PhD, University of Cincinnati, 2023, Education, Criminal Justice, and Human Services: Counselor Education

Traditional or hegemonic masculinity (i.e., the normative cultural expectations for men as defined by the dominant group) has been identified as key influence on men's mental health and service use. Whereas past efforts have approached masculinity from a deficit-focused perspective, recent research suggests the presence of positively perceived components of masculinity that protect against risky health practices as well as facilitate health-promoting attitudes. Among the most widely used masculinity scales, content that is positively perceived and linked to positive health outcomes appears under-represented. In this dissertation, items identified as typical of American males and perceived as positive were adapted to develop the Positive Masculinity Scale (PMS). Using exploratory structural equation modeling, initial evidence was found for a general factor of positively perceived masculinity in an online sample of males (n = 635) and in an independent online sample (nmales = 823 and nfemales = 570). Excellent scale reliability suggested total scores were useful and evidence of scalar invariance suggested they could be compared across the two samples, the sexes, disability statuses, and ethnicities. Among males, general positive masculinity had a complex web of associations with other constructs—positively perceived masculinity was linked to both positive (e.g., lower negative self-esteem) and negative (e.g., lower preventive care use) health-related outcomes. The same was true of traditional masculinity facets, as measured by the Conformity to Masculine Norms Inventory (CMNI). Future research can identify the mechanisms connecting masculine traits to negative health-related outcomes, thereby laying the groundwork for interventions that leverage positively perceived masculine traits to improve health while minimizing complications.

Doctor of Psychology (Psy.D.), Xavier University, 2019, Psychology

Engagement in the three good things positive psychology exercise is associated with improvements in mental health (e.g., Seligman, Steen, Park, & Peterson, 2005), yet the mechanism of change in this exercise has yet to be investigated (Quoidbach, Mikolajczak, & Gross, 2015). Researchers have hypothesized that the exercise is beneficial because it trains attention toward positive information in life (Peters, Vieler, & Lautenbacher, 2016; Watkins & McCurrach, 2016). The present study investigated this hypothesis in a sample of undergraduate students (N = 78) using data from an emotional Stroop task before (Time 1) and after completing the three good things exercise for one week (Time 2). Participants also completed measures of depression, positive and negative affect, life satisfaction, and happiness at Time 1, Time 2, and at 1-month follow-up (Time 3). It was hypothesized that individuals would have a greater positive attentional bias (mean reaction time [RT] to positive words minus mean RT to neutral words) at Time 2 than Time 1, and the positive attentional bias at Time 2 would significantly predict outcome variables. Results indicate that happiness and life satisfaction significantly increased from Time 1 to Time 2 but were not significantly different from Time 2 to Time 3. There were no significant differences across time for depression or positive or negative affect. In addition, there were no significant differences in positive attentional bias from Time 1 to Time 2. Positive attentional bias at Time 2 did not significantly predict any of the outcome variables. Exploratory analyses revealed that mean RT to positive words significantly decreased across time and predicted outcome variables at Time 3. This finding may be interpreted in terms of the broaden and build theory of positive emotions (Frederickson, 1998, 2001) and suggests a need to reevaluate and clarify the effects of the three good things exercise and positive emotions on attention.

Ph.D., Antioch University, 2016, Leadership and Change

Leadership scholar-practitioners must create a more sustainable, diverse, and equitable future, fostering emergence and development of resilient, competent leaders, including those who may have been previously overlooked. Leadership studies, particularly those situated in early trait and behavior paradigms, have long privileged extraverted leaders as ideal. The scholarly conversation is limited on introverted leaders; moreover, most of that literature depicts introversion as either a pathological construct associated with shyness and social anxiety, or includes introversion only by omission, as a state of deficit-of-extraversion. This study instead began with positive inquiry, framing introversion as a positive individual difference, and explored the lived experiences of introverted leaders. This research coalesced perspectives from positive psychology, positive identity at work, and positive organizational scholarship to inquire into introversion as a positive leadership construct. In this constructivist grounded theory study, leaders who identified as introverts and who reported introversion typology on the Myers Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI®) were asked to reflect on their experiences of introversion, leadership identity development, and professional and personal pursuits. From the amassed data emerged three theoretical propositions. First, enacting leadership has significant costs for an introverted leader's energy and identity. Second, an introverted leader must adopt a conscious learning orientation to leadership development, including experimentation with possible leader identities. Third, effective introverted leadership is dependent on understanding the powerful intersectionality of introversion, relationship, and identity. This dissertation is available in open access at AURA, http://aura.antioch.edu/ and OhioLink ETD Center, https://etd.ohiolink.edu/etd

