Digital Commons Network^™

Y You Go Scale (Yygs): A Tool For Measuring Religious Commitment, Camron Angell, David Heath, Noah Perry, Taylor Hales

Student Works

Psychology historically has underplayed the role of religion and has not considered its importance in treatment and research. As such, the field is in need of measures of religious commitment and a greater understanding of the religious experience. There have been general measures of religious commitment such as the Religious Commitment Scale (RCS) and the Religious Commitment Inventory (RCI-10) (Dyer et al., 2023; Fox & Bouffard, 2015; Worthington, E., 2003). The issue with general scales is that religious commitment looks different for each religion. In this context, the present study sought to develop a scale of religious commitment for students …

Barriers Beyond Bars: Examining Experiences Of Students With Criminal Records, Anakin Rivera Ramirez

Dissertations and Theses

As educational opportunities, particularly prison education programs, continue to expand for incarcerated individuals, this study, which included two participants, one formerly incarcerated and one who pleaded guilty to avoid incarceration, suggests that those who plead guilty to avoid prison may enter college without the structured reintegration resources available to their incarcerated peers. While substantial research has explored the school-to-prison pipeline phenomenon in K-12 settings, fewer studies have examined its impact on students with criminal records navigating higher education. Grounded in Critical Race Theory (CRT) in education, this study seeks to understand the experiences of carceral system-impacted students of color in …

The Moderating Influence Of Generation On Leadership Style, Job Satisfaction, And Intent To Leave Among Child Welfare Workers, Kelly Cavanaugh

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The declining retention rate among U.S. child welfare workers is a significant concern. Research suggested that as millennials enter the workforce, adopting leadership styles that best meet the needs of each generation and/or facilitate congruence between organizational goals and the distinct work values of both the younger and older generations will help increase retention. Specifically, supervisors needed to identify a leadership style that best satisfied the needs of millennials who are stereotypically less loyal to organizations and exhibit higher job mobility than older generations. The purpose of this quantitative study was to examine the extent to which generational cohort moderated …

Hmongcentric Niche Charter Schools: The Role Of Social Capital On Students’ Perceived Academic Competence, Zha Blong Xiong, Ting Xu, Kyle Nickodem, Malina Her

Journal of Southeast Asian American Education and Advancement

Using Coleman’s (1988) social capital theory, this study investigated the connection between family and school social capital and the perceived academic competence of students enrolled in Hmongcentric niche charter schools. The study analyzed 124 participants consisting of third, fourth, and fifth-grade students residing in Minnesota, with 93% identifying as Hmong. Results of structural equation modeling showed that school social capital, as measured by school attachment and school connection, is significantly linked to students’ perceived academic competence. Further analyses suggested that school attachment, especially in charter schools that focus on culture and language, plays a more crucial role in shaping students’ …

Awareness And Perception Of Artificial Intelligence In Counselling Practice Among Counsellors-In-Training, Margaret Kehinde Soetan, Ayorinde Emola Akinnusi

Buletin Konseling Inovatif

This study investigated awareness and perception of artificial intelligence in counselling practice among counsellors-in-training. Descriptive survey research design was adopted for this study. The population consisted of all counsellors-in-training (CITs) in Adeyemi Federal University of Education, Ondo. Two hundred (200) counsellors-in-training were randomly selected from Degree three (3) and four (4) as sample for the study. Structured questionnaire was used as instrument to collect data for the study. It was validated by experts in Test and Measurement. Reliability of the instrument was ascertained by using Cronbach’s Alpha statistics mean which yielded a coefficient of 0.83. Data collected was analysed by …

Give People Money: The Effect Of Perceived Inequality In Everyday Life And Previous Cash-Transfer Programs On Support For Universal Basic Income, David Thomas Igliozzi

Dissertations

Economic inequality is a global concern with many adverse consequences for people across class divides. These consequences vary in scope—from negative effects on individual’s physical, mental, and social health to large-scale economic shifts which result from climate change (Galbraith & Hale, 2008; Hiesh & Pugh, 1993; Kaplan et al., 1996; La Ferrara & Alesina, 2000; Solt, 2008; Vilhjalmsdottir et al., 2016; Wilkinson & Pickett, 2007). Policy solutions meant to address the negative effects of economic inequality include government redistribution of wealth. Universal Basic Income (UBI), a specific and actionable policy of government redistribution, is a promising method of economic inequality …

Sex-Specific Associations Between Early Life Unpredictability And Trajectories Of Body Mass Index From Infancy To Adolescence, Emily M. Melnick, Lilybelle K. Deer, Jenalee R. Doom, Hal S. Stern, Curt A. Sandman, Laura M. Glynn, Elysia P. Davis

