Psychology Commons^™

The Price Of Possessiveness: How Parental Materialism Undermines Child Psychological Wellbeing, Miao Li

Sociology Publications

Materialism, a value system that places the pursuit of possessions at the core of happiness and life meaning, is a dominant cultural force in modern societies. While its associations with individual well-being are well-documented, its intergenerational implications remain understudied. This study conceptualizes materialism as a potential family stressor contributing to the intergenerational transmission of stress. An intergenerational crossover model of materialism was tested using data from 1,996 parent-child pairs in Zhengzhou, China. Results indicate that higher parental materialism is associated with stronger materialistic values in children, weaker family relationships, and more frequent parental comparisons, each of which is linked to …

Mental Toughness In Motherhood: A Qualitative Phenomenological Approach To Advancing Developmental Understanding, Mary Kauffman

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This qualitative phenomenological study explored how mothers define, experience, and describe mental toughness within the developmental context of motherhood. Mental toughness has been extensively examined in performance-based domains such as sports, education, business and military settings. Limited research has investigated how this construct appears or manifests in caregiving roles. Understanding mental toughness in motherhood may inform how mothers are supported psychologically and contribute to future frameworks, interventions, and systems designed to strengthen maternal well-being, adaptation, and long-term functioning. Guided by Bandura’s self-efficacy theory, which focuses on the perceived ability of individuals to navigate adversity, this study examined mental toughness as …

Mothers’ Childhood Maltreatment And Developmentally Appropriate Attributions Of 12-Month-Old Infants, Katelyn M. Lamberton

Undergraduate Theses, Capstones, and Recitals

This study examined associations between developmentally appropriate attributions (DAAs), an understudied construct, with maternal history of childhood maltreatment and maternal reflective functioning (RF) with their 12-month-old infants. The study examined if 1) DAAs at 12 months were concurrently associated with parental RF at 12 months for construct validity, and 2) higher levels of maternal childhood maltreatment were associated with lower DAAs for predictive validity. Participants were 156 mothers (40.0% White, 25.5% Latinx, 14.9% Black, 5.5% Asian, 2.1% Native-American, 12.0% biracial/multiracial) and their 12- to 15-month infants. Childhood maltreatment and RF were assessed by parental self-report at three-months and 12-months postpartum …

Fatherhood In Egypt: Identity Formation And Role Theory Perspectives, Mahmoud Nasr Gawdat

Theses and Dissertations

Fatherhood is a central yet under-researched dimension of family life in Egypt, particularly from a psychological and identity-based perspective. This study explores how Egyptian fathers construct and experience fatherhood through the lenses of identity theory and role theory. Using a qualitative research design, seven focus groups were conducted with 43 Egyptian fathers to examine the meanings they attribute to fatherhood, their perceived roles, challenges, support systems, and personal transformations. Thematic analysis revealed six interconnected themes: (1) describing the father’s role, (2) learning the father role, (3) social and cultural influences on the father role, (4) meaning of being a father, …

Raising Regulated Moms: Reducing Reactive Parenting Responses, Victoria J. Perez

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

Many parents and caregivers lack access to information and support that accurately relates effective parenting styles, without this knowledge caregivers and parents may unintentionally rely on reactive responses that end up escalating conflict with their child rather than resolving it. When parents respond to their child's big emotions without effective tools to first regulate themselves, they risk contributing to higher stress levels, emotional withdrawal, and behavioral dysregulation in their children. Research consistently demonstrates that when parents are given the tools to successfully incorporate self-regulation skills and evidence-based approaches to guide children through difficult emotions, both the child and the parent …

Exploring The Experiences Of Adult Children Of Parents With Addiction: A Qualitative Support Group Approach, Brooke Stanton

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

Adult children of parents with addiction often grow up having to navigate emotional instability, inconsistent caregiving, and long-term relational impacts that continue into adulthood. Many individuals report limited access to supportive care and spaces where they can share their stories. This capstone project addresses the gap by designing and facilitating a support group specifically for adult children of parents to build connection and healing. Through this qualitative study, participant feedback, and analysis, this project examines how structured peer support can create meaningful change for this population. The following paper outlines the development of the group, the theoretical foundations that guided …

Parental Use Of Digital Location Tracking Technology & The Impacts On Adolescent Development: A Scoping Review, Madison G. Cox

