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We have all experienced grief. The death of a person or pet, the death of a relationship or end of a job, and even disappointments carry with them experiences of grief. Whenever someone or something dies, we try to make meaning of the situation to find some closure and move toward a new normal. Meaning making occurs as we tell our stories, share our experiences, and sort through memories. Qualitative research is much the same. In qualitative research one might hear, see, or experience a story, then sort through the details, looking for ways to explain and bring meaning and understanding to it. This autoethnographic dissertation is part of that meaning making journey for me. My husband, Robert, died in December of 2017 after many years of being an alcoholic. Using my Facebook posts, journals, photos, and field notes, I looked at my grief story and my psychological capital (PsyCap.) I also used the Psychological Capital Questionnaire as a data source. In this qualitative longitudinal study, I explored what our grief stories tell us about our PsyCap, what we can learn about PsyCap and our experience of the stages of grief, and how the malleability of PsyCap is an interplay of its four component resource parts (hope, efficacy, resiliency, and optimism.) PsyCap, as a composite construct of four component resources, and grief, have not to my knowledge, been studied in this way. This dissertation opens doors to new and compelling ways of looking at both PsyCap and grief.

The impact of social media on everyday life is undeniable. Social media has transcended its initial purpose of connectivity and branched into other sociocultural aspects. Educators must create a rich and active learning environment where students can actively engage with their educational curriculum. This study used a mixed methods approach to investigate the influence that learning management systems (LMS) and microblogging (social media) have on key elements of distance education design. These elements include social presence, sense of community, and overall user interface design. Students’ perceptions of these elements were collected from students enrolled in a graduate course during summer and fall 2020 by completing an adapted survey instrument built from previous scholarship. Data was analyzed quantitatively using non-parametric statistical testing. Qualitatively, instructors of record were asked a series of semi-structured interview questions that were analyzed using In Vivo, Values, and Pattern coding.

We have all experienced grief. The death of a person or pet, the death of a relationship or end of a job, and even disappointments carry with them experiences of grief. Whenever someone or something dies, we try to make meaning of the situation to find some closure and move toward a new normal. Meaning making occurs as we tell our stories, share our experiences, and sort through memories. Qualitative research is much the same. In qualitative research one might hear, see, or experience a story, then sort through the details, looking for ways to explain and bring meaning and understanding to it. This autoethnographic dissertation is part of that meaning making journey for me. My husband, Robert, died in December of 2017 after many years of being an alcoholic. Using my Facebook posts, journals, photos, and field notes, I looked at my grief story and my psychological capital (PsyCap.) I also used the Psychological Capital Questionnaire as a data source. In this qualitative longitudinal study, I explored what our grief stories tell us about our PsyCap, what we can learn about PsyCap and our experience of the stages of grief, and how the malleability of PsyCap is an interplay of its four component resource parts (hope, efficacy, resiliency, and optimism.) PsyCap, as a composite construct of four component resources, and grief, have not to my knowledge, been studied in this way. This dissertation opens doors to new and compelling ways of looking at both PsyCap and grief.

The impact of social media on everyday life is undeniable. Social media has transcended its initial purpose of connectivity and branched into other sociocultural aspects. Educators must create a rich and active learning environment where students can actively engage with their educational curriculum. This study used a mixed methods approach to investigate the influence that learning management systems (LMS) and microblogging (social media) have on key elements of distance education design. These elements include social presence, sense of community, and overall user interface design. Students’ perceptions of these elements were collected from students enrolled in a graduate course during summer and fall 2020 by completing an adapted survey instrument built from previous scholarship. Data was analyzed quantitatively using non-parametric statistical testing. Qualitatively, instructors of record were asked a series of semi-structured interview questions that were analyzed using In Vivo, Values, and Pattern coding.

Social entrepreneurship has been identified as a solution to some of the world’s most pressing problems, including health, education, and environmental issues. Despite the rise in literature about social entrepreneurship, there is still a lack of understanding how place-based social entrepreneurship is being conceived and experienced by practitioners. Therefore, this study uses a phenomenographic approach to understand what social entrepreneurship means to change agents in New Mexico, a place characterized by social and economic challenges, as well as an abundance of natural and cultural resources. The findings revealed five distinct categories of description for social entrepreneurship including: Category 1. No Definition; Category 2. Variety of Structures; Category 3a. Mission and Values Oriented Initiatives; Category 3b. Addressing Needs and Problems; and Category 4. Building Sustainable Communities. Findings also revealed place-based insights for social entrepreneurship in New Mexico. Implications for research, teaching, and practitioners, and future research directions are discussed.

