Family, Life Course, and Society Commons^™

The Effects Of A Cd-Rom Computer Storybook Program On Head Start Children's Emergent Literacy, Susan Talley

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This study examined the effects of a computer CD-ROM storybook program on 73 Head Start children in Logan, Utah. A variation on the two-group pretest/posttest design was used to determine if there was any increase in emergent literacy skills after spending an average of 15 minutes per day for an average of 12 days on the computer.

Previous research suggests that a child's home environment is integral to the preschool child's emergent literacy development. A parent questionnaire designed for assessing information regarding the child 's Iiterate environment at home was administered. Mean scores indicated that those children scoring highest on …

Perceived Parental Acceptance Related To Self-Esteem, Gpa, Sex-Role Identity, And Substance Use Of Adolescents From Intact And Reconstituted Families, Stephen B. Sniteman

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This investigation assessed the relationship between adolescents of intact families and adolescents in reconstituted families with regard to the effects of perception of parental acceptance on the variables of self-esteem, academic performance, sex role identity, and use of substances. Observed differences between adolescents of intact and reconstituted families from a structural perspective, eliminating process variables, were also examined. Participants included two hundred fifty-six high school students in grades 9 through 12 in an overseas Department of Defense Dependent School (DoDDs). Questionnaires incorporated the measures of Perception of Parental Behavior Index; Rosenberg's Self-Esteem Survey; The Bem Sex Role Inventory (BSRI); questions …

The Relationship Between Grandparent Involvement And Identity Level In Late Adolescent Females, Catherine Dinicolangelo Stogner

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Identity development is recognized as the key developmental task of late adolescence. The family is thought to serve as a facilitating factor in this development. Traditionally, reference to the family's role in adolescent identity development has alluded to the nuclear family and to parents in particular. However, a growing consensus that nuclear families are not emotionally and psychologically isolated from extended families has permitted greater acceptance of the extended family, especially grandparents, as an integral part of the family. The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between grandparent involvement and adolescent identity development. Identity development was measured …

Parenting Style And Child Behavior Problems: A Longitudinal Analysis, Margaret H. Young

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Data from the National Survey of Children were used to study the relationships between children's perceptions of parental support and control and measures of self-esteem and behavior problems over time. Data were collected in 1976, when the children were aged 7-11; 1981, when the children were in their early to mid teens (age 12 to 16); and 1987, when the children were in their late teens and early 20s (age 17 to 22). Parenting measures, based on children's reports, were developed for each wave from items included in the data; constructed variables measuring self-esteem and internal and external expressions of …

Utah Families- The Issues They Face, Ted W. Warstadt, Larry Forthun

All Archived Publications

With the wide variety of difficulties that our society faces and the limited funding available to address these concerns, it is important to identify and prioritize critical family issues. Because the family is a major contributor to individual and societal development, it is important to focus attention on issues which have a direct impact on family functioning. In identifying issues it is also helpful to understand demographic and geographic influences which may contribute to an individual's perceived urgency of a given issue. This can assist policy makers in their efforts to appropriately allocate limited funds to the best suited and …

Parent-Adolescent Communication And Adolescents' Sexual Intentions, Julie A. Bullen

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This study investigated the quality and quantity of sexual communication between teens and parents in relation to the teens' sexual intentions. Perceptions about communication were examined of parents and adolescents of both genders separately. Both same- and cross-gender effects of parental communication on adolescent sexual intent ions were explored. Approximately 290 families (target teen and parent) were measured in pre- and posttests. Parents perceived higher quality communication with teens than teens did, but not necessarily more frequent sexual communication. As teens' perceptions of quality of communication with mother and father went up, teens' sexual intentions went down. The higher sons' …

Common Beliefs About The Rural Elderly: Myth Or Fact?, U.S. Senate Special Committee On Aging

All U.S. Government Documents (Utah Regional Depository)

focuses on the most disadvantaged elderly: the rural elderly. Identifies common beliefs about rural persons aged 65 and over, and provides accompanying statistical information to refute or confirm these beliefs. This synthesis of data translates detailed statistics into useable knowledge.

