Community Psychology Commons^™

The Cost Of Being A “Strong Black Woman”, Alescia Maraboushontrell Hollowell

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

The current study explored how internalization of the Strong Black Woman (SBW) race-gender ideology contributes to poor health behaviors and outcomes in Black women. The SBW ideology is associated with maladaptive eating patterns and psychological distress, but less is known about the other physical health implications of this endorsement. The current study sought to better understand the mechanisms that contribute to this relationship and examine the association between endorsement of the SBW ideology and outcomes of physical activity and eating behaviors, weight satisfaction, chronic stress, and depression. Participants were 91 African American women aged 18-65 years recruited from the south …

How Women Navigate Safety In The Dominican Bateyes, Mary Margaret Tull

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Research has demonstrated that individuals of Haitian descent in the Dominican Republic are at high risk of violence and experience multiple levels of structural oppression. However, less research exists specifically for women of Haitian descent, who are at unique risk of violence due to the complex political history between Haiti and the Dominican Republic, as well as structural and gendered violence. I use frameworks of socio-ecological systems, intersectionality, structured violence, and gendered violence to consider how women of Haitian descent in the Dominican Republic construct safety and prioritize different needs for their survival. I used thematic analysis to analyze life …

Understanding The Impact Of Social Location And English As A Second Language On Service Needs And Outcomes Of Intimate Partner Violence Victims, Christina Vosky Soibatian

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Victims of intimate partner violence have various needs due to abuse (e.g. safety, housing, gaining employment). Domestic violence programs play a crucial role in helping victims address their complex needs through services such as advocacy, legal support, counseling, and immediate housing. In an effort to better understand diverse victims’ needs and help-attained in domestic violence program settings, a study was conducted of 464 female victims across 15 domestic violence services agencies throughout a major Midwestern metropolitan area. Victims completed surveys six months after beginning services. The current study examined victims’ profiles across various needs upon their entry to services to …

Chasing The White Whale: Capturing The Relation Between Parent Educational Involvement And Student Socioemotional Difficulties Over Time, Samantha Irene Reaves

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Early childhood socioemotional difficulties are of increasing concern due to their impact on later functioning, particularly in the academic environment. A large body of research highlights the relation between parent educational involvement and student academic success, such that more involvement is associated with better grades, retention, and graduation. It is praised as a protective factor for those students at risk for poor outcomes. An under-researched area of the parent educational involvement literature is the construct’s relation to student socioemotional functioning, which also affects success in the academic environment and predicts long term functioning. This study seeks to longitudinally investigate these …

Socioeconomically Disadvantaged Neighborhoods, Stroke Risk, And Cognition In Older Adults: A Focus On Violent Crime, Linda D. Ruiz

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Living in socioeconomically disadvantaged neighborhoods, i.e., neighborhoods with lower incomes, lower education/occupational levels, and/or higher crime, increases one’s risk of developing chronic health problems, including cardiovascular disease risk factors and stroke. These health problems are associated with reduced cognition and dementia and may help to explain disparities in brain aging. We investigated the association of neighborhood socioeconomic characteristics on stroke risk and cognitive outcomes hypothesizing that stroke risk mediates the association between the socioeconomic environment and cognitive functioning. Participants were non-demented community-dwelling older adults (N=121), ~67 years of age (50% male, 44% non-Latino Black) who underwent cognitive and medical assessments. …

Bound By Silence: Psychological Effects Of The Traditional Oath Ceremony Used In The Sex Trafficking Of Nigerian Women And Girls, Jennifer Millett-Barrett

Dignity: A Journal of Analysis of Exploitation and Violence

Nigerian women and children have been trafficked to Italy over the last 30 years for commercial sexual exploitation with an alarming increase in the past three years. The Central Mediterranean Route that runs from West African countries to Italy is rife with organized crime gangs that have created a highly successful trafficking operation. As part of the recruitment process, the Nigerian mafia and its operatives exploit victims by subjecting them to a traditional religious juju oath ceremony, which is an extremely effective control mechanism to silence victims and trap them in debt bondage. This study explores the psychological effects of …

Making A Way Out Of No Way: A Phenomenological Study Of Black Maternal Activism In Chicago, Deidra Somerville

Dissertations

To date, the lived experiences of Black maternal activists in North Lawndale have not been documented, even with the critical role many played while organizing with Dr. Martin Luther King as part of the Chicago Freedom Movement and the critical role of the Illinois Black Panther Party to the Black Power Movement (Seligman, 2005; Rice, 2003). With no studies of the lived experiences of Black maternal activists in North Lawndale, the theories of bridge leadership, tempered radicalism and their application to those lived experiences is not known. By examining the relationships and organizations influencing black maternal activism, this study aims …

