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Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences
Improving Veterans’ Psychological Well-Being With A Positive Psychology Gratitude Exercise, Clara Im Adkins
Improving Veterans’ Psychological Well-Being With A Positive Psychology Gratitude Exercise, Clara Im Adkins
Counseling & Human Services Theses & Dissertations
The demand for therapeutic services and effective counseling interventions aimed at rehabilitating veterans has increased exponentially over the past thirty years. Veterans with PTSD symptoms experience several problems including, relationship issues, lower life satisfaction, suicidal ideation, isolation, and comorbid diagnoses. Current research on veterans diagnosed with PTSD suggests integrating wellness and strength-based approaches aimed at developing positive psychology characteristics into clinical services for veterans. Gratitude is a core construct in positive psychology and has been practiced in cultures all over the world. Gratitude journal interventions have been proven to increase well-being, positive affect, social relationships, optimism, life satisfaction, and lower …
Experiences Of Divine Grace Among Christian Friends, Kyle T. Webster
Experiences Of Divine Grace Among Christian Friends, Kyle T. Webster
Doctor of Psychology (PsyD)
Though topics of prayer, forgiveness, and gratitude have received attention in the psychology of religion, there is sparse literature regarding the concept of grace. This study explored how Christians who identify as Friends (Quakers) experience grace from God. Thirty interviews were conducted with Friends in the Pacific Northwest, using a standardized semistructured interview developed for a larger study of how Christians from various denominations experience grace. Four organizing themes were derived from the interview questions and then grounded theory was used to uncover associated sub-themes within each organizing theme. The organizing themes include the nature of God, the nature of …
Motivation To Volunteer, Lendi N. Joy
Motivation To Volunteer, Lendi N. Joy
USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations
The rate of volunteering in the U.S. remains low in spite of the many positive benefits that volunteering yields. Prior research has suggested various theories to help explain motivation to volunteer. Nonetheless, none of the theories have been both comprehensive and specific enough to allow for their practical application in recruitment efforts or campaigns to increase motivations to volunteer. The purpose of the current study was to test a comprehensive model of volunteer motivation by integrating the Volunteering Functions Inventory into the Theory of Planned Behavior as behavioral and normative beliefs that influence attitudes and subjective norms. The hypothesized model …
A General Education Course Designed To Cultivate College Student Well-Being, Jessica C. Davis
A General Education Course Designed To Cultivate College Student Well-Being, Jessica C. Davis
Dissertations, 2020-current
Mental health issues appear to be on the rise across our world, especially within the college student population. Considerable data suggests that today’s students have lower rates of well-being and healthy psychological functioning and higher rates of distress, fragility, and clinically significant mental health problems than seen in previous generations. These findings have led some scholars to define this trend as a college mental health crisis. The purpose of this study was to respond to this crisis via the development and administration of a well-being general education course conceptually grounded in Henriques’ Unified Framework of psychology and psychotherapy (see, Henriques, …
Critical Wisdom In The Training Of Clinical Psychologists, Ross B. Renfroe
Critical Wisdom In The Training Of Clinical Psychologists, Ross B. Renfroe
Doctor of Psychology (PsyD)
The construct of wisdom has been studied over the past 30 years with the majority of the research focused on wisdom as “expert knowledge in the fundamental pragmatics of life” (Baltes & Staudinger, 2000). In the Christian tradition, wisdom can be divided into two categories: conventional and critical. Conventional wisdom bears striking similarities to the understanding of wisdom used in psychological research. In contrast, critical wisdom addresses the difficult paradoxes of life, but has not been the focus of much empirical study. Critical wisdom could be a helpful construct for clinical psychologists who hope to practice psychology from an integrative …
Experiences Of Grace As Told By The Lgbtq Community, Nicholas A. Schollars
Experiences Of Grace As Told By The Lgbtq Community, Nicholas A. Schollars
Doctor of Psychology (PsyD)
Positive psychology has yielded rich insights about the nature of forgiveness and gratitude, but it is just beginning to broach the topic of grace. Theoretical evidence suggests grace is a crucial therapeutic factor in helping patients overcome shame, but empirical evidence is wanting. Because of the central role grace plays in Christianity, a qualitative exploration was conducted with a sample of participants identifying as either lesbian, gay, or bisexual, as well as Christian. Transcripts from 26 semi-structured interviews were coded and analyzed. Participants reported that their experiences of Divine Grace were related to their views about God’s nature. They reported …
Positive Art Therapy And Well-Being In Urban Us Schools: A Critical Review Of The Literature, Jennifer Hicks
Positive Art Therapy And Well-Being In Urban Us Schools: A Critical Review Of The Literature, Jennifer Hicks
Expressive Therapies Capstone Theses
The integration of positive art therapy into urban school systems holds great promise in increasing the general well-being of adolescents at a systemic level. Urban school systems tend to have a diverse ethnic population as well as students of low socioeconomic status. Adolescents in urban schools often face difficulties that stretch beyond academics such as poverty and racism. It is argued that there should be a method developed to diminish the growing rate of mental health issues within this demographic. Treating symptoms of mental health difficulties is important but looking at what makes people happy should not be ignored. What …
Trauma And Life-Satisfaction From A Dual-Factor Model Approach, David P. Engel
Trauma And Life-Satisfaction From A Dual-Factor Model Approach, David P. Engel
Psychology and Counseling Theses
The traditional approach in the mental health field is to view psychopathology and indicators of well-being as constructs at opposite ends of the same continuum. Recent evidence suggests that these might be separate, but related, constructs. Participants were 357 undergraduate psychology students who completed online questionnaires measuring trauma symptoms, life satisfaction, and four positive psychological constructs associated with well-being: gratitude, grit, hope, and savoring. Participants were organized into four groups based on life satisfaction level and trauma symptoms. Groups differed significantly on measures of gratitude, grit, hope, and savoring. Results support evidence that psychopathology and indicators of well-being are separate, …
Tales Of Thriving: Identifying The Underpinnings Of Women's Success In Stem Careers, Sarah E. Thoman
Tales Of Thriving: Identifying The Underpinnings Of Women's Success In Stem Careers, Sarah E. Thoman
UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones
Women remain underrepresented in U.S. science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields. Prior research enumerates many challenges that women experience in STEM and suggests interventions that enhance women’s exposure to STEM, technical acumen in STEM, or offer STEM community. Identifying what enables women to thrive in STEM is a novel approach to extending these efforts using a strengths-based approach. I thus conducted a case study focused on understanding the experiences of successful women in the STEM workforce. Findings revealed three core characteristics to women’s STEM success: synergizing self and science, science career advancement and mastery, and being a STEM change …
Authentic Perspectives On Autistic Resilience: Implications For Schools And Society, Andrew Nelson
Authentic Perspectives On Autistic Resilience: Implications For Schools And Society, Andrew Nelson
Theses, Dissertations and Capstones
This study explored resilience factors as identified by autistic adults with authentic lived experience. Historically, Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) has been diagnosed using deficit models and criteria designed by outsiders with little input from the autism community. While risk of adversity is often high for those with ASD, scant research exists looking at the strengths, adaptive skills, and environmental factors contributing to the resilience of people with ASD. Autistic adults were interviewed (N = 10) to assess which internal and external risks and protections participants deemed important to their resilience. Responses were coded, analyzed, and compared to existing resilience data …