Community Psychology Commons^™

Empowerment Of Underrepresented Racial/Ethnic Minority College Students In The United States: Developing And Testing The College Student Empowerment Scales For Racial/Ethnic Minorities, Lindsey Therese Back

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Empowerment, a core value of community psychology, is defined as a process by which people, organizations, and communities gain mastery over issues of concern to them in their lives (Rappaport, 1987). In community psychology, empowerment is understood as a construct particularly and primarily salient for minority t,>roups who hold a marginalized position in society, as psychological empowerment is a product of an individual's interaction with his or her context. Consistent with a social justice framework, community psychology attempts to empower those who have traditionally been disenfranchised in particular contexts. One such population is underrepresented racial/ethnic minority students in higher …

Factors Relating To Substance Abuse Relapse: A Survival Analysis Of Adults Living In Oxford House Recovery Homes, Ronald D. Harvey

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Alcohol and other drug (AOD) abuse, treatment, and subsequent relapse and re-treatment are a common pattern faced by clients and AOD treatment providers. Relapse and re-treatment significantly contributes to the overall societal costs of substance use disorder (SUD) treatment, injury, and incarceration. Therefore, it might be useful to treatment providers to become aware of of the factors leading to AOD relapse after treatment. This dissertation examined the relationship of individual factors and AOD relapse among residents of self-run aftercare recovery homes called Oxford House over the course of a one-year study. To accomplish this, this study employed discrete-time survival analysis …

The Role Of Multicultural Competence, Privilege, Attributions, And Team Support In Predicting Positive Youth Mentor Outcomes, Rachael Leigh Suffrin

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

In the current study we use Bronfenbrenner’s (1979) ecological theory to guide an inquiry into how the social environment surrounding mentors’ matters in regards to mentor outcomes of satisfaction, retention, and extra-role pro-social behavior (i.e., mentors willingness to go above and beyond for their mentee or the mentoring program). Mentors are sampled from mentoring organizations across the United States. Drawing from Bronfenbrenner’s ecological theory (1979), we examine mentors embedded in distinct micro- and macrosystems. At the microsystem level we explore how the relationship between the mentor and the (a) mentee, (b) mentees’ family, and (c) the mentoring team may predict …

Gender Role Ideology And Major Choice Of Students In College Religious Groups, Charlynn Anne Odahl

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

In the present study examined students who attend college religious groups to better understand how religious conservatism, religious commitment, and gender may shape gender role ideology and college major choice. A focus on these outcomes of gender role ideology and college major choice is important given the continued persistence of sexism and gender inequality. We examined how personal characteristics and characteristics of the group (i.e., defined by peer and leader attitudes) may shape personal gender role ideology and major choice. We tested how personal, peer, and leader religious conservatism may predict more traditional gender role ideology and the choice of …

Negotiating Culture And The Self: Complications Of Agency In Psychosis, Genevra Jones

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

The goal of the dissertation project described here is to explore and unpack the role of agency, understood as a form of "intentionalized action" (Ortner, 1996), in participants' experiences of psychosis and associated narratives and explanations of these experiences. We present in-depth cthnographically-infom1cd qualitative analyses of the accounts of 14 participants, organized around the interimplication of agency in and with the overlapping domains of symptomatology, narrative, and explanation. Our analyses suggest that the play of agency in psychosis is far richer and more nuanced than most existing scholarship suggests, underscoring the value of greater attention to agentive complexities involved in …

From Crime To Punishment: Moral Violations And The Social Function Of Emotion, Michael Ray Brubacher

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Punishments that are issued by the criminal justice system can enhance factors related to recidivism or contribute to offender rehabilitation. Investigating the ecological element of public attitudes toward punishment can inform efforts of second-order change for reducing recidivism and improving offender and community wellbeing (Bronfenbrenner, 1979; Kelly, 1966; Watzlawick, Weakland, & Fisch, 1974).

