Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

College Students And Stress Management: Utilizing Biofeedback And Relaxation Skills Training, Shannon Jones Anstead

Theses and Dissertations

This study was undertaken to evaluate the effectiveness of biofeedback and relaxation skills training to help alleviate college students' stress symptoms. Data was collected from 659 full-time college students who attended a total of 1,170 biofeedback sessions over the course of two years. Results of the study indicated that the top three stress-related symptoms students experienced were (a) feeling overwhelmed, (b) feeling anxious, and (c) difficulty concentrating. Furthermore, the top three stressors rated by students were (a) too much to do, (b) homework, and (c) classes and school. In addition, the top three coping strategies utilized by students to manage …

Courtesy On Campus: How Far Away Does A Person Have To Be Before The Door Is Held?, Kristen Frederick

Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal

Many times while coming to the doors of a building the person who entered or exited before just lets the door shut in others’ face. It was thought that the door was less likely to be held ten minutes before a class period started (when people tend to be more rushed) than ten minutes after a class period starts. It was also thought that men are more courteous in public than women. The fundamental attribution error is used to explain peoples’ behaviors in public. The concept behind this is, people tend to do things because of an internal disposition like …

A Psychometric Evaluation Of The Revised Optimism-Pessimism Scale Of The Mmpi-2, Ginger Burge Debrule

Dissertations

The present study tested the psychometric properties of the Revised Optimism-Pessimism Scale (PSM-R) of the MMPI-2. This scale purportedly measures the respondent's explanatory style on a dimension of optimism and pessimism. Participants included 92 college undergraduates and 2,729 participants from archived outpatient data. The PSM-R is a reliable measure, based on test-retest reliability and internal consistency. However, the construct validity of the measure is questionable. Evaluation of the PSM-R items suggests that the items are not all related to the optimism-pessimism construct. In addition, convergent validity of the PSM-R was assessed using measures of attributional style, dispositional optimism, hope, depression, …

Exploring The Complexities Of Learning Motivation In Pre-Service Teacher Education Students: A Grounded Theory Approach, Kristin K. Grosskopf

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This qualitative, grounded-theory study investigated learning motivation differences among three achievement groupings of undergraduate students enrolled in the College of Education and Human Sciences at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Nine students participated in in-depth interviews that explored their reasons for pursuing their degree, their learning experiences in a university setting, their perceptions about meaningful learning experiences, and the nature of factors that both enhance and challenge their learning motivation. Participant responses conveyed strategies and conditions that were coded and analyzed, and a theoretical model was developed describing causal conditions that underlie students’ motivation to learn, phenomena that arose from those …

Relationships Between Black Female College Students' Relationships With Their Fathers And Adult Romantic Attachment, Nicole A. Dock

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

The current study examined the relationships between the quality and quantity of time that young Black female college students spent with their fathers during high school as related to romantic attachment and fear of intimacy. Although researchers have investigated the impact that early attachment bonds to mothers have for later psychosocial development, much less research has examined how attachment to fathers may be associated with psychosocial adjustment in young adulthood. In particular, there is a lack of information on how relationships to one's father or father figure may be associated with adjustment in young women from culturally diverse populations.

To …

An Evaluation Of Referral Patterns And Therapy Outcomes At A University Counseling Center: Analysis Of A Dialectical Behavior Skills Training Group, Eri Suzuki Bentley

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This study was designed to answer two research questions. First, factors associated with placement decisions to three treatment modalities in a university counseling center were examined; the skills training group for dialectical behavior therapy plus individual therapy (DBT), the interpersonal process group plus individual therapy (IP), and individual therapy only (IND). Individual therapy in all three conditions did not follow a specific theoretical orientation. Of 203 participants (55 males, 148 females), 83 were in DBT, 53 were in IP, and 67 were in IND. Client information included demographic variables (e.g., age, gender) and clinical variables (i.e., diagnosis, and scores from …

What Men Want: The Role Of Reflective Opposite-Sex Normative Preferences In Alcohol Use Among College Women, Joseph W. Labrie, Jessica Cail, Justin F. Hummer, Andrew Lac, Clayton Neighbors

Heads Up!

