Psychology Commons^™

Advancing Strength-Based Inclusive Mental Health Research In Intellectual And Developmental Disabilities, Luther Kalb, Joan B. Beasley

Developmental Disabilities Network Journal

No abstract provided.

The Development Of Internalized Sexism In Young Adult Women, Kylie Schwabe

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

The present study utilized Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis in order to examine the lived experiences of young adult, cisgender women and the development of internalized sexism. Eight participants completed semi–structured interviews focused on their relationships with other women and subsequent views of womanhood. Themes found were (a) womanhood is taught by women throughout the lifespan, (b) women are sexually responsible for men, (c) women are emotional caregivers, (d) there are biological bases of womanhood, (e) women are expected to “do it all,” (f) expectations of women are fueled by media portrayal, (g) traditional femininity is seen as oppositional to the feminist …

Religiosity And Spirituality Among Sexual And Gender Minority College Students, Emily N. Popovetsky

Honors Undergraduate Theses

The purpose of this study was to examine the possible relationship between religiosity and spirituality as separate factors and its effects on the sexual gender minority community (SGM) regarding identity distress and identity commitment to aid in SGM identity and religious identity integration. It was investigated whether spirituality could moderator the negative effects of religious rejection for the SGM community regarding identity distress, and identity commitment. A comparison between the non-(SGM) community and SGM was included. This study viewed multiple different aspects of religiosity such as religious rejection, current religious practices, and centrality of religion in one’s life as well …

Relations Between Adverse Childhood Experiences And Substance Use In Adolescents And Emerging Adults: The Moderating Role Of Exposure To Community Violence And Community Support And Community Recognition, Kiara Brown

Theses and Dissertations

Due to historical and current systemic racial inequities, African American adolescents and emerging adults living in low-income urban communities bear the burden of higher rates of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and exposure to community violence. Both exposure to ACEs and community violence are linked to higher levels of substance use. However, limited research exists on how exposure to community violence exacerbates the association between ACEs and higher frequencies of substance use in adolescence and emerging adulthood. There is also a need to understand how community-level protective factors may weaken the relations between ACEs and higher rates of substance use. The …

Online Racism And Mental Health Symptomatology Among Black Adolescents: A Longitudinal Examination, Stephen M. Gibson

Theses and Dissertations

Online racism (i.e., racism perpetrated and embedded within media and platforms on the Internet) is increasingly becoming a public health concern. Recent empirical evidence demonstrates that over a three year period, Black adolescents reported experiencing at least one online racial discriminatory incident, including exposure to racist images or videos within digital spaces (Tynes et al., 2020). One way in which Black adolescents are exposed to online racism is through the consumption of digital news media on the coverage of racially traumatic events (e.g., murders of Black men and women by police officers, racial hate crimes committed against Black people) and …

African American Adolescents' Exposure To Community Firearm Violence And Associated Factors, Colleen S. Walsh

Theses and Dissertations

Firearm violence is a public health crisis in the United States that disproportionately impacts African American adolescents and families living in economically marginalized communities. The current firearm violence exposure literature includes a limited focus on the (a) the identification of risk and promotive factors that influence the likelihood of exposure to community firearm violence, (b) is cross-sectional, (c) focuses on outcomes of firearm violence exposure, and (d) does not examine bi-directional relations to determine if risk and promotive factors are causes and/or consequences of firearm violence exposure. This gap in research is further exacerbated by the limited focus on African …

Neurodevelopmental Trajectories As An Explanatory Mechanism For Adverse Mental Health Outcomes Following Child Maltreatment, Casey Burton Corso

Theses and Dissertations

Affecting one in every seven children in the United States, child maltreatment (CM) is a major public health issue associated with a myriad of adverse outcomes (e.g., alcohol and drug abuse, mental illness, interpersonal violence, sexual risk taking, etc.). While any subtype of CM (e.g., physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse, and neglect) increases the likelihood of subsequent psychopathology, heterogeneity in psychiatric sequelae of CM is associated with different CM subtypes. Elucidating the underlying mechanisms of this heterogeneity is vital for improving intervention and treatment of CM, and research aimed at accomplishing this is a critical need. One possible explanatory …

