Digital Commons Network^™

Parent-Child Interaction And Developing Resilience In Young Children, Seungok Yum

Theses and Dissertations

Early childhood is an especially important period to develop resilience due to social, academic, and emotional benefits for later development. Previous studies pointed out the importance of parent-child interactions, by showing that parental warmth and support can enhance resilience in children by increasing children’s self-esteem and self-regulation. In contrast, hostile parent-child interactions were revealed as risk factors to hinder developing resilience by increasing children’s internalizing symptoms and behavioral difficulties. This study included 85 young children aged 4 to 5 years and 85 parents recruited from the community. Parents completed the Parent Behavior Inventory (PBI) to provide details about two parent-child …

Children's Understanding Of The Internet As A Moderator For Age-Related Trust Tendencies, Travis Hicks

Theses and Dissertations

Children take many factors into consideration when deciding to trust an informant, several of which are applicable to the internet as well. No research has been dedicated to studying whether children’s understanding of the internet’s social complexity (capacity to affect society in both good and bad ways) affects the amount of trust they place in the internet. Child participants (N = 97) ages 5 to 11 years were recruited to examine the relationship between age, time spent online, internet use, and trust in the internet, as well as the influence of social complexity understanding on the relationship between age and …

Uprooted But Unbroken: Exploring The Experiences Of Yemeni Students At Yemeni Schools In Cairo, Sumood Abdulhadi

Theses and Dissertations

To contribute towards filling the research gap on the experiences of uprooted Yemeni children in Egypt, this phenomenological research was designed to explore the experiences of uprooted Yemeni students in Egypt. Twenty male and female Yemeni students from four Yemeni schools in Cairo participated in semi-structured interviews. The findings revealed that these uprooted children face various economic, social, and academic challenges within the Yemeni schools in Cairo, which seem to hinder their educational progress. Moreover, Yemeni children face difficulties not only within the Yemeni schools in Cairo but also in the streets and Egyptian schools of Cairo. Nevertheless, they appeared …

The Relationship Between Parental Trauma History And Perceptions Regarding Their Child’S Healthcare And Utilization Of Healthcare Services, Krishna Patel

Theses and Dissertations

Abstract

TITLE: The Relationship Between Parental Trauma History and Perceptions Regarding Their Child’s Healthcare and Utilization of Healthcare Services

Adverse child events (ACEs) have been associated with a number of physical and mental health problems and have also been linked to increased health care utilization. While parents who have an ACE history may tend to seek healthcare services for themselves, limited studies have examined the impact of their trauma history on seeking healthcare services for their child. Healthcare utilization may also depend on the parents’ level of health anxiety, as well as their anxiety about their child’s health status. This …

Academic Impacts Of Intergenerational Trauma: Assessing The Relationship Between Ace Scores Of Parents And The Language And Literacy Development Of Their Elementary-Aged Children, Paige Lee Banaszak

Theses and Dissertations

This paper contributes to the current literature by investigating factors that may contribute to language and literacy difficulty among children, to support the future development of effective intervention techniques. The data analyzed in this paper was collected from children and families participating in Reach Every Reader, a research study currently being conducted to improve literacy outcomes in the U.S. by developing a computer-adaptive screening assessment tool to identify children at risk for language and literacy difficulties early in their educational development. Children enrolled in kindergarten through third grade completed tasks that target language and literacy skills, and their parent(s) completed …

The Effects Of Poly-Strengths On Psychological Wellbeing Amongst Young Adults With Childhood Poly-Victimization, Nakisa Asefnia

Theses and Dissertations

The field of trauma and victimization has undergone many evolutions in its efforts to conceptualize the impacts of victimization and more recently poly-victimization. Poly-victimization refers to the experiencing of multiple types of victimization over the lifespan. This has led to an ever-growing base of literature highlighting the many deleterious effects of these experiences on individuals’ wellbeing, and the factors which may make a person more vulnerable to victimization. However, a growing movement in the field aims to take a more strengths-based perspective that highlights the resilience of individuals, rather than risk factors, in the hopes of better understanding the factors …

Exploration Of The Association Between Obesogenic Environments And Childhood Overweight/Obesity Rates In Rural Counties In The United States, Kara Lea Ferguson Davis

Theses and Dissertations

Rising obesity rates, particularly among children, pose a significant public health concern. Of particular concern is the prevalence of childhood obesity in rural communities, with up to 38% of rural children classified as overweight or obese, compared to 30% of urban children. Rural communities often lack the typical built environment characteristics associated with increased physical activity rates and healthy eating behaviors. Further, research on obesogenic environments within rural areas is limited. This study aimed to address this research gap by examining the association between obesogenic environment features and childhood overweight/obesity rates across the urban-rural continuum.

