Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), Bowling Green State University, 2021, Communication Studies

This dissertation examines identity negotiation and the relationship between identity and communication. This social scientific study's primary goal is to extend the focus and scope of the communication theory of identity (CTI) by introducing a new theoretical construct within CTI's interpenetration of frames - identity bridges. The interpenetration of frames refers to the conceptualization that the frames are not isolated (Hecht et al., 2003). Instead, the frames operate, interact, and cohabitate simultaneously between and amongst each other. Identity bridges represent the ways that people respond to identity gaps (Kuiper, 2018), which are inconsistencies between individuals' personal, enacted, relational, communal (Jung & Hecht, 2004), and material identities (Kuiper, 2019). Kuiper (2018) posited that identity bridge responses consist of psychological, behavioral, and communicative efforts to negotiate identity gaps. This dissertation aims to develop this assertion further and proposes that there are multiple identity bridges and identify these types. This study's secondary goal is to develop a means to predict identity bridging responses, enabling a foundation to continue studying the multiple and complex facets of identity negotiation. A scale will allow the identification and measurement of identity bridges, and therefore, facilitate the ability to find associations between identity bridging occurrences and other factors. Therefore, this study's third goal is to establish what aspects of identity and identity gaps predict different types of identity bridges. I conducted four separate studies to achieve these goals. To begin, Study One developed an initial item pool through inductive analysis, using open-ended survey responses. Study One yielded 120 items established as responses to identity gaps. Using the generated item pool, studies two and three collected responses for exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis to evaluate the factor struct (open full item for complete abstract)

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2021, Philosophy

Few views are as widely held as the Standard View of Identity. Here I am concerned with minority views that depart from the standard account. First, I attempt to illuminate such views and the debates concerning them by identifying the principles of identity at issue, articulating some of the assumptions underlying the debates, and presenting some of the evidence used against the Standard View of Identity. Second, I enter two of these debates myself. I first defend two Non-Standard Views of Identity from the charge that they violate a principle of identity, namely the Transitivity of Identity. I then present an overlooked consequence of another Non-Standard View of Identity that challenges the view on one of its own methodological principles. Third, I draw on recent work in ontological and parthood pluralism to show how one might be led to think that there is more than one way of being identical. That is, I show how one might be an identity pluralist.

Ph.D., Antioch University, 2013, Leadership and Change

The desire to claim an ethnicity may be in response to an institutional and systemic political movement towards multiculturalism where ethnic difference is something to be recognized and celebrated (Jimenez, 2010; Tatum, 1997). Those who were a member of a dominant or advantaged group took that element of their identity for granted (Tatum, 1997). Identity work has included reflections and congruence between how individuals see themselves and how they perceive others to see them, including Optimal Distinctiveness Theory where one determines the optimal amount of individual distinctiveness needed to feel a healthy group and personal identity (Brewer, 2012). When most of the people one is surrounded by can verify and support an accepted identity construction, the process is less complicated, and attention is not drawn to the differences because there are very few, if any. As the dominant culture becomes increasingly bombarded with the celebratory aspects of an ethnic identity, it is likely that one will begin searching for one's own (Jimenez, 2010; Tatum, 1997). This study will present portraits of individuals who are considering an ethnic identity as they are searching for belonging and inclusion from the group with which they desire to identify. In short, through the use of portraiture, I intend to privilege the voices and experiences of several co-researchers as they describe their lives, explain whether or not they have accepted or rejected a Melungeon identity, how they came to that decision, and what it means in their lived experience. This dissertation is accompanied by the author's MP4 video introduction, as well as 15 MP4 videos of the coresearchers who participated in this study (see the List of Supplemental Media Files). The electronic version of this Dissertation is at OhioLink ETD Center, www.ohiolink.edu/etd

PhD, University of Cincinnati, 2023, Business: Business Administration

In this study, I examined the effect of exogenous ‘shocks' on role identity, by analyzing the experiences of teachers during the COVID 19 pandemic. Using grounded theory, I conducted and analyzed 52 one-on-one interviews with teachers in multiple settings to understand the lived experiences of individuals directly affected by the event. Through my findings, I introduce the idea of a relational web to illustrate the relational co-construction of a role identity and how it contributes to its maintenance. The findings show how the disruption of identity-sustaining relationships could lead to “identity instability”, a construct that represents the state where the meanings ascribed to an identity by the identity holder are no longer verified through reflective appraisals from society. I also highlight how identity instability can trigger a process of appraisal, and how extended exposure to the precipitating event can affect the consistency of said appraisals.