Trajectory Of Infant Emotion Regulation Strategies And Negative Affect And Associations With Toddler Externalizing Problems, Sabrina D. Ung

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Previous research recognizes the critical role played by child emotion regulation (ER), the regulatory component of temperament, and negative emotionality (i.e., the tendency to experience negative emotions such as fear, sadness, anger, and frustration) in emotional and behavioral functioning throughout the lifespan. Poor ER and high negative affect in early childhood are linked to impulsive and aggressive behaviors, internalizing behaviors, and lower cognitive functioning. However, few studies have investigated how specific ER strategies and negative affect change across infancy by employing latent growth modeling. Additionally, existing work has neglected to examine the growth trajectory of escape behaviors across infancy as …

Examining Differences In Self-Concept And Language Between Monolingual And Bilingual Undergraduate Students, Marilyn Vega-Wagner

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

The literature is lacking in studies that examine self-concept and language status among individuals older than adolescence. The purpose of this study is to conduct a quantitative nonexperimental comparative design to examine differences in self-concept and language status (monolingual or bilingual) between male and female undergraduate students in California. A total of 97 participants were examined in the study. The researcher conducted descriptive statistics on the demographics as well as a MANOVA and an ANOVA to answer the proposed research question. Based on the findings presented, the researcher failed to reject the null hypothesis of research question 1: There is …

Gender Differences In Preschool Conduct Disorder Symptoms Across One-Year, Madeline K. Petersen

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Conduct disorder is a childhood disruptive behavior disorder that exhibits striking gender differences in prevalence, comorbidities, and associated outcomes. These gender differences, particularly symptomology, remain understudied in conduct disorder despite the growing prevalence in females. This paper seeks to examine gender differences in parent rated conduct disorder symptoms in preschoolers overrecruited for disruptive behavior problems at three different timepoints across one-year. It is hypothesized that males will exhibit higher levels of physical aggression symptoms at the initial timepoint with declining rates across a one-year period compared to females, while females will exhibit lower levels of conduct problems at the first …

Insights Into Child Abuse And Neglect: Findings From The Minnesota Longitudinal Study Of Risk And Adaptation, Marissa D. Nivison, Madelyn H. Labella, K. Lee Raby, Jenalee R. Doom, Jodi Martin, William F. Johnson, Osnat Zamir, Michelle M. Englund, Jeffry A. Simpson, Elizabeth A. Carlson, Glennn I. Roisman

Psychology Faculty Publications

The Minnesota Longitudinal Study of Risk and Adaptation (MLSRA) is a landmark prospective, longitudinal study of human development focused on a sample of mothers experiencing poverty and their firstborn children. Although the MLSRA pioneered a number of important topics in the area of social and emotional development, it began with the more specific goal of examining the antecedents of child maltreatment. From that foundation and for more than 40 years, the study has produced a significant body of research on the origins, sequelae, and measurement of childhood abuse and neglect. The principal objectives of this report are to document the …

It Takes A Village: Impact Of Lgbtq+ Community On The Relationship Between Parenting Stress, Parent Mental Health, And Child Adjustment, Kevin Mcaweeney

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

While LGBTQ+ parented families are largely the same as their cis-het parent counterparts, they still experience unique factors exclusive to them. One such factor is access to the LGBTQ+ community. While research has emphasized the importance of community within the family system, the role the LGBTQ+ community can play for LGBTQ+ parented families is largely unexplored. Additionally, LGBTQ+ research examining parents of adolescents is similarly lacking. Utilizing a sample of LGBTQ+ parents with adolescent children, and informed by ecological systems theory, self-determination theory, and the parenting stress model, I examine the influence parent’s sense of LGBTQ+ community has on the …

The Effect Of Cytomegalovirus Infection On Daily Stress Processes In Early Adulthood, Elana Gloger

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Chronic stress increases risk for disease, poor health, and early mortality. Cytomegalovirus (CMV), a common latent herpes virus, may promote neurological changes that increase vulnerability to chronic stress by way of self-regulatory deficits, though this has yet to be directly tested. Investigating CMV at younger ages is crucial to understand the effect of CMV across the lifespan and identify modifiable health-factors for future anti-aging interventions. The present study aimed to investigate how, and for whom, CMV associates with daily stress processes in early adulthood.

