Developmental Psychology Commons^™

Addressing The Mental Health Disparities Among Black Children During Natural Disasters: A Clinical Perspective And Response To The Covid-19 Pandemic., Brittany Reed

DSW Capstone Projects

The experiences of Black children resulting from the events surrounding the Covid-19 pandemic present a projection to create long-term mental health effects at higher rates than their peers of other races. While the long-term effects of this pandemic are still considered ongoing, the disparities within the Black community will subsequently develop into a trickle-down effect of secondary traumatic experiences faced by Black children. Then, where does that leave Black children and their mental health? This capstone project aims to examine how the Covid-19 pandemic will affect Black children, explore the mental health challenges and disparities faced by Black children resulting …

Sexual Orientation And Gender Expression As Predictors Of Sogie-Based Harassment, Michelle Tam

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

The current study examined which individuals are most at risk for becoming targets of SOGIE-based harassment (specifically, White, male sexual minorities or White, male gender nonconforming individuals). The study also explored potential motivations behind SOGIE-based harassment (specifically, violations of normality and violations of morality) and whether these motivations are predicted by individual differences (specifically, sexual prejudice, beliefs in heteronormativity, tolerance of ambiguity, and adherence to gender norms). College students (n = 206; 67.5% female) were randomly assigned to one of four conditions, each with a different male target (straight/gender conforming, straight/gender nonconforming, gay/gender conforming, gay/gender nonconforming). Students saw a …

The Mediating Role Of Interpersonal Relationship In The Effect Of Emotional Competence On Prosocial Behaviour Among Adolescents In Malaysia, Pit-Wan Pung, Doh Hian Koh, Soon Aun Tan, Ming Hui Yap

Makara Human Behavior Studies in Asia

Prosocial behaviour has been regarded as a necessity for a society to function well. The present study aimed to examine the relationship between emotional competence, interpersonal relationship and prosocial behaviour among 496 school-going adolescents in Malaysia. The subjects were selected using Multistage Cluster Sampling method. Profile of Emotional Competence (PEC), Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment Scale (IPPA) and Strength and Difficulties Questionnaires (SDQ) were used to measure emotional competence, interpersonal relationship with peers and adolescents’ prosocial behaviour respectively. The results showed that there were significant positive relationships among emotional competence, interpersonal relationship with peers and prosocial behaviour. Further analysis …

Sexism And Severity: An Examination Of Teacher's Attitudes About Autism Symptomology In The Classroom, Kaitlyn Niederstadt

Psychology and Counseling Theses

Girls continue to be underdiagnosed and under-researched in the study of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). This is the result of a systemized preference towards masculine symptomology of ASD examined and created to diagnose ASD. The ideas produced by the research trickle down to teachers who then are in charge of flagging students for signs of ASD, however this step is not only limited by understanding, but their own inherent gender biases on behaviors. Our sample consisted of 139 current or former teachers. Each participant received one of three, (varying from severity levels and gender), rating scale of behavior association, rating …

Mental Health And Adolescents: The Impact Of Social Isolation In Adolescents During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Gabriella Aguinaldo

Nursing | Senior Theses

In early 2020, the coronavirus pandemic, first detected in late 2019, afflicted the world. The disease associated with the virus became known as COVID-19. COVID-19 was recognized as a highly contagious and deadly disease. In California, United States, COVID-19 was detected in February and the first shelter-in-place orders were ordered by the counties and state, which forced children and adults to stay at home and attend school and work virtually. Shelter-in-place orders were quickly implemented around the world.

As the world began this sudden switch in lifestyle, many were concerned for the mental health and safety of themselves and their …

Does Whispering Improve Children’S Memory? Comparing Auditory Vigilance And Salience Hypotheses, Christina M. Barnes

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Oral communication is one of the primary tools children use to learn new information and speech registers can deliver additional meaning to the words someone uses. Cirillo’s (2004) vigilance hypothesis states “Whispering can affect the psychobiological state of recipients, and in particular raise their auditory vigilance” (Cirillo, 2004, p. 76). Building on this theory, the current study investigates the role of whispering and children’s memory by examining a whispering vigilance, whispering salience which focused on the changes between normal and whisper registers, and combined vigilance and salience hypotheses to determine if whispering contributes to the recall of information. Using video …

