The National University System Repository exists to increase public access to research and other materials created by students and faculty of the affiliate institutions of National University System. Most items in the repository are open access, freely available to everyone.
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Item Qualitative Exploration of the Lived Experiences of Healthcare Workers During the COVID-19 Pandemic Delta Surge(2025-12)This study examined the problem of healthcare worker attrition during the Delta wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in Texas. National surveys indicated that 40% of nurses planned to leave their roles within two years of the pandemic’s onset (Abbassi, 2022; LeClaire et al., 2022), a trend reflected in Texas where 44% of Nurse Aides and 34% of Registered Nurses left their positions in 2022 (Texas Center for Nursing Workforce Studies, 2022). The purpose of this qualitative descriptive study was to explore the lived experiences of healthcare providers in Texas and the factors contributing to healthcare worker attrition between May 2021 and December 2021. Grounded in Rushton’s (2024) moral resilience framework, this study investigated how healthcare workers experienced distress when confronted with ethical dilemmas, systemic failures, and working conditions that conflicted with their moral and professional values. Ten healthcare workers were recruited through snowball sampling and data were analyzed using Braun and Clarke’s (2022) reflexive thematic analysis, resulting in five themes across three research questions. Findings indicated that during the Delta wave, healthcare workers experienced profound moral distress that weakened moral resilience and eroded trust in the healthcare system. Participants cited ethical conflicts, exhaustion, constant change, and lack of organizational support as key contributors to burnout and decisions to leave their roles for the sake of self-preservation. Many reached a breaking point where continued self-sacrifice became unsustainable, prompting a shift toward personal and family well-being and the pursuit of roles offering a more realistic work-life balance. This study offers insights for healthcare institutions, highlighting the need to rebuild moral resilience at the system, team, and individual levels to help mitigate workforce attrition. Findings can inform the development of targeted interventions, including hospital-based mentorship models, leadership transparency practices, and the integration of validated moral resilience scales for future implementation and research.Item EXPLORING THE PHENOMENON OF UNDERREPRESENTATION OF WOMEN IN EXECUTIVE-LEVEL ACADEMIC LEADERSHIP POSITIONS IN HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS(2025-12)The gender gap in executive-level administrative roles in higher education institutions is a persistent issue. While women have constituted the majority of the student body for decades, they continue to be underrepresented in academic administration, including at the leadership ranks. This study focused on exploring the phenomenon of underrepresentation of women in executive-level academic leadership positions in higher education institutions in the Western United States. The purpose of this phenomenological qualitative inquiry was to explore the lived experiences of women on their path to and holding executive-level academic leadership positions above the dean across private, public, and community colleges in the Western United States and shed light on the challenges and barriers they faced and the tools and techniques they used to overcome them. This research study used the interpretive phenomenological paradigm with a feminist perspective. A qualitative research methodology with a phenomenological design was employed as the most suitable approach for the study's purpose and research questions. The target population was women in executive-level academic positions in HEIs. The sample population consisted of women who held executive-level academic leadership positions (president, vice provost, vice president, associate vice president, and assistant vice president) for at least 1 year. Fifteen participants were recruited via email using the purposeful sampling method. The contact information was identified by searching public records. One semi-structured interview was conducted with each participant in a one-on-one setting via Zoom. The recorded interviews served as the primary data collection instrument. The data were sorted into recurring codes and subcodes using NVivo. Findings revealed six recurring themes: (a) gender-related challenges still exist, (b) lack of organizational support presents a systemic challenge, (c) hiring and promotion are still gendered processes, (d) the role of mentors is critical, (e) support networks are an effective tool, and (f) qualities important for success. The implications for practice informed by the findings should be concentrated on creating an inclusive organizational culture and providing conscious support and development to women aspiring to and holding executive leadership positions. Higher education institutions should establish women's support groups and implement women-friendly mentorship and succession programs, as well as adopt inclusive policies that prioritize fair hiring practices, equal opportunities, and work-life balance. Aspiring women executive-level administrative leaders should focus on finding mentors, drawing strength from the community, building networks, and actively engaging in self-development as key components to success on this career track.Item Understanding the Determinants of Wearable Smart Device Adoption: A Quantitative Analysis(2025-11)Wearable smart devices offer opportunities to improve patient care and operational efficiency, yet adoption among healthcare professionals remains uneven. This study investigated psychological, social, and contextual factors influencing adoption, guided by the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT). A quantitative correlational survey of 270 Oregon healthcare professionals measured seven independent variables (Performance Expectancy, Effort Expectancy, Attitude Toward Using Technology, Social Influence, Facilitating Conditions, Self-Efficacy, and Anxiety) against Behavioral Intention. Multiple linear regression analysis, following verification of statistical assumptions, revealed the model explained 48.1% of the variance in adoption intention. Attitude Toward Using Technology and Social Influence emerged as significant positive predictors, while Anxiety was a significant negative predictor. Performance Expectancy, Effort Expectancy, and Self-Efficacy were not significant, and Facilitating Conditions approached significance. These results suggest that emotional readiness and peer influence outweigh technical or usability considerations in shaping adoption decisions. Effective implementation strategies should focus on reducing technology-related anxiety, strengthening professional support networks, and aligning device use with organizational culture. Future research should examine longitudinal adoption patterns and extend the model to include constructs such as trust and ethical considerations to better support sustainable digital health integration.Item The Emotional and Psychological Impact of Technology-Facilitated Intimate Partner Violence on Adut Women(2025-11)This capstone project addresses the escalating threat of technology-facilitated intimate partner violence (TFIPV) by investigating consequences of TFIPV victimization on women. The same digital technologies that enrich modern life are increasingly leveraged by perpetrators of intimate partner violence (IPV) to exert coercive control and inflict harm. This study was guided by the research question: “What are the emotional and psychological consequences of TFIPV on adult women?” The objective was to thoroughly investigate and synthesize current academic literature to deepen professional understanding of this complex phenomenon. A systematic thematic literature review was conducted, involving a critical assessment of methodological rigor across various studies. The literature revealed four critical themes concerning the emotional and psychological experiences of survivors: the impact of perpetrator omnipresence, adverse mental health outcomes, disenfranchised grief and loss, and the complex coping strategies survivors employed to navigate through victimization. These findings underscore the necessity of professional understanding of TFIPV and employing trauma-informed and survivor-led approaches in clinical practice and safety planning. The author suggests utilizing support groups for healing and recommends future quantitative research on mental health symptomology, diverse demographics, and coping strategy factors. This Capstone is offered with the hope of inspiring advocacy and creating a path toward greater recognition and support for those impacted by technology-facilitated violence.Item The Negative Effects of Perceived Scarcity and Strategies to Alleviate Them(2025-12-09)Perceived scarcity has drastic negative effects such as, increased stress, anxiety and lower subjective well-being despite individuals not experiencing actual scarcity. This review will explore the effects of perceived scarcity and its effect on executive function, prosocial behaviour and risk-taking behaviour. It will then look at ways to overcome the negative impact of perceived scarcity. Utilizing Mullainathan and Shafir's scarcity theory as a framework, this review will methodologically filter through recent research articles on how perceived scarcity influences these phenomena based on the aforementioned themes. This review found that perceived scarcity increases cognitive load and leads to cognitive tunneling but does not always lead to worse decision making. It also found that those experiencing perceived scarcity have disproportionate risk-taking tendencies and engage in less prosocial behaviour. Lastly, abstract thinking and focusing on increasing prosocial behaviour are key methods to reducing perceptions of scarcity. These implications demonstrate ways to escape the feelings of scarcity and provide clinical insights to help clinicians aid individuals suffering from perceived scarcity.
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