Senior Theses

In the 21st century, many parents rely on digital location tracking applications (e.g., Life360, Find My Friends) to track the whereabouts of their teens and young adults, exerting a new form of parental control in the digital age. Though a popular parenting strategy, it is unclear how utilizing these tools might be affecting adolescent and emerging adulthood development. To better understand these outcomes, the present thesis conducted a scoping review of articles via the PsycINFO database. After screening studies according to the inclusion and exclusion criteria, a total of five studies were included in the scoping review. The included studies …

Dyadic Respiratory Sinus Arrhythmia Outcomes For Mothers And Their Children: Long-Term Follow-Up Of A Randomized Controlled Trial Of Brief Parenting Interventions, Abigail Sullivan, Sophia Eisenberg Garcia, Maria Kinsey, Komal Brown, Rong Bai, Melissa Mcternan, Seth J. Scholer, Ron Prinz, Julia Fleckman, Stacy Drury, Catherine A. Taylor

Student Publications [Scholarly]

This study was part of a longitudinal follow-up of a 3-armed randomized controlled trial designed to test the effects of two brief parenting interventions, Play Nicely (PN) and Triple P-Level 2 (TP2), to a usual care control on parenting outcomes. Female caregivers with an identified index child (Mage = 3.7 years, standard deviation [SD] = 1.7) were recruited through women, infants, and children (WIC) clinics in the greater New Orleans region. At a long-term (Myears = 5 years, SD = 0.9) follow-up assessment, respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) was assessed for a subset of these mother–child dyads during three dyadic interaction …

The Role Of Parenting In Mitigating Epigenetic Cardiometabolic Risk In Predominantly Latino Preschoolers, Adamari López

Open Access Master's Theses

Background: Childhood obesity is a highly prevalent public health concern with significant consequences for health and development across the lifespan. Risk is disproportionately elevated among children from marginalized racial and ethnic groups and socioeconomically disadvantaged backgrounds, highlighting persistent disparities in long-term health outcomes. Epigenomic mechanisms, including DNA methylation (DNAm), have emerged as a promising approach for understanding the biological embedding of metabolic risk; however, prior research has largely emphasized deficit-based models, with limited attention to protective family-level factors. The present study examined whether participation in a positive parenting intervention was associated with epigenetic cardiometabolic risk among preschool-aged children. Methods …

Hallucinogen Use Among Parents Of Children In The United States: Associations With Mental Health And Substance Use, Maggie K. Richardson

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

Hallucinogen use has reemerged in the United States amid expanding clinical research and shifting social and policy contexts. However, population-based evidence remains limited regarding hallucinogen use among adults living with children and its relationship with mental health impairment severity in caregiving environments. Therefore, this study’s objective was to examine associations between past-year hallucinogen use and past-year mental health impairment among U.S. adults, and to test whether associations differ by parental status and number of children in the household. A secondary aim examined correlates of co-occurring substance use among those reporting hallucinogen use.

Data were drawn from the 2023 National Survey …

Parental Emotion Regulation: Associations With Child Affect And Emotion Socialization Behaviors, Jordan Holmén

Theses and Dissertations

Parenting is an emotional context in which parents often need to be able to regulate their own emotions in order to respond effectively to their child. Thus, how one regulates themselves may impact child outcomes. Supporting this notion, parent emotional regulation (ER) has been found to influence child adjustment (for a review, see Zimmer-Gembeck et al., 2021) and, more specifically, child affect (Hamzallari et al., 2022). For example, maternal suppression of emotions has been found to predict infant frustration (i.e., crying; Hamzallari et al., 2022). However, it is less clear how parent ER impacts child positive and negative affect. Theory …

Don’T Hit Mommy! Associations Between Harsh Parenting And Aggression In Toddlerhood: The Moderating Role Of Temperament, Serah Betancourt

Theses and Dissertations

Physical aggression is known to be particularly common in toddlerhood. Further, harsh parenting practices and certain temperament traits in children have been found to be associated with aggressive behaviors. Recently, aggression has been demonstrated to be differentiated between provoked and unprovoked aggression. The current study examined early aggression and explored the mechanisms by which harsh parenting practices and temperament traits may predict different types of aggression and how that may also change depending on the stage of development in toddlerhood. That is, we proposed that harsh parenting would be more strongly associated with provoked aggression among toddlers with higher negative …

Navigating Motherhood: A Qualitative Study Of The Experiences And Challenges Of Non-Birthing Mothers In Queer Cisgender-Relationships, Anna Caravaggio

