Digital Commons Network^™

Cognitive-Affective And Somatic Depressive Symptom Domains Related To Psychological Mechanisms And Sociodemographic Factors, Danielle B. Hazeltine

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Major depressive disorder is prevalent, chronic, and heterogeneous, including cognitive- affective (e.g., maladaptive beliefs or thinking patterns and sad mood) and somatic (e.g., fatigue, appetite, or sleep changes) symptom domains. While depression domains have been long theorized, research examining psychological mechanisms underlying this distinction is limited. Preliminary research suggests cognitive-affective symptoms relate more strongly to cognitive mechanisms (cognitive bias, perseverative thought), somatic symptoms relate more strongly to behavioral mechanisms (behavioral inhibition/activation), and gender, race, and ethnicity moderate these relationships. This study examined whether cognitive-affective and somatic symptom domains differentially relate to cognitive and behavioral mechanisms, and whether these relationships are …

Authoritarianism, Hostility And Threat: An Analysis Of American Political Podcasts Surrounding The 2024 Presidential Election, Noah D. Cohen

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Political rhetoric surrounding key events has seen sharp increases in emotionally affective speech, intergroup sentiment, and rhetoric unbecoming of democratic societies in recent years. Similarly, semi-democratic and ideologically driven speech has become increasingly normalized within an era of political polarization and hardline beliefs in modern media. Within this economy of outrage, sensational and largely unmoderated media formats, particularly podcasts, have become a mainstay of political information and discourse. This raises an important question: how does rhetoric surrounding political events construct intergroup sentiment and authoritarian rhetoric within political media, particularly American political podcasts? Further, given political podcasts’ growing social influence in …

Full Issue, Volume 21, Issue 3, Journal Of Youth Development

Journal of Youth Development

No abstract provided.

Joining Forces:A Research-Practice Partnership For Out-Of-School Time, Julián C. Alonso Restrepo, Trevor Bopp, Diedre F. Houchen, Chanae Jackson, Sunshine Moss, Rose M. Pringle, Christine Wegner

Journal of Youth Development

This article describes the development and early implementation of the Youth Development Research-Practice Partnership (YDRPP), a collaboration between university researchers and the Better Out-of-School Time (BOOST) Alliance in Alachua County, Florida. Established to address persistent racial and socioeconomic disparities affecting youth, the partnership used a collaborative qualitative assessment to identify local youth needs, program strengths, and organizational challenges. Findings revealed that practitioners viewed academic support, mental health, social-emotional development, positive adult relationships, physical activity, life skills, and workforce preparation as the most pressing needs of youth. Programs responded through holistic offerings that included tutoring, mentoring, trauma-informed practices, recreation, career readiness, …

Why Sports Participation Matters For Girls In Urban Core Public Schools, David Mcleod, Angela B. Pharris, David Crynes, Emmy Hufnagel, Eddie Wright, Sabrina Hynd, Tim Mclaughlin

Journal of Youth Development

Sports participation plays a critical role in supporting academic success, school engagement, and social-emotional well-being, particularly for girls in urban core public school settings. This study examines the relationship between athletic participation and academic outcomes, attendance, and social-emotional functioning in a large urban public school district during the post-COVID period. Findings indicate that student-athletes outperform non-athlete peers across multiple indicators, including grade point average, enrollment in advanced coursework, and school attendance. Female athletes, in particular, demonstrate stronger academic performance and more favorable social-emotional outcomes compared to female non-athletes. Despite these advantages, a pronounced decline in girls’ sports participation occurs between …

Neural Symphony Of Flow Experience: Evidence For High-Dimensional Metastable Dynamics, Abdelrahman B. M. Eldaly, Kris Zhangguang Kang, Fiona Fui-Hoon Nah, Leanne Lai-Hang Chan, Keng Siau, Xiao Fan Liu, Richard Huskey, Langtao Chen, Tejaswini Yelamanchili, Rene Weber

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Flow, an optimal experience characterized by deep immersion and engagement in an activity, has been extensively studied in behavioral research. However, its neural dynamic mechanism remains poorly understood. In a within-subject video gaming experiment, we captured neural activity underlying flow, boredom, and anxiety using a 64-channel electroencephalogram (EEG) system. Compared to boredom and anxiety, flow exhibits the highest global functional connectivity, metastability, and dimensionality of dynamic functional connectivity patterns, suggesting that flow is a highly adaptable process that is supported by high-dimensional neural dynamics. Unlike previous studies that focused on identifying static or localized brain activity, we examine the neural …

