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Racial Socialization From Parents And Peers: Implications For Coping With Discrimination, Christyl Y. Wilson

Psychology Dissertations

Black emerging adults (ages 18 – 25) often encounter race-related stressors, such as discrimination. Racial socialization has been theorized to help individuals cope with race-related stress (Harrell, 2000), but the literature focuses primarily on parents despite long-standing calls to investigate additional socialization agents, such as peers (Hughes, McGill, Ford, & Tubbs, 2011; Priest et al., 2014). The purpose of this study was to examine how parent and peer racial socialization messages contribute to the types of coping strategies Black emerging adults use when faced with discrimination.

Self-identified Black college students (N = 202; M_age = 19.63) completed measures …

Exploring Yoga As A Leisure-Stress Coping Strategy Among Adults With Intellectual And Developmental Disabilities, Molly Richardson

All Theses

Individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) are at a greater risk for experiencing stress, particularly stress associated with negative interpersonal relations, than individuals without disabilities. Research has found that individuals with IDD often use maladaptive coping strategies to manage stress. The purpose of this study was to explore whether participation in a seven-and-a-half week yoga intervention served as a leisure-stress coping strategy for adults with IDD. Using a multi-method research design, six participants completed pre- and post-Lifestress Inventory assessments, and nine participants completed post-intervention semi-structured interviews focused on yoga and coping. Qualitative results indicated that yoga served as an …

Development Of A Text Message Stress Management Intervention And Its Impact On Perceived Stress And Coping Self-Efficacy Among Student Nurses, Kristin Jaye Henderson

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of the two studies was to develop a text message intervention and examine its effects on lowering perceived stress and increasing coping self-efficacy among nursing students. We also explored stress perceptions and investigated student satisfaction with the text message stress management program. Methods: For the first study, twenty three students participated in the focus groups for intervention development. Sample messages were presented to participants and feedback was requested. The messages were modified based on student feedback. The second study utilized an experimental pre/post design with a convenience sample (N=101) to examine the effects of the text message …

A Qualitative Descriptive Analysis Of Students' Experiences With The Child Life Internship Application Process, Haley Reeves

MSU Graduate Theses

This research study was an exploration of the Association of Child Life Professionals application process for the child life clinical internship. The purpose of this studywas to understand better which aspects of the child life internship application process applicants have identified as stressors and to gather suggestions for improving the application process. Qualitative data were collected using an online survey through Qualtrics. The data indicated that the aspects of the child life clinical internship application process that caused moderate to high levels of stress were the writing and editing of documents, obtaining required documents, the finances, interview process, and the …

Least Of My Worries: Food Security, Diet Quality, And Antiretroviral Adherence Among People Living With Hiv, Charlotte Ann Noble

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

More than forty years into the epidemic, HIV continues to impact the health and well-being of millions of people – nearly 37 million across the globe and in excess of 1 million in the U.S. – more than 44% of which live in the Southern United States. HIV continues to disproportionally affect marginalized populations, and vast amounts of money, time, and effort have been spent to understand how to slow the rate of new infections and improve health outcomes for People Living with HIV (PLWH). This study aims to understand the experience of living with and managing HIV while on …

This Is Me: Anxiety And Depression Awareness Event, Stephanie Cotrone

Honors Projects

College and life are stressful, but they don't have to be. We've all been in that place where it feels like life is caving in and there's nowhere else to turn, but it does get better. This event brings awareness to mental illnesses common on college campuses and in the community. There will be engaging and interactive activities to learn about anxiety & depression, and healthy ways to cope through music, art, theatre, amusement parks, learning, reading, and more. Performances by the Humanities Troupe and testimonies by current students who have had experience dealing with mental illness before or who …

Examining Financial Stress And Coping Among U.S. Cancer Patients And Survivors: Quantitative Analyses Of Survey Data., Meredith J. Doherty

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Financial hardship, a growing problem for cancer patients and survivors, is associated with increased pain and symptom burden, reduced quality of life and psychological wellbeing, poor treatment adherence, and early mortality. Nearly one in three cancer patients reports that cancer caused some financial stress or strain. Emerging research has begun to explore the coping strategies used by cancer-affected individuals to manage the direct and indirect costs associated with cancer and its treatment. This dissertation seeks to answer three research questions: (1) what are the measurable characteristics of different cost-coping strategies? (2) what behavioral, institutional, and social factors are associated with …

Predictors Of Appraisal And Coping Profiles In Response To Workplace Incivility Experiences, Courtney Pfeifer

