<p> This dissertation utilizes a 2-in-1 format&mdash;combining two manuscripts within one dissertation. The first chapter is a conceptual manuscript in which I propose a framework for clinicians to utilize when working with heterosexual fathers of gay sons. This was recently published in the peer-reviewed journal, Professional Psychology: Research and Practice (Horn &amp; Wong, 2014). The second chapter, an empirical manuscript, qualitatively explores the relationships between gay sons and their heterosexual fathers through fathers&rsquo; eyes. Upon completion of the dissertation defense, this manuscript will also be submitted for publication in a peer-reviewed journal.</p>

The present study investigated the mediating role of career adaptability in the relationship between contextual factors (i.e., quality learning experience and social connection) and positive youth development (i.e., decision-making readiness and stress management), using data from a sample of 1047 Chinese students from 10th to 12th grades. First, a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) revealed that an expanded self- regulatory model with four dimensions (i.e., career search self-efficacy, goal capacity, academic self-efficacy, motivation for attending school) mapped onto one latent construct representing the overall level of career adaptability. Subsequently, using a structural equation modeling (SEM) approach of mediation analysis, this study found that this latent construct of career adaptability fully mediated the relationship between contextual factors and positive youth development. In addition, a test of the four mediating variables revealed eight specific significant indirect pathways from the contextual influences to positive youth development: career search self-efficacy and goal capacity fully mediated the relationship between quality learning experience and decision-making readiness as well as the relationship between social connection and decision-making readiness. Academic self-efficacy and motivation partially mediated the relationship between social connection and stress management as well as fully mediated the relationship between quality learning experiences and stress management. The findings establish notable implications for practices that are discussed in closing. / 2018-06-05T00:00:00Z

This project explored the experiences of adolescents and adult coaches who took part in Sole Train, a running-based youth development group, during its 2015–2016 program. Qualitative interviews about being “in the shoes” of four Sole Train coaches and five participants were conducted. Special attention was paid to whether and how Sole Train influenced participants’ psychological well-being levels (as defined by Ryff (1989)). Ryff (1989) described psychological well-being as including six dimensions; this study’s results suggested that for participants, each of these — self-acceptance, personal growth, purpose in life, positive relations with others, environmental mastery and autonomy — were in some way affected by their involvement in Sole Train. Coaches reported observing changes in participants that aligned with these six dimensions, and participants discussed experiencing such changes. Next, the type of climate coaches aimed to create and whether participants perceived the program to have a caring climate (as defined by Newton, Fry, Watson, Gano-Overway, Kim, Magyar and Guivernau (2007)) was examined. The results suggested that coaches tried to create caring climates, and that participants experienced groups as caring. Other findings included that Sole Train was described as fun and joyful, that involvement benefited both participants and coaches, that both groups faced challenges, that Sole Train’s caring climate may have influenced changes in participants’ well-being levels, and that the act of running was an important part of Young Soles’ experiences. Finally, the results support the idea that youth development through physical activity programs can impact those involved both physically and emotionally.

Current literature has highlighted the positive associations between forgiveness and mental health, and the negative associations between childhood bullying victimization experiences and individuals’ psychological functioning. However, little is known about the how students with childhood bullying victimization experiences understand forgiveness, or the relationship between forgiveness and students’ college experience and mental health. In this study, 15 senior year college students from a Northeastern university who reported bullying victimization experiences prior to college participated in semi-structured interviews and described their past bullying victimization, their college experience as well as their perspectives on forgiveness. Analysis of the interviews identified (a) the negative impact of bullying victimization; (b) forgiveness as a coping strategy; (c) forgiveness as a situational construct, as well as key facilitators of forgiveness among college students reporting past bullying victimization experiences. A model of forgiveness among college students with past bullying victimization experiences is proposed, and implications of these findings for theory, research, and practice are discussed.