Simple and multiple linear regression …

Parental Psychological Maltreatment In Egypt: Exploring Intergenerational Parenting Behavior And Identifying Protective Factors, Sylvia Said

Theses and Dissertations

Psychological maltreatment is an under-recognized problem, even though it is a widespread form of child maltreatment and has detrimental consequences, whether in the short or long term. This study aims to explore the intergenerational patterns of parenting behaviors, measure the difference in emotionally abusive behaviors between mothers and fathers, investigate the relationship between childhood emotional abuse and adopting different parenting styles, and identify the protective factors against parental psychological maltreatment. A mixed-methods approach was used to answer these research questions thoroughly. Online versions of the survey, in English and Arabic, were shared on social media platforms, and online interviews were …

Protections And Liabilities: Parental Attributes Of Lynch Victims, Peter Shumway Polhill

Theses and Dissertations

Minimal research has focused on how lynching was not purely an individual-level event but, at times, was a family-level process. Prior research has focused on the economic forces, social factors, and individual level attributes that changed the probability of being lynched. Research studying these topics has identified that marginalization, status, distinctiveness, and the racial threat hypothesis contribute to lynching. However, this research has not studied child victims and how parental level attributes may intersect differently with these theoretical perspectives. Using machine-learning tools, I created census linked data which identifies the families of child lynch victims and other non-victim families in …

Development And Validation Of A Spanish Nutrition Screening Tool For Hispanic American 3 To 5-Year-Olds, Denisse Arias Olivas

Theses and Dissertations

Latinos comprise 18.9% of the population in the United States and are the largest and fastest growing minority group. Obesity prevalence was 26.2% among Hispanic children compared to 16.6% among non-Hispanic White children. The obesity epidemic among Latino children has been growing rapidly over the past three decades. Multiple barriers, such as lack of culturally appropriate screening tools, language, and lack of access to nutritional assessment and expert consultation, prevents screening of Latino children and further nutritional guidance. For this reason, prevention efforts such as the use of nutritional screening tools is required for early intervention, more so with populations …

Mothering Experiences Of Women In Jail, Bothwell Piason

Theses and Dissertations

Women make relatively small proportions of incarcerated population worldwide, but the rate at which they have been incarcerated over the past four decades in the U.S. has outpaced that of their male counterparts. Although carceral trends show declining patterns in prison population numbers, the jailed population continues on an upward trend (Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2022), studies have focused more on prison than jail. The disproportional incarceration of women is evident in jails where the majority of women incarcerated are mothers of young children (Sawyer & Bertram, 2022). The current paper explores mothering experiences of women in two Midwestern jails, …

Current International Legal Measures For The Protection Of Children Used In Armed Conflicts: Recommendations For The Resolution Of The Problem, Elliot Bibaje

Theses and Dissertations

War is not new; Armed Conflicts are not new. The use of Children in Armed Conflicts is not new. From Afghanistan, Syria, Yemen, Nigeria, Sudan, Democratic Republic of Congo (DCR) and the world over, children are being used in Armed Conflicts. These have led to crime, criminality, diseases, rape destruction of basic infrastructure, the eco system and future of the dead, living and unborn generation.

Despite International legal instruments put in place to curb the use of children in Armed conflicts, in the area International Human Rights and Humanitarian Law, Labor Law and International criminal Law, the use of children …

The Association Between Covid-19 Exposure, Secondary Adversities, And Trauma Symptoms In Children, Maddi Gervasio

Theses and Dissertations

Natural disasters include direct exposure and secondary adversities (Chrisman & Dougherty, 2014). For youth, severity of disaster exposure and number of secondary adversities have been found to be positively associated with the severity of trauma-related psychopathology, including posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression (Giannopoulou et al., 2006). Preliminary studies suggest an interaction between trauma exposure severity and number of secondary adversities in the prediction of psychopathology. Notably, youth who experienced secondary adversities without directly experiencing the trauma exhibited heightened psychopathology (Kar, 2019), yet these children tend to be excluded from studies and missed when identifying children in need of services. …

Predicting Therapists’ Intentions To Use An Innovation: The Role Of Innovation-Specific, Individual, And Organizational Factors, Jonathan KuʻUhoaepilipono Ahuna

Theses and Dissertations

Understanding factors that contribute to an individual’s decision to use an innovation can increase the public health impact of innovations in children’s mental health services. Objective. This study examined whether and to what extent therapists’ innovation-specific judgements (e.g., innovation is easy to use, socially desirable) were associated with intentions to use an innovation using constructs from one of the most robust theories of innovation use–the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT). Method. Two aims were addressed using data collected from 95 therapists and 28 supervisors who participated in a multi-site cluster randomized trial. Therapists used either a …

