Education Commons^™

Examining Culture And Gender Roles In Latina Undergraduate Participation In Stem At Utrgv, Stephanie Garza

Theses and Dissertations

The study was designed to examine the role of familism and gender role beliefs on Latina pursuit of a degree in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) fields. This study surveyed Latino/a undergraduate students at the University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley to determine the influence of socioeconomic status, familism and gender role beliefs on pursuit of careers in STEM. Participants completed a demographic questionnaire, the Pan-Hispanic Familism scale, the Attitudinal Familism scale and the Gender Role Beliefs scale. Findings revealed how major selection and pursuit of STEM is affected by students’ income level, familism, gender, and gender role beliefs. Results …

The Gratitude Questionnaire And Mindful Attention Awareness Scale For Use With Latina/O College Students: A Confirmatory Factor Analysis, Dion B. Smith

Theses and Dissertations

Interventions based on positive psychology constructs have become increasingly popular over the past two decades, necessitating validation of instruments for use with underrepresented populations (Pawelski, 2016; Vela, Lerma, & Ikonomopoulos, 2016). This study reports an evaluation of the Mindful Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS; Brown & Ryan, 2003) and the Gratitude Questionnaire (GQ-6; McCullough, Emmons, & Tsang, 2002) for use with Latina/o college students. Sample sizes used in this study are N = 207 (99 women and 104 men; 4 did not identify) for the MAAS and N = 127 (84 women and 38 men; 5 did not identify) for the …

Evaluating Practicum Student's' Therapeutic Effectiveness Using Solution Focused Brief Therapy With Mexican American Clients: A Single Case Design, Krystle L. Ortega

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to examine the effectiveness of a practicum counseling experience on client therapeutic outcomes using Solution Focused Brief Therapy with Mexican American clients. We implemented a small series (N = 3) single-case research design to assess the effectiveness of SFBT for increasing hope and decreasing clinical symptoms. Clients’ clinical areas of functioning and clinically significant change will be evaluated using the Outcome Questionnaire -45.2 whereas hope will be assessed using The Trait Hope Scale. The results of this study will ultimately help researchers in counseling education, counselors, supervisors, and students by providing an outcome …

Hispanic Bilingual Learners' Perceptions And Educational Experiences Of Spanish-Speaking In South Texas, Isela B. Stephens

Theses and Dissertations

The present study focuses on a subset of data obtained from a larger interdisciplinary project, Proyecto Posible, which investigates how sociocultural and instructional factors predict positive outcomes among Spanish- and English-speaking Hispanic bilingual learners. As one part of Proyecto Posible, interviewers asked learners to speak in their language of preference about their experiences in school and feelings developed during interactions with others, as bilinguals. This study examines the qualitative component on bilingual learners’ perceptions of their own language proficiency in English and Spanish, perceptions of language use across a broad range of contexts including school, home, and community, …

The Indelible Power Of The Intraverbal: Expanding The Intraverbal Repertoire And Utilizing Conditioned Praise Words To Decrease Problem Behaviors Of Typically Developing Students In Schools, Jose A. Zamudio

Theses and Dissertations

This study tested a disciplinary strategy that aimed at teaching students positive behaviors to decrease (or eliminate) problem behavior at school. In this study, data of five disruptive students from a middle school in South Texas were analyzed to evaluate the outcomes of the disciplinary strategy implemented by a disciplinary program facilitator at the campus. Students were conditioned to be more receptive to particular praise words related to positive thinking, and ten teachers at the campus were trained to deliver the conditioned praise words when the students expressed positive behaviors that corresponded with the conditioned praise words. Positive thinking celerated …

An Exploratory Investigation Of Tele-Counseling: Looking At The Power Of Therapeutic Alliance In Improving Wellness, Jorge Rostro

Theses and Dissertations

The present study explored the power of one tele-counseling session to elicit change within post wellness ratings scores and the relationship between clients’ perceptions of relationship, goals and topics, approach and method, and overall session with clients’ wellness ratings. Results indicated that the mean for post-session wellness was significantly greater than pre-test wellness ratings. The standardized effect size, d, was .43, indicative of a moderate effect size. No difference was found between client’s perceptions of predictor variables with post-wellness rating scores. This study adds support for the use of tele-counseling services as one session might have the power to elicit …

