Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

First-Generation College Students And Class Consciousness : Exploring How Social Class Influences College Adjustment, Rachel L. Redd

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

First-generation college students (FGCS), defined as students whose parents have not obtained a bachelor’s degree, is a new identity constructed primarily over the past decade. Utilizing the umbrella term of FGCS is problematic as it places a heavy concentration on parental education and lack of cultural capital, ignoring how current class experiences in the context of other identities, such as race and gender, shape adjustment to college. The purpose of this quantitative study was twofold: (a) to examine whether class consciousness affects first-generation students’ adjustment to elite, non-profit private undergraduate institutions, and (b) to examine how the intersectionality of race, …

How I Got Over : Young African American Men Tell The Story Of How They Achieved Academic Success : A Descriptive Study, Rebecca M.C. Ramer

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

African American males fall behind their White counterparts in almost every measure of academic success. College completion rates for Black males are the lowest among all racial/ethnic groups in the United States. This exploratory study interviewed 13 African American men who were currently enrolled in college or who had graduated college. The goal of the study was to identify factors that these successful men identified as having contributed to their academic achievement. Thirteen men between the ages of 18 and 40 who identify as African American participated in semi-structured interviews that were recorded and then analyzed using a grounded theory …

Social Workers' Education, Training, And Experience In Practice With Clients Bereaved By Suicide Death, Nicole S. Nejad

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This study is a mixed-methods descriptive survey of social workers with and LCSW or LMSW about their understanding of suicide survivorship, and their access to professional training related to treatment of survivors of suicide loss. The purpose of this study is to explore the attitudes and experiences of clinical social workers with regards to their education and training, as well as their knowledge and comfort level, in treating patients who are bereaved by a suicide death. Results show that social workers have limited opportunities for education and training in suicide bereavement, however they desire increased training opportunities in a variety …

Experience Of The Undocumented Worker In The Berkshires : An Exploratory Study, Tristan Muriel

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This qualitative exploratory study attempts to understand how undocumented workers navigate living in Berkshire County, Massachusetts. Berkshire County is known as a fairly liberal area of the state of Massachusetts. This can be observed through the most recent election turn out which was taking place during this study, where 84% of the total Berkshire active voting population voted for democratic primary candidates while 10% supported Donald Trump and his anti-immigrant sentiment. Observing this, more respectful treatment towards undocumented workers can be expected in this area. This study recruited 12 undocumented workers through a snowball non-probability approach. Each participant was interviewed …

Differential Diagnosis Of Emerging And Young Adult Disorders : A Case Vignette Study Of Ptsd And Psychotic Disorders, Elizabeth L. Liepold

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

The present study investigated the diagnostic decision-making process of clinical social workers. The study sought to explore how they distinguish between psychotic symptoms, such as hallucinations, and post-traumatic stress symptoms, such as flashbacks, in emerging and young adults. One objective of this study was to understand clinician diagnostic choices in order to increase diagnostic accuracy with young adults who may be particularly vulnerable to first episode psychosis. Sample. The study’s sample included 105 licensed clinical social workers, who actively practiced in the United States. Methods. The study used an exploratory - descriptive design implemented through an online survey. The …

Hiv-Serodiscordant Couples, Pre-Exposure, Prophylaxis And Relationship Satisfaction, Eli Latto

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This mixed-methods study explored the use of post-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) and relationship satisfaction in HIV-serodiscordant couples. “Serodiscordant” refers to couples in which one partner is living with Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and one is not. PrEP is a daily dose of the antiretroviral medication Truvada, taken as a prevention measure by HIVnegative individuals at substantial risk for contracting the virus. This study was conducted via an anonymous online survey with both quantitative and open-ended questions to determine whether there is any relationship between the use of PrEP and relationship satisfaction in HIVserodiscordant couples. Data was analyzed by comparing people in …

Internalizing A Social Justice Identity Through Hip Hop Values In The Beats, Rhymes, And Life Academy : A Project Based Upon An Investigation At Beats, Rhymes And Life, Alfredo E. Laris

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This mixed method study investigates how the Beats, Rhymes, and Life Academy helps its members subvert systems of oppression. Through a quantitative survey and a qualitative 1.5-hour semi-structured interview, participants assessed their experience with social justice activism while in the BRL Academy. The study outlined three ways subversion of systemic oppression occurs: by developing one’s feeling of individual agency and empowerment to achieve one’s goals, developing a social justice identity, and empowering their community with the use of the first two factors.

