Assessing the Intermediate Function of Local Academic Institutions During the Rehabilitation and Reconstruction of Aceh, Indonesia

There is great scholarly and practical interest in local academic institutions’ potential contributions to community rehabilitation and reconstruction in the wake of disasters. Using survey data, this study seeks to quantitatively verify the intermediate function of local academic institutions in building mutual understanding and consensus between local residents and external actors during disaster recovery efforts. The survey measured Indonesians’ perceptions of disaster relief efforts following the Sumatran earthquake and Indian Ocean tsunami of 2004. It was conducted by Syiah Kuala University Aceh, Indonesia, between July and October 2020. The authors applied parametric methods to analyze the data, including regression analysis, factor analysis, and structural equation modeling (SEM). The analysis results reveal a relationship between the intermediate function of local academic institutions, and residents’ overall satisfaction with disaster recovery efforts. The findings suggest that the institutions’ expected intermediate functions may be influenced by regional factors, and that future policy-makers should consider regional characteristics to improve the efficacy of local disaster response and recovery efforts.

Download Full-text

Economies of Scale Through E-Teaching in the Post-COVID Era – Students’ Improvements Recommendations Using Mixed Methods Design

International Journal of Higher Education ◽

10.5430/ijhe.v11n3p67 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (3) ◽

pp. 67

Author(s):

Eyal Eckhaus ◽

Nitza Davidovitch

Keyword(s):

Mixed Methods ◽

Learning Outcomes ◽

Structural Equation ◽

Online Teaching ◽

Economies Of Scale ◽

Teaching Method ◽

Equation Modeling ◽

Academic Institutions ◽

Mixed Methods Design ◽

Learning Centered

This study centers on a retrospective investigation of effective and pedagogic planning of academic digital courses taught during the COVID-19 crisis, from the students’ perspective. We shall focus on the difference between the traditional, teaching-centered paradigm, and the modern learning-centered approach, while emphasizing the formulation of learning outcomes in online study expanses, in light of the learning experience imposed on teachers and students at the various academic institutions.The study explored the learning outcomes from students’ point of view, as well as the benefits and challenges embodied by formulating learning goals in the post-COVID era, according to the learning-centered paradigm, relating to the strengths and weaknesses of the Zoom teaching method from the students’ perspective, predicated on 1,828 students from several institutions. We used a mixed methods design incorporating qualitative and quantitative analysis to develop the Online Teaching Recommendations (SOTR) model. We used Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) for goodness-of-fit.The research findings indicate that the various types of e-learning challenge academic institutions to carry out renewed thinking about the main potential advantage of physical academic institutions where students and teachers meet, talk, and discuss directly and unmediated, compared to virtual bodies of knowledge and teaching that are evolving at present and that are allegedly threatening to render universities irrelevant.

Download Full-text

Driving value creation in the new economy following the COVID-19 crisis. Data-mining students’ satisfaction from online teaching in the virtual academic climate.

The Electronic Journal of e-Learning ◽

10.34190/ejel.19.5.1991 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 19 (5) ◽

pp. pp452-468

Author(s):

Eyal Eckhaus ◽

Nitza Davidovitch

Keyword(s):

Mixed Methods Research ◽

Structural Equation ◽

Online Teaching ◽

Teaching And Learning ◽

Goodness Of Fit ◽

Equation Modeling ◽

Academic Institutions ◽

Ethical Implications ◽

Advantages And Disadvantages ◽

The Impact

This study examines the advantages of online teaching from the perspective of students at eleven institutions of higher education, universities and colleges, in Israel. The study was conducted at the end of the second semester of their academic studies, after students had experienced “face to face” studies, and they were asked to reply freely to an open question on their evaluation of the benefits of transitioning to online teaching. Students were forced to cope with a new reality, where they were compelled to study in a “digital classroom”. The academic-social climate, the conduct of lecturer-student relations, and the relations among the students themselves, changed instantaneously, with no preparation by any of those involved. Hence, the research findings can illuminate the strengths of online teaching, with a view to the future. Was the impact of teaching and learning in the coronavirus circumstances a one-time event for the students or one from which it is possible to examine and embrace new ways of learning as they see them? Based on 1,937 fully completed surveys from eleven academic institutions, we employed a mixed methods research design. Major themes were manually tagged, and an empirical model was developed. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was utilized to test the model’s goodness-of-fit. Findings present a host of parameters that have a significant positive influence on students’ positive perception of the transition to online teaching. This study is the first to thoroughly examine advantages and disadvantages of the transition to online teaching among a large group of students, from several different academic institutions, and presents both qualitative and empirical results. Ethical implications of the findings are discussed.

