North American Universities Research Articles

Bibliometrics in operations research and management science: a university analysis

Many universities around the World have made important contributions in the field of operations research and management science. This article presents the most productive and influential universities between 1991 and 2015. For doing so, we use the Web of Science database in order to search for the information which is usually regarded as the most relevant for scientific research. The results show the country of origin of the leading universities being mainly from North America and Asia and especially from USA and China. The Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) of France is the most productive university while the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) of USA is the most influential one. The temporal evolution shows that USA is trailing its dominancy while China progressing quickly. The evaluation also reveals that Asian universities outperform North American universities during the last 5 years.

Work-Family Enrichment Training: Promoting Transferability of Resources across Life Domains

The goal of this work was to examine intentional resource transfer across work and family roles. This was accomplished by developing and evaluating a work-to-family enrichment training program based on Greenhaus and Powell’s (2006) enrichment theory, interpersonal capitalization theory (e.g., Ilies, Keeney, & Scott, 2011) and social cognitive theory (Bandura, 1986). The program was administered to 163 administrative employees at a large North American university using a pre-post experimental design. Consistent with hypotheses, findings indicated that, compared to a control training, the enrichment training increased development-based enrichment from work to family (the beneficial transfer of skills, knowledge and values). The effect of the training on both development-based and affect-based enrichment (the transfer of positive affect) was mediated by enrichment self-efficacy. Further, the indirect effects of the training on enrichment were moderated by initial social-emotional work resources, such that the training was more effective for individuals initially perceiving a relatively low level of such resources. Finally, as hypothesized, enrichment self-efficacy and enrichment experiences sequentially mediated the effect of the training on job satisfaction. This work advances theory by demonstrating that human agency can facilitate resource transfer across roles. It advances practice by devising and testing a work-family enrichment training program that can serve as a tool for organizations to increase positive synergy between work and non-work and enhance employee well-being.

RETHINKING L2 MOTIVATION RESEARCH

AbstractThe present study proposed and tested a revision of the self-guides outlined in the L2 motivational self system (Dörnyei, 2005, 2009). Covering the previous conceptualization and measurement issues, ideal L2 self and ought-to L2 self were bifurcated by own and other standpoints, and reoperationalized based on the fundamental tenets of self-discrepancy theory (Higgins, 1987) and regulatory focus theory (Higgins, 1997). Confirmatory factor analysis supported the fitness of the model and its superiority over three alternative models based on data collected from 257 international students learning English as a second language at a major North American university. Multiple regression results showed that ought L2 self/own was the strongest predictor of motivated behavior. Ideal L2 self/own, ought L2 self/other, and ideal L2 self/other were the next predictors in order of strength. Furthermore, ideal L2 self/own predicted an eager strategic inclination in L2 behavior, whereas ought L2 self/own predicted a vigilant strategic inclination, supporting the core principle of the regulatory focus theory that individuals with different regulatory orientations pursue their goals in qualitatively different manners.

Modeling Students' Perceptions of Simulation-Based Learning Using the Technology Acceptance Model

BackgroundTechnology acceptance research seeks to account for user adoption behaviors, to predict behavioral intentions and use of technologies. MethodsThis mixed-methods study tested a model of technology acceptance in the context of simulation-based learning, and reports on student perceptions of the learning environment in three cases from a Northeastern North American college nursing program using an extended technology acceptance survey instrument and simulation feedback form. ResultsThe model reproduced core and extended factors of perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, attitude, behavioral intention, subjective norm, fidelity, and self-efficacy but not facilitating conditions. ConclusionsThe findings suggest that in a classroom environment meant to reproduce clinical situations as accurately as possible, students perceive fidelity as influencing their acceptance of SBL but not facilitating conditions. Thus, the extended model explained an important amount of variance in attitudes (R2 = 62.7%) as well as behavioral intentions (R2 = 68.3%) toward a clinically-oriented learning environment for practicing clinical skills, deepening conceptual understanding, applying knowledge, and learning teamwork and communication skills.