An Evaluation Of Alternative Methods For Online Survey Recruitment: The Equivalency Of Data Collected Through Amazon Mechanical Turk And Second Life To Traditional Undergraduate Student Samples, Elizabeth M. Briones

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

A major proportion of psychological research uses subjects from undergraduate populations. Increasingly, researchers are exploiting the Internet to reach beyond the traditional undergraduate sample. The current study sought to compare data obtained from a conventional undergraduate student sample to data collected via two online survey recruitment platforms: Amazon’s Mechanical Turk (MTurk) crowdsourcing site and the virtual environment of Second Life (SL). Data obtained via these online recruitment platforms was statistically equivalent to the data obtained from the college sample, based on standardized measures of psychological stress and sleep quality. Additionally, correlations between the sleep and stress measures were not statistically …

Increasing Social Interaction Skills In Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder Through Parent Implementation Of The Developmental, Individual Difference, Relationship-Based (Dir) Program, Yvette Cantu

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

The purposed study examined the changes in positive and negative social interactions based on parent implementation and non-implementation in the Developmental, Individual-Difference, Relationship-Based (DIR) program designed for children diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Nine participants were randomly selected and assigned to a DIR treatment group and a control group. The study was conducted over an eight week period. Overall, the statistical analysis of the implementation of the DIR program at home did not yield a significant change in positive social interaction skills. However, the parent's perspective of their children's social skills, as demonstrated through the parent questionnaire and through …

Parent Implementation Of The Developmental, Individual Difference, Relationship-Based (Dir) Program: Changes In The Repetitive Behaviors Of Children With Autism, Jessica S. Gonzalez

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

The study examined the changes in behavioral repetitive/stereotypies based on parent implementation and non-implementation in the Developmental, Individual-Difference, Relationship-Based (DIR) program designed for children diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). An experimental, 2x2 repeated measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to measure the changes in behavioral repetitive/stereotypies such as: rocking or other whole body movements, hand-flapping, ritualism, finger/light stimulation, aggressive behavior to self, and aggressive behavior to others, based on parent implementation or non-implementation of the DIR program. Nine participants were randomly selected and assigned to a DIR treatment group and a control group. The study was conducted over …

Factors Of Placement Decisions Of Students With Learning Disabilities, April C. Yetsko

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

This study looked at the factors that are involved in determining the placement decision of a child with a learning disability. Reading level, previous placement, initial placement, intelligence quotient, English proficiency and behavior were the factors examined in the study. Data was collected by examining the school files of children labeled as learning disabled in two school districts in south Texas. The different placement factors were studied to see which ones were most predictive of the number of hours a week that a student spent in a special education classroom. The research design utilized was a descriptive analysis, a correlation …

Teachers' Attitudes And Preceptions Towards Inclusion Of Gifted Students, Bertha Belen Perez

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

This study was to determine if middle school teachers' attitudes and perceptions towards gifted students in inclusionary classrooms are affected by experiential variables. Specifically, are receptivity towards gifted, training and knowledge in giftedness, and preferences towards teaching gifted students affected by teachers' attitudes? Are preferences and perceptions towards inclusive programs in the middle schools affected by teachers' attitudes?

The population is comprised of 135 general education teachers from three middle schools in the La Joya Independent School District, La Joya, Texas. The Teacher Report Questionnaire was designed using twenty-three questions. The questions were developed for general education teachers in the …

Bilingual Special Education: A Comparison Of The Perceptions Between Bilingual And Special Education Directors, Sarita Garcia

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

This study was conducted through a survey instrument. The quantitative aspect examined the question: Is there a significant difference in the mean scores between the directors' perceptions with respect to the need for: (a) bilingual special education (BSE) programs in the public schools; (b) training programs for teachers who serve students with limited-English proficiency and disabilities; (c) formal BSE certification; and (d) universities to offer BSE training? Positive and negative BSE attributes including suggestions comprised the qualitative dimension. The sample consisted of 40 bilingual education directors and 27 special education directors from the Lower Rio Grande Valley of South Texas …