Motivation, Empowerment, And Entrepreneurial Intentions: A Pls-Sem Analysis Of Female Students In Algeria, Lotfi Mekhzoumi, Salima Ben Omar, Abderrazak Laouid, Sabrina Chikh-Amnache

Journal of Global Business Insights

This paper investigates the multidimensional nature of women’s empowerment and its impact on entrepreneurial intentions among female students at the University of El Oued, Algeria. It aims to clarify how motivational factors and perceived barriers interact with psychological, social, political, and economic empowerment to shape entrepreneurial aspirations in a developing economy context. A stratified sample of 353 female university students was used for quantitative research. A validated online questionnaire assessed entrepreneurial intention, motivation, empowerment, and barriers. Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM) was used to test direct, indirect, and mediating effects between constructs, along with rigorous reliability and validity …

The Role Of Temperament In Criminal Trajectories: Development, Stability, And Predictive Power Across The Life Course, Joshua A. Lang

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Temperament, an individual's largely innate tendency to experience and regulate responses to their environment, has long been studied but was only recently introduced as a primary predictor of criminal behavior (DeLisi & Vaughn, 2014). While prior criminological theories have incorporated temperament-related constructs, such as negative affect (Agnew, 1992; Moffitt, 1993) and self-control (Gottfredson & Hirschi, 1990), no other theory has explicitly positioned temperament as the central factor in offending. DeLisi and Vaughn’s temperament-based theory of antisocial behavior posits that individuals with low effortful control and high negative emotionality—features of a difficult temperament—are more likely to engage in criminal behavior. Despite …

Parenthood And Re-Appraisal Of Childhood Maltreatment, Gayathri Cheran

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Background: Child maltreatment is associated with poorer physical and mental health outcomes across the lifespan.  Individuals’ appraisals of childhood maltreatment have important implications for these outcomes.  Appraisal is shaped by biological, psychological, and social-cultural factors, each of which undergoes change in parenthood.  Parenthood may prompt re-appraisal of childhood maltreatment in that being a parent evokes one’s experience of being parented.

Hypotheses: (1) Re-appraisal will be more likely in parents than non-parents.  In parents, re-appraisal will be more likely among: (2) primiparous parents, (3) parents with offspring of the same sex, and (4) parents who experienced maltreatment older in childhood (at …

Opportunities For Learning Through Object Exploration During Early Physical Therapy: Physical Therapists’ And Caregivers’ Assistance And Interference Behaviors, Michele Goncalves Maia

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Early physical therapy (EPT) for infants with motor delays has traditionally emphasized motor milestone acquisition, yet growing evidence indicates that motor and cognitive development are fundamentally interconnected. Grounded in embodied cognition and developmental cascade theories, this dissertation conceptualized object exploration as a primary mechanism through which infants learn during EPT and examined how intervention approaches and adult behaviors shape opportunities for object exploration. Using retrospective analyses of video-recorded EPT sessions, two studies investigated how intervention approaches and adult behaviors influence infants' opportunities to learn through object exploration. Study 1 compared object exploration in the START-Play (SP) intervention and Usual Care …

When Protection Becomes Predation: Militarized Masculinity And Sexual Violence In Northeastern Nigeria, Tosin Osasona

Dignity: A Journal of Analysis of Exploitation and Violence

The study investigates the structural and situational drivers of conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV) perpetrated by state security actors in the context of Nigeria’s counterinsurgency campaigns in Borno State. Drawing on militarized masculinity and strain and deprivation theories, and using a qualitative, interpretive research design, the study argues that CRSV is not an isolated or episodic form of deviance by individual soldiers and security personnel but is embedded in routine military–civilian interactions. Advancing an interactionist explanation of CRSV in Nigeria’s Islamist counterinsurgency operations, the study demonstrates that the likelihood of sexual violence increases through the interaction of gendered institutional norms, operational …

Supporting English Language Learners: Evaluating Bilingual Education Policies In Boston Area High Schools, Valentina A. Tolentino

Undergraduate Theses and Capstone Projects

This study examines how the evolution of bilingual education policies and instruction has affected non-English speaking and bilingual high school students. Especially in Boston/Lynn Public School, bilingual and non-English speaking students are rapidly growing in population, yet questions still remain whether the existing educational policies adequately support their academic and emotional well -being. Using a demographic survey and interviews, I connected with high school graduates  ranging from 18 year olds to 22 years olds and asked questions to assess their language support, classroom experience, emotional well-being, and academic engagement. Analysis of the data demonstrates the influence that their bilingual education …

