Psychology Commons^™

The Well-Being And Identities Of 14- To 26-Year-Old Intercountry Adoptees And Their Non-Adopted Migrant Peers In Western Australia, Geertruda Rosenwald

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Intercountry adoption is a globally politicised institution that triggers strong discourses about whether transplantation to a markedly different country and culture, often into families with racially different parents, negatively affects the children ' s well-being and identity. Although empirical intercountry adoption research has increased elsewhere, Australian-based research has lagged behind. This thesis presents a body of evidence about the well-being and identity of over half the population of 14- to 26-year-old intercountry adoptees in Western Australia, how their well-being changed from 1994 to 2004, how they compare with non-adopted migrant peers and the influence of risk and threat factors. In …

Gender Differences In Antecedents To Academic And Personal Well-Being In Urban Youth: What Is The Role Of Social Support?, Erin Caskey

Dissertations

Urban youth are an important, yet understudied population. Moreover, the vast majority of existing research has focused on negative outcomes. Recently, there has been a trend in the field of adolescent research toward creating models that attempt to understand and explain why some members of at-risk populations are able to overcome adversities and to achieve successful adaptation. The present study investigated the relationships between perceived social support, gender, academic outcomes, and personal well-being in urban youth. Overall, perceived social support was found to be related to many outcome variables for males and females. Gender differences were found in the relationships …

The Well-Being Of Nations: Linking Together Trust, Cooperation, And Democracy, William Tov, Ed Diener

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

The theme of this chapter is that cooperative and trusting social relationships tend to enhance people’s subjective well-being (happiness and life satisfaction), and that in turn positive feelings of well-being tend to augment cooperation and trust. Extensive empirical work now supports the fact that sociability, interpersonal warmth, community involvement, and interpersonal trust are heightened by positive emotions. New analyses based on the World Value Survey show that nations that are high on subjective well-being (SWB) also tend to be high on generalized trust, volunteerism, and democratic attitudes. Additional analyses indicate that the association of SWB to volunteerism and democratic attitudes …

The Value-Congruence Model Of Memory For Emotional Experiences: An Explanation For Cultural Differences In Emotional Self-Reports, Shigehiro Oishi, Ulrich Schimmack, Ed Diener, Chu Kim-Prieto, Christie N. Scollon, Dong-Won Choi

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

In 3 studies, the authors found support for the value-congruence model that accounts for cultural variations in memory for emotional experiences. In Study 1, the authors found that in the made-in-the-U.S. scenario condition, European Americans were more accurate than were Asian Americans in their retrospective frequency judgments of emotions. However, in the made-in-Japan scenario condition, European Americans were less accurate than were Asian Americans. In Study 2, the authors demonstrated that value orientation mediates the Culture X Type of Event congruence effect. In Study 3 (a daily event sampling study), the authors showed that the congruence effect was explained by …

Love, Work, And Changes In Extraversion And Neuroticism Over Time, Christie N. Scollon, Ed Diener

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

The present study examined individual differences in change in extraversion, neuroticism, and work and relationship satisfaction. Of particular interest were the correlations between changes. Data were from the Victorian Quality of Life Panel Study (B. Headey & A. Wearing, 1989, 1992), in which an overall 1,130 individuals participated (ages 16 to 70). Respondents were assessed every 2 years from 1981 to 1989. Four major findings emerged. (a) There were significant individual differences in changes in extraversion and neuroticism. (b) change was not limited to young adulthood. (c) Development was systematic in that increased work and relationship satisfaction was associated with …

The Effects Of Prolonged Job Insecurity On The Psychological Well-Being Of Workers, Cynthia Rocha, Jennifer Hause Crowell, Andrea K. Mccarter

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Job insecurity has been increasing since the 1980s. While researchers have found job insecurity to be negatively associated with multiple indicators of well-being for workers and their families in cross sectional studies, less is known about the long term effects of prolonged job insecurity. Specifically, there is a need to collect measures of both insecurity and its consequences at multiple time periods. The current study followed workers for 3 1/2 years to assess the effects of chronic job insecurity on psychological distress. Results indicate that while workers reported increased feelings of security over time, there were longer term negative effects …

Sleep Quality Of College Students And Its Relationship To Coping Styles And Well-Being, Cathy Alison Word

Doctoral Dissertations

College students suffer from more sleep disturbances than the general population. Sleep difficulties in college students can lead to lower levels of performance, memory, and cognitive ability, as well as increased levels of anxiety and decreased levels of well-being. Sleep quality is known to impact individuals' physical and psychological health, which are indicators of well-being. Sleep also appears to influence individuals' choices of coping strategies. Sleep quality is also highly correlated with college students' emotional response to stress. The relationships between and among sleep quality, well-being, and coping style have not been fully examined. The purpose of this study was …

