Developmental Psychology Commons^™

Cumulative Risk, Parenting, And Adolescents’ Problem Behaviors In Ghana, Braima Salaam

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

The accumulation of multiple risk factors predisposes adolescents to problem behaviors such as anxiety, depression, and aggression, whereas parental warmth and behavioral control are protective by lowering adolescents’ experiences of these problem behaviors. Research in predominantly Western, industrialized, and rich contexts has shown that in stressful family environments, cumulative co-occurring risks and parenting factors act together to influence adolescents’ problem behaviors. In particular, studies have shown that parental warmth and behavioral control mediate and moderate the effect of cumulative risk to predict adolescents’ problem behaviors. The present study examines the effect of cumulative risk, and mothers’ and fathers’ warmth and …

The Role Of Hardiness And Autonomy Support On College Student Engagement, Kevin Douglas Cherry

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

The gap between college student enrollment and graduation rates remains a problem for college students and administrators. Literature on persistence in college suggests that factors such as hardiness and autonomy support may contribute to student perseverance through degree attainment. The current study focused on these constructs using a framework based on self-determination theory (SDT; Ryan & Deci, 1985). Factors related to student persistence, namely hardiness and autonomy support, were expected to positively predict college student engagement. Furthermore, hardiness was expected to moderate the relationship between autonomy support and college student engagement. College students from a university and a community college …

Resilience And Intimacy For Adult Lesbian Survivors Of Child Sexual Abuse, Karen L. John

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractDespite the existence of extensive research on child sexual abuse (CSA) for heterosexual women, lesbian women remain an understudied population, particularly regarding their lived experiences of resilience and intimacy as adult CSA survivors. While researchers have considered the uniqueness of the lived experience of the heterosexual female CSA survivor, consideration must also be given to the unique lived experiences of the lesbian CSA survivor. Such knowledge contributes to an increased understanding of resilience and intimacy for these survivors, further advancing the understanding for practitioners regarding these complex dynamics. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to understand the lived experiences …

The Relationship Between Attachment Styles And Depression Among Lebanese Young Adults, Noor Alassadi

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Depression is a serious mental disorder that impacts the individual and community. It has social, economic, emotional, and physical outcomes. Many psychological studies found that testing and identifying the relationship between attachment styles and depression could help understand the development of depression. Existing literature also indicated that cultural norms could influence the relationship between attachment styles and major depression. The purpose of this quantitative survey study, grounded in bioecological theory, was to test the relationship between attachment styles and major depressive disorder among 69 young adults in a homogeneous Lebanese culture. Data were collected using the Revised Adult Attachment Scale, …

Using Chess As An Intervention To Improve Executive Functioning Among Youth, Anandita Oberoi

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Youth represent a vulnerable segment of the population and may have underdeveloped levels of executive functioning (EF), which is important in both daily life and is shown to have far-reaching effects. This research study aimed to decipher if lessons in the game of chess could be used as an efficacious intervention for accelerating EF development in youth. The three research questions focused on determining whether there was a difference in the chosen indices of EF before and after a 14-session chess intervention. The theoretical framework used for this study was Piaget’s cognitive development theory. This quantitative, single group pretest–posttest design …

Reluctance To Seek Mental Health Treatment Among African Americans Living In Generational Poverty, Myisha Boulware

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

African Americans are 20% more likely to experience mental health issues but are the least likely group to seek professional mental health treatment. In addition, African Americans are more likely to experience severe mental health conditions than other races due to a greater risk of homelessness and being exposed to violence. This research study used a phenomenological qualitative methodology to explore the attitudes and lived experiences of 10 African Americans living in generational poverty in inner-city Chicago. The participants provide detailed accounts of their lived experiences with generational poverty, mental health, and the attitudes their family lineage had shared with …

Witnessed Intimate Partner Abuse And Later Perpetration: The Maternal Attachment Influence, Kendra Lee Wiechart

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Witnessing intimate partner abuse (IPA) as a child is linked to later perpetration as an adult. Questions remain regarding why some men who witnessed abuse go on to perpetrate, while others do not. The influence maternal attachment has on IPA perpetration after witnessed IPA has not been thoroughly researched. Maternal attachment is a complex variable grounded in attachment theory and may explain why some men fail to relate to their victimized mothers. The purpose of this study was to assess the influence maternal attachment has on men who witnessed IPA as a child and later perpetrated IPA as an adult. …