Correlates Of Co-Rumination Among Married Women And Men In Pakistan, Mohib Rehman

Individual, Family, and Community Education ETDs

This dissertation examined co-rumination among married men and women and its effects on their marital quality and depressive outcomes. The study addressed the concept of co-rumination in the Pakistani family context as the notion of gender role affects many aspects of people’s lives in Pakistan including their self-disclosure. Data were collected online through social media from 150 married men and women who were in a marital relationship for at least a year. Using multiple regression, the association between co-rumination and depression was assessed and the moderating role of gender was examined to see if co-rumination results in different outcomes among …

Resilience And Grit: Foundations Of Mindset Differences In Adult Children Of Alcoholics And Adult Children Of Non-Alcoholics, Christopher Vance

Undergraduate Research Symposium

Alcoholism is a destructive consequence of a combination of environmental, genetic, and social influences. While it is the choice of an individual to consume alcohol, their family is facing the consequences as well. Children of alcoholics (CoAs) face a unique set of challenges growing up with one (or two) alcoholic parents. This study seeks to investigate the presence of a difference in grit and resilience in adult children of alcoholics (ACoAs). Furthermore, the study aims to uncover the influence grit and resilience have on an individuals’ mindset; whether they maintain a growth or fixed mindset. A survey containing four different …

The Relationship Between Infant-Family Routines, Number Of Caregivers And Infant Basal Cortisol, Vanessa Newell, Hannah B. White

Undergraduate Research Symposium

Background: Family routines have been found to be related to child adjustment, marital satisfaction, and parenting competence (Fiese, 2002). Persistent stress, and the resulting frequent activation of the body’s stress responses, can result in excessive wear-and-tear on the body and brain known as allostatic load (McEwen, 2000). In infants, basal cortisol levels act as an instrument to measure allostatic load (White, 2020). To our knowledge, no existing work on the impact of routines on infant development has examined the role of family structure. In traditional and minority cultures it is common for caregiving responsibilities to be divided among multiple individuals. …

Paternal Parenting Stress During Middle Childhood: The Impact Of Covid-19, Vanessa Newell, Kathryn E. Cherry, Emily D. Gerstein

Undergraduate Research Symposium

Background: Parenting stress is the unpleasant psychological reaction to the demands of parenthood, including perceptions of competence at and knowledge of the day-to-day and long-term tasks of parenting (Deater-Deckard 2006). While most research has examined mothers, father parenting stress is also critical to children’s development, predicting increased problem behaviors (Cabrera & Mitchell 2009) and poorer cognitive skills (Harwood, 2017). The COVID-19 pandemic may increase parental stress in multiple ways, as parents are at home more with their children while fulfilling occupational and personal responsibilities. Parents have reported increased stress due to job loss, school closures, and other stressors (van Tilburg …

Git (Gender-Informed Trauma) In Black N Blue Boys / Broken Men: How Concepts Of Gender Restrict The Black Male Actor’S Creative Process And The Methods He Can Use For Creative Freedom., Tyler Tate

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study examines how the black male actor’s creative process can be affected by historical and cultural constructions of masculinity connected to race, sexuality, and physical movement. My research on black men’s experience with gender identity finds that social and cultural forces lead black men to reproduce behaviors that mirror a prescribed masculine ideal through physical movement. This prescribed masculine behavior is typically coded in terms of stiffness or lack of expression. This study explores how self-imposed restrictions reiterated by social standards of masculine behavior limit the creative freedom in the black male actor’s creative process. Specifically, black male actors’ …

Identity Transformation Through Substance Use Disorder Recovery: Introducing The Six Stage Model, Naomi Watkins, Austin Mcneill Brown, Kayce Courson

The Qualitative Report

Narratives of substance use disorder recovery experience can provide useful qualitative conceptual categories and novel theories about the way in which recovery is experienced by individuals. This information can better inform definitions, concepts, and supports for recovery processes. The current study reviewed 30 written personal recovery biographies which were contained within student applications to the collegiate recovery program housed in the Center for Young Adult Addiction and Recovery at Kennesaw State University. Using grounded theory methodology, common benchmarks, or topographic recovery features were revealed involving the evolution of identity as an inter-negotiated process throughout the addiction and recovery biographies (Charmaz, …

