Digital Commons Network^™

Generational Cohort Membership And Career And Organizational Commitment Among Law Enforcement Officers, Erinn Elizabeth Vranches

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Career and organizational commitment are topics of interest in multiple fields, including law enforcement. With the exodus and transition of generational cohorts, there is a need to understand generational differences to address the recruitment, training, and retention of officers. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between generational cohort membership, career commitment, and organizational commitment among law enforcement officers. Two theories were used for the foundation of this study: Manheim’s theory of generations and Super’s developmental self-concept theory. The study method was quantitative and the design, correlational. A survey containing demographic questions and items from the Occupational …

How Racial Trauma Manifests In Black Women From Direct And Indirect Encounters With Police Brutality, Ashley Turner

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

This phenomenological study explored Black women’s lived experiences with racial trauma stemming from direct and indirect encounters with police brutality. A total of nine participants living in Washington state participated in this study. They identified as Black, ciswomen, fluent in English, and at least 21-years-old. In-depth, semi-structured, qualitative interviews were conducted to explore participants’ experiences with police. Transcripts were analyzed using interpretative phenomenological analysis. The results consisted of the following five themes: (a) forms of police encounters, (b) influence of identity, (c) perceived reason for police brutality, (d) emotions stemming from police brutality, and (e) tactics to survive police interactions. …

Forest Bathing Increases Adolescent Mental Well-Being And Connection To Nature: A Transformative Mixed Methods Study, Jennifer Keller

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Previous research has demonstrated that practicing forest bathing has significant positive effects on well-being. However, few studies have investigated whether forest bathing increases adolescent well-being despite the growing adolescent mental health crisis in the United States. Similarly, few studies have explored forest bathing’s impacts on connectedness to nature. Considering the ongoing environmental crisis, determining if forest bathing increases connectedness to nature is a critical expansion of forest bathing research, as connectedness to nature is linked to environmental care and concern. This study investigated the possibility that forest bathing, a nature-based mindfulness practice, could increase adolescent mental well-being and connectedness to …

Seeing The System Vs Seeing The Individual: How Contextual Information And Framing Facilitate Perceptions Of Structural Inequality, Derek Kahng

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

The current study investigates factors that facilitate adolescents' structural attributions. Namely, we focus on two main factors. First, we investigate if contextual information such as intergroup/intragroup comparisons and group/individual level framing of inequalities affects the likelihood of making structural attributions to race-based inequalities in academic achievement. Second, we investigate if the likelihood of making structural attributions differs based on individual characteristics, such as the individuals’ race/ethnicity, subjective and objective social status, and belief in meritocracy and a just world. Results and its implications will be discussed in the paper.

Moral Formation In A Culture Of Relativism: Correlates Of Universalism And Relativism In The Moral Outlooks Of Emerging Adults, Steven Crawford Hayward

Journal of Catholic Education

This study explores some of the demographic, personal, and experiential factors of emerging adults that correlate to a spectrum of moral outlooks ranging from moral universalism to moral relativism. Data was gathered from 466 volunteer undergraduate students. Respondents’ demographic, experiential, and personal factors served as independent variables. The relativism index score form Forsyth’s Ethics Position Questionnaire (1980) served as the dependent variable. Results suggest several conclusions: First, adults in the life of youth are a significant factor in moral outlook, exerting influence in both universalistic and relativistic directions. Second, religious practice and involvement contribute to a universal moral outlook. Third, …

Military Chaplains’ Provision Of Psychological Assistance To Soldiers In Ukraine, Artem Makovskyi

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

This article presents the results of a theoretical analysis of and the author's personal practical experience with the work of military chaplains in providing psychological assistance to Ukrainian servicemen. Researchers in the field of psychology of religion have identified a number of functions of religion,--namely communicative, regulatory, integrating, ideological and compensatory--on which the pastoral activity of a military chaplain can be analyzed in their provision of psychological assistance to combatants. A comparison of the tasks facing military psychologists and military chaplains is carried out based on legal documents. Emphasis is placed on those moments where they can functionally complement each …