Doctor of Psychology (PsyD), Wright State University, 2023, School of Professional Psychology

The transition between religiosity and disaffiliation has been under-represented in the literature. Furthermore, religious disaffiliation has thus far been studied in reference to religion broadly without further specification, except in the cases of Christianity and Catholicism, which have been studied far more often than other religions. Gaps in the research were identified and addressed using seven existing models of religious and nonreligious identity development. The extant literature was reviewed, analyzed via critical interpretive synthesis, and organized into an identity development model for ex-Muslim atheists. The resulting model consisted of the following stages: (1) religion as ascribed identity, (1a) socialization, (1b) anchors, (2) questioning theism, (2a) morality, (2b) consciousness, (3) rejection of theism, and (4) atheism as chosen identity. Future directions for this topic should include empirical validation of the model and each of its stages so that healthcare providers may better understand and address the clinical needs of ex-Muslim atheists.

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), Bowling Green State University, 2020, Media and Communication

Utilizing the Communication Theory of Identity (CTI), this qualitative study explores the metaperceptions and identity negotiation strategies of immigrants from the so-called Middle East (and North Africa) region. The study encompasses in-depth interviews with ten (10) individuals with various ethnic backgrounds from the Middle East, living in the United States either as international students and/or as immigrants. In addition, this study explores the author's lived experiences as a Turkish international student in the U.S. in forms of autoethnographic writings embedded throughout the project. The findings include common themes of metaperceptions such as “terrorist,” “foreigner/not-American/the Other,” “rich (and poor),” “Middle Eastern – Arab – Muslim,” and “white but not white.” Regarding identity negotiation strategies, common patterns were found which emerged as “informing/lecturing,” “avoiding talking/interacting,” “being used to it / not caring about it anymore,” and “use of attire/clothing.” Besides the metaperceptions and identity negotiation strategies, three “contingent” factors emerged from the analysis. These factors (i.e., “beliefs about Americans,” “with/out family member,” and “location/setting”) overlapped with both metaperceptions and identity negotiation strategies of the participants; thus, not only affected them but were also affected by them. Lastly, the research introduces two mini case studies from the participants' own accounts and examines them in detail. Overall, the results of the study indicate that the participants experienced numerous identity gaps due to the inconsistency between their self-perceptions and their metaperceptions. The participants tried to close these identity gaps by utilizing various identity negotiation strategies. The autoethnography section of the paper concluded that the author's metaperceptions were highly consistent with the interviewees' while revealing salient differences in identity negotiations employed by th (open full item for complete abstract)

PHD, Kent State University, 2019, College of Arts and Sciences / Department of Sociology and Criminology

Within identity theory, researchers distinguish between large, intermediate, and proximate social structures which have been shown to impact individuals' self-structures by shaping interactional probabilities. To date, scholars have paid the least attention to intermediate social structure despite its important role in facilitating and/or constraining individuals' abilities to reach the physical locations where they can regularly enact a given identity. In order to address this gap, this research seeks to examine how the physical layout of the social world impacts the identity process. Specifically, I examine how the effort required to traverse space to reach a given place is an element of intermediate social structure that shapes how regularly one comes into contact with identity related others at that place. Simultaneous, I will also examine the degree to which the place an individual lives in facilitates/constrains the likelihood of them coming into contact with identity related others through the presence of specific identity-interaction sites that serve as opportunities for expressing one's various identities. Using the religious identity as the identity of interest, I examine these relationships using survey data collected from approximately 1000 individuals in Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana. The findings support the propositions that the easier it is to reach a place, the more frequently that place will be visited and thereby the greater the proportion of one's regular social contacts who share the religious identity. These findings also support the proposition that when there are more opportunities in the place the individual lives to enact a given identity due to a greater number of identity-interaction sites the individual is aware of, that individual will more frequently come into contact with identity related others. These findings represents a potential path forward for both expanding a structural symbolic interactionist understanding of how society shapes (open full item for complete abstract)

