Change

This study provides a vital contribution to the discourse on women's career trajectories by amplifying the often-overlooked experiences of women middle-level leaders. Positioned at the intersection of strategic and operational functions, these leaders play a vital role in organizations—developing and motivating employees, driving change, and serving as relationship managers and key connectors to senior leadership. Employing an interpretative phenomenological approach, this study explores the lived experiences of 15 accomplished women middle-level leaders, each with over 15 years of service across private, public, and nonprofit sectors in the United States. Grounded in relational-cultural theory (RCT), career theory, positive work relationships, and workplace learning, the findings enrich our understanding of women's leadership journeys and challenge conventional notions of career success. The study identified one overarching theme, Evolving as a Person, and three group experiential themes: A Journey of Experiences, Support is Energy, and Purpose Over Position. Participants emphasized purpose, values, and spirituality over traditional career advancement, highlighting the importance of connection and mattering, which align with RCT's growth-fostering relationships and the "five good things." This study reframes career success as a holistic concept, demonstrating that thriving in middle management can align ambition with influence and personal fulfillment. Practical insights are offered for leaders, practitioners, coaches, and organizations to support emerging and experienced leaders seeking meaningful growth, even within middle-level roles. By challenging societal narratives around career and success, this study advocates for a more inclusive and equitable workforce that values thriving at all organizational levels. This dissertation is available in open access at AURA (https://aura.antioch.edu) and OhioLINK ETD Center (https://etd.ohiolink.edu).

Committee: J. Beth Mabry PhD (Committee Chair); Amy Rutstein-Riley PhD, MPA (Committee Member); Lisa Frey PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Management; Womens Studies

Master of Business Administration, The Ohio State University, 1970, Graduate School

Committee: Not Provided (Other) Subjects:

Master of Business Administration, The Ohio State University, 1965, Graduate School

Committee: Not Provided (Other) Subjects:

Master of Business Administration, The Ohio State University, 1960, Graduate School

Committee: Not Provided (Other) Subjects:

Master of Arts, The Ohio State University, 1970, Graduate School

Committee: Not Provided (Other) Subjects:

Doctor of Business Administration (D.B.A.), Franklin University, 2021, Business Administration

The purpose of this descriptive qualitative study was to understand the experiences of dual leadership for African American women. The research question for the study is: What are the lived experiences of African American women leaders in ministry and the workplace? The homogenous sample consisted of nine study participants from the Midwest and Northeast regions of the United States of America. The participants represented four generations ranging in age from 21-76. The participants had an average of 16 years in ministry leadership and 20 years in the workplace. Data collection involved face-to-face interviews using a video conferencing platform with an average interview time of 55 minutes guiding the data collection process. Eight principal themes containing subthemes relating to codes materialized from the data: leadership styles, experiences of microaggressions, systemic sexism, health impact, culture, perception of religiosity and faith, business and leadership relationship, and dual leadership. The study utilized the software instrument ATLAS.ti to organize systematically, code, identify and link research themes, and assist with data analysis.

Committee: Bora Pajo (Committee Member); Alynica Bowen (Committee Chair); Niccole Hyatt (Committee Member) Subjects: African American Studies; Organizational Behavior; Womens Studies

Doctor of Management, Case Western Reserve University, 2013, Weatherhead School of Management

We explore the effect of sexual orientation disclosure by first focusing on the lived experience of executives who came out in middle to late career to expose their orientation and second by investigating the influence of emotional intelligence on engaging in ‘outness' behaviors. In the first part, we conducted, to our knowledge, the first empirical study specifically focused on gay and lesbian senior executives who came out in their organizations at late career stages. Phenomenological interviews with 25 executives revealed prioritization of professional vs. personal identity both before and after coming out, emphasized the recursive nature of coming out in the executive suite and showed positive organizational outcomes of personal intentional change when gay and lesbian executives leverage their status to promote policy and culture reforms. In the second part, we wanted to establish the influence that Emotional Intelligence had on “outness” of a gay or lesbian professional? This study consisted of a quantitative analysis on 114 lesbian and gay executives. The study reveals that the adaptability and self-control dimensions of Emotional Intelligence positively impact Outness. Furthermore, the positive outlook dimension and the self-awareness dimension of authenticity have a positive impact on the respondent's perception of their ideal life. In addition to adding to the scholarly literature on gay and lesbians, the study provides insights into understanding factors impacting the disclosure of outness in the workplace. This understanding should be of interest to managers and scholars concerned with developing inclusive workplace policies, improving workplace circumstances for all minorities, and accelerating the move towards greater workplace diversity.

Committee: Richard Boyatzis, Ph.D. (Advisor) Subjects: Gender; Glbt Studies

MA, University of Cincinnati, 2019, Arts and Sciences: Communication

This study explores the coping mechanisms developed by African American women who hold or have held C-suite executive positions when facing microaggressions in the workplace. In an attempt to understand the barriers these women encounter based upon their racial and gender identitiy, I utilize the Microaggression and Resiliency Theory as the conceptual framework. The significance of this study narrows in on a demographic of women who lack in numbers, translating to a lack of voices and experiences being shared when faced with discrimination and how they are able to `get back up' once they are knocked down. Using this critical interpretative approach, the findings show that African American women C-suite executives are experiencing microaggressions, specifically indirect manifestations verbally and nonverbally. The findings also provide insight on how other women in these powerful positions can develop the needed skills and habits, to be able to push through with their resiliency.

