Copyright (c) 2009 Liberty University All rights reserved. http://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/masters Recent documents in Masters Theses en-us Tue, 29 Sep 2009 23:39:07 PDT 3600 http://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/masters/114 http://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/masters/114 Mon, 28 Sep 2009 07:30:21 PDT Oprah Winfrey is an American icon. She has a hand in almost every form of media: movies, television, books, Internet, and radio. In her rise to success, another place that she has infiltrated is the church. Because of her wide range of influence, her thoughts and teaching on spirituality have made their way into both the home and church. Over ten years ago, talk shows had a reputation for portraying mainly negative topics. To combat this stereotype, she made a push to encourage more positive topics of discussion on her show. Yet after receiving criticism for "preaching," she withdrew from spiritually natured shows. However, in the last couple of years, her shows have again seen more focus on spirituality. While Winfrey has been both praised and criticized for these spiritual views, there has not been much written about what these views actually are. There has also been virtually no study to compare her views of ten years ago to the more recent views. Therefore, this thesis uses Erving Goffman's framing analysis to extract the frames she presents on spirituality on her talk show, The Oprah Winfrey Show. The frames will be identified in the empirical approach of media packaging. Media packaging attempts to identify within a text the framing devices that compose a frame. These framing devices are: metaphors, exemplars, catchphrases, depictions, and visual images. The identification and comparison of her frames on spirituality will provide a better insight into the person, Oprah Winfrey, and what she believes. Marianne Jeanette Crosby Mass Communications http://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/masters/113 http://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/masters/113 Tue, 15 Sep 2009 12:57:38 PDT This thesis is divided into four main parts. Part one examines the origin of Hindu yoga practice. It will focus on the ancient Hindu origins of modern Yoga practice. Part two deals with the introduction of yoga into the western world. It examines the socio-cultural-religious phenomenon that Yoga has become. Chapter three inspects yoga in American churches. It concerns the origins, meaning, and detailed methods of Christian Yoga. The last part formulates a biblical response to Christian yoga. It is an apologetic for biblical Christianity. Injib Kim Religion, General Religion, Philosophy of Theology http://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/masters/112 http://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/masters/112 Tue, 18 Aug 2009 10:58:27 PDT This thesis will define the Sherwood Method for creating independent Christian feature-length films by researching the success of the film Facing The Giants (2006) produced by Sherwood Pictures. In order to understand the method, the essay has laid out the definitions of key words such as film, independent film and Christian film, and the background of the film industry. It also chronicles the formation of Sherwood Pictures and its effect on the film business. Finally the essay will break down what the key elements of the Sherwood Method are and how Christian filmmakers can use them in their future projects. Jacob H. Johnston Cinema http://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/masters/111 http://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/masters/111 Tue, 21 Jul 2009 13:25:00 PDT Kevin Richard O'Brien Philosophy Religion, Clergy Religion, General Religion, Philosophy of Theology http://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/masters/110 http://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/masters/110 Mon, 20 Jul 2009 13:32:12 PDT God is a television star. In Barbara Hall's Joan of Arcadia, which aired on CBS from 2003-2005, teenaged Joan Girardi, played by Amber Tamblyn, has conversations with God on a weekly basis. Rather than appearing in bright lights amidst angelic voices and special effects, God speaks to Joan through a variety of human guises, both male and female. The characterization of God in Joan of Arcadia is, arguably, the most extensive portrayal of God in American television, as nearly ninety actors play the deity over the show's two-season run. Understanding the creative team's portrayal of God as a character is significant to any studies relating spiritual ideals and film. Therefore, this thesis follows text in context studies through a close reading of Joan of Arcadia, specifically tracing Joan's interactions with four principal recurring God characters: Cute Boy God, Little Girl God, Old Lady God and Goth Kid God. Synthesizing the characteristics of these four God characters may give insight into the nature of the overall God of Joan of Arcadia. Paul Schrader's model of transcendental style in film and John Dominic Crossan's theological definitions of myth and parable are two additional tools which aid in analyzing this groundbreaking broadcast representation of God. Chad Landon Kennedy Cinema Mass Communications Religion, General Sociology, General http://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/masters/109 http://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/masters/109 Mon, 20 Jul 2009 08:47:51 PDT Understanding the way in which church architecture functions rhetorically to communicate identity formation, monumentality, and meaning was the focus of this study.Ronald C. Arnett's interpersonal praxis is used as a starting point to understand how the architectural rhetoric of reformation happens. It includes the integration of three concepts: faith narrative, or worldview; historicality, the presence of history in a place; and metaphor, or symbol. I argue that it is through an understanding of an integration of these terms as applied to visual communication that architectural communication can be understood.Sonja Foss's schema for the evaluation of visual imagery was used to further understanding of the symbolic element of this architecture, but also contributed in some ways to discerning the historicality and faith narrative.The building analyzed was a church designed by the architectural firm Metz, Thornton, and Smith under the guidance of Connecticut Valley Christ Community Church. The narrative context