Approaching Well-Being Through The Research Lens: How Hca Healthcare Colleagues Are Building Healthy Work And Learning Environments, Gregory Guldner, Allison Woodall, Deepinder Bal, Jennifer Larkin, Cynthia Borum, Sunny Hull, Annette Edens, Lisa H. Moore, Elaine K. Miller, Harold Gomez Acevedo, Katia M. Lugo Enriquez, Noor Judge, Yanie Oliva, Pablo E. Ramirez Caraballo, Faraz Jaffer, Prerna S. Sharma, Daniel Heller, Siddarth Kathuria, Nathaniel Banet, Orlando Nieves-Lugo, Adrienne Madison, Lily Martin, Oliwier Dziadkowiec

HCA Healthcare Journal of Medicine

At the heart of our commitment to the care and improvement of human life are the physicians who dedicate themselves to delivering exceptional care. To support not only our physicians’ professional excellence but also to foster personal fulfillment, HCA Healthcare partnered with Claremont Graduate University to establish the Physician Wellness Research Lab (PWR Lab). In his new role as the Vice President of Academic Affairs for Graduate Medical Education (GME), Dr Guldner led a nationwide search to establish and implement a new approach to well-being. At HCA Healthcare, we believe that true flourishing requires transforming the work and learning environment …

Psychological Adaptation In Colorectal Cancer Survivors: Pilot Study Findings, Anuja L. Sarode, Emily M. Su, Amber Kerstetter-Fogle, Steve Paciorek, Erica L. Laipply

HCA Healthcare Journal of Medicine

Background

In this pilot study, we examined psychological impacts of colorectal cancer (CRC), focusing on cancer-related posttraumatic stress disorder (CR-PTSD) symptoms, posttraumatic growth (PTG), and their relationship with coping strategies in surgically treated CRC patients.

Methods

This prospective pre- and postoperative pilot study assessed CRC patients at 2 time points, pre- and postoperative. Psychological symptoms were evaluated using the PTSD Checklist for Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (PCL-5) and the PTG Inventory Short Form (PTGI-SF). Coping strategies were assessed using the Brief Coping Orientation to Problems Experienced (COPE) instrument. Changes in CR-PTSD, PTG, and coping …

Coping Beyond Cancer: Exploring Fear Of Recurrence In Colorectal Cancer Survivors—A Pilot Investigation, Emily M. Su, Steve Paciorek, Erica L. Laipply, Anuja L. Sarode

HCA Healthcare Journal of Medicine

Background

Evidence is limited on the fear of cancer recurrence (FCR) among colorectal cancer (CRC) survivors in the US, especially regarding patterns and trends of post-recovery coping mechanisms. This pilot mixed-methods study quantified FCR, examined its associations with Brief COPE domains, and contextualized coping through qualitative analysis.

Methods

Twenty-three patients who successfully underwent CRC surgery were included in this pilot study. Fear of cancer recurrence was measured using the FCR Inventory (FCRI) Short Form, and coping strategies were assessed with the Brief Coping Orientation to Problems Experienced (COPE) survey. Descriptive statistics summarized participant characteristics, FCR, and COPE scores. Spearman correlation …

A Discursive Analysis Of Lesbian And Queer Experiences Of Unwanted Consensual Sex, Sarah E. Swanson

Graduate Doctoral Dissertations

This study drew on a critical discursive psychology (CDP) analytical approach to examine how lesbian and queer participants made sense of unwanted consensual sex (UCS).  The data analysis traced how UCS was constructed on three discursive levels: the construction of UCS across narratives, the interpretive repertoires mobilized (including sexual scripts), and the broader sociocultural discourses that shaped what elements of their experiences were intelligible. Therefore, I sought to understand both how participants drew on familiar heteronormative and queer ways of talking about sex and how various discursive resources shaped how they could construct themselves and others. Data for this research …

Home, Neighborhood, And Community Environments And Social Isolation In Later Life: Joint Associations And Their Moderation By Life-Course Socioeconomic Mobility, Jeein Law

Graduate Doctoral Dissertations

Social isolation is a major public health concern among older adults, yet less is known about how multilevel residential environments shape isolation among those aging in place. Guided by the Socio-Ecological Model, Person–Environment Fit, and a life-course perspective, this dissertation examined whether micro-level home hazards, meso-level neighborhood social cohesion and physical disorder, and macro-level census-tract structural conditions were associated with social isolation. It also examined whether life-course socioeconomic mobility moderated the associations between home and neighborhood environments and social isolation.