The study found that Academy members felt like they had developed their own strength and were more aware …

Beats, Rhymes, Life & Resilience : Hip Hop Therapy With Youth Of Color : A Project Based Upon An Investigation At Beats, Rhymes And Life Inc, Emily S.L. Schwartz

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This study seeks to understand if participation in Therapeutic Activity Groups (TAGS) at Beats Rhymes & Life helps young people to develop greater resilience. In this paper, resilience is defined in two parts: the ability for participants to engage their inner strengths and characteristics to overcome adversity and the capacity to identify and utilize community and interpersonal resources. This study consists of a quantitative analysis to create a revision of the program’s existing pre/post treatment survey and examine resilience as reported by ten youth participants.

The findings revealed that participation in TAGs had a statistically significant impact on participant’s ability …

From Spitting Rhymes To Inspiring Minds : The Role Of Hip Hop Therapy In Treatment Engagement Amongst Latinx And Black Youth : A Project Based Upon An Investigation At Beats. Rhymes And Life, Tatiana R. Padilla

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

The purpose of this study was to explore the implications of utilizing an innovative cultural framework to engage at-promise youth in clinical group work. This researcher collaborated with Beats, Rhymes and Life, an Oakland based organization that has effectively engaged youth at-promise through Therapeutic Activity Groups (TAGs). Treatment effectiveness is evident in the continued requests from mental health providers in community mental health clinics to partner with BRL’s TAG program, youth self-referrals, and youth requests to repeat the program. Based on this, the current study aims to understand what aspects of the TAGs promote treatment engagement- indicated by re-enrollment- for …

Adult Adoptees And Considerations Of Parenthood : An Exploratory Study Examining Adoption Experiences And Effects, Katherine E. Green

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This exploratory, qualitative study sought to investigate how the experience of adoption affects an adoptee’s decision to start a family (or not). One reason to conduct this study was to isolate a particular developmental stage – entering parenthood – to observe deliberations related to the experience of being adopted. This study adds to the limited but growing body of research dedicated to adult adoptees with the aim of assisting clinicians in the field of social work to enhance their knowledge about the experiences of adopted people, especially those who are considering starting a family.

The study was conducted by interviewing …

Partners' Perceptions Regarding Problematic Alcohol Use And The Effects With Romantic Relationships : A Qualitative Study, Meghan E. Wilson

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This thesis is an inquiry into the role of partners’ perceptions concerning problematic alcohol consumption and its effects on romantic relationships. This study sought to unpack the role of perceptions within romantic relationships. The study’s sample included 12 participants who were currently involved in heterosexual romantic relationships for at least one year with significant others struggling with alcohol use. The study used an inductive, exploratory design implemented through a semi-structured interview. Within the category of perceptions of problematic drinking, three major themes emerged—disruption of social obligations and responsibilities; drinking in excess/ out of control alcohol consumption; drinking as a coping …

Decision-Making Process : A Mixed Methods Study Of Somatic Awareness Use By Psychodynamic Clinicians In The Treatment Of Trauma-Related Disorders, Mary P. Curry

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This exploratory study examined clinical experiences and perspectives of psychodynamic clinicians on assimilative integration of neurobiologically informed somatic awareness and somatic interventions for the treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and other trauma related disorders. Using an online mixed-methods study survey, quantitative and qualitative data were collected and analyzed. The primary study cohort respondents (N=156) met all study inclusion criteria and an excluded study sub-cohort respondents (N=56) met partial criteria. Psychodynamic relational practice and neurobiological concepts are formulated from the perspective of assimilative integration. The results, derived from integrating both data sets, reveal clinically relevant elements of the decision-making processes …