The form and duration of punishments can be influenced by the goals that punishments are meant to achieve. Punishment goals include retribution, incapacitation, individual deterrence, general deterrence, rehabilitation, and restorative justice. Each of the goals can lead to sanctions that impact offender behavior differently yet substantive predictors …

Incarceration And Reintegration: How It Impacts Mental Health, April M. Marier, Alex Alfredo Reyes

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

ABSTRACT

Background: Previous criminal justice policies have been non-effective leading to overpopulated prisons and unsuccessful reintegration. There is a lack of effective supportive and/or rehabilitative services resulting in high rates of recidivism and mental health implications. Objective: This study investigated the perceived impact that incarceration and reintegration with little to no supportive and/or rehabilitative services has on the mental health status of an individual. The emphasis was on participant perception and not on professional reports because of underreporting and lack of attention to mental health in the criminal justice system. Methods: Focus groups in the Inland Empire and Coachella Valley …

A Mental Health Epidemic: The Case For Mental Health Programs On College Campuses And How To Increase Awareness, Connor Deason

Senior Theses

This senior thesis project focused on the problem of mental health on college campuses. Specific interest was placed on students at the University of South Carolina. In the end, the goal was to create a product that could be used by the Counseling and Human Development Center to help increase the use of student mental health services and reduce levels of stigma surrounding mental health problems. In talking with staff members of the Counseling and Human Development Center, staff members shared a desire for a video that would advertise the services of the Counseling Center. Thus, the true purpose of …

Knowledge, Attitude And Practices Regarding Hiv/Aids Among Adult Fishermen In Coastal Areas Of Karachi., Mubashir Zafar, Nighat Nisar, Masood Kadir, Zafar Fatmi, Zeeshan Ahmed, Kashif Shafique

Community Health Sciences

BACKGROUND:

Migrant populations are at high risk of Human Immuno Deficiency Virus infection (HIV) and Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS). Studies of HIV/AIDS knowledge, attitudes and practices among fishermen in developing countries have shown gaps in knowledge and fear of contagion with ambivalent attitudes towards HIV/AIDS and inconsistent universal precautions adherence. The aim of this study was to determine the knowledge, attitude and practices regarding HIV/AIDS among adult fishermen in a coastal area of Karachi, Pakistan.

METHODS:

Community based cross sectional study was conducted among fishermen in coastal area of Karachi from June to September 2012. A total of 297 adult …

Hockey Fan Excitement, Timothy Hibbard, Bret Andreason

College of Social Sciences and Public Affairs Presentations

Hockey is one of the most exciting sports in the world. Despite its popularity—with over 15 million fans in attendance during the 2012-13 NHL season—hockey is also one of the least researched professional sports. While one may guess at the reasons why hockey is so exciting to fans, the evidence is largely anecdotal. For this study, more than 200 professional hockey fans were interviewed and observed over a two-month period during the 2013-14 season. The specific aim of this research was to determine which hockey plays fans report as the most exciting to them, and what draws people to the …

Learning In Youth Organizing. A Response To "Pushing The Boundaries", Ben Kirshner

Democracy & Education

This response identifies several strengths of the article, "Pushing the Boundaries: What Youth Organizers at Boston’s Hyde Square Task Force Have to Teach Us about Civic Engagement" and draws connections to recent developments in sibling fields, including social and emotional learning and internet activism. These developments offer ideas for next steps in youth organizing research.

School And Community-Based Childhood Obesity: Implications For Policy And Practice, Suzette Fromm Reed, Judah J. Viola, Karen Lynch

Faculty Publications

This introduction to a special issue of the Journal of Prevention and Intervention in the Community on the topic of childhood obesity prevention lays some of the basis for the state of affairs of the childhood obesity epidemic in the United States as of 2012 and the need for and types of existing prevention and intervention efforts underway. At the intersection of public health and community psychology, each of the five articles presents some insights into how prevention and intervention efforts currently underway are fairing and offers some implications for program developers and policy makers to start to turn around …

The Success Of Gay–Straight Alliances In Waterloo Region, Ontario: A Confluence Of Political And Social Factors, Alex St. John, Robb Travers, Lauren Munro, Renato M. Liboro, Margaret Schneider, Carrie L. Greig

Psychology Faculty Research

This article outlines how gay–straight alliances (GSAs) work to connect youth with community resources, and outlines the political and social context of GSAs in Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada. Fifteen individuals (youth, teachers, and a lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer [LGBTQ] youth service provider) participated in interviews about the role of GSAs in creating supportive school environments for LGBTQ youth and their allies. Analyses of the interview data found that, apart from providing direct support to LGBTQ students, GSAs in Waterloo Region decrease isolation by connecting youth with other LGBTQ community members, events, and resources. This article discusses how the …

Ciis Today, Spring 2014 Issue, Cakifornia Institute Of Integral Studies

CIIS Today

This volume is the Spring 2014 issue of CIIS Today, the Magazine of the California Institute of Integral Studies.