Identities Of Women In Indian Art And History, Nalini Rao

Monsoon: South Asian Studies Association Journal

The stereotypical image of Indian women portrayed in the art of stone sculpture is often interpreted as images of beauty that are sensuous, religious as well depict social life. There are historical reasons for depicting her as such. This paper inquires into the changing depiction and social forces that influenced feminine imagery. This paper examines the portrayal of beauty through idealization of female body which has evolved over the centuries in India. It also aims to understand their changing status and explores issues of feminine identity, status, and empowerment largely in ancient and medieval India. It also provides a brief …

Assessing The Relationships Between Direct And Vicarious Exposure To Healthcare Discrimination And Erasure, Mistrust In Healthcare, And The Healthcare Utilization Behaviors Among Transgender And Gender Independent Individuals, Kyle L. Mason

Theses and Dissertations

Healthcare inaccessibility through direct exposure (i.e., personal) to myriad forms of gender identity-related discrimination and erasure among the Transgender and Gender Independent (TGI) population has been documented by prior studies. The myriad barriers that individuals who embody TGI identities encounter to accessing healthcare are associated with the underutilization of healthcare, which may further exacerbate the health disparities that exist between this population and cisgender individuals in the United States (U.S.). Although the impacts of the harm that direct exposure to healthcare discrimination and erasure may have on TGI individuals are known, their exposure to such harm vicariously (i.e., through observation …

Mind Wandering In Daily Life: A National Experience Sampling Study Of Intentional And Unintentional Mind Wandering Episodes Reported By Working Adults Ages 25 – 50, Paula C. Lowe

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Numerous researchers have investigated thinking that drifts away from what the individual was doing, thinking that is known as mind wandering. Their inquiries were often conducted in university lab settings with student participants. To learn about mind wandering in the daily life of working adults, this experience sampling study investigated intentional and unintentional mind wandering episodes as reported by working adults, ages 25–50, living across the United States. In this age frame, work and family responsibilities have increased in complexity and overlap. Using a smartphone app, participants were randomly notified to answer experience sampling surveys six times a day for …

From A Boy To A Leader, Alejandro Zayas

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

The following autoethnographic dissertation examines my personal experiences of trauma, abuse, and violence. Drawing on journals, memories, and artifacts from my life, I use self-reflection to illustrate the impacts of trauma on my childhood and adulthood. My traumatic experiences of sexual abuse, childhood violence, and emotional abuse are situated within broader sociocultural contexts of masculinity, Hispanic culture, and social norms. This study illuminates possibilities for healing and transformation for myself and others with shared traumatic backgrounds. It calls for trauma-informed education, masculinity, and resiliency. Evocatively sharing my traumatic life events provides an accessible window into often silenced experiences, bearing witness …

Exploring The Definition Of Resilience: A Convergent Parallel Mixed Methods Study In Adults Over The Age Of 65, Sara J. Blessington

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

The definition of a word helps us understand its context and how it is meant to be used in daily life or research. When a word lacks a universal definition, it is hard to know how to use it. “Resilience” is that type of word. The resilience community in psychological research does not have a concrete, universal definition for this word. It takes on whatever characteristics are useful to the investigator. This study began with seeking a universal definition for the domain known as resilience. This study used a convergent parallel design with adults aged 60 and older living independently …

Towards An Ecosystem Of Youth Leadership Development, Trisha Swed

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

This study is aimed at understanding how youth leadership development programs can be more inclusive and promote a broader range of leadership values, qualities, and behaviors by focusing on young people who have been disaffected by leadership development programs. The study design was intended to provide a creative space for youth to engage in meaningful conversations about their evolving concepts and expectations of leadership. Using critical youth participatory action research to engage a group of youth, cohort members co-created a new youth leadership development program while addressing their identified challenges and needs. Findings from this study highlight the importance of …