LINKS BETWEEN MATERNAL AND ADOLESCENTS’ CANNABIS USE AMONG THE INUIT OF NUNAVIK

Abstract BACKGROUND Inuit from Nunavik, Northern Quebec, show some of the highest prevalence of cannabis use in the world, particularly for youths. Based on the ecological system theory, family (the more proximal unit to adolescents) is susceptible to influence their behaviors the most. OBJECTIVES The aim of this study was to examine, among the Inuit population from Nunavik, the association between maternal use of cannabis and the subsequent use of this substance by their children while adolescents. DESIGN/METHODS This study was based on longitudinal data from the Nunavik Child Development Study (endorsed by community and public health stakeholders; approved by ethic research boards from 2 North American Universities). We use data from two follow-ups, between 2005 and 2010 (T1: time 1 – children aged between 8–15 years-old), and between 2012 and 2016 (T2: time 2 – adolescents aged 16–21 years-old). Structured interviews were used to assess cannabis use and other concomitant variables among mothers at T1, and for adolescents at T2. Our final sample included 184 mother-adolescent dyads. Hypotheses that exposure to an increased frequency of maternal cannabis use at the end of childhood will be associated with 1) earlier initiation of cannabis during adolescence, and 2) will increase the frequency of cannabis use by youths, were tested with Cox regression analyses and ordinal regressions, taking into account socioeconomic status (T1), gender, and student status of adolescents(T2). RESULTS About seven out of ten Inuit adolescent participants reported having used cannabis during the previous year of T2, and about 45% of users consumed daily. Among the adolescents who answered the initiation age question, 60% had used it before reaching 14 years. Associations between mother’s frequency of cannabis use at T1 and 1) adolescents’ initiation age to cannabis and 2) adolescents’ frequency of cannabis use were not statistically significant. Higher socioeconomic status and student status were associated with lower risk of cannabis use by youths. CONCLUSION Among a group of adolescents where cannabis use is highly prevalent, we were unable to highlight the impact from maternal substance use on subsequent behavior of their children while adolescents. Yet, key determinants already known to influence cannabis use among southern populations seem to be also relevant to the Inuit population from Nunavik. Common Aboriginal wisdom that it takes a village to raise a child seems to apply to cannabis use as well.

A Collaborative Approach to Retention Between Academic Affairs and Student Affairs: The Two Consecutive Absence Policy

Retention of college students has been increasingly important for institutions of higher education as costs rise and incoming students lack the necessary preparation for the academic rigour they face. Addressing this issue is not simply the domain of academic affairs or student affairs. To be successful, a school’s retention efforts need to be collaborative between the two divisions. The “Two Consecutive Absence Policy,” described in this article, is an example from a North American university of a unique and successful collaborative effort between academic affairs and student affairs to reach out to undergraduates experiencing academic difficulty in order to increase the campus’ retention numbers. The program, briefly outlined here, can easily be replicated at other colleges or universities.

Anatomy of STEM teaching in North American universities.

Lecture is prominent, but practices vary

Paraphrasing to transform knowledge in advanced graduate student writing

Based on one's comprehension and interpretation of the original text, paraphrasing goes beyond a faithful account of the source text. Differing from previous research which has mostly focused on students' re-use of the source text, this study explores whether and how students paraphrase to express their own views. We examined 192 paraphrases identified by 18 advanced graduate students in their academic papers across disciplines at a North American university. Analyses of students' writing, their sources, and their own accounts present an exposition of writers' thinking and processes of paraphrasing featuring various types of linguistic adaptations and content recontextualization. The study suggests that paraphrasing by these advanced graduate students is a process of smoothly integrating the source information into the new text by syntactically restructuring, interpreting and recounting only the source text with relevance to the new text. During the process, the writer sometimes paraphrases to incorporate information in the immediate source text with that gained from prior readings.