of the building was explored, followed by identification and evaluation of the architectural elements of the building, then Foss's schema was applied and the functions of the building were judged and conclusions drawn. Karen Elizabeth Burch Mass Communications Religion, General http://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/masters/108 http://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/masters/108 Mon, 20 Jul 2009 08:33:07 PDT Through the implementation of the transformational leadership theory and selfconstructed metaphors this study seeks to understand the self-perceived leadership characteristics of female producers. By means of qualitative analysis, the leadership characteristics of twelve female producers have been subjectively and objectively analyzed. A survey constructed using the transformational leadership characteristics found by Bemard Bass, the characteristics of groundbreaking women found by Barbara Polnick et al., as well as the emotional intelligence leadership characteristics presented by David Goleman et al., was electronically distributed to twelve women from six different television news and entertainment stations in the United States, Canada, and England. The findings of this study show the twelve women to perceive themselves as charismatic-inspirational leaders with supporting characteristics from the groundbreaking and emotional intelligence categories, within their roles as producers in the medium of television news and entertainment. Teresa A. Becker Gender Studies Mass Communications http://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/masters/107 http://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/masters/107 Mon, 20 Jul 2009 06:37:58 PDT Twixter is a term, popularized by Time magazine, to define what sociologists classify as individuals in their mid to late twenties who are finding themselves "betwixt and between" adolescence and adulthood (Grossman, 2005). Researchers Cote and Allahar (1996), Bennett (1994), and Buchmann (1989) have identified mass media as a key contributor to this new transitional life stage, specifically discussing the influential potential of television. As individuals identify with various televised content, fictional characters establish role models that individuals then emulate. The series Friends, in particular, portrayed this Twixter life stage. This thesis addresses Kelman's (1961) theory of identification as it relates to the series Friends by interviewing 14 women who demographically fit within the Twixter life stage. Four prominent themes emerged: Initial identification, character identification, episode identification and life stage identification. It was found that the initial draw to the series was a strong identification with the characters as quasi-mentors, the characters relationships or the socialization of the series among their peers. It was this initial interpersonal attraction that precipitated avid viewership and built a parasocial relationship which interviewing evidenced each woman's strong identification with the characters, events within various episodes and particularly the life stage of the characters. As Friends reflected the Twixter life stage, the majority of the women disclosed that they perceived their life stage as similar to the life stage of the characters on Friends, strongly supporting the premise that identification is the key to influence. Renee Ruth Peckham Mass Communications Sociology, Demography Sociology, General http://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/masters/106 http://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/masters/106 Fri, 17 Jul 2009 13:30:35 PDT This study supplements the scarcity of research on Korean women in America. It explores the perception of leadership between Korean American women and Korean international women. It was inspired by stories that were told by Korean women indicating that Korean women in America first and foremost deal with the question, "Who am I?" An additional question for this thesis was, "Who am I as a leader?" The majority answer found for Korean American women was: "I consider myself as a Korean American, although deep down I always know I am Korean." Korean international women without a doubt regard themselves as Korean or a Korean from a third culture.LaFromboise's second culture acquisition model is mentioned to better explain the current situation of Korean women's identities in America. The five major models are: assimilation, acculturation, multiculturism, alternation. The Multicultural Model was fusion, chosen and to specifically explain the identity of Korean women in America.Data was collected from observations, surveys, semistructured interviews and demographic questionnaires. One hundred-twenty Korean women in America responded to the study. Findings indicate that Korean American women reveal more independence and assertiveness than Korean international women. Korean American women exceed in holding leadership positions in the community, church, school and workplace over Korean international women. However, despite such findings, it reveals that adherence to Confucian principles still exists within the lives of both Korean American and Korean international women.In short, Korean women in America, ages 19 - 40, share a different perception of leadership; however, both are embedded in Confucian ideology and both groups struggle with cultural boundaries. Cultural expectations still dominate Korean society in America and continue to shape the lives of many women in extensive ways. Several implications for future research, limitations, and significance are also discussed. Eun Hye Kang Mass Communications Sociology, Ethnic and Racial Studies http://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/masters/105 http://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/masters/105 Fri, 17 Jul 2009 10:45:44 PDT This paper studies the time period directly following a self-disclosure act. The narrative paradigm theory was utilized in the study of 62 narratives to reveal themes in participants' post-disclosure intrapersonal communication experiences. The narratives revealed four prevalent themes, judgment, fear, relational growth and relief. These themes were then used to validate the existence of post-disclosure dialectics. Postdisclosure dialectics refers to the intrapersonal tensions participants experiences in the post -disclosure time period. Amanda Leanne Carver Education, Language and Literature Language, General Speech Communication