I det här arbetet har jag undersökt relationen mellan rollerna musiker och lärare i musikläraryrket och musiklärarutbildningen, och hur det egna musikintresset påverkar musikläraryrket. Genom semistrukturerade intervjuer har fyra musiklärare, två från gymnasiet och två från grundskolan medverkat. Historiskt har musikerrollen ansetts ha högre status än lärarrollen och bland de medverkande musiklärarna var musikintresset en central anledningen till yrkesvalet. Många som söker sig till musikläraryrket och musikhögskolan har haft med sig musik sedan barndomen vilket kan påverka det musikaliska identitetsskapandet. Genom de fyra deltagande musiklärarna går det att utröna att musikerrollen och lärarrollen ter sig olika beroende på om man jobbar på gymnasium eller på grundskola, det egna musiklivet påverkar motivationen till musiklärarjobbet och huvudinstrumentet har betydelse för undervisningen. Två av de medverkande har trummor som huvudinstrument och tänker musik genom trummorna och en annan av de medverkande har piano som huvudinstrument och leder mycket från pianot.

Magister Commercii (Industrial Psychology) - MCom(IPS) / The employability of graduates has been a global point of concern. Within a South African context, this issue is proliferated not only by a reported gap between employers’ expectations and those of students, but also by an exponential rise in graduate unemployment. Examining undergraduates’ perspectives regarding competencies necessary to enhance their employability as well as their efficacy beliefs regarding their perceived competence in certain competencies, is one means of gaining insights and working towards narrowing between student and industry expectations and perceptions. The primary objective of this study was to examine Industrial Psychology (IPS) undergraduate students’ perceptions of critical competencies needed for employability, their efficacy beliefs regarding their level of perceived competence in these competencies and to determine the discrepancies between these viewpoints based on certain demographic variables. This research sought to gain an understanding of IPS undergraduates’ perspectives, a perspective that previous literature has not yet addressed. Quantitative data was obtained from 151 IPS undergraduate students during the course of their respective lectures, by means of a questionnaire instrument, which comprised of two sections. The first section sought to elicit demographical information and the second section consisted of questions related to their perceptions of the importance of certain competencies, as well as their self-perceived competence in relation to these. Descriptive analyses demonstrated that IPS undergraduates regarded all of the twenty-four listed competencies as quite important for employability, some being rated as critically important and others of lesser importance by comparison. Additionally, in terms of their efficacy beliefs in their competence in these competencies, the sampled undergraduates felt they possessed a slightly above average level of competence overall, indicating a fair amount of self-efficacy. Furthermore, inferential statistical analyses were conducted to investigate the respective perceptions based on gender, age, work experience and year level of study. These results indicated several statistically significant findings between the various categories. It was evident that gender, age, work experience and year level of study played a role in the perceptions by the sampled group of IPS undergraduates, in respect to a few of the competencies highlighted. In conclusion, these perceptions may be able to add to the body of knowledge and aid in the development of IPS undergraduates from an academic and professional point of view.

This study aimed to translate the Norwegian teacher self-efficacy scale (NTSES; Skaalvik & Skaalvik, 2007) and explore its validity and factor structure in a sample of 256 Swedish teachers. The ties between teacher self-efficacy and teacher burnout and self-efficacy and teacher well-being were also investigated. The results showed that the Swedish version of the NTSES had good internal consistency and adequate concurrent and convergent validity. However, results from a confirmatory factor analysis and two exploratory factor analyses did not support a factor structure equivalent to the original NTSES. The Swedish version of the NTSES might need some adjustments in translation and even consideration regarding removal of some items before it can truly be of use in a Swedish context.

