Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Analyzing Changes In Students’ Media Writing Self-Perceptions During A Writing-Intensive Course, Cara Lawson, Whitney Whitaker, Courtney Meyers

Journal of Applied Communications

Regardless of academic discipline or future career responsibilities, college students are challenged to meet future employers’ demand for strong communication skills. However, becoming an effective, professional writer is a struggle for many college students. Based upon concepts of writing self-efficacy and writing apprehension, the Media Writing Self-Perception (MWSP) scale was administered to undergraduate students in a writing-intensive agricultural communications course to evaluate differences in writing self-perceptions as the semester progressed and to determine any relationships between MWSP scores and scores on assignments. Statistically significant differences were found in writing apprehension, self-efficacy, and elaborative/surface construct scores from the beginning of the …

Relation Of Emotion Regulation Difficulties, Self-Compassion, And Posttraumatic Stress Symptoms, Emily Anne Kalantar

Dissertations and Theses

Exposure to potentially traumatic events is associated with high emotion regulation difficulties, development of posttraumatic stress disorder, and elevated healthcare expenditures. Emotion regulation difficulties are related to worse clinical and sub-clinical posttraumatic stress symptomology relative to use of effective emotion regulation strategies. Yet, significant variance in posttraumatic stress symptom severity remains unexplained after accounting for emotion regulation difficulties, suggesting identification of additional explanatory variables is warranted. Considerable research suggests high (vs. low) self-compassion, which entails extending kindness to oneself, is related to more effective emotion regulation and low posttraumatic stress symptom severity. As such, self-compassion may be one variable that …

Legislators’ Perceptions Of Public University Student Lobbying Efforts On Public Higher Education Legislation: A Case Study, James J. Krotz, Lisa M. Rubin

eJournal of Public Affairs

College students have a legitimate interest in many policy issues that affect their campuses, but are they effective in lobbying their state representatives for their interests? Elected members of the Kansas state legislature were surveyed to determine if student lobbyists were effective in influencing legislator’s decision-making on matters of public higher education policy in Kansas. Interest group theory was utilized as a lens to view results of legislator perceptions. Findings suggested that 70% of legislator participants never altered their view on an issue after meeting with a college student lobbyist. Responses aligned with partisan politics, with Democrats more likely to …

College Students Rape Myth Acceptance And Men's Objectification Of Women, Samantha Dunlap, Devyn Fries

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

The purpose of this study was to understand the extent to which college students believe in and adhere to common rape myths and victim blaming beliefs, the extent to which college aged men objectify women, and lastly, the extent to which these two variables are related to one another. Using two groups divided based on gender and sexual orientation, participants responded to the Rape Attitudes Belief Scale (RABS) and the Men’s Objectification of Women Scale (MOWS). The survey questions used on these scales were designed to gather information about a person’s belief of common rape myths as well as men’s …

An Experimental Investigation Into The Impact Of Acute Stress On Alcohol Craving Through Implicit Coping Motives, Douglas J. Glenn

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

Drinking to cope with negative emotions is associated with many negative alcohol-related outcomes such as increased alcohol use, drinking-related problems, and alcohol use disorders. An acute stressor is one example of a stimulus leading to negative emotions that an individual may wish to avoid. Research has shown that acute stress positively relates to drinking. Specifically, previous experimental studies have shown that individuals exposed to a stressor drink more alcohol and have stronger urges to drink than those not exposed to a stressor. Thus, it may be that drinking to cope explains why people experience alcohol cravings after experiencing a stressor. …

Intention-Behavior Discrepancies For Alcohol Consumption Among College Students, Emily Kaye Junkin

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

Unplanned drinkers may experience elevated risk for drinking-related harm. Research examining unplanned drinking focuses on the unplanned nature of a drinking episode (i.e., did the student drink when no drinking was planned), yet this does not capture the importance of the unintended quantity consumed. For instance, a discrepancy between drinking intentions and actual consumption has the potential to differentially impact alcohol-related outcomes beyond what is accounted for by unplanned drinking episodes. Further, research has not investigated how college students’ unintended drinking is associated with alcohol-related consequences. Moreover, utilization of protective behavioral strategies (PBS) has been shown to decrease negative outcomes …

