Psychology Commons^™

The Enculturation Experience Of Three Chinese American Adolescents: A Multiple Case Study, Sherry C. Wang, Vicki Plano-Clark, Michael J. Scheel

Department of Educational Psychology: Faculty Publications

The authors designed a qualitative, multiple case study that employed the photovoice method to explore how enculturation is experienced by three Chinese adolescents living with their families in a nonethnically dense cultural community. A total of 18 one-on-one interviews were conducted with three youth and their parents. Photos were also used as elicitation tools to understand the meaning of enculturation for each individual. Case descriptions of each adolescent are presented, followed by five cross-case themes: (a) Self- Identifying as Chinese, (b) Parental Strictness, (c) Multiple Groups of Comparison, (d) (Not) Having a Chinese Community, and (e) Messages to Excel. The …

Prevalence Of Marijuana And Other Substance Use Before And After Washington State’S Change From Legal Medical Marijuana To Legal Medical And Non-Medical Marijuana: Cohort Comparisons In A Sample Of Adolescents, W. Alex Mason, Charles B. Fleming, Jay L. Ringle, Koren Hanson, Thomas J. Gross, Kevin P. Haggerty

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

Background—A growing number of states have new legislation extending prior legalization of medical marijuana by allowing non-medical marijuana use for adults. The potential influence of this change in legislation on adolescent marijuana and other substance use (e.g., spillover or substitution effects) is uncertain. We capitalize on an ongoing study to explore the prevalence of marijuana and other substance use in two cohorts of adolescents who experienced the non-medical marijuana law change in Washington State at different ages.

Method—Participants were 8^th graders enrolled in targeted Tacoma, Washington public schools and recruited in two consecutive annual cohorts. The analysis …

Attachment Predicts College Students’ Knowledge, Attitudes, And Skills For Working With Infants, Toddlers, And Families, Claire D. Vallotton, Julia C. Torquati, Jean Ispa, Rachel Chazan-Cohen, Jennifer Henk, Maria Fusaro, Carla A. Peterson, Lori A. Roggman, Ann M. Stacks, Gina Cook, Holly Brophy-Herb

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

Research Findings:Adults’ attitudes about attachment relationships are central to how they perceive and respond to children. However, little is known about how attachment styles are related to teachers’ attitudes toward and interactions with infants and toddlers. From a survey of 207 students taking early childhood (EC) courses at 4 U.S. universities, we report relations among students’ attachment styles and their (a) career goals, (b) attitudes about caring for and educating infants and young children, and (c) interaction skills for responding in developmentally supportive ways. Overall, attachment security was positively associated with career goals focused on working with younger children, …

Psychological Distress And Revictimization Risk In Youth Victims Of Sexual Abuse, Samantha L. Pittenger, Alayna Schreier, Katie Meidlinger, Jessica K. Pogue, Kate Theimer, Mary Fran Flood, David J. Hansen

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

Psychological distress, including depression and anxiety, has been associated with increased risk for sexual revictimization in youth who have experienced child sexual abuse. The present study utilized assessment information from treatment seeking youth with histories of sexual abuse to explore specific risk indicators for revictimization—risk taking, social problems, maladaptive cognitions, and posttraumatic stress—that may be indicated by self-reported distress. The relationship between initial levels of distress and change in symptoms over a 12-week course of treatment was also explored. Participants were 101 youth referred to a child-focused therapeutic group for victims of sexual abuse, 65 youth referred to an adolescent-focused …

Acquisition Of The Cardinal Principle Coincides With Improvement In Approximate Number System Acuity In Preschoolers, Anna Shusterman, Emily Slusser, Justin Halberda, Darko Odic

Faculty Publications

Human mathematical abilities comprise both learned, symbolic representations of number and unlearned, non-symbolic evolutionarily primitive cognitive systems for representing quantities. However, the mechanisms by which our symbolic (verbal) number system becomes integrated with the non-symbolic (non-verbal) representations of approximate magnitude (supported by the Approximate Number System, or ANS) are not well understood. To explore this connection, forty-six children participated in a 6-month longitudinal study assessing verbal number knowledge and non-verbal numerical acuity. Cross-sectional analyses revealed a strong relationship between verbal number knowledge and ANS acuity. Longitudinal analyses suggested that increases in ANS acuity were most strongly related to the acquisition …