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

The present study explored the psychological experiences of non-birthing mothers in queer cisgender female relationships, a population that remains underrepresented in the parenting literature. Existing research has focused primarily on birthing mothers or same-sex couples as a unit, leaving the unique perspectives of non-birthing mothers insufficiently examined. Using a qualitative phenomenological design, eight non-birthing mothers participated in semi-structured interviews examining their transition to parenthood, maternal identity development, and experiences within relational, social, and systemic contexts. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis, resulting in five primary themes: pathways to parenthood and conception decision making; constructing maternal identity; bonding and attachment processes; …

Examining Bidirectional Associations Between Mothers’ Beliefs About Emotions And Child Social-Emotional Outcomes, Sydney Sumrall

Theses and Dissertations

Social-emotional (SE) skills encompass the ability to recognize and regulate emotions, manage behavior to act on goals, and maintain social relationships (Abrahams et al., 2019). Parents play a crucial role in child SE skill development. According to theories of emotion socialization (ES), the beliefs parents hold about emotions shape parents’ ES behaviors, including teaching children how to understand and express feelings (Eisenberg et al., 1998; Gottman, 1996). Because emotion socialization practices are influenced by cultural values (Raval & Walker, 2019), the parent beliefs and ES strategies that best support children’s SE skill development may vary across families’ racial backgrounds. Although …

Observed Parenting, Parent-Child Aggression, And Intimate Partner Violence As Predictive Of Family Dysfunction, Paige Munshell

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

Family systems theories contextualize violence as occurring across multiple levels of the family, yet much of the existing literature focuses on a single family member’s outcome (i.e., the child) and neglects to include data collected from fathers. This study examined the associations between indicators of functioning at the dyadic-level in the family system—observed parenting, Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) perpetration, and Parent-Child Aggression (PCA) risk—and later overall family dysfunction. Participants were 180 mothers and 144 of their male partners evaluated when their child was 18 months old and re-evaluated at 4 years old. Measures of observed parenting, IPV perpetration, and PCA …

Parentcoach: Designing An Mhealth Parenting App To Enhance Parental Involvement In Adhd Support, Franceli L. Cibrian, Nancy Herrera, Jesus A. Beltran, Lucas M. Silva, Mikaela Pulse, Kayla Anderson, Cassie Zeiler, Luc Rieffel, Daniel I. Lee, Sabrina E. B. Schuck, Kimberley D. Lakes

Engineering Faculty Articles and Research

Introduction: Parents play a vital role in supporting self-regulation and managing behaviors in children with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). However, many face barriers to accessing consistent, evidence-based support. Mobile health (mHealth) technologies offer a promising way to deliver flexible, low-burden guidance for parents on best practices and strategies to support their children's self-regulation. However, designing them is non-trivial.

Objective: This paper introduces ParentCoach, a mobile application designed to support parents of children with ADHD through brief daily lessons, reflection prompts, and skill-building activities.

Methods: ParentCoach was developed in two phases: (1) secondary analysis of qualitative data from over 30 families …

Exploring The Relationship Between Becoming A Parent, Goal Orientation, And Productivity, Among Self-Employed Entrepreneurs, Andrew Dean East

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This quantitative study explored the relationship between parenting status and goal orientation and productivity among self-employed entrepreneurs. Using a sample of 471 participants, the study compared entrepreneurs with and without children under five years of age living at home to examine group differences, relational patterns, and potential moderation effects. No statistically significant differences were found in goal orientation or productivity between parents and non-parents, indicating that early-stage parenting does not inherently hinder these traits. However, a small but statistically significant positive correlation was observed between goal orientation and productivity, suggesting that individuals with higher internal motivation reported slightly greater productivity, …

Exploring Perceived Parental Vulnerability In Pediatric Cancer Survivors: A Comparative Thematic Analysis Of English And Spanish-Speaking Families., Yusnavi Martinez Pineiro

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study examined how perceived parental vulnerability is expressed among parents of pediatric cancer survivors and explored potential differences between Spanish-speaking and English-speaking families. Data were drawn from an existing ongoing clinical trial in the IHOPE lab of the University of South Florida, who collaborates with over 10 pediatric cancer survivorship clinics across the country. The study used a total of 26 (13 Spanish-speaking and 13 English-speaking) structured interview transcripts from parent participants. The transcripts were the first session with the parent participant, the interventionist spoke the parent’s preferred language (English or Spanish), perceived parental vulnerability was one of six …

Parenting Under Constraint: How Histories Of Abuse And Sexual Violence Shape Mothers' Caregiving In A Homeless Shelter, Kiera P. Irvin

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

Background: Mothers experiencing homelessness often carry extensive trauma histories, yet little work examines how abuse and sexual violence shape day-to-day parenting inside communal shelter settings. This study explored how trauma histories intersect with shelter structures to influence caregiving and feelings surrounding parenting among homeless mothers.