Socially Acceptable Alcohol Use: The Normalization Of Binge-Drinking And The Influences Of The Covid-19 Pandemic In A College Sample., Carter Golembeski

Honors College Theses

The relationship between college students and binge-drinking is a heavily researched and discussed topic. However, with the COVID-19 pandemic a whole new side of the issue is introduced. The impacts of the pandemic on binge drinking episodes, as well as personal desire to binge drink, is valuable data to be analyzed. This capstone project collected data from Georgia Southern students on their drinking habits, as well as how COVID-19 interrupted their social life. Their personal drinking habits were investigated, including how often they find themselves “black-out drinking” and how many drinks they usually consume on a single drinking occasion, as …

College Students’ Experienced Parenting Style Influences The Level Of Difficulty In Career Decision-Making, Carlota Cruces Serrano

Honors College Theses

Career choice can be a difficult process for young adults, and parental involvement is a key factor in students’ career development. In this study, we examined whether college students’ degree of decidedness differs with respect to parental styles, following Baumrind’s (1967) classification: authoritarian, permissive, and authoritative. The authoritative style tends to be associated with better outcomes overall due to parental figures seeking discipline and control while embracing an autonomy-supportive environment. We recruited 200 first and second-year college students to complete the Parent Authority Questionnaire to determine the parenting style exercised by their parents (Buri, 1991). Then, they completed the Career …

Comparisons Of Cooking, Dietary, And Food Safety Characteristics Of Food Secure And Food Insecure Sophomores At A University In Appalachia, Hannah Boone, Melissa D. Gutschall, Alisha Farris, Kimberly Fasczewski, Don Holbert, Laura Mcarthur

Journal of Appalachian Health

Introduction: Food insecurity means lacking access to adequate, nutritious, and safe food. Collegiate food insecurity rates at ten Appalachian campuses range from 22.4% to 51.8%, and have been associated with unfavorable health and academic outcomes.

Purpose: This study compared cooking, dietary, and food safety characteristics of food secure (FS) and food insecure (FI) sophomores at a university in Appalachia in the context of the USDA definition of food security.

Methods: Data were collected using an online questionnaire. Descriptive and inferential procedures compared FS and FI sophomores (p < 0.05).

Results: Participants (n = 226) were 65.0% females, 76.1% …

Social Anxiety Screening And Associated Factors Among University Students, Kathleen Prendergast

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

Social anxiety is a type of anxiety triggered by social situations whereby the individual feels scrutinized by others, and which may contribute to avoidance of certain situations. This avoidance can interfere with personal, academic, and career endeavors. Cognitive behavioral therapy can help manage social anxiety. However, social anxiety is often underrecognized and
under treated. A survey with the Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale (LSAS) was disseminated to identify and address this need among students in a large Northeastern university in the United States. The study is valuable as a pilot study. There was a small response rate for participation in the …

The Influence Of Social Capital On Risk Attitude Toward Covid-19 Amongst Traditional Undergraduates, Jordan Titera

Dissertations

This dissertation assesses the influence of the three types of social capital (bonding, bridging, and linking) on the risk attitude of traditional undergraduate students (under 25 years old who enroll directly from high school, attend full-time, and do not have major life and work responsibilities). The research is motivated by three research questions: (1) What is the risk attitude of traditional undergraduate students surveyed about COVID-19 (addicted, seeking, tolerant, averse, paranoid); (2) What are the social capital characteristics for traditional undergraduate respondents surveyed; and (3) What influence does social capital have on the risk attitude of traditional undergraduate students regarding …

Smartphone Use And Psychological Well-Being Among College Students In China: A Qualitative Assessment, Cheng Dai, Zixue Tai, Shan Ni

Journalism and Media Faculty Publications

Background: Problematic smartphone use is widespread, and college-age youth faces an especially high risk of its associated consequences. While a promising body of research has emerged in recent years in this area, the domination of quantitative inquiries can be fruitfully and conceptually complemented by perspectives informed through qualitative research. Toward that end, this study aimed to interrogate the myriad behavioral, attitudinal, and psychological tendencies as a side effect of college students’ engagement with the smartphone in their everyday lived experience through in-depth interviews.