Internalized Transphobia And The Development Of Disordered Eating Behaviors In Gender Diverse Adults, Bonnie Kester

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Gender diverse individuals experience a multitude of oppressive interactions within our society and receive incessant messages of invalidation, oppression, and aggression. These chronic stressors have been shown to increase the risk of developing disordered eating behaviors within this population. The current study aims to explore how internalized transphobia may affect the development of disordered eating behavior as viewed through the Minority Stress Framework. This study explored the lived experience of being gender diverse in our society and how this may relate to the development of disordered eating behavior while also investigating protective factors. This study utilized a qualitative phenomenological methodology, …

What Makes Conversation Good? How Responsivity, Topics, And Insider Language Predict Feelings Of Connection, Emma M. Templeton

Dartmouth College Ph.D Dissertations

We spend our lives having conversations, and some inevitably go better than others. What happens in conversation that makes people feel connected? To explore this question, I recorded pairs of strangers and friends having unstructured conversations. In Chapter 1, I show that people who feel connected tend to respond quickly, creating short gaps between turns. However, long gaps are not necessarily bad. Although long gaps signal moments of disconnection and awkwardness for strangers, they mark moments of heightened connection for friends by providing space for enjoyment and mutual reflection. In Chapter 2, I examine how people start their conversations. Specifically, …

Social Media: Are You Addicted? Examining The Role Of Social Media Platforms On Life Satisfaction, Personality And Generation, Alexzander Ponce

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

The rise of social media has led to an increase in social media use and social media addiction. Research has found that social media addiction is influenced by various factors, and this study looks to examine the relation between social media addiction and users' life satisfaction, personality type and age group; and whether the type of social media platform moderates this relationship. This study dispersed survey questionnaires and conducted an ANCOVA to analyze the results. Results found that life satisfaction and social media addiction are negatively related, but the negative relation is larger for Twitter users. Results also found a …

A Picture Worth A Thousand Words: Factors Influencing Disability Accommodations, Alicia E. Martin

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Because not all disabilities look the same it is difficult to label a person with disabilities just by looking at them. Given that our knowledge, attitudes, and perceptions impact how we interpret our world and our willingness to act, people, including professors, may be biased toward providing accommodations for those with easily recognizable disabilities and biased against those with non-recognizable disabilities, and this may impact the disabled person’s ability to learn. This thesis aims to address whether professors’ disability-related attitudes, perceptions of accommodation reasonableness, and willingness to provide accommodations differ when the disability is recognizable (student is pictured in a …

Uncertainty, Parenting Attitudes, Risk Perceptions, And Covid-19 Vaccination Intentions, Zoë Royer

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on the lives of millions of people, particularly parents. Drawing on uncertainty-identity theory and research on intensive parenting attitudes, two studies sought to understand the effects of self-uncertainty, parenting beliefs, and perceived illness and vaccine side effect severity, on parental intentions to vaccinate children against COVID-19. We hypothesized that parents with intensive parenting attitudes would rely on their parenting identity to reduce uncertainty and make decisions about vaccinating their children. The results revealed that parents who perceived illness severity in unvaccinated children as high were more likely to vaccinate their children, while …

The Lived Experiences Of Stress For People With Alcoholism Striving Toward Recovery, Gerald Okeke

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Recovery from alcohol is an individualized process, therefore, effective treatment necessitates an understanding of the phenomenon from the perspective of individuals in recovery. This study involved an exploration of the lived experiences of stress of 10 individuals with alcoholism in their first year recovery journey, particularly with respect to access resources (e.g., helpfulness and availability). Pearlin et al.'s stress process theory and Bandura's social learning theory constituted the study's theoretical foundation; the key concepts of social stress and social learning informed the development of the research questions and the analysis of data. The major themes that emerged were spirituality, hitting …

Correctional Officers’ Perceptions Of Punitive Force In Solitary Confinement, Megan Crista Oberholtzer