Effectiveness Of Group Interventions For Weight Loss For Youth: A Meta-Analytic Review, Monica Carolina Martinez

Theses and Dissertations

Introduction: Nearly 19.3% of children in the United States have obesity. There are several behavioral weight loss (BWL) programs available for children and adolescents that have proven effective in managing weight. Many of these treatments are delivered to groups of children rather than to individual youth. However, previous reviews of the literature have not explored the unique effects of group treatment modalities. Research has shown that social ties, particularly with peers, have an impact on adolescents' physical activity engagement and dietary habits. Therefore, it is important to explore how the interaction component of group delivered BWL treatments contributes to their …

Relationships Among Sleep, Physical Activity, And Weight Status In Children And Adolescents, Agnes Bucko

Theses and Dissertations

Sleep and physical activity are both associated with multiple behavioral and metabolic health outcomes, and both behaviors have been linked to the development of weight status. Recent estimates suggest that many children are not meeting sleep recommendations or participating in adequate levels of physical activity, which may be related to the high prevalence of childhood overweight and obesity. Much of the research assessing these relationships has focused on adults and older children, and has relied on parent- or child-reported, cross-sectional research in predominantly White samples. Little work has focused on these relationships in very young children. Although more research has …

An Examination Of Early Childhood Teachers’ Perceptions Of Discussing Race With Children, Sarah Elizabeth Kubly

Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative study examines early childhood teachers’ perceptions and practices with regard to talking to young children about race. Through an online survey and an individual interview with two early childhood teachers, I uncovered three findings: a) teachers’ understandings of their students’ racial awareness, b) teachers’ current classroom practices regarding race, culture, ethnicity, and c) challenges teachers faced in talking about race with their students along with possible sources of support. Based on these findings, I concluded that teachers made the decision not to directly confront the issue of race with their students due to feelings of fear and discomfort. …

Huérfanos: A Memoir, Mauricio Garcia

Theses and Dissertations

If you look hard enough, there are stories of children in foster care. Tales of their plight, longing for love, the love of their parents, love from the foster care system, or a foster care family. However, despite their existence, so much is left in the unknown. The story of how this child’s life came into the world, what outcomes transpired for a parent to give up a child, and the journey the child may have to take for closure. Answers to the why. Why was I given up, why was I not sought out, why did my family …

Evaluating Nutrition Knowledge In Parents And Its Relation To Childhood Obesity, Rachael Shangraw

Theses and Dissertations

This study aims to evaluate the relationship between parental nutrition knowledge and their child’s body mass index (BMI) to identify variables that are associated with increased obesity in American children. A cross-sectional study design was employed with a convenience sample of 464 parents of children between the ages of 2 and 12. Parents completed a GNKQ-R (General Nutrition Knowledge Questionnaire – Revised) survey to measure nutrition knowledge. Parents reported their child’s height and weight which was later calculated and categorized according to the Center for Disease Control’s BMI-for-age growth chart. The Kolmogorov-Smirnov Test for Normality was conducted to examine the …

Opportunities For Wonder In A Public Park, Alexander Butler

Theses and Dissertations

Research suggests unstructured play is important to a child's mental and physical development, and the natural world provides excellent opportunities for formative experiences. Urban environments, however, present challenges to finding and enjoying wild spaces. The potential role of public parks, supported by a small survey of college students, is discussed.

Measuring Irrational Beliefs Among Youth: Development Of The Children’S Irrational Response Checklist, Alexa K. Pata

Theses and Dissertations

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT) are evidenced-based approaches that have been identified as effective for the treatment of psychological disorders among youth (Bernard & Terjesen, 2020). However, although beliefs and cognitions have been shown to be predictive of emotional and behavioral problems in children (Mogoaşe, Podină, et al., 2013), and modifications in cognitions have been shown to be vital for treatment (David et al., 2017), the research and psychometric properties surrounding measures designed to specifically assess irrational beliefs, self-statements, or automatic thoughts in youth are lacking due to theoretical and practical limitations (Terjesen et al., …

Trends And Outcomes Of A School-Based Campaign To Reduce Sugar-Sweetened Beverage Consumption Among Racially And Ethnically Diverse Students In Middle School, Roya Amirniroumand

Theses and Dissertations

Reducing sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) consumption has been identified as a chronic disease prevention strategy in children and adolescents (Muth et al., 2019; USDA & HSS, 2015) and promoting healthier alternative beverage options has become an important focus for public health policy and educational efforts. Community-driven school-based health initiatives targeting SSB consumption have shown promising outcomes however, few studies have explored these strategies for middle school students and less is known about the potential benefits of these efforts with racial/ethnic minority youth.