Doctor of Philosophy, Case Western Reserve University, 2011, Organizational Behavior

Case Western Reserve University and the Department of Organizational Behavior have housed the Master of Science in Organization Development (MOD) & now the Master of Science in Positive Organization Development and Change (MPOD) programs for over 40 years. During the program's history, many alumni have shared anecdotal accounts of cognitive, affective and behavioral changes that positively transformed their lives toward becoming more self-aware, more self-confident and effective change agents. Given such accounts, this study explores the question: How do MOD and MPOD graduates experience positive transformation and sustain it over time? Positive transformation, within this study, refers to the long-lasting, strength-based changes in behavior, affect and cognition used to help oneself and others to flourish. Through the use of Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) and Appreciative Inquiry (AI), 32 graduates spanning MOD classes 1 – 15 and MPOD classes 1 – 4 were interviewed to answer the research question. The MOD/MPOD program shaped the interviewees' lives and changed their futures. The program's design in conjunction with the cohort's composition supported the interviewees' positive transformative experiences. The study concluded: (1) positive relationships with high-quality connections (HQCs) serve to facilitate strength-based behavioral, emotional and cognitive changes that lead to positive transformation; (2) validation and confirmation support individual transformation contrary to the disconfirmation and discrepancy theories of change; (3) positive relationships with HQCs increased interviewees' capacity to withstand conflict and experience it as a learning opportunity; (4) multi-dimensional diversity heightened and deepened self-awareness by engaging with diverse others, having exposure to diverse learning modalities, and experiencing oneself in diverse contexts; and, (5) creating generativity via positive relationships and doing work that brings val (open full item for complete abstract)

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).

Master of Arts, The Ohio State University, 2007, Graduate School

Doctor of Education (Educational Leadership), Youngstown State University, 2024, Department of Teacher Education and Leadership Studies

What do teachers perceive to be the impact of positive behavior management systems on supporting teachers, students, and families? This research investigated the implementation and impact of school-wide positive behavior support systems as a crucial approach to addressing behavior challenges and supporting both teachers and students. Recognizing the significant challenges teachers face in managing student behavior alongside their essential duties, this study delves into the potential benefits of positive behavior support systems as an alternative to punitive discipline methods. Building upon previous research, the results of this investigation underscored the positive outcomes associated with school-wide positive behavior support systems. The research employed a qualitative phenomenological case study involving 12 diverse educators, providing valuable insights from those directly responsible for classroom management. The findings revealed that these systems effectively reduced situations involving exclusionary practices, enhanced student-teacher relationships, and contributed to the establishment of a positive classroom culture and climate. Supported by observations, interviews, and artifact collection, the participants identified key factors influencing the success of positive behavior support systems, including administrative and parental support, access to professional development opportunities, and collaborative experiences among teachers and school administration. The study further highlighted the importance of consistent school-wide expectations, procedures, and guidelines in managing student behavior and advocates for tailored support for students with diverse backgrounds. Notably, positive restorative practices and training for teachers contribute to meeting the needs of all students and result in increased overall student achievement. Despite the evident benefits, the need for ongoing refinement of school-wide positive behavior support systems, (open full item for complete abstract)

Doctor of Philosophy, Case Western Reserve University, 2023, Organizational Behavior

“What is the process by which individuals transcend their lifeworld to create transformative change in their field?” This dissertation proposes a dynamic model outlining the phenomenological pathways that enabled nineteen individuals to transcend their lifeworld, step away from the status quo, and socially construct a new paradigm within their field. To isolate the phenomenon, I explore in detail the distinctions between excellence – doing what everyone else does, but doing it better, and extraordinary (my phenomenon of interest) – deviating from the norm and creating new paradigms which change the way we view the world or what we think is possible. In doing so, I contribute a new level of conceptual precision about excellence and the extraordinary to bring to Positive Organizational Scholarship, and research on positive deviance. I applied a descriptive phenomenological lens to a grounded theory approach, with an additional iterative layer of thematic narrative analysis. My participants' stories revealed a dynamic model, beginning with a generative ground of outsider independence, alienation and/or a prospective mindset, usually passing through some kind of dissonance, whether intellectual, emotional or existential, which triggered them to enter discovery mode – openness to discovery, releasing assumptions, transformational learning, and seeing new possibilities, at which point they were compelled to find a new way. They got on with it, pathfinding, slogging it out, resisting naysayers, and attracted others, sharing the exploration, and co-creating to establish a new paradigm in their field. This model contributes to our understanding of the outer edge of radical innovation: paradigm creation. The turn into the 21st century has seen an upsurge of scholarship of the positive and the good. The field of organizational scholarship is ripe for the next surge – In Search of Extraordinary. This dissertation aims to operationalize what a new Science of the Extraordin (open full item for complete abstract)