Knowledge Of Infant/Toddler Development Among Low-Income Families, Ann B. Parkinson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Pretest data from a two-year project entitled "An Early Intervention Program for Parents of Young Children at-Risk" were collected and analyzed, in a sample of 2,191 low-income parents, for Head Start participation and baseline information. Respondents participating in the sample were from the states of California, Delaware, Nevada, South Carolina, and Utah. For their participation in the study, respondents received a free subscription to age-paced newsletters, which contained information about appropriate growth expectancies, nutrition, and guidance for their child of 36 months or younger. Newsletters were mailed monthly to parents who had children 12 months and younger and every other …

Agency Policies And Personnel Attitudes Toward Adolescent Fathers, Sandra Gunderson Warner

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Adolescent parenting research has typically focused on the mother and ignored the father. Researchers have suggested that adolescent fathers are disregarded as the child's other parent because their parenting role is devalued. An emerging body of literature indicates that adolescent fathers are excluded from the pregnancy and parenting services provided to adolescent mothers because they are viewed as unnecessary to the parenting process and unimportant to the child's development. Moreover, researchers have alleged that service providers treat adolescent fathers as outcasts based on stereotypical beliefs that they are uncaring, irresponsible victimizers who disappear at the first mention of pregnancy. However, …

The Play Of Visually Impaired Preschoolers With Their Mothers, Claudia Weber

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This thesis answers the following questions: (a) Is the Play Assessment Scale a true measure of development? (b) Does the mother have a significant, positive influence on the child's level of development? (c) Does the mother's interactional style influence the child's development as measured by the Play Assessment Scale and the Battelle Developmental Inventory? The subjects were 13 visually impaired preschoolers. Development was measured with the Play Assessment Scale and the Battelle Developmental Inventory. Maternal interactional style was assessed with the Parent/Caregiver Involvement Scale. The study indicated that the Play Assessment Scale is a valid, reliable measure of development in …

A Ranking Of Critical Issues Facing American Families, Glen O. Jenson Ph.D, Ted W. Warstadt

All Archived Publications

In April 1990 a documented list of 33 Critical Issues Facing American Families was sent to a nationwide sample of 1,23 I persons. This list identified and briefly overviewed various social concerns which effect the family as an institution. The sample was selected by State Extension Specialists serving the needs of families. Each specialist was asked to identify 20 people from their state. The sample included persons who were professional staff working for Extension, University teachers/researchers in a family-related discipline, public school educators, and other persons who had and had not used Extension Services in the recent past.

Enhancing Female Adolescent Identity Development Through Ideological Perspective-Taking Training: A Replication And Extension Study, Deborah Lynn Huston

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of ideological perspective-taking training on female identity development. The primary hypothesis of the study was that those subjects engaged in the training sessions would show advancement in identity development that exceeded that of normal adolescent development. Ninety-eight subjects were pretested for the study. Attrition due to elimination during prescreening and failure to complete the training phase of the study left 50 subjects. Participants were assigned to a treatment group, an engaged control group, or a maturational control group. Both the treatment and engaged control groups participated in two sessions a …

Sunday Time Use Among Lds Adolescents, C. Lewis Williams

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of this study was to examine a sample of LDS (Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) adolescents from 9th - 12th grade to analyze how they spend their time on a given Sunday. The intent of the paper was to determine if adolescent time use was influenced by such independent variable as gender, age, living arrangements, work, school, perceptions of their family, and what time of the day the youth attend Sunday meetings on a specific Sunday. A questionnaire was given to 272 students who attend released school time seminary at a particular high school in Utah. …

Day-Specific Time Use By Underachieving Adolescents, Dorothy Jean Cassingham

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The data for this study were obtained in October 1989 through the use of a 128-item questionnaire given to students attending an alternative high school in Ogden, Utah. The Rosenberg Self-esteem Scale was included as part of the questionnaire. A total of 166 usable questionnaires were received from the students.

The objectives of this research were to determine if relationships between self-esteem, race, gender, and religion and time use could be detected in at-risk adolescents. The data collected indicate that self-esteem, religion, gender, and race have only slight significance upon the self-reported time use of the alternative high school student. …

Profiles And Trends In Catholic Interfaith Marriages In Utah, Deborah Brown Ascione

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of this study was to investigate the phenomenon of interfaith marriage. It is a comparative study using archival data. Utah Catholic interfaith marriage trends over 31 years were compared with three other Catholic dioceses in the United States similar in size or in other demographic characteristics. Results indicate that Utah is not atypical in its intermarriage patterns.