Misperceptions of peer drinking norms have been found to be strongly associated with individual drinking behavior, especially for proximal reference groups such as same-sex friends. Less studied are the effects of perceived preferences from the opposite sex on alcohol use; that is, the behaviors an individual believe the opposite sex prefers from them. Research suggests that these perceived “reflective” normative preferences may be particularly salient among college women, who may drink in pursuit of intimate relationships and positive attention from male peers. Heterosexual undergraduate students from two universities participated in this project. Females answered questions regarding the amount of alcohol …

A Qualitative Investigation Of White Students’ Perceptions Of Diversity, Kira Hudson Banks

Kira Hudson Banks, Ph.D.

Diversity is used in countless vision statements of institutions of higher learning. Yet, it is critical to examine how students understand the concept and conceptualize their personal involvement. Given that the current population of college students is predominantly White, it is important to examine this population. The current sample consisted of 151 self-identified White college students (61 men and 90 women) from a predominantly White, residential, liberal arts college. Responses to 2 open-ended questions—“In your own words, express how you would define the term diversity?” and “How do Whites fit into your definition of diversity?”—were analyzed in Atlas.ti 5.0 using …

College Students' Attitude Towards The Utilization Of The Sport Recreation Center (Src), Mohd Sofian Omar-Fauzee, Aminuddin Yusof, Sam Zizzi

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

The primary aim of this paper is to examine the reasons for using or not using the student recreational center (SRC) among a frequent users and non-users. The second purpose is to use the research findings in order to make same recommendations for attracting stronger patronage amongst student users. Two groups of college students that were identified by user and non-user were invited to attend a separate focus group discussion. A user group consisted of six students (5 male, 1 female) with a mean age of 20.33 (Sd=.82), and the non-user group consisted of eight students (6 male, 2 female) …

Perceived Closeness To The Deceased And Its Predictive Effect On The Development Of Prolonged Grief Disorder And Suicidality Among Bereaved College Students, Jeffrey Alan Rings

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

A growing percentage of college students are experiencing severe and debilitating psychological problems (Caulfield, 2000; Douce, 2004; Kitzrow, 2003). Despite being a commonly-encountered stressor among undergraduates (Currier et al., 2006), the occurrence of bereavement is addressed rarely among the college mental health literature. However, bereavement has been shown to lead to increased suicidality and other problematic mental health symptoms (Prigerson, Bridge et al., 1999). Prolonged Grief Disorder (PGD), a newly-defined mental health diagnosis, has been found to be a more accurate indicator of poorer mental health functioning among bereaved individuals than other mental health conditions (Silverman et al., 2000). Some …

Potential Demographic And Cultural Predictors Of Heavy Episodic Drinking In Hispanic College Students., Theodore V. Cooper, Jennifer Venegas, Natahsa Naylor, Brenda S. Hanson

Theodore V. Cooper

No abstract provided.

A Pilot Study Of A Brief Smoking Cessation Intervention At The Student Health Center., Theodore V. Cooper, Jennifer Venegas, Denise Rodriguez De Ybarra, Thom Taylor, Jasjit S. Ahluwalia

Theodore V. Cooper

No abstract provided.

Predictors Of Amount Smoked Per Day In Light Smoking College Students: A 7 Day Diary Assessment., Thom Taylor, Theodore V. Cooper

Theodore V. Cooper

No abstract provided.

A Night To Remember: A Harm-Reduction Birthday Card Intervention Reduces High-Risk Drinking During 21st Birthday Celebrations, Joseph W. Labrie, Savannah Migliuri, Jessica Cail

Heads Up!

Objective

In collaboration with Residence Life, the Heads UP research team developed a 21st birthday card program to help reduce the risky drinking often associated with these celebrations.

Participants

81 students (28 males, 53 females) completed a post-21st birthday survey. Of these, 74 reported drinking during their 21st birthday and were included in the analyses.

Methods

During the 2005–2006 school year, the authors assigned students celebrating 21st birthdays to either receive an alcohol risk-reduction birthday card or to a no-card condition. The students completed a survey after their birthday.

