Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Therapists Who Do Not Seek Therapy: An Examination Of Marriage And Family Therapists In Three Western States, Austin Wood

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This was an exploratory study of 243 MFTs in the states of Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming. A majority (66%) reported that they had been in therapy at some time during their careers. The purposes of this research were to (a) find out how therapists effectively and ethically cope with stress, (b) find out more about the therapists who do not utilize therapy, and (c) find out what barriers therapists face in seeking therapy when they do need or desire it.

Effective coping strategies for stress included religious activities, exercise, and spending time with family and friends. Characteristics associated with not …

The Effects Of Performance Feedback On Exercise, Physiological Reactivity, And Affective State Among Hostile College Students, Crystal Chia-Sheng Lin

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Hostility has been found to be a risk factor for cardiovascular disease. One proposed pathway between hostility and cardiovascular disease is an increase in cardiovascular reactivity among hostile individuals when faced with challenging, competitive situations, in which interpersonal stressors are present. A potential situation that may elicit this exaggerated reactivity is found in cardiac rehabilitation exercise programs. Such factors may be competition and feedback regarding their performance. This study sought to find out how hostile individuals would respond physiologically, behaviorally, and affectively when presented with negative and positive performance feedback, while exercising in a challenging, competitive setting. It was found …

Parents' And Teachers' Acceptability Of Treatments For Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder: The Effects Of Presentation And Information Delivery, Jason Donald Gage

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is one of the most frequently diagnosed problems affecting school-age children. This disorder can cause significant problems for children who consequently need treatment. Consumers of interventions for ADHD have efficacious treatments to choose from, but such treatment may not be implemented appropriately and effectiveness may decrease. Viewing treatments as 111 acceptable can affect treatment integrity and in turn increase effectiveness. Therefore, it is important that professionals understand how to increase the acceptability of treatments when first presenting treatment options to consumers. The primary purpose of this study was to determine if presenting parents and teachers with additional …

Addressing Disruptive Behaviors In The Preschool Classroom: An Adaptation Of Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (Pcit) For Head Start Teachers, Brent R. Collett

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Several researchers have begun to investigate early intervention and prevention programs, seeking to alter the trajectory of early-onset behavior problems. While it appears that multi-modal programs are the most promising approach, researchers have only recently begun to evaluate programs that use a similar treatment approach across settings and there is currently little information about classroom-based treatments for disruptive behaviors among preschoolers. The purpose of this study was to develop a classroom-based intervention based on the Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT) model developed by Eyberg. In addition, this study provides an initial investigation of the efficacy of this program with an emphasis …

Identifying Paths To Successful Marriage And Family Therapy Research: External Factors Within The Publications Of Three Eminent Marriage And Family Therapy Researchers, Sarah Rebecca Sancher Droubay

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

In an attempt to identify a possible pathway to successful research in marriage and family therapy (MFT), publications of three eminent MFT researchers—James Alexander, John Gottman, and Howard Liddle—were content analyzed. These 208 journal articles, books, book chapters, and dissertations were examined for external factors and patterns across time.

Results supported the importance of doing clinical work, having a sustained research interest area, obtaining funding, and maximizing the utility of one's research samples. Implications and recommendations for future researchers, research training, career paths in clinical research, and further research are given.

Adopted Adolescents' Heterosexual Relationship Formation And Sexual Behaviors, Mathew Christensen

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Adolescents' perceptions and behaviors about romantic heterosexual relationships and sexual intercourse were compared among adolescents living with adoptive, biological, and stepparents. Data come from The National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health). In 1995, over 20,000 adolescents living throughout the United States completed a 90-minute in-home interview that asked numerous questions about romantic relationships and sexual behaviors. Add Health used a multi-stage cluster design to collect a random sample representative of adolescents attending U.S. schools.

