The purpose of this dissertation was to investigate the differential effects of goal setting and value reappraisal on female students’ self-efficacy beliefs, value perceptions, exam performance and continued interest in statistics. It was hypothesized that the Enhanced Goal Setting Intervention (GS-E) would positively impact students’ self-efficacy beliefs and exam performance, whereas the Enhanced Value-Reappraisal (VR-E) was expected to positively affect students’ value perceptions and continued interest in learning statistics. A total of 88 female undergraduate students enrolled in two sections of an introductory statistics course completed the entire study. Students were primarily Caucasian, upper division, and traditionally aged. Students were stratified on course section and year in school and randomly assigned to one of three groups: Control Group (n=30); GS-E Group (n=27); and VR-E (n=31). GS-E asked students to both set and self-evaluate eight goals focused on reaching learning objectives for their upcoming statistics exam. VR-E presented students with messages about why learning statistics could be important for them and guided them in processing these messages. The Control Condition asked students to complete three Texas Information Literacy Tutorial modules and answer reflective questions. Findings from this dissertation partially supported the hypotheses related to VR-E, but no support was found for the hypotheses related to GS-E. The VR-E Intervention was found to positively impact measures of students’ value perceptions and continued interest. Immediate effects of VR-E were observed on: 1) the overall value students placed on learning statistics; 2) students’ interest and enjoyment of statistics; 3) the importance students placed on developing statistical knowledge and skills for the attainment of their future goals; and 4) students’ intentions to continue learning statistics on their own. However, relatively stronger and longer-lasting effects were observed on the later two variables. Also, students in the VR-E Group outperformed students in the GS-E Group on their post-intervention exam; however, neither group was significantly different from the Control Group. Findings from this research help to address the growing economic and social needs for the development and evaluation of theory-based educational interventions that target the improvement of college students’ achievement and continued interest in math and science education. / text

The present study examined sexual assault victimization and loneliness as predictors of self-harm behaviors in a sample of 224 female college students. Results from conducting regression analysis indicated that both sexual assault victimization and loneliness were unique and significant predictors of self-harm behaviors. This pattern remained even after controlling for concomitant suicidal behaviors. Interestingly, in a post hoc analysis predicting suicidal behaviors, it was found that loneliness, but not sexual assault victimization, was the only unique and significant predictor after controlling for self-harm behaviors. Some implications of the present findings for understanding self-harm behaviors in female college students and the importance of controlling for suicidal behaviors in studies of self-harm behaviors (and vice versa) are discussed.

Smoking is now the leading cause of preventable death and disease in women. Understanding women's motivations to smoke is important in developing effective cessation and relapse prevention programs. Previous descriptive, correlational, and quasi-experimental research has established that weight concerns and negative body image are associated with tobacco smoking, cessation, and relapse, particularly among young women. This study, building upon a previous experimental study (Lopez, Drobes, Thompson, & Brandon, 2008), examined whether activation of negative body image cognitions would produce greater urges to smoke and would affect actual smoking behavior. A randomized 2 X 2 crossed factorial, between-subjects design (body image manipulation X smoking cue manipulation) was conducted with 133 female college smokers. The body image manipulation involved trying on a one-piece bathing suit or evaluating a purse, and the smoking cue manipulation included the presentation of their pack of cigarettes or a stapler. Participants completed pre-intervention measures assessing smoking history, trait body dissatisfaction, trait self-objectification, and trait affect. State levels of urge to smoke, mood, and body dissatisfaction were assessed after the manipulations. It was hypothesized that main effects on the measures of smoking motivation (i.e., self-reported urges to smoke and topographical measures of smoking behavior) would be found for the body image manipulation, with trait body dissatisfaction and/or trait self-objectification moderating the body image manipulation and state negative affect serving as a mediator. Results indicated that trying on a bathing suit, which increased body dissatisfaction, did increase reported urges to smoke, particularly those urges related to reducing negative affect. Women assigned to the bathing suit condition also subsequently took a greater number of puffs from their cigarette than those who evaluated the purse. (No main effects were found for the smoking cue manipulation). No moderation effects were found, but the effect on smoking urges by the body image manipulation was mediated by state negative affect. This study provides additional support, through an experimental design, that situational challenges to body image influence smoking motivation, and that this effect occurs, at least in part, via increases in negative affect. Theoretical and applied implications are discussed.

