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Understanding Student Perceptions Of A High School Wellness Center: An Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis Qualitative Study, Devan Audrey Clayton Mar 2024

Understanding Student Perceptions Of A High School Wellness Center: An Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis Qualitative Study, Devan Audrey Clayton

Theses and Dissertations

Adolescents face many challenges at home and at school which impact various areas of their lives, including their academics. Schools have worked to ensure better student mental health outcomes by hiring school counselors, school psychologists, and school social workers. School wellness centers can be an additional resource that students utilize to address mental health challenges during their school day. The purpose of this study is to understand adolescent perceptions of a school-based wellness center. Perceptions of populations who utilize the wellness center and those who do not utilize the wellness center were studied within one high school to understand how …


Intrapersonal And Interpersonal Predictors Of Hope In Adolescents, Megan M. B. Wilson Aug 2022

Intrapersonal And Interpersonal Predictors Of Hope In Adolescents, Megan M. B. Wilson

Theses and Dissertations

Hope is a variable that is defined in research as a positive outlook on one's future and a plan to achieve that future. Hope has been found to be positively correlated with self-esteem, optimism, and life satisfaction, and negatively correlated with suicide ideation and suicidality. However, there is a lack of research on predictors of hope in adolescents. Adolescents compose the age group that could arguably use the goal-oriented and positive outlook that hope provides the most. This study identified predictors of hope (i.e., depression, maternal and paternal support) in adolescents so as to know how society can give adolescents …


Exploring Mentions Of Pornography In Popular Television Shows, A. Lucia Pollock Nov 2021

Exploring Mentions Of Pornography In Popular Television Shows, A. Lucia Pollock

Theses and Dissertations

While pornography has become highly accessible, another way in which pornography is present in media is through discussion in movies and television shows, which is often framed through casual reference, by way of a joke, or in a teasing manner. A content analysis of 55 episodes that reference pornography—looking specifically at the framing of pornography in individual scenes—provides valuable insight into the media ecosystem surrounding pornography and its potential impact on adolescents. Using cultivation analysis and framing theory as a theoretical basis, this study analyzes the inclusion of the terms, “porn,” “porno,” and “pornography” in popular television shows.


Warning! Explicit Material: The Effects Of Adolescent Pornography Use On Risky Sexual Behavior Over Time, Emily Jensen-Schvaneveldt Aug 2021

Warning! Explicit Material: The Effects Of Adolescent Pornography Use On Risky Sexual Behavior Over Time, Emily Jensen-Schvaneveldt

Theses and Dissertations

This study explored the longitudinal effects of adolescent pornography trajectories on risky sexual behavior, as well as predictors of pornography trajectories. Data was taken from Waves V-X of the Flourishing Families Project, which included a sample of 463 families. A zero-inflated Poisson growth mixture model was run to determine class participation and growth trajectories. Findings revealed that gender and religiosity significantly predicted class participation, and class participation significantly predicted risky sexual behavior. While this study did have limitations, this study adds to the previous literature by examining adolescent pornography trajectories over an extended period of time.


Parent Anxiety, Parental Psychological Control, And Adolescent Anxiety: Mediation And Bidirectional Relationships, Iesha R. Gibbons Jul 2021

Parent Anxiety, Parental Psychological Control, And Adolescent Anxiety: Mediation And Bidirectional Relationships, Iesha R. Gibbons

Theses and Dissertations

Anxiety is the most common mental health diagnosis for adolescents. Among important etiological factors are parent anxiety and parenting behavior, which can increase anxiety in adolescents. Adolescent anxiety can also act as a source of stress for parents that then increases parent anxiety and negative parenting behaviors. Using the Family Stress Model, this study aims to examine the longitudinal and bidirectional relationship between parent and adolescent anxiety with parental psychological control acting as a mediator. Structural equation modeling was used to examine these relationships across five waves of data for 457 families. Adolescents (51.86% female, mean age 13.34 at wave …


Determining Predictors Of Peer Relations: A Study On Youth Inethiopia, India, Peru, And Vietnam, Susanna Fullmer Jun 2021