Results showed that several demographic characteristics (gender, age, race/ethnicity, parent's education, and number of parents in the household) were associated with adolescents' perceptions and …

A Meta-Analysis Of The Alcohol Treatment Outcome Literature: 1993 To 2000, Anthony Phillip Tranchita

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Alcohol misuse is a very common problem with high financial and personal costs. Treatment requires allocation of limited resources for optimal impact. Responsible decision making in this area should be based upon reasoned weighing of research evidence. Miller and colleagues completed a meta-analytic review of all controlled studies published before 1992 to help clinicians do just that. The coding system they employed examined methodological quality, as well as outcome, to obtain a rank­ordering of treatments that seem to have the most quality research support. The current study attempts to extend this work utilizing the same coding on studies published since …

An Investigation Of The Prevalence And Nature Of Child Sexual Abuse Among The Deaf Population, Rachelle Hester

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of this study was to investigate the prevalence rates and effects of child sexual abuse in both deaf and hearing individuals living in Utah. A total of 104 deaf and 69 hearing individuals responded to the survey. The survey inquired about participants' experiences with sexual abuse and their mental health status.

The difference in rates of abuse between the two groups was not statistically significant. However, deaf individuals tended to be abused more often than hearing individuals. Deaf victims also experienced more severe forms of abuse and were abused more frequently than hearing victims. However, hearing victims experienced …

Disruptive Behaviors In Early Childhood: The Role Of Parent Discipline And Parent Stress, Angela L.W. Ehrlick

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Externalizing behavior problems during early childhood are fairly common, with approximately 10% to 15% of young children exhibiting at least mild to moderate disruptive behaviors. Of great significance, disruptive behaviors persist beyond early childhood for a substantial number of children and are related to impaired functioning for children and families. Parent discipline and parent stress are two variables that have been examined in relation to children's disruptive behaviors. While a significant body of research has documented the association between broad parental discipline strategies and behavior problems during early childhood, little research attention has been devoted to specific discipline techniques that …

Effects Of Physical Activity And Religiosity On Psychophysiological Reactivity In An Aging Population, Tera L. Lensegrav Benson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Physical activity is known to offer health benefits. Additionally, research has linked religious involvement with health. Psychophysiological reactivity has links to coronary heart disease. This study examines the relationship between physical activity and religiosity in light of psychophysiological reactivity. The sample included 75 subjects, with a mean age of 71. 7 (SD = 6.11 ), with no history of cardiac incident. Religiosity was measured with the Religious Orientation Scale (ROS). Physical activity was assessed utilizing the Typical Week Physical Activity Scale. Psychophysiological reactivity was measured by blood pressure, heart rate, and self-report anger ratings in response to interpersonal challenge. …

Identifying The Bases For Gender Differences In Guilt And Shame, R. Shawn Edmondson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Gender differences are frequently revealed on the popular TOSCA-2 measure of guilt- and shame-proneness. These gender differences could reflect biases in the eliciting conditions that participants evaluate and confounds between them. A new instrument, the Gender Relevant Test of Self-Conscious Affect (GR-TOSCA), was developed to eliminate these confounds, thereby introducing a gender-sensitive, and therefore more valid, measure of guilt and shame proneness. The psychometric integrity of the new instrument, hypotheses regarding condition-specific gender differences in the two emotions, and relationships of guilt- and shame-proneness scores to gender role endorsement were examined in a sample of undergraduate students (93 men and …

Internalizing Symptoms In A Sample Of Native American Adolescents, Georgia Lee Matt

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Internalizing disorders can have negative effects ranging from diminished self-esteem to suicidal thoughts and behaviors. Native American children and adolescents often face pressures that put them at increased risk for the development of internalizing disorders, yet research within this population is almost nonexistent.

Given the serious implications of and the lack of research on internalizing disorders among this minority group, the present study was designed to provide information on the rate of internalizing symptoms in a sample of Native American adolescents, and provide normative data utilizing this sample for the Internalizing Symptoms Scale for Adolescents. Data were collected using the …

Educator Supply, Demand, Attrition, And Out-Of-Field Teaching In Utah, Daniel Joseph Robertson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This monograph reports the results of a comprehensive study of teacher supply and demand conditions in Utah. This research was conducted under contract with the Utah State Office of Education. The objectives of this research were as follows: (a) analyze year 2000 staffing patterns of Utah schools and estimate the potential effects of future retirement on current teacher pools; (b) use enrollment projections and base-year pupil-teacher ratios to predict teacher need for each geographic area and content area; (c) assess the supply of educators from Utah colleges of education and identify reasons why newly prepared teachers do not teach in …