Social entrepreneurship has been identified as a solution to some of the world’s most pressing problems, including health, education, and environmental issues. Despite the rise in literature about social entrepreneurship, there is still a lack of understanding how place-based social entrepreneurship is being conceived and experienced by practitioners. Therefore, this study uses a phenomenographic approach to understand what social entrepreneurship means to change agents in New Mexico, a place characterized by social and economic challenges, as well as an abundance of natural and cultural resources. The findings revealed five distinct categories of description for social entrepreneurship including: Category 1. No Definition; Category 2. Variety of Structures; Category 3a. Mission and Values Oriented Initiatives; Category 3b. Addressing Needs and Problems; and Category 4. Building Sustainable Communities. Findings also revealed place-based insights for social entrepreneurship in New Mexico. Implications for research, teaching, and practitioners, and future research directions are discussed.

Older learners have been studied thoroughly, except for those born before 1946, preceding the post-war "population bulge" (Carlson, 2008; Laditka, Fischer, Laditka, & Segal, 2004; Verstynen, 2011). Most such studies define "older" as over 25 or over 40, and fail to separate the subject group from those who came later. Defining a group by numerical age is problematic because it changes every year and soon omits the group's defining life experiences (Pilcher, 1994), which for this group include the Great Depression, World War II, the polio epidemic, and life before television. To address that gap this critical ethnography explored the experience of Pre-Boomers at UNM. Through qualitative analysis of data collected from volunteer participants in semi-structured interviews and a focus group, supplemented with the author's own observations as both pre-boomer and researcher, and contextual literature, an understanding of students born before 1946 and of their perceptions about the campus culture emerged. In 2017 a total of 212 individual Pre-Boomers were enrolled at all loads and levels at UNM. Of those, 23 were enrolled for degrees, some are enjoying retirement, and some are employed or self-employed or preparing for a career change to keep working. The study participants are active in the campus community and contribute their "living history" experience to classroom discussions, enriching traditional students' learning experience. They described little significant age discrimination although some reported occasionally feeling invisible or irrelevant. Future studies should examine why other Pre-Boomers have not enrolled and whether factors that discouraged them should be addressed.

Older learners have been studied thoroughly, except for those born before 1946, preceding the post-war "population bulge" (Carlson, 2008; Laditka, Fischer, Laditka, & Segal, 2004; Verstynen, 2011). Most such studies define "older" as over 25 or over 40, and fail to separate the subject group from those who came later. Defining a group by numerical age is problematic because it changes every year and soon omits the group's defining life experiences (Pilcher, 1994), which for this group include the Great Depression, World War II, the polio epidemic, and life before television. To address that gap this critical ethnography explored the experience of Pre-Boomers at UNM. Through qualitative analysis of data collected from volunteer participants in semi-structured interviews and a focus group, supplemented with the author's own observations as both pre-boomer and researcher, and contextual literature, an understanding of students born before 1946 and of their perceptions about the campus culture emerged. In 2017 a total of 212 individual Pre-Boomers were enrolled at all loads and levels at UNM. Of those, 23 were enrolled for degrees, some are enjoying retirement, and some are employed or self-employed or preparing for a career change to keep working. The study participants are active in the campus community and contribute their "living history" experience to classroom discussions, enriching traditional students' learning experience. They described little significant age discrimination although some reported occasionally feeling invisible or irrelevant. Future studies should examine why other Pre-Boomers have not enrolled and whether factors that discouraged them should be addressed.

This was a descriptive study which examined the psychological components involved in the completion of a Ph.D. journey. I used a phenomenological approach to investigate doctoral program experiences (n=23), seeking to identify strategies, skills, and experiences commonly shared by successful Ph.D. students through a lens of Transformational Learning, Psychological Capital (PsyCap), and Emotional Intelligence (EI). Assessment measures included interviews, questionnaires, and the administration of both the Emotional Intelligence Appraisal (EIA) and Psychological Capital Questionnaires (PCQ). Findings revealed the presence of Grit, adequate support systems, balance, positive self-talk, and a moderately high level of PsyCap. A correlational analysis indicated a moderately strong positive correlation (r = 0.62) between EI and PsyCap. Finally, suggestions were provided for graduate departments to help support doctoral success.

This was a descriptive study which examined the psychological components involved in the completion of a Ph.D. journey. I used a phenomenological approach to investigate doctoral program experiences (n=23), seeking to identify strategies, skills, and experiences commonly shared by successful Ph.D. students through a lens of Transformational Learning, Psychological Capital (PsyCap), and Emotional Intelligence (EI). Assessment measures included interviews, questionnaires, and the administration of both the Emotional Intelligence Appraisal (EIA) and Psychological Capital Questionnaires (PCQ). Findings revealed the presence of Grit, adequate support systems, balance, positive self-talk, and a moderately high level of PsyCap. A correlational analysis indicated a moderately strong positive correlation (r = 0.62) between EI and PsyCap. Finally, suggestions were provided for graduate departments to help support doctoral success.