Individuals With Intellectual Disabilities In Faith Communities: Perspectives Of Catholic Religious Leaders, Mazna Patka

Dissertations and Theses

Community psychology is concerned with the relationship between individuals and social systems in community contexts, but the field has under-explored the role of religious organizations in the lives of individuals with intellectual disabilities. Worldwide, most people identify with a religion, and congregations serve as important mediating structure that creates a sense of community and provides linkages between individuals and society. There may be significant benefits to religious participation, including greater life satisfaction, health, and quality of life. Such benefits may be especially important to individuals with intellectual disability who generally experience poorer outcomes. However, we know very little about the …

Ethnic Identity And Coping Efficacy As Moderators Of The Relationships Between Perceived Racial Discrimination And Academic Outcomes Among Urban, Low-Income Latina/O Youth, Alison L. Mroczkowski

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

The present study used resilience theory to explore relationships among perceived racial discrimination, ethnic identity, coping efficacy, gender, and various academic outcomes among urban, low-income, Latina/a youth. Although Latina/as are the largest ethnic minority group in the United States, they attain less education than other racial/ethnic groups (Chapman, Laird, Ifill, & KeweiRamani, 2011). Racial discrimination is one factor that may account for the lower levels of education attained by this group, and research has indicated that racial discrimination is associated with poor educational outcomes among Latina/a adolescents (Alfaro, Umana-Taylor, Gonzales-Backen, Bamaca, & Zeiders, 2009; DeGarmo & Martinez, 2006). Despite exposure …

Community-Level Interventions For Reconciling Conflicting Religious And Sexual Domains In Identity Incongruity, Renato M. Liboro

Psychology Faculty Research

Two of the most unstable domains involved in identity formation, the religious and sexual domains, come into conflict when vulnerable populations of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community experience oppression from the indoctrination of religious beliefs that persecute their sexual orientation. This conflict, aptly termed identity incongruity in this article’s discourse, results in a schism that adversely affects these vulnerable populations. This paper investigates the roles of religion, spirituality and available institutional solutions to propose customized, culturally adapted, contextually based and collaborative community-level interventions that would facilitate the reconciliation of the conflicting identity domains.

Assessing The Knowledge Level Of Social Service Professionals On Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (Ptsd): Creating Training Guides, Charles E. Lawrence, Ph.D., Geraldine L. Palmer Ph.D.

Online Journal for Workforce Education and Development

Objective: Creating training guides for social service workers to deliver more effective services for veterans with post-traumatic stress syndrome. Background: Effective service delivery for veterans with post-traumatic stress syndrome is often hampered by a lack of knowledge about how to identify the signs and symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Appropriate training guides can provide integral benefits including: improved situational awareness, more accurate data gathered in the intake process, a reduction in veteran homelessness and prevention of chronic homelessness. Method: A pre-and post-test design was used to determine levels of knowledge guided by Bloom’s Taxonomy (1956). The study focused on …

Student Leadership And College Co-Educational History, Gabriel Plummer

Psychology Honors Papers

Leadership has been described and thought of as stereotypically masculine, and consequently, leadership positions in student government have historically been dominated by men. This study compared archival data from schools that changed their admission policy from all women to coed (n = 2), changed from all men to coed (n = 1), or a school that has been coed since its founding (n = 1) to see if the history of a school was related to gender representation in the student government leadership positions. The schools that shifted to coed all made the shift at the same time (1969). The …

Is Burnout Solely Job-Related? A Critical Comment, Bianchi Renzo, Didier Truchot, Eric Laurent, Romain Brisson, Irvin Sam Schonfeld

Publications and Research

Within the field‐dominating, multidimensional theory of burnout, burnout is viewed as a work‐specific condition. As a consequence, the burnout syndrome cannot be investigated outside of the occupational domain. In the present paper, this restrictive view of burnout's scope is criticized and a rationale to decide between a work‐specific and a generic approach to burnout is presented. First, the idea that a multidimensional conception of burnout implies a work‐restricted scope is deconstructed. Second, it is shown that the burnout phenomenon cannot be confined to work because chronic, unresolvable stress – the putative cause of burnout – is not limited to …