Human Development & Quantitative Methodology Theses and Dissertations

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Latino fathers' motivations, parental play, parent and friend relationship support, and children's socioemotional development from early childhood to adolescence in racially-ethnically diverse families
(2024) Ghosh, Rachel Alina; Cabrera, Natasha; Human Development; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
Parenting practices and parent-child relationship quality, shaped in part by parenting cognitions and beliefs, have a strong proximal contribution to the course and outcome of children’s development from early in the lifespan. However, much existent empirical knowledge about parenting comes from studies of White middle-class mothers and children, and there is far less evidence from racially, ethnically, and economically diverse families – especially from fathers. Through a collection of three interrelated studies, the present dissertation contributes to this literature with an examination of fathers’ parenting motivations, and mothers’ and fathers’ independent and interactive influences on child and adolescent socioemotional outcomes among diverse families. Empirical Paper 1 qualitatively explored what motivated first-time Latino fathers in the U.S. to be good parents for their infants, and examined differences in their motivations by nativity status. Fathers described five primary themes, with variation by nativity,in their parenting motivations: 1) personal rearing history, 2) desire to rear a well-adjusted child, 3) relationship with their child, 4) intrinsic motivations, and 5) sense of duty and responsibility. Empirical Paper 2 examined associations between mothers’ and fathers’ quality of play (i.e., challenging parenting behaviors, playfulness) at 18 months and toddlers’ social competence at 24 months, and tested whether child negative emotional temperament moderated these associations. Contrary to hypotheses, there were no significant associations between mothers’ or fathers’ two types of play and children’s social competence, and no significant moderation effects by negative emotionality. Empirical Paper 3 examined the interactive effects of adolescents’ level of support in their relationships with mothers, fathers, and best friends in the 8th grade and associations with depressive symptoms, anxiety symptoms, and externalizing problems in the 9th grade, as well as differences by adolescent sex. There were several interactive effects of the relationships on later depressive symptoms, though not on anxiety symptoms or externalizing problems, and few differences by adolescent sex. More support from one parent was related to fewer depressive symptoms when youth experienced an unsupportive relationship with the other parent or with a best friend. Taken together, the findings of these studies advance developmental theory and provide nuance to our understanding of mothering, fathering, and children’s and adolescents’ socioemotional developmental processes. These studies have implications for research and programs aimed at promoting the normative, healthy development of diverse youth through recognizing and capitalizing on the contributions of different members within the family system.
INHIBITION IS KEY: A COGNITIVE APPROACH TO SUCCESSFUL WORD PROBLEM SOLVING
(2024) Jaffe, Joshua Benjamin; Bolger, Donald J; Human Development; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
Numerical competency and reading comprehension skills are necessary, but insufficient for word problem success. Depending on the word problem structure, successful problem solving may require inhibiting the seemingly obvious and correct answer. Inhibitory control plays a significant role in processing and solving word problems. Through classroom practices and textbook problems, I argue that individuals form associations between relational terminology and specific mathematical operations (“more” for addition and “less” for subtraction), and the notion that all numerical values in a problem must be used to produce an answer. In this study, I proposed an inhibitory performance-based model that posits two approaches to problem solving: (a) a successful approach where solvers inhibit mathematical associations and form appropriate set schemas to conceptualize semantic relations, and (b) an association approach where solvers do not inhibit associations and therefore may have an inaccurate understanding of the semantic relations. To test the model, data were analyzed from 105 undergraduate students at the University of Maryland. The study consisted of four sections: cognitive skills, word problems, domain-specific inhibitory control tasks, and a semi-structured interview. The word problem section included problems that were both consistent and inconsistent with an individual’s operational and numerical associations. Overall, the quantitative results identified that participants performed significantly worse on inconsistent problems. Further, the data suggest that failure to correctly answer inconsistent problems may be due to inhibitory control rather than other cognitive skills. The qualitative data indicated that a vast majority of participants believed in both mathematical associations and remembered classroom experiences that may have contributed to these beliefs. While inhibitory control has been suggested to play a significant role in word problem performance, this is one of the first studies to explicitly examine the relationship through domain-specific inhibitory control tasks and an interview. These results guide a path for future research to examine how individuals develop mathematical associations and for interventions to dissuade their usage.