Master of Arts, University of Toledo, 2018, English (as a Second Language)

One of the few identity studies to be done on university ESL students, this research sought to discover what kinds of identities are prevalent at UT, what are some ways students negotiate their identities in the context of UT, and to discover if deficit identity is something that UT ESL students' experience. The study took place at the University of Toledo, and involved interviews with 8 participants. The overall purpose of the study was to broaden the scope of the field's research. After analyzing the data, it was discovered that a wide range of identities were prevalent at the university among ESL students, such as athletes and musicians. Students also negotiate their identities in various ways and through various online interfaces, with emoji's being popular tools of expression. Furthermore, there were no cases of deficit identity found in this study. Therefore, the topic of ESL student identities at UT is a complex subject, with lots of variation between the participants.

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Ohio University, 2016, Curriculum and Instruction Mathematics Education (Education)

Math Teachers' Circles are content-focused professional development for K–12 mathematics teachers that engage teachers and mathematicians in intensive, collaborative problem solving. Typically, Math Teachers' Circles begin with a weeklong summer immersion workshop. This study explored the effects of participation in such professional development on elementary and middle school teachers' mathematical identities, their mathematics teaching identities, and the interaction of these identities. This investigation used an explanatory multiple-case study methodology. Extreme cases were identified from first-time participants at three Math Teachers' Circle sites across the United States. Shifts in these teachers' identities were explored through open-ended interviews, pre- and post-workshop surveys, and written reflections. Teachers' identities were understood as the extent to which the teachers' personal identities aligned with the normative identity of the Math Teachers' Circle. The teachers' mathematical identities evolved most significantly as a result of their participation. During the immersion workshop, the teachers found that perseverance and collaboration assisted in their success at solving challenging and open-ended mathematics problems, and their confidence and motivation increased over the week. As a result, teachers' sense of self, including mathematics self-concept and self-efficacy, became stronger, and their understanding of the nature of mathematics evolved to include patterns, connections, and open-ended problems. The immersion workshop also changed teachers' perceptions of effective mathematics pedagogy. The teachers in this study found that collaborating and struggling through nonroutine problems was useful to their understanding of the problems and of teaching and learning mathematics. The teachers intended to use similar problems and pedagogy in their classes. However, the teachers' perceptions of their teaching abilities remained relatively (open full item for complete abstract)

Master of Arts (MA), Bowling Green State University, 2014, Cross-Cultural, International Education

An increasing number of people are relocating to foreign countries due in part to the influence of globalization, internationalization, and enhanced vocational opportunities abroad. By 2025, the workforce is expected to be the first generation of workers anticipated to live overseas due to improved employment opportunities and ease of travel (HR Grapevine, 2013). This increase will affect the lives of a large number of adult workers who reside in an Asian context such as Japan. This qualitative collective case study includes interviews with eight foreign participants from what is commonly referred to as “Western” countries who have lived in Hokkaido, Japan for five or more years. This study describes the identity formation and/or development process of these participants, who range in age from thirty-one to seventy-seven years old, and the influence this cultural context has on their adult identity development. This research applied the prevalent Japanese discourse of Nihonjinron and the cultural belief of the binary of uchi and soto to determine how and to what extent foreigners are accepted into Japanese society and/or culture. In addition, acculturation theories such as Sam & Berry’s Acculturation Strategies and Benet-Martinez & Haritatos (2005) Bicultural Identity Integration (BII) were implemented to indicate the individual changes to the identity of each participant due to their time in Japan. The results of this research suggest that Japan pushes foreigners and outside elements away from its culture and society, but it also requires them to reinforce Japanese identity. This dynamic resulted in participants often feeling between Japanese culture and their own respective culture while some defended their culture of origin. Alternatively, other participants changed in order to interact with Japanese society and enjoy the benefits of living in Japan.

