Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Accountability And Political Tolerance: "Sober Second-Thought" Or Knee-Jerk?, Erika D. Price

Master's Theses

This thesis explores the cognitive underpinnings of political tolerance. Past research suggests that political elites are more tolerant than the general population, regardless of political orientation. Survey results suggest that political expertise, interest, and attention to politics foster increased political tolerance, regardless of ideology, party, or the extent to which tolerance is carefully considered by the respondent.

The Melting Pot Versus The Salad Bowl: American Attitudes Toward Acculturation Of Middle Eastern Immigrants, Hannah M. Alarian

Master's Theses

Since the formation of the United States of America the debate over the environment of America as a melting pot in which immigrants assimilate or as a salad bowl in which immigrants acculturate rages on. Acculturation in its conceptual definition is dualistic, meaning it affects not just the immigrating group but also the host culture group (Berry, 1990). In most research, however, acculturation only refers to the change in the acculturating group and not to the host culture group. This study examined the multidimensionality of attitudes toward Middle Eastern immigrants through an investigation of intergroup relations (threat, perceived group permeability) …

Prosocial Behavior And Teamwork In Online Computer Games, Julia Elizabeth Fredrickson

Master's Theses

The use of technology for training purposes is a growing field. Many of the traits for successful team building are shared by a variety of video games, overcoming the limitations of traditional team-building exercises. The goal of this research project was to study social and teamwork oriented behaviors within the settings of online computer games. One hundred and eighty-one individuals completed an online survey in which they were asked questions regarding team-work behaviors. These individuals also participated in a game scenario which measured their social orientation. The hypotheses for this research were that individuals who play online computer games will …

An Attack On One Is An Attack On All: Factors That Influence Responses To Witnessing Discrimination, Hilary E. Slover

Master's Theses

Witnessing discrimination against a racial minority should be threatening to both racial minority and majority group members, but for different reasons. One's racial group membership and one's relationship with the perpetrator could both serve as sources of threat to a third party observer. Ninety-two participants identified as racial majority group members (i.e., White) and 48 identified as racial minority group members (i.e., Asian, Black, and other). Each participant was asked to report one instance of discrimination perpetrated by a close other and one by a distant other. Some differences between minority and majority group members' responses emerged. For example, compared …

The Ends Determine The Means: Activated Goals Explain The Decision To Confront, Kala Jean Melchiori

Master's Theses

Women believe that they would confront perpetrators of sexual harassment, but when put in a sexually harassing situation they rarely confront (Woodzicka & LaFrance, 2001). Women may overestimate their likelihood of confronting because they think they would be concerned with fairness, but in actuality the need to belong strongly dissuades women from confronting harassers. I tested this idea by randomly assigning women to be primed with a belonging, fairness, or no goal, and then had them predict how they would respond to sexually harassing or surprising interview questions. Women who viewed the sexually harassing interview questions predicted more confrontational behavior …

Exploring The Mortality Salience Paradox: The Effects Of High-Risk Employment On Interpersonal Decision Making, Bella Etingen

Master's Theses

Past research concerning Terror Management Theory (TMT) has displayed self-esteem bolstering and cultural worldview validation to be the foundation of subconscious defense mechanisms against mortality salience (Solomon, Greenberg, & Pyszczynski, 1991). Recent studies have also identified intimacy and romantic commitment as form of such defense (Florian, Mikulincer & Hirschberger, 2002). The present study examines the effects of existential terror on people's intimacy-related milestone time frames, as well as the distinction between naturally occurring mortality salience (in a sample of soldiers) and the more standard form of laboratory induced mortality salience. It was hypothesized

that employees of high-risk fields will have …

Policy Appears Upon The Scene, Hand In Hand With Poverty: An Analysis Of The Moderating Effects Of Teacher Attitude On The Relationship Between Professional Development And Student Achievement., Kristen Beth Adler

