Previous research has demonstrated the effect of family cohesion on adolescent outcomes. However, little attention has been given to the effect of adolescence on the family environment. Family systems theory suggests that as adolescents develop, their development will impact the family environment. The current study examined the impact of adolescent development on family cohesion. Specifically, 4 years of data from the Mobile Youth Survey, a study of adolescents living in low-income neighborhoods in Mobile, Alabama, were analyzed. Survey participants were between the ages 13 and 16 and 97 % of them were Black American. Adolescent development was measured using three dimensions—identity style, self-worth, and hopelessness. Family cohesion was measured along two dimensions: maternal and paternal warmth. Adolescent gender was used as a covariate. The longitudinal models revealed that parents responded differently to identity styles and to levels of self-worth depending upon the adolescent’s gender. Our study provides evidence that family cohesion, a key predictor of adolescent behaviors, changes in response to adolescent development.

Objective: The purpose of the current study was improving the measurement precision of the Transition Readiness Assessment Questionnaire (TRAQ 5.0–20 item) in order to gain better decimation of transition readiness skills across the 5 Stages of Change–from Precontemplation to Mastery. Methods: In stage 1, starting with the TRAQ 5.0 20-item, 5 domain subscale questionnaire, we eliminated the five lowest discriminating items using Item response theory (IRT) in MPlus v7.4,which eliminated the domain subscale Managing Daily Activities, and we e added 15 more difficult and better discriminating items. We added items to both to the remaining 4 domain subscales and created a new domain subscale entitled Future Planning. The revised 30-item TRAQ was piloted among 386 youth between 16 and 24 years old (mean = 20 years; 54% female; 87% White). Results: After examining the model fit, discrimination and difficulty coefficients, and modification indices, we eliminated 10 items and the new Future Planning domain subscale we eliminated. The resulting questionnaire has 4 domain subscales and 20 items. It exhibited good to excellent fit to the data, χ2(164) = 887.239, p <.001, CFI = 0.943, TLI = 0.93, RMSEA = 0.0942 (90% CI: 0.090, 0.114), WRMR = 1.111. All items have acceptable discrimination coefficients. Each of the 4 domain subscales have improved reliability as compared with the original TRAQ 5.0 20 item scale. Conclusions: The revised 20-itemTRAQ 6.0 has 4 domains subscales; Managing medications, keeping appointment, tracking health issues, and Talking with providers and has good construct validity as demonstrated by model fit. By adding more difficult items to the 4 resulting domain subscales, we have demonstrated improved item discrimination and difficulty, and therefore can better measure acquisition of transition readiness skills across the five stages of change from pre-contemplation to contemplation to initiation to action and finally to mastery.

Thesis advisor: Jacqueline V. Lerner / Considerable scholarly attention has been dedicated toward the role of peers in adolescents’ romantic lives (Brown, 1999; Collins, 2003; Connolly & McIsaac, 2009, Korobov & Thorne, 2006). However, when it comes to the developmental significance of adults in promoting the healthy romantic functioning of adolescents, there has been comparably little research. For college students in particular, navigating romantic experiences can be a stressful and complex endeavor (Hurst et al., 2013) - one that may be aided by supportive relationships with adults who can listen, ask questions, and offer a distinct perspective. Indeed, recent literature has indicated that late adolescents (18-25 years of age) want more guidance from the adults in their lives about romantic relationships (Weissbourd et al., 2017). The present study introduces the concept and term love mentoring - opportunities to think, learn, and/or talk about romantic experiences with someone who is older or more experienced in this domain. Through the theoretical framework of Relational Cultural Theory, the study investigates the presence, nature, quality, and influence of love mentoring relationships in the lives of college women enrolled in a university-based mentoring program. Through reflexive thematic analysis of survey data and 12 in-depth follow-up interviews, the study’s results are distilled into six integrative findings: love mentoring is prevalent in families and universities, love mentors (LMs) are trustworthy, love mentoring supports self-worth, conversations around sex complicate love mentoring relationships, LMs are distinct from friends, and LMs promote healthy romantic development through conversation and modeling. These foundational findings on the phenomenon of love mentoring provide an important contribution to existing bodies of literature on college students’ romantic relationships and mentoring. Implications for research and practice are discussed in the context of study limitations. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2023. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Counseling, Developmental and Educational Psychology.

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This paper explores the nature of emerging adulthood in Southern India. Survey data was collected from 450 college students in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India and 100 non-students from rural villages surrounding Coimbatore. Unlike American samples, the majority of the 18- to 26-year-olds studied felt that they had achieved adulthood. The sample emphasized attributes needed to fulfill family roles as characteristics necessary for adulthood. Differences in optimism levels were found between students and non-students. Arnett suggests that emerging adulthood would be affected by cultural influences. The unique cultural and structural influences in India such as, Hinduism, caste, gendered socialization, and the educational system, are discussed as possible explanations for the unique findings.

