Psychology Commons^™

Unpacking Political Identity In First-Time Voting Christian Women: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis, Mary Grace Golden

Honors Theses

As political science tends to focus on polling and statistical analysis to examine individuals’ voting behaviors, the reasoning behind constituents’ decision-making process is often left in the dark. This is particularly true in first-time voting women who come from religious backgrounds that uphold complementarian gender values. This study focuses on the following research questions: How do women experience their political identity in relation to their gender identity? How do women experience their political identity in relation to their religious or faith identity? How do women experience their political identity in relation to voting for the first time? I answer these …

Improving Stress Management For Female College Students, Kelsey Acosta

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

Although many college students report feeling stress, women may have a unique perspective and experience regarding stress. Gilligan's theory states that women consider their relationships when considering decisions. This decision-making process can create an added layer of the already existing academic stressors that women face. Stress management techniques that acknowledge the unique stressors that women face are essential to improve mental health and provide an optimal college experience.

The Role Of Hostile And Benevolent Sexism On Women's Career Aspirations And Self-Doubt In Masculine And Feminine Majors, Mary Tait

Master's Theses (2009 -)

Women experience hostile sexism and benevolent sexism in various aspects of their lives and the effects of these experiences have been shown to greatly affect their performance in career-related domains. Researchers have posited that this reduction in performance is related to self-doubt (Dardenne et al., 2007; Kuchynka et al., 2018) which can affect women’s careers long-term. However, the effects of self-doubt on women’s careers may vary depending on the stereotyped context of the environment. The current study examined if the relationship between experiences with sexism and career aspirations is mediated by self-doubt. Further, it was examined if the relationships changed …

Women’S Experiences Of Self-Objectification And Sexualization And Their Impact On Attitudes Towards Online Sex Work, Storm Balint

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Current research suggests that women students may be increasingly turning to sex work to help finance their education due to increased economic demands. However, for this to be considered a viable work option, increased acceptance of student engagement in sex work is also necessary. To date, no research has examined empirically the influence of societal factors such as sexualization, objectification and the proliferation of digital technology as factors potentially increasing positive attitudes toward sex work. This exploratory study examined whether the type of sex work influenced young women’s attitudes and if the internalization of sexualization and objectification affected their attitudes. …

Body Dissatisfaction And Disordered Eating Among College Women’S Social Networks: An Investigation Of Perceived Changes Following A Dissonance-Based Body Image Intervention, Rachel I. Macintyre

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

Body dissatisfaction is associated with numerous health consequences and is pervasive among college women. Effective interventions exist that reduce body dissatisfaction in college women by helping them resist sociocultural pressures to conform to the appearance ideal, such as the Body Project. Yet research is limited on whether social and behavioral processes help participants reduce their engagement in sociocultural appearance-ideal messages and contribute to the intervention’s effectiveness. The primary purpose of the present study was to examine these social and behavioral processes, including the changes in college women’s social networks associated with their participation in the Body Project. Undergraduate and graduate …

Colombian Women’S Experiences Of Cosmetic Surgery And Its Relationship To Body Image, Austin Gonzalez-Randolph

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to understand women’s experiences of cosmetic surgery and its effects on body image on women from the Colombian cities of Bogotá and Pereira. The participants of this study were women of Colombian descent, who reside in Colombia. This was done with the hopes of better understanding how culture impacts views on cosmetic surgery. Colombia appears to have a culture that is very enmeshed with cosmetic surgery. This study provides an initial exploratory and qualitative investigation into the perception of body image as it relates to cosmetic surgery among six young women living in Colombia; …

“Rage Defends Against Overwhelming Loss”: A Literature Review On Women, Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, And Anger, Sarah Maeder

Expressive Therapies Capstone Theses

A literature review examining the difference in anger as a symptom of PTSD based on gender. The focus was on how gender roles and stereotypes impact women’s, as well as providers’, interpretation, expression, acknowledgement, and suppression of anger. By researching civilian survivors of non-combat trauma, the review examined PTSD and symptom discrepancies along a gender divide. Emphasis was placed on the creation of gender as a social construct. Significant nuance was discovered when defining anger, its means of expression, and measurement tools, particularly when interacting with gender. The history of art therapy as a treatment modality for PTSD and anger …

Isolating Abortion Stigma From Women Who Have Had Abortions: A Look At Undergraduate Students At A Christian University, Mikayla Granger