Bicultural Competence And The Latino 2.5 Generation: The Acculturative Advantages And Challenges Of Having One Foreign-Born And One U.S.-Born Parent, Jessica M. Dennis, Ana Laura Fonseca, Guadalupe Gutierrez Ramirez, Jillian Shen, Sibella Salazar

Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families, and Schools: Faculty Publications

The 2.5 generation refers to individuals who have one parent born in the United States and one born in another country. The presence of both native-born and foreign-born parents has the potential to enhance bicultural adaptation. Across two studies with Latino young adults, we examine the extent to which the 2.5 generation is distinct from members of other generations with regard to cultural orientation, acculturative stress, and parent ethnic socialization. Results suggest that the 2.5-generation individuals report greater native cultural orientation, ethnic identity, and parental socialization compared with third-generation individuals, along with greater American orientation than first-generation individuals. The 2.5 …

Romantic Relationship Experiences From Late Adolescence To Young Adulthood: The Role Of Older Siblings In Mexican-Origin Families, Lorey A. Wheeler, Sarah E. Killoren, Shawn D. Whiteman, Kimberly A. Updegraff, Susan M. Mchale, Adriana J. Umana-Taylor

Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families, and Schools: Faculty Publications

Youth's experiences with romantic relationships during adolescence and young adulthood have far reaching implications for future relationships, health, and well-being; yet, although scholars have examined potential peer and parent influences, we know little about the role of siblings in youth's romantic relationships. Accordingly, this study examined the prospective longitudinal links between Mexican-origin older and younger siblings' romantic relationship experiences and variation by sibling structural and relationship characteristics (i.e., sibling age and gender similarity, younger siblings' modeling) and cultural values (i.e., younger siblings' familism values). Data from 246 Mexican-origin families with older (M = 20.65 years; SD = 1.57; 50% …

Family Influences On Mexican American Adolescents’ Romantic Relationships: Moderation By Gender And Culture, Fanita A. Tyrell, Lorey A. Wheeler, Nancy A. Gonzales, Larry Dumka, Roger Millsap

Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families, and Schools: Faculty Publications

This study examined prospective associations between the family context and adolescents’ romantic relationships as moderated by adolescents’ gender and culture among Mexican American families (N = 189). Adolescents at Time 1 (early adolescence) were on average 12.29 years of age (SD = .50) and 54% female. Mothers and fathers reported on family structure and dynamics during early adolescence, and youth reported on their romantic relationship involvement and quality during middle and late adolescence. Results from path analyses indicated that family structure and dynamics (supportive parenting, consistent discipline, parent-adolescent, and interparental conflict) were associated with adolescents’ romantic involvement and …

Parents And Teachers’ Perceptions And Clinical Diagnosis Of Autism Among White And Non-White Groups, Margaret Gopaul

Walden Faculty and Staff Publications

The pervasiveness of autism has significantly increased over the past 2 decades with the 2014 Center for Disease Control and Prevention report indicating 1 in 68 children are diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Early intervention is recommended as the most effective treatment approach. Nevertheless, previous research has indicated that White children are diagnosed with ASD about 1.5 years earlier than are Non-White children. A current gap remains in literature regarding ASD and different racial groups, and evidence has been inconclusive regarding disparities in identifying and diagnosing ASD. To fill this gap, this study investigated the relationship between child race, …

The Secret Ingredient For Improving Infant/Child Mental Health: Teaching Parents To Play, Geraldine Healy Marini

Occupational Therapy Doctorate Capstone Projects

Disorders in mental health are the highest of all disorders and results in the most common form of disability. Since 2011, mental health disorders have increased at alarming rates. It is estimated that 9.5 to 14.2% of children between the ages of 0 to 5 years have and emotional or behavioral problem. The mental health of parents or caregivers can affect and impact the development of young children (Nelson & Mann, 2011, Zero to Three, 2004).