Chinese graduate students paraphrasing in English and Chinese contexts

Paraphrasing is based on one's comprehension and interpretation of the source text (e.g., Yamada, 2003). It is not clear, however, how English as a Second/Foreign Language (ESL/EFL) students paraphrase to project their individual views in their research papers when writing in English or their home language. This study compares the Chinese and English paraphrasing of 17 graduate students who speak Chinese as their first language. The participants (12 from a Chinese university and 5 from a North American university) identified 117 paraphrases (66 Chinese and 51 English) from their research papers and explained how they paraphrased each example. The Chinese paraphrases were found to contain significantly more textual borrowing from the matching source text than the English paraphrases. The former were not all acknowledged but the latter were. There were also a total of 80 mentions of content recontextualization (55 Chinese and 25 English). These mentions featured selecting information in the English paraphrases (24, 96%), compared with using the citer's own interpretations (17, 31%) and additional ideas (22, 40%) in the Chinese paraphrases. Implications of these cross-cultural differences are discussed.

Technology, attributions, and emotions in post-secondary education: An application of Weiner’s attribution theory to academic computing problems

As technology becomes increasingly integrated with education, research on the relationships between students’ computing-related emotions and motivation following technological difficulties is critical to improving learning experiences. Following from Weiner’s (2010) attribution theory of achievement motivation, the present research examined relationships between causal attributions and emotions concerning academic computing difficulties in two studies. Study samples consisted of North American university students enrolled in both traditional and online universities (total N = 559) who responded to either hypothetical scenarios or experimental manipulations involving technological challenges experienced in academic settings. Findings from Study 1 showed stable and external attributions to be emotionally maladaptive (more helplessness, boredom, guilt), particularly in response to unexpected computing problems. Additionally, Study 2 found stable attributions for unexpected problems to predict more anxiety for traditional students, with both external and personally controllable attributions for minor problems proving emotionally beneficial for students in online degree programs (more hope, less anxiety). Overall, hypothesized negative effects of stable attributions were observed across both studies, with mixed results for personally controllable attributions and unanticipated emotional benefits of external attributions for academic computing problems warranting further study.

15. What are we reading? —an investigation of the genres of texts being studied by the Queen’s Undergraduate English Department"

The 2006 report by Dr. Frances Henry entitled “Understanding the Experiences of Visible Minority and Aboriginal Faculty Members at Queen’s University” stated that “Queen's, like most other North American universities, is still struggling to overcome deeply entrenched cultural beliefs, values, norms and structures that preserve the continued dominance of Whiteness and maleness” (Henry, 157), and called on all departments to diversify their curriculum. Today, the Queen’s Academic plan expressly states that “Adequate representation of Indigenous issues in curricula across campus needs to be a major objective“(29). With the addition of Mohawk and Inuktitut classes and the Indigenous studies program, Queen’s as a whole is taking action to meet this objective. As a student of English myself, I was interested in examining the state of the curriculum in Undergraduate English Department. In particular, I was interested in exploring whether texts by North American Indigenous authors are being included in the curriculum, and what space is created for these texts within the English Department. My researchexamined the 1,289 texts ordered for Undergraduate English classes between the Fall Semester of 2009 and the Winter Semester of 2013. These texts represent up an institution-specific canon, a snapshot of what the Queen’s English Department—intentionally or unintentionally—have construed as important to the field. My goal was to determine whether the “Eurocentric curriculum” (146) that the Henry report underscored persists within the English department, or whether academic spaces are being created that include Indigenous Literature.

Digital governance: Research design of a comprehensive research program to analyse ICT driven transformation

The paper presents the theoretical foundations and research design of a comprehensive research program initiated at the National University of Public Service for exploring the complex dynamics of digital transformation of governance and government. In alignment with the Danube Region Strategy the initiative is based on two main pillars: a) concepts of territorial and cross-border governance especially exploring the process from whole-of-government to social participation, and b) information management focusing on ICT ecosystems and project management. Based on these two pillars three drivers of digital transformation are defined which are very tightly intertwined in the research design. The first is what we collectively address as e-services including legaltechnical-organizational solutions, citizens´ acceptance and the complex notion of accessibility with trust. The second driver in our model is the appearance of “smartness” in governance both centrally and locally – spanning from knowledge management to smart communities in symbiosis with smart technologies. Finally, the third set of drivers for digital transition is the capability for innovation and change including management and organizations, social impacts of industry 4.0., and a modified Balanced Scorecard system for administration. The paper presents the key research questions in each pillar and maps how institutional collaborations (amongst 7 Hungarian, 3 European and 2 North-American universities) address them methodologically.