From Entrenched To Empowered : The Factors Promoting Resiliency And Healing For Lgbtqia Identified Adult Survivors Of Childhood Sexual Assault, Hal Brown

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

The objective of this study was to examine the experiences of adults, who as a result of their incidents of childhood sexual abuse were predisposed to present with a variety of negative outcomes, in pursuit of identifiable interventions, practices, and supportive factors effective in mitigating the negative outcomes and promoting survivor resiliency. The bulk of the previous studies of the critical elements for survivor resiliency had been conducted in religious communities. Ensuring a sample composed of individuals with access to an identity-based community, noting that community and connectedness had frequently been considered significant, this study was limited to LGBTQIA identified …

Self-Shock : The Experience Of Individuals Relocating Within The United States, Michelle Mieko Kaiulani Daggett

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This qualitative study explored the experience of relocation on self-identity. More specifically, this study focused on the concept of self-shock, the idea that being in a foreign environment impacts an individual’s ability to maintain a consistent identity. This research was based on 12 interviews that were conducted via video-conferencing call or in-person with individuals who have relocated domestically for the first time within the United States. The findings of this study suggest that individuals relocating domestically within the United States can and do experience self-shock. One reason for conducting this study is because relocating is commonplace within the United States …

An Exploration Of The Nepali-Bhutanese Community From The Adolescent Perspective : A Project Based Upon An Investigation At Asian Counseling And Referral Service, Seattle, Washington, Matthew J. Allen

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This study was undertaken to explore the strengths and needs of the Nepali-Bhutanese refugee community from the adolescent perspective. As research suggests that the Nepali-Bhutanese population has a higher rate of suicidality than the general population of the United States, this study examines underlying community and systemic issues and barriers to integration, and community strengths that might help overcome them. A focus group of 11 Nepali-Bhutanese adolescents was held at an Asian Pacific Islander community health organization in Washington State. They responded to and discussed ten questions about the strengths and needs of their community. Major findings included the participants’ …

Weighing The Options : Professionals' Weighing Procedures In The Treatment Of Eating Disorder Patients, Sarah M. Englaish

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This descriptive, mixed methods study examined the weighing practices of professionals presently treating individuals with an eating disorder. Following a comprehensive review of literature on the topic, only one prior study was found that examined the clinical practices of weighing patients with an eating disorder. Data were collected through an online survey questionnaire created by the authors, Kelsie T. Forbush, Jonathon Richardson, and Brittany Bohrer (2014), of the prior study mentioned above. Data collected allowed the researcher to identify the rates at which professionals incorporate blind- vs. open-weighing in their practice, whether their weighing policy has changed over time, and …

Refusing To Relax My Smile : Building Resistance Through Hip Hop Therapy : A Project Based Upon An Investigation At Beats, Rhymes And Life, Stephanie Clowdus

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This study explores how hip hop therapy programming promotes resilience in youth. Based in Oakland, CA, Beats, Rhymes and Life (BRL) provides hip hop therapy to 12-24 year olds through their Therapeutic Activity Groups (TAGs). The purpose of this study is to establish evidence of how TAGs improve psychological resilience in youth program participants and of BRL’s effectiveness as a culturally congruent mental health provider. This study is part of a larger program evaluation in efforts with five other student researchers completing Smith College School for Social Work theses. Additionally, this study in particular serves as a pilot of a …

Resilient Open Heart : An Exploration Of Compassion Fatigue, Compassion Satisfaction, And Spiritual Practice With End Of Life And Palliative Care Clinicians, Nathalie J. Rodriguez

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This quantitative study sought to explore how participation in spiritual practice related to self-reported levels of compassion fatigue and compassion satisfaction amongst a sample of 55 mental health clinicians in the end of life and palliative care field (EOLPC). The study used an online questionnaire to assess for levels and types of participation in spiritual practice. Additionally, the study utilized the Professional Quality of Life Scale Version V to measure compassion fatigue, compassion satisfaction, and burnout. The findings of this study demonstrated that participants had lower than average levels of compassion fatigue and burnout. Participant levels of compassion satisfaction were …

