This three article mixed methods dissertation is titled "Three Studies on the Leadership Behaviors of Academic Deans in Higher Education." Each article is based on a sample of 51 academic deans from a three state region in the Southeastern United States. In the first study, the results of the statistical analyses reinforce the gender…

Social and public health scientists are increasingly interested in applying system dynamics theory to improve understanding and to harness the forces of change within complex, multilevel systems that affect community intervention implementation, effects, and sustainability. Building a system dynamics model based on ethnographic case study has the…

Undergraduates' use of social networking sites has been well documented in both the popular press and in academic publications. Research suggests that students spend, on average, 30 minutes a day engaged in a predictable routine of social networking. Correspondingly, on the first author's previous campus, she had frequently observed many of the…

The migration from traditional classrooms to online learning environments is in full effect. In the midst of these changes, a new approach to learning analytics needs to be considered. Learning analytics refers to the process of collecting and studying usage data in order to make instructional decisions that will support student success. In…

The explosion of social networks and the growing concern over privacy in the digital age--both in the United States and Europe--have provided an opportunity to introduce students to the legal risks of using social media in the workplace. This article builds on the authors' classroom experiences and provides social media scenarios and projects that…

Background: People with severe intellectual disability have limited communication skills, small social networks, and may experience isolation. Little is known about how interactions occur with social network members and the role of social support. Method: An adult with a severe intellectual disability was observed in her daily environments. Her…

Purpose: Scholars have focused their attention on systemic reform as a way to support instructional coherence. These efforts are often layered on to existing social relationships between school staff that are rarely taken into account when enacting reform. Social network theory posits that the structure of social relationships may influence the…

Computer-based social networking has become ubiquitous on college and university campuses. However, little is known about how this form of networking reflects social integration which is considered to be an integral component of student persistence. To address this topic, a random sample of 375 entering freshman were used to evaluate the…

This qualitative study examines use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) such as computers, cell phones, text messaging, and social networking sites, for campus activism. Participants were 22 student leaders representing eight campuses from 2000 to 2008. The focus of this study was two-fold: first, to describe the form and function…

As Web 2.0 emerging technologies are gaining momentum in higher education, educators as well as students are finding new ways to integrate them for teaching and learning. Technologies such as blogs, wikis and multimedia-sharing utilities have been used to teach various subject matters. This trend not only creates new opportunities for us to afford…

Communication, collaboration and community development are processes that contribute to student satisfaction and learning in online courses. This paper describes a study that investigated how campus and distance graduate students in a library science program communicated with one another outside the official boundaries of their courses. We…

This article explores the potential offered by complexity theories for understanding language learners' sense of self and attempts to show how the self might usefully be conceived of as a complex dynamic system. Rather than presenting empirical findings, the article discusses existent research on the self and aims at outlining a conceptual…

As Facebook has come to dominate the social networking site arena, more libraries have created their own library pages on Facebook to create library awareness and to function as a marketing tool. This paper examines reported versus actual use of Facebook in libraries to identify discrepancies between intended goals and actual use. The results of a…

In this article, the author points out that there are many reasons why self-segregation takes place. For example: People with motorcycle interests may choose to hang out with other bikers. A group of bikers may have a common interest but can be as diverse as a doctor that is a biker or a janitor that is into biking. Formally educated people may…

Social capital refers to the attributes and qualities of family, social and community networks that facilitate cooperation between individuals and communities. The quality of these networks and the extent to which individuals are engaged with them are believed to have an impact on the educational and social development of children and young…