African American, Sexual Minority Women Pursuing Resilience Following Childhood Sexual Abuse, Kastina Diane Hayes

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

In any form, child abuse is traumatic, and the effects can leave the individual psychologically scarred. Childhood sexual abuse (CSA) is a specific, worldwide problem that affects individuals of all ethnicities; however, CSA is most prevalent among African Americans in the United States. The adverse effects of CSA warrant proper coping strategies. Though negative coping strategies are innate, positive coping strategies are more beneficial. Sexual minorities are individuals whose sexual orientation or gender identity deviates from the majority of the population (i.e., heterosexuals). Sexual minority women (SMW) with histories of CSA face many tribulations and hardships. Resiliency is a form …

The Impact Of Family Dynamics And Treatment Times For Adhd Children, Margaret Wilson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a serious mental health condition that affects many of children. Studies show that 42-77% of children with ADHD may not be receiving treatment. Factors such as parent ethnicity, race, preference for treatment, socioeconomics, and child gender have been studied but do not account for the high numbers of untreated children. Differences between parents has been shown to effect ADHD treatment, the potential effects of family dynamics, children living in single or dual parent families, on ADHD treatment has not been studied. This secondary analysis finds there is a relationship between family dynamics, with the …

Parental Stress Coping And Middle-School Students’ Grades And Behavioral Conduct, Stephanie Buckner

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractAccording to Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems theory, factors such as parental stress influence family functioning and affect children’s adaptive development. This quantitative study was conducted to better understand the association of parental stress coping skills with two dependent measures: the grades and behavioral conduct of middle-school students. Sixty-six parent/guardians completed the Coping Skills Assessment 2nd Revision (COSA R2), an assessment of parental stress coping skills and a brief questionnaire to collect data on their middle-school-aged children’s grades and conduct, along with demographic variables of race/ethnicity, age, family income level, number of children in the household, and partner status. No significant difference …

Oppositional Behavior Parallels In Toddlers And Teens And Parent’S Response, Michele Dimmett

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Parents seem to manage oppositional conduct of toddlers but struggle emotionally and physically with oppositional conduct of teenagers, despite similarities in the behaviors. Self-efficacy theory, psychological theory of development, and theory of mind guided the conceptualization of how parents perceive and respond to these two sensitive periods of development. This contrasted group quantitative study pursued measurable similarities in the experience of first-time parents of children aged 18-36 months and 14-15 years of age. Establishing parents’ confidence level in their parenting skills and how they perceive and respond to their child's oppositional behavior was also a factor. One hundred and seventy-five …

Associations Between Identity And Future Parenthood Among Lgbtq+ Asian/Pacific Islander Americans, Kay Simon

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

In recent years, the number of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (and additional identities; LGBTQ+) identified people and the number of Asian Pacific Islander Americans (APIA) have been increasing in the United States (Movement Advancement Project 2019; Newport, 2018). As the individuals in these demographic groups develop over their lifespan, many will become parents and form families, but little work is currently available on the experiences of LGBTQ+ APIA individuals and future parenthood. Here, I report findings on the perceptions and importance of future parenthood, identity development, identity integration, and microaggressions and/or discrimination (as they relate to racial-ethnic and …

Parent School Involvement, Student School Engagement, And Academic Achievement In Children Adopted From Foster Care By Lesbian And Gay Parents, Cassandra P. Vazquez

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Sparse research has examined academic outcomes of children adopted from foster care by lesbian and gay (LG) parents. Children who have experienced foster care are at greater risk for negative outcomes, but investment in academic achievement could help buffer potential adversity. Parent and student engagement with school peaks in middle childhood, so this may be an important period for understanding processes that influence academic achievement. This study explores how LG parents (N = 57) of school-aged children (Mage = 10.56 years) adopted from foster care in the U.S. involve themselves in their child’s school, how this involvement may …

The Role Of Intersensory Redundancy In Face Recognition In 5- And 12-Month-Old Infants, Aslı Bursalıoğlu

Master's Theses

The goal of this study was to examine the role of audiovisual synchrony in 5- and 12-month-old infants’ attention to and processing of face stimuli. Infants were tested using an online platform called Lookit. In the first phase of the experiment, infants were familiarized with two videos presented simultaneously and side-by-side. Each video displayed a woman speaking in an infant-directed manner. A soundtrack was played that matched one of the videos (experimental condition) or neither of the videos (control condition). It was hypothesized that synchronous audiovisual presentation would attract infants’ attention and promote processing, especially among 12-month-olds. Visual-paired comparison (VPC) …

