Given increased evidence related to the importance of fostering life satisfaction in the overall population (Diener & Diener, 1996), as well as recent suggestions regarding the importance of increasing positive academic and social outcomes for youth with ADHD (DuPaul, 2007), it is important to gain a clearer understanding of how life satisfaction may be related to ADHD symptoms. Although research has examined the relationship between life satisfaction and externalizing behavior (Suldo & Huebner, 2004a), research on the relationship between life satisfaction and ADHD is currently limited. This study examined if levels of ADHD symptoms predicted reports of life satisfaction in a middle school population (n = 172). Hyperactive/impulsive and inattentive symptoms explained 2.5% of the variance in the dependent variable, life satisfaction, which is not a statistically significant amount, F(2, 169) = 2.2, p = .12. Results of this study also demonstrated that perceived interparental conflict did not moderate the relationship between ADHD symptoms and life satisfaction. Additionally, results of this study demonstrated that life satisfaction did not moderate the relationship between inattentive symptoms and academic achievement in reading, academic achievement in mathematics, and depressive symptoms. Implications of these findings and suggestions for future research are discussed.

This study used Zohar‟s (2000) multi-level model of climate to examine the extent to which shared perceptions of workplace civility climate relate to teacher job satisfaction, affective commitment, and counterproductive work behaviors (CWB-abuse) towards other teachers. Workplace civility climate is defined as employee perceptions of how management uses policies, procedures, and practices to maintain a civil workplace. An online-survey was used to assess a cross-sectional sample of K-12 teachers (N = 2222) nested in 207 schools in a large US school district. There was adequate agreement among teacher perceptions of school civility climate for aggregation and between-group variance of civility climate among schools. The results of hierarchical linear models revealed school-level civility climate perceptions were significantly negatively associated with lower levels of teacher experienced incivility, CWB-abuse and associated with higher levels job satisfaction and affective commitment, thus supporting four out of five hypotheses. However, school-level civility climate did not function as a moderator of the relationship between a teacher‟s experience of incivility and acts of CWB-abuse towards other teachers. The findings of this study provide evidence that shared perceptions of civility climate are associated with higher levels of individual-level employee well-being.

The purpose of the study is to investigate the relationships among personality factors and life satisfaction in high school students. High school students ( N = 625) completed self-report measures of personality characteristics (namely, extraversion, neuroticism, openness, conscientiousness, and agreeableness) and global life satisfaction. Results include the specific contribution of each of these personality dimensions as they relate to life satisfaction, gender differences, and the role of perceived classmate support in relationships between personality factors and life satisfaction. Specifically, findings revealed that about 45% of the variance in adolescents‟ life satisfaction scores was accounted for by their self-reported measures of personality factors. Neuroticism emerged as the strongest predictor of life satisfaction. Further, results demonstrated that openness, conscientiousness, and extraversion were significant and unique predictors of life satisfaction. Gender differences were found in the link between agreeableness and life satisfaction such that a higher level of agreeableness was related to higher life satisfaction for girls, but not for boys. Finally, results of the structural equation model that analyzed the role of perceived classmate support in the link between personality factors and life satisfaction revealed significant paths between four personality factors (excluding openness) and perceived classmate support. Further, the path from extraversion to perceived classmate support showed the strongest standardized path coefficient (.42); suggesting that a higher score on extraversion was associated with a higher level of perceived classmate support which, in turn, predicted higher levels of life satisfaction. Neuroticism demonstrated the strongest, albeit inverse, direct path to life satisfaction, further supporting the finding that higher levels of neuroticism were related to lower levels of life satisfaction. Findings provide school psychologists with a better understanding of the demographic (i.e., gender), stable (i.e., personality) and interpersonal characteristics (i.e., perceptions of classmate support) that place students at-risk for negative outcomes via low life satisfaction or, conversely, facilitate optimal wellness via high life satisfaction.