THE USE OF RANDOM FORESTS IN PROPENSITY SCORE WEIGHTING
(2023) Zheng, Yating; Stapleton, Laura; Measurement, Statistics and Evaluation; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
An important problem of social science research is the estimate of causal effects in observationalstudies. Propensity score methods, as effective ways to remove selection bias, have been widely used in estimating causal effects in observational studies. An important step of propensity score methods is to estimate the propensity score. Recently, a machine learning method, random forests, has been proposed as an alternative to the conventional method of logistic regression to estimate the propensity score as it requires less stringent assumptions and provides less biased and more reliable estimate of the treatment effect. However, previous studies only covered limited conditions with a small number of covariates and medium sample sizes, leaving the generalizability of the results in doubt. In addition, previous studies have seldom explored how to choose the hyper-parameters in random forests in the context of propensity score methods. This dissertation, via a simulation study, aims to 1) make a more comprehensive comparison between the use of random forests and logistic regression to determine which model performs better under what conditions, 2) explore the effects of the hyperparameters on the estimate of the treatment effect in propensity score weighting. An empirical study is also used as an illustration about how to choose the hyperparameters in random forests using propensity score weighting in practical settings.
Knowledge and Attitudes of Montessori Teachers of Young Children as a Context for Guiding the Normalization and Self-Construction Process
(1994) Schaefer Zener, Rita; Flatter, Charles; Human Development & Quantitative Methodology; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, MD)
The purpose of this study was (1) to investigate the degree of agreement between AMI trained Montessori teachers' knowledge and attitudes and Montessori's recommendations for guiding the process of normalization among young children and (2) to discover the reasons for differences from those recommendations. Normalization is the central process in the Montessori method. Except for a study by this investigator (Zener, 1993) guiding the process of normalization had not been researched since Montessori's work some forty-five to eighty-five years ago. Therefore, this investigation also provided current teacher experiences of guiding the process of normalization. One hundred sixty five Montessori teachers attending various regional and national conferences were surveyed with knowledge and attitude scales. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 10% of the participants. Mean scale scores from 4.0 to 5.0 on a five degree Likert scale and a SD less than 1.0 were projected as satisfactory levels of agreement with Montessori's recommendations. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the scales, and content analysis was used to analyze the interviews. T-tests and ANOVAS indicated that demographic variables were not significant to the results.
Special Classes and Group Therapy: An Evaluation of Their Effects on Achievement and Behavior in a Public School Setting
(1971) Weinstein, Howard G.; Goering, Jacob; Human Development & Quantitative Methodology; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, MD)
This investigation was designed to test the relative effectiveness of four educational-treatment methods of providing adequate services for children with special learning problems in elementary school Special Learning Problems classes. The focus was on the relative effectiveness of these methods in bringing about positive achievement and behavior change. The subjects were 50 elementary school pupils enrolled in e ight existing Special Learning Problems (SLP) classes in Fairfax County, Virginia. The Ss represented a wide range of behavioral and/or educational disorders reflected in an equally wide range of inappropriate behavior and/or educational retardation of at least one, and generally two years. Each of the eight pre-established SLP classes was randomly assigned to one of four educational-treatment groups. Two SLP classes were assigned to each treatment group. The experimental methods consisted of special class placement and: (A) "Child Therapy Only" (CTO); (B) "Parent Therapy-Only" (PTO); (C) "Child and Parent Therapy" (CPT). In addition, a "Special Class-Only" (SEO) control group was included. Subjects in the CTO and CPT groups participated in 24, 90-minute group therapy sessions. The parents of the children in the CPT and PTO groups received 24, 90-minute parent group therapy sessions. The SEO (control) group did not receive group therapy nor did their parents. Group therapy sessions were conducted by trained and experienced group therapists from the Mental Health Center. The California Achievement Tests, The Wide Range Achievement Test, the Behavior Rating Scale, and the Human Figure Drawing Test were administered in mid-October, 1969 and repeated in mid-April, 1970. The difference between pre- and post-test scores were computed and the differences between treatment groups' mean gain scores were tested for significance by means of t-ratios. The null hypotheses tested were: Hypothesis 1. There will be no significant differences in mean gain scores on any of the achievement measures or on the behavior ratings between the control group (SEO) and any of the experimental groups (CTO, PTO, CPT). Hypothesis 2. No significant differences in mean gain scores on any of the achievement measures or on the behavior ratings will be found between the three experimental groups (CTO, PTO, CPT). Hypothesis 3. There will b e no significant differences in mean gain scores on any of the achievement measures or on the behavior ratings between those students designated as NEW (1st year SLP) and those FORMER students in SLP classes. The analyses of the results from the achievement and behavior measures provided, with only three exceptions, support for not rejecting the null hypotheses. With regard to Hypotheses 1 and 2, although only two comparisons reached statistical significance (i. e. , the CPT group obtained significantly higher CAT-Reading and WRAT-Arithmetic gains than the SEO group), it was found that the achievement mean gain scores were generally greater for the CPT group than for either the SEO group or for either of the other two experimental groups (CTO and PTO). In contrast, the SEO group obtained a greater behavior scale mean gain than any of the three experimental groups (CTO, PTO, CPT), although this difference did not reach significance. With only one exception (WRAT-Arithmetic), no significant differences were found between the NEW and FORMER groups. Subsequent to the experimental period, the NEW students demonstrated a significantly greater mean gain in Arithmetic than their FORMER group counterparts. Behaviorally, the FORMER group obtained a greater mean behavior rating gain than the NEW group, although not statistically significant. In general, the present findings provided no evidence for differential favorable effects from any of the educational-treatment methods utilized in terms of significantly greater achievement or behavioral gains. However, some noted trends were suggestive of the fact that perhaps each of the four educational-treatment methods is best suited for different situations, goals, and subjects. Further research was recommended.