Binge Eating Disorder And Its Relationship To Bulimia Nervosa And Obesity, Lara Schultz Lacaille

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Recent research indicates that 2% to 4% of the population meet diagnostic criteria for the newly proposed binge eating disorder, and that it is much more common (30%) among the treatment-seeking obese. Although recognized as a significant problem, binge eating disorder is l1l not well understood, and there is debate about whether binge eating disorder is a distinct disorder. It has been argued that binge eating disorder is simply a variant or milder form of bulimia nervosa and not a separate and distinct disorder. Researchers have begun to study this population in greater depth in order to assess the characteristics …

Family And Consumer Sciences Preservice Teachers' Computer Technology Preparation, Kathy C. Croxall

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of this study was to investigate and analyze the preparation of Family and Consumer Sciences (FACS) preservice teachers to teach FACS content using computer technology, a study that had not previously been undertaken. The focus of the study was FACS methods classes and activities, as reported by FACS teacher educators. A survey instrument was developed to determine how computer technology is incorporated into, modeled by the teacher, and required of students in FACS methods courses. The support FACS teacher educators receive from their college or university for teaching with technology, teacher educators' perceived computer skill and comfort levels, …

The Relationship Between The Educational And Occupational Aspirations Of Latino Youth And Their Parents, Andrew O. Behnke

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This study used the qualitative technique of focused interviewing to understand the educational and occupational aspirations of ten Latino youth and their parents in a small town in rural Utah. The qualitative nature of this study allowed for an in-depth look into each parent's aspirations for themselves and for their youth, each youth's aspirations, the barriers to aspirational attainment for both parents and youth, the perceived parental support in these families, and their perceived needs for aspirational attainment. This study used two open-ended interview forms and a 12- question demographic questionnaire to collect data from each of the 30 persons. …

Psychoeducation Groups For Parents Adopting Special-Needs Children, Korinne Knowlton Bouwhuis

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This thesis evaluated training groups for adoptive parents of special-needs children. It was hypothesized that training would influence parenting stress, stress symptoms, and marital satisfaction, and that helpfulness of training sections would depend upon the status of the participants' children (i.e., foster, adopted, or adoption in process). Data were collected from 15 participants who were sampled through agencies that typically interact with adoptive parents.

Repeated measures ANOYAs were computed to compare scores on the PSI/SF Parental Distress Subscale, OQ-45, and RDAS across three time intervals. No significant differences were found. Data from a scale of helpfulness were analyzed using descriptive …

The Role Of Parents As Formal Math Instructors Of Prekindergarten Children, Monica Jane Blanch

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This study was designed to explore the relationship between maternal attitudes about math, mothers' attitudes about their prekindergarten child's math abilities, mother-child math interactions, and prekindergarten children's math achievement. Using a Vygotskian framework, an intervention was developed. An intervention group of 18 mother-child dyads from Hyrum, Utah, area and a comparison group of 17 mother-child dyads from the Weston, Idaho, area were invited to participate in this research project. Measures included the Early Mathematics Concepts (EMC) assessment, the School Readiness Composite (SRC) of the Bracken Basic Concepts Scale-Revised (BBCS-R), My Attitudes Scale (MAS), and My Attitudes About My Child's Abilities …

"On Down The Road" An Intergenerational Fathering Experience, Jeffery G. Chapman

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Fathering has been studied with renewed interest by scholars seeking to understand the unique effects and contributions fathers have in the lives of children. Father involvement has been measured by tracking fathers· engagement with. accessibility to. and responsibility for their children during childhood and adolescence. Generative fathering theorists have proposed that fathering and fatherhood are better understood by expansion of the dimensions of father involvement. Generative fathering research has found that father-child relationships are imbued with meaning across the life cycle. The meaning of generative fathering was explored in this study across four generations of fathers. all from one extended …

The Transition To Parenthood: Predictors Of Father Involvement And Marital Satisfaction For First-Time Parents, Jerry L. Cook

