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
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Item Maternal Experiences of Parenting Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Qualitative Analysis(2015) Duchene, Melissa S.; Jones Harden, Brenda; Human Development; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Despite the increased prevalence rates of autism spectrum disorders (ASD) over the last two decades (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2015), little is known about the parenting of children with ASD, including parenting behaviors, parent-child interactions, and how the specific characteristics of children with ASD affect parenting practices. The goals of this qualitative study were: (1) To explore parenting practices and behaviors among mothers of children with ASD; and (2) To illuminate the unique experiences of mothers raising children with ASD. Three research questions guided the inquiry: 1) What are the parenting practices and behaviors that mothers use with their preschool age children with ASD?; 2) What are the beliefs and experiences of mothers relative to raising preschool aged children with ASD?; and 3) What facilitates or hinders mothers' parenting of their preschool aged children with ASD? In this qualitative inquiry, six mothers and their preschool-age children with ASD were recruited from the Autism Center in a metropolitan children's hospital. Each mother participated in three 1-1 ½ hour long semi-structured audio-recorded interviews that entailed a series of open-ended questions about the unique experiences associated with raising a child with ASD. Two home observations and one public observation of mother-child interactions lasting 1-2 hours in length were conducted per family. Eleven themes emerged during the coding process: 1) positivity within the mother-child relationship, 2) schedules and routines, 3) strategies encouraging child cooperation, 4) crisis management, 5) perspectives on child's maladaptive behavior, 6) perspectives on child's abilities, 7) perceptions and experiences around public interfacing, 8) stress associated with caring for a child with ASD, 9) maternal resources, 10) interpersonal supports, and 11) ecological factors. These results shed light on factors that contribute to the everyday realities and experiences of parents who have children with ASD, thereby allowing for a more accurate understanding of their parenting approaches and behaviors. Findings from this study can be considered in the context of developing interventions focused on parenting children with ASD.Item PARENTING AND COLLEGE ENROLLMENT: THE EFFECTS OF PARENTING STYLE AND PRACTICES ON COLLEGE ENROLLMENT FOR BLACK, WHITE AND HISPANIC CHILDREN FROM DIFFERENT ECONOMIC AND FAMILY CONTEXTS(2011) Mckinney, Erica Shannel; Hughes, Sherick; Goldscheider, Frances; Curriculum and Instruction; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)This study used logistic regression to analyze the effects of parenting style and practices on college enrollment for 2116 Hispanic, Black and White respondents from differing economic and family contexts. Using data from the young adult children of women of the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979, five key findings related to parenting and college enrollment were identified. They include: 1) The effect of parenting practices on college enrollment is not influenced by the parenting style adopted by the parent 2) The authoritarian parenting style is a better predictor of college enrollment than the authoritative parenting style for Hispanic respondents 3) Higher parental involvement at home is associated with higher odds of college enrollment 4) Higher parental involvement at school is associated with higher odds of college enrollment only for White students from single-mother and dual-parent families 5) There is a negative interaction between being Black and higher parental involvement at school The findings of this study contribute to the literature on parenting styles, parental involvement and college enrollment. The implications for practice and research are discussed.Item Maternal mental health, education, acculturation, and social support as predictors of the parenting of Asian American and Asian immigrant mothers(2007-08-06) Ji, Cheng Shuang; Koblinsky, Sally A.; Family Studies; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Currently 5% of the American population is of Asian descent, and Asian families are among the fastest growing groups of immigrant families in the United States. However, the family science literature has few studies of the parenting practices of Asian American and Asian immigrant mothers, including factors that may contribute to differences in the way these parents are raising their children. To address this gap, the current study used an ecological/risk and resiliency framework to examine factors that may predict the parenting involvement, parenting practices, and parenting aggravation of mothers from Asian heritage. Specifically, this study examined the role of three potential protective factors--maternal education, acculturation, and social support--and one potential risk factor, maternal depressive symptoms, in predicting mothers' expectations for their children's academic achievement, involvement in children's home and school activities, provision of cognitive stimulation and emotional support, use of harsh discipline, and aggravation in the parenting role. This study employed secondary data analysis using data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Studies Kindergarten Class of 1998-1999, Third Grade Database. The sample included 462 mothers of Asian descent who were born in the United States or foreign countries, and who had a third grade child. Mothers were interviewed by telephone or in person. Multiple regression analyses examined the role of maternal depression, education, acculturation, and social support in predicting the seven measures of parenting. Findings revealed that more depressive symptoms were predictive of greater parenting aggravation and lower emotional support for the child. Higher maternal education was linked to higher academic expectations and greater cognitive stimulation of the child, as well greater family involvement in school activities. One measure of acculturation, mother's use of English in the home, was associated with greater school involvement, lower use of harsh discipline, and less parenting aggravation. Finally, social support emerged as one of the strongest predictors of parenting behavior, and was related to more involvement in home and school activities, more cognitive stimulation and emotional support, and less use of harsh discipline. Implications of the findings for fostering positive parenting among mothers of Asian heritage are discussed.Item The Impact of Parenting Practices and Early Childhood Curricula on Children's Academic Achievement and Social Competence(2006-06-05) kessenich, anne; Hofferth, Sandra; Koblinsky, Sally; Family Studies; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Current research highlights the importance of early social competence for later academic success. Nevertheless, despite that documented importance, the emphasis in both policy and practice has been on academic achievement in early learning curricula. The proposed research had three objectives: 1) to understand how parenting behaviors toward children in kindergarten influence their academic achievement in third grade, 2) to understand how curriculum in kindergarten influences academic achievement in third grade, and 3) to ascertain whether social competence mediates the relationship between parenting factors in kindergarten and academic achievement in third grade and curriculum factors in kindergarten and academic achievement in the third grade. Data are drawn for the period 1998-2003 from an existing data set, the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study - Kindergarten Cohort (ECLS-K) and analyzed using multiple regression analyses. After controlling for background characteristics and academic achievement in kindergarten, these analyses revealed that the presence of spanking in kindergarten was significantly related to academic achievement in third grade. The presence of spanking in kindergarten was also related to children's learning related skills in third grade. Spanking and higher levels of warmth in kindergarten were related to children's interpersonal skills in third grade. Curriculum in kindergarten was unrelated to third grade academic achievement, social competence, and behavior problems. Social competence in third grade was related to academic achievement in third grade, while behavior problems were not. Finally, social competence mediated the relationship between spanking in kindergarten and academic achievement in third grade.