This dissertation used two nationally representative longitudinal studies of U.S. older adults. Aims 1 and 2 used the National Health …

Beyond Monolithic Narratives: The Interaction Of Ethnic-Racial Socialization And Resistance In Shaping Mental Health Among Black Immigrants In The U.S., Krystel Francis

Graduate Masters Theses

Black immigrants represent one of the fastest-growing segments of the U.S. Black population, yet their unique racialized and cultural experiences remain understudied within psychological research. This thesis examined how ethnic-racial socialization and resistance and empowerment against racism can influence how race-related stress was associated with psychological distress among Black immigrants in the United States. This study tested a moderated moderation model to determine whether ethnic-racial socialization and resistance and empowerment against racism, independently and jointly, buffered the adverse effects of race-related stress on psychological distress. Using data from a larger IRB-approved study on racism and mental health among people of …

Factorial Structure Of A Bilingual Progress Monitoring Tool For Mindfulness Interventions, Andrea V. Molina Palacios

Graduate Doctoral Dissertations

Mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) are an increasingly popular option for schools to support youth in each of the multi-tiered systems of support (MTSS). MBIs have proven to increase attention, help with emotion regulation, decrease symptoms of anxiety and depression, and overall increase students’ wellbeing with a cost-effective package that makes it affordable for schools to implement. Moreover, MBIs have also proven to be effective for Hispanic youth who are at a higher risk of experiencing low access to mental health care and higher levels of poverty, which puts them at risk for dropping out and having low academic achievement. However, there …

I Must Be Well, To Do Well: Examining The Relationship Between Toxic Stem Environments, Trauma, Stem Support, And Academic Outcomes Among Diverse Graduate Women In Stem, Aisha Farra

Graduate Doctoral Dissertations

Women, particularly Women of Colour (WOC), remain underrepresented in STEM. In the last two decades, research has sought to better understand women’s experiences in STEM, highlighting challenges such as isolation, sexism, and racism, which negatively impact mental health and STEM persistence. While these mental health challenges have been documented, further work is needed to examine how these experiences are related to trauma symptoms and physical health outcomes, as well as the mechanisms through which they shape academic outcomes. This quantitative study investigated the relationships among toxic STEM experiences (i.e., gendered racism, sexism, and isolation), trauma symptoms and physical health concerns, …

Revictimization Of Female Sexual Assault Survivors During Cross-Examination From The Perspective Of Criminal Prosecutors, Robyn Fuchs

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Sexual assault is a heinous crime that remains one of the most underreported crimes. Victims of sexual assault face scrutiny for reporting and may be revictimized by the process. The intent of this study was to examine how cross-examination has the potential to revictimize female sexual assault survivors from the perspective of criminal prosecutors. This study may provide insight on whether defense attorneys intentionally cause harm to victims or if there is an automatic level of trauma in testifying. Ten interviews were conducted with criminal prosecutors across the United States. After the interviews, the transcripts were manually analyzed to identify …

The Impact Of Inclusive Leadership And Leader Cultural Intelligence On The Work Engagement Of Migrant Employees, Dena Semonia Whittle

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

With the rise of globalization and the growing demand for skilled workers, the number of foreign-born employees in the American workforce has grown significantly over the last 20 years. These numbers continue to grow, as the upward trend of foreign-born employees has been even more significant over the last 5 years. However, despite having a now more diverse workforce, there are still signs of discrimination and unequal treatment of migrants in the workplace. Such mistreatment has been linked to health-related, occupational, and psychological consequences and has been negatively associated with work engagement. The purpose of this quantitative study was to …

Waves Of Exhaustion, Currents Of Renewal: An Autoethnography Of Academic Emotional Burnout And Recovery, Rofiza Aboo Bakar

The Qualitative Report

This autoethnography explores my experience of academic burnout and emotional recovery as a mid-career female educator in a Malaysian public university. Drawing from reflective journals, memory work, and embodied recollections between 2023 and 2025, I trace a personal journey through three experiential phases: the weight of expectations, burnout and emotional rupture, and embodied recovery through open sea swimming. The narrative is guided by Chang’s (2016) thematic structuring approach and interpreted through Lazarus and Folkman’s (1984) Transactional Model of Stress and Coping. My story reveals how burnout was not the result of overwork, but of institutional erasure. As I navigated the …

Relational-Developmental Autoethnography: A Method Of Qualitative Inquiry That Fosters Personal Growth, Chris Wells

The Qualitative Report

This paper introduces relational–developmental autoethnography (RDA), a qualitative method for exploring psychological growth through personal writing and reflection. Developed through lived experience, RDA traces psychological development through sustained, recursive engagement with personal writing. Drawing on an archive of my journals, letters, clinical records, and correspondence spanning more than 30 years, I show how writing and reflection were first tools for my survival, and later became catalysts for insight, healing, and transformation. RDA is grounded in two developmental frameworks: Dąbrowski’s theory of positive disintegration, which views emotional intensity and inner conflict as signs of developmental potential, and relational-cultural theory, which …

