Child Psychology Commons^™

Early Mathematical Abilities Of 48-Month-Old Children With Williams Syndrome., Jenna N. Tinnell

College of Arts & Sciences Senior Honors Theses

Williams syndrome (WS) is a genetic neurodevelopmental disorder associated with relative strengths in concrete vocabulary, nonverbal reasoning, and verbal short-term memory and considerable weaknesses in visuospatial construction and relational language. While the cognitive profile of WS has been studied extensively, there have been few studies of the early mathematical abilities of children with WS and the cognitive predictors of these abilities. The purpose of this study was to describe the early mathematical abilities of 48-month-olds with WS and determine the concurrent cognitive predictors of these abilities. The Differential Ability Scales–second edition (DAS-II) was used to determine cognitive and mathematical abilities …

How Prospective Bias Shapes Children’S Responses To Temporal Location Questions, Tige M. Anderson

Student Theses

This study builds on McWilliams (et al., 2019) by analyzing temporal bias among children when making relative temporal judgments using recurring landmarks (e.g., birthday, holidays). Previous research has demonstrated that children display a prospective bias when making these judgments, meaning they tend to date things based on the future occurrence of the landmark (E.g, “it’s ten months until my birthday”) (McWilliams et al., 2019). Adults, by contrast, make relative judgments with landmarks based on the most proximate occurrence of the landmark. In other words, they do not prefer the future or the past (Merriwether et al., under review). Additionally, recent …

Their Pain Is Our Pain: The Intersectionality Of Identity Formation, Socioeconomic Status (Ses), And Transgenerational Trauma In Latine Youth, Fernanda Alcantara

Political Science Undergraduate Honors Theses

This thesis will explore the intersectionality of identity formation, socioeconomic status (SES) and transgenerational trauma in Latine youth. There is extensive research in the Hispanic identity formation and the factors that influence it. However, there is little to no research that focuses on the role SES and transgenerational trauma from growing up in a Hispanic household with adversities specific to the immigrant experience and how they influence identity formation during the pre- adolescent and adolescent years. As well as how the Hispanic identity they form influences the adversities they face and SES they shift to or stay in. This research …

The Trauma Of Premature Exposure To Violence: The Destruction Of Innocence In The Hunger Games, Riley Woody

Chancellor’s Honors Program Projects

No abstract provided.

Encouraging Adolescents To Be Self-Directed Learners: Influences Of Classroom Motivation On Student Outcomes, Katherine Stearley

Senior Honors Projects

Teaching American adolescents in public schools presents a unique challenge: how to foster an instructional environment that simultaneously encourages intrinsic desires for lifelong learning, allows for the development of self-determination and autonomy, and teaches students appropriate academic skills. It was hypothesized that relying mainly on extrinsic motivations would be associated with more problematic outcomes for students while relying mainly on intrinsic motivations would be associated with more desirable outcomes. Additionally, it was hypothesized that schools organized around different educational philosophies would favor the use of different motivational strategies. A literature review was conducted that included a review of theories of …

Effects Of Recess On Educational Outcomes In Elementary School Children, Katelyn Whitham

Health, Human Performance and Recreation Undergraduate Honors Theses

Introduction: Because physical activity is beneficial for physical and mental health, the declining opportunities to implement adequate recesses in schools are devastating for children. If educational outcomes are positively affected by increased recess time or quality, schools are more likely to receive funding for programs and resources that support this renovation to recesses, providing research in lacking topics. Purpose: The purpose of this systematic review is to find related, academic articles for cross examination of data collected on the effects that recess has on educational outcomes so that schools may use this as a resource to receive funding to increase …

A Child’S Mental Health Journey: Using An Activity Book As A Guide For Mental Health Literacy And Emotional, Social And Behavioral Development, Sage Sherfick

Honor Scholar Theses

Like adults, children experience mental health symptoms that can have negative effects on their life and development. According to the CDC (2018), 1 in 6 children has a mental health disorder are 2-8 years old. The prevalence of many mental health disorders increases as children age, and those 6 to 11 years old are more likely to have behavioral problems. There are many theories of why this may be, including the increase in the number of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) a child may have. Those who are exposed to trauma during childhood are at greater risk for lifelong health problems. …