An Investigation Of Reactance, Coping, Quality Of Life, And Well -Being, Monique Maria Matherne

Doctoral Dissertations

Psychological reactance (reactance) is a personality variable receiving a great deal of attention. Reactance has been defined as the motivational force aroused in an individual when a behavioral freedom is lost or threatened (Brehm, 1966). The current study assessed the interrelationships among psychological reactance, coping, quality of life, and well-being. A total of 353 participants were analyzed for this study. Participants completed four self-report instruments: (1) the Therapeutic Reactance Scale, (2) the Coping Styles Questionnaire, (3) the Overall Quality of Life Scale, (4) the General Well-Being Schedule, and a demographics questionnaire. Significant gender differences existed for reactance, detachment coping, emotional …

The Effects Of Meritocracy Beliefs On Women’S Well-Being After First-Time Gender Discrimination, Mindi D. Foster, E. Micha Tsarfati

Psychology Faculty Publications

This study examined how meritocracy beliefs may buffer women from the negative psychological effects of an acute situation of gender discrimination. Although some research indirectly suggests that believing the meritocracy exists may increase well-being, group consciousness theories (e.g., Bartky, 1977) suggest that disbelieving the meritocracy exists will enhance psychological adjustment to gender discrimination. Women who reported little past experience with discrimination, and either believed or disbelieved the meritocracy exists were exposed to either a laboratory situation of discrimination or a non-discrimination failure (control) condition. Consistent with group consciousness theories, women experiencing discrimination reported greater well-being if they disbelieved the meritocracy …

The Relationship Among Disclosure, Internalized Homophobia, Religiosity, And Psychological Well-Being In A Lesbian Population, Sharon Lyn Clayman

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

This study investigated the relationship among disclosure, internalized homophobia, and religiosity in a lesbian population and how these three variables are related to psychological well-being in order to build upon the scant amount of empirical research on these variables in the lesbian psychological literature. A total of 679 women, 18 to 70 years old, and from all across the country were recruited via the internet to participate in a web-based survey. Participants completed a demographic questionnaire, the Lesbian Internalized Homophobia Scale (Szymanski & Chung, 2001), the Outness Inventory (Mohr & Fassinger, 2000), the Behavioral Self-Disclosure Questionnaire (Carroll & Gilroy, 2000), …

An Investigation Of The Relationship Among Life-Skills, Self-Esteem, And Well-Being In Adults, Scott David Meche

Doctoral Dissertations

This study examined the relationship among life-skills, self-esteem, and well-being in 278 adults. Adults were classified into three age groups. Of the 278 participants, 96 were young adults, 92 were middle-aged, and 90 were older adults. Life-skills, global organizations of general coping skills that are learned behaviors which enable effective functioning, were assessed with the Life-Skills Inventory - Adult Form (Gazda, Illovsky, & Taylor, 1991). Analyses were performed to understand the influence of four generic life-skills areas, interpersonal communication/human relations, problem-solving/decision making, identity development/purpose in life, and physical fitness/health maintenance, on self-esteem. Self-esteem was measured with the Self-Esteem Inventory-Adult Form …

The Association Between Perceived Family Support And Psychological Well-Being In Infertile Couples, Linda Marquardt Mintle

Health Services Research Dissertations

A correlational research design utilizing a cross-sectional survey methodology was used to investigate the association between perceived family support and psychological well-being in infertile couples. Family stress theory and the construct of boundary ambiguity were conceptual frameworks applied to the developmental family life cycle. Respondents were 35 married infertile couples with primary infertility recruited from a private For-profit infertility clinic located in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Responses on the Moos and Moos (1984) Family Environment Scale and from the SCL-90-R developed by Derogatis (1977) measured perceived family support and psychological distress respectively. Major findings indicated that infertile couples rated their families …

The Effects Of Diary Writing Support Groups On Women's Depression, Self-Acceptance And Well-Being, Linda Elaine Barnes

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This study was conducted to determine whether learning specific writing techniques and discussing them in a small group is more beneficial to women than writing a journal using self-taught techniques, or not writing at all.

Instruments used included the Beck Depression Inventory and the California Personality Inventory (Self-Acceptance and Well-Being scales).

The literature review covers four general areas: a brief discussion of the impact of contemporary feminism on traditional therapy; an examination of feminist therapy, specifically its advocacy of consciousness-raising groups as a therapy alternative; women's self-reports on diary or journal writing; and information on modern non-literary journal uses including …