Committee: Ronald Jackson II Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Sonja Feist-Price Ph.D. (Committee Member); Eric Jenkins Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Communication

Doctor of Philosophy, Case Western Reserve University, 2018, Management

The commonality of corporate scandals and the quest for who should be accountable motivates this investigation. I used a mixed method multilevel design that combines qualitative and quantitative data from organizations, executives, and capital markets, to address the research question of who is accountable in reputational scandals. The evidence suggests that reputational risk exposure increases when organizations' and executives' values are not aligned. Managers' values mediate the implementation of organizational values toward risk assessment. This counterintuitive finding suggests that securities value is not automatically depressed after scandalous events. Instead, shareholders dissipate potential doubt about the stability of firms, guided by analysts' revised expectations rather than judging ethical implications. As a consequence, executives may not face investors' disapproval, which would encourage them to focus on preventive efforts. Organizations and executives must align their ethical values to proactively protect their organizations' reputations. Financial performance indicators of firms do not influence the behavior of investors after scandals.

Committee: Timothy Fogarty (Committee Chair); Kalle Lyytinen (Committee Member); Gregory Jonas (Committee Member); Douglas Prawitt (Committee Member) Subjects: Accounting; Management

Ph.D., Antioch University, 2017, Leadership and Change

This qualitative study is an in-depth exploration of the experiences of 20 executive-level leaders from American corporations, government agencies, hospitals, and universities. At the heart of this investigation are stories that reveal the challenge of leading change in complex systems from the leader perspective, creating an opportunity to explore sense-making and sense-giving as guided by individual values and organizational contexts. Complexity Science, the framework for this research, is the study of relationships within and among systems. The aim of approaching this research from a complexity perspective is to gain a more realistic view of the issues and challenges that leaders face during change, and how they make meaning and respond in today's richly interconnected and largely unpredictable information age. Results highlight the critical role an individual's beliefs and values—as shaped by experience and guided by context—have on leadership and the organization's approach to change implementation. This study identifies three leadership conceptual categories: (1) traditional (linear and hierarchical in nature); (2) complexity (non-linear, suited to densely interconnected and rapid-paced environments), and (3) complexity-plus (including change goals beyond the organization and its members). Though traditional and complexity styles are largely known in the literature, the complexity-plus style is a newly identified category. Drawing from Uhl-Bien, Marion, and McKelvey's (2007) Complexity Leadership Theory (CLT) model, which delineates three leadership functions: (1) administrative (results orientation); (2) adaptive (learning orientation); and (3) enabling (support orientation), the key conclusions of this investigation are integrated with the CLT model to create the Leadership Values Framework. The results of this research contribute to our understanding of the influence of a leader's values, enhancing our ability as academics and practitioners to bette (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Alan Guskin Ph.D (Committee Chair); Elizabeth Holloway Ph.D (Committee Member); Merryn Rutledge Ed.D (Committee Member); Peter Martin Dickens Ph.D (Committee Member) Subjects: Behavioral Psychology; Organizational Behavior; Social Psychology

Doctor of Education (Ed.D.), Bowling Green State University, 2017, Leadership Studies

The purpose of this qualitative study was to investigate the developmental journeys of conscious leaders who were practicing the ethics-based philosophy of conscious capitalism. Emphasis was placed on investigating the turning points that occurred throughout leaders' lives, and on outlining the developmental aspects used by these leaders to promote their internal development. Five senior executives in for-profit businesses, participated in two, one-on-one narrative interviews designed to identify details about their journeys to conscious leadership, and how they continuously developed as conscious leaders. Each of the participants took two assessments: one that tracked their career in life story and the major transition points, and a second that measured their emotional intelligence from a 360-degree perspective. Data from the interviews and assessments were used to answer two research questions designed to investigate why and how these leaders developed into conscious leaders and conscious capitalists. A delimitation of this study was that these leaders were practicing conscious leadership and conscious capitalism, thus it excluded executives who were conscious leaders but who were not practicing conscious capitalism. A limitation of this qualitative study was that the interviews consisted of self-reported memories of the participants' experiences, therefore how the participants narrated those events may be different from what happened. Findings suggest that the participants are more likely to narrate their influential life turning points in a positive way, focusing on the meaning and lessons learned from those transitions, rather than on the difficulty of the transitional moment. Study findings also suggest that there is a framework of developmental perspectives, comprised of various behavioral aspects, that conscious leaders use to continually increase their levels of internal development: mindfulness (seeing), authenticity (presenting), and interpersonal ability (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Chris Willis Ed.D. (Advisor); Deborah O'Neil Ph.D. (Other); Paul Johnson Ph.D. (Committee Member); Joyce Litten Ed.D. (Committee Member); Margaret Hopkins Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Behavioral Sciences; Management

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 1986, Graduate School

Committee: Not Provided (Other) Subjects: Political Science

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 1986, Graduate School

Committee: Not Provided (Other) Subjects: Mass Communications

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 1985, Graduate School

Committee: Not Provided (Other) Subjects: Education

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 1982, Graduate School

Committee: Not Provided (Other) Subjects: Business Administration

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 1981, Graduate School

Committee: Not Provided (Other) Subjects: Education

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 1980, Graduate School

Committee: Not Provided (Other) Subjects: Education

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 1978, Graduate School

Committee: Not Provided (Other) Subjects: Psychology