Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Overall Knowledge Regarding The "Freshman 15" Of First Year Students, Abigail Mills, Marina Lorenzo

Dietetics and Nutrition Class Publications

The “Freshman 15” is a term used by first year students at a college or university. It is the idea that students will increase in body weight by fifteen pounds during the first year. Although the concern of gaining fifteen pounds is exaggerated by media, the actual weight gained varies between each student. Weight gain at school could be affected by the number of home cooked meals before attending school, increased alcohol consumption, physical activity level, and body perception. A survey was created to pretest and posttest the participants on their basic nutrition knowledge and the concern of the “Freshman …

Growing In Favor With God And Man: Attachment To God And Psychological Separation Of Christian, Millennial College Students, David Allen Gregory

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this quantitative, correlational study was to examine whether Christian, Millennial college students’ secure attachment to God relationship could contribute to their psychological separation. This question was addressed by examining (a) the correlation between attachment to parents and psychological separation, (b) the correlation between attachment to parents and attachment to God, and (b) the correlation between attachment to God and psychological separation. Bowlby’s (1969, 1973, 1982) attachment theory was used as the theoretical foundation to explore both the students’ relationships with parents and God. Attachment to parents of Christian, Millennial college students attending a Southern Christian college was …

The Role Of Entitlement, Self-Control, And Risk Behaviors On Dating Violence Perpetration, Kimberly A. Tyler, Rachel M. Schmitz, Colleen M. Ray, Leslie Gordon Simons

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

Dating violence continues to be pervasive among college students (Stappenbeck & Fromme, 2010). Given the paucity of research investigating the various pathways through which risk factors are linked to dating violence among different college campuses, we use multiple group path analysis to examine the role of child abuse, self-control, entitlement, and risky behaviors on dating violence perpetration among college students from one Southeastern and one Midwestern university. There were 1,482 college students (51% female) enrolled in undergraduate courses at 2 large public universities who completed paper and pencil surveys. Dating violence perpetration was directly associated with gender, child physical abuse, …

The Effects Of Parental Incarceration On The Academic Success Of College Students: The Influence Of Social Support On Internal Motivation, Emily B. Goodwin

Psychology Undergraduate Work

This qualitative phenomenological study observes the lives of individuals who have experienced parental incarceration. Common factors among the accounts of participants were analyzed to determine risks associated with parental incarceration and potential sources of intervention. Previous research indicates physical and psychological risks associated with parental incarceration and mentions academic resilience and social support as effective interventions in overcoming negative effects for children. The researcher conducted interviews with college students who had experienced parental incarceration at some point in their lives. The results of the study indicated that children have the ability to overcome past adversities through resilience and the pursuit …

Decisional And Behavioral Procrastination: How They Relate To Self-Discrepancies, Lucia E. Orellana-Damacela, R Scott Tindale, Yolanda Suárez-Balcázar

R. Scott Tindale

A self-discrepancy is a gap between the perceived real self and other standards like the ideal self. One hundred and eighty-one college students completed a self-report measure of self-discrepancies and decisional and behavioral procrastination. Regression analysis showed that overall dysfunctional procrastination (the composite measure of both kinds of procrastination) significantly varied as a function of self-discrepancies. The amount of variance explained was small. Those scoring high in self-discrepancies were more likely to be dysfunctional procrastinators than those scoring low. The discrepancy between the actual-self and the ought-to self was the strongest predictor of dysfunctional procrastination. When decisional and behavioral procrastination …

Intern Revenue, Patricia Lamberti

Patricia Lamberti

No abstract provided.

Changes In Mindfulness, Well-Being, And Sleep Quality In College Students Through Taijiquan Courses: A Cohort Control Study, Karen Caldwell, Lisa Emery, Mandy Harrison, Jeffrey M. Greeson

Jeffrey M. Greeson

Objectives: This study sought to determine whether participants in taijiquan classes would report increases in mindfulness greater than that of a comparison group, and whether changes in mindfulness were associated with improvements in mood, perceived stress, self-regulatory self-efficacy, and sleep quality. Design: The study design was quasi-experimental with repeated measures. Settings/location: The study was set in a midsized public university. Subjects: Students aged 18–48 years old enrolled in 15-week courses of either taijiquan (n = 76) or special recreation (control group, n = 132). Intervention: Chen-style taijiquan classes were offered 2 times per week for 50 minutes each time. Outcome …

Imprisoned In The Hood: An Examination Of Social Ecology Influenced By Mass Incarceration And Its Effects On Low Income College Students Stress Levels, Christion V. Smith

