Theses and Dissertations from UMD
Permanent URI for this communityhttp://hdl.handle.net/1903/2
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 give thesis/dissertation in DRUM
More information is available at Theses and Dissertations at University of Maryland Libraries.
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Item SEX, CRIME, AND SELF-CONTROL: COMPARING OUTCOMES OF LOW SELF-CONTROL FOR HETEROSEXUAL AND GAY/BISEXUAL MEN(2022) Scocca, Jacob; Dugan, Laura; Criminology and Criminal Justice; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Objective: The purpose of the current thesis is to further explore Gottfredson and Hirschi’s General Theory of Crime by examining adult outcomes of low self-control in a heterosexual and gay/bisexual sample. It argues that self-control in these populations is differentially related to outcomes of violent crime and analogous behaviors, which contradicts the general nature of the theory. Methods: The current study uses self-reported measures in the Adolescent Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health) for self-control (Wave 3) to examine outcomes of violent crime and risky sexual behavior (Wave 4). Risky sexual behaviors in this study are conceptualized as number of different sexual partners, sex without prophylactics, or sex with more than one person around the same time. Men are the primary focus of this thesis due to the presence of culturally and socially specific factors in the heterosexual and gay male community that could differentially affect the outcomes of interest. Hypothesis: I hypothesize that both the relationship between low self-control and violent crime and low self-control and risky sexual behavior will differ based on the sexual orientation of the respondent. To frame this hypothesis, I argue that the gay male subculture is more openly accepting of risky sexual behaviors, and therefore that this analogous behavior will be less related to self-control in gay populations. I also argue that heterosexual masculinity facilitates violent behavior/crime within heterosexual men, meaning that self-control plays a larger role in controlling urges in this group. Results: Differences in the association between self-control and risky sexual behaviors were found between heterosexual and gay/bisexual men indicating support for the hypothesis. Differences in the relationship between self-control and violent criminal activity in the two groups were not found in the tested samples. These findings provide evidence that Gottfredson & Hirschi's theory may not be generalizable for analogous behaviors in all populations, but that it still may hold for violent crime.Item Racial/Ethnic Differences in Depression During the Transition to High School: Findings from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health(2015) Woodall, Ashley Marie; Chae, David H; Epidemiology and Biostatistics; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)This study investigates racial/ethnic differences in the change in depressive symptoms during the transition to high school. Weighted multivariable linear regression was used to assess the change in depressive symptoms from eighth grade to ninth grade using data from Wave I and Wave II of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health). Analyses revealed that non-Hispanic Black adolescents had a significantly greater increase in depressive symptoms compared to non-Hispanic White adolescents (b = 1.39, p < 0.01). Moreover, biracial/multiracial adolescents showed the greatest increase in depressive symptoms compared to non-Hispanic Whites; however this was not statistically significant (b = 2.38, p = 0.15). These findings suggest that the transition to high school is a difficult period in psychological adjustment, particularly for non-Hispanic Black and biracial/multiracial adolescents. Furthermore, these findings highlight the need for more research concerning racial identity development and the mental health of biracial/multiracial populations.Item LONGITUDINAL ASSOCIATIONS BETWEEN METHAMPHETAMINE USE AND DEPRESSION AMONG YOUNG ADULTS IN THE UNITED STATES: A SECONDARY ANALYSIS(2012) Hemberg, Jordana Lynn; Desmond, Sharon M; Public and Community Health; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Methamphetamine is a powerful, highly addictive central nervous system stimulant that is associated with deleterious health outcomes. In particular, there is evidence from clinical treatment samples and criminal justice populations that methamphetamine use is associated with depression, however this association has yet to be investigated in a nationally representative sample. Given that young adults are the group most prone to methamphetamine use, this study used a total of 8,688 respondents from Waves III (2001-02; ages 18-28) and IV (2007-08; ages 24-34) of the National Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health) to examine whether methamphetamine use (past year use at Wave III) was associated with depression, as measured by the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D). This study also evaluated whether gender, functional poverty status, polydrug use, and childhood maltreatment moderated the association between methamphetamine use and depression. Logistic regressions were used to determine the odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) in unadjusted and adjusted analyses (controlling for gender, age, race/ethnicity, US region, functional poverty status, childhood maltreatment, polydrug use, and depression at Wave III). Results indicated that in the general population, methamphetamine users have increased odds of becoming depressed (OR: 2.13, 95% CI: 1.38-3.27) and controlling for covariates, including Wave III depression, methamphetamine use independently predicted later depression (OR: 1.81, 95% CI: 1.12-2.92). None of the potential moderator variables tested had an effect on the association. These findings indicate that longitudinally, methamphetamine users are at an increased risk for depression, regardless of other factors and perhaps drug prevention and treatment programs for methamphetamine use should focus more on decreasing depression in this population. This study provides a broader understanding of the relationship between methamphetamine use and depression in a nationally representative sample, though further investigation into potential mediators and moderators is warranted.Item Expanding the Impact of Peer Networks: Pathways to Turning Points(2007-12-13) O'Neill, Lauren; McGloin, Jean M; Criminology and Criminal Justice; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Scholars highlight the importance of both adolescent peers and prosocial life events in explanations of continuity and change in deviant behavior. Thus far, research has evaluated the pathway to desistance by focusing on what happens to one's trajectory after experiencing prosocial adult activities, including the role of adulthood friendships. This research shifts the focus to an earlier stage of the process and combines these two research realms to investigate the influence of one's adolescent peer network on shaping the pathway to marriage, educational achievement, and job stability. Using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health allows this investigation to evaluate the level of deviance within one's peer group as well as the conditioning effect of network characteristics (e.g. density, centrality, popularity, attachment, and involvement) on peer deviance, while controlling for background characteristics. This research finds that the level of deviance in a peer network is particularly detrimental for educational attainment. Deviant peers also play a significant role in shaping educational expectations. The results do not, however, find peers to be influential for marriage and employment outcomes. The analyses show minimal support for the conditioning effect of network characteristics and highlight the importance of considering background characteristics in conjunction with these more dynamic influences. Lastly, the results draw attention the fact that these processes do not operate uniformly and that the pathways to prosocial adult outcomes sometimes vary by gender and race. Theoretical and policy implications are also discussed.