Download Full-text

Leadership success within disaster restoration projects

Journal of Emergency Management ◽

10.5055/jem.2014.0163 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 12 (1) ◽

pp. 75 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Randy R. Rapp, DMgt ◽

Bassam Baroudi, DPM

Keyword(s):

Built Environment ◽

Disaster Response ◽

Disaster Recovery ◽

Professional Competence ◽

Core Values ◽

Leadership Traits ◽

Project Leadership ◽

Leadership Success ◽

Response And Recovery ◽

Leader Traits

Successful project managers draw their performance from essential leadership traits, as guided by their core values. Within disaster recovery, contractors who mitigate, repair, and reconstruct the built environment are often faced with challenges exceeding the norm. The effective leader is commonly expected to consider stakeholder motivations within distressing situations as well as other external and environmental factors when seeking to lead the project team to successful outcomes. This research is most concerned with leadership within the context of disaster restoration of the built environment. Its stimulus comes from the Restoration Industry Association (RIA)’s efforts to highlight leadership traits and core values for its Certified Restorer Body of Knowledge but would be of value to others associated with disaster recovery operations. Among organizations whose membership includes thousands of practitioners who restore and reconstruct the built environment after disasters, the RIA is the only one yet to formally and substantially research which core values and leader traits are deemed critical for the success of efforts to manage the means and methods applied on recovery job sites. Forty-six seasoned disaster restoration industry project professionals voluntarily responded to a survey questionnaire that sought their opinions about the traits and core values that they consider most important for successful disaster restoration project leadership. The most important leader traits were effective communication, professional competence, and leadership by example. The most important restoration industry values were integrity, compassion, and trustworthiness. The recognized imperative of compassion was unexpected in light of stereotypes often associated with construction-related contractors. This and other findings permit disaster response and recovery stakeholders to better understand qualities they should wish to see in leaders of contractor organizations, which they hire to restore and reconstruct the built environment after catastrophic events

Download Full-text

Teacher Proactivity Influencing Student Satisfaction and Loyalty Role of Job Crafting and Work Engagement

Vikalpa The Journal for Decision Makers ◽

10.1177/0256090918785046 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 43 (3) ◽

pp. 125-138 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Adil Zahoor

Keyword(s):

Student Satisfaction ◽

Work Engagement ◽

Structural Equation ◽

Proactive Personality ◽

Job Crafting ◽

Equation Modeling ◽

Teaching Staff ◽

Academic Institutions ◽

Executive Summary

Executive Summary During the recent past, various researchers have argued that educational institutions fall within the domain of service industry ( Joseph & Beatriz, 1997 , Journal of Marketing for Higher Education, 8(2), 1–13). Consequently, service marketers have placed unprecedented attention on education sector to explore the marketing aspect of academic institutions. Furthermore, because of intensifying global competition and increasing cost of education, academic institutions are placing additional emphasis on student-related outcomes rather than merely concentrating on the skills and abilities of their graduates. In this backdrop, this study investigates the hitherto unexplored antecedents of two significant student-related outcomes (student satisfaction and loyalty), that is, proactive personality of teachers. The study also provides a possible explanation of this relationship through the mediating role of job crafting and work engagement. This would help academicians to develop broader insights into the domain of antecedents of positive student experiences. Dyads of 159 teachers from 20 universities in India were created and responses were collected on job crafting and work engagement (self-ratings) and proactive personality (peer-ratings) using a structured questionnaire. About 608 students were approached from the same universities to collect data regarding their satisfaction and loyalty. The sample universities included both central and state universities. All constructs were measured using previously developed scales. The hypothesized relationships were tested in AMOS 20 using structural equation modeling. The results evidenced a significant positive influence of teacher proactivity on student satisfaction and their loyalty. Also, job crafting and work engagement are found to significantly and sequentially mediate the relationship between teacher proactivity and student outcomes. Therefore, academic practitioners are required to place additional emphasis on proactivity of the teaching staff so as to result in positive student service experience. It is suggested that the selection and recruitment process of teaching faculty be redesigned to identify proactivity of prospective teachers.