The Effectiveness of Differential Social Reinforcement Strategies in Facilitating Achievement Behavior of Lower Socioeconomic Status, Primary Grade Children
(1971) Fishman, Harold; Matteson, Richard; Human Development & Quantitative Methodology; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, MD)
This study was designed to ascertain whether Positive Social Reinforcement (PSR), Negative Social Reinforcement (NSR) and the condition of no verbal feedback (Control) have a differential motivational effect on the achievement behavior of low socioeconomic status, primary grade Ss. Two related objectives of this research were : (a) to determine whether black and white Ss are differentially motivated to achieve in response to the aforementioned three social reinforcement-feedback contingencies and (b) to determine whether Ss who are at different developmental levels are differentially motivated to achieve by these three classes of social reinforcement-feedback parameters.
A SELF-SELECTED QUALITATIVE STUDY EXAMING THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN A FATHER AND HIS SON WHO HAS ATTENTION DEFICIT HYPERACTIVITY DISORDER (ADHD)
(1996) Kilcarr, Patrick; Flatter, Charles; Human Development & Quantitative Methodology; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, MD)
The purpose of this interpretive study was to examine the relationship that exists between a father and his son Who has Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Since very little information is extant describing the relationship between a father and his son with ADHD, an interview format was developed to explore paternal perceptions, affect, and behaviors in relation to raising a son with ADHD. Sixteen fathers from an upper-middle class socioeconomic environment, participated in a one hour phone interview. These interviews were tape recorded and later transcribed. The interview attempted to answer the five research questions driving this study. The narrative data was interpreted by using a qualitative research method developed by Ranata Tesch. method involved extracting themes (specific participant responses) and collapsing the themes into larger-overarching categories called metathemes. Metathemes represent shared thoughts and perceptions held in common by all participants. Ten metathemes emerged from the data. The metathemes included such topics as a father's decision to place a child on medication and how and when to use behavior management strategies. Editorial comments from the author preceded response segments from participants (these segments were indented and single spaced). The data indicated that fathers share a unique relationship with sons who have ADHD. Prior to diagnosis, the majority of fathers described the relationship as tense, frustrating, and often unfulfilling. The relationship following diagnosis was described as significantly more Positive and rewarding. This was attributed to two specific changes: 1. the advent of education for fathers' regarding ADHD issues; and, 2. medication. Fathers agreed that the most effective behavior management strategy was to remain calm, educated, and realistic regarding their Childrens' behavior. The intention of this research was to generate further questions regarding the father-ADHD son relationship. The results of this study are not and cannot be generalized to other cultlures or social groups. Further research is needed which addresses the impact of race, class, and culture on the father and son with ADHD relationship.
The Effects of Variation in the Amount of Play Materials on the Play Behavior of the Preschool Child
(1978) Rechsteiner, Ann E.; Leeper, Sarah L.; Human Development & Quantitative Methodology; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, MD)
Major questions have arisen concerning the function of play in the development of the young child. Changing attitudes towards the significance of play reflect changing social patterns. The present study was concerned with the effect that a removal of a specified amount of play material had on the play behavior of young children. Ten intact groups of children from the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Area ranging in age from three to five years old were studied by this researcher. A time sampling technique using a modified version of DUSOPAC was used to measure the play behavior of the groups. The data collected by the observers were compiled and analysed using a one way ANOVA for a repeated measure design for each of the eleven variables (Disruptive, Unoccupied, Solitary, Onlooker, Parallel, Associative, Cooperative, Not Play, Child-Child, Child-Adult, Child-Self.) The findings indicated that a significant relationship (at the .05 significance level) existed between the amount of social play observed and the amount of play equipment that was available to the young child. Less social play was observed when the material was removed on the first treatment day than when the material was present. No significant relationships were observed between the amount of equipment available and the amount of non-social play, the amount of child-child interaction, the amount of child-self interaction, or the amount of child-adult interaction that occurred. Investigation of the mean score values revealed trends for both interaction patterns and play behavior. Females were found to display more child-self interaction behavior and males more child-child interaction behavior. Also, for all days of observation, regardless of treatment, the most frequently occurring interaction behavior was child-child followed by child-self. The least frequently occurring interaction behavior was child-adult. For play behavior for all days of observation, regardless of treatment, males displayed more disruptive, unoccupied, associative, cooperative, parallel and social play behavior than did females. Females were found to display more solitary, onlooker, not-play and non-social play behavior than were males. These findings were not in agreement with Langlois, Gottfried and Seay (1973), and Sitzky, Haywood and Isett (1970 ). The results of this study seem to indicate that there is a need for more research to 1) update earlier studies; 2) study the role of play in the development of social interactions; 3) investigate saturation levels of equipment as they relate to a child's play; 4) to explore in more detail environmental influences on play behavior.
