Team-based management is a popular contemporary method of redesigning jobs in order to more effectively utilize the human potential of employees. The use of such management techniques should result in increased satisfaction and team commitment; however, many research studies have failed to demonstrate increases in affective outcomes on the part of the employee. The research question examined in this study is, "What specific job dimensions and situational factors result in higher levels of satisfaction and team commitment?" The Job Characteristics Model (Hackman & Oldham, 1975) provided a basis for this study. The model was designed for individual contributors and has not been extensively used in team research. As expected it was found that within a team-based environment higher levels of the five core job dimensions of skill variety, task identity, task significance, autonomy, and job feedback were associated with increased satisfaction and team commitment. Organization-based self-esteem was found to mediate the relationship between the five core job dimensions and the affective outcome variables. Contrary to expectations, however, it was found that consultative team members experienced higher levels of satisfaction and commitment than substantive team members. In addition, consultative team members reported higher levels of two core job dimensions, skill variety …

Elder abuse first received national attention in 1980, as the subject of a congressional investigation. Now, 20 years later, establishing successful strategies of identification, subsequent intervention, and prevention of abuse is of paramount importance; but progress toward this goal is hindered by lack of consensus as to the definition of elder abuse, and the use of vague, confusing, and sometimes contradictory terms in its discussion. In this paper, both social research and professional approaches and legal approaches to the definition of elder abuse are surveyed, as are definitions formulated for the National Elder Abuse Incidence Study conducted by the National Center on Elder Abuse. The continuing need for a universal or standard definition is emphasized.

This study examined the relationship between the religious orientation quest and well-being using the 1998 General Social Survey. In addition to the religious orientation quest the extrinsic and intrinsic religious orientations were also investigated. Analysis of the data indicated that there was a slight negative association between quest and general well-being, while also demonstrating a strong positive association between quest and inner peace. These results underscore the supposition that quest is an orientation that is complex and ultimately deserves further attention.

Interview with engineer and Army veteran Mansfield Millington Bascom. The interview includes Bascom's personal experiences about the European Theater during World War II, basic training, action on the Siegfried Line, the Battle of Aachen, individual episodes of close ground combat, German tank concentrations immediately prior to the Ardennes Offensive, being wounded and evacuating from the front, recuperation, and returning to the states.

Interview with dairyman and Marine Corps veteran Billy Drawe. The interview includes Drawe's personal experiences about the Pacific Theater during World War II, enlistment and boot camp, tank training, invading Guam, coming under Japanese mortar fire on Guam, invading Iwo Jima, hauling supplies ashore to the infantry on Iwo Jima, and returning to the states for training in the V-12 Program.

Interview with Harold Salfen, a Army Air Force WWII veteran from O'Fallon, Missouri. Salfen discusses his hometown and family background, his childhood and education, working in St. Louis, attending the University of Missouri, joining the Army Air Force and training, operating a ground radar in the European Theater, liberating Buchenwald Concentration Camp, the end of the war, and returning home. In appendix is a biography/resumé of Salfen's.

This study is an investigation of the perceived attitudinal differences between administrators and faculty toward research and teaching at three Saudi Arabian universities, King Saud University (KSU), King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals (KFUPM), and the Islamic University (IU). The researcher also investigated the effect of several variables, such as rank, university, and academic field on administrators and faculty members' attitudes toward teaching and research. Little Attention has been given to studies that examine the differences between faculty and administrators with regard to their attitudes toward the priorities of teaching and research in Saudi Arabian institutions. Also, little research has been conducted regarding the effects of rank and academic field on faculty attitudes in Saudi Arabian institutions. The author used a mail survey and collected 518 useable responses from a total of 710 questionnaires distributed. Factor analysis, MANCOVA, MANOVA, and ANOVA were the statistical methods employed in data analysis. Five attitudes were identified as a result of factor analysis: (a) attitudes toward teaching; (b) attitudes toward research; (c) mission; (d) promotion; and (e) interest. Results indicated that there was a significant difference between faculty and administrators regarding teaching and resea4rch. Administrators showed stronger attitudes toward teaching than faculty at …

Recording of César Amiguet Puig's Black Jukebox's tromblon. This work was made for electronics and a variety of concrete sounds.