MA, Kent State University, 2023, College of Arts and Sciences / Department of Psychological Sciences

The increased demands that arise with dementia progression can make caregiving challenging, leading to an onset of burden in the caregiver. Although burden is often associated with caregiving, the role of the caregiver is linked to beneficial outcomes as well. Because individuals who report many positive aspects of caregiving tend to exhibit lower burden relative to those reporting few positive aspects of caregiving, caregiver burden and positive aspects of caregiving are often viewed as mutually exclusive constructs. The present study is a retrospective review of medical records from an outpatient memory clinic, with the goals of better understanding whether and how these constructs coexist within the individual caregiver and exploring potential contributors to caregiver profiles that emerge. A total of 225 patient-caregiver dyads were included in analyses. Results suggested a three-cluster solution with a highly burdened group, a group with low-moderate burden and positive experiences, and a group with high positive experiences. Presence of greater neuropsychiatric symptoms predicted assignment to the higher burden cluster, and greater care recipient dependence predicted assignment to the cluster with higher positive experiences. Future research should investigate other potential contributors to the experience of burden and positive aspects of caregiving.

Master of Science (M.S.), Xavier University, 2021, Psychology

Gender has historically been measured using a binary male/female forced choice format. However, research has shown that binary gender measurement formats (i.e., male/female forced choice) cause harm directly and indirectly to gender-diverse individuals by potentially misgendering them, excluding them from representation in research, and more. While a body of research on best practices for gender measurement exists, there has not been research done on the intersection between mood and different methods of measuring gender. This mixed-methods study examines affective reactions from LGBT+ and non-LGBT+ individuals to a binary gender measurement format and an alternative, inclusive gender measurement format. Participants completed either the binary or inclusive gender measurement item followed by the Positive Negative Affect Schedule. Qualitative data were gathered from gender-diverse participants regarding their personal experiences with gender euphoria. Results showed LGBT+ participants had higher negative mood than non-LGBT participants when presented with the binary gender measurement format; however, LGBT+ participants displayed higher negative mood in general than non-LGBT+ participants regardless of gender measurement format. Gender-diverse participants displayed significantly higher negative mood than cisgender participants when presented with a binary gender measurement format. A working definition of the phenomenon gender euphoria was created from the qualitative data gathered from gender-diverse participants. Future research should explicitly address individuals' feelings about different gender measurement formats. Additionally, future research should be conducted by a more diverse research team, as well as sample from a more diverse pool of participants. Finally, organizations should make an effort to address LGBT+ job satisfaction specifically.

Doctor of Psychology (Psy.D.), Xavier University, 2020, Psychology

Within the positive education literature, the present study is the first to examine whether character strengths predict change across a positive education intervention and is one of the few to examine demographic differences in outcomes. The present study evaluated Thriving Learning Communities (TLC) across two academic years (i.e., 2016-2018) and a diverse sample of youth (N = 2,141). Results indicated grade level differences both in mean student-reported character strengths and shift in these characters strengths over time. Regardless of time, fifth- and sixth-grade students reported higher levels of 13 of the 24 VIA character strengths compared to their seventh- and eighth-grade peers. Across time, fifth- and sixth-grade students reported significant decreases in 10 character strengths, while seventh- and eighth-grade students reported significant increases in six character strengths. There were significant decreases in student disciplinary incidents across the two years of TLC implementation, with temperance and humanity virtues significantly predicting change in disciplinary incidents. Students of higher SES and students identifying as White/Caucasian or Black/African American were more likely to demonstrate decreases in disciplinary incidents across TLC implementation compared to their lower SES-, Hispanic-, and Asian/Hawaiian/Pacific Islander-identifying peers. These findings may demonstrate TLC meeting the needs of its students as White/Caucasian, Black/African American, and higher SES students experienced higher initial levels of disciplinary incidents, and thereby had greater room for improvement in discipline. Results implicate further exploration of character structure and salience of character strengths at different developmental stages, as well as tailoring of positive education programs to target those character strengths predictive of desired outcomes.