Objective. This study examined the factors associated with higher levels of paternal involvement among low-income, nonresidential, Black fathers. Method. Participants were 110 fathers of children up to the age of 10. Participants completed psychometrically sound measures of social support, spirituality, family of origin relationships, coparenting relationship quality, psychological well-being, motivation, conviction history, resilience, and father involvement. Results. A simultaneous multiple regression indicated that better psychological well-being and coparenting relationship quality and lower conviction rates since the birth of the child were significant predictors of higher levels of paternal involvement. Mediational analysis revealed that coparenting relationship quality partially mediated the relationship between psychological well-being and paternal involvement. Moderation analysis showed that social support moderated the relationship between psychological well-being and paternal involvement. Conclusions. This study provided evidence that several factors are related to higher levels of paternal involvement, specifically higher quality coparenting relationships and psychological well-being, more parenting-specific support from influential individuals, lower conviction rates since the birth of the child, and higher levels of resilience. The present study also illustrated the importance of examining disadvantaged fathers' strengths as targets for future interventions. Implications. Clinicians, social workers, program directors, and other individuals working with low-income, nonresidential, Black fathers should educate their clients on the factors associated with higher levels of paternal involvement as well as provide necessary resources to aid fathers to become more involved with their children.

Abstract Cutaneous T cell lymphoma (CTCL) is a rare, incurable, chronic disease accounting for approximately 3% of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma diagnoses every year. Patients with CTCL have skin lesions that can vary in severity putting patients at risk for developing symptoms that may impair their quality of life (QOL). The disease burden can lead to increased depressive symptoms, fatigue distress, and anxiety that the disease may be worsening. Seventy-five participants agreed to take part in an exploratory, prospective study to evaluate depressive symptoms, anxiety, fatigue distress, and spirituality as predictors of QOL in CTCL patients. Demographic variables including stage of disease, ethnicity, age, gender, marital status, level of education, and time since diagnosis, were also included in the analyses to assess for relationships. Bivariate correlations, t-tests, and regression analyses were conducted to assess for relationships among the predictor variables and QOL. The analyses revealed that the proposed model explained 64% of the variance, and depressive symptoms (t= -2.4, p= 0.020) and stage of disease (t= -3.0, p= 0.004) significantly predicted the QOL of CTCL patients. Evaluating for predictors that influence the QOL helps us to better understand the needs of the patients afflicted with CTCL. The importance of studying the QOL of the CTCL patients lies in the fact that nurses can assist in helping patients alleviate some of the symptoms they experience, thereby improving their QOL. Further study is warranted in developing interventions to assist in the preservation of QOL.

Detta examensarbete i socialt arbete belyser hur äldre personer upplever övergången till en beviljad hemtjänstinsats. Genom kvalitativa intervjuer med fyra äldre män på landsbygden har det empiriska materialet samlats in. För att analysera resultatet har vi använt oss av KASAM och aktivitetsteorin. Resultatet visade att de äldre männen har haft en lyckad övergång. De ansåg att hjälpen som de fick av hemtjänsten bidrog till att de kunde känna meningsfullhet och självständighet i sin tillvaro. Den sociala samvaron och den kontakt de fick med hemtjänstpersonalen betydde mycket för dem. En viktig aspekt som bidragit till att övergången varit positiv är den dagverksamhet männen deltog i. Slutsatser man kan dra från studien är att männens accepterande inställning till övergången, gemenskap med hemtjänstpersonalen och deltagande i dagverksamheten har bidragit till de positiva erfarenheterna. / This Bachelor’s thesis in social work highlights how older people experience the transition to a committed home care effort. The empirical material has been gathered through qualitative interviews with four older men in a rural area. The interviews have been analyzed with regard to the activity theory and KASAM. The results showed that the older men had a successful transition. They felt that the help they received from home care services contributed to a meaningful and independent life. The social interaction and the contact they got from the home help staff, meant a lot to them. One important aspect that contributed to a positive transition is the daytime activities the men attended. Conclusions that can be drawn from the study is that their own accepting attitude to the transition, and the social interaction they received from home care staff and the daytime activities have contributed to the positive experiences

