Developmental Psychology Commons^™

Individual Characteristics, Protective Factors And Processes Significant In Helping Low-Income African American Students Achieve Academic Success And Projected Upward Mobility, Barbara Still

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

Research and other studies have documented the educational plight and academic difficulties of many poor, urban African American students. A number of studies have explored and identified many reasons for the low level of academic success among these students. Nonetheless, some poor, urban African American students have completed high school and college; and they have successfully transitioned to higher socioeconomic groups. The purpose of this study was to identify individual characteristics, protective factors and school processes that are significant in helping current urban, poor African American students to achieve high levels of academic success and to begin movement towards eventual …

Evidence For The Bypass Of The Response-Selection Bottleneck In Tasks With Reflexive Responses In Younger And Older Adults, Brandi S. Seaman

Scripps Senior Theses

This study investigated dual-task processing in younger and older adults using a psychological refractory period procedure. The first task was to name the color framing a picture; the second task was to either press a button or tilt their body in the direction of the tilt of the picture. In the body-tilt condition, electromyography was used to determine the reaction time. The stimulus-onset asynchrony (SOA) between the onset of the color and tilting of the picture varied from 50 to 1000 ms. In contrast with the response selection bottleneck model, which claims that processing of a second task cannot be …

Achieving Integration In Mixed Methods Designs—Principles And Practices, Michael D. Fetters, Leslie A. Curry, John W. Creswell

Department of Educational Psychology: Faculty Publications

Mixed methods research offers powerful tools for investigating complex processes and systems in health and health care. This article describes integration principles and practices at three levels in mixed methods research and provides illustrative examples. Integration at the study design level occurs through three basic mixed method designs—exploratory sequential, explanatory sequential, and convergent—and through four advanced frameworks—multistage, intervention, case study, and participatory. Integration at the methods level occurs through four approaches. In connecting, one database links to the other through sampling. With building, one database informs the data collection approach of the other. When merging, the two databases are brought …

From College Student To Change Agent: A Triadic Model Of Self-Efficacy, Attribution, And Appraisal, Joshua M. Garrin

Journal of Sustainable Social Impact

Beyond their newfound emancipation and opportunities for self-discovery, college students in the young adult stage of development are expected to achieve balance between their autonomous new world and the impending pressures of postgraduation life. The college student must not only reconcile issues related to identity formation, goal pursuits, and career exploration, but is expected to begin the process of identifying and developing the skills required to address salient social themes. How students establish competency beliefs, negotiate controllability over future outcomes, and appraise challenges have deep implications in their capacity to discover their social change “voice.” The following discussion proposes a …

Pathways Of Activity: Lessons From Dominican College Students, Monika L. Son

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

High attrition rates among Latino students have long been identified as a major problem in college. Few attempts have been made to understand the normative developmental experiences among this population. This study, based on a study of lives, a narrative approach, examines the experiences of urban Dominican-American college students. Their strategies for effectively navigating a wide variety of contexts (e.g., school, work, family, and neighborhood) are analyzed, and implications for their educational efforts are examined within a developmental framework. Gender disparities and immigrant processes are also explored.

Two part interviews were completed with eleven participants. The first interview was semi-structured …

Assessing Connections Between Young Children’S Affinity For Nature And Their Experiences In Natural Outdoor Settings In Preschools, Camilla S. Rice, Julia C. Torquati

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

The purposes of this research were to: develop a reliable measure of children’s affinity for nature or “biophilia”; determine whether young children’s biophilia was related to the “green-ness” of the outdoor play area of the preschool they attend; examine whether demographic variables are associated with children’s biophilia; and determine whether demographic variables predict children’s enrollment in nature-oriented programs. We recruited children from ten early childhood education programs—six that had outdoor play spaces with many natural elements and four that had few or none of these elements. One hundred fourteen preschool-aged children completed an 11-item measure of biophilia that included preferences …

Beyond The Walls: Conceptualizing Natural Environments As “Third Educators”, Julia C. Torquati, Julie A. Ernst

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

This research examined preservice early childhood educators’ perceptions of outdoor settings and their intentions to use outdoor settings in their teaching practice. Students enrolled in an early childhood education program (n = 110) at a university in the Great Lakes region completed surveys that assessed perceptions of natural settings, intentions to use natural settings in future teaching, knowledge of the benefits of nature for children, and personal nature relatedness. Participants reported relatively high intentions to use natural settings in future teaching, as well as knowledge of the benefits of nature for children, but moderate levels of personal nature relatedness. Participants …