Undergraduate Research

Incarceration was once a promising crime control strategy, but over the last four decades it has increased exponentially and has been highly concentrated in disadvantaged communities. These high rates of imprisonment may be harming those communities greatly because at high rates incarceration loses its crime fighting ability and increases crime, which may compromise community safety and overall health. The current research explores the effects that high rates of neighborhood incarceration have on nonincarcerated individuals’ stress levels and mental health. Data for this study were collected from a convenience sample of students in the La Salle University’s Academic Discovery Program (ADP) …

Becoming A Librarian Bff: Three Tips To Connect With Your Students, Erica England, Leo S. Lo

Libraries Faculty & Staff Publications

The article focuses on the "The Librarian BFF Program for Distance Graduate Students" poster program at the ACRL 2017 conference in Baltimore, Maryland that offers suggestions for librarians who seek to add to their liaison and instruction repertoire. It also mentions that main purpose of the Librarian BFF Program was to provide a personalized service to students and faculty.

The Mediating Effects Of Positive Thinking And Social Support On Suicide Resilience Among Undergraduate Students, Denise Marie Matel-Anderson

Dissertations (1934 -)

Suicide has been the 2nd leading cause of death for 18-24-year-olds in the US since 2011. The stress experienced by undergraduate college students has the potential to increase ones’ risk for suicide. Resilience theory was used as a theoretical framework to examine the interplay between risk and protective factors. A cross-sectional and correlational design was used to assess the mediating effects of positive thinking and/or social support on suicide resilience in 131 college students 18-24 years old who completed an online survey. An indirect effect of self-esteem on suicide resilience was found through positive thinking and social support indicating that …

Inferential Style, School Teachers, And Depressive Symptoms In College Students., Caroline M. Pittard, Patrick Pössel, Timothy Lau

Patrick Pössel

Depressive symptoms affect around half of students at some point during college. According to the hopelessness theory of depression, making negative inferences about stressful events is a vulnerability for developing depression. Negative and socio-emotional teaching behavior can be stressors that are associated with depression in school students. First-time college freshmen completed the Cognitive Style Questionnaire (CSQ), Teaching Behavior Questionnaire (TBQ), and Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale (CES-D). While completing the TBQ, participants reported on a teacher from prior education to college. Multiple regression analysis found significant effects of the independent variables (four teaching behavior types, inferential style, and interactions …

Corporate Social Responsibility (Csr) And Its Impact On Actions: Exploring Social Change Through College Students, Rachael Leigh Suffrin

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

The present study has three goals. First, it validates a new Sensitivity to Employer Social Responsibility Scale, used to help understand how undergraduate students perceive their values related to corporate social responsibility (CSR) impact their prospective employment decisions. Second, this study examines whether students value working for a socially responsible employer and third, how (a) social justice experiences in college and/or (b) social justice attitudes and beliefs may predict how students perceive the impact their CSR values have on their prospective employment decisions. Results indicate that students who participated in the study overall positively endorsed a degree of sensitivity to …

Coping And Africultural Adolescents, Britne R. Amos

Dissertations

The present study explored approaches to coping among Africultural, college students between the ages of 18 and 22 years. Coping strategies applied to Africultural adolescents and young adults have been studied from a majority culture, adult lens. In this context, Africultural is used to refer to people of self-identified African descent including and not limited to people who identify as African American (e.g., parent(s) were born in America, individual was born in America), of African descent and living in America (e.g., parents were born in Africa, individual was born in Africa), mixed African American and another ethnic group including Latino/a, …

What Works For Whom? Military Sexual Trauma Vs. Campus Sexual Assault Survivors And The Effectiveness Of Therapeutic Approaches; A Systematic Review And Comparison., Daphne Jaguar Browell

Social Work Theses

There are few data comparing military sexual trauma (MST) to civilian sexual trauma; however, there is some anecdotal evidence that MST is unique and may be associated with different mental health outcomes. This may be attributed to the distinct characteristics of MST, including the environment in which the trauma takes place and traits of the perpetrator and the survivor; however, on closer inspection these characteristics are not inimitable and many parallels can be seen when compared with campus sexual assault. While there are studies on the effectiveness of specific interventions, there has not been a systematic review comparing the different …

Assessment Of The Campus Food Environment Using Components Of The Healthy Campus Environmental Audit, Candace Sorden

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The objective was to assess whether the food environment at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL) campuses supports healthy eating behaviors using components of the Healthy Campus Environmental Audit (vending, dining, and convenience store audits). Secondary aims were to compare the UNL food environment to other college campuses and explore whether there are existing health promotion and obesity prevention initiatives, programs, pledges and/or policies at UNL.