Effects Of A Shame-Focused Self-Compassion Writing Intervention In Individuals With Social Anxiety, Selen Amado

Graduate Doctoral Dissertations

The present study examined the efficacy of a brief, shame-focused self-compassion (SF-SC) writing intervention in reducing shame, social anxiety and related cognitive maintenance processes among individuals with elevated social anxiety. Shame is a core feature and maintaining factor of Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD), closely linked to self-focused attention, post-event processing, and self-criticism. Additionally, self-compassion demonstrates a robust inverse association with shame. However, few interventions have explicitly targeted shame as a primary mechanism of change using self-compassion strategies in socially anxious populations. Using a randomized controlled design, 94 participants with elevated levels of social anxiety and shame were assigned to either …

Cultural Responsiveness: Examining Assessments Of Therapists For Ethical And Clinical Outcomes (Create Clout), Tsotso T. Ablorh

Graduate Doctoral Dissertations

The Multicultural Counseling Competencies (MCC) and Multicultural and Social Justice Counseling Competencies (MSJCC) are well-researched and supported counseling practices for decreasing microaggressions in therapy and consequent attrition, lack of satisfaction, and maltreatment (Ratts et al., 2016; Sue et al., 1982). However, scholars critique existing methods for measuring therapists’ cultural responsiveness for being disconnected from therapeutic process and outcomes (Hays, 2020; Wilcox et al., 2020). This study examined which MSJCC measures associated with variables clinically and ethically relevant to better treatment outcomes and lower microaggressive, neglectful, and stereotypical treatment for hypothetical Black, female clients by White therapists. 62 White psychologists in …

Effect Of Vocational Training Programs On The Mental Health Of Indian Women Living In Contexts Of Urban Poverty (Or Urban Slums), Sriramya Potluri

Graduate Doctoral Dissertations

Women living in contexts of urban poverty (IWLCUP) experience disproportionately high rates of psychological distress, yet their mental health needs remain largely underrecognized. Beyond individualized explanations, broader ecological perspectives situate these women’s distress within previously underemphasized macrolevel forces and acknowledge the role of inequity and related structural disparities (e.g., economic, sociocultural, political etc.) in their oppression and disempowerment, thereby contributing to increased psychological vulnerability. Such frameworks call for intervention efforts that reduce individual psychological risk by addressing structural determinants proximally and distally impacting the lives of IWLCUP. Specifically, targeting poverty and economic insecurity might drive positive downstream effects that ultimately …

Redefined: Understanding The Experience Of Black Joy Among Black Youth, Kaela A. Yamini

Graduate Doctoral Dissertations

The study of Black joy is a newer concept and, therefore, reflected in a small but growing body of literature. Many scholars have reflected on the theoretical nature of Black joy and how it can appear across settings, e.g., academically, occupationally, communally, and internally, but very few studies have examined this phenomenon empirically. Several definitions of Black joy have emerged in connection to history and suffering; however, there is still a notable lack of agreement among researchers. Despite that, all conceptualizations acknowledge how this emotional experience is much greater than the pain associated with it and highlight its ability …

Nihilistic Violence Aesthetics In Public Online Communication, Heath Nicholas Landress

Journal of Social, Behavioral, and Health Sciences

Public online communication has increasingly included violence-related content that is meme-based, ironic, visually stylized, multimodal, and only partially ideological. This comprehensive literature review synthesized research on online extremism, extremist memes, toxic multimodal content, dehumanizing digital communication, nihilistic violent extremism, warning behaviors, platform affordances, and youth-facing online environments. The purpose was to clarify what the literature had established; identify where the scholarship remained fragmented; and map research domains relevant to social, behavioral, public safety, and human services scholarship. The review used a structured, comprehensive literature review strategy supported by integrative synthesis procedures. The final corpus contained 34 scholarly sources, including 32 …

“When I’M Not Heard, I Feel Like I Don’T Matter”: Advancing Equity In Disability Policy Through Critical Participatory Action Research With People With Intellectual Disability, Cris Marchionne

Student Theses

People with intellectual disability deserve a system that offers flexible, timely, and person-centered support — one that is innovative, sustainable, and holistic in enabling them to live fulfilling lives. This qualitative study, grounded in Critical Participatory Action Research (CPAR), examines how people with intellectual disability experience participation in decision-making within New York State's disability service system. By centering lived experience, the study identifies factors that facilitate or hinder participation in decision-making and examines structural, social, and policy-related barriers that limit agency. Through six focus groups and a Photovoice project with self-advocates receiving OPWDD services, participants described systemic barriers that limited …