Determining Predictors Of Peer Relations: A Study On Youth Inethiopia, India, Peru, And Vietnam, Susanna Fullmer

Theses and Dissertations

Across the world countries are currently striving to eliminate poverty, improve the quality of education, optimize well-being, among other areas of improvement. In an effort to help such improvements, a group called Young Lives ran a longitudinal study on youth in Ethiopia, India, Peru, and Vietnam that studied the many facets of poverty. The purpose of this study is to utilize the Young Lives dataset to determine how countries can more readily improve social-emotional skills by looking at important experiences in adolescents' lives. Specifically, this study examines what factors increase a child's ability to socialize with peers, which is shown …


A Light In The Dark: A Case For Ya Literature Through The Lens Of Medical Dystopias, Thomas Jace Brown Jun 2019

A Light In The Dark: A Case For Ya Literature Through The Lens Of Medical Dystopias, Thomas Jace Brown

Theses and Dissertations

By examining critical studies of the dystopian genre from Gregory Claeys, Fátima Vieira, and Keith Booker as well as the studies of young adult dystopian novels from Roberta Trites, Kenneth Donnelson, and Sean Connors, I argue that young adult literature (YAL) has literary merit and is worth studying. This literariness stems from a novel's ability to explore complex themes like religion, sacrifice, and societal contracts. I introduce and analyze a subgenre of YA dystopian literature, which I classify as the medical dystopia, a genre that is uniquely positioned to explore the complex moral questions that surround advancing medical technologies and …


Social Outcome Following Pediatric Traumatic Brain Injury: A Meta-Analysis, Jonathan James Mietchen Jun 2018

Social Outcome Following Pediatric Traumatic Brain Injury: A Meta-Analysis, Jonathan James Mietchen

Theses and Dissertations

Objective: Children and adolescents with a history of traumatic brain injury (TBI) are at increased risk for developing social incompetence and impairment in broad psychosocial functioning. The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between history of TBI, social competence, and broad psychosocial functioning using meta-analytic methods. Methods: Studies relating to social outcome following pediatric TBI were searched for using scientific, academic databases. Sixteen studies (N=2,005) met inclusion criteria, and relevant data relating to social functioning was extracted. Meta-analytic methods were used in order to obtain Hedges's g effect size data for mild, moderate, and severe TBI groups. …


Where Have All The Rebels Gone? Ideology And Conformity In Young Adult Dystopian Literature, Meghan I. Rimmasch Mar 2018

Where Have All The Rebels Gone? Ideology And Conformity In Young Adult Dystopian Literature, Meghan I. Rimmasch

Theses and Dissertations

By employing the critical studies of adolescence from Nancy Lesko, Roberta Trites, and Maria Nikolajeva and the study of positive and negative symbols of rebellion examined by Robert Lindner through Leerom Medovoi, I will interrogate the popular notion that female protagonists in dystopian Young Adult Literature (YAL) are strong, self-aware rebels who are positive role models to YA readers. Using the didactic nature of dystopian literature, I will examine how adult authors consciously (or unconsciously) set ideological standards for their YA readers through the female protagonists and how these standards are not as empowering as they initially seem. To address …


The Effects Of Family Stressors On Depression In Latino Adolescents As Mediated By Interparental Conflict, Jenny Carolina Mondragon Dec 2017

The Effects Of Family Stressors On Depression In Latino Adolescents As Mediated By Interparental Conflict, Jenny Carolina Mondragon

Theses and Dissertations

Extensive literature suggests that Latino youth experience higher levels of depression when compared to youth from other ethnic backgrounds yet relatively little is known regarding why this particular population is especially susceptible to depression. This study focused on family level stressors and the link between interparental conflict and adolescent depressive symptoms in Latino families. The sample consisted of 400 girls and 290 boys, they were distributed into four groups based on gender and family structure. Written surveys were completed in their respective English classes measuring the aforementioned variables. Results indicated a significant relationship across all four groups between family stressors …


Hopelessness And Youth Violent Behavior: A Longitudinal Study, Janie Demetropoulos Jun 2017

Hopelessness And Youth Violent Behavior: A Longitudinal Study, Janie Demetropoulos