Social Distancing In The Context Of Covid-19 Anxiety: A Social Cognitive Approach, Allyson S. Graf, Abigail Nehrkorn-Bailey, Amy Knepple Carney

Journal of Social, Behavioral, and Health Sciences

As the impact of COVID-19 continues, engagement in social distancing is essential. Using Social Cognitive Theory, the current study examined the unique roles of COVID-19 anxiety and self-efficacy on the relationships between information-seeking and risk perception as predictors of social distancing intention. A convenience sample of 960 adults (M = 37.81 years, SD = 11.65) completed an author-designed online survey. Participants completed measures on behavioral intention, information-seeking, risk perception, COVID-19 anxiety, and self-efficacy. Moderated mediations examined the theoretically proposed relationships among the variables. COVID-19 anxiety moderated the relationship between risk perception and self-efficacy, but not the association between information-seeking …

Well-Being In The Time Of Covid-19: Do Metaphors And Mindsets Matter?, Jeni L. Burnette, Crystal L. Hoyt, Nicholas Buttrick, Lisa A. Auster-Gussman

Jepson School of Leadership Studies articles, book chapters and other publications

Communications about the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) often employ metaphors, which can help people understand complex issues. For example, public health messages may focus on “fighting” the disease, attempting to rouse people to action by instilling a sense of urgency. In contrast, change-focused metaphors may foster growth mindsets and self-efficacy—cornerstones of well-being and action. We randomly assigned participants to read one of two articles—either an article about coronavirus that focused on fighting the war or an article that highlighted the possibility of change. In Study 1 (N = 426), participants who read the war, relative to the change, message …

Self-Continuity In Adolescence: A Buffer Against Decreases In Self-Esteem Due To Vicitmization, Gabriela Alvarez

Theses/Capstones/Creative Projects

The purpose of this research was to explore how components of self-esteem, such as social, cognitive and physical competence, can explain the buffering effect of self-continuity. Self-continuity explains the associations between individuals themselves in both past and present and perceived sameness, despite growth and development of the self. As self-continuity becomes more complex throughout adolescence, children may find themselves lacking a sense of identity. Previous research shows that negative views of the self may later represent themselves in adulthood. There is evidence that suggests self-continuity protects against the negative effects of peer victimization by providing positive connections between one another. …

Do Childhood Attachment And Adverse Childhood Experiences Predict Adulthood Attachment?, Jamie Glass

USC Aiken Psychology Theses

Objective: It is well established that childhood attachment style generally predicts adulthood attachment style. However, less is known about how adverse childhood experiences – including abuse, neglect, and trauma – predict adulthood attachment security. The purpose of this study was to better understand how childhood attachment security and adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) predict adulthood attachment security with measures that have not yet been used. Methods: Eighty-four participants aged 18 years and older completed the Retrospective Attachment Questionnaire (RAQ), the Adverse Childhood Experiences Questionnaire (ACE Questionnaire), and Experiences in Close Relationships – Revised Questionnaire (ECR-R). Participants were recruited through Amazon Mechanical …

The Loss-Processing Framework, Lawrence Childress

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The circumstances of responding to loss due to human death are among the most stressful experiences encountered in life. Although grief’s symptoms are typically considered essential to their gradual diminishment, possible negative impacts of complications related to grief are also well known, and have been associated with detriments to mental and physical health. Grief, however, can also generate transformative positive change. Thus, albeit ineludible, responding to loss is not uniformly experienced, expressed, or understood. It is also culturally-shaped, making attempts to define “normal” grief, as well as to label some grief “abnormal”—and to medicalize it—possibly problematic. Bereavement (the situation surrounding …

It’S Not All Aces: The Role Of Negative Parental Influences And Criminal Thinking In Juvenile Offending Behaviors, Branna Humphrey

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The role of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and criminal thinking in causing criminal behavior has been explored extensively in criminal justice research. Based on the concepts of ACEs and the Psychological Inventory of Criminal Thinking Scale, the negative parental influences and criminal thinking styles of 1,354 juvenile offenders were examined to establish that negative parental influences and criminal thinking are separately associated with juvenile problem and offending behavior, and that criminal thinking mediates the relationship between negative parental influences and juvenile problem and offending behavior. Analyses showed support for criminal thinking as a pathway from negative parental influences to juvenile …

Assessing Learning Community Practices To Implement Student Retention And Belongingness, Ruben Manuel Lopez, Eunice Z. Gomez

Research Days

In a brief review of seven literature articles, our research poster aims to present ways learning communities could improve belongingness and student retention. Our poster will include a review of the literature of the research conducted amongst undergraduate learning communities.