Methods: We recruited 70 participants from seven college campuses hailing from different geographic regions in China, and …

Financial Behaviors, Financial Satisfaction, And Goal Attainment Among College-Educated Young Adults: A Mediating Analysis With Latent Change Scores, Xiaomin Li, Melissa Curran, Joyce Serido, Ashley B. Lebaron, Soyeon Shim, Nan Zhou

Faculty Publications

The aim of the study is to investigate how 2,084 U.S. college-educated young adults (61.9% female, and 69.5% non-Hispanic White) navigated the goal attainment process during the transition to adulthood. Using four-wave data collected across eight years, we examined how financial behaviors (self-regulating behaviors) predicted both depressive symptoms (affective goal attainment evaluations) and financial obstacles to goal attainment (cognitive goal attainment evaluations) via financial satisfaction (resources). Given the variability in developmental trajectories (i.e., initial levels and rates of over-time changes) among young adults, we conducted an exploratory mediational analysis with Latent Change Scores. The results revealed indirect-only mediation patterns, and …

Sexual Consent On Social Media: How College Students' Exposure To Sexualized And Party-Related Content On Social Media Relates To Their Sexual Consent Beliefs, Attitudes, And Intentions, Andrea Marie Smith

Dissertations - ALL

Sexual assault remains a prevalent issue on college campuses across the United States. Significant research has argued that to reduce the sexual assault rates on college campuses, it is vital to understand the cultural and contextual factors that may affect sexual consent communication between college students. One of these important contextual factors is social media. Social media are a persuasive and influential part of a college student's daily life, especially when it comes to creating and sustaining relationships with others. The purpose of this dissertation was to understand how college students may use social media to interpret a person's willingness …

The Relationship Between Demographic Variables And Life Satisfaction Of College Students, Alea Farmer

The Confluence

This paper explains a research proposal on the relationship between demographic variables and life satisfaction of college students. The variables being measured are gender, race, socioeconomic class, and college majors. A literature review was conducted to examine previous research on these variables in relation to life satisfaction. A relationship between these variables was found throughout the research studies that were analyzed. The proposed methodology for this research is a survey distributed to students at Lindenwood University. The survey will consist of four demographic questions as well as the Riverside Life Satisfaction Scale (Margolis et al., 2019) for participants to complete. …

Majority To Minority Shift: Experiences For American Born Chinese College Students From Predominant Chinese American Communities To Predominantly White Institutions, Joseph C. Chung

Doctoral Dissertations

This research aimed to fill the gap in literature by focusing on the experiences of American born Chinese college students that moved from ethnically dense Majority Minority Chinese American Communities (MMCAC) to attend Predominantly White Institution (PWI) college/universities. The study utilized a Grounded Theory qualitative approach, which led to the development of 6 categories or themes from 17 concepts and 48 codes. These were based on data from 10 participants across two phases with two interviews each (initial and follow-up). The 6 themes “Previous MMCAC Environment,” “Identity,” “New PWI Environment,” “Values,” “Transition Experience,” and “Mental Health'' provided the descriptive experience …

Am I Black Enough? – Identity And Belongingness Of Second-Generation African Students, Muna Yusuf

Educational Specialist, 2020-current

Over the course of the past few years, research regarding Black students has continued to increase. However, a lot of the research regarding Black students has focused heavily on the experiences and outcomes of African American students. Due to the history in the United States, the term Black has become synonymous with African American, leaving out the experiences of many second-generation African children. This explanatory mixed-methods design study examined second-generation African students’ ethnic identity and sense of belonging within the Black community in their school system. This study also compared reported levels of belongingness in college experiences versus high school. …