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Solitary confinement in United States prisons is a common practice influenced by legal and human rights discussions. Physical conditions of the prison environment can cause somatic and psychological distress among correctional officers. The research problem is how lived experiences of solitary confinement correctional officers may influence punitive force perceptions. A positive outcome for inmates may be influenced by correctional officers who are unbiased in confinement, interventions, and treatment management. Positive inmate outcomes also rely on institutional functions. The purpose was to explore correctional officers’ lived experiences and perspectives. The supporting theoretical framework is Weiner’s attribution theory. The research question involved …

Personal Hardiness As An Unexamined Component Of The Healthy Volunteer Effect, Angelique E. Blann

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Clinical trials are the standard for approving medicines for public use. To conduct trials, researchers depend on a declining number of volunteers. The healthy volunteer effect, a phenomenon in which participants demonstrate better outcomes than their peers, limits the generalizability of trial outcomes. The healthy volunteer effect does not fully explain the outcome difference between volunteers and nonvolunteers. The purpose of this cross-sectional quantitative study was to examine personal hardiness as an unexplored component of the healthy volunteer effect and determine whether personal hardiness is associated with willingness to participate. Hardiness was a personality construct that represented resilience to stress. …

The American Founding Documents And Democratic Social Change: A Constructivist Grounded Theory, A I. Forde

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractExisting social disparities in the United States are inconsistent with the promise of democracy; therefore, there was a need for critical conceptualization of the first principles that undergird American democracy and the genesis of democratic social change in America. This constructivist grounded theory study aimed to construct a grounded theory that provides an understanding of the process of American democratic social change as it emerged from the nation’s founding documents. A post hoc polytheoretical framework including Foucault’s, Bourdieu’s, and Marx and Engels’s theories of power was used to understand power dynamics. The research question focused on understanding the process of …

The Experiences Of Successful Formerly Incarcerated African American Males, Bernice Gordon-Young

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

African American men are incarcerated at alarming rates and often recidivate at high rates within 3 years. Researchers have demonstrated that recidivism rates last through years 4 and beyond. There is limited qualitative data to provide strategies from formerly incarcerated African American males who have been successful at not recidivating for 10 or more years after their release. The purpose of this Afrocentric-hermeneutic phenomenological study was to bridge the gap in the literature and explore the lived experiences of African American males who were formerly incarcerated and have positively changed their lives to avoid further criminality. A purposeful and snowball …

Examining Psychosocial Characteristics Of Female Serial Murderers, Rachael Strebel

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Previous studies of serial murderers have focused primarily on male serial murderers.The reason for this is unknown, but is primarily reflective of media patterns, gender roles, and social norms that often exclude females from conversations surrounding female serial murder. This study focused on the psychosocial characteristics of female serial murderers. Both solo female serial murderers and serial murderers who worked with one partner were studied. Using a grounded theory approach, based on the review of 11 secondary data case studies, 12 female serial murderers were studied; six who murdered individually and six who murdered within a team. Six main themes …

Microaggressions Against Ethnic Individuals From Minorities In Counseling, Joan Morton

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractEven though the current literature addresses racial microaggressions among ethnic minority people and implications for counseling, no qualitative research that included the voices of ethnic minority individuals was found. Researchers have not fully addressed the prevalence of racial microaggressions in counseling sessions. The purpose of this qualitative narrative study was to explore the lived encounters of ethnic minorities concerning racial microaggressions in counseling. The study issue was analyzed through the lens of critical race theory. Four participants were recruited from the Walden University participation pool. Data were selected through semi-structure interviews and narrative analysis was used to analyze data to …

How Supervisors Describe The Development Of Competence In Trainee School Counselors, Suen Yan Leung

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractSchool counselors serve an important role in providing frontline counseling services to students in local school districts. Professional associations and educational institutions emphasize the importance of professional competence. However, research on professional competence is fragmented, outdated, and unintegrated. This qualitative study explored the development of competence in trainee school counselors during supervision, from the supervisors’ perspectives. Using the conceptual frameworks of self-efficacy and professional identity development, 16 experienced supervisors were interviewed and asked to describe the development of competence in trainee school counselors and how they instructed the development of competence. Thorne’s interpretive description method was combined with a reality-testing …