The present study examined whether racial/ethnic differences in SSB consumption existed in a sample of 419 students at one …

“Before The World Gets Them”: The Impact Of Racialized Parenting On Black Mothers, Mia Brantley

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation explores the distinct practices Black women implement to protect their children from both actualized and anticipatory experiences of racism, as well as its effects on their mothering experiences, health and well-being, as well as how they manage the emotional and mental toll of their children’s experiences. Race plays an integral role in shaping mothering practices. More specifically, motherwork examines how Black mothers ensure the physical, mental, and emotional survival of their children in the face of micro-and macro-level structures that perpetuate racism and inequality. However, much is left to explore regarding the interconnectedness between Black women’s motherwork, linked …

Anxiety And Social Withdrawal Among Children: Associations With Emotion Awareness And Emotion Regulation Strategy Use At The Intra- And Interpersonal Levels, Janae Ellen Teer

Theses and Dissertations

Anxiety and social withdrawal are two frequently experienced internalizing conditions among children. These early-onset challenges are associated with numerous maladaptive outcomes in the academic, social, and psychological domains (Levitt & Merrill, 2009; Long, 2018; Sanchez et al., 2018; Shernoff et al., 2017). While identifying anxious and socially withdrawn children in the classroom is difficult as symptoms generally occur internally, distinguishing between the conditions is perhaps more challenging as the two are closely associated, oftentimes overlapping constructs (Barzeva et al., 2019; Rubin et al., 2009). Particularly, it is unclear whether anxiety and social withdrawal are similarly or differently associated with key …

A Thematic Analysis Of Parenting Experiences Of Women In Prison, Pious Dananai Maedzenge

Theses and Dissertations

Given the increased representation of women in prisons, several collateral consequences have followed One of such consequences include, but are not limited to, the effect that incarceration has on incarcerated mothers given that, in most instances, they are the primary caregivers of their children. Using Braun and Clarke (2006; 2019) reflexive thematic analysis approach and secondary analysis of qualitative data, this study examines parenting experiences of women incarcerated in a Midwestern correctional center. Additionally, the researcher is interested in knowing the ways in which background experiences (i.e. sexual and physical abuse, drug dependency, and broken homes) shape women’s experiences of …

Using Deep Learning-Based Framework For Child Speech Emotion Recognition, Gerald N. Onwujekwe

Theses and Dissertations

Biological languages of the body through which human emotion can be detected abound including heart rate, facial expressions, movement of the eyelids and dilation of the eyes, body postures, skin conductance, and even the speech we make. Speech emotion recognition research started some three decades ago, and the popular Interspeech Emotion Challenge has helped to propagate this research area. However, most speech recognition research is focused on adults and there is very little research on child speech. This dissertation is a description of the development and evaluation of a child speech emotion recognition framework. The higher-level components of the framework …

Implicit Attitudes Toward Children’S Gender Nonconforming Behavior: The Mediating Role Of Stigma By Association When Blaming Mothers, Emily A. Morrow

Theses and Dissertations

This study was designed to examine the possible connection between a child’s gender nonconformity and attitudes toward both the child and the mother of the gender nonconforming child. Specifically, this study explored the impact of gender nonconforming behavior on undergraduate student perceptions of the child and the parenting competence of the mother. Following social psychology theories examining stigma and stigma by association, this study represents an attempt to determine whether gender nonconforming behavior is a stigmatizing factor, and if that stigma is carried over to the mother. Findings from this study suggested that gender nonconforming behavior is indeed a stigma …

We All Feel Feelings, Ben Ohene

Theses and Dissertations

Consisting of three illustrated books, We All Feel Feelings is designed as a vehicle for the discussion of emotional and mental health with young boys. These books will help foster a mindset of openness and acceptance through different methods of displaying and understanding emotions.

Minor Subjects: Power And Inequity In Children's And Adolescent Literature, Wesley Jacques

Theses and Dissertations

In this project, I examine theoretical parameters of what has historically been considered American children’s and adolescent literature to further complicate its subject matter. The importance of reconsidering subjects is upheld here as key to challenging longstanding cultural and political inequities in the reading and teaching of literature broadly. Nonetheless, as this project contends, children’s and adolescent literature as a discipline is uniquely positioned to examine political power and challenge major power structures, not in spite of its presumed minor position in academic and literary discourse, but largely because of it. Thus, what follows is an inquiry into contemporary theories …

Judith Leyster: A Study Of Extraordinary Expression, Nicole J. Cardinale

Theses and Dissertations

Judith Leyster’s innovative application of expression in her Self Portrait serves as the focus, whereby she is shown to blend conventional painting categories, preserve a sense of innocence, and confidently flaunt her skills. In turn, Leyster challenged the male-centric art market and stood apart from her artistic predecessors and contemporaries.