The goal of this dissertation was to experimentally examine two different means through which social factors can influence children’s inhibitory control abilities: 1) a top down approach, through modeling of self-control skills, and 2) a bottom up approach via increased arousal due to their mere presence in the child’s environment. To the best of my knowledge, little research has examined children’s imitative abilities in the context of learning behavioral inhibition strategies, nor the influence of minimal social presence in the form of a mere image of eyes on children’s cognitive inhibition performance. In Chapters 2 and 3, I systematically explored variables that may affect children’s acquisition of self-control strategies from adults in a delay-of-gratification task. In Study 1, I explored the effect of adult’s verbal and behavioral information on preschool-aged children’s imitation of self-regulatory strategies with a particular interest in the cases when the verbal and behavioral information conflict. Children performed a delay-of-gratification task after observing an adult perform the same task. Across four between-subjects conditions, the model either did or did not state her intention to complete the task, modeled the strategies, and then either did or did not complete the task successfully. Children who observed the model successfully complete the task were more likely to imitate the strategies and successfully wait when they performed the same task, as well as in a novel self-control task, irrespective of the model’s communicated intent. In addition to examining the role of the information provided by an adult model, I investigated the role of model characteristics. In Study 2, using the same paradigm as in the first study, I explored whether 4- to 5-year-old children demonstrated a preference to imitate self control strategies from a racially ingroup versus a racially outgroup adult. Results revealed an absence of significant racial group preference in a sample of children of minority background (Chinese American), but significant racial group preferences among Caucasian children. Caucasian children were significantly more likely to imitate modeled strategies and to successfully wait when they observed an adult who was a racial ingroup member versus a racial outgroup member (East Asian). These findings were even more robust for the 5-year-old children, suggesting that racial group preferences may develop with age. The final two studies presented in Chapter 4 demonstrate that social factors can also influence inhibitory control abilities from a bottom up approach. In Study 3a, children either performed a computerized Flanker task in the presence of a picture of (angry) eyes (minimal social presence) or in the presence of a picture of flowers (non-social presence). While there was no significant difference in performance between the two conditions for children with less developed theory of mind, participants with more developed theory of mind demonstrated facilitated performance in the social presence condition. In Study 3b, I further explored the effect of minimal social presence on inhibitory control performance by adding a third condition, a picture of happy eyes. The facilitative effect was not found in the happy eyes condition, which may suggest that increase in arousal may have been a mechanism by which the social stimulus affected performance. Taken together, the findings from these studies identify social variables and conditions, both from a top down as well as from a bottom up approach, that affect children’s inhibitory control. This has important implications on how we can optimize teaching of self-control strategies in order to promote development of children’s behavioral inhibition, as well as on how we understand the implicit role of social context, even seemingly minimal social stimuli, that can facilitate children’s cognitive inhibition. / 2020-07-11T00:00:00Z

<p> The present study examined the prevalence of depression, anxiety, stress and resiliency among university students in Germany. Further, the study used structural equation modeling (SEM) to investigate a hypothesized model of protective factors and their interdependence on the mental health of German university students. The sample consisted of 787 students sampled from two public universities in Germany. Results found the sample to have normal to mild levels of depression (<i>M</i> = 4.40), normal to mild levels of anxiety (<i>M</i> = 3.81), and normal levels of stress (<i> M</i> = 6.36). The prevalence rates of moderate to extremely severe depression, anxiety, and stress were 22.8%, 30.9%, and 24.1%, respectively. SEM revealed that suppression, reappraisal, and resilience mediated the effect of self-esteem and mindfulness on depression. Furthermore, reappraisal, self-esteem, and stress mediated the effect of mindfulness and social support on depression. Furthermore, reappraisal, and resilience mediated the effect of mindfulness, social support, and exercise on stress. Implications, limitations, and recommendations for future research are discussed.</p><p>

<p> As a population, Black-White (B-W) biracial individuals have been relatively overlooked and underserved in the psychological literature. Although some theoretical attention has been paid to the racial identity development of biracial individuals, research is lacking on the psychological processes influencing the identity experiences of these individuals (Rockquemore et al., 2009). Specifically, little is known about how adults&rsquo; family-of-origin dynamics influence the racial identity construction process of B-W individuals.</p><p> The current study was designed to provide a rich understanding of how some B-W biracial emerging adults construct a racial identity when they were raised by monoracial parents. The general research question was: how do Black-White biracial emerging adults view the role of family dynamics in their racial identity experiences? Theories of racial identity (Poston, 1990; Rockquemore &amp; Brunsma, 2002), parental attachment (Ainsworth, 1991), racial socialization (Hughes &amp; Johnson, 2001), and family systems theory (Bowen, 1978; Kerr &amp; Bowen, 1988) were used to inform the study. The research question builds on the relevant literature in that racial identity is viewed as complex and informed by multiple layers of individuals&rsquo; identities and environments. </p><p> Giorgi&rsquo;s (2009) phenomenological analysis was used to identify salient themes in participants&rsquo; narratives in order to develop a rich conceptual understanding of the racial identity construction process for B-W biracial individuals. Initial and follow-up interviews were conducted with a purposive sample of 10 B-W emerging adults. The recorded interviews were transcribed and analyzed by a coding team. Fourteen sub-themes were identified from the narrative data, organized into three larger themes: Interactions with Family Members Contributed to Individuals&rsquo; Experience and Understanding of Race, Experience of Race and Racial Tension Affected Family Dynamics, and How the Family Addressed Racial/Biracial Identity was Influential. The thematic results (e.g., <i>Awareness That Neither Parent Could Fully Relate to the Biracial Experience, Allyship/connectedness with the Parent of Color due to Shared Experiences of Marginalization</i>) were consistent with the literature on the role of racial socialization and family dynamics in racial identity construction. Results are discussed in terms of their implications for theory, practice, and future research with this population.</p><p>