Recommendations on breastfeeding in the United States suggest that infants should be exclusively breastfed for six months with continued breastfeeding in conjunction with complementary foods for at least one year. However, only 22.30% of women are exclusively breastfeeding when their infant reaches the age of six months, which indicates the existence of barriers hindering prolonged breastfeeding. In this study, I consider the factors related to information-seeking behavior that may influence breastfeeding rates. Specifically, I focus on the relationship between the sources a woman selects to receive information about breastfeeding and her level of breastfeeding self-efficacy, which has been shown to be a significant predictor of breastfeeding success. A sample of 222 breastfeeding women was recruited for participation in this study. Participants completed a mixed-methods survey, and the results of the survey were analyzed using applied thematic analysis, correlation, and regression analysis. Women who participated in this study used non-expert online information sources most frequently when searching for information related to breastfeeding. Criteria women used most frequently when choosing an information source included source affordances (e.g., convenience and quickness), information characteristics (e.g., variety of information and information quality), and source characteristics (e.g., source expertise). Hypotheses for this study posited a relationship between source characteristics (i.e., expertise, trustworthiness, goodwill, and social support) and breastfeeding self-efficacy; all hypotheses were supported, and expertise, trustworthiness, goodwill, and social support were found to have a significant positive relationship with breastfeeding self-efficacy. Source expertise was found to be the strongest predictor of breastfeeding self-efficacy among those that were measured for this study; however, it is not an individual significant predictor when modeled alongside the remaining source characteristics. Implications of this study stress the importance of access to quality information related to breastfeeding and continued research on the development of breastfeeding self-efficacy in various demographic populations and over the span of a breastfeeding relationship.

Certified athletic trainers (ATCs) are often the first to respond to an athletic sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) and are expected to administer the highest quality of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) possible. The goal of this study was to investigate the relationship between confidence and CPR quality in ATCs. Fifty ATCs completed confidence questionnaires before and after performing a prolonged CPR assessment on a medium-fidelity manikin. CPR data included measures of chest compression and ventilation quality. Data were analyzed to compare confidence levels pre- and post-CPR assessment, as well as to determine the relationship between CPR performance and self-efficacy. A small, negative correlation was found between confidence and CPR performance but performing a prolonged session of CPR did not affect confidence levels. Overall CPR quality was adequate, but ventilations and compression rates were lacking. The relationship between confidence and CPR quality must be explored further to help revise athletic training educational curricula.

Dual credit options allow high school students to enter college with college credits earned, as well as gain lived experience of the role expectations, academic rigor, and time it takes to complete college-level work. While past studies have identified benefits of dual credit for first-generation college students in particular, few have investigated the nature of that relationship. This qualitative study examined the relationship between first-generation students’ dual credit experiences and academic self-efficacy. Interviews were conducted with three first-generation college students in fall 2019. Findings indicate first-generation students who engage in a rigorous dual credit experience that results in mastery experience are more prepared for the academic expectations of college, master the role of a student, and perceive an increase in academic self-efficacy. This experience may provide first-generation students with knowledge and transition skills for college that their continuing generation peers find elsewhere. Implications and recommendations for future research are discussed.

Statistik visar att elever med akademiskt utbildade föräldrar oftare tar sig vidare till högre utbildningar än de som har föräldrar med lägre utbildningsnivå. Bourdieu har länge belyst fenomenet med sina teorier om kulturell reproduktion och selektion vid högre utbildningar. Det finns även ett samband mellan utbildningsnivå och hälsoläge ur ett folkhälsoperspektiv. Syftet med undersökningen är att problematisera och belysa hur gymnasieelever resonerar kring universitet- och högskolestudier ur ett Bourdieuperspektiv. Kvalitativa semi-strukturerade interjuver har genomförts och teoretiskt tolkats utifrån Bourdieus teorier. För att ge ytterligare insikt i valet om vidare studier har Banduras teori om Self-efficacy använts. Resultatet visar på hemmiljöns betydelse för fortsatta studier efter gymnasiet.

The research problem for this study was fathers’ low participation in child sexual abuse (CSA) prevention with their children. The purpose of this study was to explore how fathers perceive their self-efficacy in talking to their children about CSA prevention. Bandura’s self-efficacy concept, which is a part of social cognitive theory, was used as the theoretical foundation for this study. The primary research question addressed fathers’ perceptions of their self-efficacy in discussing CSA prevention with their children. The secondary research question addressed what fathers think could be affecting their comfort level in talking to their children about CSA prevention. A generic qualitative design was used to address these research questions. Fathers of children between the ages of 7 years and 13 years were included in this study. The participants were interviewed via telephone. Data were analyzed using a 12-step process to performing an inductive analysis on qualitative data. The findings from this study showed that 90% of the participants talked to their children about CSA prevention, even though some of them expressed doubt about their efficacy and competency in having the discussion. Participants stated that they wanted easily accessible resources to increase their efficacy and gave suggestions on how to make the resources available. This study has important social implications because increasing fathers’ self-efficacy in talking to their children about CSA prevention could lead to the increased protection of children in their environment. Increasing the protection of children could contribute to fewer cases of CSA.

