Psychology Commons^™

Developmental Perspectives On Motivational Resilience: Predictors Of Eighth-Grade At-Risk Students' Academic Engagement And Achievement, Heather Anne Brule

Dissertations and Theses

This study uses the concept of stage-environment fit (Eccles et al., 1993) in conjunction with self-determination theory (Deci & Ryan, 1985) to guide an investigation of at-risk eighth graders' motivational and academic resilience. A developmentally-calibrated method was used to divide students into motivational and academic resilience groups based on their resilient, average, or stress-affected levels of academic engagement and GPA. Data from 167 eighth graders and 155 sixth graders were used to examine the extent to which students' ratings of autonomy, teacher support, peer support, and engagement in garden-based education were related to resilience group membership, and whether these four …

First-Generation Latinos At Pacific Northwest University: Their Adjustment And Experience During Freshman Year, Marco Antonio Aguirre

Dissertations and Theses

This thesis details the lived experiences of ten first-generation Latino students at a large public university in the Pacific Northwest. Their experience and adjustment reveal that they relied on their friends and family, especially their parents for the male participants, for support and encouragement. The help these students received in the form of caring and social capital from faculty and staff during their freshman year ensured that they made a successful adjustment to college. Participants cite influential people and programs that motivated them to succeed and become comfortable in the college student role.

Teacher Stress And Coping: Does The Process Differ According To Years Of Teaching Experience?, Jeffry Childs Beers

Dissertations and Theses

Teaching is stressful. The demands placed on teachers can result in emotional exhaustion and burnout, causing many to leave the profession. Teachers early in their careers seem to be at special risk, with desistence rates estimated as high as 40% in the first five years. This study was based on the notion that constructive coping can be a resource for teachers, and that teachers later in their professional lives may provide a model for adaptive ways of dealing with professional demands. The goal of the study was to examine whether the coping process utilized by teachers (including reported demands, appraisals, …

Student Outcomes, Educational Technology, And Assessment In Large Classrooms: Effects On Planned Behavior, Tanya Leigh Ostrogorsky

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this research was to investigate the impact of educational technology and classroom assessment on student outcomes. The research used a pretest post-test matched pairs design to test these effects. The Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) was used as a foundation for the model tested. Differences between the model tested and the TPB include the addition of Perceived Behavioral ControlTime 2 (PBC), and the dropping of Subjective Norms from the model. Participating faculty were trained in the use of educational technology, assessment, and course design. Each faculty taught two sections of a large course: first without the enhancements; …

Math Anxiety, Coping Behavior, And Gender, Sandra Joy Grossmann

Dissertations and Theses

Non-math majors enrolled in lower-division math courses at an urban university were surveyed on their math attitudes, coping behaviors, and math anxiety (MATHANX). The Revised Ways of Coping Checklist (RWCC), Revised Math Anxiety Rating Scale, and other questions were presented to 30 men and 32 women. Hierarchical regressions showed that after controlling for attitudinal covariates, emotion-focused coping behaviors (EMOTFOC) were strongly associated with MATHANX (F(5,54)=18.66, 12 < .0001), but problem-focused coping behaviors (PROBFOC) were not. The RWCC subscale most highly correlated with MATHANX was Wishful Thinking (r = .70, p < .0001). Ss were then dichotomized on PROBFOC and EMOTFOC, providing four behavioral groups. An ANCOVA controlling for attitudinal covariates showed behavioral group membership significant with respect to MATHANX (F(3,58)=6.07, p < .001), and an ANOVA revealed that students who reported high EMOTFOC coupled with low PROBFOC experienced the greatest MATHANX (,E(3,58) = 12.66, p < .0001).

Males and females reported virtually identical MATHANX (M=36.30 for males, 36.44 for females), and the only significant gender difference was for avoidance coping, which was used more by males (F(1,60) = 5.43, p < .03]. Results from this study suggest that fewer gender differences may exist in MATHANX and coping than have been found in the past. Additionally, this study identifies the need for future research to determine whether EMOTFOC is the behavioral component, or one of the determinants, of math anxiety.

The Effects Of Public Progress Charts Upon Self-Pacing In A Psi Course In Social Studies In A Traditional Middle School, Lynnette Hager-Godat

Dissertations and Theses

The present study investigated the effects of public progress charts on self-pacing in a social studies course taught by the PSI method in a middle school (grades 5-8). It was found that public progress charts significantly enhanced a student's rate of progress, t(45) = 5.06, p < .01. Student satisfaction with the PSI method was measured and it was found that students liked the PSI method.

The Validity Of The Leiter International Performance Scale In Measuring The Intelligence Of Normal, Borderline, And Mentally Deficient Children, Marlin Pezner

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this project was to compare IQ scores obtained using the Leiter International Performance Scale to those obtained using the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Revised (WISC-R).

The Validity Of The Leiter International Performance Scale In Measuring The Intelligence Of Intellectually Superior Children, Susan Braxton Paltrow

Dissertations and Theses

The thrust of this project was to compare the obtained IQ scores between the Wechsler Intelligence Scales for Children-Revised Full Scale score at 120 and above of public school students who were in classes for "gifted and talented" with the scores obtained when the Leiter International Performance Scale was administered.

A Survey Of Reading-Readiness Skills And Their Application To The Late Reader, Gail E. Robbins

Dissertations and Theses

Reading readiness is a subject that concerns reading teachers and educators. Inadequate readiness training may cause some students to become late readers, who can be identified as students who score below their age and grade level on a standardized reading test. It is important to define reading readiness and examine the component skills and factors in order to help late readers. This examination was conducted by a study of reading-readiness literature. The reading-readiness skills include auditory discrimination, visual and visual-motor discrimination, development of language, concept formation, and reasoning skills. Readiness factors include fixed factors, social, and emotional factors. Fixed factors …

A Program Of School Social Work, Phyllis Marie Jaszkowiak

Dissertations and Theses

School social work is in a state of flux. Traditional casework services in the schools, as the only function of the school social worker, is becoming less viable.

The study of Assumption school and area points out some problem areas, as well as strengths. In view of these problems and strengths, a broadened school social work program is discussed. The program centers around prevention, treatment, and research. A basic principle upon which all is based is a team approach of social work, school, and community. The discussion leads to the community school concept, which is currently seen as one of …

Anxiety Level Of Graduate Students In Social Work, Sophia Kouidou-Giles, George Albert Mckee

Dissertations and Theses

This study was designed to determine (1) the trend of anxiety level of social work students, term by term, over the academic year; (2) the cyclical trend of anxiety level of social work students within each term and (3) the effects of age and sex on level of anxiety among social work students.

Anxiety was measured with the IPAT - 8 Parallel Form Anxiety Battery. This test was administered to twenty randomly selected first year students in the School of Social Work during the 1969-1970 academic year at Portland State University. Data was collected from six test administrations which …