Browsing by Subject "Goals"
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Item Creating Austin : making visible the goals and norms of cultural planning(2010-05) Ogusky, Adam Daniel; Dooling, Sarah; Oden, MichaelThe practice of cultural planning proceeds largely in the absence of discussion regarding its purpose, norms and goals, either in academic literature or among its practitioners. This paper seeks to uncover the norms and goals of cultural planning, as understood by cultural planners working in Austin, TX, through a series of interviews with these individuals. Interviews also brought to light cultural planners’ understandings of the function of art in communities. Ultimately, little connection was found between cultural planners’ understandings of the function of art in communities and the norms and goals of cultural planning. It is argued herein that these two conversations must be closely linked and that cultural planner’s understandings of what art can and should do in communities must form the basis for the goals and norms of cultural planning practice.Item Development and application of a framework for observing problem solving by teachers and students in music(2013-08) Roesler, Rebecca Ann; Duke, Robert A.The development of problem solving capabilities is an essential part of intellectual independence, yet the nature of problem solving in music instruction has not been investigated systematically. The purposes of the current study were to describe the process of problem solving in the context of music learning and to elucidate the relationship between teacher behavior and learners' active participation in solving musical and technical problems. I analyzed approximately 43 hours of private and small-group lessons taught by five internationally-renowned artist-teachers in music. I also analyzed in greater detail 161 rehearsal frames (intervals of instructional time devoted to definable proximal goals) excerpted from recorded lessons by describing the behaviors of teachers and students that led to productive learning outcomes. The process of problem solving was found to comprise five components: establish goals, evaluate performance, conceive and consider options, generalize and apply principles, and decide and act. In assessing the extent of teachers' and students' involvement in problem-solving, I found that teachers promoted change-effecting behaviors in learners by instigating the pursuit of a goal, and then prompting learners to assume responsibility for one or more of the subsequent problem-solving components. In this way these teachers not only brought about change in learners' performance, but also structured ways for learners to practice bringing about change in their own performance.Item Goals as content-specific standards for evaluation of romantic commitment(2013-08) Tennant, Patrick Solis; Gleason, Marci Elizabeth JoyThis thesis examines the association between the role that an individual’s partner and relationship alternatives play in his or her goal pursuits and the individual’s commitment to his or her relationship. Individual’s preference for others that aid in the achievement of his or her goals has been theoretically and empirically established (Fitzsimons & Shah, 2008). This thesis extends that work by examining the relation between multiple interpersonal dimensions of an individual’s goal pursuits and his or her romantic commitment. Rusbult’s (1980) investment model was used as a framework to develop a questionnaire that examined the degree to which an individual believed his or her partner facilitated, impeded, shared, and valued his or her goals, as well as whether the individual could accomplish the goal without his or her partner or if anyone other than his or her partner could help him or her to achieve the goal. It was hypothesized that individuals who believe that their partner facilitates and shares their goals, and that their alternative partners do not facilitate their goals, will be more committed to their relationship. These hypotheses were tested with a survey that asked participants to list three of their personal goals and rate each of them on the six interpersonal goal dimensions, as well as complete measures of relationship satisfaction, investment, alternatives, and commitment. Participants were recruited and responded to the survey through the Amazon.com Mechanical Turk marketplace. The final sample included 475 individuals that were involved in a romantic relationship at the time survey. Two structural equation models were constructed to analyze the data. Primary findings show significant associations between several of the interpersonal goal dimensions and the constructs of the investment model. Results are addressed in the context of the relevant literature, with relationship evaluation serving as the suggested mechanism. Implications and future directions are then discussed.Item Seeking movable metrics : the influence of partner instrumentality on relationship evaluations(2015-12) Tennant, Patrick Solis; Gleason, Marci Elizabeth Joy; Benner, Aprile D.; Fitzsimons, Grainne M.; Loving, Timothy J.; Neff, LisaThe influence of partner instrumentality for a single goal on the evaluation of the relationship constructs