The Role Of Accuracy In Children’S Judgments Of Experts’ Knowledge., Allison J. Williams

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Children prefer to trust people with expertise and people who are accurate. Because experts make mistakes and give incorrect information (e.g., predictions and diagnoses), this dissertation explores children’s judgments of knowledge for experts who provide inaccurate information. Across two studies, 6- to 9-years-olds (N = 160) were introduced to two experts in different domains (doctor and mechanic) and rated how much each expert knows about their relevant domain. Then, over four consecutive trials, participants heard one expert give inaccurate answers to easy questions in their domain. After each trial, children explained why they believed the expert gave inaccurate answers …

Increasing Social Awareness Skills In Kindergarten Students, Chloe Dennis

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

Social awareness is a key component of social-emotional learning and is often underrepresented in kindergarten curriculum. Students who struggle with social awareness are at a greater risk for antisocial behaviors, low academic performance, diminished self-efficacy, low motivation, and low adaptability. Jean Piagets’ cognitive-developmental theory places kindergarten-age students in the preoperational stage of development. At this stage, children are egocentric, exhibit centrated thought, and struggle to use perspective and empathic skills. Kindness, problem-solving, and maintaining positive relationships are all rooted in social awareness and require students to move away from egocentric thinking. I designed a three-part lesson on acts of kindness …

Children’S Social Judgments Of Others On The Basis Of Dialect-Specific Vocabulary, Madison Myers-Burg

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Many studies suggest that young children prefer speakers who speak similarly to them. Children demonstrate social preferences for speakers of their own native language over speakers of a non-native language as well as for speakers of a familiar accent over speakers of an unfamiliar accent. Recent research suggests that young children will similarly show preference for speakers who use familiar dialect-specific vocabulary over speakers who use vocabulary specific to an unfamiliar dialect. The current study investigated potential motivations behind young children’s preferences for familiar dialect-specific vocabulary. Fifty participants ages fifty-one months to ninety-five months (Mage =72.6 months) viewed an animated …

The Effect Of A Toilet Training Seminar On Classroom Staff's Knowledge Of Evidence-Based Toileting Practices, Madeline Ritter

Honors Theses

Toileting is a critical life skill that may present challenges to individuals with an intellectual or developmental disability (IDD). Extensive research on toilet training has been conducted in clinical, residential, and home settings; however, limited research has been conducted on toilet training in educational settings. Educational settings present unique challenges that other settings may not, which makes research on toilet training in these settings critical (Cagliani et al., 2021). Additionally, research on toileting in educational settings have not evaluated classroom staff’s acceptance of evidence-based toileting strategies. The current study used a pre posttest design to examine the effect of a …

How Children And Adults Make Judgments About Who To Trust, Rachel E. Dewald, Jennifer L. Rennels, Kindy Insouvanh

Undergraduate Research Symposium Posters

"Beauty is Good Stereotype": Higher attractive individuals are thought to be more intelligent, more successful, and happier overall. They also obtain more visual attention and are deemed more trustworthy.

Making a choice based on a person's appearance and attributes might lead to dangerous consequences and lead to being deceived.

We investigated how the appearance of male and female experts influence whether children and adults trust statements made by the expert, establish what that expert knows and determine that expert's attributes (warmth and competence). The results of this study will help us better determine what cues children and adults use when …

Infants' Intermodal Knowledge Of Gender Using Faces And Voices, Bijoux Cheun, Christina Saliba, Alexis Rice, Marian Espina

Undergraduate Research Symposium Posters

Infants begin to use intermodal knowledge to match male and female faces to the corresponding voice, in their first year of life.

Infants have more experience with female faces which should lead to greater intermodal knowledge of female faces.

Previous studies have found inconsistent results. This could be due to the type of stimuli used.

This study uses several pairs of static and dynamic faces to investigate how methodological differences may impact infants' performance.

