Communication Studies Dissertations and Theses: Recent submissions
Now showing items 221-240 of 275
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Millennials' Expectation of Trust for Supervisors and Coworkers in the Workplace
(University of Kansas, 2011-08-31)Trust has been studied as a significant factor to facilitate organizational communication and outcomes for both individuals and organizations. The purpose of this study was to explore trust in organizational relationships, ... -
Ladies and liturgy: An analysis of the Roman Catholic Womenpriest Movement
(University of Kansas, 2011-07-27)In 2002 a group of Roman Catholic women were ordained by a Catholic bishop in the Sacrament of Holy Orders. This action was a direct violation of Catholic law and the women were excommunicated. Rather than repent or convert ... -
Examining Mentor Enactment Theory from the Mentor's Perspective: Creating Cost and Benefit Scales to Predict Maintenance Usage
(University of Kansas, 2011-04-27)In order to advance theory concerning the mentor's perspective as well as theory concerning how communication is used to maintain mentoring relationships, this research created relationship-focused scales to measure the ... -
Negotiating romantic and sexual relationships: Patterns and meanings of mediated interaction
(University of Kansas, 2011-04-26)Everyday life is characterized by multimodality (Walther & Parks, 2002), but little research has examined how media use is incorporated into romantic/sexual relationships. The purpose of this dissertation was to better ... -
Anticipatory Organizational Socialization: Graduating College Students' Messages, Information-Seeking, Career Conceptualizations, and Expectations
(University of Kansas, 2010-08-31)This qualitative study explored how traditional, graduating college students at a Midwestern public university described their anticipatory socialization processes regarding post- collegiate, organizational work. Specifically, ... -
Fragmentation and Social Polarization: The Character of Political Attitude Extremism in America.
(University of Kansas, 2011-04-27)In spite of growing concerns about political extremism, no adequate measure exists to empirically test the character of political attitudes. The purpose of this study was to develop a measurement of political attitude ... -
The Economic Cost of Instructional Coaching
(University of Kansas, 2010-12-17)School-based instructional coaching is one of the fastest growing approaches to professional development today; however, little is known about the impact on student achievement or about the cost (Darling-Hammond et al., ... -
SALIENCE OVER SUSTAINABILITY: PRESIDENTIAL ENVIRONMENTAL RHETORIC FROM FDR TO BARACK OBAMA
(University of Kansas, 2010-12-03)The first seventeen months of the Obama administration, despite the promise of change, largely continued the American tradition of conservative environmentalism. Instead of arguing for environmental policy with environmental ... -
Upright Citizens of the Digital Age: Podcasting and Popular Culture in an Alternative Comedy Scene
(University of Kansas, 2010-08-12)In this thesis I look at how one of our newest communication mediums, the podcast, is being used by a group of Los Angeles-based comedians loosely assembled under the "alternative comedy" label. Through the lens of critical ... -
Exploring Weight Identity: An Examination of the Cognitive, Affective, and Behavioral Components of Weight
(University of Kansas, 2011-04-20)The current study sought to expand social identity theory (Tajfel, 1978; Tajfel & Turner, 1979) to include the concept of weight. Previous research has shown that individuals have social identities associated with age ... -
Hispanic Professors In U.S. Higher Education Institutions: Examining Discourses of Identity Negotiation, Discrimination and Prejudice, and Workplace Experiences
(University of Kansas, 2011-04-27)Despite all the efforts universities and colleges put into facilitating a more diverse student and faculty body, the scarcity of Hispanics in academia and the struggles they encounter once they join a department remains a ... -
Sacrosanct Values, Controversial Artistic Expression, and Today's Global Society: A Dramatistic Analysis of the Muhammad Cartoon Controversy
(University of Kansas, 2009-01-25)This study is an exploration into how the Muhammad Cartoon Controversy unfolded at three critical thresholds of the conflict's development vis-à-vis a comprehensive examination of the scope of the phenomenon. First, this ... -
The Gendered Shackles of the Would-Be "Madame President": A Rhetorical Analysis of Hillary Clinton's Campaign Communication during the 2008 Democratic Presidential Primary
(University of Kansas, 2010-08-31)This study analyzes Hillary Rodham Clinton's key speeches and debate performances during the 2008 Democrat presidential primary. Specifically, a rhetorical criticism of Clinton's discourse, utilizing Bitzer's "rhetorical ... -
Communication and the Challenges of Sojourner Readjustment: An Exploratory Study
(University of Kansas, 2010-05-19)Sojourners, people who live and work overseas and then return home, face challenges. One challenge is finding someone to listen to their stories about living overseas and their readjustment. Readjustment literature explores ... -
Rhetorical Interactions of Social Movement Organizations in a Movement: A Study of the Intersex Rights Advocacy Movement
(University of Kansas, 2010-05-17)While rhetorical scholars have long studied social movements, few studies investigate the rhetorical interactions of organizations working within a single movement. In this dissertation, I explore the rhetoric deployed by ... -
Balancing the Scale of Rationality: The Public Memory of the Boston Tea Party and the Transformation of Dissent
(University of Kansas, 2010-06-10)This study examines the public memory of the Boston Tea Party as it has been appropriated for political purposes throughout history. First, I examine the Boston Tea Party to show that the rhetoric surrounding this protest ... -
Social Categorization of Op Ed Discourse in Harry Potter
(University of Kansas, 2010-04-22)This study investigated the process of social categorization present in the public discourse surrounding the Harry Potter phenomenon as a piece of convergent media. The study's research questions asked which social categories ... -
The Effects of the Four-Step Problem-Solving Model on Algebra I Students' Mathematical Achievement and Opinions
(University of Kansas, 2010-07-29)This study investigated the effects of experiences with a specific problem-solving model on students' ability to solve multi-step word problems and students' beliefs about problem solving. Algebra I students completed a ... -
"The Work of Generations": Tyranny and Democracy in the 2006 National Security Strategy
(University of Kansas, 2010-05-17)The 2006 National Security Strategy (NSS) of the George W. Bush administration has been neglected by rhetorical and policy scholars alike. In this study, I advance a rhetorical criticism of NSS 2006 and associated rhetoric ... -
Technology, Political Debates, and Civic Engagement
(University of Kansas, 2008-08-18)The 2007 CNN-YouTube presidential candidate debates provide a unique opportunity for the American populace to become engaged in national political discussion through the submission of video questions to YouTube for inclusion ...