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 A Qualitative Case Study on Examining Transformational Leadership Behaviors and Employee Commitment(2026-03)Transformational leaders are an essential asset for organizational change because transformational leaders have been linked to successful business innovativeness. However, employees influence the achievement levels, as organizational changes are significant in the peculiarities of their work routines. The problem addressed in this study was that resistance to change and decreased employee commitment are caused by a lack of transformational leadership when implementing change. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore how transformational leadership could improve employee commitment and organizational change behaviors among healthcare administrative professionals working in healthcare organizations in North Carolina. The theoretical framework that guided this research study was transformational leadership theory, which distinguishes leaders who have strong motivational relationships with their subordinates and encourage them to accomplish desired results driven by innovations. The research methodology involved a qualitative case study design, with data collected through semi structured interviews with 18 participants from various healthcare organizations. The study identified seven themes and 13 subthemes from the three research questions. The three research questions translated the problem into specific queries to help identify issues related to employee commitment and resistance to change. The research questions were RQ1: How do transformational leadership behaviors increase employee commitment among healthcare administrative professionals? RQ2: How does transformational change improve employee commitment among healthcare administrative professionals? RQ3: What are ways that healthcare leaders can impact the change process among healthcare administrative employees? The three themes that were determined to increase employee commitment were communication, collaboration in decision-making process, and motivation. The two themes that were identified to improve employee commitment were leaders who serve as a role model during the change process and employee involvement in the change process. The final two themes identified for healthcare leaders to drive the change process were inspiring employees throughout the change process and preparing employees for change. The findings of this study suggested recommendations for practice. A recommendation for practice is for leaders to apply transformational leadership theory while implementing organizational changes. Another recommendation for leaders is to follow each step of Kurt Lewin’s Change model to understand organizational change behavior. A recommendation for future research is to examine how communication impacts the change process within healthcare organizations. A strong positive correlation aligns with the existing literature, which showed that transformational leaders drive the success of organizational change and commitment by communicating a clear vision of organizational goals. There was also a strong correlation between transformational leadership and individual performance and innovative behavior, which influences employee commitment to change.Item Black College Students’ Experiences with Microaggressions and Colorblind Racism: A Qualitative Descriptive Phenomenological Study(2026-02)The problem addressed by the study is Black college students experience microaggressions and colorblind racism at Historically and Predominantly White institutions, resulting in declines in academics, ethnic identities, and psychosocial health. Research in the study focused on the lived experiences of Black students with microaggressions and colorblind racism at Historically and Predominantly White Institutions. The purpose of this qualitative descriptive phenomenology study was to understand Black college students’ descriptions of experiences with microaggressions and colorblind racism related to academics, ethnic identities, and psychosocial health at HWPIs. Key findings included Black students’ descriptions of environmental microaggressions, systemic discrimination in administrative policies, cultural bias in the classroom, obligatory diversity or tokenism, and pressure to conform to Whiteness. While there are many implications for Black students being exposed to sustained microaggressions and colorblind racism at historically and predominantly white institutions, academic, ethnic identity development, and psychosocial implications are crucial areas for higher education institutions' administrations to address to ensure positive experiences, degree completion, and success for Black college students.Item A Causal-Comparative Study of Security Vulnerabilities in AI-Generated versus Human-Generated Source Code from GitHub(2026-02)In this causal-comparative quantitative study, security vulnerabilities of AI-generated code versus human-generated code were analyzed in publicly available software projects. With this growing usage of large language models to create source code, there is still uncertainty on whether AI-generated code presents a higher security risk compared to human-written code. This is a problem that affects software developers, security practitioners, and organizational leaders charged with the responsibility of secure software engineering and technology governing. The theory that informed the study was the Intellectual Capital theory and informed by structured security risk management principles. A code analysis tool tested source code of over 134 publicly available GitHub repositories based on three programming languages. Three research questions were answered by using descriptive statistics, t-tests of independent samples, and chi-square to determine the severity and distribution of security vulnerabilities depending on their code of origin (AI or Human). The outcomes showed that there is a statistically significant difference in the average severity scores, as the human-generated code had a higher average severity score than the AI-generated code. The results indicate that AI-generated code is not more severe than human-generated code yet both need thorough security verification. The research conducted adds new empirical data to the growing body of literature on AI-assisted software development and highlights the necessity of disciplined risk management, secure software engineering practices, and governance irrespective of the source of the code’s origin. Future studies need to increase repository samples, consider other programming languages and include complementary security analysis methods.Item The Consequences of Infidelity and the Effects That Ensue Among Betrayed Partners: A Qualitative Phenomenological Study(2025-10)Abstract Infidelity in marriages or committed relationships often results in significant psychological distress for the betrayed partner (Shrout & Weigel, 2020). This distress is frequently regarded as a form of interpersonal trauma (Laaser, 2017; Lonergan et al., 2021; Roos et al., 2019; Shrout & Weigel, 2020). The problem addressed in this study was whether the experience of infidelity impacted the betrayed partners’ future relationships (Warach & Josephs, 2021) resulting in an attachment injury. Utilizing a qualitative phenomenological approach, this research explored the symptoms reported by betrayed partners and examined how these symptoms affected attachment in the betrayed partner’s future relationships. Research question 1(RQ1): Did the attachment injury impact the decision to pursue future relationships upon dissolving the relationship with the unfaithful partner? Research question 2 (RQ2): Did the attachment injury result in ongoing distress if the betrayed partner chose to remain in a relationship with the unfaithful partner? All participants in this research reported responses consistent with attachment injuries. The findings revealed that such injuries significantly impacted the participants’ willingness and ability to engage in future romantic relationships. Common manifestations included issues related to fear, abandonment, insecurity, withdraw, betrayal, and trust. Emotional difficulties such as substance use, distractibility, anxiety, sleep disturbances, and depression were also reported. This research revealed that regardless of whether the betrayed partner chose to remain with their unfaithful partner or dissolve the relationship, significant distress and attachment injuries were present.Item Instructor Perceptions of Ancillary Curricula in Cannabis Studies: A Qualitative Case Study(2026-08)As the legal cannabis industry grows, colleges remain unprepared to train the workforce needed to sustain it. This qualitative case study examined instructors’ perceptions of the structure and workforce alignment of cannabis ancillary education programs in post-secondary institutions. The study addressed a widening gap between institutional offerings and industry realities, where unclear program design and limited support continue to disadvantage students, particularly those impacted by the collateral consequences of the War on Drugs. The study evaluated whether existing cannabis programs prepare students for real-world participation and how faculty navigate instructional design within decentralized or unsupported environments. Grounded in adult learning theory, the research also explored how instructors adapt content, provide relevance, and compensate for the lack of formal curricular models. Twelve instructors from post-secondary institutions across multiple states participated in semi-structured interviews. Using numerous rounds of coding and member checking, the analysis revealed three themes: fragmented program structures influence legitimacy and outcomes; limited experiential learning weakens student preparation; and narrow access pathways exclude the very learners cannabis policy reform claims to serve. Participants described building courses from scratch, relying on personal experience to fill institutional gaps. These findings confirm that cannabis education remains underdeveloped, leaving students uncertain, disconnected from workforce opportunities, and unsupported by systems meant to help them succeed. This study offers institutions a roadmap to shift from siloed course offerings to structured, intentional programs that embed applied learning and repair historical harm. The findings point to new possibilities for coordinated cannabis education that builds equity, fosters economic mobility, and reflects the communities it aims to serve.
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