Master's Theses

At least seventy percent of employees report experiencing an incivility incident in recent years (Cortina, 2008), and incivility has been linked to negative outcomes, such as stress and turnover (Beattie & Griffin, 2014). The current study applies Lazarus and Folkman’s (1984) transactional model of stress to examine predictors of incivility targets’ patterns of appraisal and coping. In particular, I propose that the frequency with which incivility occurs, resilience, and work contexts, such as organizational justice and civility norms, can influence the target’s appraisals and coping. Additionally, incivility research has utilized different time frames to examine incivility and predictors (Cortina, Kabat-Farr, …

Teacher Stress And Coping: A Qualitative Case Study, Jennifer Ramsey Tolliver

CUP Ed.D. Dissertations

This study examines how stress affects the teacher participants in a rural school in Alabama and how those teachers cope with stress. The purpose of this qualitative case study is to explore the effects of teacher stress and the ways in which stress is dealt with through coping strategies. Thirteen teachers from one school in the district were invited to participate. Eight teachers of the thirteen agreed to be interviewed as part of the study, which included all the K–6 teachers (with the exception of fourth grade), the literacy coach, and the physical education teacher. The final finding is that …

Religious Coping Measurement In The Context Of Long-Term Care., Nathaniel David Andrew

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation explores the reliability and validity of religious coping measures in long-term care settings. The paper begins with a discussion of general coping and religious coping theory, coping measurement, and a review of religious coping in elderly long-term care residents. Next, a modified model of coping and resilience in older adults is introduced. The latter part of the paper describes a study that examines the reliability and validity of two specific religious coping measures in nursing home, assisted living, and personal care residents. The study utilizes a cross-sectional design by interviewing a convenience sample of nursing home, assisted living, …

Investigating The Effects Of Motivational Interviewing Compared To Action Planning On Supporting The Emotional And Academic Success Of Ninth Grade Students In Advanced Placement Classes, Kai Zhuang Shum

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

High school students in accelerated curricula (i.e., Advanced Placement classes or pre-International Baccalaureate program) tend to report higher level of perceived stress compared to general education students due to additional academic demands that stemmed from accelerated courses (Suldo & Shaunessy-Dedrick, 2013). However, this group of students often receives limited if any targeted supports in schools because they tend to perform well academically (Suldo, O'Brennan, Storey, & Shaunessy-Dedrick, 2018). To address this gap in literature, this study investigated the efficacy of a targeted intervention in development to support academic and emotional success among students in accelerated curricula, namely the Motivation, Assessment, …

The Impact Of Mindfulness Practices On The Dispositions Of Eight Third-Grade Elementary Students At An Elementary School In The Southeast Region Of The United States, Jakob Lauffer

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of the study was to examine the impact mindfulness sessions had on the dispositions of eight third-grade students. In the Spring of 2019, mindfulness practices were presented to third-graders in their regular classroom setting every Monday and Thursday over the six-week qualitative action research study. During this time, the teacher-researcher administered 15-minute mindful lessons that aimed to help increase coping strategies in the student population. The instruments used for data collection in this qualitative action research study were: a pre/post-intervention questionnaire, weekly exit slips utilizing multiple choice and open-ended questions, field notes, and digital video recordings. Students utilized …

Self-Affirmation Theory And The Change Of Perception Of Self And Threats, Isaac Wicker

Theses and Dissertations

In today’s American culture, people experience high rates of distress and depression (Kessler et al., 2005). Self-affirmation theory has been shown to help people reduce stress and defensiveness in the face of a wide variety of stressors. A shortcoming of self-affirmation exercises is that there are barriers to using them in naturalistic settings. One such barrier is that the affirmation content needs to be regulated so that it is not closely related to the salient stressor or else the effects of the affirmation could be counteracted. The current study sought to use a prompt-guided value selection for the self-affirmation exercise …

Adverse Childhood Experiences And Coping Methods For Social Work Students, Treyveon Parks, Alex Hernandez

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

The purpose of the following study was to explore and examine the prevalence of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) and coping methods among social work students at a Southern California university. The literature on ACE scores suggests that higher levels of ACE can impact well-being and functioning in adults, yet, provides limited information relating to social work.

A quantitative survey instrument constructed by Felitti and colleagues (1998) and two additional questions relating to coping methods and strategies were constructed by the researchers were used to gather data for the purpose of this study. Data for the following study was collected through …

Let's Be Blunt: Substance Use Among Black Male Student-Athletes, Elizabeth Griffin

Ed.D. Dissertations in Practice

Extensive research has been conducted on substance use within college athletics. However, a gap in the literature exists that does not specifically explore substance use among Black male student-athletes. This qualitative study seeks to answer the following research questions: (a) What do Black male student-athletes identify as reasons for engaging in substance use? (b) Do Black male student-athletes see substance use as a problem? If so, what supports would they envision needing to change their behavior? (c) Is there a perceived and/or experienced relationship between substance use and exploitation of Black male student-athletes? Ten Division I current and former Black …

The First Rule Of Improv, John M. Gilder

University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

The First Rule of Improv is a collection of fictional short stories concerned with loss, life’s unfairness, the weight of the past, and how people succeed or fail in coping. Each story explores these notions through its characters, who vary wildly in terms of both dramatic severity and success in the face of adversity, with the first rule of improv—to accept and build—being suggested by the author as the healthiest manner of approach, if not necessarily the easiest.