The word "necrophilia" brings a particular definition readily to mind – that of an act of sexual intercourse with a corpse, probably a female corpse at that. But the definition of the word did not always have this connotation; quite literally the word means "love of the dead," or "a morbid attraction to death." An examination of nineteenth-century literature reveals a gradual change in relationships between the living and the dead, culminating in the sexualized representation of corpses at the close of the century. The works examined for necrophilic content are: Mary Wollstonecraft’s Mary, A Fiction, Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights, and Bram Stoker’s Dracula and The Jewel of Seven Stars.

This project constitutes an instructional unit for honors biology that involves the use of science in the field of criminal investigation and forensics. Before beginning the unit, the learners should have mastered basic laboratory skills, including use of the microscope. They should also have an understanding of the basic structure and function of DNA and its role in heredity and protein synthesis. The standard time frame is 24 days with 70-minute periods, but can be easily adjusted to meet classroom needs. Several instructional strategies enhance student learning and make science fun. The unit is inquiry-driven and activity-based. Students are surprised by the crime, gather and analyze evidence, and work towards proposing an explanation. This real world problem involves the use of cooperative learning and a variety of assessment techniques.

Early antebellum defenders of slavery acknowledged that slavery created problems for southern society. They contended, however, that slave society was better and more natural than other forms of social organization. Thomas R. Dew, William Harper, and James Henry Hammond each expressed a social philosophy in which slavery had a crucial role in preserving social order. They argued from the basis of social organicism, the idea that society should have an elite that controlled the masses. For all three men, slavery represented a system of order that helped balance the dangers of democracy. Significantly, however, all three men recognized that the slave system was not perfect, and despite their defense of slavery, argued that it was a human institution and therefore corruptible.

Recording of Natasha Barrett's Utility of space. This work is an exploration of spatial musical structure and uses recited text from the "Tao Te Ching" as its driving force. This piece was commissioned by NICEM with support from Norsk Komponistfond. The composer has created two versions of this work, one for stereo and one for Ambisonics.

Condom trace evidence must not be overlooked in sexual assault cases; understanding the chemical and physical characteristics of condoms is imperative if condoms are to be useful evidence. Previous research shows that condom identification is possible, but it is equally important to evaluate durability of condom residues versus time. Using FT-IR, this study examined vaginal swabs from subjects who self-sampled at intervals for up to 72 hours after having intercourse with a condom. This study investigated whether age and the stage of the menstrual cycle affected the durability of residues in the vagina over time. This study revealed that condoms containing nonoxynol-9, silicone-based lubricants, and particulates provide valuable information for identification, and that nonoxynol-9 specifically withstands the vaginal environment for up to 72 hours. Additionally, age and menstrual cycle both appeared to have an effect on the durability of residues although larger sample size is desirable.

Recording of Andy Birtwistle's Steel II. This work celebrates and mourns the failure of the Modernist dream represented by poet, Geoffrey Bridson's, 1937 broadcast: "Steel: An Industrial Symphony". It also captures the sound of an optimistic, heroic Modernist in the 21st century and how the new century would sound in contrast to the last.

Gunther Schuller is credited with coining the term Third Stream, meaning compositions where twentieth-century art music forms exist simultaneously with jazz. Furthermore, Schuller specifically states in the liner notes to the debut recording of Eine Kleine Posaunenmusik "The work is not a Third Stream piece." Yet the concerto alludes to jazz through a multitude of slide glissandi and plunger mute effects, Solotone mute passages, specific references to the jazz trombone styles of Tommy Dorsey and Lawrence Brown, musical quoting or indirect reference, and the use of a walking bass line in Movement V, Finale. What makes one piece Third Stream and another simply a modern composition with jazz implications? Is Third Stream primarily a compositional designation or a performance practice stipulation? How does a celebrated trombone soloist inspire and collaborate with a distinguished composer in the creation of a major work? The somewhat conspicuous title, Eine Kleine Posaunenmusik, seems to point towards Mozart's famous string serenade Eine Kleine Nachtmusik. What connection to Mozart, if any, does Schuller's title suggest? All of these questions are elucidated in this study through careful investigation and research of Gunther Schuller's Eine Kleine Posaunenmusik. New interviews with John Swallow and Gunther Schuller are included.