Clinicians' Experience Of Diagnosing Children With Oppositional Defiant Disorder (Odd) And Pediatric Bipolar Disorder (Pbd), Lenni Marcus

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

Much of the research indicates that diagnosing children with mental illness is a murky issue that has serious implications. Mostly absent in the literature regarding pediatric mental illness is the clinician’s experience of diagnosing children. This study will help to address this gap by investigating clinicians’ experience of diagnosing oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) and pediatric bipolar disorder (PBD) in children across treatment settings. Specifically, this study will investigate (1) how clinicians understand the etiological factors contributing to children’s symptoms; (2) how clinicians are affected by mental health care policies and systems; (3) and lastly, how clinicians perceive both their personal …

Standing On The Edge Of The "Rubyfruit Jungle" : Lesbians Recall The Experience Of Questioning In Therapy, Emily Willstatter

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

The purpose of this study was twofold: to pursue an existing gap in the literature on therapy with people questioning their sexuality; and to represent a lesbian perspective on the experience of questioning one’s sexual orientation. A previous study (Jones et al., 2003) found that gay and bisexual people who were uncertain of their sexual orientation at the start of therapy rated the treatment as overall less beneficial than gay and bisexual people who had begun therapy while certain of their identities. This study explored the possible reasons behind this finding by investigating a small (N=13) but diverse group of …

In Their Skin : A Discourse On The Modern Tattoo Experience For Adults Aged Thirty And Over, Margaret Feeney

Theses, Dissertations, and Projects

This qualitative study was undertaken to determine what meaning individuals aged 30 and over with large scale tattoos place upon those tattoos. More specifically, to establish the motivating factors led these individuals to get tattooed, along with the meaning, if any, is placed upon them. Ten individuals aged 32-64 were interviewed regarding their tattoos. Half of the individuals were tattooed for the first time during adolescence. All individuals were interviewed regarding their motivations for getting tattooed as well as any meanings they place on specific pieces. The findings of the research showed the driving force behind getting tattooed to be …

The Attentional Mechanisms Of Active Forgetting, Laura Lee Heisick

LSU Master's Theses

Recent work has shown that intentional forgetting of distracting, erroneous, or irrelevant information aids memory, and relies on active, effortful processes. Two experiments investigated the underlying attentional mechanisms that are active during directed forgetting (DF). Across both experiments, participants completed a modified item-method DF task, in which they received memory instructions to remember or forget individual images for a subsequent memory test. Participants studied items associated with remember or forget instructions before they were shown a subliminal presentation of target items. Finally, participants responded to probes by identifying briefly shown letters to assess how attention and item identity information are …

Examining Teacher Multicultural Competence In The Classroom: Further Validation Of The Multicultural Teaching Competency Scale, Melissa Jo Hamilton

LSU Master's Theses

The focus of this study is to strengthen the technical adequacy of the Multicultural Teacher Competency Scale (MTCS; Spanierman et al., 2011) self-assessment measure for teacher multicultural competence. This study will also examine the relationship between it and the teacher-student relationship and teacher self-efficacy. Results show that the MTCS shows similar internal consistency reliability with a new demographic of in-service teachers. The MTCS also has predictive significance for teacher self-efficacy and student-teacher relationship scores. Implications of the study include the importance for teachers to be taught and practice this competency, as well as, validation that this construct is related to …

Control, Care, And Stress: Parenting's Effect On Child Internalizing Symptoms, Maysa Kaskas

LSU Master's Theses

Theoretical models of childhood psychopathology suggest that the parent-child relationship serves an influential role in the development and maintenance of internalizing disorders such as anxiety and depression. However, there is a great deal of inconsistency in the research literature on the predictive power of parenting variables such as parental control and parental care. Furthermore, these parenting variables are often poorly defined and inconsistently operationalized across studies, hampering interpretation of results and limiting conclusions on the strength of the effect. Additionally, few studies have examined the role of parenting with careful attention to moderators. In order to investigate these problems, 189 …

