UMD Theses and Dissertations
Permanent URI for this collectionhttp://hdl.handle.net/1903/3
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Item FORMATIVE RESEARCH TO ASSESS KEY FACTORS ASSOCIATED WITH THE DIET QUALITY OF HOME-PACKED LUNCHES IN YOUNG SCHOOL CHILDREN(2018) Nadaud, Perrine; Song, Hee-Jung; Nutrition; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)In the United States, about 46% of elementary students who are not eligible for school meal (SM) benefits do not participate in the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) and bring home-packed lunches (HPL). With considerable criticism directed at the NSLP, parents may believe that they can pack healthier lunches that respond better to their children’s tastes than the SM. Nonetheless, previous studies have found that HPL needed nutritional improvement. This study’s objective was to assess how key parent psychosocial factors related to young school-aged children’s diet quality. Using a cross-sectional study design, nine public schools were randomly selected in one school district in Maryland. In-depth interviews with principals and vice-principals were conducted and a web-based survey was sent to kindergarten and first-grade teachers. Parents of children, in those grades, who frequently consume HPL were invited to complete a web-based survey and to report their children’s food intake using the Automated Self-Administered 24-hour Recall (ASA24-2016). Children’s diet quality was assessed using the HEI-201 and HEI-2015. 19 teachers and 100 parents completed the survey. 71 parents reported at least one day of their child’s food intake. Interviews with 15 school administrators revealed that HPL contain too much food and are nutritionally diverse depending on children’s country of origin. The survey showed that more than half of the teachers considered HPL more nutritious than SM. Moreover, children’s overall diet quality was better when parents scored higher their self-efficacy for enacting healthy diet behaviors in their children and when parents were more closely monitoring their child’s food intake. Children of parents with the same higher self-efficacy had better total vegetable scores and were consuming more vegetables in their HPL. They also had better empty calories scores, and more precisely better added sugars scores and were consuming less added sugars in their HPL. Future interventions aiming to improve HPL’s nutritional quality should take into account school lunch policies and the cafeteria environment and incorporate parents’ key psychosocial variables.Item STUDENTS’ ACHIEVEMENT EMOTIONS IN CHINESE CHEMISTRY CLASSROOMS(2017) Gong, Xiaoyang; Ketelhut, Diane Jass; Education Policy, and Leadership; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Achievement emotions are critical for students’ academic performance and career choices. The previous literature has focused on one specific type of achievement emotions – test anxiety – in Western contexts and neglected other various emotions experienced in different occasions such as attending classes. The present study aims to address the research gap by examining students’ achievement emotions in a specific cultural and subject context – Chinese high school chemistry classrooms. Subjects were 103 16 or 17-year-old eleventh-grade students (45 female and 58 male) from two chemistry classes in the same high school in China. The qualitative and quantitative data was collected from four sources: pre- and post- surveys, open-response questions, classroom observations and teacher/student interviews. This dissertation examined Chinese students’ achievement emotions from both theoretical and practical perspectives. First, it theoretically investigated the dimensions of Chinese students’ achievement emotions in traditional chemistry classrooms and how these dimensions were related to its antecedent (i.e., chemistry self-efficacy) and effect (i.e., classroom engagement). The factor analysis indicated two distinct factors emerged from Chinese students’ emotions: positive emotions and shame (one specific type of negative emotions). The structural equation modeling showed that both chemistry self-efficacy and positive emotions were significant and positive predictors of students’ classroom engagement. Chemistry self-efficacy also significantly and positively predicted students’ positive emotions while predicting students’ perceptions of shame negatively. However, the path from shame to classroom engagement was not significant after controlling for positive emotions. Second, it practically explored how one specific pedagogical strategy of integrating the computer simulation – a visualization tool to review content knowledge – influenced students’ perceptions of achievement emotions and related affective variables (i.e., chemistry self-efficacy and engagement). Independent sample t-tests showed that the computer simulation significantly increased students’ chemistry self-efficacy beliefs and positive emotions. In contrast, its effects on negative emotions and classroom engagement were not significant. By scrutinizing qualitative data from different sources, I provided explanations for the computer simulation’s role in influencing the above four affective variables.Item A BOOK READING WORKSHOP IN A TRANSITIONAL HOME: PARENTAL EXPERIENCES, SELF-EFFICACY, AND PRACTICES WHEN TAUGHT CODES OF THE CULTURE OF POWER(2013) Crassas, Maria Elliker; Afflerbach, Peter P; Curriculum and