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Ohio University, 2014, Interdisciplinary Arts (Fine Arts)

Berni Searle is an artist based in Cape Town, South Africa who uses her body in performance and photographic works. In this dissertation, articulations of identity within the context of Searle's work are examined in their social-historical relationships. Searle, in her art, both uses her body to illustrate constructions of identity and reclaims her body (and by extension, other similar bodies). These performances of articulated identity considered through the rubric of reprendre will elucidate the construction of Coloured identity in the South African body politic. These performances will also allow a consideration of counter-spaces for discussing political agency. Since the collapse of apartheid in South Africa in 1994 the citizens of the new, non-racial state have had to contend with lasting effects of the violence and racism that founded much of South African history. Coloured identity emerged as a distinct one early in the development of South African nationhood. Problematically, Colouredness has been associated with absence and socio-political marginalization that tended to undermine this community's agency during the apartheid era and after. The trend can lead to contesting racial tropes of national belonging that only serves to increase disenfranchisement in a new democracy. Berni Searle, as a Coloured woman, engages such histories in insightful ways by embodying the shifting paradigms of Coloured identity. In so doing, Searle also participates in important discourses in the African contemporary art community. Using Searle's work as a lens through which to examine issues of identity, body and enfranchisement, this dissertation demonstrates how her works open up spaces to discuss political agency and racial identity in the post-apartheid era. Such considerations carry important theoretical weight for discourses in South Africa regarding the importance of racial identity in the new nation. In addition to Coloured identity, Searle's works also engages with (open full item for complete abstract)

Master of Arts (MA), Bowling Green State University, 2014, Cross-Cultural, International Education

This study examines the shifts of international Muslim and former Muslim students' religious and/or cultural identity as they studied at one of two Midwestern universities. This study uses an inductive approach to analyze interview data for the purpose of answering the central question: What are the shifts international Muslim students are experiencing in regards to their Muslim and/or cultural identity? And, the following sub-questions are addressed: What is contributing to international Muslim students' shifts in Muslim and/or cultural identity? What are the implications of these shifts? Using a grounded theory approach, these questions are answered using inductively arrived at axial categories, which include independence, exposure, and questioning, and a central category of discernment. The categories resulted from the participants' data, and help understand what shifts international Muslim students are experiencing. Additionally, these categories help to understand what is contributing to these shifts, and what the implications of these shifts are. Open-ended, semi-structured interviews were conducted with international Muslim and former Muslim students who were studying, or had studied at one of the two chosen universities. These participants were selected as a result of their status as international students, in addition to their Muslim or former Muslim identities. The results of the study revealed that many of the participants did experience a shift in their Muslim and/or cultural identity while studying at one of the two Midwestern universities. Furthermore, the results showed that many of the participants' shifts in their Muslim and/or cultural identity, were a result of studying at one of the two universities. The participants who experienced a shift in their Muslim and/or cultural identity appeared to all share in a similar process, which led them to their shift. In this process, the participants had to consider what the implication (open full item for complete abstract)

Master of Arts (MA), Ohio University, 2007, Sociology (Arts and Sciences)

Work on the social construction of identity has emerged concurrently from different areas, each attempting to explain the plethora of identities present in society. Two such attempts, identity control theory and social identity theory, each attend to different portions of the social identity dynamic. Integration of these two approaches has the potential to increase understanding of interpersonal judgments. Traditionally, work utilizing social identity theory has been examined using a distribution of resources model. For this research evaluations of blame between subjects are examined in order to determine if in-group favoritism and out-group denigration as found in resource distribution studies are present in a post behavior evaluative framework.