Integrating Cognitive and Perceptual Processes in Mental Arithmetic
(2023) Medrano, Josh Rainier Lucas; Prather, Richard W; Human Development; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
Decades of research have established the importance of working memory in arithmetic computation (DeStefano & LeFevre, 2004). More recently, research has also shown that a formally irrelevant perceptual cue—spacing—can influence problem-solving (Landy & Goldstone, 2007). In a multi-operand problem, individuals solve less accurately and more slowly when the spacing between operands and operators is inconsistent with the order of operations (e.g., 2 x 3+4) compared to when spacing is consistent (e.g., 2x3 + 4). While this effect of physical spacing is widely demonstrated, it is unknown whether this perceptual cue also influences working memory. To examine this, I used a dual-task paradigm, wherein participants (N = 115 adults, mean = 32.41 years, median = 27.22, standard deviation = 15.56) evaluated an expression while completing either a visuospatial (dot pattern) or phonological (letter span) memory task. There were three conditions. The arithmetic stimuli differed between conditions: In the no-spacing (NS) condition, spacing was neutral for all arithmetic expressions; in the spacing-varying (SV) condition, spacing was neutral, consistent, or inconsistent; in the spacing-varying with parenthesis condition (SVP), spacing varied and there were parentheses around multiplied operands (e.g., (2 x 3)+4). The configuration of the working memory tasks was the same for all conditions. Analyses of variance tests (ANOVAs) of arithmetic and recall performance were conducted with spacing, working memory load (low and high) and type (visuospatial and phonological) as independent variables. Results showed that first, working memory load and type, as well as spacing, influenced arithmetic and recall performance, consistent with previous work and partially supporting our hypotheses. Second, compared to the SV condition, inconsistent spacing yielded higher arithmetic accuracy and spacing did not affect or interact with working memory in the SVP condition. Third, exploratory analyses showed that participants’ performance was influenced by math anxiety, age, and math education. Participants who had lower levels of math anxiety, were younger, and had taken three or more math classes after high school had, descriptively, higher arithmetic and recall accuracy. Overall, these results have theoretical implications particularly for mathematical cognition research, as well as practical implications, such as in the design of instructional materials.
Construct measurement error in latent social network relationship: An item response theory based latent space model
(2023) Ding, Yishan; Sweet, Tracy; Measurement, Statistics and Evaluation; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
Research on measurement error in social network analysis has primarily focused on proxy measurement error, which refers to inadequate or inaccurate observations of proxy measurements of social relationships. However, construct measurement error, a key concern in modern psychometric studies, has received less attention in social network studies. Construct measurement error is particularly relevant for social network relationships that are difficult or impossible to observe explicitly, such as friendships, which are better conceptualized as latent constructs. Historically, researchers have long advocated to use multi-item scales for social relationships to address construct measurement error (Marsden, 1990). However, there is a lack of methods tailored for multivariate social network analysis using multi-item measurements. Commonly, when data on social network ties is collected from multiple items, prevalent strategies involve either choosing a representative item or analyzing each item as a distinct network. To accommodate construct measurement error in social network analysis, this study proposes a new model, termed as IRT-LSM, that integrates an item response theory (IRT) model into a latent space model (LSM). The proposed method leverages the IRT model to take advantage of a multi-item scale to enhance the measurement of latent social relationships, providing a more comprehensive understanding of social relationships compared to relying on a single item. To evaluate the efficacy of this novel approach, the dissertation comprises three simulation studies: One assessing model feasibility and the impact of construct measurement error, a second exploring various misspecification models, and a third investigating the effects of item parameter distributions. Additionally, an empirical data analysis demonstrates the practical application of the IRT-LSM in real-world settings. The results underscore the effectiveness of the IRT-LSM in addressing construct measurement error. The model consistently yields unbiased estimates and demonstrates robustness against various factors influencing its performance across the simulated conditions. Notably, the IRT-LSM outperforms naive approaches that neglect construct measurement error, leading to divergent conclusions in the empirical data analyses.