Fostering Creativity For Healing: A Literature Review On The Use Of Art Therapy And Mindfulness With Traumatized Adults, Kathryn Kost

Expressive Therapies Capstone Theses

Art therapy and mindfulness have often been applied separately in the treatment of traumatized adults, and positive results in research studies and clinical practice have been reported. This thesis explores and evaluates empirical evidence of the effectiveness of both modalities for trauma treatment with adults, considering the effects of trauma and how to appropriately integrate art therapy and mindfulness into a trauma-informed practice. The critical review begins by surveying literature on the neurological impacts of trauma, identifying the stages of trauma treatment and how to utilize a client’s window of tolerance to improve functioning and increase acceptance of difficult emotions. …

Stress Management: A Group Curriculum For Female Adolescents, Taylor Schaible

Dissertations, Theses, and Projects

In recent years, research has found that adolescents are experiencing stress at an astounding rate, even compared to adults. With a thorough review of the literature, it has been found that schools in the United States are experiencing an adolescent stress epidemic. Furthermore, students are experiencing stress in ways beyond an academic arena. With that being said, there seems to be a connection between stress leading to anxiety, as well as stress having a profound affect for students who have experienced traumatic experiences. Additionally, the research has shown that there are structural differences within a developing brain that may cause …

An Exploration Of Child Life Programming And Facility-Canine Assisted Therapy In Pediatric Hospital Settings, Bailey N. Barnett

MSU Graduate Theses

The field of Child Life and of canine-assisted therapy have both been shown to facilitate opportunities for patients to cope more positively during hospitalization. The purpose of this study is to explore the attitudes, experiences and perceptions of current Certified Child Life Specialists (CCLSs) who are primary or secondary FCAT handlers within child life departments that also run facility canine assisted therapy (FCAT) programs in a pediatric hospital. Qualitative data were collected from the participants using an online one-time survey through, Qualtrics. Four research questions were explored, specifically inquiring about the positive and negatives of FCAT programs, specific interventions where …

Resilience And Coping In Mothers Of Children With Sickle Cell Disease, Holly Carter

Dissertations

Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a prominent chronic illness in the United States. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2016) estimated that one child out of every 365 African-American births will have SCD, affecting approximately 100,000 Americans. Supporting and promoting the integrity of the family and its’ members when a child has SCD is important for each family member’s well-being. Specific family characteristics, such as resilience and coping are important to understand because they can mitigate stress and create positive family outcomes (Brown et al., 1993; Cousino & Hazen, 2013; Hildenbrand, Barakat, Alderfer, & Marsac, 2015; O’Hanlon, Camic, & …

The Importance Of Responsiveness: Improving Health-Related Outcomes Among Ostomates, Carrie Reif

Dissertations

More than 750,000 individuals in the United States live with an ostomy appliance, and additional 130,000 patients undergo ostomy surgery each year (United Ostomy Association of America, 2018). Although a life-saving procedure, patients confront significant physical (e.g., bowel routine and activity levels) and emotional (e.g., poor body image and depression) challenges that impede the adjustment process. When faced with health-related threats, the transactional action model of stress and coping argues that patients use strategies, such as seeking support, to effectively cope. However, because of perceptions of felt and enacted stigma and health-related uncertainty, some patients conceal ostomy-related issues and limit …

Termination For Fetal Anomaly: What Is The Impact Of Genetic Counseling On Coping?, Cayleen Smith

Dissertations & Theses (Open Access)

Pregnancy termination for fetal anomaly (TFA) is a unique experience that can cause women to develop long-term, complicated grief. Although a woman’s experience with her healthcare providers has been previously identified as an important factor in coping, studies have shown that many women report their healthcare as lacking to some extent. Given the overlap in patient needs and the practice scope of a genetic counselor (GC), this study aimed to examine how genetic counseling may impact coping as well as explore patient expectations of GCs pre- and post-TFA. An online survey, which included the Brief COPE and The Short Version …

The Influence Of Stressful Life Events On The Development Of Type 2 Diabetes, Joshua Minks

Dissertations

This study examined the relationship between distress and the development of Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) in the presence of established risk factors. Distress secondary to mental health disparities, stressful life events, and work conditions has been shown to promote insulin resistance and the development of T2DM.