The over arching goal of this research is to explore issues of mental health within parent-child interactions. Coaching parents during the co-occupation of play …

Playing With Knives: The Socialization Of Self-Initiated Learners, David F. Lancy

Sociology, Social Work and Anthropology Faculty Publications

Since Margaret Mead’s field studies in the South Pacific a century ago, there has been the tacit understanding that as culture varies, so too must the socialization of children to become competent culture users and bearers. More recently, the work of anthropologists has been mined to find broader patterns that may be common to childhood across a range of societies. One improbable commonality has been the tolerance, even encouragement, of toddler behavior that is patently risky, such as playing with or attempting to use a sharp-edged tool. This laissez faire approach to socialization follows from a reliance on children as …

The Role Of Individual Character Strengths In Adolescent Academic Achievement And Risky School Behavior, Paul Deschamps

Wayne State University Dissertations

Adolescent achievement is a major developmental task in adolescence and reducing Risky School Behaviors is an important part of the process. Patterns of adolescent achievement and general development are the result of the cumulative process that includes a long history of experience and socialization in school, in the family, in the peer group, and in the community. This study is the first to expand understanding of these key interrelated but unique outcome variables of both Academic Achievement and risky School Behavior through examination of individual Character Strengths in the presence of other key intrapersonal and contextual variables from multiple systems …

A Study Of Stability: Maternal Reflective Functioning From Pregnancy To Seven Months Postpartum, Kristyn Mei-Lee Wong

Wayne State University Dissertations

This study examined the stability of parental reflective functioning from the third trimester of pregnancy to seven months postpartum, as well as possible factors that impact stability. The current sample included a subsample of 47 mothers who participated in a larger study examining fetal brain connectivity and infant outcomes. Parental reflective functioning was assessed using the Pregnancy Interview-Revised (Slade, Grunebaum, Huganir, & Reeves, 1987; Slade, 2011) and the Parent Development Interview-Revised Short form (Slade et al., 2003). Additional measures assessed parity, adult romantic attachment, and demographic factors. Stability of reflective functioning was assessed in two ways, continuously and categorically. Findings …

Urban African American Youths' Academic Performance As Related To Fathers' Involvement During Development, Travis A. Goldwire

Wayne State University Dissertations

Father involvement in the context of urban African American youth was examined using a subsample (n = 556) of a large cohort of participants followed longitudinally through development. Data was collected at regular intervals (e.g., Age 7, 14, 19 and young adult). Young adults (n = 93) were surveyed for retrospective accounts of their fathers’ involvement in their lives before age 18. In the young adult data collection phase (the main subject of this project), most participants reported varying levels and frequency of involvement from their fathers while growing up, including helping at school, providing social support, and encouraging academic …

Nebraskans Speak About Early Care And Education: Buffett Early Childhood Institute/Gallup Survey On Early Childhood Care And Education In Nebraska, Gallup, Inc.

Buffet Early Childhood Institute Reports and Publications

The Buffett Early Childhood Institute/Gallup Survey on Early Childhood Care and Education in Nebraska demonstrates that the vast majority of Nebraskans recognize the importance of high-quality early care and education. However, Nebraskans also report its lack of availability and affordability across the state. Most Nebraskans agree that the state should make early care and education a higher priority than it currently is today. Results from this study are based on questionnaires completed by more than 7,100 Nebraska residents. Gallup conducted the survey in English and Spanish via mail in late August through September 2015. The following represent key findings from …

Quality Of Life And Athletic Participation Assessment In Children And Adolescents With Congenital Heart Disease, Kayla Stuckey

Honors Program Theses

Just under 1% of infants are born with a heart defect [congenital heart disease (CHD)], and as a result of treatment and early diagnosis, 85% of these children survive into adulthood. Few studies have investigated the quality of life, global happiness, and athletic participation in pediatric populations, especially with respect to those who have CHD. In 2010, the number of people aged 0-18 years who had CHD was estimated to be between 1,905,000 and 2,102,000, and there are varying qualities of life that these children experience based on disease severity. In addition to patients who are born with CHD, children …

Cultural Orientation And Its Associations With Alcohol Use By University Students In China, Shiyuan Wang, Ian Newman, Duane F. Shell

Department of Educational Psychology: Faculty Publications

Cultural orientation is defined as an individual's cultural preferences when encountering imported culture while still living in the native culture. Data was analyzed from 1305 Chinese university students attending universities in Beijing, Kunming, and Wuhan. Cultural orientation was assessed with the Chinese Cultural Orientation Questionnaire, which assesses both Western and Traditional Chinese cultural orientations. The analysis used hierarchical logistic regression with nondrinkers as the reference group and controlling for demographic factors (age, gender, and urban/rural background). Western cultural orientation was found to significantly increase the odds of recent drinking. The results indicated that higher Western cultural orientation was, after gender, …

A Developmental Contextualism Perspective On Young Children's Friendships: How Much Do Parental Characteristics, Parental Behaviors, Child Characteristics Matter?, Nicholas Ryan Bergeron