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This study examined some of the factors that influence father involvement for first-time parents. These variables included: general or cultural attitudes of father involvement, personal expectations for father involvement, and level of satisfaction with the marriage. A secondary purpose was to examine factors that buffer the decline of marital satisfaction associated with the transition to parenthood. It was proposed that marital satisfaction was associated with having similar expectations for father involvement, having father involvement that met or exceeded personal expectations, and accurately perceiving spousal identity. A final purpose was to create a model of father involvement, originally represented by the …

Good Grief Kids: An Exploratory Analysis Of Grieving Children And Teens At The Dougy Center In Portland, Oregon, Karen Sorensen

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Every year in the United States, anywhere from 200,000 to 400,000 youths under the age of 19 will experience the death of a parent (or both) or a sibling. The Dougy Center in Portland, Oregon, was established in 1983 to assist grieving children. Support groups are based on principles of nondirective play therapy. During the years 1996-2000, The Dougy Center administered questionnaires to a number of its clients. The results of one of these questionnaires, The Center for Epidemiological Studies-Depression Scale (CES-D), showed that 48% of those receiving services were severely depressed at the time of entrance into the program …

The Association Between Writing About Marital Experiences And Individual Distress And Marital Satisfaction, Brad Hess

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This exploratory project studied the association between positive and negative writing assignments on marital satisfaction and individual distress levels. The sample consisted of 110 individuals (30 couples in the positive writing group, 25 in the negative writing group). Individual distress was measured with the OQ -45 .2 and marital satisfaction was measured with the Revised Dyadic Adjustment Scale (RDAS). MAN OVA was used to test differences between pre- and post-writing intervention scores on the OQ -45.2 and RDAS. When pairing time, gender, and group in the analysis, time was the only statistically significant factor for both measures. The change from …

Lincoln Elementary School Needs Assessment Follow-Up: Examining A Community-Based Intervention, Gregory J. Dunkley

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This study explored and expanded a model of community intervention that proposes researcher, practitioner, and community member unification to produce communitywide programs used to improve society. The data were obtained from the community members of Hyrum, Utah, who participated in a needs assessment and then a follow-up survey, which began an examination and refinement process of the city's community programs. Research questions addressed the impact of the community programs in the areas of community safety, cultural relations, and family involvement.

The data suggested that after one year of program implementation, the follow-up study participants perceived a general trend of lowered …

Parents' Marital Quality And Interactions In Relation To Child Well-Being, Spencer C. Leavitt

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Using a large national data set, this study was among the first to examine direct associations between parents' marital relationships and children's emotional, academic, and behavioral characteristics. The mediating effect of children's home environments, as well as relationships between children and parents, also were analyzed. The research design was longitudinal. Marital variables were measured in 1994, intervening variables in 1996, and children's outcome variables in 1998. It was expected that children would be influenced by three different aspects of their parents' marriage: marital happiness, marital interactions, and marital arguments. The parent/child relationship (parent/child closeness) and the children's home environments were …

Fear Of Crime And Perceptions Of Law Enforcement Among American Youth, Bruce K. Bayley

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Fear of crime and the public's satisfaction with police has been a focus of criminologists for a number of years. Most studies, however, have focused on the general population as a whole. What is not known is how fearful American youth are of the crime in their neighborhoods and how they perceive those in law enforcement. The purpose of this study was to explore this subgroup of the population and to begin the investigation of youths' fear of crime and their perceptions of law enforcement.

Using a national sample of 1,897 youth ages 16-25 collected from 12 cities throughout the …

A Multilevel Analysis Of Young Adult Migration, 1980-1998, Ji-Youn Lee

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The primary objective of this research was to investigate the propensity to migrate the destination choices of young adults, and the importance of individual, household, and community characteristics in these migration choices. Using cohort data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth79 from 1980 to 1998, this study specifies the set of individual-, household-, and community-level of determinants on migration and then incorporates these variables in multivariate analyses to test their direct and relative effects on the migratory behavior of young adult groups. A Cox proportional hazard analysis suggests that among three levels of factors, individual characteristics are the most …