Investigating the impact of blended learning on academic performance in a first semester college physics course

This study investigates the impact of blended learning—which combines face-to-face classroom instruction with online-mediated instruction—in the context of College d’enseignement general et professionnel (CEGEP) pre-university science students. Although blended learning is a relatively recent addition to the college science classroom, studies have demonstrated that blended learning can create a more positive and active learning environment, and enhance both the quality of instruction and student learning outcomes in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education. Today, blended learning approaches are increasingly adopted in classrooms across North American colleges and universities, yet blended learning has received limited attention in the context of CEGEP pre-university programs. The present study sought to address this gap by examining the effectiveness of instruction in the mechanics course in the physics pre-university program at an English CEGEP, comparing the blended learning approach and the traditional lecture-based instruction. The results suggest that the blended learning approach leads to more conceptual change, acquisition of more skills, and higher performance. The findings of this research provide valuable implications and encouragement for future implementations of blended learning in CEGEPs.

Conformity in a 'Canned Course': The Suppression of Authentic Dialogue in Graded Online Discussion Forums

The recent shift to online learning environments in higher education has elicited complex issues pertaining to student demographics, course structure and content, and the instructor’s role. In this paper, I explore tensions that I have experienced as an online teaching assistant of an upper-level undergraduate arts course in a mid-size North American university. I am required to adhere to a predetermined course rubric in marking students’ assignments, and all instances of students’ engagement in the course are assessed according to this rubric. I therefore uncomfortably embody a primarily evaluative role. I argue that the assessment of students’ online discussion forum, especially, impacts their ability to engage in authentic dialogue, forcing them to adhere to hegemonic academic standards of structure and content in their responses.

Coming out in the classroom: still an occupational hazard?

Em 2002, Russ, Simonds e Hunt relataram que revelar a orientação sexual na sala de aula era perigoso para professores homossexuais nos Estados Unidos. Replicamos este estudo na mesma universidade norte-americana de porte médio com uma amostra de 222 estudantes universitários (71,7% brancos, 53,2% mulheres, idade média = 19,66) que ouviram uma palestra de um professor visitante. Esses alunos não sabiam que manipulamos experimentalmente a orientação sexual deste professor. Em uma seção, o professor mencionou três vezes de passagem o nome de seu parceiro do mesmo sexo (condição gay). Em outra seção do mesmo curso, o mesmo professor mencionou três vezes o nome de seu parceiro de outro sexo (condição heterossexual). Imediatamente após a palestra, os alunos avaliaram o professor visitante. As análises sobre classificações de credibilidade do professor mostraram que os alunos avaliaram consistentemente o professor na condição heterossexual mais positivamente do que o mesmo professor na condição homossexual, o que reflete os resultados de Russ et al. publicados 15 anos antes. As análises sobre os temas derivados dos comentários escritos mostraram resultados mistos. Os alunos perceberam o professor gay negativamente com um estilo de “fala pobre”, mas também perceberam que ele era mais “honesto e aberto” do que o professor heterossexual. As implicações são discutidas.

Desafios na formação de profissionais em Administração no Brasil

Apesar do crescimento no número de cursos de administração ao longo dos últimos anos, pesquisas mostram que o Brasil possui um dos piores indicadores de desempenho organizacional do mundo; e a formação profissional dos gestores nacionais pode ser apontada como uma das causas desse baixo rendimento, em especial, se considerar a relevância da gestão para o desempenho das empresas. Neste cenário, esta pesquisa teve como objetivo analisar o currículo de formação em administração de universidades do Brasil, bem como as competências trabalhadas pelos cursos e compará-las com a formação de escolas dos EUA. Para tal, foi realizado um estudo de caráter tanto qualitativo como quantitativo, assim, levantando-se dados de cursos de administração do Brasil e dos EUA. Para assegurar a autenticidade dos resultados, foi realizada triangulação de dados de diferentes fontes. Os resultados revelaram que, conquanto o modelo pedagógico americano tenha servido de base para a formatação dos cursos nacionais na década de 1940, as escolas brasileiras parecem não ter acompanhando o seu ritmo de mudança, promovendo uma reprodução técnica e instrumental desassociada da formação de pensadores críticos e criativos. Ademais, adaptações à realidade socioeconômica do contexto local parecem não ter sido avaliadas profundamente desde a criação do currículo mínimo em 1993.