Theses and Dissertations

This study examines how hopelessness impacts youth engagement in violent behavior over time. The data are from waves I and II of The National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health). Poisson regression was used to analyze contributors to violence in just wave I, and then again across time in wave II using explanatory and control variables from wave I. Results indicate that hopelessness is positively associated with violent behavior. Furthermore, while hopelessness and most of the other explanatory variables predicted violent behavior in wave I, almost all the variables became non-significant or negative except hopelessness and a measure of …


Parental Experience-Based Change: Positive And Negative Changes In Monitoring, Expectations, Nurturing, And Discipline, Joseph S. Rand Dec 2016

Parental Experience-Based Change: Positive And Negative Changes In Monitoring, Expectations, Nurturing, And Discipline, Joseph S. Rand

Theses and Dissertations

This study sought to create a measure of parent's perceptions of parental experience-based change (PEBC), or parents' perceptions of the changes they make to their parenting of secondborn children as a result of experiences with firstborn children. The measure assessed PEBC in the domains of monitoring, expectations, nurturing and discipline. Participants were 401 mothers or fathers of 2 or 3 adolescent children. Factor analyses revealed an 8 factor solution that assessed increasing and decreasing in each of the 4 domains. Criterion validity was evaluated using regression analyses to examine the relationships between each factor and parenting outcomes thought to be …


Parent-Reported Deficits In Executive Function And Sleep-Disordered Breathing In Adolescent Behavioral Weight Loss Program Participants, Jonathan James Mietchen Jul 2016

Parent-Reported Deficits In Executive Function And Sleep-Disordered Breathing In Adolescent Behavioral Weight Loss Program Participants, Jonathan James Mietchen

Theses and Dissertations

Children and adolescents with obesity and overweight are at increased risk for developing sleep disordered breathing (SDB) and SDB has been associated with cognitive deficits and executive dysfunction. The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between executive functioning and SDB among adolescents participating in a behavioral weight loss intervention. Adolescents (n = 37) and their caregivers completed the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF) and caregivers completed the Pediatric Sleep Questionnaire (PSQ). Using the Sleep Related Breathing Disorder scale on the PSQ adolescents were classified as at risk or not at risk for SDB. Correlations were …


Marginalized Sexuality And Masculinity: An Ethnographic Exploration Of Adolescent Homophobic Language In A Rural High School, Benjamin M. Bailey Jul 2016

Marginalized Sexuality And Masculinity: An Ethnographic Exploration Of Adolescent Homophobic Language In A Rural High School, Benjamin M. Bailey

Theses and Dissertations

Researchers have examined homophobic language (HL) with both qualitative and quantitative methods and have studied HL's relationship to multiple factors such as sexual prejudice, masculinity, and religiosity. However, our understanding of this language, while expanding, is still limited because the meaning of this evolving language varies depending on the context in which the language is used. In order to get a more in-depth and current understanding of this language, I conducted semi-structured interviews with 20 males who were high school seniors. I also conducted 102 hours of observations in their high school. I analyzed the interviews and observations with a …


Resilience And Internalizing Symptoms Among Adolescent Girls In Residential Treatment: An Evaluation Of Strong Teens, Luke Andrew Marvin Mar 2016

Resilience And Internalizing Symptoms Among Adolescent Girls In Residential Treatment: An Evaluation Of Strong Teens, Luke Andrew Marvin

Theses and Dissertations

Strong Teens is an evidence-based social and emotional learning (SEL) curriculum designed to target internalizing disorders by promoting emotional resilience and social competence. In this study, Strong Teens was implemented among 36 adolescent girls during group therapy in a residential treatment center (RTC). A non-equivalent, quasi-experimental wait-list control group design was used. The curriculum was evaluated by tracking the girls' social and emotional knowledge, internalizing symptoms, and resilience from the perspectives of the girls, group therapists, and a supervisor who was blind to the study. Although the results indicated that exposure to Strong Teens was not effective in increasing the …


Effects Of Interparental Conflict On Taiwanese Adolescents’ Depression And Externalizing Problem Behavior: A Longitudinal Study, Chih Han Hsieh Jul 2015