Results

Students who received the card consumed fewer drinks and reached …

The Effect Of Family Allocentrism And Acculturation On The Tendency To Foreclose In Second Generation Indian College Students, Komal Dutt

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Vocational literature on Asians Indians in America is plagued by such major problems as a severe dearth of theory-driven research to explain career process variables such as the process of committing to a career choice. During this process, individuals should ideally proceed through a sequence of stages or phases in which they progress from a relative absence of commitment to a phase in which their level of commitment to a career choice is strong (Super, 1957). However, individuals from Asian cultures may not progress sequentially through these stages, and might choose a path to career development which entails committing to …

Self-Esteem, Self-Compassion, Defensive Self-Esteem, And Related Features Of Narcissism As Predictors Of Aggression, Cara Pharr Gottheim

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

This study sought to expand upon existing literature pertaining to feelings toward oneself and aggressive behavior. Specifically, global self-esteem, as well as two specific subsets of self-esteem, defensive self-esteem and narcissistic self-esteem, were examined as predictors of aggressive behavior. Additionally, the relationship between aggression and self-compassion, a recently introduced self-construct moderately correlated with self-esteem, was investigated. College students from a large Northeastern University were invited via email or through a brief classroom presentation to participate in this online study. A total of 181 students completed five surveys that were useable for data analyses: Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (SES; Rosenberg, 1989), Self-compassion …

Loneliness, Friendship, And Self-Esteem : First-Year College Students' Experience Of Using Facebook, Lai Lei Lou

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

ABSTRACT

The Effects Of Parental Influences On College Student Normative Perceptions Of Peer Alcohol Use, Emily Susanne Mowry Dobran

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

There has been speculation as to how college students develop normative descriptive and injunctive perceptions of college student alcohol use. One possible explanation is that parents may be "carriers" of the skewed social norm, passing on their misperceptions of alcohol use to their children (Perkins, 2002).

Effects Of Individual Secularity, Institutional Secularity And Campus Activity Involvement On College Student Suicidal Ideation And Attempts, Christopher Daood

Dissertations (1934 -)

Using undergraduate data from a recent study on the Nature of College Student Suicidality, this paper explored the impact of campus activity involvement, individual secularity and institutional secularity as risk and/or protective factors for college student suicidal ideation and attempts. Results revealed that students who participated in at least one campus activity and students who affiliate with a Christian faith were less likely to seriously consider suicide in the last twelve months. Gender differences were found in the relationship between institutional secularity and serious consideration of suicide, with non-secular institutions serving as a protective factor for women, but not men. …

A Tobacco Consumption Diary To Assess The Factors Associated With Smoking In A Light Smoking College Population, Thom J. Taylor

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Limited information exists about the proximal predictors of light smoking fewer than 10 cigarettes per day (cpd). Furthermore, light smokers are not highly motivated to quit smoking. This study examined predictors of light smoking and motivational change toward quitting smoking in 118 light smoking college students. Participants completed a 7 day Tobacco Consumption Diary (TCD) by recording for each cigarette: time and day, location, number of people present, number of smokers present, mood, and whether alcohol was consumed. Carbon Monoxide (CO) feedback was also provided to a random half of the participants at the outset of the study. CO feedback …

Examining Compressed Speech Listening Measure With College Students Who Are Visually Impaired Or Blind, William J. Marks

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Psychological assessments are a way of gaining some understanding of an individual in order to help make informed decisions (Sattler, 2001). These assessments offer potentially important and valuable information that can assist individuals with impaired vision in learning additional skills, improving deficient abilities, and in providing diagnostic information for future research. In addition, psychological assessments are frequently used to diagnosis a variety of psychological and learning disorders. Assessing individuals with impaired vision presents a variety of challenges from those encountered with the general population.

The current study provided an investigation into the relationship of the results of the compressed speech …

Club Drug Use In Hispanic College Students, Michelle R. Resor, Theodore V. Cooper

Theodore V. Cooper

No abstract provided.

Club Drug Use In Hispanic College Students, Michelle R. Resor, Theodore V. Cooper

Theodore V. Cooper

No abstract provided.