Community Psychology Commons^™

Examining The Pathway From Maternal Criminal Involvement To Adolescent Delinquency, Dina Chavira

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

As incarceration rates across the United States have continued to rise, there has been growing concern with the unintended consequences that have resulted. This has prompted researchers across multiple disciplines to study the effects of incarceration at the individual, family, community, and societal levels. An important but overlooked factor pertains to extensive multiple social service agency involvement and missed opportunities for intervention. Families involved with the criminal justice system (CJS) are often at risk of involvement with other human service agencies, one agency being the child welfare system (CWS). Little is known about families who fall within these two systems, …

The Psychological Well-Being Of Divorced Fathers: A Theoretical Model And Projection, Todd Lawrence Bottom

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

The U.S. divorce rate increased substantially from WWII until the 1980's. Although the number of divorces decreased marginally in the past decade, the number of marriages also decreased, causing the divorce rate to remain nearly unchanged from 2000 to 2010. The most frequently cited negative effect of divorce and separation is perhaps the loss of father-child contact, although little research was dedicated to understanding the post-divorce outcomes of fathers - especially with regard to their long-term outcomes. The present study assessed how several factors (e.g. parenting decisions, custody status, parenting efficacy, and parenting encouragement) influenced divorced fathers' psychological well-being. Results …

Social Identity And Wellness Of People Who Have Acquired Physical Disability: What Is The Role Of Social Support?, Katherine S. Ong

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

The degree to which individual members of social minority groups identify with their stigmatized ingroup vary—some closely identify whereas others distance themselves from it as a byproduct of stigmatization. Research findings are mixed in regard to whether group identity influences well-being. One reason is that the relationship may be obscured by other factors. This study sought to clarify the mechanism by which group minority identity relates to health through social support. To assess the linkages among the three variables, individuals with acquired physical disabilities were surveyed. The study of disability identity is of import because, first, it may predict health …

Empowerment Of Underrepresented Racial/Ethnic Minority College Students In The United States: Developing And Testing The College Student Empowerment Scales For Racial/Ethnic Minorities, Lindsey Therese Back

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Empowerment, a core value of community psychology, is defined as a process by which people, organizations, and communities gain mastery over issues of concern to them in their lives (Rappaport, 1987). In community psychology, empowerment is understood as a construct particularly and primarily salient for minority t,>roups who hold a marginalized position in society, as psychological empowerment is a product of an individual's interaction with his or her context. Consistent with a social justice framework, community psychology attempts to empower those who have traditionally been disenfranchised in particular contexts. One such population is underrepresented racial/ethnic minority students in higher …

The Role Of Multicultural Competence, Privilege, Attributions, And Team Support In Predicting Positive Youth Mentor Outcomes, Rachael Leigh Suffrin

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

In the current study we use Bronfenbrenner’s (1979) ecological theory to guide an inquiry into how the social environment surrounding mentors’ matters in regards to mentor outcomes of satisfaction, retention, and extra-role pro-social behavior (i.e., mentors willingness to go above and beyond for their mentee or the mentoring program). Mentors are sampled from mentoring organizations across the United States. Drawing from Bronfenbrenner’s ecological theory (1979), we examine mentors embedded in distinct micro- and macrosystems. At the microsystem level we explore how the relationship between the mentor and the (a) mentee, (b) mentees’ family, and (c) the mentoring team may predict …

From Crime To Punishment: Moral Violations And The Social Function Of Emotion, Michael Ray Brubacher

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Punishments that are issued by the criminal justice system can enhance factors related to recidivism or contribute to offender rehabilitation. Investigating the ecological element of public attitudes toward punishment can inform efforts of second-order change for reducing recidivism and improving offender and community wellbeing (Bronfenbrenner, 1979; Kelly, 1966; Watzlawick, Weakland, & Fisch, 1974).

The form and duration of punishments can be influenced by the goals that punishments are meant to achieve. Punishment goals include retribution, incapacitation, individual deterrence, general deterrence, rehabilitation, and restorative justice. Each of the goals can lead to sanctions that impact offender behavior differently yet substantive predictors …

Negotiating Culture And The Self: Complications Of Agency In Psychosis, Genevra Jones

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

The goal of the dissertation project described here is to explore and unpack the role of agency, understood as a form of "intentionalized action" (Ortner, 1996), in participants' experiences of psychosis and associated narratives and explanations of these experiences. We present in-depth cthnographically-infom1cd qualitative analyses of the accounts of 14 participants, organized around the interimplication of agency in and with the overlapping domains of symptomatology, narrative, and explanation. Our analyses suggest that the play of agency in psychosis is far richer and more nuanced than most existing scholarship suggests, underscoring the value of greater attention to agentive complexities involved in …

Factors Relating To Substance Abuse Relapse: A Survival Analysis Of Adults Living In Oxford House Recovery Homes, Ronald D. Harvey

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Alcohol and other drug (AOD) abuse, treatment, and subsequent relapse and re-treatment are a common pattern faced by clients and AOD treatment providers. Relapse and re-treatment significantly contributes to the overall societal costs of substance use disorder (SUD) treatment, injury, and incarceration. Therefore, it might be useful to treatment providers to become aware of of the factors leading to AOD relapse after treatment. This dissertation examined the relationship of individual factors and AOD relapse among residents of self-run aftercare recovery homes called Oxford House over the course of a one-year study. To accomplish this, this study employed discrete-time survival analysis …

Gender Role Ideology And Major Choice Of Students In College Religious Groups, Charlynn Anne Odahl

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

In the present study examined students who attend college religious groups to better understand how religious conservatism, religious commitment, and gender may shape gender role ideology and college major choice. A focus on these outcomes of gender role ideology and college major choice is important given the continued persistence of sexism and gender inequality. We examined how personal characteristics and characteristics of the group (i.e., defined by peer and leader attitudes) may shape personal gender role ideology and major choice. We tested how personal, peer, and leader religious conservatism may predict more traditional gender role ideology and the choice of …

Ethnic Identity And Coping Efficacy As Moderators Of The Relationships Between Perceived Racial Discrimination And Academic Outcomes Among Urban, Low-Income Latina/O Youth, Alison L. Mroczkowski

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

The present study used resilience theory to explore relationships among perceived racial discrimination, ethnic identity, coping efficacy, gender, and various academic outcomes among urban, low-income, Latina/a youth. Although Latina/as are the largest ethnic minority group in the United States, they attain less education than other racial/ethnic groups (Chapman, Laird, Ifill, & KeweiRamani, 2011). Racial discrimination is one factor that may account for the lower levels of education attained by this group, and research has indicated that racial discrimination is associated with poor educational outcomes among Latina/a adolescents (Alfaro, Umana-Taylor, Gonzales-Backen, Bamaca, & Zeiders, 2009; DeGarmo & Martinez, 2006). Despite exposure …