UMD Theses and Dissertations
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Item Family Processes and Leisure Activity Involvement Across the High School Transition: The Mediating Roles of Adolescent Internalizing Problems and Self-Esteem(2010) Dashiell-Aje, Ebony N.; Rubin, Kenneth H; Human Development; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Parents are among the most important socializing agents in adolescents' lives. The purpose of the current study was to examine the prospective relations between family processes and leisure activity involvement across the high school transition. Specifically, I explored the meditational role of adolescent psychological well-being (internalizing problems and self-esteem) in these relations. The first aim of the present study included two dimensions: 1) to examine whether there were prospective relations between family processes (maternal and paternal parenting) and adolescent leisure involvement across the high school transition; and 2) to investigate the extent to which psychological well-being mediated the relations between family processes and adolescent leisure activity choices, based on Eccles and Harold's (1991) research linking parenting dimensions to leisure outcomes. The second aim of this study was to explore whether boys and girls differed in the extent to which their psychological well-being mediated the relations between family processes and leisure activity involvement from the 8th to the 9th grade. It was hypothesized that perceptions of maternal and paternal parenting would differentially relate to adolescent leisure activity intensity and enjoyment. Likewise, I hypothesized that internalizing problems and self-esteem would act as mediators in these relations. Finally, I hypothesized that gender would moderate some of the meditational relations. OLS regression and bootstrapping techniques were used to test simple mediation and moderated mediation for all variables. Significant mediation effects emerged for relations between perceptions of paternal involvement and sports intensity and enjoyment through internalizing problems. Additionally, internalizing problems mediated the relation between perceptions of paternal support and sports enjoyment. An indirect effect emerged for the relation between adolescent's perceptions of maternal negativity and arts enjoyment through self-esteem. Subsequent hierarchical regressions revealed significant gender by family process interactions when predicting leisure involvement and one significant gender by internalizing problems interaction effect emerged when predicting social activity enjoyment. These findings suggest that maternal and paternal parenting play significant and differential roles in adolescent leisure activity involvement across the high school transition. These results also suggest that adolescent psychological well-being effects the relations between adolescent perceptions of parenting and their leisure activity involvement.Item FACTORS AFFECTING RATES OF SOCIAL BUFFERING IN JUVENILE RHESUS MACAQUES (Macaca mulatta)(2010) Herman, Khalisa N.; Fox, Nathan A; Human Development; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)The purpose of the current study was to investigate genetic and experiential contributions to social buffering between juvenile non human primates. A second aim was to investigate the role of behavioral displays during social buffering, in order to explain social buffering deficits in primates with a history of early social deprivation (Winslow et al., 2003). A total of 31 male rhesus macaques (mean age of 2 years) were videotaped during a Novel Cage Test with and without their homecage partner, and immediately following, blood samples were collected under anesthesia. Subjects were either reared with mothers and peers (mother reared, n=15) or without their mothers in the continuous presence of peers (peer reared, n =16). Cortisol concentrations and rh5-HTTLPR genotypes (long ( l ) and short ( s ) alleles) were generated from blood samples ( l/l =20, l/s =10, and s/s =1), and videos were coded for a variety of stress and affiliation behaviors. Genotype and rearing differences in social buffering of stress behaviors and neuroendocrine function were assessed. Rates of social buffering were also compared between a group of high display subjects that exhibited frequent behavioral displays (n =21) compared to a low display group (n=10). Additionally, the behavioral data were subjected to a lag sequential analysis to examine levels of contingent responsiveness, or the likelihood of behavioral displays occurring before affiliative responses (Bakeman et al., 1997). The results revealed social buffering deficits in the short allele, peer reared, and low display groups. Both the peer reared and low display groups were found to engage in less affiliative behaviors compared to the mother reared and high display groups respectively, while the short allele group appeared to receive less benefit from the presence of a familiar partner. Additionally, contingent responsiveness was identified as a feature of social buffering for the entire sample, but did not explain group differences in social buffering. Taken as a whole, this study identifies genetic and experiential vulnerability factors for social buffering. Furthermore, it adds to our knowledge of how behavioral displays are used during social buffering.Item Reward modulation of inhibitory control during adolescence: An age related comparison of behavior and neural function(2010) Hardin, Michael George; Fox, Nathan A; Human Development; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)The developmental period of adolescence is distinguished by a transition from the dependent, family-oriented state of childhood to the autonomous, peer-oriented state of adulthood. Related to this transition is a distinct behavioral profile that includes high rates of exploration, novelty-seeking, and