abstract: Descriptions of gray divorce often include consequences for young adult children who are increasingly being left to cope with their parents’ decision. Adult children of divorce may experience different stressors and reactions than younger children especially during holidays; moreover, their increased social awareness leaves their parental relationship vulnerable to rupture as a result of pressure to choose sides. Interventions for helping young adults cope with their parents’ break-up are rarely described, much less evaluated. An online delivery format would be especially well-suited given the possibility of in-home participation at any time of day with privacy assured and negligible cost. We thus developed and experimentally evaluated Transitions, a two week internet-based program organized around a classic stress inoculation framework. The goals of Transitions are to foster stress-coping skills and to improve parent-child relationships throughout the divorce process. Our study was restricted to young adult college students (N = 95) who had experienced parental separation or divorce within the past year, and who were not receiving psychological services elsewhere. Participants were screened and randomly assigned to experimental and delayed-treatment control conditions; a priori analyses indicated sufficient power to detect large effects. During the first week of Transitions, participants received psychoeducation, training in progressive muscle relaxation, and a cognitive restructuring curriculum derived from Ellis and Beck. The second week began with a review and then introduced mindfulness meditation and communication skills. Practice sessions were embedded throughout the curriculum and simulations were specific to experiences of parental divorce. Videos of young college graduates sharing personal stories about their parents’ divorce were streamed between each module. Comprehension of the content presented in Transitions was monitored and coded for partial or full completion of the program. Outcome measures were keyed to the nature of the clinical problem and interventions deployed. A repeated-measures multivariate analysis of variance (RM-MANOVA) yielded a significant interaction. Univariate follow-up ANOVAs showed significant improvement relative to controls on stress but not on relationship variables. Neither moderator nor intent-to-treat analyses altered this outcome pattern. Future research will focus on refining the stress reduction components of Transitions and improving its impact on relationships with parents. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Counseling 2016

abstract: As women enter STEM fields they are often presented with chilly climates. The chilly climate refers to incidents of sexism, isolation, and pressure to prove themselves to peers and higher level academics (Callister, 2006; Hall & Sandler, 1982). For women of color, the status of being a double minority can intensify the psychological distress experienced by students (Joseph, 2012; Ong, 2011; Malcom, Hall, & Brown, 1976). For minority populations in STEM, loneliness is experienced due to lack of belonging and social isolation (Morris & Daniel, 2008; Walton & Cohen, 2007). This study sought to investigate whether social support could serve as a protective factor in the negative relationship between loneliness and psychological well-being (Cohen, 2004; Lawson, 2001; Lazarus & Folkman, 1984) for those who hold a minority status. In addition, this study explored differences in the associations between loneliness, social support, and psychological well being and whether or not the moderation relationships were different for sub-groups based on gender or ethnic minority status. Cross-sectional data from 205 STEM graduate students was collected through an online study. A hierarchical regression analysis was used to test the buffering effects (Barron & Kenny, 1986) of global social support (total support from friends, family, and significant others) and family social support specifically. Model results suggested that global social support buffers the negative associations between loneliness and psychological well-being for less lonely minority participants in the study. Family social support buffered the associations of loneliness on psychological well-being for men with less loneliness. An unexpected finding in the present study revealed that for men and non –minority participants with high loneliness, psychological well-being decreased as family support increased. These results highlight the need for further research exploring through which mechanisms social support works as a buffer against loneliness in the sub-groups within STEM graduate student populations. The findings of this study could inform practices focused on the recruitment and retention of underrepresented STEM graduate students. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Counseling 2017

abstract: This study examined the role of substance use in the relationship between the working alliance and outcome symptomatology. In this study, two groups of participants were formed: the at risk for substance abuse (ARSA) group consisted of participants who indicated 'almost always,' 'frequently,' 'sometimes,' or 'rarely' on either of two items on the Outcome Questionnaire-45.2 (OQ-45.2) (i.e., the eye-opener item: "After heavy drinking, I need a drink the next morning to get going" and the annoyed item: "I feel annoyed by people who criticize my drinking (or drug use)"). The non-ARSA group consisted of participants who indicated 'never' on both of the eye-opener and annoyed screening items on the OQ-45.2. Data available from a counselor-training center for a client participant sample (n = 68) was used. As part of the usual counselor training center procedures, clients completed questionnaires after their weekly counseling session. The measures included the Working Alliance Inventory and the OQ-45.2. Results revealed no significant differences between the ARSA and non-ARSA groups in working alliance, total outcome symptomology, or in any of the three subscales of symptomatology. Working alliance was not found to be significant in predicting outcome symptomatology in this sample and no moderation effect of substance use on the relationship between working alliance and outcome symptomatology was found. This study was a start into the exploration of the role of substance use in the relationship between working alliance and outcome symptomatology in individual psychotherapy. Further research should be conducted to better understand substance use populations in individual psychotherapy. / Dissertation/Thesis / M.A. Counseling Psychology 2013