The impact of micro-finance on the lives of the poor is a hotly debated issue filled with controversies and inaccuracies. The literature review on the benefits of micro-finance indicates that early debates were mostly based on heart-warming anecdotes and case studies, with little empirical study on its actual impact. Thus, despite the heated debate on micro-finance, there is still little understanding on the true empirical impacts of microfinance, particularly its psychological impacts on the poor. This study investigated the relationship and impact of micro-finance on self-esteem and self-efficacy. The study was conducted using a non-experimental research strategy (within-subjects design) and quasiexperimental strategy (pre-post-test non-equivalent control group). Two sampling methods, systematic and convenience sampling were used to select participants. A total of 264 pre-test and 159 post-test participants took part in this study. Data were collected using the Rosenberg self-esteem scale and General self-efficacy scale. The Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient was employed to measure the relationship between micro-finance, self-esteem and self-efficacy. The MANCOVA was used to investigate the impact of the provision of micro-finance on self-esteem and self-efficacy. The results not only showed that micro-finance is positively related to self-esteem and self-efficacy, but also showed that the provision of micro-finance led to an increase in the self-esteem of the recipients. The study further revealed a decline in the self-esteem of those who were declined micro-finance and highlighted the covariates that influenced this relationship. In light of these results, practical and theoretical implications affecting micro-finance practitioners, researchers and recipients are identified. Suggestions for future research are made based on the improvement of current methodologies, inclusion and use of valid control groups, the use of different sampling methods and larger sample sizes. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2015. / Psychology / PhD / Unrestricted

Organic Chemistry has been described as a challenging and confusing course for undergraduate students. Novices in the field have been struggling to understand fundamental concepts relating to organic mechanisms and organize their knowledge around surface features such as functional groups rather than deep underlying features. At the University of Ottawa, a new “Mechanistic patterns and principles” curriculum was designed and implemented, organized by the underlying mechanistic patterns that govern reactions rather than the traditional surface features approach. The redesigned curriculum emphasizes principles of reactivity in organic chemistry and is organized in a gradient of difficulty. The three studies included within this work act as part of a larger evaluation of the redesigned curriculum, specifically investigating an instrument to assess the formation of expertise in organic chemistry and an instrument to capture self-efficacy beliefs in organic chemistry as students progress throughout the curriculum. In the first two studies, an open and closed online categorization task was delivered to Organic Chemistry II students at both the beginning and end of their course. The open sort provided insights regarding how participants choose to sort, while the closed sort measured participants' ability to categorize reactions according to their underlying mechanistic pattern. In the first study, we provide an in-depth analysis of the changes in expertise that occur with respect to the expertise of their choices and ability. Findings from this work demonstrated a positive shift from students attending to surface to process-oriented features in the open sort, as well as an increase in students’ ability in the closed sort. The following-up study investigates the relationship between the expertise demonstrated by participants in the open and closed sorts. Additionally, this work compares these measures of expertise against varies other metrics, including a high-stakes categorization task, and academic performance to increase the validity, and probes at the reliability of findings. Findings from this work demonstrate a strong relationship between the expertise demonstrate in the online task and academic performance, as well as describe an evolving relationship between the expertise demonstrated in students’ choice and ability as they progress throughout the course. While previous work in the evaluation of the curriculum demonstrated that students possess greater ability, it is unknown whether this also translates to an increase in their beliefs about their abilities. The last study included within this work moves beyond cognitive outcomes of the curriculum to investigating the role of self-efficacy beliefs in the curriculum. Self-efficacy beliefs are defined as an individual’s belief in their capability to perform a specific task or objective successfully. This work intends to construct and validate a task-specific, multi-dimensional self-efficacy beliefs instrument for undergraduate students in the domain of organic chemistry. Pre-administration validity evidence, including test content and response process validity, was collected. Data for internal structure validity evidence was collected from a single administration with Organic Chemistry I students (N=78) to 7-factor structure within the final 39 item instrument. Due to the small sample size, these results are interpreted with extreme caution. Future work with this instrument aims to improve the validity evidence collected by expanding the sample size and evaluate the influence curriculum on self-efficacy beliefs, and who, based on demographic variables, may be benefiting the most from the transformed curriculum.