The Metanarratives Of The Fourth Industrial Revolution And The Collective Cognitive Dissonance Of Metamodernist Discursive Formation, John R. Lewis

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

My artworks explore the impacts of the technology of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, which began in the early 21^st Century, upon global society and the human psyche. My works are instantiated by multi-year research in the areas of social psychology, cognitive dissonance, computer evolution and artificial intelligence. My body of work portrays a cautionary sensibility regards new technologies such as robotics, quantum supercomputing, Artificial Intelligence, commercial space travel and nanotechnology. In addition, my artwork attempts to increase awareness of the phenomenon of cognitive dissonance.

The perceptions and cognitions of artistic viewers relate directly to the psychological phenomenon of cognitive …

Views Of Asexuality And Transgender Individuals: The Role Of Religious Beliefs, Allison Davis

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Asexuality is a lifelong, continuous lack of sexual attraction or the inability to feel sexual attraction. Asexuality is a naturally occurring sexual orientation thought to be present in 0.4-1.1% of the American population. However, asexuality is still relatively unknown by the general population and understudied by scientific researchers. Even less known is how religious individuals view asexuality. According to the 2020 US census, around 70% of American adults identify as Christian. The current study examined how degree of religiousness related to feelings toward sexuality and asexual individuals. Main hypotheses included: religious fundamentalism would predict negative attitudes toward asexual and transgender …

Effects Of Imagined Financial Difficulties On State Adult Attachment Systems, Loren Jones

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

According to Bowlby’s definition of attachment theory, insecure attachment systems negatively regulate individuals' behaviors, thoughts, and feelings (Mikulincer & Shaver, 2007). As individuals age, negative views of others and the self can grow, inevitably hindering relationships with others and self-esteem. Empirical research suggests a strong positive relationship between low socioeconomic status (SES) and developing an insecure attachment style among children (Sherry et al., 2013; van IJzendoorn & Bakermans-Kranenburg, 2010). With many similarities between child and adult attachment models, there is a gap in the literature examining the impact of lower SES on adult attachments. Although socioeconomic status's effects on general …

Employing The Houseless As Corporate Social Responsibility, Nicholas A. Smith, Larry R. Martinez, Shi (Tracy) Xu, Anna Mattila, Lisa Yixing Gao

Psychology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Purpose

Many hospitality organizations see the benefits of engaging in corporate social responsibility (CSR), which can take many forms. This study aims to examine one relatively unique form of CSR: hiring individuals experiencing houselessness. This research aimed to investigate the impact of hiring individuals experiencing houselessness on customers’ behavioral intentions, attitudes toward an organization and perceptions of CSR actions.

Design/methodology/approach

Across two experiments, this study investigated the impact of employing individuals experiencing houselessness on customers’ perceptions of the employee and organization using organizational legitimacy theory.

Findings

Results demonstrate that employees known to be houseless elicited more positive employee and organizational …

Student Experiences Reporting Sexual And Gender-Based Misconduct To The Title Ix Office At A Public State University, Aliya R. Webermann, Kathryn Holland, Christopher M. Murphy

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

Twenty-five survivors completed anonymous surveys about reporting sexual and gender-based misconduct to their public university’s Title IX office, including case characteristics, perceptions of the reporting and response process (e.g., helpfulness, respect), and experiences of institutional betrayal and support. Measures and open-ended responses described varied misconduct incidents, reporting behaviors, case outcomes, process issues, and negative process consequences. Additionally, process perceptions correlated with institutional betrayal and support. Findings illuminate how survivors’ Title IX process perceptions relate to experiencing harm or support from larger institutions, and offer insights into developing a Title IX process which maintains student rights and dignity regardless of outcome.