sensation-seeking. While this adolescent behavioral profile generally aids in the transition to autonomy, it comes at a cost and is often related to excessive risk-taking behavior. Current models attribute the adolescent behavioral profile to a developmental discordance between highly sensitive reward-related processes and immature inhibitory control processes. Specifically, reward-related processes appear to develop in a curvilinear manner characterized by a heightened sensitivity to reward that peaks during adolescence. On the other hand, inhibitory processes show a protracted linear developmental trajectory that begins in childhood and continues gradually throughout adolescence. Thus, the unique developmental trajectories of these two sets of processes leave the adolescent with highly sensitive, reward-driven processes that can only be moderately regulated by gradually developing inhibitory processes. Despite the usefulness of these models of adolescent behavior, they remain incompletely supported by data, as few studies specifically examine the interaction between reward-related and inhibitory processing. The current study addresses this particular gap in the adolescent neural development literature by administering a reward-modified inhibitory control task to children, adolescents, and young adults during functional neuroimaging. Three key findings emerged from the current study. First, adolescents showed greater inhibition-related neural responses than both adults and children when potential monetary reward was available. Second, adolescents reliably showed greater striatal recruitment with reward than both adults and children. These differences in striatal response occurred as all three age groups showed significant reward-related behavioral improvements. Third, when reward was not present, adolescents and children showed deficient inhibitory behavior relative to adults. Findings from this study support models proposing interactive relationships between heightened adolescent sensitivity to reward and protracted development of inhibitory control. Additionally, the current findings expand these models by suggesting heightened adolescent sensitivity to reward may facilitate developmentally inefficient inhibitory control processes in a bottom-up manner.Item The Maternal Role in Promoting Emotional Competence: Predicting Head Start Mothers' Expressiveness, Perceived Role, and Receptivity to Support(2010) Edwards, Nicole Megan; Lieber, Joan A.; Special Education; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Guided by Bioecological Systems Theory and Schema Theory, I investigated mothers' perceptions regarding the emotional development of their preschool children. Researchers acknowledge mothers' contributing role in influencing children's behavioral displays of emotion, but there is a dearth in the literature on mothers' emotion-related behaviors, beliefs, and needs. In my quantitative study, I collected self-report data from a mid-Atlantic, low-income, urban sample of Head Start mothers (n = 114) and assessed which child, mother, and/or community-based factors may predict the probability of mothers being high in negative expressiveness, low in positive expressiveness, not strongly supportive of the literature in their perceived role in emotional development, and not highly receptive to parent-focused support. I pretested my devised Perceived Role and Receptivity to Support measure and conducted interviewer-administered interviews (using my devised measure, the Parenting Stress Scale, the Early Childhood Behavior Problem Screening Scale, and the Self-Expressiveness in the Family Questionnaire). Results supported only a few instances of group uniformity, with mostly group variability in Head Start mothers' emotion-related behaviors, beliefs and needs. Further, logistic regression analyses suggested: (1) mothers are likely to be high in negative expressiveness when raising a preschooler with a combination of internalizing and externalizing behaviors, high in parenting stress, and obtaining at least an Associate's degree; (2) mothers are predicted to be less positive in expressiveness when raising a preschooler with a delay, not having had any child in the family receive specialized services, raising only one child, dropping out of high school, and not having received advice from Head Start staff; (3) mothers are predicted to be less supportive of the purported role of mothers in the literature when raising only one child and not having received behavior advice from Head Start staff; (4) mothers are predicted to be lower in receptiveness to parent-focused support when raising a preschooler with no perceived behavior concerns, anticipating maladaptive behaviors to improve with age, raising only one child, dropping out of high school, and having had fewer outreach efforts in the past. I discuss implications for research and practice, including how results may inform early screening and parenting intervention initiatives.Item Mobile phone usage among youth in India: A Case Study(2010) Matanhelia, Priyanka; Beasley, Maurine H; Journalism; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)This study explored the use of mobile phones among young adults in India. The study used the theoretical frameworks of uses and gratifications approach from media studies, social-cognitive domain theory from human development literature and social construction of technology (SCOT) from Science and Technology studies. The main objective of the study was to examine the use of mobile phones to fulfill communication, media and age-related needs by young people in India and to investigate regional and gender differences. The study was conducted in two phases using a mixed-methods approach. In the first phase, in-depth interviews were conducted with 30 college-going young adults (18 - 24 years) in Mumbai and Kanpur in December 2007 and January 2008. In the second phase, a survey was