A FINITE MIXTURE MULTILEVEL STRUCTURAL EQUATION MODEL FOR UNOBSERVED HETEROGENEITY IN RANDOM VARIABILITY
(2023) Feng, Yi; Hancock, Gregory R; Measurement, Statistics and Evaluation; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
Variability is often of key interest in various research and applied settings. Important research questions about intraindividual variability (e.g., consistency across repeated measurements) or intragroup variability (e.g., cohesiveness among members within a team) are piquing the interest of researchers from a variety of disciplines. To address the research needs in modeling random variability as the key construct, Feng and Hancock (2020, 2022) proposed a multilevel SEM-based modeling approach where variability can be modeled as a random variable. This modeling framework is a highly flexible analytical tool that can model variability in observed measures or latent constructs, variability as the predictor or the outcome, as well as the between-subject comparison of variability across observed groups. A huge challenge still remains, however, when it comes to modeling the unobserved heterogeneity in random variability. Given that no existing research addresses the methodological considerations of uncovering the unobserved sub-populations that differ in intraindividual variability or intragroup variability, or sub-populations that differ in the various processes and mechanisms involving intraindividual variability or intragroup variability, the current dissertation study aims to fill this gap in literature. In the current study, a finite-mixture MSEM for modeling unobserved heterogeneity in random variability (MMSEM-RV) is introduced. Bayesian estimation via MCMC is proposed for model estimation. The performance of MMSEM-RV with Bayesian estimation is systematically evaluated in a simulation study across varying conditions. An illustrative example with empirical PISA data is also provided to demonstrate the practical application of MMSEM-RV.
Characterizing the Adventitious Model Error as a Random Effect in Item-Response-Theory Models
(2023) Xu, Shuangshuang; Liu, Yang; Measurement, Statistics and Evaluation; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
When drawing conclusions from statistical inferences, researchers are usually concerned about two types of errors: sampling error and model error. The sampling error is caused by the discrepancy between the observed sample and the population from which the sample is drawn from (i.e., operational population). The model error refers to the discrepancy between the fitted model and the data-generating mechanism. Most item response theory (IRT) models assume that models are correctly specified in the population of interest; as a result, only sampling errors are characterized, not model errors. The model error can be treated either as fixed or random. The proposed framework in this study treats the model error as a random effect (i.e., an adventitious error) and provides an alternative explanation for the model errors in IRT models that originate from unknown sources. A random, ideally small amount of discrepancy between the operational population and the fitted model is characterized using a Dirichlet-Multinomial framework. A concentration/dispersion parameter is used in the Dirichlet-Multinomial framework to measure the amount of adventitious error between the operational population probability and the fitted model. In general, the study aims to: 1) build a Dirichlet-Multinomial framework for IRT models, 2) establish asymptotic results for estimating model parameters when the operational population probability is assumed known or unknown, 3) conduct numerical studies to investigate parameter recovery and the relationship between the concentration/dispersion parameter in the proposed framework and the Root Mean Square Error of Approximation (RMSEA), 4) correct bias in parameter estimates of the Dirichlet-Multinomial framework using asymptotic approximation methods, and 5) quantify the amount of model error in the framework and decide whether the model should be retained or rejected.
INVESTIGATING MODEL SELECTION AND PARAMETER RECOVERY OF THE LATENT VARIABLE AUTOREGRESIVE LATENT TRAJECTORY (LV-ALT) MODEL FOR REPEATED MEASURES DATA: A MONTE CARLO SIMULATION STUDY
(2023) Houser, Ari; Harring, Jeffrey R; Human Development; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
Over the past several decades, several highly generalized models have been developed which can reduce, through parameter constraints, to a variety of classical models. One such framework, the Autoregressive Latent Trajectory (ALT) model, is a combination of two classical approaches to longitudinal modeling: the autoregressive or simplex family, in which trait scores at one occasion are regressed on scores at a previous occasion, and latent trajectory or growth curve models, in which individual trajectories are specified by a set of latent factors (typically a slope and an intercept) whose values vary across the population.The Latent Variable-Autoregressive Latent Trajectory (LV-ALT) model has been recently proposed as an extension of the ALT model in which the traits of interest are latent constructs measured by one or more indicator variables. The LV-ALT is presented as a framework by which one may compare the fit of a chosen model to alternative possibilities or use to empirically guide the selection of a model in the absence of theory, prior research, or standard practice. To date, however, there has not been any robust analysis of the efficacy or usefulness of the LV-ALT model for this purpose. This study uses a Monte Carlo simulation study to evaluate the efficacy of the basic formulation of the LV-ALT model (univariate latent growth process, single indicator variable) to identify the true model, model family, and key characteristics of the model under manipulated conditions of true model parameters, sample size, measurement reliability, and missing data. The performance of the LV-ALT model for model selection is mixed. Under most manipulated conditions, the best-fitting of nine candidate models was different than the generating model, and the cost of model misspecification for parameter recovery included significant increases in bias and loss of precision in parameter estimation. As a general rule, the LV-ALT should not be relied upon to empirically select a specific model, or to choose between several theoretical plausible models in the autoregressive or latent growth families. Larger sample size, greater measurement reliability, larger parameter magnitude, and a constant autoregressive parameter are associated with greater likelihood of correct model selection.