This purpose of this study was to examine the motivation of first-year female Japanese university students towards university study in general and towards the study of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) in particular. The study used Maehr’s multiple goal model of Personal Investment as its theoretical basis. Two forms of a bilingual Inventory of University Motivation (IUM) were created. One refers to university study in general, the IUM-Gen; the other refers specifically to the study of EFL, the IUM-Eng. The two forms of the IUM were adaptations of McInerney’s Inventory of School Motivation (ISM) and were also translated into Japanese and then back-translated. Data from these questionnaires were collected from 501 first year university students at a Japanese women’s university and analysed using four sets of exploratory Principal Components Analyses (PCA). These analyses produced clear scales with solid loadings, thus supporting the construct validity of the instrument. Each scale had strong reliability as measured by Cronbach’s alpha. Mean scales, based on the items loading on the derived factors, were used to develop an overall motivational profile of the students. Some features of this profile contradicted strongly held beliefs about Japanese university students’ lack of motivation, as well as about their supposed collectivist qualities. Other features provided support for the argument that the study of EFL is important to female Japanese university students, suggesting that English ability is perceived as a skill which can provide them with attractive personal and professional possibilities. Multiple regression analyses were performed using the resulting scales of the IUM-Gen and IUM-Eng separately against the above outcome measures. Significant relationships were found between some of the predictor variables, the scales of the two forms of the IUM, and some of the criterion variables, the outcome measures. The three IUM-Eng subscales of Sense of Competence in English, Competition in English, and Social Concern in English (negative), and the two IUM-Gen subscales of Affiliation at University and Self-esteem at University, were the predictor variables of most significance. The results of these analyses provide support for the applicability of the theoretical model and both forms of the measurement instrument in this socio-cultural context. They also show the instrument to be very useful at extracting important predictors of academic success at studying EFL at a Japanese university, and make some important contributions to the growing research agenda in motivation in EFL. / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

This work derived attitudinal input from 397 female college business majors concerning their preference for various job factors drawn from previously validated studies and their expected levels of satisfaction with those job factors in new job situations following graduation. Data were collected through the distribution of a questionnaire consisting of three sections: (1) demographic categories, (2) a list of twenty job factors with a Likert-like scale for respondents to record the strength of desire for each, and (3) an identical list of job factors with a Likert-like scale for respondents to record the expected level of satisfaction with those job factors on their new job.

This study investigated the relationship between religiosity of female college students and sexual victimization experiences. These experiences include the reporting behaviors that take place subsequent to an act of sexual victimization. The study utilized secondary data gathered from the forth wave of a longitudinal study funded by the National Institute of Justice between 1990 and 1995. The study used multidimensional levels of religiosity to analyze and to assess its impact on the sexual victimization experiences. Findings ascertained that certain behavioral measures of religiosity were consistently found to be a protective factor against sexual victimization. On the other hand, subjective measures of religiosity were not found to be a protective measure for victimization. Instead, this measure was statistically determined to be related to experiencing acts of sexual victimization. Recommendations were given for a greater focus on campus resources pertaining to student victimization and more in-depth research on the role churches have in dealing with this issue.

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This study examined two theoretical factors proposed to explain the relationship between sexual abuse experiences and disturbed eating patterns. Over 300 women completed questionnaires designed to assess sexual abuse histories, bodily shame, body disparagement, and disordered eating behaviors. Multivariate analyses indicated that bodily shame, body image dysphoria, and bodily dissatisfaction were significantly higher in participants with previous sexual violations. In addition, disordered eating symptoms and behaviors were related to reported severity of sexual abuse experiences. However, the relationship between the severity of disturbed eating patterns and sexual abuse histories appears to be more meaningful in relation to the presence of bodily shame and body dissatisfaction, as proposed in previous research. Future research implications are discussed.

The purpose of this study was to examine behavioral inhibition system and behavioral activation system (BIS/BAS) motives and loneliness as predictors of eating disturbances (viz., drive for thinness, bulimic symptoms, & body dissatisfaction) in female college students. Three hundred and one female college students (ages ranging from 18–33 years) completed measures assessing for BIS/BAS motives, loneliness, and eating disturbances. Results of conducting regression analyses indicated that BIS/BAS motives, especially BIS motives, accounted for significant amounts of variance across all three eating disturbance outcomes examined (R2 range = .10 to .13). Moreover, the inclusion of loneliness as a predictor of eating disturbances was found to account for additional unique amounts of variance (ΔR2 range = .02 to .06), over what was accounted for by BIS/BAS motives. These findings indicate that in addition to the potential role of biologically linked variables like BIS/BAS motives, it is important to also consider the contributions of important psychosocial variables like loneliness for understanding eating disturbances among female college students.