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2019, Social Work

As result of unjust social inequalities, youth of color who live in economically disadvantaged urban communities are disproportionately confronted with risk factors. Because of their lived reality, this youth population is often recognized as being socially vulnerable and at-risk for experiencing behavioral health problems. To prevent the onset of and/or adherence to behavioral health problems, social work scholars and practitioners have begun to utilize community sport-based positive youth development (PYD) programs. These programs aim to promote the development and transfer of life skills that help to prevent behavioral health problems. While previous research has demonstrated youth that who are socially vulnerable and at-risk benefit the greatest from participation in these program; much remains unknown about the mechanisms and factors that contribute to life skill development and transfer. The current study the explored mechanisms and factors that contribute to the two interconnected, yet distinct processes of life skill development and life skill transfer. Using the Life Skills Transfer Model as guiding framework, this study explored the lived experiences of socially vulnerable and at-risk youth who participated in a community sport-based PYD program. Specifically, youth included in the study participated in the LiFEsports Summer Camp program, completed pretest and posttest surveys, entered the program with lower than average levels of life skills, and demonstrated growth in life skill measures from pre- to post-program. The final sample of youth participants included 7 boys and 6 girls, most identified as Black or African American (92.3%), were on average 11.08 years old, and 46.2% of youth fell within 100% of the poverty line. The study was conducted in two parts, using two different methods. Part I used semi-structured interviews to explore life skill development (Aim I). Part II used photo-elicitation interviews to explore life skill transfer (Aim II) (open full item for complete abstract)

Master of Arts, Miami University, 2018, Psychology

Social anxiety symptoms are associated with diminished ability to up-regulate, or savor, positive emotional experiences. This study tested whether experiential avoidance, fear of positive evaluation, and fear of positive emotion, mediated the relation between social anxiety symptoms and change in positive emotions following a reminiscence savoring task, and whether reminiscence instructions moderated the relations between these mediators and change in positive emotions. 196 unselected participants were randomized to immersed, first-person reminiscence or distanced, third-person reminiscence, and reported positive emotions before and after reminiscence. As expected, in the immersed condition, participants high (vs. low) in experiential avoidance benefited less from reminiscence, and experiential avoidance mediated the relationship between social anxiety symptoms and change in positive emotions. Surprisingly, for participants in the immersed condition, fear of positive evaluation was positively associated with positive emotions, whereas for those in the distanced condition, fear of positive evaluation was negatively associated with positive emotions. Finally, there was no evidence of a moderated mediation effect for fear of positive emotion. Together, data suggest that social anxiety symptoms may lead to diminished positive emotions through multiple, disparate mechanisms, and that these mechanisms differentially interact with savoring strategies to influence change in positive emotions.

Master of Arts, The Ohio State University, 2017, Psychology

Evidence to date suggests that a higher level of positive emotion is generally associated with improved psychological health (e.g., Tugade, Fredrickson, & Barrett, 2004). However, the specific features characterizing the ways in which upregulation of positive emotion is associated with good psychological functioning are less understood. I investigated how three factors may link regulation of positive emotions to greater psychological health: 1) the presence of both a large repertoire and persistent use of regulation strategies; 2) a “match” between the features of a situation and the strategy used; and 3) the use of specific categories of regulatory strategies, such as expression (capitalization), and less use of suppression. One-hundred and thirty-four undergraduates (mean age = 19.22; 73% female; 78% Caucasian) indicated the strategies they would use to maintain or improve their mood in response to eleven hypothetical positive situations. After their initial response, participants were prompted four more times to report how they would respond if their initial strategy was not working. Participants then completed a battery of self-report measures assessing psychological health variables, including measures of positive emotion and psychopathology. Coders rated the quality (effectiveness) of each strategy and assigned them to categories. Coders also rated each situation for its degree of ambiguity (how ambivalent the situation was), and whether it represented a more hedonic (i.e., short-term pleasure) or eudaimonic (i.e., long-term meaning) form of well-being. Data were analyzed with a series of correlations and regression models using the three factors above as predictors and the psychological health (PH) measures as criterion variables. Repertoire was associated with several indices of positive emotion, but was unrelated to measures of psychopathology. In contrast, persistence was unrelated to PH, except for an inverse association with intensity of positive emotion (open full item for complete abstract)