Research team members accessed a secure online website to review training materials prepared by Syracuse University. Evaluators did audit practice trials to meet inter-rater reliability score standards (>80%). audits were conducted at designated sites …

Lived Experience Of College Students Who Reduced Their Alcohol Consumption, Devin L. Jordan

Dissertations

Research has indicated that college students who experience alcohol-related problems may reduce their alcohol consumption without treatment (Alexander & Bowen, 2004; Barnett, Goldstein, Murphy, Colby, & Monti, 2006; Blume, Marlatt, & Schmaling, 2000; McNally & Palfai, 2001). However, the literature regarding their overall experience before, during, and after this self-initiated change process is limited. This qualitative study investigated the lived experience of eight college students between the ages of 18 and 25 who reduced their alcohol consumption for a period of at least 30 days after experiencing alcohol-related problems. Participants had never met the diagnostic criteria for a “severe” substance …

Seeking An Operational Definition Of Dieting: A Daily Diary Study, Elizabeth Anne Mclaughlin

Psychology ETDs

Dieting is commonly considered a weight loss technique, but research consistently shows that it does not result in weight loss. Thirty to fifty percent of women report that they are dieting at any given time, typically by responding to a single “yes/no” item asking whether they are dieting. To explain why dieting may not result in weight loss, a detailed picture was needed as to people’s behavior when they report that they are dieting, including weight loss strategies and dietary intake. Other constructs previously studied as similar to dieting were “watching what I eat” and “eating healthy.” More information was …

The Relationship Of Early Class Start Times On Sleepiness And Driving Behaviors In An Emerging Adult Population, Jessica L. Fry

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

Teenage driver sleepiness is a recent concern for preventing motor vehicle fatalities. Early school start times limit the amount of sleep teenage high school students acquire during the week and have been related to increased crash risk. The current study extends this finding to teenage and emerging adult college students. The author examined the link between sleepiness and teenage driving behaviors, including the relationship between school start times and sleepiness. In all, 536 participants were recruited to participate in an online survey assessing driving and sleep behaviors. Correlations and path analysis found that sleepiness fully mediated the relationship between early …

Protective Factors Against Peer And Social Media Sex Messages: The Moderating Role Of Parental Influences On African American Emerging Adult Students' Sexual Behaviors, Jacqueline Eunice Haywood

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

The most recent research on risky sexual behaviors is primarily based on adolescent, predominately White, or multiple race (e.g., African American and White) samples. There is a paucity of literature focused exclusively on African Americans, particularly African American emerging adults between the ages of 18 and 25. Given the increased risk for sexually transmitted infections (STIs) for college aged African Americans, it is important to understand factors that may decrease engaging in risky sexual behaviors that are specific to this group. The current study examined the roles of parental warmth and communication about sex as protective factors. Participants (n = …

Psu President’S African American, African, And Black Student Success Task Force Report, Shirley A. Jackson, Yves Labissiere, Lisa Bates, Tom Bull, Shanice Clarke, Steven Christian, Tara Cooper, Abel De La Cruz, Noni Causey, Alex Herrrerra, Rene Ingram, Vanelda Hopes, Vandy Kanyako, Marlon Dewayne Marion, Taremeredzwa Mutepfa, Marshawna Williams, Ebony Oldham, Tiffany Ganir

Global Diversity and Inclusion Publications and Presentations

This report is in response to the President’s Charge to the Task Force on African American/African/Black Student Success at Portland State University. As included in the charge, the report assesses the strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities for PSU in continuing to serve the African American/African/Black community at PSU. In conducting its work, the Task Force reviewed a variety of reports and databases from various offices at PSU. Based on its findings, the Task Force provides recommendations under five main areas:
1) Student recruitment and retention
2) Student Experiences
3) Courses and Programming
4) Faculty and Staff at PSU
5) Best Practices …

An Examination Of Collegiate Extracurricular Activities And Career Aspiration Levels, Chelsey Lynn Ingram

Theses and Dissertations

This study aimed to evaluate the career aspiration levels of college students who participated in college-related extracurricular activities compared to students who did not participate in extracurricular activities. Additionally, this study compared each domain of extracurricular activities (e.g., athletics, the arts, service clubs, etc.) to determine which domain has the highest levels of aspirations. Survey responses provided a representation of participants' intended future career achievements and perceptions of participation in collegiate extracurricular activities. Data was collected from a sample of undergraduate students through online survey responses via Rowan University's SONA system. Bivariate correlation tests in SPSS for Windows were utilized …

Undergraduate Financial Stress, Financial Self-Efficacy, And Major Choice: A Multi-Institutional Study, Kevin Fosnacht, Shannon M. Calderone

Journal of Financial Therapy

Over time, undergraduates students been increasingly forced to assume a greater portion of college costs. For most students, this means borrowing larger sums and cutting back on expenses to fulfill their college dreams, which often leads to financial stress. Using financial self-efficacy theory, we sought to better understand how a lack of financial confidence and a diminished sense of financial well-being may serve to undermine students’ intended short and long-term goals. To this end, we examined the predictors of financial stress based upon a multi-institutional sample of senior undergraduates and focus on the role of the earnings potential of different …

Connections, June 2017, University Library

Library Newsletter

No abstract provided.