The Role Of Alcohol Use, Drinking Context, And Alcohol Expectancies In Sexual Assault Perpetration Among College Men, Joseph D. Censor

Theses and Dissertations

Sexual assault is a major public health and criminal justice problem in our society. The high prevalence rate of sexual assault victimization and perpetration among college students is even more disturbing. Additionally, the prevalence of alcohol use among college students is higher than in the general population, and alcohol use is associated with more than half of sexual assaults. The goal of the present study was to gain a deeper understanding of the role of various alcohol related factors in sexual assault perpetration among college men. Specifically, this study assessed the association of perpetration with general problematic alcohol use, general …

Depressive Symptoms And Marijuana Outcomes In College Students: The Mediating Role Of Protective Behavioral Strategies For Marijuana, Nicholas Militello

Master's Theses

The present study evaluated the sequentially mediating role of protective behavioral strategies for marijuana (PBSM) and marijuana use frequency on the relationships depressive symptoms had with hazardous marijuana use and marijuana-related negative consequences in college students Participants were 338 (50.3% male) undergraduate college students age 18 to 25 (M = 22.10; SD = 1.97) who reported marijuana use in the past 30 days. Participants reported their gender and completed measures of depressive symptoms, PBSM use, marijuana use frequency, marijuana-related negative consequences, and hazardous marijuana use through an online survey from a 2018 project. Depressive symptoms were positively associated with …

Informed Choices: Gender Gaps In Career Advice, Yana Gallen, Melanie Wasserman

Employment Research Newsletter

No abstract provided.

Awareness Of E-Resources Among The College Students In Assam: A Study, Dr. Anupam Chanda

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

Overview: Electronic resources are becoming more and more imperative and valuable for the academic community. This is a matter of concern, as presently, electronic resources and the internet are considered extremely important tools for effective teaching and research. Many users need to know the complete potential of electronic resources. Nowadays college students are using more and more e-resources but all those e-resources are not authentic as most of them are directly access the e-resources by using the Google search engine.

Purpose: The purposes of the study are to explore the level of awareness of e-resources, their usage pattern, how frequently …

Understanding Milk Consumption Habits Among College Students In Order To Redesign Outreach, Stacey F. Stearns, Adam N. Rabinowitz

The Journal of Extension

College students consume less dairy milk than in the past. Increased competition in the beverage aisle influences their choices. However, much of the population is not meeting the recommended intake guidelines for calcium. A survey of undergraduate college students with university dining plans focused on milk consumption habits, beverage choices, and student attitudes toward healthful foods and nutrition. Results are guiding Extension program educational outreach campaigns to college students. By focusing on the healthful and nutritional benefits of milk, Extension educators could increase consumption among college age consumers, and their long-term healthful outcomes.

Student Perceptions Of Academic Librarians And The Librarian-Faculty-Student Dynamic: Minding Our Gaps, Lara Sapp, Jody Fagan, Hillary Ostermiller, Elizabeth Price

Libraries

A survey concerning perceptions of academic librarians was conducted at a large, 4-year university with three populations: librarians, faculty, and undergraduate students. This paper presents results from the student population, with comparison to the librarian and faculty samples. The major research questions address perceptions about what librarians know (expertise and skills), what librarians do (role and duties), and what librarians are like (motivations and affective characteristics). Respondents showed a little more awareness of librarians’ professional duties than in previous studies; however, librarians’ duties related to organization, reference, and teaching remained more hidden from view. And, many students still assume librarians …

Avoiding The Ivory Tower Of Babel:​ Library Instruction For Esl Students, Patrick Quinn, Marci Cohen

ACRL New England Chapter Annual Conference

No abstract provided.

Obesity Prevention Toolkit To Combat Weight Gain Related To Sedentary Behavior And Dietary Habits In College Students: An Evidence-Based Project, Maria Amos, Martha Fuller

Doctor of Nursing Practice Final Manuscripts

Abstract

Background: Forty percent of the US population ages 20-39 are categorized as obese,

their BMI is over 30, and 35% of college age students are obese or overweight. Issues related to obesity cost the US $147 billion annually. Between 40%-50% of college students are reported to be inactive. Inactivity can lead to increased morbidity and mortality related to increased risks of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, hypertension, musculoskeletal issues, and depression. Providing dietary and physical activity education and access to nutritional information promotes behavior change in young adults.