Method: Using a qualitative design, four mothers (ages 30–51) residing in a large Midwestern homeless shelter completed approximately 30-minute, semi-structured interviews in a private room onsite. Data were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim, and analyzed with inductive reflexive thematic analysis in Dedoose.

Results: Three interrelated themes were identified. (1) Parenting Under Constraint, in which communal living, limited …

Parenting For Wellness: Positive Parenting Factors As Predictors Of College Student Physical Health, Mental Health, And Social Connectedness Through The Lens Of Self-Determination Theory, Mary E. Lamkin

Dissertations

Research suggests that the transition to college can impact college student well-being across the domains of physical health, mental health, and social connectedness (Frech, 2012; Pittman & Richmond, 2008; Xiao et al., 2017). As parents are more heavily connected to their college-aged students when compared to years before cell phones and social media, they likely continue to play a significant role in their child’s well-being, even while they are in college (Wartman & Savage, 2008). Therefore, the aim of this dissertation was to investigate positive parenting behaviors as predictors of wellness in college-aged participants using Self Determination Theory (Ryan & …

Examining Parent Accommodation Of Anxiety And Irritability In Preschool-Aged Children., Anna Olczyk

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Anxiety and irritability are common developmentally normative emotions in early childhood, yet are also related to risk for psychopathology in childhood, adolescence, and adulthood. Parenting behaviors, including parent accommodation, may influence this risk. Parent accommodation is the parent modification of child/family routines and/or avoidance of activities to reduce child distress and has been documented widely in the anxiety literature. Although some research has examined parent accommodation of anxiety in preschool-aged children, most research has investigated accommodation of anxiety in clinical samples of school-aged children. Further, despite high rates of co-occurrence between child anxiety and irritability, research on parent accommodation of …

Uncovering The Parental Self Identification Process, Danita M. Baber

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This dissertation sought to uncover the first-time parent’s novel journey of transforming their identity from individual to parent. Through highlighting the well-established theories that describe the self-identification process, this study centered around concepts related to the conceptualization of the self, the developmental process of self-identification, and the establishment of one’s self-concept, through the lens of parenting. Specifically, this study asked, “For first time parents, does the age of one’s infant impact one’s level of obtained parental identity?” To best answer this question, this study followed a quantitative research design to discover if there was a positive relationship between measured parental …

Migration And Separation Among Latinx Asylum Seekers: Experiences And Relations With Anxiety And Depression, Amanda Venta, Ashley Bautista, Maria Cuervo, Alfonso Mercado, Luz M. Garcini, Cecilia Colunga-Rodríguez, Mario Angel-Gonzalez

Psychological Science Faculty Publications

This study sought to describe the experiences of families seeking asylum at the U.S./Mexico border and explore how traveling with and without family was associated with mental health in a large group of Latinx adults. Additionally, we explored relations between experiences of family separation due to migration and anxiety and depression. N = 400 participants were recruited from two main locations: an encampment site along the Rio Grande River in Reynosa Tamaulipas, Mexico and a respite center serving families recently released by U.S. Customs and Border Protection in McAllen, Texas. The average age of participants was 31.35 years (SD …

Parenting Among Mothers With High Psychosocial Stress In South-Central Appalachia: Aspirations, Actions, And Intervention, Kelly Daniel

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Conceptualizations of adaptive parenting within Appalachia have been historically limited by the scarcity of research with the region as well as stereotyped depictions of Appalachian parents. As such, this project aimed to examine Appalachian parenting through a culturally sensitive lens by centering lived experiences through the ecological systems theory. The sample included mothers (n = 41) who attended Mom Power, an attachment-based, trauma-informed parenting skills intervention in the Appalachian Highlands. Reflective Thematic Analysis was used to analyze qualitative interview data by exploring and conceptualizing current parenting challenges and associated maternal feelings and reactions. Results include the development of a metaphor …