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

Conventional forms of leadership that are prominent in organizational life today are seemingly antithetical to the landscape of our dynamic, global society. The continued focus on traditional hierarchies with leadership that functions in a “chain of command” manner begs the question of how organizations can reshape routines and relationships to reflect processes of inclusion and collaboration that have the capability of provoking progressive change in organizations. Diversity and Inclusion scholars have identified the newer construct of inclusive leadership as apt to advance climates and cultures of inclusion through social processes that encourage inclusive practices and behaviors. These fluid aspects of inclusive leadership strengthen how organizations foster the engagement of organizational members across groups, functions, and/or levels to stimulate change within work settings. While scholars have ascertained the necessity of expanding our knowledge of the inclusion construct by examining inclusion in more depth, inclusive leadership remains an anomaly as it positions leadership as a collective, social process. The complexities associated with research in this area were instrumental in my choice to pursue an exploratory critical (single) case study with grounded theory for this dissertation research to better understand the social processes associated with inclusive leadership within a contained work environment. This multiple method qualitative study utilized intensive interviewing, field observations, and document reviews to explore inclusive leadership in a K-12 school district. Thematic, content, and dimensional analyses elicited findings associated with human connection, change, and evolving contexts associated with inclusive systems. The overlapping case study and grounded theory findings served as the basis for the development of an inclusive leadership model. The research provided empirical evidence of inclusive leadership's effect on organizational clim (open full item for complete abstract)

Master of Arts, Miami University, 2017, Psychology

The present study sought to validate and examine family savoring as a family socialization process and test its relation to adolescent positive emotion regulation and depression. The first two aims focused on developing an observational account of family savoring and examining whether it is distinct from additional family socialization processes (parental warmth and family expressiveness of positive emotions). The final three aims investigated: i) whether observed family savoring uniquely accounts for variance in adolescent positive emotion regulation, ii) if observed family savoring is inversely related with adolescent depression, and iii) if adolescent positive emotion regulation mediates the relation between observed family savoring and adolescent depression. Eighty-four adolescents (Mage= 14.01, 60.7% girls) their primary female caregiver (Mage = 41.19, 88% mothers) completed a series of questionnaires and engaged in a Plan a Day Trip interaction task. Results validated the observational account of family savoring and demonstrated that it is a related, yet distinct construct from other family socialization processes of positive affect. Furthermore, results revealed that observed maternal savoring in a future oriented task predicted higher adolescent effective positive emotion regulation which, in turn, was related to decreased adolescent depressive symptoms. These findings may inform therapists to encourage families to model appropriate strategies for regulating positive emotions through frequent discussion and attention to positive life events.

Ph.D., Antioch University, 2016, Leadership and Change

Climate change is one of the most significant dynamics of our time. The predominant contributor to climate change is combustion of fossil fuels by humans. This study deepened understanding of organizational leaders' role in enacting one approach to addressing climate change: institutional fossil fuel divestment. The study used a qualitative research design to explore U.S.-based foundation leaders' readiness to pursue fossil fuel divestment by their institutions. The study examined leaders' motivations and actions in pursuing divestment, while simultaneously exercising their fiduciary duty to steward institutional assets. Research questions focused on the divestment behavior change process and the outcomes of divestment on leaders and their organizations. Data collection and analysis were derived from two datasets: 34 foundation divestment commitment statements and semi-structured interviews with 18 foundation leaders. The study highlighted leaders' intentional actions, outside the norms of the philanthropic sector and corporate governance, to enact their values and beliefs through divestment, as a form of socially responsible investing. Leaders' pursuit of divestment constituted mission-aligned positive deviance. Findings suggested that leaders of mission-driven institutions can benefit by taking more direct responsibility for institutional investing in ways that are consistent with institutional mission. Doing so, they may unleash new energy that enhances the well-being of the organization and its members and sparks innovation in the financial services sector. They may also experience higher levels of satisfaction, pride, happiness, and engagement with their organizational roles. This study extends scholarship on divestment, foundations as change agents, leadership and positive deviance, psychology of climate change, pro-environmental behavior (PEB), socially responsible investing, and the Transtheoretical Model of Behavior Change (TTM). Implications fo (open full item for complete abstract)

Master of Science (MS), Ohio University, 2015, Clinical Psychology (Arts and Sciences)