Immigration transition may be an opportunity for physical, psychological, and social improvement, but the health of transitioning individuals may actually be at an increased risk for decline. In order to overcome negative influencing factors on the health of immigrants trying to integrate into a new society, examining the impact of transitioning immigration on the health of immigrants is important. Transition has complex and multidimensional patterns based on an individual’s social and cultural background. Korean immigrants in transitioning to the U.S. have experienced a specific and unique situation. Thus, the primary purpose of this study was to identify the impact of immigration transition, which is defined in the middle-range theory of transition, on the health-promoting behaviors and mental well-being of Korean immigrants in the U.S. A cross-sectional, descriptive correlational comparative design was used for examining a total of 192 Koreans: 105 in the U.S. and 87 in S. Korea, which were selected through matched age and gender controls with Korean immigrant participants in the U.S. The average ages were 46.8 (Median = 47, SD = 12.5) of Korean immigrants in the U.S and 46.2 (Median = 46, SD = 12.7) of 87 native S. Koreans. Korean immigrants had a low level of acculturation and limited English proficiency. The level of health-promoting behaviors of Korean immigrants was higher than that of S. Koreans, especially in subscales of health promotion, nutrition, and safety. Social resourcefulness was a key predictor of health-promoting behaviors and mental well-being among Korean immigrants. Also, self-control was a dominant mediator on the relationship between behavioral acculturation and mental well-being. Increasing acculturation and English ability for Korean immigrants, as well as increasing self-control, family functioning, and social resourcefulness were found to be important to improve integrating Korean immigrants into the U.S. These findings provide essential information that all health care professionals can use to increase their awareness of the importance of appropriately treating individuals with different cultural perspectives as well as diverse populations coming from varied countries. / text

Traumatic events such as natural disasters and violence are still happening around the world. While most of the studies on traumatic events focus more on the pathological end of the continuum, research related to their impact on more generic aspects, such as the psychological well-being of individuals, is comparatively less. Furthermore, flexibility has been posited to play a crucial role in the development of psychological well-being in adolescents but its significance has seldom been examined in the context of traumatic events. In addition, the construct and characteristics of flexibility have never been discussed before and no self-report measurement of emotional flexibility exists. Therefore, this thesis attempts to fill these gaps and extend our understanding of both the knowledge of flexibility and its role in the psychological well-being of Chinese adolescents. The nature of study 1 represents the ground work of this research, with the purpose of developing and validating a qualified self-report measurement of emotional flexibility in order to lay the foundation for answering the main research question of this study. A panel meeting was used at the very beginning to generate an item pool consisting of an inventory of emotional flexibility subscales: Exploratory Factor Analysis and Confirmatory Factor Analysis were employed to test the subscale structures as well as for the total scale of emotional flexibility. A three-factor model for match, the subscale of emotional flexibility and the total model comprising one higher-order factor of emotional flexibility derived from the 5 first-order factors, with 10 and 30 items respectively, have all been confirmed. The purpose of study 2 is to clarify the construct of flexibility by investigating the relationships connected to flexibility in cognitive, behavioral and emotional aspects, as well as the relation between flexibility in these three aspects and coping flexibility. The participants in study 2 were 941 adolescents recruited from three middle schools with different levels of earthquake exposure in Sichuan. The results show that cognitive flexibility mediates the relationship between emotional flexibility and behavioral flexibility. Moreover, coping flexibility was found to be related to flexibility in three aspects in different manners. Study 3 has been designed to answer the main research question of this study: what role does flexibility play in the psychological well-being of adolescents with earthquake experiences. A cross-sectional survey was performed to test the effect of flexibility in cognitive, behavioral and emotional aspects on the relationship between earthquake exposure and psychological well-being. The data in this study was the same as for those in study two. The results show that emotional flexibility and cognitive flexibility had moderating effects between earthquake exposure and psychological well-being. The thesis has developed a measurement tool, clarified the construct and summarized the characteristics of flexibility as well as explored the role of flexibility in the psychological well-being of adolescents. The implications and limitations as well as future directions are proposed as well. / published_or_final_version / Social Work and Social Administration / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