Pilot Implementation Of Mom Power In The Appalachian Highlands: Acceptability And Effectiveness Of A Parenting Group For Mothers With High Psychosocial Need, Megan Wolff

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Children need safe, stable, and nurturing relationships with a caregiver for optimal development. Maternal childhood adversity, traumatic life experiences, and mental health challenges can adversely impact parenting beliefs and behaviors in ways that compromise a caregiver’s ability to create and sustain a healthy caregiving environment for their child(ren). In the professional world of infant and early childhood mental health (IECMH), policies, providers, and programs work together to promote optimal child and family wellbeing to reduce the intergenerational transmission of risk and to empower resilience in families and communities. The present study investigated the feasibility, acceptability, and effectiveness of the pilot …

"Treat Others Based On How Your Parents Treated You": A Longitudinal Study On Parenting Style Experienced In Adolescence And Prosocial Attitudes Later In Life, Chelsea Ward

Honors Projects

The parenting style one grows up with has been found to influence a variety of outcomes later in a person’s life, including prosocial behaviors. However, the attitudes behind these behaviors remained understudied, especially for permissive and uninvolved parenting styles. The present study uses The National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997 (NLSY97), a nationally representative longitudinal dataset conducted in the United States from 1997 to the present year, to clarify the relationship between parenting style experienced in adolescence and prosocial attitudes in early adulthood. Results indicate that being parented with an authoritative parenting style in adolescence leads to higher levels of …

Mom, I’M Home: A Phenomenological Qualitative Study Of The Shared Experiences Of Adults Who Had A Stay-At-Home Mother, Darren Eldred Schmidt

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to describe adults’ childhood experiences with a stay-at-home mother in the Western United States. To date, related studies on stay-at-home mothering have focused almost exclusively on the outcomes for mother and child during the time they are living together. None have examined more closely the long-term effects that stay-at-home mothering may have on children after they reach adulthood. The researcher sought to better inform couples, therapists, practitioners, and society in general regarding some of the long-term effects of having a stay-at-home mother. The family systems theory, wherein the family unit and its members …

The Lived Experience Of Immigrant Parents Raising First-Generation Adolescents In The United States, Hala Mohamed Hassan

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Immigrant parents experience challenges raising adolescent children, including cultural adaptation, language barriers, and generational differences, and how these impact adolescent development in bicultural contexts. Relatively little is understood about immigrant parents raising first-generation adolescents. The purpose of this study, grounded in Baumrind’s parenting style theory and Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory, was to explore the lived experiences of immigrant parents raising first-generation adolescents in the United States using a qualitative phenomenological approach. This study employed semistructured interviews with 12 immigrant parents of first-generation teenagers aged 13-19, with data analyzed thematically to identify patterns and themes in participants’ experiences. Key findings revealed the …

Goodtimer For Good Behavior: A Nonconcurrent Multiple Baseline Examination Of A Behavioral Device Intervention To Reduce Child Misbehaviors, Morgan Weinstein

Selected Full Text Dissertations, 2011-

Behavioral Parent Training (BPT) effectively decreases disruptive behavior in children (Daley et al., 2014). Nonetheless, many parents perceive BPT to be challenging and demanding, leading to reports of high treatment dropout rates (Chacko et al., 2016.) To address this, the present study evaluated the effectiveness of Goodtimer, a behavioral health device utilizing contingency management, an element of BPT, to mitigate child disruptive behaviors. The Goodtimer is designed to make administering a contingency management system easier for parents. Employing a nonconcurrent multiple baseline design, the study assessed six families with children aged 3-9 years. Most parents who used the Goodtimer reported …

Latent Transition Analysis Of Prosocial Behavior And Physical Aggression In Toddlerhood, Annette Schieffelin

Theses and Dissertations

The current study is the first to apply Latent Transition Analysis (LTA) to examine short-term stability and change in toddlers’ physical aggression and prosocial behavior, using a person-centered, longitudinal approach to capture behavioral heterogeneity and stability during a critical developmental period. Mothers of 333 toddlers (18 or 24 months at Time 1; 21 or 27 months at Time 2) completed reports of provoked and unprovoked aggression, prosocial behaviors (helping, sharing, comforting), temperament, and parenting practices. Four profiles emerged consistently across time: High Aggression / Low Prosocial, Low Aggression / Average Prosocial, Low Aggression / High Prosocial, and Average Aggression / …