conducted with 400 college-going young adults (18 - 24 years) in Mumbai and Kanpur. The qualitative analysis of the data showed that young people in both the cities used cell phones for a variety of communication, news and entertainment needs. Additionally they considered cell phones as personal items and used them to store private content, maintain privacy and have private conversations. Further, the analysis showed that they used cell phones to negotiate independence from parents and to maintain friendships and create friendships with members of opposite sex. The quantitative analysis of the data revealed that young people in the two cities used cell phones differently due to the differences in their lifestyles and socio-cultural factors. Additionally, the study found there were only a few gender differences in the use of cell phones by young people, mainly in the use of cell phones for entertainment purposes, negotiation of independence from parents and in forming friendships with members of opposite sex. Finally the study concluded that young people in India mainly use cell phones for private communication and needs.Item The Emotion Comprehension Test: Selected Psychometric Properties of a New Measure of Emotion Understanding for Preschoolers(2009) Gustafson, Emily Anne; Teglasi, Hedwig; Counseling and Personnel Services; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)This study examines the psychometric properties, including internal consistency and item difficulty of a new measure of emotion understanding through quantitative analysis. Intercorrelations between the three subtest of the measure, correlations with age and gender, and response patterns were also examined. Emotion understanding is the ability to identify the emotions of others from facial expressions and behaviors and to understand what emotions are likely to be elicited by common social situations. Emotion understanding begins to emerge in the preschool years and serves as the foundation for social competence. The Emotion Comprehension Test (ECT) is a new measure of emotion understanding for preschoolers, which uses photographs of real children to depict natural emotional facial expressions to assess emotion identification. The measure also uses puppets to act out social situations associated with common emotions and behaviors associated with emotions. Internal consistency of the three subtests were found to be r = .699 for the Emotion Identification subtest, r = .805 for the Emotion - Situations subtest, and r = .614 for the Emotion - Behaviors subtest.Item The Inluence of Cultural Identity and Intergroup Contact on Adolescents' Evaluations of Arab-Jewish Peer Relationships(2009) Brenick, Alaina Faye; Killen, Melanie; Human Development; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Recent research has documented the negative intergroup attitudes between Jewish and Arab youth and adults in the Middle East (Bar-Tal & Teichman, 2005; Brenick et al., 2007; Cole et al., 2003), yet little is known about how these negative intergroup biases manifest in the same cultural communities removed from the daily stress and tension of an intractable conflict, and living in the U.S. Moreover, while negative intergroup tensions between Jews and Arabs and, cultural stereotyping, prejudice, and discrimination towards Muslim and Arab groups have increased in the U.S. (Alliance of Civilizations, 2006; Sheridan, 2006), they may still benefit from increased opportunities to engage in intergroup contact, which has been shown to reduce intergroup prejudice (see Pettigrew & Tropp, 2005). However, these attitudes have yet to receive much empirical scrutiny in the developmental literature. The present study investigated age related changes in the influence of intergroup contact and cultural identification on evaluations of Arab-Jewish intergroup friendships. The focus of this study was on how Jewish-American, Arab-American, and unaffiliated (e.g., non-Jewish, non-Arab) American adolescents evaluate exclusion and inclusion in peer situations between Jewish and Arab youth in the peer, home, and community contexts. This study surveyed 953 ninth and twelfth graders (36 Arab participants, 306 Jewish participants, and 591 unaffiliated participants (259 in the Jewish comparison group and 332 in the Arab comparison group). Overall, all participants were primarily rejecting of intergroup exclusion, more so when the exclusion was based on cultural group membership than when no reason for the exclusion was specified. Further, males were more accepting of the intergroup exclusion and more accepting of including an ingroup member as compared to females. Context effects emerged revealing that intergroup exclusion was considered most acceptable in the community context and the least acceptable in the friendship context. The interactive influence of intergroup contact and cultural identification demonstrated that high levels of intergroup contact and high levels of identity commitment predicted less accepting ratings of intergroup exclusion, whereas high levels of intergroup contact and high levels of identity exploration, led to more accepting ratings of intergroup exclusion. These interactions varied by cultural group.Item An Experimental Evaluation of After School Program Participation on Problem Behavior Outcomes: Does Pre-Existing Risk Moderate the Effects of Program Participation?