America's fire departments are busier than ever, responding to both emergency and non-emergency calls that have dramatically increased over the last several decades (National Fire Protection Association [NFPA], 2021b). This dissertation in practice analyzed the on-duty training model of a mid-sized fire department in the northwestern United…

Virtual Reality and education have been evolving for many years, moving from in-person classroom and online sessions to utilizing Virtual reality for training. Virtual reality allows students to actively engage with training rather than being passive in a classroom. The virtual world has been moving forward as a new tool to assist with…

The increased concern of declining STEM candidates could negatively impact the U.S. economy (Kelic & Zagnoel, 2009; Maltese & Tai, 2010). Previous studies suggest that the gap between the supply of STEM students in higher education and workface demand is not reflected merely in the number of STEM graduates but instead in the number of…

The purpose of this study was to conduct a program evaluation of ACME's worksite weight loss initiative and collect evidence relative to the efficacy of the program. An anonymous online survey was administered to participants of the weight loss initiative. The survey was designed to gather information relative to the research questions, which…

Organizations can incur extensive costs to fund training typically available to employees free of charge. However, some employees do not participate. The body of research reviewed in adult education focused on relevant studies and models of contributing factors for participation in academia, the workplace, and the community. No studies were found…

A pragmatic sequential mixed methods research methodology was used to examine commercial airline pilots' (N =156) types and frequencies of informal learning activities, perceptions of workplace informal learning, and opinions on how organizations should support workplace informal learning outside of the formal learning environment. This study…

The purpose of this qualitative research study is two-fold: (1) to narrate the realities and perspectives of adult students' learning experiences in a General Education Development (GED) preparation program in a Mid-western urban city; and (2) to document the thinking of the former director of adult education at the state level to understand the…

Accidents and fatalities at USA amusement parks are rare, yet when they do occur, they can injure, maim, and even kill. This dissertation sheds light on how three family-owned amusement parks learned and improved as organizations from their own and others' failure experience. Using a multiple case study design, 18 participants were interviewed.…

The purpose of this dissertation research study was to investigate engineers' perceptions of diversity and the workplace learning environment surrounding diversity education efforts in engineering occupations. The study made use of a mixed methods methodology and was theoretically framed using a critical feminist adult education lens and…

This dissertation study chronicles the creation of a computer-based, asynchronously delivered diversity training course for a state agency. The course format enabled efficient delivery of a mandatory curriculum to the Massachusetts Department of State Police workforce. However, the asynchronous format posed a challenge to achieving the learning…

Within the past decade, the introduction of computerized medical records into the business and practice of health care has created a need for effective training. The implementation of computerized medical records into a health care organization has been often associated with increased costs and decreased productivity. Although existing human…

A large majority of adults with intellectual disabilities are unemployed. Unemployment of adults with intellectual disabilities is a complex multidimensional issue. Some barriers to employment of individuals with intellectual disabilities are the lack of job experience and skills training. In recent years, video-based interventions, such as video…

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to identify future trends and barriers that will either facilitate or impede the narrowing of the digital skills divide among older adults during the next 10 years. Methodology: To address the research questions, this study used a modified version of the Delphi process using a panel of experts who…

The purpose of the study was to compare the practices used by HRD professionals to evaluate web-based and classroom-based training programs within seven Korean companies. This study used four components of evaluation to examine how HRD professionals evaluated web-based and classroom-based training programs in their organizations and compared the…