Theses and Dissertations from UMD
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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 Navigating a Relational Bind: Black and Latino Emergent Adult Men’s Negotiation of their Relational Needs in a Masculine Context(2024) Hedelund, Adam Jens; Roy, Kevin; Family Studies; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Emergent adulthood is a period of discovery and transition for humans aged 18 to 29 that often requires many practical as well as relational resources. Black and Latino emergent adult men from low socioeconomic backgrounds often navigated through this time period through alternate pathways because of a lack of resources. They may have also experienced substantial stress in childhood that prompted the reliance on hegemonic masculinity as a guide for how to cope with these stressors. This study sought to examine how Black and Latino emergent adult men negotiated their relational needs and abilities within the context of their masculine identities. Using semi-structured life history interviews, Black and Latino young men were interviewed from two youth development centers in the Washington DC/Baltimore area. Findings suggested that the impact of the provider role as adultified children, as well as exposure to violence, increased the participant’s likelihood of hegemonic masculine disconnection from family and friends in emergent adulthood. However, this disconnection was often complicated given their human desire for closeness and support as well as obligations to family members. This complexity was conceptualized as a type of relational bind. Participants used a variety of strategies to resolve this bind that often left them more isolated.Item 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.Item Exploring Couple and Family Therapist Involvement in Social Justice Praxis(2023) Golojuch, Laura; Mittal, Mona; Family Studies; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)As the nation becomes more diverse, multicultural competence and social justice are being increasingly recognized as essential components to effective therapy practice (Hays, 2020; Ratts et al., 2016; Vera & Speight, 2003). While some scholars in the field of Couple and Family Therapy (CFT) have urged the importance of infusing social justice into training and clinical practice for years (see Hardy, 2001; Knudson-Martin et al., 2019; McDowell et al., 2019; McGoldrick, 2007), this topic is understudied and underprioritized by the field at large. Recent CFT scholars also acknowledge the importance of advocacy as an accompaniment to therapy (J. M. Goodman et al., 2018, Jordan & Seponski, 2018a, 2018b). Counseling and social work fields have prioritized social justice advocacy and codified it into mission statements and ethical codes (Ratts et al., 2016; Ratts & Greenleaf, 2018; Toporek & Daniels, 2018). Although CFTs are trained systemically, and may be enacting micro-level advocacy intervention in the therapy room, they do not always view themselves as advocates or enact macro-level advocacy interventions (J. M. Goodman et al., 2018; Holyoak et al., 2020; Jordan & Seponski, 2018b). This study utilized a sequential transformative mixed methods design to assess multicultural competence, social justice commitment and self-efficacy, and advocacy competence in a nationally representative sample of CFTs (n = 101) using survey methods. A subsample of 22 participants were interviewed to further explore their practices as multiculturally competent and socially just clinicians. Three complementary frameworks were utilized to ground the study: The Multicultural and Social Justice Counseling Competencies (MSJCC), critical consciousness, and Public Health Critical Race praxis. Overall, multicultural competence, social justice commitment, and social justice self-efficacy scores were high in this sample, while advocacy competence scores were lower. Results showed that identifying as Black or African American and completing additional training in multicultural competence and social justice were associated with multicultural competence. Results also showed that working in an agency setting vs. other settings was associated with lower levels of multicultural competence. Results showed that identifying as female compared to male, having a higher level of oppression, a higher level of civic engagement, and more additional training in multicultural competence were all associated with social justice commitment. Results showed that being older, completing more additional training, and having a higher level of oppression were all associated with higher levels of social justice self-efficacy. Finally, results showed that identifying as non-binary compared to male, completing more hours of additional training, and experiencing higher levels of oppression were all associated with advocacy competence. Additionally, receiving more post-graduate hours of training in multicultural competence, social justice, and advocacy competence was associated with higher multicultural competence, social justice, and advocacy competence. Qualitative findings revealed ways in which CFTs developed and embodied socially just clinical practice and explored recommendations for training.Item Mothers as Agents of Social Change in the Movement Against Sexual Violence(2023) Drotning, Kelsey J.; Cohen, Philip N; Sociology; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)My dissertation examines how the #MeToo movement is changing generational understandings of sexual violence. Through this research, I examine how sexual violence is both a cause and a consequence of systemic gender and race inequality. Using eighteen in-depth