Participants (N = 108, M_age = 19.7, 83.3% female, 72% White) completed an in-person lab …

Power Of Perception: The Role Of Perceived Caregiver Mindset Beliefs On Undergraduate Student Academic Engagement, Katherine R. Tanaka

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Promoting academic engagement is vital for college student success. Researchers have explored factors like growth mindset, the belief that intelligence can improve with effort, as a driver of academic engagement. Beyond personal mindset, students’ perceptions of key social influences, such as caregivers, also play a role. This study examined how undergraduate students’ own mindsets and perceptions of their caregivers’ mindsets relate to four components of academic engagement: behavioral and emotional engagement, and behavioral and emotional disaffection. Data from undergraduates (N = 1417) were analyzed using surveys, descriptive statistics, hierarchical regression, and exploratory moderation. Students generally reported both a personal …

"Why Does This Have To Be So Hard?": Perinatal Experiences From An Ecological Systems Approach, Caitlin Senk

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

This study examines the lived experience of the perinatal population to understand how they can be supported from the lens of different ecological systems and what counselors can do to better serve people with uteruses during their perinatal experience. Furthermore, this study aims to utilize an inclusive framework for capturing the perinatal experience of people with uteruses and to explore barriers and facilitators to care through an ecological systems framework. Fifteen participants who have experienced infertility, conception, pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, stillbirth, and postpartum were recruited through various means throughout the United States. Thematic analysis was used, with semi-structured interviews and …

Predictors Of Canadians’ Psychological Well-Being In Retirement: A Mixed Methods Approach, Jessica Miller

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

In prior decades, retirement research focused on the negative effects of the life transition—such as negative psychological well-being caused by factors such as difficulties adjusting to retirement, feelings of a role loss, or the financial effects of retirement. However, there is considerable agreement across recent research studies that post-retirement years are marked by positive psychological well-being due to a variety of factors. For example, retirees often spend more time in roles (such as volunteer positions) that provide life satisfaction. The present study uses both quantitative and qualitative methods to examine factors related to well-being in retirement among individuals living in …

Language Acquisition, Mental Health, And Acculturation Among Migrants In Canada, Ali Jasemi

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

This dissertation examines the integration of first-generation migrants in Canada, focusing on the constructs of acculturation, language proficiency, and mental health. With nearly a quarter of Canada's population comprising migrants (Statistics Canada, 2022), understanding their adjustment is critical. Acculturation, language proficiency, and mental health can all have an impact on the success of migrants in their new country (Balidemaj et al. 2019; Brance et al. 2023; Iversen et al. 2014; Rousseau et al. 2019; Rashtchi et al. 2012; Salami et al. 2019). There are a limited number of studies examining these variables in relation to certain migrant groups, such as …

Social-Emotional Outcomes In Emerging Adults With Adhd: The Influence Of Self-Compassion On Peer Rejection, Rejection Sensitivity, And Psychological Distress, Alia Hussain

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Emerging adulthood, the developmental period ranging from 18 to 29 years, is a critical stage of development in which individuals grow their social skills, set and achieve life goals, learn to live independently, and further develop brain regions involved in higher-level cognition, shaped by their environment and experiences throughout emerging adulthood. Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder associated with adverse interpersonal outcomes. Approximately 5 to 8% of emerging adults are reported to have an ADHD diagnosis and may be at higher risk than typically developing emerging adults for unfavourable developmental outcomes. This heightened risk may be attributed to their …

Parental Evaluations And Choice Of Math Apps For Their Young Children: Exploring The Impact Of Individual Differences, Nicola Urquhart