A Phenomenological Study On The Perceptions Of The Veterans Transition Into The Civilian Workforce, Tiffany M. Allen, Tiffany Allen-Hampton

Dissertations

This study evaluated three specific factors affecting Veterans who have separated from military service and transitioned into the civilian workforce. The support and resources offered and received, as well as the participants’ adaptability in handling the transition, were examined. Additionally, perceptions of success and transition readiness were studied. Prior research on veterans indicate that many face challenges beyond service, including difficulty in finding employment. The impacts of participating in supportive services and obtaining work, particularly in relation to how respondents perceive the post military experience as either aligned or not with their pre-existing knowledge and skill sets were considered. In …

Examining Protective Factors That Promote Resilience Among Children With An Incarcerated Parent, Celeste A. Jackson

Dissertations

Children of incarcerated parents (CIP) represent one of the most vulnerable, at-risk populations in the United States (Johnston, 1995). Best estimates suggests there are 2.7 million children with an incarcerated parents and African-American children are disproportionately represented at a figure of 1 in 9 children (Glaze & Maruschak, 2008). Much of the research attempting to understand this population and guide intervention efforts has employed a deficit-based approach, highlighting the plethora of adverse risk factors and negative outcomes associated with being the child of an incarcerated parent. This approach fails to acknowledge the presence of resilience inherent in these youth. The …

The Risk For Developing Disordered Gambling: Equal For Every Player? Implications For Research, Policy And Consumer Protection, Gerhard Buehringer

International Conference on Gambling & Risk Taking

Aims: (1) To introduce the concept of individual vulnerability for developing a gambling disorder (GD), (2) to question gambling supply reduction and access limitations as effective GD prevention strategies and (3) to derive short- and long-term implications for research, gambling regulation and consumer protection of vulnerable gamblers. Background: Gambling regulation is currently based on the assumption that participants have similar risks for the development of GD based on individual, social and predominantly gambling-related risk factors. Consequently, GD prevention mainly relies on supply and access limitations and “rational” consumer information and warnings within the Responsible Gambling concept. However, it remains …

Developing And Evaluating Staff Training In Responsible Gambling In Search Of A Benchmark, Michelle Beckett, Alex Blaszczynski

International Conference on Gambling & Risk Taking

No abstract provided.

Examining Online Communities Through Wicca, Kathryn Lawson

Augsburg Honors Review

Wicca (or Witchcraft) is one particular religion that has benefitted from the members' ability to utilize the communications of the Internet for networking with other Wiccans, sharing religious information and experience, and even conducting online rituals. However, this spread of Wiccan resources on the Internet has fueled the debate among people of many faiths over whether or not religious ceremonies and gatherings online qualify as a substitute for assembling in person. Herein resides the controversy which I will address by taking a closer look at the Wiccan cofltmunity on the Internet and exploring the differing viewpoints of this topic.

Researching At The Community-University Borderlands: Using Public Science To Study Policing In The South Bronx, Brett G. Stoudt, María Elena Torre, Paul Bartley, Evan Bissel, Fawn Bracy, Hillary Caldwell, Lauren Dewey, Anthony Downs, Cory Greene, Jan Haldipur, Scott Lizama, Prakriti Hassan, Einat Manoff, Nadine Sheppard, Jacqueline Yates

Publications and Research

This article is a case study of the Morris Justice Project (MJP), a participatory action research (PAR) study in a South Bronx neighborhood of New York City (NYC) designed to understand residents' experiences with and attitudes towards the New York Police Department (NYPD). An illustration of public science, the research was conducted in solidarity with an emerging police reform movement and in response to an ongoing and particularly aggressive set of policing policies that most heavily impacts poor communities and communities of color. The case study describes a set of ongoing participatory, research-action, "sidewalk science" strategies, developed in 42 square …

Empowering The Plus Size Body Using Dance As Therapy, Ashley Sampson

Expressive Therapies Capstone Theses

In Western society, having the “ideal” body image and size is a societal issue. It is advertised throughout media outlets that the “ideal” body is what should be desired, and any other body type is “abnormal”. This capstone thesis focused on the effectiveness of dance as therapy and changing the perspectives of all body types, to support and empower all bodies including plus-sized bodies. The use of individual interviews, in an open dialogue model, with a select few members (3) of Soul thru Sole, including the CEO of the dance company; which focuses on empowering women no matter their age, …