Instruction; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)In this case study, I explored parents' experiences, self-efficacy, and practices in supporting their children as readers. These factors were explored while parents who were homeless attended a book-reading workshop in a transitional home, in which the primary focus was mainstream book-reading practices, which I refer to as "codes." To examine parental experiences, self-efficacy, and practices, I collected data over a ten week period of time, through interviews, observations of workshop sessions, focus groups, unscheduled meetings, and a post-workshop survey. Participants included five parents and their nine children. For additional data, I also interviewed and held a focus group for staff members who worked closely with the participating families after the workshop had concluded. In examining parental experiences, I found that relationships and interactions, including those with the workshop implementer/researcher, other parents, and children were crucial in contributing to a positive experience. Additionally, parents and children were enthusiastic during the workshop about reading and about new vocabulary. However, parents also encountered many challenges in supporting their children as readers, which contributed negatively to experiences. In regard to parental self-efficacy, parents demonstrated their self-efficacy through reporting their own or their children's reading skills, their comfort level in reading with their children, their current practices, and their knowledge of supportive practices. Parents also strengthened their self-efficacy through positive feedback from their children, each other, and the researcher/implementer. Negative factors toward self-efficacy included a perceived lack of reading skills and a lack of time and energy. In regard to practices, parents already valued mainstream reading "codes" and were open to learning more about mainstream practices. Social, school-related, and economic factors were also found to influence parental experiences, self-efficacy, and practices. Context was found to greatly influence power dynamics as well as self-efficacy. Implications for practice and research include a continued focus on building relationships between parents and educators, a continued focus on self-efficacy and agency, a focus on the role of siblings, and a need to continue programs that instruct mainstream "codes," while also highlighting and building on parents' current supportive practices.Item SUPERVISORY STYLES, SUPERVISION OUTCOME AND COUNSELOR SELF-EFFICACY OF ADDICTION TREATMENT PROFESSIONALS(2012) Berger, Gisela P.; Holcomb-McCoy, Cheryl; Counseling and Personnel Services; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Due to the paucity of research in the addictions treatment field regarding supervision, this research study sought to examine the style, type and outcome of supervision of addictions treatment professionals and how it relates to supervisee self-efficacy. Thus, the primary purpose of this study is to quantify the addictions treatment professional's supervision outcome in relation to other variables including supervisory style, supervisory type, and demographic variables. The research questions of the present study are as follows: 1. What do addictions treatment counselors perceive as the overall supervisory style of their clinical supervisors? 2. Does the supervisory style of clinical supervisors of addictions treatment counselors predict the outcome of supervision? 3. What type of delivery style of supervision do addictions treatment counselors receive? 4. Is there a significant relationship between supervision outcome and specific demographic characteristics of addictions treatment professionals (e.g., age, years of experience, recovery status, gender, formal education)? 5. What is the relationship between perceived addictions treatment counselor self-efficacy and perceptions of supervision outcome? 6. Can supervision outcome be predicted from addiction treatment counselor perceived supervisory style and perceived self-efficacy? This study discussed the definition of supervision, types and techniques of supervision, models, and mechanisms. The supervisory relationship, supervision outcome, and supervision effectiveness were discussed in relation to other areas of mental health counseling. When discussing these areas in terms of the addictions treatment field, the lack of empirically valid research was noted. The many different types of supervision (e.g., individual, group, peer, etc.) and different styles were also discussed. Though styles have been variously defined, this research study used the supervisory styles as defined by Friedlander & Ward (1984) which include the Attractive, Interpersonally Sensitive, and Task Oriented subscales. The methodology included a pilot study to refine the instruments that were ultimately used for this study. Several changes were made to the original instruments and these changes focused mainly on defining terms used in rating supervisors. The three instruments that were used include the Supervisory Styles Inventory (SSI; Friedlander & Ward, 1984), The Supervision Outcome Questionnaire (SOQ; Worthington and Roehlke (1979) and the Counselor Self-Efficacy Scale (COSES; Melchert, et. al., 1996). A demographic questionnaire was included to gather information regarding demographic variables and supervisory style. The results indicate that supervisees have a fairly positive overall