Effects Of Interparental Conflict On Taiwanese Adolescents’ Depression And Externalizing Problem Behavior: A Longitudinal Study, Chih Han Hsieh

Theses and Dissertations

The link between interparental conflict and adolescents’ maladjustment has been well established among European Americans; however, relatively few studies examine these relationships in Chinese societies. This study used longitudinal data from the Taiwan Youth Project (TYP), an on-going longitudinal panel research project focused on adolescent development, in order to examine the relationship between interparental conflict and depressive symptoms and externalizing problem behaviors of adolescents. In addition, this study examined parental warmth as a mediating variable for the relationship between interparental conflict and adolescents’ maladjustment. The results showed that interparental conflict predicted depressive symptoms among adolescents two years later. Mediation analysis …


School Resource Officers' Perceptions Of In-School Graffiti: Disciplinary Measures And Prevention Efforts, Bobbi Sue Van Leuven Jul 2015

School Resource Officers' Perceptions Of In-School Graffiti: Disciplinary Measures And Prevention Efforts, Bobbi Sue Van Leuven

Theses and Dissertations

The term graffiti has been adapted to mean any type of writings on a surface area that have been scratched, painted or marked. These writings, which are typically perceived from a negative point of view, may be something as small as doodles on a paper or something as large as paintings on a wall or the side of a building. Because graffiti is often part of gang culture and identified as criminal activity, when graffiti enters into a school the school's atmosphere and graffiti deters from a positive educational environment. In this study, five School Resource Officers from urban secondary …


Adolescents' Perceptions Of Homophobic Language: Implications For Bullying Prevention, Benjamin M. Bailey Jun 2015

Adolescents' Perceptions Of Homophobic Language: Implications For Bullying Prevention, Benjamin M. Bailey

Theses and Dissertations

Large scientific studies have recognized homophobic language as a national concern (American Association of University Women [AAUW], 2001; Kosciw, Greytak, Diaz, & Bartkiewicz, 2010). Concerning perceptions of homophobic language use, quantitative studies were mostly conducted in specific areas of the United States and qualitative studies have largely approached the issue with the theory of masculinity. The current study proposed to approach the study actively challenging all assumptions about homophobic language use. This study assimilated 20 adolescents' perceptions of homophobic language, using a hermeneutic qualitative methodology. This study found that in addition to policing masculinity, homophobic language was used to police …


Assessing Validity Of A Screener For Social, Emotional, And Behavioral Concerns: Analyzing Gender Differences In A Middle School Population, Kimberly Lowe Jun 2015

Assessing Validity Of A Screener For Social, Emotional, And Behavioral Concerns: Analyzing Gender Differences In A Middle School Population, Kimberly Lowe

Theses and Dissertations

Systematic screening for social, emotional, and behavioral concerns (SEBC) identifies at-risk students and provides information to guide interventions that may prevent negative outcomes (Glover & Albers, 2006; Kauffman, 1999; Severson, Walker, Hope-Dolittle, Katochwill, & Gresham, 2007). However, the screening process may be influenced by the gender of the student (Young, Sabbah, Young, Reiser, & Richardson, 2010). This study further examined the influence of student gender on screening by assessing the congruency of gates one and two of a screening process based on student gender. Participants included 59 middle school teachers who nominated at-risk students on the Teacher Nomination Form (TNF; …


Facilitative Implicit Rules And Adolescent Emotional Regulation, Lexie Y. Pfeifer Mar 2015

Facilitative Implicit Rules And Adolescent Emotional Regulation, Lexie Y. Pfeifer

Theses and Dissertations

Research has linked emotional regulation to the adaptive functioning of adolescents. Further research suggests that family processes, which include implicit rules, impact children's emotional regulation. The current study examined the impact of implicit rules that are facilitative of family connectedness on development of adolescents' emotional regulation. Data came from the Flourishing Families Project (FFP), a seven-year longitudinal study measuring family processes that impact adolescent development. The sample was collected in the northwestern United States and consisted of 500 families with a target child between the ages of 10 and 14 years. Participants filled out self-report measures on implicit family rules …