In addition, a micro-level analysis of Catholic interfaith marriages at three points in time was conducted for the Diocese of Salt Lake alone. Statistical analysis employed primarily measures of central tendency. Results indicate that Catholics intermarrying in Utah are older than …

A Documented List Of Critical Issues Facing American Families, Glen O. Jenson Ph.D, Ted W. Warstadt

All Archived Publications

Many individual problems are known to be related to dysfunctional families such as substance abuse, child abuse and neglect, family violence, childhood and adolescent depression, runaways, early teen sexual acting out, civil disobedience, and other family and social problems. Attitudes expressed by people in the 1980s have shown an increased emphasis for meaningful, fulfilling, interpersonal relationships. This focus will likely continue in the following decade. This type of fulfillment is sought more within the family than in other societal institutions.

No Place To Call Home: Discarded Children In America, U.S. House Select Committee On Children, Youth, And Families

All U.S. Government Documents (Utah Regional Depository)

This congressional hearing investigates the condition of children in troubled families, and evaluates the efficacy of state and federal programs charged with serving the needs of these children.

Completion Of A Personal Financial Management Course In Relation To Financial Satisfaction, Confidence And Practices, Shana R. Morris

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This study was conducted to examine the relationship between completion of a personal financial management course and financial satisfaction, confidence, and practices. The relationship between the use of recommended financial management practices and financial satisfaction and confidence was also examined.

Data for this study were collected through a questionnaire mailed to a sample of Utah State University graduates who had taken a personal financial management course at the university and those who had not. The survey investigated financial satisfaction, confidence in financial management skills, and use of recommended financial management techniques.

Mean financial satisfaction scores were computed by averaging responses …

Credit Use And Financial Satisfaction Among Usu Community Credit Union Members, In-Sook Ju

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This study investigated the level of financial satisfaction of the family money manager in relation to socioeconomic characteristics, attitudes towards credit, and credit practices. The population was members of the USU Community Credit Union. Data were collected with a mail survey questionnaire from a random sample of 500 subjects. After multiple follow-up attempts, the response rate was 55.2 percent.

The dependent variable was financial satisfaction; the independent variables were categorized into three groups: socioeconomic characteristics, credit attitudes, and credit practices. The conceptual model of this study hypothesized that there is a relationship between the dependent and independent variables. Age, education, …

An Investigation Of Stability, Change, And Observed Associations During Infant-Mother Face-To-Face Interaction, Sarah Elizabeth Gable

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Researchers of social development during infancy have long viewed social competence as a reflection of the infant's experiences during early social interactions. In this context of social interaction, the infant's earliest developmental task involves the ability to regulate arousal; with continued development and the accumulation of interactional experiences, the infant takes a more active role as an initiator/elicitor of interaction. A particularly salient type of social exchange during infancy occurs when mother and infant engage in face-to-face interaction. Consequently, it was the goal of this study to examine maternal and infant behavior in the context of face-to-face interaction in order …

Exploding The Myths: Caregiving In America, U.S. Senate Select Committee On Aging

All U.S. Government Documents (Utah Regional Depository)

Family caregivers provide between 80 and 90 percent of the medically related care, personal care, household maintenance, transportation and shopping needed by older persons. Thus, far from abrogating their responsibility, family caregivers provide care for dependent family members, often at a great emotional and financial cost

Perceptions Of Menstruation As An Indicator Of Stereotypic Beliefs Within Marriage, Debra L. Caswell-Madsen

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This research examined husband and wife attitudes toward menstruation and how these attitudes related to certain behaviors within marriage. The sample consisted of 48 Married couples, some living in Davis, California and some living in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Specifically, four objectives were pursued:

1. Assess husbands' and wives' perceptions of how behaviors within marriage vary over the wives' menstrual cycles.
2. Assess husbands' and wives' attitudes toward menstruation.
3. Examine how husband's and wives' attitudes toward menstruation might be associated with perceptions of how behaviors within marriage vary over the wives' menstrual cycles.
4. Examine how wives' perceptions of differences in behavior over …

The Effects Of A Social Skills Training Program On Interpersonal Communications In Parent Adolescent Dyads, Patrick Sean Noble

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of this thesis was two fold. First, there was an experiment in which the independent variable was the behavioral skill levels of parents and their adolescents on a social skills training program and the dependent variable was the parent and adolescent perceptions of their interpersonal relationship regarding communication and problem solving. Second, there was an experiment comparing instructional styles wherein the independent variable was the length of time used to present the social skills training program and the dependent variable was the resulting scores on the behavioral measures of the program. A modified pretest -post-test control group design …