Aggiornamento on the Hill of Janus: The American College in Rome, 1955–1979 by Stephen M. DiGiovanni

Reviewed by: Aggiornamento on the Hill of Janus: The American College in Rome, 1955–1979 by Stephen M. DiGiovanni Gregory J. Fairbanks Aggiornamento on the Hill of Janus: The American College in Rome, 1955–1979. By Stephen M. DiGiovanni. Downers Grove, IL: Midwest Theological Forum, 2016. 694 pp. $35.00. Stephen DiGiovanni's history of the Pontifical North American College (NAC) from 1955 to 1979 is his second volume. The first was the Second Founder: Bishop Martin J. O'Connor and the Pontifical North American College (2013). That book covers the preceding period, including the building of a new seminary campus, which opened on the Janiculum Hill in 1953. Seminaries at this time were semi-monastic with a disciplined daily schedule. Attire was the cassock, which was worn in and outside the college. The emphasis was on structure and obedience. There were bells to summon seminarians for each activity, and much of the training was provided by older seminarians who took on the rolls of mentors and enforcers of the all-important [End Page 91] Seminary Rule. Summers would be at the NAC's summer villa on the outskirts of Rome, the Villa Santa Caterina in Castel Gandolfo. Summers included classes and a regular Mass and devotion schedule, although the pace was relaxed from the academic year (students rose at 6:00 a.m. vs 5:30 a.m. during the academic year). As the new seminary opened there was one spiritual director for all the students. This soon became two, and although personal spiritual directors were not yet the norm, changes were leading that way. Confessors were available daily and students began to meet with the spiritual directors 2 to 3 times per semester. Education was typical Roman style, large aulae (classrooms), classes in Latin five days a week (off Thursdays and Sundays). The college had a system of repetitors to assist students and give English language class synopses for study. The NAC had ample opportunities for activities, including a large sports field and a theater for showing films and performing shows. New seminary traditions grew up with these facilities, including the still-current annual "Spaghetti Bowl," a new-men versus upperclassmen football game held each Thanksgiving weekend. Pope John XXIII announced in 1959 his intention to call a synod of the Diocese of Rome, and an Ecumenical Council, and to revise the Code of Canon Law. The Roman synod highlighted the challenges in Rome, which had experienced large growth in population and was in desperate need of new parishes to fulfill the needs of the diocese. The Roman synod was enthusiastically followed by the seminarians who witnessed poverty in Rome. Seminarians and student priests were men of their age and wanted to serve. The issue at stake was the conflict between the desire of the seminarians to engage quickly in ministry and the need to develop patterns of prayer, discipline, and study for their ministry. Impatience with waiting was a sign of the idealistic age and would characterize the struggles during these years. In 1964 the eighteen-year term of the rector, Bishop O'Connor, ended and he was succeeded by Bishop Francis Reh. Those years (1964–1968) were turbulent. The liturgical reforms, including the interpretation of the spirit behind them, pitted the haste of many students in contrast to the slow approach the college preferred. The introduction of the vernacular at Mass was welcomed by seminarians, although many wanted the transition to be faster. Since the new liturgical books were years away, students began inserting unauthorized translations and musical settings into the Mass. Despite concelebrated Masses becoming more common, student priests frequently preferred to attend Mass rather than concelebrate. The [End Page 92] theology of concelebration was not yet fleshed out and questions about participation in Mass, and the identity of a priest, were debated. The seminarians were excited to be part of the new theology and closely followed the Council. The infamous "Black Week" of November, 1964 hammered home to the seminarians that authority figures might not be trusted.1 Morale declined at the seminary and small acts of rebellion began to take place. During Reh's years the students grew more independent and self-reliant...