Students pursue different goals in school, which have been shown to influence a variety of educational outcomes. The achievement goal framework which focuses on mastery and performance goals is currently the most dominant paradigm for the examination of students‘ goals in the school setting. Numerous studies have shown the different consequences associated with the pursuit of mastery and performance goals. However, a limitation of achievement goal theory is its neglect of social goals which pertain to social reasons for studying. This is surprising given the importance of interpersonal relationships for adolescent students. Moreover, from a cross-cultural perspective, social goals seem to be even more salient for students from collectivist cultures due to the greater importance of the relational fabric in such societies. Therefore, the general aim of this study was to investigate the types, the structure, and the consequences of social goals in a collectivist cultural context. Five inter-related studies were conducted with Filipino secondary school students. Study 1 was a qualitative study which aimed to assess the different types of goals that students pursued. Results indicated that most of the goals pertained to social goals, and only a minority of these referred to the more commonly-researched achievement goals. Studies 2 and 3 aimed to examine the cross-cultural applicability of the 2 x 2 achievement goal model and the hierarchical and multidimensional model of social goals respectively in the Philippine setting. The 2 x 2 achievement goal model posits a distinction between four types of achievement goals: mastery-approach, mastery-avoidance, performance-approach, and performance avoidance, while the hierarchical and multidimensional model of social goals construes social goals as a higher-order construct underpinned by five specific types of social goals: social affiliation, social approval, social concern, social responsibility, and social status. Results of these two studies indicated that these models were both applicable to Filipino students. As such, they were used in the subsequent studies. The aim of Study 4 was to test the relationships among achievement goals, social goals, academic engagement, and achievement. A longitudinal design was adopted and results indicated that social goals were the most salient positive predictors of academic engagement. They were also negative predictors of academic disengagement. Engagement and disengagement, in turn, mediated the impact of goals on subsequent academic achievement. Study 5 examined the relationships among achievement goals, social goals, and well-being. A longitudinal design was adopted, and results showed that mastery-approach and social goals were the most beneficial for well-being. Taken together, these studies showed the importance of investigating social goals alongside the oft-examined achievement goals given their greater salience and their causal dominance over achievement goals in predicting both achievement-related and broader well-being outcomes. Theoretical and practical implications, as well as directions for future research are discussed. / published_or_final_version / Education / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

The transition to motherhood requires adjustments to new roles and growing demands on time and financial resources. Consequently, this transition can be a time of emotional upheaval and can often lead to increased levels of maternal stress. Research on parenting stress has identified social support as an important resource for coping with the demands of parenting, but, empirical studies also show that access to social support is likely to differ based on one’s socioeconomic status. Consequently, levels and effects of support may differ by maternal educational level. The primary purpose of the current study is to investigate the associations between four types of perceived support, maternal educational attainment and maternal parenting stress. The study sample is drawn from the first year follow-up wave of the Fragile Families and Child Well-being dataset (n=2412) and includes only mothers who were involved with the father of the child at the time of the child’s birth. Fragile Families is a nationally based, longitudinal birth cohort study of approximately 4,800 mothers and their children. Data were analyzed using multivariate regression modeling to investigate direct effects of perceived support and education on maternal stress as well as testing a moderating effect of education on the association between perceived support and maternal stress. The results showed that perceived support from one’s partner significantly lowers maternal stress regardless of the level or type of support (emotional, mothering or instrumental) that the partner provides. Expected support from kin or friends does not have an effect on maternal stress. The effect of perceived support differs by education level for two types of partner support: support of mothering practices and instrumental support. Increased symptoms of depression and fussy child temperament each increase maternal stress levels. Investigation of the direct effect of various types of perceived support on maternal stress indicate that partner support is critical during the first year of motherhood. Results reveal that not all types of perceived support affect maternal stress with the same magnitude. Thus, special attention should be given to the context within a mother is functioning. / text