Alcohol Use Subgroups Among Rural Middle School Students: The Impact Of Community Violence Exposure, Courtney B. Dunn

Theses and Dissertations

A substantial portion of early adolescents initiate alcohol use. This represents a significant public health concern due to its association with a variety of adverse consequences. Although person-centered analytic approaches such as latent class analysis have been used to describe heterogeneity in adolescents’ alcohol use, most prior studies have focused on high school or older samples. This may obscure patterns of alcohol use that emerge during early adolescence. The current study identified and described subgroups of adolescents based on their alcohol use in a racially diverse sample of rural middle school students. Because research and theory indicate that exposure to …

The Contribution Of African American Parents’ Stem Racial Socialization And Support To Adolescent Academic Outcomes, Rachel J. Davis

Theses and Dissertations

Historically, African Americans have experienced various inequalities in education that have long contributed to overall educational attainment gaps within the African American community (St. Mary, Calhoun, Tejada, & Jenson, 2018). Thus, African American parents are tasked with instilling messages of racial pride into their children and providing educational support that serve as protective factors against racial discrimination in education (Koch, Lundh, & Harris, 2019). Theoretical frameworks provide a basis of understanding how parent socialization contributes to African American educational outcomes, specifically noting the role of parents’ beliefs and values in dictating mechanisms of value transfer (e.g., buying toys or learning …

The Importance Of Connection: Contributions Of Relationships With Fathers And Connections To School To Delinquent Behavior And Positive Youth Development, Colleen S. Walsh

Theses and Dissertations

Risk-taking and boundary pushing are hallmarks of adolescent behavior, making the identification of promotive and protective factors related to both delinquent behavior and positive adolescent functioning essential. Previous studies have provided compelling evidence that suggests aspects of familial relationships may successfully attenuate delinquent behavior and support positive functioning outcomes. Despite these findings, the father-adolescent relationship is understudied in association with these outcomes. The current study examined relations between adolescents’ perception of school connectedness and father-adolescent relationship quality and delinquent behavior and positive adolescent functioning outcomes. This study used data collected when youth were nine and fifteen years old from the …

The Relationships Between Adolescents’ Future Aspirations And Postsecondary Enrollment: Finite Mixture Models, Chu Yi Lu Qiu

Theses and Dissertations

This study took person-centered statistical approaches to explore the multidimensional construct of adolescents' future aspirations and its associations with three covariates (i.e., gender, race, and SES) and a binary, distal outcome measure, postsecondary enrollment. Fourteen survey items representing the multidimensionality of adolescents' future aspirations were extracted from two-waves of Educational Longitudinal Study:2002 student data. The multidimensionality or the latent construct of the adolescents' future aspirations were explored using two finite mixture models called latent class analysis (LCA) and latent transition analysis (LTA). Based on the students' response patterns on the fourteen indicators, three latent classes representing three levels of aspiration …

Reading In Kapampangan, Filipino, And English: A Look At Multilingual Children In An Economically Challenging Philippine Community, Portia Padilla

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

The present studies advance current understanding of the skills and processes involved in multilingual reading, especially in less researched alphabetic languages. These studies examined whether the dominant models in reading in English can explain the reading processes involved among low-income multilingual speakers of Kapampangan (L1), Filipino (L2), and English (L3) in the Philippines, a developing country. Kapampangan and Filipino use the same Roman alphabet that English uses. However, these two languages have transparent orthographies while English has an opaque orthography.

Study 1 examined the psycholinguistic grain size theory within the context of multilingual reading. There were three hundred twenty-six children …

Investigating The Use Of Mental-State Talk In Parent-Child Joint Reminiscing And Storytelling On Children’S Source Monitoring, Holly Autumn Nelson

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Source monitoring is the process of identifying and analyzing sources of information (Johnson et al., 1993). The ability to monitor source improves with age which places children at a greater risk for blending and misattributing information from different sources. Experiencing source confusions has academic, legal, and social implications, and thus understanding how source monitoring develops is important. Research exploring factors that impact source monitoring have predominantly focused on maturational aspects such as at which ages children learn to monitor source and neurological factors such as executive functioning. However, the impact of age and executive functioning may vary across the type …