Subjects (N=79) diagnosed with T2DM within the previous six months were recruited from SSM Health Centers and VA Medical Centers in the greater St. Louis area. They completed the Recent Life Changes Questionnaire, ENRICHD Social Support Instrument, and a demographic survey and analyses were conducted to determine differences between the veteran …

Health Information Seeking As A Coping Strategy To Reduce The Stress Of Informal Caregivers Of Individuals With Alzheimer’S Disease And Other Forms Of Dementia, Nia Francis Mason

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This study explored the relationship between information seeking and the perceived stress levels of informal Alzheimer’s and dementia caregivers. An additional component was added to determine whether health literacy and emotional state moderated the relationship.

The study involved conducting qualitative interviews followed by collecting survey data to answer the following research questions: 1) What motivating factors lead informal AD caregivers to seek out information? How do their information needs change? Why do informal caregivers choose to utilize certain resources more than others? Is there a correlation between information seeking and resulting stress levels? Does health literacy moderate the association between …

Becoming Stuck In Complicated Grief: Turning Loss Into Resilience, Hope, And Healing, Elizabeth (Pam) Strachan-Proudfit

Doctor of Ministry

Grief is a natural and normal experience reaching back to the narrative of creation. Research has revealed that about 80 to 90 percent of grievers experience normal or uncomplicated grief while a small percentage ranging from 10 to 20 percent struggled with complicated grief responses. This small percentage is the focus of this dissertation. Those who experience complicated grief are observed to become stuck and unable to move through the grieving process independently. Grievers who are stuck appear to have on-going difficulty in their spiritual, emotional, cognitive, and even physical health. The uniqueness of grief is not only real with …

Resiliency And Proactive Coping Methods Targeting Perceived Stress Levels In Older Adults, Katie Holmes

OT Student Capstones

Stress, or perceived stress, has the potential to be life-threatening to those that experience it on a regular basis. Community-dwelling older adults may be particularly vulnerable to perceived stress and its effects due to stressors such as negative life events, chronic disease or declining health, loss of loved ones experienced with the aging process, and social isolation. Stress and mental health and well-being are not being adequately addressed in independent and assisted living communities for older adults. An eight-week stress management program focusing on the concepts of resiliency and proactive coping was implemented at a local retirement community. An overall …

Autism And The Impact On Multicultural Famlies, Mai Kou Lor

All Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the impact of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) with parents from different cultures all over the world. The literature review focused on ways negative and positive outcomes impacted parents and caregivers raising children with autism. The results showed that even though parents and caregivers experienced high stress levels and difficult times, they gained a better perspectives and coping skills when learning to accept the autism disability. Studying information from other cultures and autism provides greater understanding about how autism impacts the Hmong community, when parents are raising a child with autism.

Coping Methods Of Caregivers Dealing With Patients Suffering From Geriatric Dementia, Blessing Baridakara Deemua

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Dementia is a neurological disorder primarily diagnosed in the geriatric population. A problem for paid caregivers of patients diagnosed with stage-4 dementia is that they may experience caregiving stress while rendering care. However, there was no research that described the lived experiences of paid caregivers. Caregiving stress can be accompanied by behaviors or comorbid conditions and specific symptoms of stress can have a differential wellness impact. This phenomenological study explored the lived experiences of paid caregivers of patients with dementia through Vroom's expectancy theory. Data were gathered through interpretative interviews from a sample of 10 to 15 purposefully selected nursing …

Exploring Stress Management And Coping Mechanisms In Parents Of Infants In The Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (Nicu), Samantha E. Day

Honors Undergraduate Theses

The purpose of this study was to conduct a literature review that examined parental coping mechanisms and stress relief techniques for parents of infants admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). A search was conducted using multiples databases using key terms such as stress AND coping, parent* OR caregiver, ped* OR child*, support* or aid, NICU OR neonatal intensive care unit, and nurs*. The results were limited to scholarly, peer reviewed journals in the English language. Exclusion criteria included not relating to parents or caregivers and mechanisms of coping with stress or if they pertain to palliative or end-of-life …

Lean On Me: Increasing Help-Seeking Behavior In Black College Men Through Institution Based Intervention Programming, Zien Celeste Hodge

Senior Projects Spring 2019

The disparity between the academic success of Black males and their White peers in the United States is robust. Research supports the disparity is not only the result of low financial status but also racial and gender barriers that affect how Black males navigate academic environments.Intervention programs to improve Black males’ quality of life through mentorship and motivationenhancement have impacted the academic success of Black males greater than those that provide financial resources. Yet, these interventions do not target Black males in primarily white education settings where academic stressors are greater, racial and gender barriers more commonplace and ability to …