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Well-designed math apps can have positive effects on young children’s math abilities (Bang et al., 2023; Griffith et al., 2019; Outhwaite et al., 2023), but research indicates that many commercially available math apps are not well designed (Dubé et al., 2019; Meyer et al., 2021). Studies also find that parents struggle to identify relevant features from app store descriptions (Montazami et al., 2022; Pearson et al., 2023). The purpose of the present research was to investigate how parents evaluate the apps themselves, and to test whether individual differences can affect parental app evaluations and decisions. In two parts of Study …

Anxiety And Depression In Older Adults Post Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill, Mickaela R. Reed

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Research has investigated challenges that are created when one experiences a disaster within populations such as older adults and other vulnerable groups of people. However, there is little to no consideration given to how age in combination with trauma history are related to well-being after a disaster. Using two theories, socioemotional selectivity theory (SST, Carstensen, 2006) and the strength and vulnerability integration model (SAVI, Charles, 2010). I compared older adults post disaster vulnerabilty to depression and anxiety to that of younger adults with trauma history as a moderator. The 2,508 participants in the current study were from the Survey of …

Childhood Adversity And Sexual Risk Taking In College: Pathways Through Alcohol Use, Sarah Josephine Miller

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Exposure to adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) is associated with a host of negative outcomes throughout the lifespan including engagement in health-risk behaviors such as sexual risk taking and alcohol consumption (Dube et al., 2006; Negriff et al., 2015; Zaso et al., 2021). Additionally, sexual risk-taking and alcohol use commonly co-occur (Certain et al., 2009; Downing-Matibag & Geisinger, 2009). This may be especially true during the transition to college, in which many young adults have increased access to substances, increased autonomy, and an expanded network of peers. Thus, the present study examined the relationship between ACEs, alcohol use, and sexual risk …

Testing A Conceptual Model Of Age, Gender, Perceived Discrimination And Well-Being, Kelly Smith

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Both age and gender are personal characteristics that are at least in part outwardly visible and act as a category for social judgments (Cuddy & Fiske, 2002). The current study examined associations among individuals’ views on their aging, their gender typicality, well-being, and perceived discrimination. Research Question 1 asked whether views on aging and gender typicality interact to influence perceptions of discrimination; Research Question 2 explored the same potential interactions’ influence on well-being. Research Question 3 explored whether any interaction between views on aging and gender typicality and well-being was mediated by perceptions of discrimination. Participants represented the adult life …

An Investigation Of Relations Between Developmental Stage, Impulsivity, And False Confessions, Madison G. Gallimore

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

The current study examined relations between developmental stage, impulsivity, and false confessions. Based on the findings from Tervo-Clemmens et al. (2023), participants were divided into two groups based on age; ages included those who had not yet reached executive functioning maturation (12-to-20-years-old) and those who had reached executive functioning maturation (21-to-37-years-old). Impulsiveness was determined by performance on a delay-discounting task based on Mok et al. (2020) and the Barratt Impulsivity Scale-11 (BIS-11) Self-control subscale. False confessions were measured based on whether participants orally admitted to a minor wrongdoing. All participants experienced the same study procedure. The false confession paradigm utilized …

Subjective Cognitive Decline: Examining The Contributions Of Adverse Childhood Experiences And Social Determinants Of Health, Amber Victoria Rusch

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Subjective cognitive decline is one’s awareness of their own consistent memory loss or confusion that interrupts their day-to-day activities (CDC, 2022; Roehr et al., 2017). Several risk factors for subjective cognitive decline, such as demographic social determinants of health (SDOH) and adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) have been identified through previous research (Alzheimer’s Association, 2016; Dening & Sandilyan, 2015); however, less is known about the interaction between demographic SDOH and ACEs on subjective cognitive decline. The current study sought to examine how demographic SDOH (i.e., age, sex, race, and education) (research question 1) and ACEs (i.e., physical abuse, sexual abuse, and …

Parental Socialization Of General And Domain-Specific Self-Control In Adolescents, Matty Johnston