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), Bowling Green State University, 2006, Psychology/Clinical

Although the idea of identity construction from component parts into an integrated whole was theorized decades ago by Erickson (1968), it has only recently begun to be studied. Susan Harter's extensive work on the construction of the self attests to the fact that adolescents do perceive and evaluate themselves differently in different domains of life, and that these self-representations differ substantially from early to late adolescence (e.g., Harter, 1999). However, most of the research in this area has tended to focus on adolescents' self-evaluations (i.e., How good am I?) instead of valence-free adolescent self-descriptions (i.e., Who am I?). Not only is more research on adolescent self-descriptions warranted, but there also needs to be more research done on how adolescents actually go about integrating their multiple “selves” into whole identities, or “theories of self,” as defined by Marcia (1987). Therefore, the present study aimed to add to the current body of knowledge on adolescent identity construction by investigating how Jamaican adolescents comparatively valued six major life domains (academic, social, sexual, religious, family, and friends). A new graphical measure of relative domain valuing, the “Identity Pie”, was adapted from Cowan, Cowan and colleagues work (e.g., Cowan & Cowan, 1988) and validated for use in this study. The relations between particular self-identification profiles and life adjustment were explored in addition to gender and developmental stage differences. Overall, Jamaican adolescents reported comparable levels of domain valuing, and academic, psychological and behavioral functioning to U.S. adolescents. The Identity Pie proved to be a valid measure of domain valuing and identity construction. The total sample valued life domains in the following order: schoolwork/family > religion/friends > sports > dating. Many expected gender and grade differences emerged; however, the similarities across gender and grade were overwhelming. Ad (open full item for complete abstract)

Doctor of Philosophy, University of Akron, 2008, Nursing

The increased risks for isolation, victimization, and other adverse behaviors for GLB persons are substantiated in the literature. Yet awareness of the struggles by those coming to terms with their alternative sexual identity is limited. The “self comfort” can be used to describe the desired state of those who have been successful in this adjustment process. This research centers on clarifying, defining, and exploring the measurement potential of an instrument based on the construct self-comfort. As a holistic construct, self-comfort is realized in physical, psychospiritual, sociocultural-political, and environmental contexts. As a dynamic construct, self-comfort is sensitive to change over time, given effective and repetitive nursing interventions. The attributes of the construct are autonomy, identity, relationship, and transcendence. When the attributes and contexts are juxtaposed, a 16-cell grid (taxonomic structure) is created to describe the content domain and guide the creation of the new instrument. This study focused on testing the instrument with 245 gay, lesbian, or bisexual persons. The internal consistency reliability for the 44 item Self-Comfort with Sexual Identity Questionnaire (SSIQ) was .917 (standardized). Ninety- three respondents (41.3%) were men and 132 (58.7%) women. Seventy-four (30%) individuals self-identified as being gay; 73 (29.8%) as lesbian; 49 (20%) as bisexual; and 17 (6.9%) were undeclared. Study data met the factorability criteria described by the Bartlett…#8482;s test of sphericity, the Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin test (KMO), and Measures of sampling adequacy (MSA). A principal component analysis (PCA) method of extraction with a varimax rotation was completed. The number of factors was set at four to remain consistent with the theoretical framework for the study. Factors were extracted in 6 iterations with factor loadings <.40 being suppressed. Using the guidelines for item-to factor loadings in an orthogonal solution, loadings between (open full item for complete abstract)

Master of Arts, The Ohio State University, 2008, Graduate School

Bachelor of Arts (BA), Ohio University, 2024, Sociology

In the past decade, the number of studies of transgender individuals has grown exponentially, but specific research into subcommunities under the broader transgender label is lacking. Most studies focus on either binary transgender individuals (transgender women and transgender men) alone, or combine all persons identifying as any gender other than their gender assigned at birth into one large group of “transgender people.” However, the limited intragroup research that has been done suggests that experiences vary drastically depending on one's gender identity, and we can imagine that the experience of binary transgender individuals would be very different than the experiences of nonbinary transgender individuals. This study reports on the lived experiences of nonbinary people – individuals identifying as neither men nor women, but rather existing outside of the gender binary. Qualitative interview methods were used to gather information from nonbinary individuals about their personal experiences with identity development, external experiences of stress from other people, and the internalized impacts of minority stress. Based in grounded theory, the subsequent report on these interviews includes discussion and analyses of the data collected. This discussion utilized a newly suggested framework – the Respect, Support, and Perception Theory – for analyzing interpersonal relationships with genderqueer individuals and the potential internalized effects that these relationships have on nonbinary individuals.