According to psycho-evolutionary models, self-conscious emotions operate as warning signals pertaining to threats to one's social rank, and trigger submissive behavioral responses, which serve to appease group members. Although negative social interactions may provoke fear of rejection, positive social interactions may provoke fear that one will come into conflict with more powerful others who may become threatened by an individual's social gains (e.g., see Weeks, Jakatdar, & Heimberg, 2010). The proposed study examined emotional (e.g., state anxiety) and behavioral (e.g., submissive head orientation) responses to positive attention. To study these effects, participants were randomly assigned to either: (1) experience more positive attention than expected by social norms (i.e., overinclusion) or (2) a control condition (i.e., a reasonably expected amount of positive attention [inclusion]) during a simulated “getting acquainted” task. It was hypothesized that trait levels of social anxiety would interact with experimental condition to predict (1) self-reported state levels of anxiety and (2) submissive displays. Although state anxiety did not vary by experimental condition, the interaction of trait social anxiety and condition predicted submissive head movements. Specifically, highly socially anxious participants tilted their heads leftward during the task (reflecting increased self-conscious emotions), and this relationship was strongest in response to greater positive attention (overinclusion), whereas less socially anxious participants tended to tilt their heads rightward when receiving greater positive attention. It appears that positive social attention can trigger involuntary displays of self-conscious emotions in the absence of explicit reports of anxiety.

Doctor of Philosophy, Case Western Reserve University, 2010, Organizational Behavior

This research is a qualitative and quantitative study based on an archival examination of the relationships between the demonstration of behavioral affect as represented by positive and negative emotional attractors (PEA and NEA) and medical student effectiveness in a clinical diagnostic intervention, namely, the Clinical Skills Exam (CSE). The research question is “Does a medical student's overall positive versus negative emotional tone influence his or her effectiveness in a clinical diagnostic encounter with a standardized patient (SP)?” The study analyzed 116 videotaped CSE encounters between medical students from the Class of 2009 at a medical school in a major mid-western university and SPs. A codebook of themes was developed from a sample of encounters between the Class of 2008 medical students and SPs which was used to code the behavior of the Class of 2009 medical students during the encounters. The associations among PEA and NEA themes and medical student effectiveness as measured by SP scores of the encounters, Faculty scores of notes written by medical students immediately after the encounters, and differential diagnosis scores were determined using moderated multiple regression (MMR) analysis. Medical student MCAT scores were examined as a possible moderator of the associations. MMR analyses found a significant positive association (p<.05) between PEA and the SP scores; near significant positive association (p<.10) between PEA and the Faculty scores of student notes; significant positive association (p<.05) between NEA and the Faculty scores of student notes; and a significant negative association (p<.05) between MCAT scores and the SP scores. A near significant positive moderating effect (p<.10) of MCAT scores on the association between PEA and the Faculty scores of student notes was also found.

Doctor of Philosophy, Case Western Reserve University, 2009, Organizational Behavior

Few research studies have tested hypotheses from an integrated, multilevel theoretical model on coaching intentional change. Drawing on Intentional Change Theory (ICT) and supporting cognitive emotion and social complexity perspectives on positive and negative affect, this dissertation presents the first empirical investigation on the differential impact of inducing positive emotion vs. negative emotion in real time executive coaching sessions. Nineteen coaching recipients were randomly assigned to two coaching conditions. In the PEA condition the coachee's own hopes, strengths, desired future (the Positive Emotional Attractor) was the anchoring framework of a onetime, hour-long coaching session. In the NEA condition the coachee's own perceived improvement needs, weaknesses, present reality (the Negative Emotional Attractor) was the anchoring framework. Two central ICT propositions were tested. Hypothesis1 predicted that PEA participants would show higher levels of positive emotion during appraisal of 360-degree feedback results and discussion of change goals than NEA participants. Hypothesis2 predicted that PEA participants would show lower levels of stress immediately after the coaching session than NEA participants.Regression analyses found that the PEA group showed significantly lower levels of negative emotions (p = .05) and anger (p = .02) and focused more on personal interests and passions (p = .01) as compared to the NEA group. These findings lend preliminary support to the proposition that framing a coaching session around a coachee's PEA elicits positive emotions that broaden a person's momentary thought-action repertoire, whereas framing a session in the NEA elicits negative emotions that narrow this array. Further, demonstrated time series changes in expressed sadness or depression (.01) and future (.04) offer preliminary support to the ICT proposition that recurrent PEA-NEA arousal, and associated interplay of positive and negative emotion, characterize (open full item for complete abstract)