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Adolescent self-control appears to be an important competency to develop. It has pervasive links with various outcomes (e.g., educational, financial, and interpersonal) both during adolescence and into adulthood (Allemand et al., 2019, Moffitt et al., 2011). Adolescents often report lower self-control compared to adults, although individual levels of self-control vary widely between adolescents (Allemand et al., 2019, Romer et al., 2010). Despite its importance, very little is known about how self-control develops. Thus, the current study aims to examine the relationship between parents’ self-control and that of their teen children. To further understand how adolescents' self-control may be socialized by …

Factors That Influence Plans To Have Children: An Application Of The Theory Of Planned Behavior To Fertility Decision-Making Across The Reproductive Years, Amanda Chappell

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Fertility intentions include plans to have one or more children; intentions can be used to predict fertility behavior. The focus of the current study was to examine the influence of age and gender on factors involved in estimating fertility intentions (measured with 5 items), including attitudes (i.e., how one feels about becoming a parent; 13 items), norms (i.e., pressure from important others to have children; 5 items), and perceived control (beliefs about capability of becoming a parent; 4 items) in a U.S. sample. The study included a sample of N = 289 (51% men) participants (75.6% White) between the ages …

A Study Of Inhibition Development In Young Children, Ai Thi Thanh Hoang

College of Education Theses and Dissertations

Child inhibition can be learned consciously and unconsciously, and it is highly dependent on the quality of interaction with adults (i.e., parents and teachers). However, little is known about the impact of teachers’ emotional management and sensitivity on the development of inhibition skills among students in early childhood classrooms. This dissertation takes an integrative approach to explore whether teacher-child relationship and teacher self-efficacy have a bidirectional connection and how they work to impact child inhibition, directly and indirectly. The present research utilizes the large nationally represented Early Childhood Longitudinal Study 2010-2011, sponsored by the National Center for Education Statistics in …

Early Technology Exposure And Academic Performance In Generation Alpha: Reduced Attention Span And Ability To Multitask, Sanjana Gupta

Undergraduate Research Posters

The increasing prevalence of handheld devices in the lives of young children inspired this research, particularly regarding their potential impact on attention spans and cognitive development in Generation Alpha. Early exposure to tablets and smartphones before the age of seven coincides with critical periods of neuroplasticity, during which the brain is highly receptive to environmental influences. This matters because attention and cognitive skills formed in childhood lay the foundation for academic success and long-term personal development, and the shift toward digital learning platforms in schools may have significant consequences.

This study aimed to investigate whether early exposure to handheld devices …

College Students’ Loneliness, Feelings About Social Media, And Depressive Symptoms During Covid-19: Between And Within-Person Temporal Associations, Karen Kochel, Catherine L. Bagwell, Samara Rosen

Interdisciplinary Journal of Leadership Studies

During COVID-19, many institutions of higher education implemented health protocols that reduced college students’ in-person interactions and prompted an uptick in their social media use. Although social media has often been implicated in the development of psychosocial difficulties, we tested an alternate hypothesis – that, during the pandemic, students’ feelings about social media for interpersonal connection (i.e., FSMIC), would contribute to reductions in loneliness and depressive symptoms. To investigate temporal associations between loneliness, FSMIC, and depression, we estimated random-intercept cross-lagged panel models (RI-CLPM), permitting the disaggregation of between- and within-person effects. Participants (N = 517 undergraduates, M_age = …

The Object Play Of Young Children On The Autism Spectrum: A Narrative Review Of Strengths-Based Literature, Sharon Eva

Internet Journal of Allied Health Sciences and Practice

Purpose: The play in young children with autism has been historically seen as deficits-based, with a focus on the limitations of autistic object play. More recently, there has been a shift towards a strengths-based view of autistic object play, where their play preferences and skills are viewed as vehicles for meaningful engagement and as having potential for learning. The aims of this narrative review are two-fold: to identify themes in the existing literature regarding the object play of young children with autism; and, to summarize the existing literature specifically examining object play in young autistic children from a strengths-based point …