Inclusive Recreation: The Malleability Of Attitudes Toward Disability Through Peer Interaction, Megan Fort Dec 2014

Inclusive Recreation: The Malleability Of Attitudes Toward Disability Through Peer Interaction, Megan Fort

Theses and Dissertations

This study explored the malleability of attitudes with the goal of improving social inclusion for a stigmatized group, specifically individuals with developmental disabilities. Contact Theory was used as an intentional structure for meaningful intergroup contact to assess, understand, and improve meanings applied to individuals with disabilities at an inclusive summer day camp. Adolescent volunteers were administered quantitative questionnaires utilizing the Contact with Disabled Persons Scale (CDP) and the Multi-Dimensional Attitude Scale (MAS). Collected data were used to determine the efficacy of involvement in an inclusive recreation program on adolescent participants' attitudes toward disability. After a covariate-adjusted regression analysis, contact with …


Supporting Ongoing Language And Literacy Development Of Adolescent English Language Learners, Jason T. Jay Nov 2014

Supporting Ongoing Language And Literacy Development Of Adolescent English Language Learners, Jason T. Jay

Theses and Dissertations

Literacy proficiency is critical for success both in and out of school; yet adolescent English language learners (ELLs) are not performing at the level of their English-speaking peers. This qualitative study focused on ways in which one successful high-school teacher facilitated literacy events as a way to provide language and literacy support for these students. The findings describe the actions of the teacher, the affordances made by these actions, and how the students took up those affordances. Teacher actions included creating a safe and comfortable atmosphere, following a routine, and participating in sharing activities. Affordances included opportunities for using vocabulary …


Development And Validation Of The Abstinence Motivation Scale, Natalie Johnson Jul 2013

Development And Validation Of The Abstinence Motivation Scale, Natalie Johnson

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to design the Abstinence Motivation Scale-Sex (AMS-Sex), a scale to assess adolescent motivations for sexual abstinence using the self-determination theory (SDT) motivation continuum as a framework. Previous sexual abstinence research, SDT measurement studies, pilot study data, and expert panel feedback were used to develop the initial 77-item AMS-Sex. The sample consisted of 695 adolescents (aged 15 to 18; M age = 16.49, SD = 1.08; 50.8% male) recruited online from the across the U.S. Participants completed an online survey. The sample was randomly split into two samples. Independent samples t-tests indicated that sample 1 …


Teacher Nominations And The Identification Of Social, Emotional, And Behavioral Concerns In Adolescence, Stephanie Deverich Davis Dec 2012

Teacher Nominations And The Identification Of Social, Emotional, And Behavioral Concerns In Adolescence, Stephanie Deverich Davis

Theses and Dissertations

Emotional and Behavioral Disorders (EBD) directly influence learning, relationships, mood, and overall scholastic experiences. Research provides evidence that early intervention and prevention efforts can address the needs of students with EBD (Allen-DeBoer, Malmgren, & Glass, 2006; Cook, et al. 2008; Lien-Thorne & Kamps, 2005; Regan, Mastropieri, & Scruggs, 2005; Rivera, Al-Otiba, & Koorland, 2006), but in order to identify these at-risk youth, a screening system is needed to broadly consider Social, Emotional, and Behavioral Concerns (SEBC).This dissertation evaluated the alignment of a teacher nomination process (Teacher Nomination Form (TNF)) and a normative screener of EBD risk (BASC-2 Behavioral and Emotional …


Don't Worry....Be Happy: The Influence Of Parental Anxiety On Adolescent Self-Esteem, Holly Olson Coutts Feb 2012

Don't Worry....Be Happy: The Influence Of Parental Anxiety On Adolescent Self-Esteem, Holly Olson Coutts

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of the current study was to explore the direct and indirect influences of both paternal and maternal anxiety on adolescent self-esteem as mediated by parental criticism and autonomy allowance. Participants included 331 parent-child triads with a child between the ages of 12 and 15 from the Flourishing Families Project. Findings suggested that maternal anxiety had a significant negative influence on adolescent self-esteem while paternal anxiety did not. Also, the influence of maternal anxiety on adolescent self-esteem was carried directly rather than indirectly through autonomy allowance and parental criticism; however, this influence was only significant prior to adolescent gender …


