Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Factors Predictive Of Commitment To Invest In Marriage, Randy A. Gilchrist

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Research for this thesis investigated factors predictive of how committed married couples are to make positive efforts for their marriage. Respondents consisted of 72 husbands and wives from a semi-urban area. For each gender, correlations were conducted between marital commitment to invest and egalitarian ism, decision-making power, and conflict communication style. Finally, regress ions were conducted with these measures and nine demographic variables.

As projected, commitment to invest in marriage correlated negatively with husband demand-withdrawal communication and positively with husband and wife mutually constructive communication. The stepwise regression predicting husband commitment to invest included demand-withdrawal communication and total months knowing …

Promoting Life Management Skills To Enhance Employment Among Women Receiving Services From The Division Of Workforce Services, Cheryl Cheek

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Erikson's theory of identity development and Marcia's model of identity statuses serve as a framework for this examination of the relationship between women's identity status and employment. The hypotheses of the study were that women with an achieved identity status would be more likely to obtain and retain employment and that interventions would increase their scores on identity-related subscales.

Phase I of this study examined the relationship between identity development and employment among 203 women receiving public assistance. Subjects provided employment and public assistance histories and were categorized into three preferred cognitive styles according to responses to the Berzonsky Cognitive …

Regional Economic Effects Of Wilderness Designations In Six Western States, Marca L. Hagenstad

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This study investigated the existence of impacts on per capita incomes from the designations of wilderness areas. It developed one model to explain county-level per capita incomes in the six western states of Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, Idaho, and Wyoming. This model examined effects of various factors believed to affect incomes, such as the industry mix of an economy, population densities, unemployment rates, government expenditures, and the existence of colleges, Indian reservations, and wilderness areas.

The analysis indicated that per capita incomes in these states did not fall by an increase in wilderness lands. In fact, counties in Utah, …

Parenting Stress And Social Support Among Married And Divorced At-Risk Mothers, Sondra Moe

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The stress parents feel affects how they fulfill their roles as parents and their own psychological well-being. Social support has been shown to help parents deal with the demands of their parenting roles while maintaining psychological health. Compared to married parents, divorced mothers are most at risk for parenting stress and negative feelings of well-being. Low-income can add further to the levels of stress in parenting and increase the need for sources of social support.

This study compared low-income divorced mothers to low-income married mothers. It explored mothers' perceptions of the stresses of parenting and feelings of wellbeing in relation …

The Emergence And Function Of Family Rituals In The American Family, John M. Kirkman

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

In 1950 Bossard and Boll published their pioneering work on family rituals entitled Ritual in Family Living. Since then, numerous researchers have examined family rituals using various research designs. This study was done in the tradition of Bossard and Boll by closely examining the personal written accounts of 493 college-age students from a western university. Comparisons were made between the current sample and the sample of Bossard and Boll. Numerous changes in family rituals were identified. Christmas was found to be the most discussed ritual, but Christmas Eve rituals were more often discussed than Christmas Day rituals. The importance …

Student Stress: An Analysis Of Stress Levels Associated With Higher Education In The Social Sciences, Darcy A. Keady

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

A university sample of 238 undergraduate and graduate students between the ages of 19 and 58 completed the Student Stress Measure. Specifically, upper-division undergraduate students and clinical/nonclinical graduate students in social science programs (FHD, Social Work, Sociology, Psychology) were measured for stress level differences due to their particular academic requirements.

Results indicate that, overall, graduate students are more stressed than undergraduate students. Of the graduate students, Sociology students were most stressed in terms of Lifestyle stress scores. The comparison of clinical and non-clinical graduate students shows that there is no difference in stress levels. The Psychology and MFT graduate student …