A New Narrative: Freeing Pediatricians From A Single Story, Tanya Scott, Tanya Scott

DNP Qualifying Manuscripts

An adolescent pediatric patient who presents with psychiatric and medical conditions is subject to a pediatrician's diagnostic acuity, experience with pediatric psych patients, and existing constraints on providing an appropriate course of care. Too often, the psychiatric DRG becomes the pediatrician's single story of the patient, accompanied by subtexts of aggressive behavior, and the pediatrician's own biases about psychiatric patients. The novelist Chimamanda Adichie warns of the dangers of a single story. As a child in Nigeria, Adiche devoured stories. The children were fair-skinned and blue-eyed in the books available to her. As Adiche began to write her own stories, …

Young Children’S Tv Show Preferences And Perceptions Of Women In Stem, Lauren Berck

Undergraduate Theses

Women are joining STEM fields at higher rates, yet the stereotype of math and science being for men is still reinforced to children by their parents, their teachers, and especially what they watch. Children tend to trust characters of their same gender and are more likely to retain the lessons from the characters they trust. Since most of the shows children watch tend to display gender stereotypes, especially the stereotype of men being good in STEM, children are likely to enforce these stereotypes. The increase of women in STEM has increased interest in STEM for girls, but boys still tend …

Screen Time Use And Children’S Mental Health During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Amira Hmidan

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Parents with school-aged children have experienced numerous hardships during the 2020-2021 academic school year, including school closures, lockdowns, and travel restrictions. Higher levels of parent stress and screen time may adversely impact children’s behavioural outcomes. This longitudinal survey study examined the associations of parent stress, parenting styles, and prolonged screentime on internalizing and externalizing behaviours in school-aged children. Parents (n = 108) completed survey measures at two time points over the 2020-2021 academic school year. Two generalized estimating equations were performed. There was a significant positive interaction between parent stress and screen time (B = < .001; p = .001) …

The Mother Of Exiles Is Abandoning Her Children: The Systemic Failure To Protect Unaccompanied Minors Arriving At Our Borders, Rosa M. Peterson

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

Unaccompanied minors arrive at the United States border every day. Many brought by the hope of finding a life lived without fear, a luxury many United States citizens take for granted. Their truths become the barriers and shackles which keep them in detention centers and unaccompanied minor facilities throughout the United States; children find their very words wielded as weapons against them in immigration court. Words often spoken to therapists in perceived confidence, during counseling sessions. This practice is a systemic failure to protect unaccompanied minors arriving at our borders who are seeking protection and help. The United States …

Examining The Relationship Between Functionally Assessed Parental Behavior And Child Anxiety, Allison Smith

LSU Master's Theses

Etiological theories of child anxiety suggest an interaction of multiple factors that lead to the development and maintenance of child anxiety. Environmental influence, specifically that involving the family or parent, has been a target area of study for decades. Additionally, functional assessment of behavior indicates that certain behaviors may be maintained primarily by specific functions. Functional assessment has been successful at identifying functions of problematic behavior and planning treatment accordingly. However, in the realm of child internalizing disorders, research has not utilized functional assessment in this way. Acknowledging the impact of parental behavior on child anxiety as well as the …

Promoting Socio-Emotional Skills Through A Strength-Based Dance Program For Children Who Have Experienced Trauma, Lillian Tami Endow

Virtual OTD Capstone Symposium, Spring 2022

Negative outcomes as a result of trauma are multifaceted and can impact an individual throughout the lifespan. Younger children exposed to trauma are at higher risk for experiencing negative outcomes due to underdeveloped neurobiological capacities impacting their ability to appropriately respond to stressful stimuli (Price et al., 2013). Adversities including poor socio-emotional skills, mental and physical health challenges, and behavioral problems were identified among children exposed to trauma (Hovens et al., 2015). Occupational therapists are equipped to provide services for this vulnerable population by promoting socio-emotional skills necessary to cope with traumatic stressors through engagement in meaningful occupations. The occupation …

School Violence And Its Impact On Student Academic Achievement, Kewanis Kennedy

Steeplechase: An ORCA Student Journal

This study explores the occurrence of school violence and its impact on academic success and attendance. This study will encompass K-12 academic institutions in the state of Kentucky during the 2018-2019 academic school year, with an in-depth analysis of data submitted to the Kentucky Department of Education by the 171 participating school districts. The participating schools shared data in the form of disciplinary actions, attendance, graduation rates, academic achievement, and other relevant demographics. The collected data was analyzed to determine if there was a statistically significant difference among attendance rate, graduation rate, math ACT benchmark scores, and English ACT benchmark …