Master's Theses

Massive deficits in local, state and national education budgets are forcing schools to adapt their spending to align with these reductions. Rather than merely increasing or decreasing resources, the effectiveness of resource allocation is demanding renewed attention at all levels of educational expenditure. The purpose of this study is to assess the effectiveness of teacher professional development across five campuses at Chicago International Charter School. It is the goal of this project to examine how teacher professional development directly impacts student performance, as well as to evaluate whether this relationship is moderated by teacher attitude towards professional development activities. It …

Adolescent Adjustment In Affluent Communities: The Role Of Goal Orientation And Motivational Climate, Lea Ventura Travers

Master's Theses

The goal of the present study was to evaluate potential sources of affluent adolescents' adjustment problems (i.e., depressive symptoms, anxiety, substance use, and life satisfaction). Specifically, two mediational models were proposed to evaluate how (1) parental 'goal orientation' and (2) adolescents' perceptions of 'motivational climate' in school lead to adolescent `goal orientation' and subsequent adjustment among adolescents from affluent communities. Participants were recruited from 10th grades at three schools (suburbs of Chicago, New York, Boston) located in communities where the median annual income is at least $100,000 and at least 30% of parents had a graduate degree. Participants and their …

Body Image And Body Mass Index: An Investigation Of Preadolescent Low-Income, Urban Ethnic Minority Girls, Amanda K. Ward

Master's Theses

Utilizing a sample of low-income, urban preadolescent African American and Latina girls, this study examined ethnic differences in two aspects of body image (i.e., body dissatisfaction and weight descriptions), and determined if this relation varied as a function of age. This study also examined the relation between the body image variables and self-esteem and BMI and self-esteem, and determined if these relations differed depending on age or ethnicity. Participants were recruited from 3rd through 5th grade at five Chicago Public Schools, and completed measures of body dissatisfaction, weight descriptions, self-esteem, and had their anthropometric measurements taken. Results showed that Latina …

The Influence Of Supportive Parenting And Racial Socialization On Internalizing And Externalizing Behaviors Among African-American Youth, Corinn Elmore

Master's Theses

The current study examined the additive and interactive effects of racial socialization on internalizing and externalizing behaviors. One hundred and thirty-six youth (mean age = 11.49, SD = 1.71) in fourth through eighth grade and parents of children these ages (n = 150) from 3 three locations of a community based family support agency reported on the youth's internalizing and externalizing behaviors, parental behavior, and racial socialization experiences. Correlational analyses were conducted to determine the relationship between study variables. Consistent with hypotheses, supportive parenting was associated with fewer maladaptive outcomes. Racial pride messages showed a trend level association to outcomes. …

Predictors Of Academic Achievement And Failure Among Low-Income Urban African American Adolescents: An Ecological Perspective, Israel Moses Gross

Master's Theses

Predictors of academic achievement among urban low-income African American adolescents have primarily been investigated by examining "main effects," or limited interactions with conventional statistical techniques. This paper adds to the literature by examining the factors that influence academic outcomes among this population within an ecological systems framework. This allowed for a comprehensive understanding of how numerous protective and risk factors, across ecological settings, interact to influence academic outcomes.

Optimal Data Analysis (ODA) was employed to create prediction models for mathematic and reading achievement. ODA allowed for the examination of a vast number of variables in one statistical model without increasing …

Emotional Exhaustion, Work-Family Conflict, And Marital Satisfaction Among Professional Psychologists., Alisha Oscharoff

Master's Theses

While a wealth of research has examined how the occupational role affects family domain functioning, there is limited research investigating these issues among mental health professionals. Using a sample of 160 professional psychologists, this study examined the relationships between emotional exhaustion at work, work-family conflict (WFC), and marital satisfaction as well as gender differences in the strengths of these relationships. Analyses indicated that increased emotional exhaustion was associated with increased WFC and that both emotional exhaustion and WFC were negatively associated with marital satisfaction. However, WFC did not emerge as a significant mediator of the relationship between emotional exhaustion and …