College of Behavioral & Social Sciences
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The collections in this community comprise faculty research works, as well as graduate theses and dissertations..
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Item EMOTIONS AND COPING IN THE CONTEXT OF TEACHING: REFLECTIONS OF PRE-SERVICE TEACHERS(2021) Briody, Jill Margaret; Teglasi, Hedwig; Psychology; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Teaching is an emotional roller coaster. Not enough pre-service teachers are prepared for the daily barrage of emotions they will experience when they enter the professional world or for the critical need they will have to effectively manage those emotions. Limited awareness of the role of emotions and management thereof may lead to reduced effectiveness in the classroom and higher rates of burnout. The current mixed methods study explored how pre-service teachers from an elementary education undergraduate program at a large Mid-Atlantic public University think about their emotions and the management of those emotions in the context of teaching. Emotions are a difficult construct to accurately capture and research often relies on self-report measures to do so. In addition to self-report measures, this study employed narratives, about significant teaching experiences to examine more deeply pre-service teachers’ emotions, the situations that elicit those emotions, and the management of those emotions through coping. Results indicated that pre-service teachers reflect on a range of emotions, with 95% mentioning negative emotions when writing about a classroom experience and 96% mentioning positive emotions. The most frequently used category of emotion words was “fear,” by almost 70% of participants. Furthermore, almost 60% of pre-service teachers agreed that they regularly experience waves of strong feelings about their teaching experience, when responding to items on the Impact of Event Scale-Adapted. Yet almost 60% of pre-service teachers described coping that was coded as unrealistic or non-coping in at least one of their narratives. While almost all pre-service teachers included emotions in writing about significant teaching experiences, very few reported emotions or coping as a concern when asked explicitly what they were worried about. Among the situations that elicited the most negative emotions and/or were reported as most worrisome were the shift in responsibility from mentor teacher to pre-service teacher, lesson planning, time management, individual student social-emotional well-being, and whole class behavior/classroom management. The current study illustrated the importance of using multiple methods to capture the complexities of multifaceted constructs like emotions and coping. Implications for pre-service teachers, educator preparation programs, and researchers are discussed.Item Work-Family Experiences Among Employed Mothers(2011) Ganginis Del Pino, Heather Victoria; O'Brien, Karen M.; Psychology; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)The purpose of this study was to extend knowledge regarding the predictors and outcomes associated with work-family conflict and work-family enrichment with a sample of employed mothers. Specifically, grounded in the work of Greenhaus and Powell (2006), this study examined the extent to which employed mothers' personality (neuroticism, agreeableness, and conscientiousness), styles of coping, and employer sensitivity were predictive of work-family conflict (work-to-family and family-to-work), and work-family enrichment (work-to-family and family-to-work), and how these constructs related to psychological functioning (i.e., well-being and depression), satisfaction with life/love (i.e., life and relationship satisfaction), and work satisfaction. Participants included 305 employed mothers. We tested the hypothesis that the indirect effects model would be a better fit to the data than the direct and indirect effects model, which was not supported. The direct and indirect effects model, after modifications (correlated uniqueness terms), was a better fit to the data. Directions for future research and the limitations of this study are discussed.Item Cyberstalking Victimization: Impact and Coping Responses in a National University Sample(2008-05-05) Hensler-McGinnis, Nancy Felicity; Fassinger, Ruth E; Psychology; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Cyberstalking, or technology-aided stalking, is the use of electronic communications or tracking technologies to pursue another person repeatedly to the point of inducing fear. This study investigated the impact of cyberstalking victimization on psychological trauma and impairment of academic/career functioning, controlling for ongoing cyberstalking. Financial impact also was examined. The potential moderating relationship of resilient coping on the association between cyberstalking victimization and the outcome variables was explored. In addition, the study investigated the potential mediating relationship of perceived threat on the associations between victimization and: trauma, academic/career impairment, and formal reporting. The study explored relationships between the reported effectiveness of coping responses and: victim's sex, self-defined victimization, and type of prior relationship with pursuer. Finally, the study investigated predictors of cyberstalking victims' informal and formal reporting behaviors, as well as frequency of reporting, disciplinary outcomes for the cyberstalkers, and victims' reporting satisfaction. Participants were 452 female and male, currently-enrolled, U.S. college/university undergraduate and graduate/medical/law students who responded to an online survey requesting individuals who had been stalked via technology. Results indicated that the experiences of almost half (46%) of the university sample met legal criteria for cyberstalking victimization. Cyberstalking victimization predicted psychological trauma and impairment in academic/career functioning; significant predictors of both outcomes included self-defined victimization and the number of distinct cyberstalking behaviors experienced. In addition, prior dating/intimate partner-stalkers were predictive of psychological trauma, while unknown and female stalkers were associated with more academic/career impairment in university victims. The present study found no evidence for a moderating effect of resilient coping. Perceived threat was found to partially mediate the relationships between cyberstalking victimization and psychological trauma, impairment in academic/career functioning, and formal reporting. Coping response effectiveness was consistent with limiting one's exposure and accessibility; lack of effectiveness was characterized by contact with the pursuer. Coping responses were less effective for students whose victimization met legal definitions of cyberstalking and for those stalked by dating/intimate partners. A majority of students did not formally report victimization; approximately 14% indicated that formal reports resulted in disciplinary action for their cyberstalkers. Additional findings and implications for future research, practice, and policy/advocacy are discussed.Item The Intersection of HIV Infection with HIV/AIDS Beliefs among African Americans(2007-08-02) Walton, Heather M.; Fassinger, Ruth E.; Psychology; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)This dissertation describes a qualitative study of 15 African American, HIV-positive individuals who were clients in a day treatment program at an HIV clinic in the Washington, DC, area. Data were collected through semistructured interviews; grounded theory methodology was used to generate a theory of how the participants gave meaning to HIV. The theoretical model included Personal Context, Support and Education, Socio-cultural Meaning, and Personal Meaning, all of which related to the formation of a global meaning regarding HIV. The emergent theoretical model and its components are presented, and the implications of the study for research, practice, and advocacy are discussed.