Download Full-text

The Development and Validation of Disaster Response Competency Profile Indices

Journal of Disaster Research ◽

10.20965/jdr.2008.p0429 ◽

2008 ◽

Vol 3 (6) ◽

pp. 429-441

Author(s):

Shigeo Tatsuki ◽

Keyword(s):

Disaster Response ◽

Structural Equation ◽

Cross Validation ◽

Equation Modeling ◽

Conceptual Clustering ◽

Focus Group Interviews ◽

Major Disaster ◽

Group Interviews ◽

Management Staff ◽

Development And Validation

This study aimed to identify observable and measurable traits that were shared among highly competent disaster responders, to construct screening instruments that assess disaster responder competencies, and to examine the construct as well as predictive validity of the instruments. Focus group interviews of competent disaster responders were conducted in order to capture statements that typified their characteristics. Conceptual clustering of the statements produced three distinct categories, and they were found being associated with three major disaster response functions: 1) incident commander, 2) management staff (intelligence, planning, and logistics), and 3) operations personnel. The following cross-validation interviews formed the basis from which to construct a preliminary multiple-choice instrument as well as two other types. Three different instruments measuring three different competencies were then administered to fifty disaster responders, and thirty-three questionnaires were returned. This provided multitrait-multimethod (MTMM) data and the structural equation modeling (SEM) validated the construct validity of the scales, which were named the Disaster Response Competency Profile Indices (DRCPI). The second study compared simulated disaster responses performed by the most competent teams of incident commander, management staff, and operations personnel, as determined by means of the instrument, with those performed by the least competent. The team results were successfully predicted by the DRCPI.

Download Full-text

A Psychometric Study of the Quality Perception Questionnaire

Swiss Journal of Psychology ◽

10.1024/1421-0185/a000076 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 71 (2) ◽

pp. 101-106 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Raffaele Cioffi† ◽

Anna Coluccia ◽

Fabio Ferretti ◽

Francesca Lorini ◽

Aristide Saggino ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Structural Equation ◽

Factor Model ◽

Equation Modeling ◽

Fit Indices ◽

Quality Perception ◽

Italian Survey ◽

Confirmatory Factor ◽

Instrument Measuring ◽

Hospital Structures

The present paper reexamines the psychometric properties of the Quality Perception Questionnaire (QPQ), an Italian survey instrument measuring patients’ perceptions of the quality of a recent hospital admission experience, in a sample of 4400 patients (Mage = 56.42 years; SD = 19.71 years, 48.8% females). The 14-item survey measures four factors: satisfaction with medical doctors, nursing staff, auxiliary staff, and hospital structures. First, we tested two models using a confirmatory factor analysis (structural equation modeling): a four orthogonal factor and a four oblique factor model. The SEM fit indices and the χ² difference suggested the acceptance of the second model. We then did a simulation using a bootstrap with 1000 replications. Results confirmed the four oblique factor solution. Third, we tested whether there were significant differences with respect to age or sex. The multivariate general linear model showed no significant differences in the factors with respect to sex or age.

Download Full-text

Suicide Risk Among College Student

Crisis ◽

10.1027/0227-5910/a000340 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 36 (6) ◽

pp. 416-423 ◽

Cited By ~ 11

Author(s):

Richard Shadick ◽

Faedra Backus Dagirmanjian ◽

Baptiste Barbot

Keyword(s):

Sexual Minority ◽

Students Of Color ◽

Structural Equation ◽

Suicide Risk ◽

Equation Modeling ◽

First Year ◽

Chi Square ◽

First Year College ◽

Marginalized Groups ◽

First Year College Students

Abstract. Background: Research on young adults in the general population has identified a relationship between sexual minority identification and risk for suicide. Differential rates of suicidal ideation and attempts have also been found across racial and ethnic groups. Aims: This study examined risk for suicide among university students, based on membership in one or more marginalized groups (sexual minority and racial minority identification). Method: Data were collected from first-year college students (N = 4,345) at an urban university. Structural equation modeling was employed to model a suicidality construct, based on which a "risk for suicide" category system was derived. Chi-square and logistic regression analyses were then conducted to estimate the relationship between the background variables of interest and suicide risk. Results: Students who identified as lesbian, gay, or bisexual (LGB) were associated with higher suicide risk than their heterosexual peers. Students of color were slightly less at risk than their heterosexual peers. However, LGB students of color were associated with elevated suicide risk relative to heterosexual peers. Conclusion: Results indicate that belonging to multiple marginalized groups may increase one's risk for suicide, though these effects are not simply additive. Findings highlight the complexity of the intersection between marginalized identities and suicidality.

Download Full-text

Low Self-Control of Emotions as an Antecedent of Self-Reported Physical Symptoms: A Longitudinal Perspective

European Psychologist ◽

10.1027//1016-9040.6.1.26 ◽

2001 ◽

Vol 6 (1) ◽

pp. 26-35 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Marja Kokkonen ◽

Lea Pulkkinen ◽

Taru Kinnunen

Keyword(s):

