UWEC CERCA 2025

Intergenerational programs in long term care settings, which connect older adults to younger generations, have been recognized for combating social isolation, promoting empathy and understanding across age groups, and challenging ageist stereotypes. With the increasing popularity of these programs, this research aims to study the implementation process and development of these initiatives, identifying best practices and challenges in order to promote successful strategies for the future. This study compiles data from 21 intergenerational programs conducted by undergraduate healthcare administration students during their residency in a nursing home from 2020 to 2024. We conduct an in-depth review of the projects, investigating facility demographics, methodologies, and results, and evaluate the effectiveness of these programs in various dimensions, including care quality, social isolation, and the psychological well-being of nursing home residents. Furthermore, we examine the most common barriers students encountered, such as limited resources and community engagement, as well as factors that promoted success, including teamwork and communication. By exploring these projects, we seek to offer recommendations for future program implementation, supporting the health and well-being of older adults and encouraging meaningful interactions across age groups.

This research project aims to explore the characteristics of long-term care professionals in various career stages through the use of the Long-Term Care Administrator (LTCA) Self-Assessment Tool (Johs-Artisensi et al., 2016). In previous research, differences were found when comparing the LTCA characteristics of freshman/sophomores with their results as emerging leaders (1-2 years postgraduation). This project will analyze differences and/or similarities of LTCA results of current residency students from when they were freshman/sophomores in the UWEC Health Care Administration (HCAD) program against their results four months into administrative residency (~1-3 years later), as well as the results of current residency students’ preceptors. This study will demonstrate how 10 LTCA characteristics of students progressing through their academic career may change over time, while also allowing for the comparison of results in three different career stages. Results will either confirm previous findings, explore differences, and/or provide further insight on leaders in long-term care.

This study examines the impact of goal orientations (results-oriented vs. process-oriented) on team dynamics and performance evaluations within global virtual teams, challenging traditional assumptions about team efficiency. Drawing on Herzberg's Two-Factor Theory (1959), Locke's Goal-setting Theory (1967), and intrinsic motivation frameworks, we analyzed data from the X-Culture Project, encompassing 3,660 undergraduate business students in 925 global virtual teams during Fall 2020. Our research specifically investigates how different approaches to incentive mechanisms and goal orientations influence team member perceptions and evaluations. Through multivariate regression analysis, we found that while both results-oriented (focused on monetary rewards and certificates) and process-oriented (valuing collaborative experiences and relationships) team members reported similar levels of subjective satisfaction, their peer evaluations differed significantly. Results-oriented members received lower peer evaluations, being perceived as less creative, less effortful, and less task-compliant. Conversely, process-oriented members were evaluated more positively, demonstrating stronger leadership qualities, active thinking, and perceived work ethic. This favorable evaluation of process-oriented members may be attributed to their stronger focus on team relationships, communication, and collaborative learning, which are particularly crucial in virtual environments where building trust and maintaining engagement require extra effort. Their emphasis on the journey rather than just the destination likely leads to more consistent participation, better communication patterns, and stronger relationship building – all qualities highly valued by peers in virtual collaborative settings. These findings challenge conventional wisdom about incentive structures in global virtual teams and suggest that process orientation may offer a competitive advantage in virtual collaborative environments. The study contributes to our understanding of team dynamics and has important implications for designing effective incentive mechanisms and managing diverse goal orientations in virtual team settings.

The primary objective of this project is to provide comprehensive education on insurance markets within Spanish-speaking countries. This project is particularly aimed at students who are considering traveling to Latin American countries or other international destinations. Understanding the intricacies of insurance in these regions is crucial for students to ensure they are well-protected against potential risks.

This research proposal investigates the communication tool preferences of native English speakers (NES) and English as a second language (ESL) learners within global virtual teams, focusing on the interplay between communication frequency (CF), communication tools (CT), team conflict (TC), and identification (ID). The study posits three hypotheses: (H1) communication frequency is negatively correlated with team conflict, suggesting that increased CF reduces TC; (H2) higher communication frequency positively influences the use of information-dense communication tools, such as Zoom, over less dense tools like text messaging; and (H3) communication tool preferences differ based on identification—NES members shift from low-density tools (e.g., texts) in low-frequency settings to high-density tools (e.g., Zoom) in high-frequency settings to minimize conflict, while ESL members consistently prefer text-based tools across all frequencies to mitigate interaction tension and reduce conflict. Based on the data collected from 153 global virtual student teams which participated in the X-Culture project, we found that higher communication frequency will reduce team conflict across both groups, with NES members not showing any preferences on communication tools, while ESL members exhibit a persistent reliance on text-based tools to address linguistic and social challenges. These findings aim to deepen insights into effective communication strategies in linguistically diverse virtual teams, providing actionable guidance for enhancing collaboration in globalized educational and professional settings.