Spiritual Well-Being And Its Relationship To Resilience In Young People: A Mixed Methods Case Study, Lindsay Smith, Ruth Webber, Erica Defrain

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

Questions have arisen recently about the role of spiritual well-being in strengthening resilience of youth. To explore this association, this case study focused on the relationships and connectedness of young people who attend one religious organization as a means of enhancing their spiritual well-being. In line with the purposes of an instrumental case study, different sources of data (quantitative and qualitative) were collected on the phenomenon of interest—spiritual well-being. A theoretical purposive sample of 65 people participated in the study. A mixed methods research approach guided this case study, which incorporated both single- and multicase study techniques. Through an abductive …

Relations Of Parenting Quality, Interparental Conflict, And Overnights With Mental Health Problems Of Children In Divorcing Families With High Legal Conflict, Irwin N. Sandler, Lorey A. Wheeler, Sanford L. Braver

Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families, and Schools: Faculty Publications

The current study examined the associations between child mental health problems and the quality of maternal and paternal parenting, and how these associations were moderated by three contextual factors, quality of parenting by the other parent, interparental conflict, and the number of overnights parents had with the child. Data for the current study come from a sample of divorcing families who are in high legal conflict over developing or maintaining a parenting plan following divorce. Analyses revealed that the associations between child mental health problems and positive maternal and paternal parenting were moderated by the quality of parenting provided by …

The Effect Of Organized Sports On Academic Achievement And Youth Development, Nicole Franklin

CMC Senior Theses

This thesis explores the relationship between sports, academics, and youth development, in 5^th- 9^th grade boys and girls from low-income families. This exploration includes an analysis of a non-profit organization called “Rainier Athletes.” This program underwrites the cost of organized sports for low-income children with the belief that sports help empower students so that they make positive choices inside the classroom and in the future. Rainier Athletes uses a token economy design in the classroom where students earn points by fulfilling academic expectations and displaying positive behavior.

Researchers concluded that sports participation had a beneficial effect on …

The African American Family's Influence On Academic Achievement Of Urban Secondary Students, Frank A. Edwards

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

One of the most unyielding challenges of the American Educational System to
date has been determining the unique factors that African American families have on the academic achievement of urban high school students. The purpose of this qualitative study was to determine: (1) what effect does the African American Family’s influence have on urban secondary students achievement; (2) what impact does academic achievement have on the life of an urban African-American student; and (3) what contributing factors stimulate academic achievement in urban secondary students. The African-American family and its influence on student achievement included the following themes: family and familial …

Parent-Child Dynamics And Emerging Adult Religiosity: Attachment, Parental Beliefs, And Faith Support, Kathleen C. Leonard, Kaye V. Cook, Chris Boyatzis, Cynthia N. Kimball, Kelly S. Flanagan

Faculty Journal Articles

Parental religiosity has been shown to predict child and adolescent religiosity, but the role of parents in emerging adult religiosity is largely unknown. We explored associations among emerging adult religiosity, perceived parental religiosity, perceived similarity to mother's and father's religious beliefs, parental faith support, and parental attachment. Participants were 481 alumni of two Christian colleges and completed surveys online. Emerging adult religiosity (measured by Christian orthodoxy and intrinsic religiosity) was high and similar to parents' religiosity. Perceived similarity to parents' religious beliefs, faith support, and attachment to fathers predicted emerging adult religiosity. However, parental religiosity alone was a weak predictor …

Psychosocial Treatment For Adult Adhd, Laura E. Knouse, Steven A. Safren

Psychology Faculty Publications

Many adults with ADHD are likely to benefit from psychosocial interventions that teach compensatory skills to manage symptoms and address functional impairment. Based on the research literature and the authors’ experience developing and implementing interventions, this chapter provides a practice-friendly overview of skills-based treatment selection and implementation, emphasizing cognitive-behavioral techniques. Principles are illustrated using case examples and adjunctive treatment options are discussed.

