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Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons

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Articles 1 - 9 of 9

Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences

Life Without Parole: The Influence Of Age And Race On The Sentencing Of Juvenile Offenders, Maria Annabel Mireles May 2012

Life Without Parole: The Influence Of Age And Race On The Sentencing Of Juvenile Offenders, Maria Annabel Mireles

Psychology Theses

In 2010, the Supreme Court ruled it unconstitutional to sentence adolescents charged with non-homicide crimes to life without parole (Graham v. Florida, 2012). Currently, research regarding life without parole is assessed in conjunction with the death penalty, in which life without parole is proposed as a lesser alternative to the death penalty. The current study investigated whether age and race are predictive factors in sentencing juvenile offenders. A sample consisting of 225 undergraduate students were presented with one of six case scenarios adapted from Wilkins v. Missouri (1985) in which the defendant’s age (13, 15, 17) and race …


Randomized Trial Of A Broad Preventive Intervention For Mexican American Adolescents, Nancy A. Gonzales, L. E. Dumka, R. E. Millsap, A. Gottschall, D. B. Mcclain, J. J. Wong, M. German, A. M. Mauricio, Lorey A. Wheeler, F. D. Carpentier, S. Y. Kim Jan 2012

Randomized Trial Of A Broad Preventive Intervention For Mexican American Adolescents, Nancy A. Gonzales, L. E. Dumka, R. E. Millsap, A. Gottschall, D. B. Mcclain, J. J. Wong, M. German, A. M. Mauricio, Lorey A. Wheeler, F. D. Carpentier, S. Y. Kim

Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families, and Schools: Faculty Publications

Objective—This randomized trial of a family-focused preventive intervention for Mexican American (MA) adolescents evaluated intervention effects on adolescent substance use, internalizing and externalizing symptoms, and school discipline and grade records in 8th grade, one year after completion of the intervention. The study also examined hypothesized mediators and moderators of intervention effects. Method—Stratified by language of program delivery (English vs. Spanish), the trial included a sample of 516 MA adolescents (50.8% female; M =12.3 years, SD=.54) and at least one caregiver that were randomized to receive a low dosage control group workshop or the 9-week group intervention that included …


Testing The Indirect Effect Of Trait Mindfulness On Adolescent Cigarette Smoking Through Negative Affect And Perceived Stress Mediators, C. Anderson Johnson, David S. Black, Joel Milam, Steve Sussman Jan 2012

Testing The Indirect Effect Of Trait Mindfulness On Adolescent Cigarette Smoking Through Negative Affect And Perceived Stress Mediators, C. Anderson Johnson, David S. Black, Joel Milam, Steve Sussman

CGU Faculty Publications and Research

Mindfulness refers to an enhanced attention to and awareness of present moment experience. This study examined how trait mindfulness, as measured with six items from Mindfulness Attention Awareness Scale, might influence adolescent cigarette smoking frequency through its impact on depressive affect, anger affect and perceived stress mediators. Self-reported data from Chinese adolescents (N = 5287, mean age = 16.2 years, SD = 0.7; 48.8% females) were collected within 24 schools. The product of coefficients test was used to determine significant mediation paths. Results from baseline cross-sectional data indicated that trait mindfulness had a significant indirect effect on past 30-day …


The Effects Of Adolescent Heavy Drinking On The Timing And Stability Of Cohabitation And Marriage, Lela Rankin Williams, Laura Wray-Lake, Eric Loken, Jennifer L. Maggs Jan 2012

The Effects Of Adolescent Heavy Drinking On The Timing And Stability Of Cohabitation And Marriage, Lela Rankin Williams, Laura Wray-Lake, Eric Loken, Jennifer L. Maggs

CGU Faculty Publications and Research

Based on prospective British Cohort Study data, adolescent alcohol use predicted the timing and stability of committed partnerships between 16 and 34 years (n = 3278; 59% female). Propensity score methods balanced age 16 heavy drinkers (32.4%) and nonheavy drinkers on a range of relevant risk factors assessed in infancy and childhood. Adolescent heavy drinking predicted having ever cohabited, earlier transitions into cohabiting and marital relationships, more breakups, and an increased likelihood of divorce. Gender and social class moderated these relationships; heavy-drinking working-class males were especially likely to cohabit and to experience early entry into cohabitation and marriage. Implications …