semi-structured interviews of mothers with at least one child aged five-years or older, I investigate three sets of questions. First, how are mothers evaluating their own experiences with sexual violence post #MeToo movement? Second, how is sexual violence part of mother-child conversations about sexual behavior? Third, how do mothers; social location contribute to how they feel about the #MeToo movement and how they teach their children about sexual violence? My findings suggest mothers are transmitting new understandings of sexual violence to their children. Specifically, mothers are teaching their children that appropriate touch, sexual or nonsexual, cannot be determined using a binary yes or no standard of consent. Their approach to sex education is driven by their own experiences with sex that was violating and/or nonconsensual and consideration of their own and their children's social location. Overall, my findings demonstrate the #MeToo movement and other associated events have ushered in a change in mothers' rape consciousness which is facilitating change in children's sex education. If successful, mothers will have contributed to decreased prevalence of sexual violence as these children age into adolescence and adulthood.Item Redoing gender, redoing family: A mixed-methods examination of family complexity and gender heterogeneity among transgender families(2020) Allen, Samuel H.; Leslie, Leigh A; Family Studies; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Scholars have documented that considerable health disparities exist between transgender persons and the general population. A growing research base suggests that the family environment of trans individuals—i.e., the social climate within one’s family—can have a significant influence on the population’s health and wellbeing. Despite the substantiated relationship between the family environment of transgender people and their health, there are three identifiable gaps in the literature that warrant further research. First, no known quantitative studies have considered trans family environments beyond those that are accepting and rejecting, or how such family environments might be differently related to the population’s mental and physical health. Second, though scholars are increasingly recognizing the existence of gender heterogeneity within the trans population, it remains unknown if the health and family environment vary for trans persons of different gender identities. A third gap exists within the nascent literature on individuals with nonbinary gender identities in which there is an absence of studies examining the experiences of their family members. The three papers that comprise this mixed-methods dissertation respond to the aforementioned gaps in the literature. The first two studies analyze quantitative survey data collected from transgender adults (N=873); study three analyzes qualitative interview data collected from the parents of adult children with nonbinary gender identities (N=14). Study one examines family environment heterogeneity and tests its association with mental and physical health. Study two assesses variation in mental health, physical health, and family environment as a function of having a binary vs. a nonbinary gender identity. Study three uncovers how parents of nonbinary adult children make sense of their child’s gender and the developmental processes that occur in doing so. Taken together, findings from this dissertation offer important implications for healthcare providers, clinicians, and intervention efforts aimed at improving the health of transgender populations.Item Clerical Conduct Related to the Perpetuation of Child Sexual Abuse in Pennsylvania Catholic Dioceses: A Developing Framework(2019) Britto, Crystel; Roy, Kevin; Family Studies; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Throughout his papacy, Pope Francis reiterated that clericalism played a major role in the global Catholic sexual abuse crisis. Research has not been able to back this claim due to lack of data on cultural and structural elements that have contributed to the various crises. The present study aims to fill this gap in research by examining narratives regarding clerical sexual abuse and seeks to explore themes contributing to a framework of abuse. Qualitative data analysis was conducted by examining the 40th Statewide Investigating Grand Jury Report of Pennsylvania, focusing on correspondence between various actors regarding 12 priests in Pennsylvania and their involvement in child sexual abuse. Using grounded theory with elements of narrative analysis, the study seeks to explore themes of belief, behavior and emotion of clergy between 1930-2016. The results provide insight into the nature of the Catholic Church’s involvement in the perpetuation of child sexual abuse.Item PARENTS OF CHILDREN WITH ADHD: COGNITIONS, EMOTIONAL, AND BEHAVIORAL RESPONSES TO ADHD SYMPTOMS(2017) Salazar, Jaimeleigh Mercedes; Epstein, Norman B; Family Studies; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)The present study investigated the association between the cognitions and coping related traits of parents of children with ADHD and their behavioral and emotional responses to their child’s symptoms. Current research on ADHD suggests that diagnosis of this neurodevelopment disorder is rising, and parents of children with ADHD face challenges such as increased stress, burdens of the parenting role, and potentially tense relationships with their children. However, there has been a lack of research on relations among parents’ behavioral, emotional, and cognitive responses to their children’s ADHD behaviors. This study collected primary online survey data