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.

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Subject: search.filters.subject.collective efficacy

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Now showing 1 - 4 of 4
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    Cyberbullying: an examination of victimization, parent-child communication, collective efficacy and safe behaviors online among young adolescents
    (2018) McHugh, Meaghan Conte; Gold, Robert S; Public and Community Health; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
    Each year, approximately 10%-40% of adolescents are the victims of cruel online behaviors such as posting embarrassing photos or videos, purposeful exclusion, harassment, even threats of violence, often referred to as cyberbullying. Cyberbully victimization (CBV) during adolescence, a critical time for physical, mental and emotional development, might lead to adverse short and long-term health impacts and teach the adolescent to mistrust others while suggesting that it is appropriate for peers to intentionally harm each other. Numerous studies have reported the negative health impacts associated with CBV including both internalizing problems (i.e. depression, anxiety, loneliness, and low self-esteem) as well as externalizing problems (i.e. self-harm and drug use). CBV has also been linked to suicide. The current study examined suspected protective factors of CBV from a social ecological model including: demographic and Internet behaviors (individual characteristics), parent-child communication about Internet use (Interpersonal or relationships) and collective efficacy (school community). Data were obtained from a convenience sample of 1,249 young adolescents through a web-based survey administered in multiple public-school classrooms. An important feature of this study was a comparison of a multi-item scale of repeated cyberbully behaviors suggesting that 37% of adolescents were CBV with females (38%) and 8th graders (43%) at greatest risk, compared to a binary item that suggested that only 12% of adolescents were victims (females:13% and 8th graders:15% at greatest risk). Several statistically significant correlates of CBV were identified in this study including safe behaviors online and number of hours on the Internet, quality parent-child communication, and school collective efficacy. For our sample, safe behaviors online partially mediated the association between quality parent-child communication and CBV. Research is needed to understand the mechanism by which parent-child communication might protect against CBV. Suggestions for future prevention and intervention strategies for this complex public health challenge are discussed.
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    COLLECTIVE EFFICACY, THREAT, AND URBAN CHANGE: EXAMINING SOCIAL CONTROL FORCES IN AREAS OF GENTRIFICATION
    (2015) Kozey, Kathryn Noe; Paternoster, Raymond; Criminology and Criminal Justice; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
    Since the term gentrification was first coined in the 1960s, scholars have had an interest in understanding how this process of change can impact neighborhoods. Empirical research focusing on the relationship between gentrification and crime has yielded varying results, with little examination of the contextual mechanisms which may influence the relationship. In addition, little empirical attention has been devoted to the possibility of the spatial displacement of crime due to gentrification. The purpose of this dissertation is to contribute to our understanding of how gentrification impacts levels of crime in three ways. First, using data from the U.S. Census, the Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods, and the Chicago Transit Authority, I examine whether gentrification is significantly associated with lower levels of crime. Second, I examine levels of crime in gentrifying and adjacent areas to assess the presence of spatial displacement. Third, I incorporate two contextual factors - collective efficacy and perceived neighborhood change - to examine whether or not they modify the relationship between gentrification and crime. Analyses utilize multilevel modeling techniques and difference-in-differences estimation. Results offer preliminary support for the moderating roles of collective efficacy and perceived neighborhood change mechanisms on the relationship between gentrification and crime. While there is an overall negative association between gentrification and crime, this effect is strengthened with collective efficacy, but reversed with rising levels of perceived neighborhood change. Additionally, there is preliminary evidence that the spatial displacement of crime is not occurring as a result of gentrification. I conclude this dissertation with a discussion of the limitations, policy implications, and future directions for this area of research.
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    Teachers' Perceptions of the Sources of Collective Efficacy in an Organizational Environment Conducive to Collective Learning
    (2011) Williams, Letitia Marion; Mawhinney, Hanne; Education Policy, and Leadership; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
    Collective teacher efficacy has emerged as a significant predictor of student achievement and is theorized to influence teachers' actions in ways that improve student learning. Bandura's theory of efficacy formation posits that efficacy beliefs are formed from the perception and interpretation of four sources of efficacy. This qualitative study explored the organizational antecedents of collective teacher efficacy, specifically, how the organizational context of the school, conceptualized as a professional learning community (PLC) influenced teachers' perceptions and interpretations of the sources of efficacy. Teachers were interviewed and observed interacting with faculty and administrators. The study found that the PLC conditions shared vision, collective learning, and shared and supportive leadership had the most significant impact on teachers' collective efficacy beliefs. In addition, the student demographic, predominantly minority, low-income students, influenced how teachers conceptualized the teaching task and how they assessed the competence of their colleagues. Individual-level attributes such as years of teaching experience also accounted for differences in teachers' perceptions and interpretations of efficacy sources. Finally, the study found support for the importance of the principal's role in the development of teachers' collective efficacy beliefs.
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    Investigating the Relationship Between Micro and Macro Levels of Efficacy and Their Effects on Crime
    (2010) Ahlin, Eileen M.; Paternoster, Raymond; Criminology and Criminal Justice; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
    The concepts of self-efficacy and collective efficacy have both been used by scholars to explain involvement in individual-level crime. Scholars have found that both types of efficacy are related to crime at the individual level. However, little research has examined the relationship between self-efficacy and collective efficacy and its influence on youths' involvement in crime. Using the Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods (PHDCN) data, this study focuses on the independent influences of self-efficacy and collective efficacy on involvement in crime among youths ages 9 to 19, and examines the potential moderating effect of collective efficacy on the relationship between self-efficacy and crime. The relationship between self-efficacy, collective efficacy, and crime is addressed by asking three questions. First, does a general measure of youth's self-efficacy influence their involvement in crime? Second, does a macro level measure of collective efficacy influence youths' involvement in crime? Third, does collective efficacy moderate the relationship between self-efficacy and crime? To control for the contexts in which youths live and individual-level factors that can influence involvement in crime, and may influence efficacy, neighborhood context, family context, and individual-level demographic variables are also examined. Using Hierarchical Linear Modeling, the analyses indicate mixed support for a relationship between efficacy and individual-level involvement in crime. First, a significant negative relationship exists between self-efficacy and crime. Second, no significant effects emerge between collective efficacy and crime. Third, collective efficacy completely moderates the relationship between self-efficacy and crime, but not in the expected direction. After controlling for collective efficacy, the significant negative relationship between self-efficacy and crime is nullified. The conclusion then is that a general measure of self-efficacy influences a youth's involvement in crime, while a macro level measure of collective efficacy does not. Areas of future research and implications for theory and policy are discussed.