Wayne State University Dissertations

The present study investigated the relationships between parents' proximal factors: strategies used to manage and facilitate children's peer relationships, knowledge of children's playmates and close friends, and endorsement of these strategies; and parents' distal factors: parenting stress, social support network, and personality, and children's quality of peer relationships. It also investigated the relationships between child age, gender, child temperament, and children's peer relationships and children's prosocial behavior. Parents' strategies used and endorsement of those strategies were unrelated to children's peer problems and prosocial behavior, but their knowledge of children's peer relationships was negatively related to children's peer problems. Parenting stress …

Outcomes Of Aggression Replacement Training For U.S. Adolescents In Residential Facilities, Coral Ann Ondrus

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

A National Survey indicated that 1.6 million adolescents in the U.S. were arrested in 2010 and 1.5 million in 2011 for erratic aggressive behaviors, thus showing a decline from the 2.18 million adolescent arrests in 2007. Residential facilities in the state of Pennsylvania offer a group intervention called Aggression Replacement Training (ART) to help adjudicated adolescents regain control of erratic behaviors. The purpose of this study was to examine the extent to which level of group participation in ART and certain demographic factors (age, gender, ethnicity, family socioeconomic status, parental involvement, and education) predict decreased aggression and increased anger control …

Relationships Between Parental Self-Efficacy And Posttraumatic Growth In Mothers Of Children With Down Syndrome, Amanda A. Smith

Theses and Dissertations--Educational, School, and Counseling Psychology

The purpose of this dissertation is to explore the relationships between maternal variables (mother status (biological or adoptive), birth order of the child with Down syndrome, timing of diagnosis (in utero or at birth), mother’s age at time of birth or adoption, time elapsed since diagnosis and maternal psychological variables (parenting self-efficacy, and Posttraumatic growth). The current study hypothesizes that maternal variables will be positively related to parenting self-efficacy and that parenting self-efficacy will explain a significant portion of the variance in maternal Posttraumatic growth. Results indicated that maternal self-efficacy as measured by the Parenting Sense of Competence Scale was …

The Green Classroom Initiative: Developing A Non-Formal Educational Resource To Promote Positive Youth Development In An Elementary School In The Central Valley Region Of Costa Rica., Marlee Cea

Capstone Collection

While Costa Rica is not the most under-developed country in Central America, it still experiences poverty and school drop outs on par with neighboring countries and some exceptional regions of the United States. The primary focus of this thesis is to discuss how the “Green Classroom” initiative, a Peace Corps Volunteer’s attempt to create sustainable change, is rooted in modern educational theories; and how they have influenced the organizations and practical methodologies used to engineer this project. A secondary focus is on the process the volunteer and vital project partners experienced to create a sustainable educational resource for a primary …

A Feasibility Study Of A Lqts-Specific Workshop: Childrens' Problem-Solving Skills, Coping, Self-Efficacy, And Locus Of Control, Katherine L. Corvi

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

Living with a chronic medical condition in childhood and adolescence requires many critical lifestyle changes and restrictions, which may compromise psychosocial development. Social problem-solving skills have been shown to enhance the ability to cope with both minor and major daily stressors and to minimize psychological problems associated with physical health problems. The research is part of a larger study with children with long QT syndrome (LQTS) and their parents; the present study focuses on the children. This study was developed to examine the feasibility and efficacy of a problem-solving workshop to increase problem solving, self-efficacy, coping, and locus of control …

The Study Of The Adverse Effects Of Childhood Maltreatment, Katie A. Kennie

Honors Undergraduate Theses

This study explores the link between the presence of childhood trauma and adult criminal behavior. In this study, four distinct categories of childhood trauma (physical abuse, sexual abuse, psychological abuse, and neglect) were examined. In addition, this study conducts a comparative analysis of the United States crime rate with that of Switzerland and Japan. This study examines and compares the policies utilized in ensuring the protection of child welfare. The ultimate goal is to provide research which may build a foundation that will assist in creating and improving policies which will ensure a child's psychological health.