Parental And Teacher Expectations For Kindergarten Preparation And Priorities For Kindergarten Curricula, Kimberly Harris

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Participants for this investigation were 146 kindergarten teachers and 436 parents of kindergarteners in Davis and Weber School Districts. Self-administered questionnaires were utilized, 1) to determine if teachers, mothers and fathers believe that parents could do more to prepare children for kindergarten, 2) to delineate what each group believes parents can do, 3) to investigate what mothers and fathers have done in preparing their children for kindergarten, 4) to explore what skills teachers, mothers and fathers credit as most important for children to possess upon kindergarten entry, and 5) to examine what skills these three groups feel should be emphasized …

Decisions Of Pregnant Adolescents As They Affect Later Well-Being, Myra Lynch

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of this study was to examine the quality of family life presently experienced by women who were premaritally pregnant as teenagers. Self-esteem and general life satisfaction were measured in order to evaluate the results of pregnancy decisions made five to 10 years earlier. A survey design was used to (1) obtain demographic data, (2) analyze the relationships between these women and their parents, (3) determine the level and type of education completed by the women, (4) compare mothers who married before the birth of the child, single mothers, and mothers releasing their children for adoption on many variables …

A Comparison Of Traditional Preschool And Computer Play From A Social/Cognitive Perspective, Jeanne M. Hoover

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Twenty females and twenty-three males from the Utah State University Children's House participated in this study which compared traditional preschool play with computer play. The Parten/Smilansky nested social/cognitive play hierarchy was used. Sociometric and cognitive assessments were incorporated in order to more clearly define behaviors. Five types of play were observed: computer, art, locks, manipulative toys, and the dramatic area.

No gender differences were found in terms of the amount of time or type of play at the computer. However, sociometric status did influence computer play. Children who engaged in more positive social interactions used the computer constructively, while those …

Resource Management Problems Of Usu Foreign Students, Gong Soog Hong

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of this study was to examine the resource management problems of a group of foreign students. The sample surveyed was 300 foreign students who attended Utah State University during fall quarter of 1984. A questionnaire was used to examine the students' degree of difficulty with resource management.

The differences in the degree of difficulty with resource management and respondents' gender, academic level, marital status, length of stay in the U.S. and geographic origin were tested by Analysis of Variance.

Significant differences were found in the degree of difficulty with resource management and the length of stay in the …

Self Esteem And Adolescent Sexual Attitudes And Behavior, Roger B. Christensen

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This study was designed to determine; (1) if adolescent self esteem is related to premarital sexual attitudes and intercourse behavior; (2) if religious affiliation and church attendance affect the relationship between adolescent self esteem and premarital sexual attitudes and behavior. Approximately 2400 adolescents residing in California, New Mexico, and Utah comprised the sample.

Adolescents who attended church services more often reported less sexually permissive attitudes and behavior than those who attended church less often. Similarly, Mormons' premarital sexual attitudes and behavior was more conservative than was the case for non-Mormon adolescents. Findings indicated that the nature of the relationship between …

Planned Parenthood And Fertility, Illegitimacy, And Abortion Rates In The State Of Utah, Wayne W. Godfrey

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of this study was not to judge the rightness or wrongness of Planned Parenthood. It is an empirical question to ask what influence, if any, Planned Parenthood has had on reproductive behavior in the State of Utah. This was accomplished by gathering data from each county in the State of Utah from 1970 to 1979. The data gathered were for the five dependent variables of General Fertility, General Abortion, General Illegitimacy, Teen Fertility and Teen Illegitimacy. A mean rate for each county and variable was computed. Each county was also weighed per population so as to give counties …

A Look At Some Grandfather Intergenerational Relationships As Perceived By Their Adult Children, Leonard E. Stout

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of this study was to investigate the quality of grandfather's relationships with his adult child and their oldest child. A questionnaire was used to obtain demographic data, determine some personality and interaction patterns that can be observed as the male adult develops in the parent and grandparent roles, and examine how specific variables affect grandfather relationships and behavior. Data were gathered from 165 Utah State University students and their spouses, of which over 75% belong to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

The results support good intergenerational relationships. Proximity of grandfather and extended family members was …