Forty-two commercially collected dumpsters from Denton’s Municipal Solid Waste Stream were emptied, sorted and weighed to characterize the material types and make preliminary recycling policy recommendations. The general composition of Denton’s solid waste stream was not significantly different from the composition of the nation’s solid waste stream. Fifty-eight percent of the observed waste stream was recyclable. Paper made up the largest portion of recyclable materials and the "grocery" source category had more paper than any of the other five categories. Based on these findings, an incrementally aggressive approach is recommended to reduce certain types of wastes observed in the waste stream. This would include a Pay-As-You-Throw Program followed by an Intermediate Processing Center that can be converted to a Materials Recovery Facility.

Preparing quality teachers is a continuing issue and concern in discussions about the future of schools in many countries. This study described and compared the stated goals and perceived outcomes of teacher preparation programs at the College of Basic Education (CBE) in Kuwait. This information will assist educational decision makers in Kuwait to align teacher preparation at the CBE and decide what is needed to make the programs more effective. The study assessed the perceptions of knowledge, skills, and attitudes of student teachers, new teachers, and instructors toward the existing program at the CBE in Kuwait. The discussion of teacher preparation in Kuwait was used to set a cultural and historical context. The literature reviewed recommendations from the United States to develop a framework of five common standards for analyzing the teacher preparation curriculum: content knowledge, instruction, diversity, professional development, and field work. In addition, research and evaluation of teacher education programs were reviewed for perceptions of student teachers and new teachers about their preparation and for methodology. Document analysis techniques were used with current documents from four major teacher preparation programs in the CBE. Five standards from U.S. recommendations were also found in the CBE curriculum. However, the analysis …

The graying of America will have implications for all areas of society, especially the delivery of long-term care services. Many older individuals are aging in place, a phenomenon that is apparent at Dickinson Place, a church-sponsored low-income housing property for the elderly in Dallas, Texas, where the average age of residents has risen from 65 in the early 1970s to 78 in 1999. This change has prompted the board of directors to review the facility's mission, its physical plant, and the services it provides for strategic planning purposes, to ensure that Dickinson Place can continue to meet the needs of its residents both now and in the future.

This study applied components of Csikszentmhalyi’s flow theory to the Web-based Training (WBT) environment. Specifically considered were how the equivalence of a learner’s perceived challenges and skills for an activity can effectively predict the emergence of flow in the WBT environment. Also considered was the ability of flow dimensions — defined in flow theory — to predict and model the occurrence of flow during WBT activities. Over a period of about one hour, students (n=43) from a southwestern US university engaged in WBT learning activities pertaining to on-line coursework or self-study. A special Web-based software installed on the students’ computers sporadically reminded them to complete a series of on-line questionnaires which collected data on their flow experience, learning activities, and flow dimensions. The data collection method employed by this study is effectively an electronic, Web-enabled version of, and functionally equivalent to, the Experience Sampling Method (ESM) used in other flow studies. This study employed questionnaires used in prior flow studies to collect data regarding respondents’ flow experiences and flow dimensions, and developed an on-line instrument to collect data on students’ learning experiences based on instructional events found in computer-based lessons from Gagné. Significant findings (p<.05) from this study suggest that, …

Although humor is a generally accepted part of everyday life for humans, its existence, importance, and positive influence on older persons are often underestimated. The purposes of this study are to determine whether humor is a normal experience for nursing home residents, enhancing their activities of daily living, and whether it plays a role in contributing to their psychological well-being. The study includes a discussion of research on humor, particularly as it relates to the elderly and the aging process; analysis and comparisons based on interviews with residents on the subject of humor and review of their psychological state as evaluated by the MDS 2.0 nursing facility assessment; individual case studies, and anecdotes illustrating the beneficial contributions humor brings to the lives of nursing home residents.