Exploring Attachment Behaviors In Urban Mothers And Their Infants, Brooke G. Rusoff

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Infants enter this world relying on caregivers to nurture and protect them. Through this reliance, infants develop an attachment to their caregivers, thus setting the stage for how a child comes to view the world and the people in it. This study sought to further explore attachment behaviors through observation of a voluntary parent education course offered through the Early Learning Coalition of Orange County. Data were collected three times over the course of the nine week program on four mother-infant dyads. Across the three mothers who were present for at least two observations, negative behaviors decreased between the first …

Identity Development, Social Support, And Motherhood, Dayanara Rosado

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Adolescent pregnancy creates challenges for this minority population in balancing their motherhood identity with continuing to develop their identity at the adolescent stage, which presents a social problem today. The intent of this thesis is to explore the relationship between identity, adjustment, and social support among college students who were adolescent mothers. The following surveys: Personal Network Matrix (PNM), The Identity Distress Scale (IDS), and The Dimension of Identity Development Scale (DIDS), were administered through the UCF SONA system. Participants were divided into three groups: mothers who had their first child as a teenager (teen mothers; n = 6), mothers …

The Intersection Of Race, Sexual Orientation, Socioeconomic Status, Trans Identity, And Mental Health Outcomes, Stephanie L. Budge, Jayden L. Thai, Elliot A. Tebbe, Kimberly A.S. Howard

Department of Educational Psychology: Faculty Publications

The present study examined patterns in trans individuals’ multiple identities and mental health outcomes. Cluster 1 (socioeconomic and racial privilege; n = 239) was characterized by individuals who identified as trans women or crossdressers, lesbian, bisexual, or questioning; had associates degrees; reported household incomes of $60,000 or more a year; and were non-Latino White. Cluster 2 (educational privilege; n = 191) was characterized by individuals who identified as trans men or genderqueer, gay, or queer; had a bachelor’s degree; reported household incomes of $10,000 or less a year; and were people of color. There was a pattern of individuals in …

Exploring Self-Regulation Of More Or Less Expert College-Age Video Game Players: A Sequential Explanatory Design, Meryem Yilmaz Soylu, Roger H. Bruning

Department of Educational Psychology: Faculty Publications

This study examined differences in self-regulation among college-age expert, moderately expert, and non-expert video game players in playing video games for fun. Winnie's model of self-regulation (Winne, 2001) guided the study. The main assumption of this study was that expert video game players used more processes of self-regulation than the less-expert players. We surveyed 143 college students about their game playing frequency, habits, and use of self-regulation. Data analysis indicated that while playing recreational video games, expert gamers self-regulated more than moderately expert and non-expert players and moderately expert players used more processes of self-regulation than non-experts. Semi-structured interviews also …

Individual Variations In Nucleus Accumbens Responses Associated With Major Depressive Disorder Symptoms, Masaya Misaki, Hideo Suzuki, Jonathan Savitz, Wayne C. Drevets, Jerzy Bodurka

Department of Educational Psychology: Faculty Publications

Abnormal reward-related responses in the nucleus accumbens (NAcc) have been reported for major depressive disorder (MDD) patients. However, variability exists in the reported results, which could be due to heterogeneity in neuropathology of depression. To parse the heterogeneity of MDD we investigated variation of NAcc responses to gain and loss anticipations using fMRI. We found NAcc responses to monetary gain and loss were significantly variable across subjects in both MDD and healthy control (HC) groups. The variations were seen as a hyperactive response subtype that showed elevated activation to the anticipation of both gain and loss, an intermediate response with …

Ethnic And Gender Differences In Strategies Used By Adolescents When Attempting To Quit Or Reduce Smoking, Ali M. Yurasek, Leslie A. Robinson, Gilbert R. Parra

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

Few adolescent smoking cessation programs have been able to match the success rate found in adult programs. The current study identified smoking cessation strategies used by adolescents and whether strategies differed as a function of ethnic, gender, or individual smoking-level. Participants were 136 high school students who made an attempt to quit or reduce their smoking. Logistic regressions revealed that individuals making an actual quit attempt and African American adolescents used cessation strategies presumed to be more effective. Adolescents are more likely to use informal cessation methods and may need to be provided with more information on effective quit strategies.

Influencers And Barriers To Consumption Of Healthful Diets In Rural Youth In Context Of The Bioecological Model, Megan Bren

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to determine influencers and barriers to healthful dietary intake in rural youth in context of the bioecological model. Four focus groups as part of Ignite, a tri-state, five-year, community based partipatory research (CBPR) intervention were conducted with 6th to 8th grade adolescents from an economically disadvantaged community of rural South Dakota. Results were categorized into the context of the bioecological model. Within the model, the process, person, context and time (PPCT) design with the three types of personal characteristics were used to describe the framework in which the systems are embedded. Focus group content …