Watering Black Roots: Exploring Black Ecological Identity Development Within Nature-Based Expressive Arts Therapy, Stormy Saint-Val

Expressive Therapies Capstone Theses

Nature-based expressive arts therapy promotes the holistic healing and recovery of individuals by interweaving the practices of ecopsychology, ecotherapy, and expressive arts therapy. These interventions have been proven to mediate ranges of symptomologies, such as anxiety disorders and PTSD. Research conducted by the U.S. National Park Services indicates that African- Americans are less likely to have a positive relationship to nature than all other racial groups. The amplification of this report without introspection of its context perpetuates racialized generalizations. This can limit a black individual’s ability to embrace their ecological identity and be receptive of nature-based expressive arts therapy interventions. …

Evaluating The Effectiveness Of Peer Engagement And Knowledge (Peak): A Community-Based Group Intervention For Youth In Hawai‘I, Jennifer T. T. Ho

Doctoral Dissertations

This study is a program evaluation with a mixed methods design that evaluated the effectiveness of Peer Engagement and Knowledge (PEAK), a six-week community-based group intervention that incorporates mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) to address multiple health behaviors for multiracial youth in Hilo, Hawai‘i. A total of 51 youth, ages 12-23 years old, participated in this study which included pre-/posttest analyses of health risk factors such as substance use and depression and health promoting factors such as resilience, self-esteem, and mindfulness. Responses from two subsets of participants, who engaged in a focus group (n = 11) and composed gratitude letters ( …

Efficacy Of Integrated Mental Health Care With Dual Diagnosis Patients And Their Utilization Of Psychiatric Emergency Services, Denton Scott

Doctoral Dissertations

Historically, patients with dual diagnosis have been subjected to ineffective treatment and negative attitudes from healthcare providers. Further, these patients are plagued with myriad afflictions that exist beyond substance abuse and mental illness. The treatments and collateral damage associated with the diagnosis impose excessive healthcare costs and can be of significant detriment to society. Largely, patients suffering from dual diagnosis do not receive adequate treatment. As such, psychiatric emergency services are frequently utilized as an alternate treatment, wherein the main focus of care is on the substance abuse alone. This study argues that solely treating the substance abuse is not …

Indigenization Of Genocide Healing: A Grounded Action Of Culturally And Contextually Relevant Educational And Psychosocial Strategies To Reduce Impacts Of Societal Toxic Stress In Rwanda Post-Genocide, Jean Pierre Ndagijimana

Master's Theses

Sixty percent of the current Rwandan population were born after the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi and those born since or who were young at the time of the genocide have remained among those affected most. Although Western trauma theorists and interventionists have played the role of experts in the genocide healing, the exclusion of the indigenous population’s experiences, knowledge, and wisdom has limited them from meeting local needs. The post-genocide situation raises various issues, genocide ideology, and increasing family homicides; however, locals do not want to seek counseling services, or run the risk of being labeled as mentally ill. …

Examining The Acculturation Experiences Of Syrian Refugee Emerging Adults In The United States Of America, Fatemah Alghamdi

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Refugees are vulnerable populations who experience premigration traumatic events and postmigration acculturation stress. While research on immigrant mental health issues has been plentiful, there has been a clear lacuna of scholarly investigation into the acculturation experiences of Syrian emerging adults, particularly as it relates to the types and dynamics of acculturation behaviors. Acculturation is a factor that predicts emerging adults’ academic and occupational success and their interpersonal and intrapersonal relationships.

This qualitative investigation was conducted within the framework of interpretative phenomenology, which allows for meaningful, organic exploration and description of participants’ stories. Data were collected from 12 emerging adult Syrian …

Back To Belonging: Nature Connection And Expressive Arts Therapy In The Treatment Of Trauma And Marginalization, Jesse Newcomb

Expressive Therapies Capstone Theses

There is increasing research on the benefits of incorporating nature-based approaches into mental health. This can be done in myriad ways both in and out of the counseling office. This literature review focuses on the benefits of incorporating nature as co-therapist and kin rather than only material or metaphor, particularly in the treatment of people who have experienced trauma and or marginalization. According to Herman (1997), wounds made relationally must be healed relationally, and the literature reviewed in this paper suggests that connection with the “more-than-human” world (Abram, 1996), and coming back into a sense belonging in the larger web …