Psychology Faculty Articles and Research

Objective:

Unpredictability in early life is an understudied aspect of early life adversity that provides important signals to the child about their environment. Recent work shows the predictability of patterns of parental signals on a moment-to-moment timescale sculpts the developing brain during sensitive windows, offering a potential pathway through which early life experiences shape child development. Both experimental non-human animal models and observational human research show sex-specific links between early life exposure to unpredictable patterns of parental sensory signals and aberrant offspring development. The impact of predictability of sensory signals on physical health outcomes, such as BMI, remains unknown. Here …

Coping Self-Efficacy, Acculturation, Gender, Socioeconomic Status, And Perceived Discrimination As Predictors Of Depression Among Nigerian Immigrants In The United States, Olatunde O. Osibote

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Nigerian immigrants represent one of the fastest-growing immigrant populations in the United States. Relocating to a new country can be a major source of stress, often increasing individuals’ vulnerability to mental health challenges. While considerable research has examined predictors of depression in the general population and among certain immigrant groups, limited attention has been given to these factors in the context of Nigerian immigrants in the U.S. This study aimed to address that gap by applying Berry’s acculturation theory to investigate predictors of depression within this population. A quantitative, cross-sectional, correlational survey design was used to examine whether acculturation, socioeconomic …

From Heroic Imagination To Heroic Action: The Legacy Of Philip Zimbardo In Portugal, Mariana Reis Barbosa, Ana Mafalda Guimarães, Mafalda Gomes Santos

Heroism Science

This article presents the development and implementation of the Heroic Imagination Project (HIP) in Portugal, tracing its evolution from inception to expansion across educational and community contexts. In 2018, the authors attended the Hero Round Table in San Francisco, receiving training from Zimbardo on the bystander effect and strategies to counteract it. Recognizing the absence of HIP curricula for younger audiences and the importance of fostering prosocial behavior early, the team created tailored programs: HIP Kids for children and HIP Teens for adolescents. Since 2018, these programs have been implemented in schools and social centers, reaching approximately 1,200 participants. Developed …

The Development And Validation Of The Measure Of Critical Reflection, Yea Jin Chang

Dissertations

Critical reflection, a component of critical consciousness, is defined as a metacognitive ability that is engaged when identifying, critiquing, and transforming social oppression. This study developed and validated the Measure of Critical Reflection, with items that assess participants’ cognitive ability to critically reflect and are framed to be generalizable across time and social contexts. Items were generated through literature review and interviews with critical consciousness educators and data was collected across two samples for factor structure analysis (N = 300) and replication and validation (N = 286). Results confirmed that a unidimensional model was most appropriate to represent the data …

More Than Trauma: The Story Of Intergenerational Survival, Tiffany Fang

Dissertations

Parental trauma can have a profound effect on children. The process of passing along traumatic experiences, known as the intergenerational transmission of trauma (IGT) and the process of passing along adaptations to these adverse circumstances, known as the intergenerational transmission of resilience (IGR), have been explored in populations such as survivors of the Holocaust and war refugees (Danieli et al., 2017; Kellermann, 2001; Sangalang & Vang, 2017). This study sought to extend findings to Chinese American immigrant families, many of whom experienced trauma in the form of war, sociopolitical violence, and poverty in 20th-century China. Despite the presence of these …

Exploring General Education Teachers' Awareness Of Ableism In Elementary School, Hana Elizabeth Polachek

Dissertations

Ableism, or prejudice and discrimination on the basis of dis/ability is of growing interest to both practitioners and researchers (Branco et al., 2019; Friedman & Awsumb, 2019). In the United States, there are federal laws that protect public education as a fundamental right regardless of a student’s ability status. Prior researchers found that educators can hold biases with respect to a student’s disability label (Bassey et al., 2020; Donohue & Bornman, 2015; Freer, 2018; Gifford & Knott, 2016; Ko & Boswell, 2013; Lucas, et al., 2009; Nah & Tan, 2021; Pachiţa & Gherguţ, 2021; Röhm et al., 2022; Wüthrich & …

Effects Of Gratitude, Mindfulness, And Goal Setting On College Athletes' Well-Being, Performance, And Motivation, Vanessa E. Vanwoerkom

