graduate Research projects
Master Theses
The Effects of Knowledge and Integrative Complexity on Acceptance of Wilderness Designation
Student: Sean McLaughlin, M.S.
Faculty Advisor: Dr. Joshua Carroll
Dichotomies often develop when the concept of federal Wilderness designation arises (e.g., is Wilderness designation perceived as an ecological and societal necessity, or as a waste of natural resources?). Using a pre-post design, this study investigated the effects of knowledge, and a cognitive measurement tool known as integrative complexity, on acceptance of federally designated Wilderness areas. Specifically, the study examined the relationship between increased knowledge about Wilderness designation and integrative complexity, and their effects on acceptability of management actions such as designation of Wilderness areas.
"The Non-Profit Human Service Sector: Understanding an Organization's Capacity to Innovate"
Student: Rebecca Foss, M.S.
Faculty Advisor: Dr. Bob Barcelona
This study examined how nonprofit human service organizations (NHSO) respond to environmental change and the role of innovation in that process. A total of nine practitioners, managers, and board members participated in the study in order to gain a preliminary understanding of how this sample viewed their organization's capacity for innovation and responsiveness to its environment. The semi-structured interviews provided a forum for NHSO staff to describe environmental changes faced by their organization, define innovation in the nonprofit sector, and describe the role that the innovation process plays in enhancing the sustainability of their organization.
A Study of Organizational Culture in Campus Recreation: A Competing Values Approach
Student: Scott Butch, M.S.
Faculty Advisor: Dr. Bob Barcelona
The purpose of this study was to assess organizational culture in campus recreation departments and its links with organizational effectiveness. The competing values theory and subsequent framework was used to determine if there were significant differences in the organizational cultures of campus recreation departments based upon specified dependent variables including their administrative unit, their institutional size, and their institutional control. The results indicated there were no significant patterns or classifications in the organizational culture maps based on the dependent variables. There was one significant difference found in the discriminant analysis in public universities administered under athletics versus student affairs and a follow up study examining this relationship is advised.
An Analysis of the Impact of Service Quality on Satisfaction, Value, and Future Intentions within Campus Recreation Using Performance-Based Measures
Student: Mathew Ott, M.S.
Faculty Advisor: Dr. Bob Barcelona
The problem of the study was to examine the relationships between service quality, customer satisfaction, value and future intentions within campus recreation using only the performance section of the Centre for Environmental and Recreation Management-Customer Service Quality (CERM-CSQ) instrument. A total of 248 usable surveys were collected from student users of campus recreation services at a university in the Northeastern region of the United States. Results of the study indicated that of the three service quality dimensions measured (core, personnel, peripheral) core was the only dimension exhibiting a significant relationship between satisfaction and value.