PhD, University of Cincinnati, 2023, Business: Business Administration

Throughout their career, individuals may envision future selves—who they might become or would like to become—that are desirable yet perceived as hard to imagine or seemingly impossible to realize. Such future selves are “long-shot” images of the self that are associated with high levels of uncertainty. Compared with short-term images of self, long-shot self-images exist in the distant future, and their realization may require very different strategies of thinking and acting than those currently represented in the management literature. In this study, I develop the construct of long-shot future selves, i.e., desirable future selves that exist in the distant future and are perceived as hard to imagine or seemingly impossible to realize. Through a qualitative, grounded theory study utilizing semi-structured interview data, I explored individual strategies for conceiving, managing, and realizing long-shot future selves. Data analysis showed that individuals took one of two distinct approaches to realizing long-shot selves. In the first pathway, the “planner” pathway, people used identity work tactics to break the future self down into attainable, short-term identity pieces (i.e., proximal future selves), and bridged the gap between the present self and the long-shot self through incremental steps. In the second pathway, the “dreamer” pathway, people engaged in spontaneous and serendipitous pursuit of their long-shot self. The findings of my study contribute to the management literature on future selves, managing the distant future, identity work and identity play, as well as career desires, inaction, and shocks. Findings from this research may also help individuals and organizations to manage career expectations and navigate uncertain career paths.

Doctor of Education, Miami University, 2023, Educational Leadership

This qualitative study, limited to only three female participants and bounded by proximity, sought to provide a better understanding of how the social class background of teachers may impact pedagogy. Utilizing Crenshaw's intersectionality of identity lens and Bourdieu's Cultural Reproduction Theory, this research focused on a social constructivist interpretive framework to explore through the use of three in depth semistructured interviews how the class background of teachers may impact pedagogy. Data gathered from the semi-structured interviews was collected and inductively content analyzed to answer the research question: How does the class background of teachers from the middle class and working-class/poor impact their pedagogy? This problem of practice has relevance because many students of poor/working-class backgrounds continue to achieve at much lower levels than their more upper-class peers. Research in academia exists regarding social class as an economic construct and social class as culture; however, there remains a general lack of research involving teachers in K-12 schools exploring pedagogical beliefs and practices related to social class. Several pertinent ideas were revealed through semi-structured interviews with teacher participants. Teachers do have emergent notions of class beyond socioeconomic status but lack the knowledge to identify them as so. Judgements of people from lower social class backgrounds is present for all participants. All participants identify their first recognizable class-based experienced to be in an educational setting. Lastly, the selfidentified class background of teacher participants did impact their pedagogical beliefs and practices. Professional development designed to encourage teachers to think reflexively about their class-based assumptions and how they may unknowingly reinforce a negative view of the poor/working class that transmits the hidden curriculum of schools could have the power to effe (open full item for complete abstract)

PHD, Kent State University, 2022, College of Arts and Sciences / Department of Sociology and Criminology

For nearly a century, the claim that expertise leads to influence has been axiomatic in social psychology, yet this tradition of research cannot explain why people sometimes resist expert influence. I attempt to fill this gap by synthesizing communications research on the message and its properties, political science research on identity, and the perceptual control system branch of identity theory. I argue that identity is a “missing link” in research on social influence—one that helps explain resistance to expert influence. Focusing on the role of the political identity, I propose that politicized messages convey underlying, implicit meanings relevant to one's political identity. Discrepancies between these meanings and the political identity standard contribute to the resistance of expertise by impacting perceptions of message favorability, negative emotion, and the likelihood of deprecating the message source. To test these claims, survey respondents (50% Democrats, 50% Republicans) used a novel measure of political identity to rate themselves as well as evaluate ten partisan statements, each of which were attributed to an expert source and focused on “hot-button” political issues. Overall, identity-message discrepancies significantly impacted participants' perceptions of message favorability, negative emotions, and likelihood of deprecating expert sources; however, they did not always do so in a manner consistent with identity theory, and effects sometimes differed for Democrat and Republican respondents. With the exception of the impact of identity-message discrepancies on source deprecation, my findings were more nuanced than expected. I discuss the implications of my research for public policy and for future work in social psychology and political science.