Student Works

Because of the emphasis of sports in today’s society, athletes experience near-constant pressure from the public, coaches, and fans. This can make it difficult to control feelings of stress, anxiety, and even depression. Positive psychology interventions have been shown to be useful in teaching athletes to cope with difficult emotions and to handle the stress that accompanied advanced competition (Gabana, 2018). The benefits of positive affect have been shown to enhance motivation and attention, facilitate coping with hardship, and increase problem-solving skills (McCarthy, 2011). The practices of gratitude, mindfulness, and goal setting are some of the most effective skills taught …

Coping Strategies Of African American Cisgender Female Veterans After Experiencing Military Sexual Trauma, Denise Loretta Bullock

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The United States Veterans Health Administration (VHA) provides care for female veterans who have experienced military sexual trauma (MST), which is harassment and physical assault that occurs while on active military duty. This generic qualitative study involved understanding coping skills of cisgender African American female veterans who experienced MST and the impact of race on their coping skills. A significant gap exists in literature regarding how African American female veterans have coped with MST. This study involved using the transactional theory of stress and coping, which asserts coping responses reflect an imbalance between demands of a person’s environment and what …

Investigating Queer Asians' Accultrative Resilience And Wellbeing, Yiyu Cheng

Dissertations

This dissertation examines the role of resilience factors in moderating the effects of acculturative stress on the well-being of queer Asian Americans. A total of 181 survey responses were collected from queer-identified Asian Americans over the age of 18 residing in the United States. Using hierarchical multiple regression analysis, this study explores three models incorporating two identity resilience factors (ethnic identity salience and queer identity salience), two community resilience factors (ethnic community support and queer community support), and two intersectional resilience factors (queer Asian identity salience and queer Asian community support). Well-being was assessed through life satisfaction, negative affect, and …

Youth And Parent Knowledge And Perceptions Of Spina Bifida: Associations With Neurocognitive Factors, Self-Management, And Quality Of Life, Olivia Emery Clark

Dissertations

Spina bifida (SB) is a common congenital birth defect with multiple and varied medical, physical, and psychological impacts. The objective of these studies is to examine youth and parent condition-related knowledge in the context of SB and associations with executive function, quality of life, and medical self-management. Collectively, these studies examine both qualitative and quantitative multi-informant data from youth with SB, their parents, and their teachers. The first study used growth analyses to examine changes in condition-related knowledge over time, predicted by executive dysfunction and inattention, and predictive of medical self-management skills. The second study used qualitative coding methods to …

The Impact Of Social Support On Camouflaging Behaviors Among Young Adults With Autism Spectrum Disorder: Exploring Protective And Risk Factors, Mofoluwakemi Omololu Johnson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The Impact of Social Support on Camouflaging Behaviors Among Young Adults With Autism Spectrum Disorder: Exploring Protective and Risk Factors by Mofoluwakemi Omololu Johnson MSW, University of Ibadan, 2007 BSc, University of Ilorin, 2003 Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Clinical Psychology Walden University August 2025   Camouflaging strategies used by individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) to mask or compensate for autistic traits are often linked to adverse mental health out-comes. This quantitative correlational study investigated the relationship between perceived social support and camouflaging behaviors in young adults with autism. Grounded …

Examining The Impact Of Technology-Enhanced Peer Mentorship On First-Year University Students’ Mental Health And Academic Success, Maya Hareli

Dissertations

Poor mental health among first-year college students has been associated with a plethora of unfavorable outcomes including worsening mental health problems later in college as well as declines in academic performance, rates of college retention, and postgraduate employment and income potential. While demand for mental health services on college campuses is high, there are various barriers to accessing these services. Peer mentoring is a resource-efficient solution for curbing college student mental health and academic challenges; however, the effects of past mentoring programs are inconsistent. Additionally, technology-delivered interventions (TDIs) have been shown to yield positive outcomes for young adults along various …

Dynamical Regulation Of Blood Pressure And Cognitive Function, Joshua Sweigert, Tara Gruenewald, Margie Lachman, Teresa Seeman, Maxine Weinstein, Tse-Hwei Choo, Martina Pavlicova, Ramakrishna Mukkamala, Richard P. Sloan

Psychology Faculty Articles and Research

BACKGROUND

Blood pressure (BP) is not steady. It varies over intervals from months to consecutive cardiac cycles, and this variation contains meaningful information beyond mean BP. Variability over multiple clinic visits (VVV-BP) and during 24-h ambulatory monitoring (ABPV) is positively related to risk of stroke and coronary artery disease and negatively associated with cognitive performance. Beat-to-beat BP variation, often quantified as low frequency variability (0.04–0.15 Hz, LF-BPV), is less well-studied. Here, we examine the relationship between LF-BPV and cognitive outcomes in 1953 participants from the Midlife in the US study.