from 100 parents of children with ADHD who were members of the national organization CHADD. Degree of child ADHD behavior, parent coping related traits, and parent negative attributions about the child were associated with parent anger, anxiety, limit-setting behaviors, and encouraging/coaching behaviors. Research and clinical implications of these findings are discussed.Item The Relationship Between Therapist Common Factor Behaviors and Client Evaluations of Couple Therapy Sessions(2017) Baker, Taylor Norene; Epstein, Norman B; Family Studies; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)There is an insufficient amount of research on therapist common factor behaviors during therapy sessions that contribute to the process of therapeutic change in couple and family therapy. The purpose of this study was to explore the association between therapists’ common factor behaviors during a couple therapy session and clients’ evaluations of that session. The sample was 40 couples presenting with mild to moderate psychological and physical partner aggression who received ten therapy sessions at a university-based clinic. A set of Pearson product-moment correlations were conducted and revealed that only the degree of therapist collaboration behavior was significantly associated with female partners’ positive evaluations of the session; statistical trend for males. Overall, male and female ratings of session helpfulness were positively correlated. The possible explanations for the lack of relationships between other therapist behaviors and session evaluations are discussed.Item Therapist Common Factors and Changes in Client Anger Management in the Context of Couple Therapy(2017) Straub Barrientos, Magdalena Paz; Epstein, Norman B; Family Studies; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)The present study investigated the associations between therapist common factors behaviors and changes in client anger control in the context of couple therapy. Research on psychotherapy suggests that common factors are more strongly associated with therapy outcome than model-specific interventions. However, research on the effects of specific common factors on therapeutic outcomes is lacking. This study was a secondary analysis of data from 40 couples that presented with mild to moderate physical and psychological partner aggression and who received couple therapy at a university family therapy clinic. The study examined the associations between five therapist common factor behaviors (warmth, empathy, validation, systemically-based techniques, and session structuring) coded from couples’ fourth couple therapy session and changes in clients’ anger control, as well as the role of gender as a moderator. No main effects were found, and one significant interaction (session structure and gender) was found to be associated with improvements in anger control for males. Implications of these findings are discussed.Item Pathways to adulthood and their precursors: Roles of gender and race(2016) Lee, Yoonjoo; Hofferth, Sandra L; Family Studies; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Research on the transition to adulthood dates back nearly four decades, but a growing body of research has taken a new approach by investigating multiple demographic markers in the transition to adulthood simultaneously. Using the life course perspective, this dissertation is built on the literature by first examining contemporary young adults’ pathways to adulthood from ages 18 to 30 and their differences by gender. Data for this study were drawn from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997; the final sample included 2,185 men and 2,086 women. The college-educated single workers pathway, the college-educated married working parents pathway, and the high-school-educated single parents pathway were identified in both genders. For men, the study also identified the high-school-educated single workers pathway and the high-school-educated married working parents pathway. For women, the study also identified the high-school-educated workers pathway and the high-school-educated married parents pathway. Not only did the definitions of some pathways differ by gender, but even in the pathways with the same definition, gender differences were found in the probabilities of being married, of being a parent, or of being employed full-time. Based on the pathways to adulthood identified, this research examined the family and adolescent precursors and whether race moderates the associations between family structure experiences and young adults’ pathways to adulthood. Parental education, family structure, GPA, delinquency, early sexual activity, and race/ethnicity were the family and adolescent precursors that distinguished among pathways taken by the youth. Two interactions between race and family structure/instability were identified. The positive association between growing up in a single-parent family and the odds of taking the high-school-educated single workers pathway compared to the college-educated married working parents pathway was weaker for Black males than for White males. The positive association between family instability and the odds of taking the college-educated single workers pathway compared to the college-educated married working parents pathway was weaker for Black females than for White females. This dissertation accounted for changes in the multiple statuses related to becoming an adult by following contemporary young adults for 12 years. More research on contemporary young adults’ pathways to adulthood and subgroup differences in the effects of precursors are recommended. Limitations and implications of this study are discussed.