Initial Evidence For The Reliability And Validity Of The Sexual Experiences Survey-Short Form Perpetration (Ses-Sfp) In College Men, Raeann E. Anderson, Shawn P. Cahill, Douglas L. Delahanty

Psychology Faculty Publications

This study provides psychometric data on the Sexual Experiences Survey—Short Form Perpetration (SES-SFP), a revision of one of the most widely used measures of sexual perpetration, in a sample of college men. Participants (n = 402) completed a web survey containing the study measures; a subset of 66 participants completed the SES-SFP again 2 weeks later. Our results provide initial evidence of internal consistency and convergent evidence of validity for the SES-SFP in college men but question the measure’s test-retest reliability. The severity of tactics used to coerce sexually aggressive behaviors was more strongly associated with rape empathy than …

Promoting Beneficial Social Media Use In Lonely College Students With Film, Francesca P. Ricapito

Journalism

This study explores the relationship between loneliness and approaches to social media in relation to college students at California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo. Understanding why and how individuals engage with social networks can provide avenues into which they can establish online habits that are beneficial to their overall wellbeing. Qualitative data was gathered from interviews with two members of faculty and staff as well as four students, their responses recorded and interpreted as an essay film. Respondents expressed the need for awareness and mindfulness when approaching social media by periodically assessing their own activities and feelings while …

The Usefulness Of A News Media Literacy Measure In Evaluating A News Literacy Curriculum, Adam Maksl, Stephanie Craft, Seth Ashley, Dean Miller

Communication Faculty Publications and Presentations

The question “What is news literacy?” has been asked and answered in a number of ways, as scholars, teachers, librarians and journalists have sought to address the confusion resulting from the increasingly crowded digital information sphere. Concerns center on how the difficulty people face in differentiating reliable, credible information from unverified and biased information threatens their ability to participate in democratic life. Approaches to training and curriculum aimed at minimizing that difficulty have included standalone courses, modules in existing courses, after-school programs, and online exercises aimed at a variety of populations, from K-12 to college students to adults. Given this …

Mental Health And College Students, Katie Olson

Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal

The present study aims to explore the mental health of college students regarding anxiety, stress, and depression. Pursuing higher education can be difficult and can have a negative impact on your mental health if there is a lack of social support from school, friends, and family. The hypotheses stated that there would be a relationship between the number of hours worked and the symptoms of anxiety, stress, and depression. Another hypothesis stated that there would be a significant positive relationship between the method of payment for school and anxiety, stress, and depression. The present study used a demographic survey and …

No, There Is No Ghost In The Campus Library Stacks, Meg K. Scharf

UCF Forum

Toward the end of an old favorite film, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962), a newspaper reporter tells Jimmy Stewart’s character, “This is the West, sir. When the legend becomes fact, print the legend.”

Academic Emotion And Self-Efficacy Impacting Sense Of Math Class Belonging In College Students, Kaitlyn Yavorsky

Theses and Dissertations

A student's sense of belonging has been shown to have positive effects on a student, such as increased motivation and performance (Neel & Fuligni, 2013; Mcmahon, Parnes, Keys, & Viola, 2008). Positive emotions within the academic setting as well as strong self-efficacy have also been found to have these implications (Pekrun, 2006). The impact of emotions in an academic setting and self-efficacy on student's sense of belonging in the classroom is a relatively novel research topic especially in college students. If found, the correlation between academic emotions and self-efficacy along with their impact on sense of belonging can be used …

Examining The Relationship Between Self-Efficacy And Health Behaviors Among College Students, Brent D. Fisk

Doctor of Psychology (PsyD)

Adolescents’ transition into adulthood often coincides with significant developmental change processes. Behavioral patterns established during this period can determine risk and quality of life trajectories (Ben-Shlomo & Kuh, 2002, Halfon & Hochstein, 2002). Social support facilitates health behavior change and college students have ready access to peers with shared goals. In addition to social support, self-efficacy has also been associated with student health as a protective and predictive factor of healthy behaviors (Von Ah, Ebert, Ngamvitroj, Park, & Kang, 2004). Research indicates a strong relationship between self-efficacy and health behaviors; however, the direction of causality is unclear and there is …