Aims of Service Change: This evidence-based project proposal aims to provide a toolkit …

Pluralistic Ignorance Of Attitudes Toward Mental Health Services Among College Students, Rikki Hope Sargent

Dissertations - ALL

Students underutilize mental health services on college campuses in the United States. More research is needed to fully understand barriers to service use among this at-risk population and interventions should be created to address these barriers. Current research and interventions do not address group-level social comparison processes that elevate lack of service use. Particularly, pluralistic ignorance has not been assessed—that is, the systematic misperception of others’ cognitions and behaviors within a social group. It is possible that pluralistic ignorance contributes to the underutilization of services on college campuses. I began this assessment in three studies. In Study 1 (N = …

Breaking The Cognitive Spell: Cognitive Fusion Mediates The Relation Of Cognitive Anxiety Sensitivity And Rumination In Undergraduate College Students, Jacey L. Anderberg

Honors Thesis

Rumination (i.e., intrusive and repetitive self-directed thinking) predicts the onset, severity, and maintenance of depression (Galecki & Talarowska, 2017). Ruminative behavior is positively associated with cognitive anxiety sensitivity (i.e., fear of losing internal control; CAS), which may be attributed to cognitive vulnerabilities of depression. However, researchers have not clarified the link between these variables, and mechanisms responsible for change in CAS following treatment are unclear (Tull & Gratz, 2008). Accordingly, clarification of intermediate factors that may be targeted in psychosocial interventions appears warranted. Cognitive fusion (i.e., engaging with thoughts as true reflections of reality rather than products of thinking; CF) …

Antidepressants, Circadian Rhythms, And Cognition: The Effects Of Ssris And Snris On Circadian Rhythms And Cognitive Performance, Gabriel Gilmore

Masters Theses, 2020-current

It has been well documented that individuals with depression commonly experience sleep disturbances. Decreased sleep quality, diminished sleep efficiency, and increased nighttime awakenings are all typical ailments. Deficits in cognitive functioning often co-occur, including impairments in working memory, learning, inhibition, and set shifting. Many studies have found that upon taking antidepressants (i.e. serotonin agonists), individuals with depression experience normalized sleep and cognitive performance. The impact of antidepressants, especially SSRIs and SNRIs, on sleep stages, particularly REM and slow wave sleep, has been the subject of numerous studies. However, there is currently very limited literature that examines their impact on sleep …

Elephants Never Forget: Partisan Schemas And The Continued Influence Of Misinformation, Jeremy V. Hermanson

Honors Program Theses and Projects

In an age where information is plentiful and access to it is practically unlimited, the veracity of information is frequently an afterthought. Previous research has demonstrated that individuals may often be reluctant to alter their beliefs and attitudes even after false information is corrected. This phenomenon is known as the continued-influence effect or the continued influence of misinformation (CIM). Misinformation and “fake news” have grown more common, and their effectiveness may be explained by CIM. Research also shows that schemas can have significant effects on how information is processed, and preexisting beliefs, values and attitudes can affect what information is …

Examining Physical Activity Behaviors And Psychometric Beliefs Of College Students Before And After The Covid-19 Shutdown, James White Iii

Graduate Theses

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to examine PA behaviors, social support and self-efficacy for PA, Rosenberg self-esteem, and perceptions of body weight before and after the COVID-19 shutdown (March 15, 2020) among the college demographic.

Participants: 311 college students from a four-year, comprehensive, southeastern university in the United States were included in the study from December 1, 2020 until March 5, 2021.

Methods: Surveys were conducted via Qualtrics, an online survey system, and consisted of approximately 40 items, including demographic information, PA behaviors, social support and exercise, self-esteem, self-efficacy to exercise, and perceptions of body weight and self-image. …