<p>This thesis tested and extended the peer socialization hypothesis, a psychosocial model that identifies the interpersonal and contextual conditions in which pubertal development is linked to delinquent behavior such as alcohol use. Although there is support for the hypothesis in early empirical work, particularly for female adolescents, more recent work has shown mixed results. Furthermore, there are gaps within the peer socialization hypothesis: a) the theory does not discuss if the mediation process pertains to male adolescents, b) it does not address the role of pubertal tempo, and c) it implies, but does not explicitly model, a role for tempo with regards to including other-sex friendships into the friend group. Using the Internet Surveys About You (iSAY) study (<em>n</em>=1020), the peer socialization hypothesis and proposed extensions were tested separately by sex. Female adolescents initiated inclusion of other-sex friends into the friend group earlier than male adolescents. However, there were no observed sex differences in the tempo of other-sex friendships. Female adolescents’ pubertal development was not related to their other-sex friendship development nor was pubertal development and other-sex friendship development related to their alcohol use. Male adolescents’ pubertal timing was associated with the timing of other-sex friendship uptake in that later maturing adolescents displayed earlier initiation of other-sex friendships. Male adolescents’ other-sex friendship development was not related to their alcohol use. Implications of this work are that other-sex friendships may no longer be a context of increased risk for alcohol use for early maturing adolescents and interventions targeting this social context may not be as effective. </p>

<p> Over two-thirds of youth participate in a structured sport, making it a vital context in which transactional relations with cognitive development can occur. Yet, little is known about how these constructs inform one another across childhood. Most previous studies have focused on health benefits of sport participation, or on demographic and family characteristics as predictors of participation. Though some previous literature has explored the cognitive impacts of sport participation during childhood, as well as whether early cognitive skills may predict later sport participation, critical gaps remain. Specifically, there is a need to investigate the extent to which there are longitudinal relations between these constructs as well as the nature of those associations throughout childhood. Thus, this dissertation examines whether: (1) participating in sports during preschool predicts kindergarten cognitive outcomes (i.e., executive functioning, math, language, literacy), (2) executive functioning and pre-academic skills (i.e., math, language, literacy) at 54 months predict participating in a structured sport (open-skilled, closed-skilled) in third and fifth grade, and (3) if there are bidirectional relations between executive functioning and academic outcomes (i.e., math, language, literacy) and structured sports (open-skilled, closed-skilled) in third and fifth grade. Findings from this dissertation indicated that associations between sport participation and cognition in children are complex, such that the direction of these associations likely depend on developmental period and conceptualization of sport. In particular, there may be positive transactional relations between early sport and cognitive skills, but not in middle childhood. Further, the results suggest that there may be bidirectional relations between open-skilled sport participation and executive functioning across childhood. In addition, almost all associations between closed-skilled sport participation and cognitive skills were nonsignificant. Thus, open-skilled sport participation may demand more cognitive resources than closed-skilled sport participation. Results from this dissertation reinforce the need to use intensive longitudinal data analysis to continue exploring transactional relations between sport participation, executive functioning, and academic skills. Finally, it is vital to reconsider how we evaluate sport participation in children and to include context-specific measures of participation that likely influence relations between these constructs. </p>

The purpose of this mixed-methods dissertation study was to investigate the role of mindfulness in the process of identity development and goal-setting among emerging adults, from two different identity approaches – the identity status model and narrative identity. Of the total sample (N = 130), 119 undergraduate students completed the questionnaires and provided turning point narratives in the online survey. The results showed that the diffusion identity status was negatively associated with mindfulness, goal-setting and narrative identity, whereas more advanced identity maturity was positively associated with mindfulness, goal-setting and narrative identity. In addition, both mindfulness and identity maturity index significantly predicted goal-setting. The relationship between mindfulness and goal-setting was also fully mediated by identity maturity index. Nevertheless, no associations among narrative identity, mindfulness, and goal-setting were found. Using extreme group analysis, the qualitative findings supported the quantitative findings by showing that the narratives in the extremely high identity maturity group were likely to demonstrate participants’ engagement in exploration, acceptance of challenges, perspective changes in life and the worldview, and positive emotion states. The findings provided implications for theory and practice in terms of the importance of incorporating mindfulness-based interventions in facilitating these specific aspects of identity development and goal-setting in emerging adults. Particularly, the findings highlighted that mindfulness promotes emerging adults’ openness to new experiences and willingness to face challenges in rapidly changing occupational structures and social environments. Limitations and directions for future research were also discussed.

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Adolescence is an uphill struggle. Research abundantly displays that Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) have a distinct and detrimental effect on adolescents and their development. Recent research has explored the perspectives, thoughts, behaviours, and beliefs of helping professionals who integrate spirituality into their work with adolescents. The purpose of this qualitative study is to develop a thematic analysis of helping professionals’ narratives of care with this population. The narratives of helping professionals’ care of adolescent males with ACEs points to the desire to connect with spiritual community and to make meaning. Helping professionals’ narratives also highlight the constraints of locating spirituality. Theological reflection on parrhesia focuses on developing open, unencumbered discussion as an ethical, professional, and spiritually-sensitive form of integration. / Thesis / Master of Arts (MA)