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University of South Carolina

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A Longitudinal Study Of The Development Of Social Anxiety In Young Autistic Children, Gillian K. Marshall Apr 2024

A Longitudinal Study Of The Development Of Social Anxiety In Young Autistic Children, Gillian K. Marshall

Senior Theses

Social anxiety is a prevalent anxiety disorder marked by fear and discomfort in social situations where scrutiny or evaluation by others is anticipated. This thesis investigates the interplay between social anxiety and autism spectrum disorder (ASD), a neurodevelopmental condition characterized by social and communication challenges. Individuals with ASD often face heightened levels of anxiety, intensifying their social difficulties and impeding their social development. Early identification of social anxiety symptoms, particularly in ASD children, is crucial for timely intervention and improved outcomes. However, diagnosing social anxiety in preschool-aged children, especially those with ASD, presents challenges due to the complexity of symptoms …


Promoting Critical Consciousness: The Role Of Positive Youth Development Programming, Mackenzie Jaclyn Hart Jul 2020

Promoting Critical Consciousness: The Role Of Positive Youth Development Programming, Mackenzie Jaclyn Hart

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the role of positive youth development programming and individual-level characteristics in promoting critical reflection (CR) in youth and adolescent participants. CR refers to the analytical component of critical consciousness (CC), or the exercise of challenging institutional practices that systemically marginalize or oppress certain subgroups. Survey and interview data were analyzed from at-risk high school students (N=250) participating in an after-school program across six sites in urban areas in the United States. Multiple regression models were used to predict the development of CR, and interviews were examined to look for themes related to quantitative findings. Results support that …


Assessing Readiness For A Physical Activity Intervention In Positive Youth Development Afterschool Programs, Brittany Skiles Cook Apr 2019

Assessing Readiness For A Physical Activity Intervention In Positive Youth Development Afterschool Programs, Brittany Skiles Cook

Theses and Dissertations

Physical inactivity has been identified as a primary health threat to youth, and existing afterschool programs (ASP) are a promising context for implementing physical activity (PA) interventions. However, few PA interventions have been effective and generalizability of programs has been poor. Assessing organizational readiness during the testing of a PA intervention can help inform generalizability and sustainability. The R=MC2 heuristic separates readiness into motivation, innovation-specific capacity, and general capacity, each of which are further divided into subcomponents. The current multiple-case study pilot tests the feasibility and effectiveness/efficacy of a readiness assessment tool based on R=MC2 developed for the Connect through …


Perceived Emotional Invalidation In A Developmental Context: Does Gender Matter?, Brian B. Johnson Aug 2016

Perceived Emotional Invalidation In A Developmental Context: Does Gender Matter?, Brian B. Johnson

USC Aiken Psychology Theses

Emotional invalidation is the dismissal, minimization, or punishment of an individual’s emotional experience (Linehan, 1993). Although it has been sparsely studied, the research that has been conducted indicates that it is likely implicated in a multitude of psychopathology and adjustment issues. The current study had three main objectives. The first of these was to investigate the current perceptions of emotional invalidation in a peer interaction for emerging adults and how that is predicted by gender, perceptions of childhood emotional invalidation via caregivers, and gender of the caregivers. The second objective of this study was to investigate the propagation of emotionally …


Microfinance And Poverty Reduction: How Risks Associated With Government Policies Affect Whether Microfinance Alleviates Poverty In Latin-America, Brian Warby Jan 2014

Microfinance And Poverty Reduction: How Risks Associated With Government Policies Affect Whether Microfinance Alleviates Poverty In Latin-America, Brian Warby

Theses and Dissertations

The expansion of financial services to the poor, now widely referred to as microfinance, quickly saw tremendous success in Bangladesh beginning in the 1970's and was exported to a number of other countries. For a time microfinance was spoken of as a panacea, in part because it is more detached from governments than other forms of poverty alleviation. I develop a model based on expected utility theory that looks at how risks associated with government policies and characteristics affect whether this mechanism eases poverty. Using a large N analysis of Latin-American states from 1990-2010 and a case study analysis to …


Second Language Learnerhood Among Cross-Cultural Field Workers, Thor Andrew Sawin Jan 2013

Second Language Learnerhood Among Cross-Cultural Field Workers, Thor Andrew Sawin

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation studies second language learnerhood (ideologies about why and how to acquire a target language) among American field workers of a multinational, faith-based development organization, "Love the World". This organizational ethnography is longitudinal, tracking how learnerhood changes across the first years of field service. It is also multi-sited, tracing learnerhood across an assemblage of interconnected nodes. Field workers' learnerhoods are shaped by two larger ideologies of language learning which interact across the nodes of and individual trajectories through Love the World. One ideology, rooted in academic tradition, developmental second language acquisition and modernist missiological theory, valorizes the individual learner …


Shifting Landscapes: The Social And Economic Development Of Aqaba, Jordan, Kimberly K. Cavanagh Jan 2013

Shifting Landscapes: The Social And Economic Development Of Aqaba, Jordan, Kimberly K. Cavanagh

Theses and Dissertations

In my dissertation, 'Shifting Landscapes: the Social and Economic Development of Aqaba, Jordan', I examine the role of the global in (re)defining the local by considering the anticipated impact of the planned large-scale urban development within Aqaba. I contend that the identities of the citizens change as the city itself undergoes `renovation' through political adjustments, globalization, tourism development, and commercialization. I argue that these transformations provide opportunities of empowerment, albeit often limited, for marginalized populations who attempt to broaden the dominant local identity by taking advantage of new economic opportunities and increasing their agency within the city. This research provides …