Structural Equation ◽

Negative Emotions ◽

Physical Symptoms ◽

Self Control ◽

Personality Characteristics ◽

Equation Modeling ◽

Eysenck Personality Questionnaire ◽

Positive Direction ◽

Data Collections ◽

Low Self Control

The study was part of the Jyväskylä Longitudinal Study of Personality and Social Development, underway since 1968, in which children's low self-control of emotions was studied using teacher ratings at age 8 in terms of inattentiveness, shifting moods, aggression, and anxiety. The study was based on data from 112 women and 112 men who participated in the previous data collections at ages 8, 27, and 36. At age 27, the participants had been assessed in Neuroticism (N) using the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire , and at age 36 they filled in several inventories measuring, among others, conscious and active attempts to repair negative emotions in a more positive direction as well as physical symptoms. The present study used structural equation modeling to test the hypothesis that personality characteristics indicating low self-control of emotions at ages 8 and 27 are antecedents of self-reported physical symptoms at age 36; and that this relationship is indirect, mediated by attempts to repair negative emotions in a more positive direction. The findings showed, albeit for men only, that inattentiveness at age 8 was positively related to self-reported physical symptoms at age 36 via high N at age 27 and low attempts to repair negative emotions at age 36. Additionally, N at age 27 was directly linked to self-reported physical symptoms at age 36. The mediation of an active attempt to repair negative emotions was not found for women. Correlations revealed, however, that shifting moods and aggression in girls were antecedents of self-reported physical symptoms in adulthood, particularly, pain and fatigue.

Download Full-text

Validating the Factor Structure of the Stigma of Suicide Scale–Short Form Spanish Version Among Healthcare Students

Crisis ◽

10.1027/0227-5910/a000728 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 1-5

Author(s):

Ruthmarie Hernández-Torres ◽

Paola Carminelli-Corretjer ◽

Nelmit Tollinchi-Natali ◽

Ernesto Rosario-Hernández ◽

Yovanska Duarté-Vélez ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Factor Structure ◽

Structural Equation ◽

Short Form ◽

Small Sample Size ◽

Small Sample ◽

Spanish Version ◽

Equation Modeling ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Healthcare Students ◽

Spanish Speaking

Abstract. Background: Suicide is a leading cause of death among Spanish-speaking individuals. Suicide stigma can be a risk factor for suicide. A widely used measure is the Stigma of Suicide Scale-Short Form (SOSS-SF; Batterham, Calear, & Christensen, 2013 ). Although the SOSS-SF has established psychometric properties and factor structure in other languages and cultural contexts, no evidence is available from Spanish-speaking populations. Aim: This study aims to validate a Spanish translation of the SOSS-SF among a sample of Spanish-speaking healthcare students ( N = 277). Method: We implemented a cross-sectional design with quantitative techniques. Results: Following a structural equation modeling approach, a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) supported the three-factor model proposed by Batterham and colleagues (2013) . Limitations: The study was limited by the small sample size and recruitment by availability. Conclusion: Findings suggest that the Spanish version of the SOSS-SF is a valid and reliable tool with which to examine suicide stigma among Spanish-speaking populations.

Download Full-text

Risk Factors and Mediators of Suicidal Ideation Among Korean Adolescents

Crisis ◽

10.1027/0227-5910/a000438 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 39 (1) ◽

pp. 4-12 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

Yi Jin Kim ◽

Sung Seek Moon ◽

Jang Hyun Lee ◽

Joon Kyung Kim

Keyword(s):

High School Students ◽

Suicidal Ideation ◽

Structural Equation ◽

Equation Modeling ◽

Outcome Variable ◽

Suicidal Behaviors ◽

Thwarted Belongingness ◽

Perceived Burdensomeness ◽

Korean Adolescents ◽

Related Stress

Abstract. Background: A significant number of Korean adolescents have suicidal ideations and it is more prevalent among adolescents than any other age group in Korea. Aims: This study was conducted to attain a better understanding of the contributing factors to suicidal ideation among Korean adolescents. Method: We recruited 569 high school students in Grades 10 and 11 in Pyeongtaek, Korea. The Beck Scale for Suicidal Ideation was used to measure suicidal ideation as the outcome variable. The Interpersonal Needs Questionnaire, the Beck Hopelessness Scale, the School Related Stress Scale, the Olweus Bully/Victim Questionnaire, and the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance questions were used to measure thwarted belongingness and perceived burdensomeness, hopelessness, school-related stress, bullying, and previous suicidal behaviors, respectively. Data analyses included descriptive statistics and structural equation modeling. Results: The findings suggest that perceived burdensomeness, hopelessness, school-related stress, and previous suicidal behaviors have significant direct effects on suicidal ideation. Hopelessness fully mediated the relation between thwarted belongingness and suicidal ideation, and partially mediated between perceived burdensomeness, school-related stress, and suicidal ideation. Conclusion: These findings provide more specific directions for a multidimensional suicide prevention program in order to be successful in reducing suicide rates among Korean adolescents.

Download Full-text