of satisfaction, investment size, quality of alternatives, and commitment was explored in two studies. The review of the literature frames these studies within the relative lack of information on evaluations in ongoing relationships and the importance of specific metrics for both theoretical and applied relationship science. Both studies utilized longitudinal data from couples (in Study 1) or individuals (Study 2) currently involved in a dating relationship to test the validity of a theoretical argument on the importance of partner instrumentality for a single goal and, more broadly, specific metrics. Additionally, the motivation to assess or evaluate the relationship was tested as a moderator of that influence. Results indicated partial support for the hypothesized positions, such that partner instrumentality for a single goal was positively related to evaluations of satisfaction with and commitment to the relationship over time, but was not related to evaluations of investment in or alternatives to the relationship. Furthermore, the use of transactional structural equation models in Study 2 allowed for the examination of the influence of a change in partner instrumentality on relationship evaluations, which confirmed that such changes influenced changes in satisfaction with and commitment to the relationship over the same time period. Certain findings were qualified by moderating effects of the motivation to assess the relationship (only in Study 2) and of gender (in both Study 1 and Study 2). Meaningful patterns of findings are discussed prior to detailing limitations and the need for future studies. Finally, conclusions and implications are reviewed.Item The role of working memory, self-regulation, and mindfulness in multitasking performance(2016-05) McGinn, Bridget Ann; Schallert, Diane L.; Butler, AndrewThis report lays out the ways in which multitasking has been defined and the component pieces of the process that can be improved. Changes to self-regulation, working memory, and heuristic thinking may lead to increased multitasking performance. Although working memory training has been varied in its results, the centrality of working memory capacity to task switching remains clear. Goal setting and goal monitoring might function to lower the cognitive load required for performing multiple interleaved tasks by helping to maintain conscious focus on the desired outcome. Additionally, mindfulness training has been shown to improve many of the cognitive functions involved in multitasking, and therefore it remains an area ripe for future research.Item When things go wrong at work: expressions of organizational dissent as interpersonal influence(Texas A&M University, 2007-09-17) Garner, Johny ThomasThis dissertation examines the types of messages used for organizational dissent, and argues for connections between dissent messages, choice of audience and influence goals. The organizational dissent literature has explored the situations that may trigger dissent and the variables that lead a dissenter to approach various audiences, but few studies have examined dissent messages. Additionally, this line of research has tended to neglect coworkers as a possible audience for dissent and has been characterized as atheoretical (Waldron, 1999). Much of the research on interpersonal influence has examined influence in romantic relationships, but influence may play an important role in workplace relationships as well, suggesting that interpersonal influence is an appropriate theoretical perspective from which to examine dissent. This dissertation examines the messages, audiences, and goals associated with dissent using a two-part study with interviews and surveys. Messages differed according to audience, but, surprisingly, not according to the quality of relationship between the dissenter and the audience. Dissent expressed to supervisors is more likely to involve message types such as assertiveness, rational arguments, solution presentation, humor, ingratiation, sanctions, threatening resignation, while dissent expressed to coworkers is more likely to involve message types such as displaying emotion or coalitions. The primary goal of expressing emotion and the secondary goal of identity were most prevalent in terms of considerations as study participants expressed dissent. The analyses indicate that the goal of expressing emotion was significantly related to messages of displaying emotion, goals of providing guidance or changing opinion were significantly more associated with solution presentation than with asking for information, the goal of gaining assistance was significantly more associated with coalitions, and the goal of relational resource was significantly less associated with messages threatening resignation. These results suggest that interpersonal influence offers a fruitful perspective from which to view dissent messages, and more research is needed to examine the goals associated with workplace influence as the goals that motivate interpersonal interactions differ from the goals that motivate organizational dissent. Additionally, these results indicate that the position of a person is more important than a relationship in determining how a person will express dissent.