Pornography: Social, Emotional And Mental Implications Among Adolescents, William Kelly Canady

National Youth Advocacy & Resilience Conference

This presentation will explain the historical development of pornography. It will highlight four segments: 1- Porn’s impact on brain development of reward pathways, ultimately increasing the appetite for more porn. 2- Porn can be a false substitute for real intimacy, resulting in decreased sexual satisfaction with a real person and increased verbal and physical aggression. 3- Porn promotes sex trafficking, promotes multiple sex partners and reduced STD prevention. 4- A review of interventions available to assist clients in navigating a lifestyle away from pornography.

How Multidimensional Is Emotional Intelligence? Bifactor Modeling Of Global And Broad Emotional Abilities Of The Geneva Emotional Competence Test, Daniel Simonet, Katherine E. Miller, Kevin Askew, Kenneth Sumner, Marcello Mortillaro, Katja Schlegel

Department of Psychology Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

Drawing upon multidimensional theories of intelligence, the current paper evaluates if the Geneva Emotional Competence Test (GECo) fits within a higher-order intelligence space and if emotional intelligence (EI) branches predict distinct criteria related to adjustment and motivation. Using a combination of classical and S-1 bifactor models, we find that (a) a first-order oblique and bifactor model provide excellent and comparably fitting representation of an EI structure with self-regulatory skills operating independent of general ability, (b) residualized EI abilities uniquely predict criteria over general cognitive ability as referenced by fluid intelligence, and (c) emotion recognition and regulation incrementally predict grade point …

The Role Of Perfectionism In The Relationship Between Thin-Ideal Internalization And Body Dissatisfaction, Tanner L Wright, Mackenzie Brown B.A., Cheri Levinson Ph.D.

Undergraduate Arts and Research Showcase

Research has shown a significant relationship between thin-ideal internalization and body dissatisfaction. In addition, research suggests perfectionism is an antecedent to thin-ideal internalization (Boone, 2011). When examining subtypes of perfectionism, Maladaptive Evaluative Concerns (MEC) has been shown to be related to eating disorder (ED) symptoms (Rivière, 2017) both directly and indirectly while the relationship between Personal Standards (PS) and ED symptoms is unknown, though some research suggests it may be adaptive (Bardone-Cone, 2007). Both types of perfectionism have been correlated with thin-ideal internalization and body dissatisfaction (Boone, 2010). The purpose of the present project is to examine two subtypes of …

“Which Of The People Here Would Suspect That So Much Is Going On In The Mind Of A Teenage Girl?”: Adolescent Resilience In The Holocaust Diaries Of Anne Frank And Renia Spiegel, Jenna Marie Walmer

West Chester University Master’s Theses

In this qualitative archival diary study, Holocaust-era diaries were explored for evidence of the resilience of adolescent girls. Adolescent-themed passages were selected from the posthumously published diaries of Anne Frank and Renia Speigel, who kept private diaries while under the constant threat of war and genocide. To explore how the everyday affairs of adolescent development may contribute to resilience in the face of trauma, I used thematic analysis to determine the prevalence and emotional valence of four themes of adolescence: evolving social-relationships, emotional fluctuation, cognitive-identity changes, and physical changes. The emotional valence of the adolescent-themed diary passages was more likely …

Psychological Distress And Relationship Satisfaction Among Survivors Of Sexual Violence, Alyssa Campbell

Theses and Dissertations--Family Sciences

The World Health Organization (WHO; 2002) has indicated that sexual violence is a serious public health concern, and both the WHO and the United Nations (UN) have declared that violence against women, in particular, is a profound violation of human rights (UN General Assembly, 1993; WHO, 2017). Although the systemic and negative impact of trauma on family and intimate relationships have been well documented, the empirical literature regarding the effects of adult sexual trauma on relationship satisfaction is less robust. These studies are designed to address this gap and will do so with analyses centered on an understudied population: the …