Senior Honors Theses

Abortion has been subject to stigma due to violating cultural ideals of womanhood, sexism, attribution of personhood to the fetus, legal restrictions, perception as a dirty procedure, the pro-life community, being underreported, and religious beliefs. In order to cope with stigma-induced distress, individuals often resort to secrecy. Stigmatized women concealing their abortion may suppress thoughts about the abortion, leading them to suffer from obsessive and intrusive thoughts that repeatedly reappear simply because they are unwanted. Because of this harmful cycle, it is imperative that individuals understand the distinction between stigma towards abortion and post-abortive women. The current study examines the …

The Future Of Women In Psychological Science, June Gruber, Jane Mendle, Kristen A. Lindquist, Toni Schmader, Lee Anna Clark, Eliza Bliss-Moreau, Modupe Akinola, Lauren Atlas, Deanna M. Barch, Lisa Feldman Barrett, Jessica L. Borelli, Tiffany N. Brannon, Silvia A. Bunge, Belinda Campos, Jessica Cantlon, Rona Carter, Adrienne R. Carter-Sowell, Serena Chen, Michelle G. Craske, Amy J. C. Cuddy, Alia Crum, Lila Davachi, Angela L. Duckworth, Sunny J. Dutra, Naomi I. Eisenberger, Melissa Ferguson, Brett Q. Ford, Barbara L. Fredrickson, Sherryl H. Goodman, Alison Gopnik, Valerie Purdie Greenaway, Kate L. Harkness, Mikki Hebl, Wendy Heller, Jill Hooley, Lily Jampol, Sheri L. Johnson, Jutta Joormann, Katherine D. Kinzler, Hedy Kober, Ann M. Kring, Elizabeth Levy Paluck, Tania Lombrozo, Stella F. Lourenco, Kateri Mcrae, Joan K. Monin, Judith T. Moskowitz, Misaki N. Natsuaki, Gabriele Oettingen, Jennifer H. Pfeifer, Nicole Prause, Darby Saxbe, Pamela K. Smith, Barbara A. Spellman, Virginia Sturm, Bethany A. Teachman, Renee J. Thompson, Lauren M. Weinstock, Lisa A. Williams

Psychology: Faculty Scholarship

There has been extensive discussion about gender gaps in representation and career advancement in the sciences. However, psychological science itself has yet to be the focus of discussion or systematic review, despite our field’s investment in questions of equity, status, well-being, gender bias, and gender disparities. In the present article, we consider 10 topics relevant for women’s career advancement in psychological science. We focus on issues that have been the subject of empirical study, discuss relevant evidence within and outside of psychological science, and draw on established psychological theory and social-science research to begin to chart a path forward. We …

Navigating The Murky Middle: Understanding How Career Aspirations And Experiences Influence The Career Progression Of Women Identifying, Student Affairs, Middle Managers, Lindsey Gilmore

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Capstones

Even though women have made tremendous strides in many facets of education, ascending the administrative and leadership ranks within universities at a proportionate ratio to the number of women who peak as middle managers is not one of them. In the past 40 years, the number of women serving as presidents of universities across the nation has increased less than 10% from 21.1% in 1975 to 30.1% in 2016 (ACE, 2018). If a woman does find herself serving at the helm of an institution, it is more than likely at a “private, liberal arts schools rather than at doctoral granting, …

A Description Of Covid-19 Lifestyle Restrictions Among A Sample Of Rural Appalachian Women, Michele Staton, Martha Tillson, J. Matthew Webster

Journal of Appalachian Health

Background: COVID-19 has led to swift federal and state response to control virus transmission, which has resulted in unprecedented lifestyle changes for U.S. citizens including social distancing and isolation. Understanding the impact of COVID-19 lifestyle restrictions and related behavioral risks is important, particularly among individuals who may be more vulnerable (such as rural women with a history of substance use living in Appalachia).

Purpose: The overall purpose of this study was to better understand the perceptions of lifestyle changes due to COVID-19 restrictions among this vulnerable group.