Untangling Cultural Differences In Behavioral, Physiological, And Psychological Symptoms Of Dementia And Alzheimer’S Disease, John S. Avant

Calvert Undergraduate Research Awards

According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV-TR; 4^th ed. Revised; American Psychiatric Association) and (BPSD) there are many behavioral, physiological, and psychological issues that have been correlated with the progression of the Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias. Examples of these issues include; emotional regulation problems, variations in eating behavior, and an advancing decline in memory. Though certain symptoms of the disease seem to be widely universal, current literature shows that a number of disparities do exist. There are several differences between and within populations suffering from Alzheimer’s disease and dementia that are influenced by various …

Early Life Stress, Drug Abuse, Exercise Effects On Bdnf And Sex-Influenced Exercise Differences, Karissa Dold

Calvert Undergraduate Research Awards

In 2011, the U.S. reported 3 million child maltreatment cases, an uncomfortably high but recurring figure each year. Research shows exposure to early life stress (ELS) increases an individual’s susceptibility to substance abuse, specifically of nicotine, alcohol, and cocaine. Increased susceptibility may result from dysregulation of the HPA axis sustaining activation into adulthood after ELS. Hyperactivation of the HPA axis significantly reduces hippocampal BDNF, a neurotrophin involved in neuronal growth and plasticity. Reduced hippocampal BDNF may be a factor in substance abuse vulnerability. Additionally, research shows exercise protects hippocampal BDNF from stress induced down-regulation. To explore these relationships, this study …

The Effect Of Experience On Infants’ Visual Preferences, Jennifer Bolick, Jennifer L. Rennels

McNair Poster Presentations

Research has shown that 3 to 4-month-olds with female primary caregivers show visual preferences for female relative to male faces (Quinn, Yahr, Kuhn, Slater, & Pascalis, 2002). Facial experience is likely an important influence on these preferences. From birth, infants’ experiences guide face processing skills. This processing ability influences the development of efficient face recognition later in life. The following study investigated (1) How visual pref­erences are influenced by real world experience with males and females, and (2) How experi­ence affects older infants’ visual preferences (i.e., 10-month-olds).

Examining The Interaction Of Neonatal Alcohol And Hypoxia In Vitro, Megan L. Carter

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Exposure to ethanol (ETOH) during fetal development results in a range of cognitive/behavioral deficits. There are differences in sensitivity to the effects of ETOH that could be explained by other factors, such as hypoxia. Similar mechanisms of damage underlie both ETOH, more specifically ETOH withdrawal, and hypoxia. Based on this overlap, it was hypothesized that sub threshold levels of these insults may interact to produce increased damage in sensitive brain regions. This study used a rodent organotypic hippocampal slice culture model to investigate the interaction of hypoxia and ETOH withdrawal and to determine possible developmental differences in the sensitivity to …

Bayesian Analysis Of Parental Drinking Motives And Children's Adjustment, Aaron A. Duke

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Harm reduction strategies can mitigate against some of the deleterious effects of alcohol on families. These strategies are most feasible and cost-effective when they can be targeted at those who are most at risk. Previous studies examining the relation between parents’ alcohol use and their children’s psychological adjustment have failed to consider important contextual questions such as drinking motives. The current investigation set out to identify the extent to which parents’ drinking motives predict internalizing and externalizing psychopathology in their children. The investigation consisted of cross sectional analysis of parents’ drinking motives and their children’s adjustment using data from 154 …

The Whole Picture: Body Posture Recognition In Infancy, Alyson J. Hock

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Holistic image processing is tied to expertise and is characteristic of face and body processing by adults. Infants process faces holistically, but it is unknown whether infants process body information holistically. In the present study, we examined whether infants discriminate changes in body posture holistically. Body posture is an important nonverbal cue that signals emotion, intention, and goals of others even from a distance. In the current study, infants were tested for discrimination between body postures that differ in limb orientations in three conditions: in the context of the whole body, with just the limbs that change orientation, or with …

The Sexualized Girl: The Development Of An Expanded (Sexualized) Gender Stereotype Among Children, Ellen A. Stone

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

The current study examined children’s stereotypes about sexualized girls. Elementary school children (n = 208) from the mid-South between the ages of 6 and 11 completed a survey assessing their stereotypes about sexualized girls and non-sexualized girls. Participants were asked to justify, in their own words, their responses to several stereotypic evaluations. Children’s cognitive development was analyzed through classification skill as a moderator of belief in stereotypes about girls. Results revealed that children perceived the sexualized girl to be more popular and better liked by boys than the non-sexualized girl. However, the sexualized girl was also rated as less athletic, …