This dissertation uses qualitative research to examine the contextual factors that affect high poverty urban school districts and what successful district leadership looks like in these spaces. Using the lens of Critical Race Theory the stories of six successful urban district leaders is examined to determine the dispositions and characteristics…

This mixed-methods cross-cultural study compares the life narratives of personal identity in people with high functioning Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in Canada and Pakistan using a multifaceted model of personality. Forty-six male participants (half diagnosed with ASD) were recruited from Karachi, Pakistan, and the Greater Toronto Area, Canada.…

Surveys provide a critical source of data for scholars, yet declining response rates are threatening the quality of data being collected. This threat is particularly acute among organizational studies that use key informants--the mean response rate for published studies is 34 percent. This article describes several response enhancing strategies…

Introduction: The concept and study of relevance has been a central subject in information science. Although research in information retrieval has been focused on topical relevance, other kinds of relevance are also important and justify further study. Motivational relevance is typically inferred by criteria such as user satisfaction and success.…

Graduate employability has become a key driver for universities in Australia and the UK. In response to increasing pressure from governments and employer groups, universities have adopted a range of generic skill-based learning outcomes which, when embedded into degree programs, are expected to increase graduate employability and therefore improve…

Background: This paper investigates Australian parents' child care decision-making, including the motivational and influential factors that they attribute to their choice. Research demonstrates that child care decision making is multifaceted, involving a combination of child-related, personal, familial and contextual considerations. Existing…

There are significant boundary problems when comparing spurious with more accurate science. Numerous variables impact on creating a product (like a medication) or service (a special education strategy) that is valid and reliable. Thus, the author has tried to design a paradigm that when one is researching a new area as an example, the individual…

Background: The aim of this study was to examine the characteristics associated with the grieving process among a population with intellectual disability and the influence of particular variables. Materials and Methods: The sample was composed of 380 participants with intellectual disability, on whose behalf 149 professionals completed a 20-item…

The study tested the relationships between personality, grit and grade point averages (GPAs) among university students. The sample was 406 undergraduate students (299 females and 107 males) from three universities in Istanbul. The instruments used in the study were Grit-S and the Big-Five Inventory. The data were analysed through a path analysis.…

Previous work indicates that first impressions of autistic adults are more favorable when neurotypical raters know their clinical diagnosis and have high understanding about autism, suggesting that social experiences of autistic adults are affected by the knowledge and beliefs of the neurotypical individuals they encounter. Here, we examine these…

Studies show educated citizens are more likely to vote in elections but few papers look at the relationship in developing countries and even fewer analyze whether the relationship is causal. I examine whether education increases voter turnout and makes better-informed voters in Indonesia using an exogenous variation in education induced by an…

Even the most effective education reforms and initiatives are unlikely to have a uniform effect on all students. In fact, much like in medicine, some beneficial efforts can have adverse side effects. Yong Zhao takes up this idea as it applies to school choice and voucher programs. When researchers tout the benefits of vouchers, they focus on the…

This study examines the mental health trajectories of future/current undergraduate university students relative to their age-matched community peers from the ages of 15 to 21. It analysed data from the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia survey. The sample comprised 442 students and 1292 peers. Mental health was assessed with the…

There is a demand for more STEM professionals. Early elementary students' conceptions about engineering can influence whether or not they explore STEM career paths and ultimately select an engineering career. This study examined the conceptions elementary students have regarding the work that engineers perform. The research questions were the…

This study examined the relations among family socialization, loneliness, linguistic skills, and reading comprehension in 78 Mandarin-speaking Chinese third graders with a mean age of 8.67 years old. The participants were administered a battery of tasks to assess their non-verbal intelligence, linguistic-skills, word reading, and Chinese reading…