perception of the supervisory style of their supervisors. Supervisory style was found to be predictive of supervision outcome with a positive linear relationship. The delivery style of supervision for this sample was noted. There were no demographic variables that predicted type of supervision. Counselor self-efficacy was found to be not statistically significant relative to supervision outcome. A linear relationship was found between supervision style, counselor self-efficacy, and supervision outcome such that when overall supervision style increases and self-efficacy decreases slightly, then supervision outcome can be predicted. Finally, the implications for training of supervisors in the addictions treatment field was discussed as well as the implications for future research. The study's limitations were also discussedItem Impact of Self-efficacy, Outcome Expectations and Affect on Requesting Job Accommodations among Individuals with Disabilities(2011) Dong, Shengli; MacDonald-Wilson, Kim L; Counseling and Personnel Services; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)High unemployment rates and low job retention rates are challenges still faced by persons with disabilities. Despite empirical evidence showing the positive impact of requesting and using job accommodations on job retention and career development (Ellison, Russinova, MacDonald-Wilson, & Lyass, 2003; McNulty, 2007), the request and use of job accommodations is low among persons with disabilities (Allaire, 2001; Hutton, 2006). The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of factors that contributed to decisions for requesting job accommodations. Specifically, the researcher focused on the impact of self-efficacy, outcome expectations, and affect (feelings and emotions) on decisions about requesting job accommodations through the framework of Social Cognitive Career Theory using structural equation modeling (SEM). The proposed accommodation model fits the data well in that eight out of nine hypotheses were confirmed. Self-efficacy, outcome expectation, and affect were found to have direct structural relationships with requesting accommodations. Furthermore, self-efficacy mediated the relationship between positive affect and intention to request accommodations; outcome expectation mediated the relationship between self-efficacy and intention to request accommodations. The researcher also explored the extent to which job accommodation-specific variables not associated with the Social Cognitive Career Theory predicted job accommodation over and above the variables in the proposed accommodation request model (self-efficacy, outcome expectations, and affect) through a hierarchical regression analysis. The three variables in the proposed model were found to account for 50.2% of the variance in intention to request accommodations; the accommodation-specific variables were found to account for an additional 7.7% of the variance.Item A Grounded Theory of Lesbian and Gay Leadership Self-Efficacy Development(2011) Ostick, Daniel Townsend; Komives, Susan R.; Counseling and Personnel Services; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)The purpose of this study was to explore the experiences of gay and lesbian college students engaged in leadership and the meaning they made of their leadership self-efficacy development, particularly as it related to their identity development and various environmental assisters and constraints. The study sought to identity what shaped the development of leadership self-efficacy for these students and generated additional questions for future research. Using Grounded Theory Methodology, this study explored the primary research question: How do gay and lesbian college students engaged in leadership develop their leadership self-efficacy? Three interviews were held each with 10 students who self-identified as gay, lesbian, queer, or sexually fluid who were highly involved in leadership activities on campus. The theory that emerged from the participants' experiences centered on the individual's self-efficacy to engage in leadership defined within the context of their beliefs about the nature of leadership engagement. The self-efficacy of the students was enhanced by support, success, and deep and broad involvement and was diminished by failure and active criticism. The students‟ gay, lesbian, or queer identities served to either improve self-efficacy or leadership or had no demonstrable effect, according to the participants‟ stories. Sexual orientation served to improve self-efficacy for engagement in leadership by broadening perspectives, improving relationships and comfort within groups, allowing the participants to bring their full selves to their experiences, creating empathy and understanding, and improving personal awareness. Participants also shared that their identities were integral to their involvements, that being out increased their overall self-confidence, that greater comfort led to greater involvement, and that visibility and voice was important to their leadership self-efficacy. Students also shared that their sexual orientation did not have an appreciable effect on their leadership self-efficacy when they already had a great deal of confidence to engage in leadership, when they had already integrated their sexual orientations, when situations did not relate to their sexual orientations, or when the saliency of their sexual orientations was lower than other aspects of their personality.