ESTIMATING THE Q-DIFFUSION MODEL PARAMETERS BY APPROXIMATE BAYESIAN COMPUTATION
(2023) Tian, Chen; Liu, Yang; Human Development; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
The Q-diffusion model is a cognitive process model that considers decision making as an unobservable information accumulation process. Both item and person parameters decide the trace line of the cognitive process, which further decides observed response and response time. Because the likelihood function for the Q-diffusion model is intractable, standard parameter estimation techniques such as the maximum likelihood estimation is difficult to apply. This project applies Approximate Bayesian Computation (ABC) to estimate parameters of the Q-diffusion model. Different from standard Markov chain Monte Carlo samplers that require pointwise evaluation of the likelihood function, ABC builds upon a program for data generation and a metric on the data space to gauge the similarity between imputed and observed data. This project aims to compare the performance of two criteria for gauging the similarity or distance. The limited-information criterion measures the distance in suitable summary statistics (i.e., variances, covariances, and means) between imputed and observed data. The enhanced limited information criterion additionally considers the dependencies among persons’ responses and response times. Bias, rooted mean squared error, and coverage of credible intervals were reported. Results show that when using posterior median as the point estimate, by jointly considering a person’s responses and response time, the enhanced criterion yielded less biased estimation on population scale of person power and slightly better item parameters. This SMC-ABC algorithm informs researchers about key data features that should be captured when determining the stopping rule for the algorithm.
Reframing Children's Judgments of Consensus Reliability as a Process of Information Aggregation
(2023) Levush, Karen Carmel; Butler, Lucas P; Human Development; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
Consensus is a compelling cue to the truth value of a given claim, but certain consensus patterns provide stronger evidence than others. This dissertation examines the developmental trajectory of children’s reasoning about the epistemic value of diverse perspectives for consensus’ reliability. One-hundred forty-four children between the ages of 7 and 9, as well as 48 adults, were introduced to a novel planet and alien groups that live there. Tasked with learning the “right things” about why various natural phenomena occur on this planet, participants were asked which one of two consensus groups, each of whom collectively thought something different, was the “better” group to ask. Participants rated their relative preference for one consensus group over another using a 6-point scale and were asked to explain their reasoning. These findings provide initial evidence that qualitative changes in children’s ability to consider how dependencies can lead to redundant information parallel the developmental shift in children’s appreciation for interpretive diversity in middle childhood.
Mother-child and father-child "serve and return" interactions at 9 months: Associations with children's language skills at 18, 24, and 30 months
(2023) Chen, Yu; Cabrera, Natasha J; Human Development; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
Infants learn language through the back-and-forth interactions with their parents where they “serve” by vocalizing, gesturing, or looking and parents “return” in a temporally and semantically contingent way. My dissertation focuses on these “serve and return” (SR) interactions between 9-month-old infants and their mothers and fathers (n = 296 parents and 148 infants) from ethnically and socioeconomically diverse backgrounds by examining the variability in SR interactions explained by maternal and paternal psychological distress, the association between SR interactions and children’s language skills at 18, 24, and 30 months, and the moderation effect of maternal and paternal SR interactions on language outcomes. Psychological distress was indicated by parent-reported depressive symptoms, parenting stress, and role overload, and SR interactions were transcribed and coded from video-taped parent-child toy play activities during home visits. I report three major findings. First, neither maternal nor paternal psychological distress was significantly associated with and SR interactions at 9 months, controlling for demographic factors. Second, fathers who responded to their child’s serves more promptly and mothers who provided more semantically relevant responses had children with higher receptive and expressive language skills, respectively, at 18 and 30 months. Third, fathers’ semantically relevant responses were negatively associated with children’s receptive language skills at 24 months; however, this main effect was moderated by mothers’ semantically relevant responses. Understanding how mothers and fathers engage in temporally and semantically contingent social interactions with their children during the first year, especially among families from diverse backgrounds, would enable programs and policies to more effectively promote early language development and reduce gaps in school readiness.
