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 Essays in Gender and Development(2023) SIVARAM, ANUSUYA; Goldberg, Jessica; Economics; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)This dissertation consists of three essays at the intersection of gender and economics in developing countries. In chapter 1, I study the economic implications of a particular cultural practice: cousin, or consanguineous, marriage. One sixth of all marriages in Egypt are between first cousins, but there are important differences in the characteristics of individuals who select into such relationships relative to those who marry non-relatives. To measure the causal impact of the practice on socioeconomic outcomes abstracting from selection, I instrument for the probability of marrying a cousin using exogenous variation in family structure, and use weak instrument robust methods to estimate parameters and evaluate statistical significance. I find that individuals who marry a cousin because of exogenous attributes of their natal family structure are further in age from their spouse, predominantly driven by older men marrying cousins. I also find that women married to cousins receive higher levels of marital transfers that give them bargaining power within their marriages, likely as compensation for their spouse's attributes. This contrasts to patterns for those who select into cousin marriage; those individuals are younger at the time of marriage, match with partners closer to their own ages, and have no differences in the level of marital transfers exchanged. The contrast between OLS and IV results suggests that selection into cousin marriage may be motivated by anticipation of not matching on the wider marriage market, credit constraints, or the desire to consolidate property within the extended family. In chapter 2, I present baseline statistics from an experiment which examines the impact of random job offers on women's experiences of intimate partner violence in Bangladesh. This paper build on a larger study which aims to increase women's labor force participation and use of mobile money services. I collect supplementary data on women's experiences of intimate partner violence, men and women's agreement with conservative social norms, and second order beliefs regarding their community's sanction of intimate partner violence. I validate survey measures of intimate partner violence with a list randomization elicitation. I also present results from two incentivized decisionmaking activities conducted at baseline. I specify the outcomes I plan to test once endline data is available, as well as the econometric specifications I will use. Finally, I present power calculations using baseline data to determine the smallest effect sizes I can detect. Finally, in chapter 3, I study the impact of an exogenous negative shock to labor demand for female migrants within Bangladesh. I use a difference in differences strategy and compare outcomes between districts that have a history of sending migrants with those that do not, before and after the shock. I find that migrants respond to the initial shock and return to their households rather than remain unemployed in Dhaka, and that at least some of these women marry. I see no decrease in the level of investment in children's human capital, which suggests households do not revise their perceptions regarding the returns to education, and have access to other tools to smooth consumption. Finally, I see no changes in the daily agricultural wage rate for women in the years after the shock. I lack data on several important margins of adjustment which would allow us to discern the mechanisms behind the effects.Item SELF-COMPASSION AMONG WOMEN WITH ABUSE EXPERIENCES: THE ROLE OF SOCIAL SUPPORT(2018) LeVine, Naomi; Mittal, Mona; Family Studies; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a widespread issue that affects the physical and mental health of its survivors. Because of the severity of the outcomes, it is important that clinicians understand potential risk and protective factors in regard to providing the best outcomes for their clients. Under the framework of the stress-buffering hypothesis, this study explored the association between IPV and a woman’s self-compassion, as well as the role of social support as a variable moderating that association. It was hypothesized that higher levels of IPV victimization would be associated with lower levels of self-compassion among women with experiences of IPV. In addition, social support was hypothesized to weaken the association between IPV and individuals’ self-compassion. Data collected from a sample of women in abusive relationships (n=61) was analyzed using linear regression and a test for moderation. Results indicated that there was no significant association between IPV victimization and self-compassion. However, the interaction between IPV and social support tended toward significance. Contrary to the second hypothesis, among women with higher levels of social support, greater IPV was associated with lower self-compassion. Implications for clinical practice when working with this population are discussed.Item MEDICAL STUDENTS' BELIEFS TOWARDS SCREENING FOR INTIMATE PARTNER VIOLENCE: A QUALITATIVE STUDY(2012) Aluko, Oluwatoni Eniola Moronke; Beck, Dr. Kenneth H.; Public and Community Health; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Researchers have found that medical students receiving training on intimate partner violence (IPV) report greater comfort with screening for IPV, and improved IPV interviewing skills than their counterparts. However, more information is needed about medical students' intention to screen, and beliefs towards screening for IPV. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to qualitatively assess these beliefs by conducting semi-structured interviews with medical students (N=15) using the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) and Social Cognitive Theory (SCT) as theoretical frameworks for the interview instrument. Most students felt that screening for IPV could help to identify victims, but also offend patients. Reported barriers included time, while reported facilitators included receiving IPV training. Interviewees identified physicians as both supporters and non-supporters of IPV screening. Behavioral intention scores ranged from 17 to 50. Findings from the study can help inform the IPV training needs of medical students.Item Self-Protective Behaviors and Injury in Domestic Violence Situations: Does it Hurt to Fight Back?(2008-05-01) Wyckoff, Rachael Anne; Simpson, Sally S; Criminology and Criminal Justice; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Routine activities theory has different implications regarding situational crime prevention when applied to domestic violence. Indeed, it is often impossible for the victim to make herself a less suitable target or increase capable guardians. Therefore, women sometimes engage in their own form of situational crime prevention; self-protective behaviors. However, relatively little is known empirically about self-protective behaviors, their prevalence, context, and link to victim injury. Using both quantitative and qualitative data from the Women's Experience of Violence (WEV) funded NCOVR project, I explored the phenomenon of self-protective behaviors in domestic violence situations to examine whether the use of self-protective behaviors impacts the probability and severity of subsequent injury. I found that forceful physical behaviors increase injury whereas both forceful and nonforceful verbal behaviors actually served as a protective factor against subsequent injury.Item Retention of Couples in Treatment of Intimate Partner Violence(2005-05-03) Kursch, Mary Sarah; LaTaillade, Jaslean J; Family Studies; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)The treatment of choice for intimate partner violence (IPV) has been gender specific psychoeducational groups for offenders, but these groups have high drop out rates (Babcock & La Taillade, 2000). An alternative therapy available for the treatment of IPV is couple therapy. The current study explored variables predictive of couple retention in a treatment outcome study designed to prevent IPV. Sixty-nine couples seeking therapy for mild-to-moderate levels of physical and psychological abuse in their relationship were included. Couples received one of two treatment protocols to address IPV, as part of the Couples Abuse Prevention Program (CAPP): (1) treatment as usual; and (2) cognitive behavioral therapy. Specific pre-treatment variables examined included relationship satisfaction, communication patterns, psychological and physical aggression, pre-treatment levels of psychopathology, and client and therapist perceptions of the efficacy of treatment. Findings regarding variables discriminating between treatment completers and non-completers, and clinical implications for treatment of IPV were discussed.