METHODS

Participants completed the Brief Test of Adult Cognition by …

Navigating Grief In The Digital Age: A Phenomenological Study Of Young Widows Using Instagram For Support And Connection, Mariah Jasmine Sandoval

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This qualitative phenomenological study explored the lived experiences of young widows who use Instagram for grief support following the death of a spouse. Young widows often face disenfranchised grief and limited access to traditional support systems, which can impede emotional processing and identity reconstruction. Grounded in Continuing Bonds Theory, which posits that ongoing connections with the deceased can be adaptive, the study examined how Instagram facilitates or complicates grief by enabling emotional expression, maintaining bonds, and fostering engagement with a community of shared loss. The central research question asked: How do young widows describe their experiences using Instagram for grief …

What Are The Lived Experiences Of Policing Professionals With Self-Reported Alterations To Biological Instinct Alongside Operational Demands?, Madyson Wier

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Operational demands and training of policing professionals may be a source of conflict leading to a potential increase in risk for both the officer and the general public. Training in a law enforcement academy does not adequately prepare officers for the impacts the career may have on mental health, changes to the biological system, or societal criticism of modern-day policing. The purpose of this qualitative study was to understand how policing professionals experience changes in the autonomic nervous system with exposure to trauma in the field, and how self-reported alterations are further impacted due to operational expectations of their department. …

The Force Of Resilience: Exploration Of Correlations Between Generational Differences In Occupational Resilience And Turnover Intentions Among Active United States Law Enforcement Personnel, Kaylin Elizabeth Switzer

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Law enforcement agencies across the United States are facing critical challenges with the recruitment and retention of officers. This study examined whether differences existed in occupational resilience and turnover intentions across generations of active law enforcement personnel, and whether resilience levels were correlated with turnover intentions. A quantitative, cross-sectional design was used to collect data via an online survey that included the Predictive 6-Factor Resilience Scale and the Expanded Multidimensional Turnover Intentions Scale. The sample consisted of 241 active members of law enforcement. There were two one-way ANOVA tests conducted to assess generational differences in resilience and turnover intention scores, …

Neonatal Striatal Volume Is Associated With Infant Anhedonia, Melissa Nevarez-Brewster, Catherine H. Demers, Jessica L. Irwin, Laura M. Glynn, Martin A. Styner, Mercedes Hoeflich Haase, M. Camille Hoffman, Diego A. Pizzagalli, Benjamin L. Hankin, Elysia Poggi Davis

Psychology Faculty Articles and Research

Anhedonia is increasingly recognized as a transdiagnostic risk factor for psychopathology. New evidence demonstrates that anhedonia is present in infancy and early childhood. Structural variability in striatal regions involved in reward processing and pleasure seeking is concurrently linked to anhedonia, yet few studies have examined whether striatal differences presage anhedonia, and none have examined prospective associations before middle childhood. The present study examined whether neuroanatomical markers that confer risk for anhedonia can be detected as early as the neonatal period. Specifically, we tested whether the volume of striatal regions in neonates predicted the emergence of infant anhedonic behaviors at six …

Associations Between Parental Audism/Linguisticism And Deaf Individuals' Well-Being: Mediation By Interpersonal Needs And Relationship Quality, Dilan H. Arreguin, Crystal D. Oberle

JADARA

This study investigated whether audism and linguisticism from the parents of physically deaf or culturally Deaf individuals—that is, parents’ expectation of their child to communicate within audio-normative standards rather than use sign language—is related to poor mental health of the child. It also investigated whether these relationships are accounted for by interpersonal needs or child-parent relationship quality. For this study, 104 D/deaf adults completed a survey with measures of parental audism and linguisticism, depression, anxiety, thwarted belongingness, perceived burdensomeness, parental closeness, and parental conflict. Parental audism and linguisticism positively correlated with depression and anxiety, and these relationships were mediated by …

Examining Student Critical Thinking Dispositions Within The College And Career Readiness Of Students Involved In Ffa And 4-H In Georgia, James D. Scott, Eric Rubenstein, Jason Peake, Nicholas E. Fuhrman Phd, Jori N. Hall

Journal of Youth Development

Preparing youth, primarily as they become high school graduates, to be ready to enter college and careers, has been a primary driving force in primary and secondary education for over 20 years. However, there lacks consistency in the definition and of the true idea of college and career readiness in the twentyfirst century. Additionally, there is a lack of research examining the impacts that student involvement in youth organizations has on the development of college and career-readiness skills. One facet of college and career readiness is the development of critical thinking skills and dispositions, which include enjoying solving problems, respecting …