Methods: The study included a mixed methods survey with a convenience sample of …

The Use Of Social Media In Moderating Feelings Of Belongingness And Suicidal Ideation Among Women, Latasha Davidson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Suicide among women in the United States increased significantly over the last decade, now accounting for six suicides per 100,000 population. Concurrently, there has been an increase in social media use, with women exhibiting elevated presence on social networking platforms. Grounded in the theoretical framework of the theory of suicide and the interpersonal theory of suicide, the purpose of this quantitative nonexperimental study was to evaluate the association between social media use, feelings of belongingness, and suicidal ideation to address the increased suicide rate among adult women in the United States. One research question focused on how social media use …

Left Behind: Intersectional Stigma Experiences Of African American College Women With Adhd, Angela Lynnette Anderson-Elahi

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

African American college women with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) can experience intersectional stigmas based on race, gender, and learning disability. Intersectional stigmas affect African American college women in self-esteem, social acceptance, and academic progress. The scholarly community has not published literature regarding intersectional stigma experienced by African American college women with ADHD. The purpose of this study was to explore the lived experiences of African American college women who had encountered intersectional stigma based on race, gender, and ADHD. Goffman’s social stigma theory and Crenshaw’s intersectional stigma theory served as the theoretical and conceptual frameworks to explore how African …

The Relationship Of Societal Pressures And Disordered Eating Among Lebanese Women, Rita Hage

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

Messages that women receive from the media, family, and peers are often intended to promote the female thin ideal, and these messages may contribute to the development of eating disorders. In Lebanese society, unrealistic standards for thinness are a central component of how Lebanese society defines glamour. The following paper examined the relationship of societal pressures on Lebanese women to meet these beauty expectations and how those pressures are related to disordered eating. Ninety Lebanese women between the ages of 18 and 39 responded to two questionnaires: (a) the Eating Attitudes Test-26 (EAT-26) and (b) the Sociocultural Attitudes Towards Appearance …

A Qualitative Examination Of The Agency Of Women In Their 30s And 40s Who Use Dating Applications, Tera Buerkle

Theses and Dissertations--Family Sciences

The use of dating applications (apps) to find romantic and sexual partners is widespread across age groups, however, there is a paucity of research on dating apps with those in middle adulthood. Sexual script theory suggests that women’s agency (i.e. the ability to act in one’s own best interest) may be impacted by expectations from an inherently sexualized context, such as dating apps. Feminist theory contends that women’s agency is complicated by gender socialization due to the imbalance of power in society that greatly favors men. In this study seventeen women aged 30 to 49 completed in-depth semi-structured interviews, and …

Flourishing After Sexual Assault: An Examination Of Self-Compassion In Women, Jessica E. Rick

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Sexual assault is a serious and increasing public health concern, which has spurred recent development of the #metoo movement (Miller, 2017; Sigurdsson, 2018). Much of the current literature and treatment emphasis focuses on how to bring survivors of sexual assault back to baseline functioning. This exclusive focus on stability models often neglects pathways by which survivors thrive and flourish following experiences with sexual violence. It is important to consider how sexual assault experiences relate to flourishing efforts. Self-compassion, or the ability to be open and non-judgmental about one’s own suffering and treat oneself with kindness in the face of pain, …

Sense Of Belonging Increases Performance Expectations Among Women In Stem Fields, Anne Brown, Ariana Gaydon

Undergraduate Research Symposium

This research examines threatening educational environments for women STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) majors. Previous research found that underrepresented groups receive subtle and overt messages that they do not belong in science and academia which leads to lower science identity, lower grades, and switching to a non-STEM major (Ong et al. 2011; Robnett 2016; Rainey et al., 2018). This study used survey data from students (N = 213) from a western university. The results indicate a 2-way interaction between sense of belonging (or the acceptance an individual feels regarding a specific group or environment) and science identity (how …

“Light Skin Is The Right Skin? And Long Hair Don’T Care?”: An Investigation Of Colorism And Texturism Amongst Black And Latina Women, Rakim Griffin

Senior Projects Spring 2021

Conversations related to slavery and colonization can be difficult, yet they are necessary in order to address the negative impacts they still have on people of color today. Racial phenotypicality bias is one lasting racist practice that originated during slavery and colonization periods in Latin America and the United States. This form of bias operates by favoring and praising eurocentric phenotypes (such as light skin and straight hair) compared to afro-centric phenotypes (such as dark skin and afro-textured hair). Colorism and texturism (C&T) are two primary forms of phenotype biases that are specifically related to skin and hair. These two …

Fake News And Women: Fake And Real Media's Impact On Sexism In Consumer Attitudes, Alexandra C. Oropallo

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Gender-based discrimination is an issue that permeates many aspects of today's society and is influenced by numerous factors, including the presence of fake news, or emotionally driven, factually inaccurate, and misleading media. This study aimed to examine fake news' impact on consumer attitudes regarding women and to investigate how certain demographic factors relate to consumers' attitudes towards women. The current study had two main hypotheses: (1) participants exposed to fake news materials will report higher levels of both old-fashioned and modern sexism than those in other conditions and (2) participants with higher levels of sociodemographic factors such as right-wing authoritarianism …