Social Influences And Social Desirability On Recollections Of Childhood Bullying, Jaynee L. Bohart

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Parents and peers play important roles in shaping attitudes toward a variety of matters during adolescence. However, little research has investigated parental and peer influence on developing attitudes toward bullying. Further, few studies have looked at whether socially desirable responding (SDR) impacts self-reports in bullying research. To address these gaps in literature, the current study recruited college students from a mid-sized public university in the Rocky Mountain region of the United States to complete a survey. The survey assessed the participants’ past attitudes toward bullying, perceptions of their parents’ and peers’ influence on their attitudes, and bullying participant roles during …

“Child Witches”: Sexual Exploitation And Abuse Of Homeless Girls In South-Southern Nigeria, Chima Agazue

Dignity: A Journal of Analysis of Exploitation and Violence

Sexual exploitation and abuse of girls is one of the endemic social problems in Nigeria. Although this problem has attracted much research attention in recent times, some newly emerged factors contributing to the problem have been mostly ignored. This study explored how the abandonment of children following their stigmatization as witches contributes to sexual exploitation and abuse of the girls in the Akwa Ibom and Cross River states of Nigeria. The study was based on the qualitative research paradigm. Data was collected via semi-structured interviews of three senior staff members of the Child’s Rights and Rehabilitation Network (CRARN)—a children’s charity …

Timing Of Sexual Minority Identity Developmental Milestones And Well-Being Among Three Generations Of Gay Men, Joseph R. Hillesheim

Dissertations and Theses

Social and political changes during recent decades have contributed to a more accepting environment for sexual minorities (non-heterosexual individuals) in the U.S., but recent evidence suggests that these shifts may create a “developmental collision” for younger generations (Meyer et al., 2021; Russell & Fish, 2019). Younger generations of sexual minorities “come out” and reach other sexual identity milestones earlier than older generations, and earlier timing of sexual identity development may contribute to increased vulnerability to stigma. The present study aimed to contribute to limited research on the relationship between the timing of sexual identity development milestones and well-being among three …

“They Let Me Loose, Will You Hold Me Tight?” Adult Adoptees And Their Romantic Partners' Experience Of Attachment After Participating In The Hmt Program, Bethany Baker

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Adult adoptees may be blocked from feeling securely attached to their romantic partners and they may not even know it or what to do about it. The literature shows adult adoptees being overrepresented in insecure attachment styles, and not enough attention has been paid to the effect this has had on adoptees in their romantic relationships. In fact, no known study, to date, has provided an attachment-based psychoeducational approach for this marginalized population. The purpose of this introductory qualitative study was to explore the experiences and meaning-making of attachment, specifically related to adoption, for the adult adoptee and their romantic …

"The Candy Problem, Solved!": White Children And White Parents Grappling With Dysconscious Whiteness, Lindsay E. Olson

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

During an amplification of the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement, white children and parents have faced multiple interruptions to their protective territory of dysconscious whiteness—an uncritical approach to a structural status quo that favors white lives. Through semi-structured activities and interviews with ten children ages 3 to 9 and nine of their parents who observed these activities, I discovered a parent–child subsystem of dysconscious whiteness. White children and parents revealed aspects of this subsystem by grappling with dysconscious whiteness (grappling) as they struggled to avoid implicating skin color in resource inequality. Through grounded theory analysis of the process of grappling, …

Who Is The Stranger Really? A Reluctant Autoethnography Of The Strange Situation Procedure, Tara Yazdani

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

This paper aims to review the cross-cultural application of attachment theory as a western model of thought and practice. That is, this research aimed to recognize and question how embedded attachment theory has become in programming and education within North American academic and practical arenas. In applying the Strange Situation Procedure (SSP) to a limited sample of Eritrean dyads, important considerations and questions arose regarding the cross-cultural application of this protocol. The aims of this research shifted toward further exploring these considerations and questions, due to the global COVID-19 pandemic. Specifically, the new research aim emphasized how to inform future …