The Relationships Between Job Burnout, Job Stress, and Job Satisfaction Among Schoolteachers
(1985) Newburg-Rinn, Sharon; Hardy, Robert; Human Development; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, MD)
Purpose Questions have been raised concerning the separateness of the three concepts, job burnout, job stress, and job satisfaction. It is best to avoid coining new terms such as "burnout" if they are unnecessary. Further, understanding the relationships between these concepts may help prevent confusion in future studies involving these concepts. The purpose of the study was to increase the understanding of all three of the concepts by understanding their relationships to one another. Specifically, are job burnout, job stress, and job satisfaction best viewed as three separate concepts? If not, further questions arise. Is job burnout the same thing as job satisfaction? Could job stress also be placed under the job satisfaction rubric? Finally, are job burnout and job stress part of the same phenomenon? Procedures and Conclusions Surveys were sent to 1512 teachers who were randomly selected from all the members of the Maryland State Teachers Association. Of these, 741 (49%) responded. Eliminating unusable responses brought the final total to 701 teachers. Two measures of each concept were utilized, one a multiple item test and the other a single global question answered on a five point scale. The multiple item instruments were: 1) for job satisfaction, Smith, Kendal, and Hukin's (1969) Job Descriptive Index, Work Scale; 2) for burnout, Maslach and Jackson's (1979a) Maslach Burnout Inventory, Emotional Exhaustion Scale; and 3) for stress, Cichon and Koff's (1980) Teaching ~~ents Stress Inventory. For the three concepts, the global questions were similar in structure to this example: "In general, how stressful do you find being a teacher?" 1 Not Stressful 2 Just a Little stressful 3 Somewhat Stressful 4 Quite Stressful 5 Extremely Stressful These data were analyzed by way of a multitrait-multimethod matrix (Campbell and Fiske, 1959) and a factor analysis. These approaches allowed an assessment of the pattern of the relationships between these concepts. It was concluded that the preponderance of the evidence implied that job burnout, job stress, and job satisfaction are best considered separate concepts. In addition, it was found that there was a poor correlation between a global measure of stress and the Teaching Events Stress Inventory. The study tends to suggest that the TESI be reexamined before being used again in this fashion for possible changes which would allow a higher correlation between it and a global measure of job stress.
Adult Children of Alcoholics as Public High School Teachers: Comparable Risks for Occupational Burnout
(1989) Hofford, Craig William; Gold, Robert S.; Health Education; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, MD)
Clinicians working with Adult Children of Alcoholics (ACAs) have suggested these individuals are at higher risk for occupational burnout than those who did not grow up in alcoholic environments (NACAs). However, little empirical data exist to support such claims. This study compared the scores of ACAs and NACAs on the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI). The ACAs' scores were further tested to explore any relationship that might exist between MBI scores and birth order or treatment received for co-dependency. The population tested was a convenient, non-random sample of uburban, public high school teachers. High school professionals (N= 409) responded to a study instrument that included the Children of Alcoholics Screening Test (C.A.S.T.) and the MBI. Eighty-three respondents were determined to be ACAs by their scores on the C.A.S.T. A statistically significant number (N= 23) of those ACAs did not indicate that they grew up in an alcoholic home on the accompanying demographic sheet. Discriminant analysis (ACAs and NACAs) produced a significant canonical correlation of .7957 (p < .001). Significant variables included parental alcoholism, parental drug dependency, Personal Accomplishment, years in teaching, Depersonalization, parental stroke, age. burnout (intensity), and parental handicap. Teacher burnout rates were lower than reported in previous tudies. ACA teachers had statistically significant, higher mean scores for intensity of Depersonalization and Personal Accomplishment (p < .05). Tests of the means failed to identify any other differences in the groups with regard to the incidence of burnout. No statistically significant differences were found between the means of comparison groups of ACA teachers defined by birth order or treatment. Results suggest that ACA teachers perceive the intensity of Depersonalization more strongly than NACA teachers. Their higher sense of Personal Accomplishment may, in fact, enhance the intensity of that feeling of Depersonalization since getting along with people is highly valued in the teaching profession. There appears to be no relationship between the measures of burnout in ACA teachers and the variables of birth order and treatment. Any conclusions drawn from this study, however, must be tempered by the fact that a post hoc power analysis indicated very low power for the hypothetical comparisons conducted in this study.
THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PERCEIVED PARENTAL SELF EFFICACY AMONG FIRST-TIME MOTHERS AND CHILDREARING BELIEFS, KNOWLEDGE OF INFANT DEVELOPMENT, AND EXPERIENCE WITH INFANTS
(1993) Luebering, Anne; Tyler, Bonnie; Department of Human Development; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, MD)
Perceived parental self- efficacy has been assumed to contribute positively toward maternal behavior among mothers of infants, but previous research has been inconclusive with regard to the link between self efficacy and behavior. Examination of Bandura's self efficacy theory points to the need to assess perceived parental self-efficacy in conjunction with other parenting cognitions before judgment can be made about its significance for good parenting. In particular, childrearing beliefs were thought to be essential to mothers ' ideas about what kinds of skills are necessary to be a good parent, and therefore to their evaluations of their parenting a b ilities. In the present study, two measu res of perceived parental self-efficacy were obtained from ll3 first-time mothers of 6 to l2-month - old infants, one measure tapping specific domains and tasks of parenting infants, and the other tappi ng a more general sense of how one was functioning as a parent . The relationship between these measures and childrearing beliefs, knowledge of infant development, experience with infants, SES, maternal age, and ethnicity were assessed. The demographic variables and knowledge were unrelate d to e ither measure of self- efficacy. Ex perience with infants was moderately correlated with the task- based measure of self- efficacy, but weakly r elated to the general measure. Childrearing beliefs showed low but significant correlations with both self efficacy measures. Investigation of the subscales of the child rearing beli efs measure indicated that the dimension of enjoyment/aggravation regarding the parental role was most closely related to mothers ' feelings of self-efficacy. Subscales measuring encou ragement of autonomy, strictness, beliefs about spoiling , and beliefs in infants' need for warmth and affection were not related to either measure of perceived parental self- efficacy. The results of this study indicate that caution should be taken in r e asoning that perceived parental self- efficacy is associated with appropriate parenting skills and behaviors , since high self-efficacy can occur in conjunction with undesirable childrearing beliefs, and such beliefs may not be associated with positive maternal behavior.
THE CONTRIBUTION OF INHIBITORY CONTROL ON CHILDREN’S GESTURE USE IN AN EARLY MATHEMATICAL ENVIRONMENT
(2023) Barkin, Raychel; Ramani, Geetha; Human Development; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
Early academic scores are strong and robust predictors of children’s later school and career performance (Duncan et al., 2007; Rose, 2006). However, the USA ranks well below other countries on math scores (27th out of 34; OECD, 2013), and have been marked as particularly inadequate at “mathematics tasks with higher cognitive demand(s)”. Thus, it is important to focus on the mechanisms which may contribute to differences in early mathematics problem solving and find tools that are uniquely suited to addressing this issue. One advantageous strategy young children use during math problem solving are hand gestures. Gestures are one of several overtly observable strategies in math contexts(e.g., counting on fingers vs. counting out loud without gestures), but have been specifically recognized as useful given their ability to reduce the user's working memory load during math contexts (Goldin-Meadow & Wagner, 2005). As children get older, the type and frequency of strategies used are reported to shift from basic to more advanced and efficient (Siegler, 1987). This pattern is often seen as younger children using more overtly observable strategies (e.g., finger counting), whereas older children rely on more implicit strategies (e.g., memory retrieval of math facts, Geary et al., 1991). However, less is known about how differences in children’s concurrent domain-general abilities (e.g., working memory, inhibitory control) and domain-specific knowledge (e.g., math specific) contribute to strategic use of gesture during arithmetic problem solving. This line of research is vital given that gestures may be especially advantageous based on their capacity to bolster mental resources needed for problem solving. Using the Gestures in Math Environments model (GME model; Gordon & Ramani, 2021) as a framework, the current study provides a comprehensive assessment of the factors underlying children’s domain-general and specific abilities, and provides evidence as to their relation to children’s use of gesture as a strategy during arithmetic problem solving. Furthermore, it tests a newly proposed adaptation to the GME model where inhibitory control plays a moderating role on the relation between children’s working memory and use of gesture. One-hundred-thirty-seven 4- to 7-year-old children and their parents participated in this study. All children completed two sessions; an autonomous online-game based assessment and a video recorded zoom session regulated by a trained research assistant. At each session, children completed measures of inhibitory control, early mathematical knowledge, and working memory. Their gesture use was video recorded during one measure where children partake in arithmetic problem solving. Parents completed a standardized measure assessing their child’s inhibitory control and working memory abilities. Using structural equation modeling, the relations between all measures and a consideration of how each corresponded to a set of comprehensible latent factors (one factor each for inhibitory control, working memory, and math) were examined. Further examination of how each factor related to children’s use of gesture was investigated. In line with the original GME model, working memory ability was a unique predictor of children’s use of gesture above and beyond impacts of age, math knowledge, inhibitory control, and gender. While there is not any evidence from the current study to support the proposed moderation between inhibitory control and working memory on gesture use, a modification to the GME model with the addition of gender is subsequently recommended.

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