Education Commons^™

Eustress In Advanced Placement (Ap) And International Baccalaureate (Ib) Students, Amanda C. Moseley

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Eustress, the positive response to stress, is a relatively understudied concept. Most of the research on eustress has been concentrated in the occupational and management setting. Empirical studies of eustress in adolescents are absent, even though youth experience unique sources and magnitudes of stress. Specifically, Advanced Placement (AP) and International Baccalaureate (IB) students report more stress than their general education peers but excel in their rigorous academic program. Eustress is related to a variety of positive psychological and physiological outcomes among adult samples, which makes it an important concept to explore in adolescent samples. Many constructs such as self-efficacy, hope, …

Academic Stress, Depression, And Social Support: A Comparison Of Chinese Students In International Baccalaureate Programs And Key Schools, Wenjun Chen

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine how academic stress affects Chinese high achieving secondary students’ mental health. Potential moderating effects of perceived social support and gender on the relationship between academic stress and depression were also examined. Current literature suggests Chinese high school students report greater academic stress and depression than their counterparts overseas (Sun, Dunne, Hou, & Xu, 2013), but it is unclear about the status of high achieving Chinese students as well as how social support works as a protective factor on this particular population. In order to fill this gap, the current study recruited a …

Predicting Adolescents' Academic Achievement: The Contribution Of Attention And Working Memory, Diane Elizabeth Napier

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The present study examined the direction and strength of the relation between three different areas academic achievement and working memory with adolescent students. The data analyzed included ratings for inattention, a diagnosis of ADHD (or not), and demographic information for race/ethnicity. Fifty children aged 11 to16 years of age participated in the study. Participants were recruited from several middle schools, homeschooling networks, and churches from a southeastern state of the United States. Each participant completed a standardized achievement test, a behavioral rating scale, and visual and verbal working memory tests. The research questions investigated: 1) the relation between visual and …

Improving Middle School Students' Subjective Well-Being: Efficacy Of A Multi-Component Positive Psychology Intervention Targeting Small Groups Of Youth And Parents, Rachel Anne Roth

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

A dual-factor model of mental health conceptualizes mental health status as a combination of both psychopathology and subjective well-being. Current literature indicates that complete mental health (i.e., low psychopathology, high subjective well-being) is associated with the best academic and social functioning among youth. Thus, the absence of psychopathology alone is not sufficient for student success. While research on interventions for improving subjective well-being, termed positive psychology interventions (PPIs), is increasing, PPIs for youth in particular lag behind similar interventions for adults. Additionally, a majority of youth-focused PPIs have targeted singular constructs (e.g., gratitude, character strengths), have neglected to include relevant …

Learning From Voices Of Diverse Youth: School-Based Practices To Promote Positive Psychosocial Functioning Of Lgbtq High School Students, Troy Nicholas Loker

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to identify school-based practices that lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning (LGBTQ) youth endorse as ways for high schools to provide social, emotional, and academic support to LGBTQ youth. A diverse sample of LGBTQ high school students (N = 18) from one large urban school district in a southeastern state participated in individual semi-structured interviews and/or small group brainstorming sessions. Eleven individual interviews were conducted to gather detailed accounts of a) supportive behaviors and policies that youth had experienced in their schools, as well as b) supportive behaviors and policies that were suggested as …

A Comparative Historical Analysis Of Post-War Moral Panics And The Construction Of Youth From 1938 To 2010, Judy L. Castillo

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

For the past 50 years, various moral panics have emerged in response to concerns about children and teens. In particular, interest in entertainment appealing to youth has been the focus of social and legislative changes aimed at protecting youth from increased sexual and violent content associated with comic books, music lyrics, Internet content, and film and television.

The intent of this study is to compare the emergence and progression of moral panics related to entertainment appealing to youth, such as comic books, music lyrics, the Internet, and film and television, since 1938 to 2010 to better understand the ways we …