Dsm-5 Based Algorithms For The Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised For Children Ages 4–17 Years, Linnea A. Lampinen, Shuting Zheng, Lindsay Olson, Vanessa H. Bal, Audrey E. Thurm, Amy N. Esler, Stephen M. Kanne, So Hyun Kim, Catherine Lord, China Pareneau, Kerri P. Nowell, Jane E. Roberts, Nicole Takahashi, Somer L. Bishop

Faculty Publications

Background: The Autism Diagnostic Interview, Revised (ADI-R) is a caregiver interview that is widely used as part ofthe diagnostic assessment for Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Few large-scale studies have reported the sensitivityand specificity of the ADI-R algorithms, which are based on DSM-IV Autistic Disorder criteria. Kim and Lord (Journalof Autism and Developmental Disorders, 2012, 42, 82) developed revised DSM-5-based toddler algorithms, which areonly applicable to children under 4 years. The current study developed DSM-5-based algorithms for children ages4–17 years and examined their performance compared to clinical diagnosis and to the original DSM-IV-basedalgorithms. Methods: Participants included 2,905 cases (2,144 ASD, 761 …

The Efficacy And Usability Of Motivational Interviewing Just-In-Time Trainings For Youth Mentors, Mackenzie J. Hart, Samuel Mcquillin, Aidyn Iachini, Daniel K. Cooper, Mark D. Weist

Faculty Publications

Using youth mentors to deliver evidence-based psychosocial services has been proposed to increase the reach of treatments, in part given the affordability and ubiquity of mentors in youth settings. Further, tests of mentor-delivered motivational interviewing (MI) have shown increases in youth mentees' academic performance and wellbeing. Yet, traditional methods of training mentors to use MI can be costly and time-consuming. Previous work has suggested the value of asynchronous, brief, just-in-time training (JITT) to help offset these challenges; however, MI JITT for mentors has not yet been formally evaluated. As such, here, we report on a preliminary study of MI JITT …

Early Adult Outcomes Of 4-H Program Alumni: A Propensity-Matched Comparative Study, Steven M. Worker, Roshan K. Nayak, Anne Marie Iaccopucci, Nicole Marshall-Wheeler

Journal of Youth Development

A young person’s engagement in high-quality youth development programs should lead to stronger positive outcomes as a young adult. Theoretical literature advances broad indicators that mark success in young adulthood; however, there is a dearth of empirical publications reporting long-term outcomes to support this assumption. We conducted a cross-sectional survey study to report on three long-term outcomes (economic stability, health and well-being, and community involvement) of young adult (aged 19 to 34) alumni of the University of California 4-H Youth Development Program. We compared 4-H alumni outcomes to matched peers using secondary data sources. The 4-H alumni sample demonstrated more …

Assessing The Psychological Wellbeing And Resilience Of Frontline Health Workers In Uganda: A Cross-Sectional Study, Ahmed Sarki, Joseph Atukwatse, Gideon Mbithi, Sabina Odero, Mary Namuguzi, Bernard Mutwiri, Lestine Bitakwitse, Peninah Wachira, Kevinson Mwangi, Eunice Ndirangu, Amina Abubakar

Institute for Human Development, East Africa

Background: Health workers in the frontline are the major drivers of health systems in low- and middle-income countries. However, these health workers face both chronic and acute shocks and stressors that expose them to mental health problems which are often overlooked. We examined the prevalence of mental health problems, correlates of psychological functioning, and resilience of frontline health workers in Uganda.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study comprising 1800 frontline health workers across all regions of Uganda from August through October 2023. We used tools such as the PC-PTSD-5, PHQ9, PSS, GAD-7, Oldenburg Burnout Inventory, and CD-RISC-10 to assess PTSD, …

Promising Strategies For Impacting Youth Development Systems From Christian Summer Camps, Rachael Botting, Jacob Sorenson, Karen K. Melton, Rob Ribbe Dr.

Journal of Youth Development

As research on summer camp continues to expand and both scholars and practitioners gain a better understanding of the impact of the experience, it has become important to explore how the experience of summer camp is connected to the larger ecology of youth development. This study explores strategies of Christian summer camps for impacting faith in the home through interviews with 20 Christian summer camp leaders across three faith-based camping organizations: Christian Camp and Conference Association (CCCA), Lutheran Outdoor Ministries (LOM), and United Methodist Camp and Retreat Ministries (UMCRM). Using semi-structured interviews and an appreciative inquiry approach, this study identified …