INSTRUCCIÓN ENTRE PARES COMO METODOLOGÍA A UTILIZAR EN ENFERMERÍA

This paper presents the results of a review of the literature about the implementation of the Peer Instruction interactive teaching methodology (PI). The aim of this search is to answer the following questions: In what teaching contexts has Peer Instruction (PI) been investigated? What impacts has IP produced on student learning? What are the results of the implementation of the IP in relation to the attitudes of the students and professors in front of the use of the methodology? The search was performed in Pubmed, Web of Science, EBSCO and Google Scholar databases. The results of the literature indicate that a large part of the publications were conducted in North American universities, mostly focused on the discipline of Physics11,16-18, but also the medical sciences3-6,10 and mathematics7-9 . The adoption of the PI has positive impacts on students' conceptual learning, problem-solving ability and academic performance. Develop positive feelings related to the learning of content and methodology. The professors make modifications when implementing the PI integrating it with other methodologies, demonstrating their flexibility. In nursing, the PI has been used sparingly, being mixed with other methodologies where the student is the center of learning; peer teaching and peer learning, for example; with good results in the achievement of student learning outcomes, giving an initial kick to continue applying and investigating the impact of this methodology on nursing students. Key words: , .

Adapting Law Lectures to Maximise Student Engagement: Is it Time to ‘Transform’?

In recent years, there has been growing concern about poor mental health and wellbeing of both law students and those in the profession. These concerns have been building for the last two to three decades, and have gathered pace in the last few. As concerns about the impact of lawyering on those in the profession have grown, a separate but related set of developments have been unfolding across universities. Universities all over the world have been developing a heightened awareness of student needs, sensitivities and mental health, and have been considering how teaching methods, materials and styles may impact these. As part of this, a number of North American universities have begun to grapple with the question of whether content to which students are exposed in their degree should contain a ‘trigger warning’. A trigger warning is a cautionary note designed to alert students to potentially sensitive material in a syllabus, and which may, in some circumstances, allow them to be exempted from course content. Trigger warnings have generated significant debate in the United States academy. In other parts of the world, such as Australia, these debates are also gathering pace, with the appropriateness of trigger warnings for clinical legal education now also being considered. This paper explores whether trigger warnings are necessary in clinical legal education. This paper unfolds in three parts. First, drawing upon theoretical concerns about the politics of emotion, including ideas from Sara Ahmed and Judith Butler, I consider the philosophical and conceptual aspects of trigger warnings, including the dangers of academics defining which content is ‘triggering’ and which is not. Second, I explore some of the pedagogical implications that would flow from the use of trigger warnings in law clinics. Third, I examine some of the practical implications of the deployment of trigger warnings in clinics. I argue that academics should be cautious about calls to impose trigger warnings in clinical legal education, because they introduce a series of major philosophical, practical and pedagogical problems. I also argue that although trigger warnings may appear, on the face of it, to align with the values that many clinicians would see as being at the heart of clinical legal education, including social justice, respect for clients, minorities and disadvantaged populations, trigger warnings have the potential to paradoxically instantiate power dynamics, to entrench injustice, and to foreclose intellectual curiosity. They also have a series of implications for the ethics and politics of legal practice, some of which I consider to be both substantial and antithetical to the proper practice of clinical legal education.

Old Traditions and New Technologies: Creating Concordia University Press

Scholarly publishing has long been integral to the mission of the modern research university. Since 2013 Concordia University in Montreal has been working to create a new library-based scholarly press. Concordia University Press has a dual publishing model: electronic books will be made freely available without any restrictions (i.e., open access). Print versions, depending on the project, will also be available for sale to individual readers, libraries, and vendors. This article describes the work that has been done to establish the press, as well as the challenges and opportunities that it and other North American university presses face in an evolving scholarly communications landscape.