UMD Theses and Dissertations
Permanent URI for this collectionhttp://hdl.handle.net/1903/3
New submissions to the thesis/dissertation collections are added automatically as they are received from the Graduate School. Currently, the Graduate School deposits all theses and dissertations from a given semester after the official graduation date. This means that there may be up to a 4 month delay in the appearance of a given thesis/dissertation in DRUM.
More information is available at Theses and Dissertations at University of Maryland Libraries.
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Item Reducing Relational Boredom in Romantic Relationships(2020) Dai, Yiwen; Hample, Dale; Communication; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)In this dissertation, I explored why relational boredom occurs in romantic relationships and how couples can cope with it. Specifically, I proposed shared participation in creative activities as a way to reduce relational boredom and improve relationship quality. Using the self-expansion model as the theoretical framework, I conducted two pilot studies to validate the newly created Partner Appraisal Scale and check the manipulation of creativity of activity. Two experimental questionnaire surveys were conducted to test the hypotheses. Findings of this dissertation have suggested that creativity interventions can be a double-edged sword in romantic relationships. On one hand, participants who rated a given activity to be more creative also thought more highly of their partner’s ability to help them self-expand cognitively, which in turn was associated with reduced relational boredom. On the other hand, those participants also rated their relationship to be more boring, perhaps due to a contrast effect. Additionally, creativity worked in reducing relational boredom only for participants who had been with their partner for a long (as opposed to short or moderate) period of time. Furthermore, it was perceived creativity of a given activity, not the activities themselves, that produced positive relational outcomes, suggesting that it might not be productive to search for one-size-fits-all interventions. Lastly, people’s innate tendency to feel bored and the degree to which they spontaneously connect themselves to their partner also affected various relational outcomes. Although there were limitations to the studies, the present dissertation has theoretical contributions to the self-expansion model and practical implications for those who aim at relationship betterment.Item Creating Common Ground: Architecture For Tactical Learning and Creative Convergence(2015) Sherry, Valerie Lynn; Vandergoot, Jana; Architecture; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Certain environments can inhibit learning and stifle enthusiasm, while others enhance learning or stimulate curiosity. Furthermore, in a world where technological change is accelerating we could ask how might architecture connect resource abundant and resource scarce innovation environments? Innovation environments developed out of necessity within urban villages and those developed with high intention and expectation within more institutionalized settings share a framework of opportunity for addressing change through learning and education. This thesis investigates formal and informal learning environments and how architecture can stimulate curiosity, enrich learning, create common ground, and expand access to education. The reason for this thesis exploration is to better understand how architects might design inclusive environments that bring people together to build sustainable infrastructure encouraging innovation and adaptation to change for years to come. The context of this thesis is largely based on Colin McFarlane’s theory that the “city is an assemblage for learning” The socio-spatial perspective in urbanism, considers how built infrastructure and society interact. Through the urban realm, inhabitants learn to negotiate people, space, politics, and resources affecting their daily lives. The city is therefore a dynamic field of emergent possibility. This thesis uses the city as a lens through which the boundaries between informal and formal logics as well as the public and private might be blurred. Through analytical processes I have examined the environmental devices and assemblage of factors that consistently provide conditions through which learning may thrive. These parameters that make a creative space significant can help suggest the design of common ground environments through which innovation is catalyzed.Item On the (Un)intended Consequences of Forgiveness: Creativity After Conflict(2010) Fehr, Ryan; Gelfand, Michele J; Psychology; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Within the psychological and organizational sciences, research on forgiveness as an offender-directed motivational response to victimization is flourishing. Scholars have drawn from a wide range of theoretical perspectives to better understand the meaning of forgiveness and the antecedents of victims' forgiving motivations. Underlying this research is a near-unanimous assumption that forgiveness leads to beneficial outcomes, which has paradoxically hampered scholars' understanding of the precise nature of those benefits. The purpose of the current research is to consider a previously unforeseen yet broadly significant potential consequence of forgiveness - creativity. Drawing from evolutionary process models of creative performance (Simonton, 1999; 2003), forgiveness is theorized to impact creativity by broadening the set of ideas, concepts, and knowledge structures utilized during the creative process, referred to collectively as the participant's "domain set". Specifically, forgiveness and creativity are theoretically linked via three distinct mechanisms: mood, motivation, and cognitive resources. Two pilot studies were conducted to ensure the efficacy of a forgiveness priming procedure and explore a theoretically consistent set of lab-based creative performance measures. Three primary studies were subsequently conducted to fully test the effect of forgiveness on creative performance and the theorized mediating mechanisms. In Study 1, a brainstorming task was utilized to provide initial support for the forgiveness-creativity link and the role of domain set over simple task persistence. Mood was furthermore measured as a mediating mechanism. Study 2 replicated and extended the Study 1 findings via a different creativity task (creative drawing) and tests of both mood and motivation as potential mediators. In Study 3, further evidence for a forgiveness-creativity effect was sought via a creative problem solving exercise (the Duncker candle task). Mood and motivation were again measured as mediators. In addition, the cognitive resource theory was explored via the addition of a cognitive load manipulation. Results cumulatively supported the cognitive resource perspective. In all three studies, forgiveness predicted creative performance. The forgiveness-creativity link disappeared under cognitive load (Study 3), but was unrelated to victim mood (Studies 1-3) or motivation (Studies 2 and 3). In the discussion section, theoretical and practical implications are reviewed along with limitations and potential future directions.