Si nanoparticles are new prospective optoelectronic materials. Unlike bulk Si cry-stals, Si nanoparticles display intriguing room-temperature photoluminescence. A major challenge in the fabrication of Si nanoparticles is the control of their size distribution. The rare-earth element Er has unique photo emission properties, including low pumping power, and a temperature independent, sharp spectrum. The emission wavelength matches the transmission window of optical fibers used in the telecommunications industry. Therefore, the study of Er-doped Si nanoparticles may have practical significance. The goals of the research described in this dissertation are to investigate vapor phase pyrolysis methods and to characterize the microstructure and associated defects, particles size distributions and photoluminescence efficiencies of doped and undoped Si nanoparticles using analytical transmission electron microscopy, high resolution electron microscopy, and optical spectroscopy. Er-doped and undoped Si nanoparticles were synthesized via vapor-phase pyrolysis of disilane at Texas Christian University. To achieve monodisperse size distributions, a process with fast nucleation and slow growth was employed. Disilane was diluted to 0.48% with helium. A horizontal pyrolysis oven was maintained at a temperature of 1000 °C. The oven length was varied from 1.5 cm to 6.0 cm to investigate the influence of oven length on the properties of the nanoparticles. …

Widespread concern about the rapid growth of Medicare spending in recent years initiated a legislative response that resulted in the Balanced Budget Act of 1997. The effects of the BBA were far reaching and created shock waves throughout the health care industry. This study presents background information on the history of the Medicare home health benefit, enumerates specific provisions and goals of the BBA of 1997, examines how the BBA has changed the delivery of Medicare home health services, and proposes survival strategies for home health care providers.

This dissertation examines the role of "acceptable" feminine violence in Restoration and eighteenth-century drama and fiction. Scenes such as Lady Davers's physical assault on Pamela in Samuel Richardson's Pamela (1740) have understandably troubled recent scholars of gender and literature. But critics, for the most part, have been more inclined to discuss women as victims of violence than as agents of violence. I argue that women in the Restoration and eighteenth century often used violence in order to maintain social boundaries, particularly sexual and economic ones, and that writers of the period drew upon this tradition of acceptable feminine violence in order to create the figure of the violent woman as a necessary agent of social control. One such figure is Violenta, the heroine of Delarivier Manley's novella The Wife's Resentment (1720), who murders and dismembers her bigamous husband. At her trial, Violenta is condemned to death "notwithstanding the Pity of the People" and "the Intercession of the Ladies," who believe that although the "unexampled Cruelty [Violenta] committed afterwards on the dead Body" was excessive, the murder itself is not inexcusable given her husband's bigamy. My research draws upon diverse archival materials, such as conduct manuals, criminal biographies, and legal records, …

The term "feminist," when applied to Wilkie Collins, implies he was concerned with rectifying the oppression of women in domestic life as well as with promoting equal rights between the sexes. This study explores Collins the "feminist" by analyzing his portrayals of women, particularly his most powerful feminine creations: his villainesses. Although this focus is somewhat limited, it allows for a detailed analysis of the development of Collins's attitudes towards powerful women from the beginning to the end of his career. It examines the relationship between Collins's developing moral attitudes and social beliefs, on the one hand, and the ideas of Victorian feminists such as Josephine Butler and feminist sympathizers such as John Stuart Mill, on the other. This interaction, while never overt, reveals the ambivalence and complexity of Collins's "feminist" attitudes. Of the five novels in this study, Antonina (1850), Basil (1852), Armadale (1866), Jezebel's Daughter (1880), and The Legacy of Cain (1889), only one was published at the zenith of Collins's career in the 1860s. Each of the villainesses in these novels, their ideas and experiences, are crucial to understanding Collins's "feminist" impulses. Looking at them as powerful women who detest domestic oppression, one becomes aware that Collins …