A Qualitative Analysis Of A Junior High School Eating Disorder Prevention Program, Janine Ruth Stickney Dec 2011

A Qualitative Analysis Of A Junior High School Eating Disorder Prevention Program, Janine Ruth Stickney

Theses and Dissertations

Past research conducted in the areas of diagnosis and treatment of eating disorders have provided information in regards to understanding the epidemiology, base rates, damages and longitudinal course of eating disorders. Few studies, however, have focused on prevention, especially in adolescents. In this particular study, students in a Utah junior high school health class received preventative curriculum called, Eating Disorders: Physical, Social, and Emotional Consequences. Ten, female participants were then interviewed to explore their thoughts and feelings about their experiences and to qualitatively ascertain the success of the prevention program.


Resolving Incidents Of Bullying Among High Functioning Adolescents With Asd: Parent Perspectives, Wan-Ting Chuang Jul 2011

Resolving Incidents Of Bullying Among High Functioning Adolescents With Asd: Parent Perspectives, Wan-Ting Chuang

Theses and Dissertations

A qualitative study was conducted investigating the perceptions of seven parents of high functioning adolescents with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) regarding incidents of bullying in which the child was involved. Results of the study indicated that all of the children had been bullied at one time or another, and that the majority had difficulty in demonstrating appropriate social skills. The parents viewed supportive peers to be a positive factor, fostering the children's satisfactory social adjustment. Parent interventions for their child included social skills instruction and empathy training. Research implications for educators included the need to establish systemic organized school-wide support …


The Effects Of Parental Support, Best Friend Support, And Parental Psychological Control On Loneliness In Latino Adolescents, Denhi Hortensia Chaney Mar 2011

The Effects Of Parental Support, Best Friend Support, And Parental Psychological Control On Loneliness In Latino Adolescents, Denhi Hortensia Chaney

Theses and Dissertations

The current study examined the relationship of parental support, parental psychological control, and best friend support among Latino adolescents and loneliness using self-esteem as a mediating variable. The sample included 839 Hispanic (primarily Mexican) 9th – 12th graders from west Texas area school districts who were given a self-reported survey to assess parental behaviors and adolescent depression. Using structural equation modeling (SEM), findings indicated that neither maternal nor paternal support was found to be significantly related to loneliness in girls. Only maternal support was found to be significantly related to loneliness in boys. On the other hand, neither maternal nor …


Parent Adolescent Attachment As A Mediator Of Relations Between Parenting And Adolescent Social Behavior And Well Being In China, Mengfei Cai Jul 2010

Parent Adolescent Attachment As A Mediator Of Relations Between Parenting And Adolescent Social Behavior And Well Being In China, Mengfei Cai

Theses and Dissertations

Attachment is an important aspect of parent-adolescent relationships, and thus it may play a key role in predicting adolescents' behavioral outcomes and well-being. This study examined how parenting dimensions (authoritative, psychological control, and over-protecting) relate to youth outcomes (self-esteem, autonomy, and friend attachment) by way of parent-adolescent attachment, among Chinese families. The sample included 298 Chinese adolescents ages 15-18 years (M age = 16.36, SD =.678 ; 60% female). A series of structural equation models was estimated to examine the hypothesis that authoritative parenting, psychological control, and over-protecting would predict adolescent outcomes as mediated by attachment. The best fitting model …


Influences On Active Family Leisure And Its Relationship To Obesity, Shallie Marlene Taylor Mar 2010

Influences On Active Family Leisure And Its Relationship To Obesity, Shallie Marlene Taylor

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine how attitude, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control influence adolescents' intent to participate in active family leisure and furthermore to explore the nature of the relationship between active family leisure and body mass index (BMI) among adolescents. Adolescents (N = 472) completed an online questionnaire assessing the theory of planned behavior (TPB) variables, active family leisure, individual active leisure, and BMI. Structural equation modeling was used to analyze the data. Tests of direct paths of attitude, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control to intent indicated these variables were significant predictors of intent …