(2009) Cross, Amanda Brown; Gottfredson, Denise C; Criminology and Criminal Justice; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Background: Some prevention programs negatively affect participants. Previous research indicates that peers can cause these negative effects. However, little is known about which students may be most vulnerable to negative peer effects in prevention interventions. Purpose: This study tests the effect of participation in an after-school program (ASP) on student outcomes of peer delinquency, problem behavior and antisocial attitudes and beliefs for students of differing pre-test levels of risk for those outcomes. Drawing on social learning theory, this study examines whether low- and moderate- risk students in the intervention are more likely to acquire delinquent behaviors and beliefs in the ASP than their already-delinquent counterparts. Participants: 447 middle school students attending underperforming schools in Baltimore County, Maryland. Intervention: The data are drawn from an experimental evaluation of an after school program which operated in five middle schools in Baltimore County during the 2006-2007 academic year. The overall evaluation of the program found null effects on the wide range of measured outcomes (including academic achievement and delinquency). I explore whether the lack of beneficial program effects is partially attributable to negative effects among low and moderate risk participants who absorbed negative beliefs and behaviors from high-risk peers in the ASP. Research Design: Randomized, controlled field trial. Findings: Results indicate that low- and moderate- risk youth are not more likely to experience negative outcomes than high-risk youths. On the contrary, low-risk participants are less likely to experience negative effects than high-risk participants. Students who began the program with elevated negative peer influences grew in this characteristic if they often participated in the ASP but declined in negative peer influences if they less often attended the program. Implications for universal prevention are discussed.Item BEYOND STATISTICAL LEARNING IN THE ACQUISITION OF PHRASE STRUCTURE(2009) Takahashi, Eri; Lidz, Jeffrey; Linguistics; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)The notion that children use statistical distributions present in the input to acquire various aspects of linguistic knowledge has received considerable recent attention. But the roles of learner's initial state have been largely ignored in those studies. What remains unclear is the nature of learner's contribution. At least two possibilities exist. One is that all that learners do is to collect and compile accurately predictive statistics from the data, and they do not have antecedently specified set of possible structures (Elman, et al. 1996; Tomasello 2000). On this view, outcome of the learning is solely based on the observed input distributions. A second possibility is that learners use statistics to identify particular abstract syntactic representations (Miller & Chomsky 1963; Pinker 1984; Yang 2006). On this view, children have predetermined linguistic knowledge on possible structures and the acquired representations have deductive consequences beyond what can be derived from the observed statistical distributions alone. This dissertation examines how the environment interacts with the structure of the learner, and proposes a linking between distributional approach and nativist approach to language acquisition. To investigate this more general question, we focus on how infants, adults and neural networks acquire the phrase structure of their target language. This dissertation presents seven experiments, which show that adults and infants can project their generalizations to novel structures, while the Simple Recurrent Network fails. Moreover, it will be shown that learners' generalizations go beyond the stimuli, but those generalizations are constrained in the same ways that natural languages are constrained. This is compatible with the view that statistical learning interacts with inherent representational system, but incompatible with the view that statistical learning is the sole mechanism by which the existence of phrase structure is discovered. This provides novel evidence that statistical learning interacts with innate constraints on possible representations, and that learners have a deductive power that goes beyond the input data. This suggests that statistical learning is used merely as a method for mapping the surface string to abstract representation, while innate knowledge specifies range of possible grammars and structures.Item Connecting the forgotten half: The school-to-work transition of non-college bound youth(2009) Ling, Thomson Joseph; O'Brien, Karen; Kivlighan, Dennis; Psychology; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)When we think of high school students making the transition to adulthood, most of us picture students pursuing a college or university education. However, for many individuals, this image is not the case. For some youth, the transition to adulthood is marked by entrance into the workforce. While previous research has examined the school-to-work transition of non-college-bound youth, most only have considered a limited set of variables and only examined job attainment. By considering job quality and employment stability in addition to job attainment, the present study examined the school-to-work transition of non-college bound youth using a nationally representative sample of youth followed longitudinally. Using data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, 1997 Cohort, we examined a comprehensive set of predictors within an ecological framework. This study sought to determine: "What were the predictors of job attainment, stability of employment, and job quality for youth who are making the school-to-work transition?" Logistic regression and structural equation modeling were used to examine the hypotheses. With regard to job attainment, depression, substance use, adolescent educational attainment, and employment in adolescence were associated with obtaining employment. With regard to job quality and stability of employment, depression, substance use, adolescent educational attainment, employment in adolescence, parental educational attainment, and income were associated with these job characteristics. Parent-adolescent relationship and physical risk were not associated with job characteristics.