Core Beliefs, Self-Perception, And Cognitive Organization In Depressed Adolescents, David J. A. Dozois, Julie A. Eichstedt, Kerry A. Collins, Elizabeth Pheonix, Kimberley Harris Jan 2012

Core Beliefs, Self-Perception, And Cognitive Organization In Depressed Adolescents, David J. A. Dozois, Julie A. Eichstedt, Kerry A. Collins, Elizabeth Pheonix, Kimberley Harris

Psychology Publications

The relationships between cognitive products (e.g., self-perception) and cognitive structure (or organization) in clinically depressed adolescents and nonpsychiatric controls (average age = 14.68) were examined. Adolescents with major depressive disorder showed significantly higher scores than did controls on the Young Schema Questionnaire domains of Disconnection, Impaired Autonomy, and Impaired Limits. These individuals also demonstrated poorer self-concept than controls on scholastic abilities, social acceptance, athletic competence, physical appearance, job competence, behavioral conduct, and global self-worth, as well as perceptions of limited social networks. The organization of self-referent adjectives was more tightly interconnected for negative content and less interconnected for positive content …


Wholeistic EducationTm, Cerissa Leigh Desrosiers Jan 2012

Wholeistic EducationTm, Cerissa Leigh Desrosiers

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

This dissertation introduces Wholeistic EducationTM (WEDTM), an innovative, values-based, interdisciplinary pro-social theory that is the culmination of centuries of scientific and philosophical learning and exploration about optimal mental health and human development. WED is based on basic human nature and universal human rights, and so it applies to all variations of human society- racial, ethnic, religious, or otherwise. WED is a foundation theory to which any targeted implementation strategy can be applied. It is both a proactive strategy for seeking and maintaining health before a crisis arises in families, schools, and organizations as well as a treatment …


Stresses Of Mothers Caring For An Older Adolescent Diagnosed With Autism: A Phenomenological Exploration, Linda Mason Jan 2012

Stresses Of Mothers Caring For An Older Adolescent Diagnosed With Autism: A Phenomenological Exploration, Linda Mason

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

A review of the literature provides ample research about caregiver stress in relationship to healthcare needs, aging, and mental illness. However, there is limited research about caregiver stress in regard to families that care for a child with disability. Further limited in scope is research about mothers who care for an older adolescent with diagnosed autism. This qualitative phenomenological study explored the lived experience of six mothers caring for an older adolescent diagnosed with autism. The question about what causes stress resulted in findings: isolation, coping with their child's challenging behaviors, and frustration with the establishment. The question about what …


Teacher Support As A Moderator Of Behavioral Outcomes For Youth Exposed To Stressful Life Events, Rebekah S. Huber, Sarah K. Sifers, Daniel Houlihan, Rachel Youngblom Jan 2012

Teacher Support As A Moderator Of Behavioral Outcomes For Youth Exposed To Stressful Life Events, Rebekah S. Huber, Sarah K. Sifers, Daniel Houlihan, Rachel Youngblom

Psychology Department Publications

The present study examined the relationship between teacher support, life stress, and behavioral outcomes in 103 youth. Participants completed questionnaires regarding life events, social support, personality, and behavior. Moderated regression analyses were conducted using youth perceptions of teacher support and negative life events to predict externalizing and internalizing problems. Results revealed a significant interaction between teacher support and life stress, indicating teacher support successfully moderated the effect of stress on externalizing problems. Main effects for life stress were consistent with previous literature suggesting that higher amounts of stress predict greater externalizing and internalizing problems. Implications for teacher support are discussed.


Passageworks: The Impact Of A Social-Emotional And Spiritual Learning Program Among Adolescents, Randi Hirschberg Jan 2012

Passageworks: The Impact Of A Social-Emotional And Spiritual Learning Program Among Adolescents, Randi Hirschberg

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

Adolescence is a crucial developmental period in one's life. Unfortunately, our nation's youth are afflicted by high rates of risky behavior and psychiatric disorders that impact their ability for a successful future. Research indicates that school-based preventative social-emotional learning (SEL) programs can play a large role in improving the lives of adolescents. Despite this, few documented SEL program evaluations have examined their applicability to the fast growing Latino population. Latinos have been identified as more vulnerable to the problems among our youth than any other group. Identifying SEL programs that hold potential for decreasing these vulnerabilities is critical. Additionally, SEL …