A Statistical, Data-Driven Assessment Of Climate Extremes And Trends For The Continental U.S., Xinbo Huang

LSU Master's Theses

Climate extremes are meteorological events that can have significant impacts on human and natural systems. Weather hazards, such as heat waves, drought, heavy thunderstorms, floods, hurricanes, occur frequently, and are a threat to human lives and property. Climate data observations spanning over 100 years are an important asset in understanding climate extremes and trends. This research uses daily climate data observations from more than 3000 climate stations in the continental U.S. to assess the climate trends and extremes, including temperature, precipitation, and snowfall. The climate data measurement sites were grouped by climate divisions and each climate division was statistically assessed …

Lightning Flash Rate In The Lake Maracaibo, Venezuela Related To Sea Surface Temperatures And Tropospheric Air Flow, Deirdre Smith

LSU Master's Theses

Northern Venezuela's Lower Maracaibo Basin (LMB) has the highest lightning flash rate (LFR) density in the world. The area receives approximately 200 flashes per km^2 annually. Local topography as well as local and global scale climate drivers have been shown to influence the frequency of the lightning storms, known as "Catatumbo Lightning". This research focuses on influences on LFR in the LMB by local and global sea surface temperatures and elements of local tropospheric air from 1996--2015. Sea surface temperature and tropospheric air data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration are used in Spearman rank correlations to determine relationships …

Moving Students To The Center Through Collaborative Documents In The Classroom, Maura A. Smale, Stephen Francoeur

Publications and Research

Collaborative document creation allows groups of people to create and edit text in a shared space, and educators across all subject areas have embraced these tools in their classes. Library instructors are no exception—the authors have used collaborative documents with students in multiple instructional settings. We believe that collaborative documents can embody critical pedagogy in the library classroom. Creating and editing collaborative documents can acknowledge students’ prior experiences with research and the library and de-center the library instructor as the sole research expert in the room.

Ceramic Technology, Production, And Exchange As Seen Through Macroscopic Analysis Of Pottery Fragments From The Early Horizon Center Caylán, Nepeña Valley, Peru, Michelle Nicole Miller

LSU Master's Theses

In this thesis, I examine the production, use, and decoration of ceramic vessels at the Early Horizon center of Caylán (800-1 B. C. E.) on the Peruvian North Central-Coast. Pottery sherds are artifacts ubiquitously recovered at archaeological sites, especially in sedentary agrarian societies. Most studies of ceramics in Peru have focused on typological sequences. Recently investigators in the Nepeña Valley have focused on ceramic pastes and technologies. The materials examined in this thesis were excavated from Caylán. Caylán is an incipient urban center, which developed during the Early Horizon (900-200 B. C. E.). Caylán’s dense urban core consists in 43 …

Modeling Tropical Cyclone Storm Surge And Wind Induced Risk Along The Bay Of Bengal Coastline Using A Statistical Copula, Nazla Bushra

LSU Master's Theses

High winds, torrential rain, and storm surges from tropical cyclones cause massive destruction to property and cost the lives of many people. Among the coastal areas affected by these major natural calamities, the coastline of the Bay of Bengal (BoB) ranks as one of the most susceptible to tropical cyclone storm surge risk due to its geographical setting and population density, Bangladesh suffers the most. The purpose of this study is to describe the relationship between storm surge at the BoB and peak reported wind and describe the dependency structure between wind speeds and storm surges at that location. Various …

Psychometric Extension Of The Memory For Names Test, Heather Chance Foil

LSU Master's Theses

The purpose of this study was to re-evaluate the psychometric properties of the Memory for Names (Mem4Names) test among a sample of older adults without cognitive impairment. Mem4Names is a test of famous face recognition that was shown to be a reliable and valid measure of semantic memory in older adults both with and without cognitive impairment (Brouillette et al., 2011). The current study re-examined the psychometric properties of the Mem4Names test among 133 volunteers at Pennington Biomedical Research Center’s Institute for Dementia Research and Prevention. The study confirmed previously reported calculations of the test’s reliability by calculating Cronbach’s alpha …