The purpose of this study was to understand how self-concept, including physical, social, and emotional factors, translates to perceived academic success for women in the college environment. The researcher hypothesized as positive self-concept increases, academic success also increases. Data were analyzed with regards to the experience of these women as it relates to their gendered experience. Quantitative analysis of 46 women at one Midwestern university provided a variety of data about the relationships of perceived academic success, in the form of reported GPA and academic performance, to self-esteem, body esteem, social environment, expectation scales. While most tests did not produce significant results (p < 0.05, two-tailed test), perceived academic performance compared to reported GPA and expectations compared to academic performance were significant. However, women still struggle with having positive self-concept in the college environment. Many respondents expressed concerns about physical appearance and acceptance from their peer group. These women are combating these negative feelings on a daily basis as they attend class and work to be academically successful. Further research about self-concept and academic success should be conducted at an all-women’s institution. This additional layer of research would be used to quantitatively compare the two populations and would provide a more accurate picture of the experience of women in higher education. / Access to thesis permanently restricted to Ball State community only / Department of Educational Studies

Typescript (photocopy). / Digitized by Kansas Correctional Industries

Sororities play an important role in the process by which sorority women become gendered by influencing members' ideas about what it means to be a woman. Women and men become gendered through regular social interaction with other women and men, and sororities have a particularly strong impact on their members because sorority women spend nearly all of their time with other Greeks. Gender is one of the major ways that we organize our lives and gender is the texture and foundation of our social, political, and economic worlds. This is why we must consider the consequences of gender negotiation in all arenas, including sororities. For the most part, the sorority women who participated in this study negotiated traditional gender arrangements and constructed conservative identities. Sororities on this Pacific Northwestern university created and perpetuated conformity, dependence and political apathy in their members. These organizations developed an environment in which gender stereotyping and victimization was learned and then legitimized. Within these organizations, however, are pockets of resistance, non-compliance, empowerment, and what could be called "potentially feminist" gender negotiation. / Graduation date: 2003

The purpose of this thesis was to gain insight into why female college students initiate smoking. This study examined the major factors influencing the formation of such habit among this group. The tool used to study these factors was the questionnaire. Questionnaires were administered to randomly selected female students on the Oregon State University (OSU) campus. The Memorial Union and campus library were the only locations where these questionnaires were administered. Results of the study suggested that peers and curiosity were paramount in influencing smokers to initiate smoking. The results also indicated that, with the exceptions of curiosity and the belief that smoking was "adult", there were no differences between early and late initiators in the extent to which the factors under examination influenced them to start smoking. Both curiosity and the belief that smoking was "adult" had greater influence on early initiators to smoke their first cigarettes than they did with late initiators. Lastly, college-related stress was found to increase the daily level of smoking among smokers. For non-smokers, health concern and odor were factors that influenced them greatly to remain smoke-free. Overall, the findings suggested that prevention efforts should focus on strategies that reduce the acceptability of smoking in the social environment. / Graduation date: 1999

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2006. / The entire dissertation/thesis text is included in the research.pdf file; the official abstract appears in the short.pdf file (which also appears in the research.pdf); a non-technical general description, or public abstract, appears in the public.pdf file. Title from title screen of research.pdf file viewed on (April 25, 2006) Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 2006. / Title from first page of PDF file. Includes bibliographical references (p. 210-229).

The central question of this study was to examine the moral orientation and the role of self in subject generated moral dilemmas for information on the developmental and cultural forces contributing to the etiology and maintenance of eating disorders in college women. The research was based on the theories of Carol Gilligan (1982, 1988, 1990). Twelve women identified as bulimic by therapists and twelve women with no eating disorder were administered the BULIT-R and the moral conflict and choice interview. A Guide to Reading Narratives of Moral Conflict and Choice for Self and Moral Voice provided the framework for analyzing the the interviews. Using Chi squares to analyze the data, no significant differences were found between the two groups on presence, predominance, and alignment of the moral voices of care and justice or on relationship framework, although a trend toward the bulimic sample aligning both with the justice and care orientations was noted. The bulimic sample expressed one or more of the vulnerabilities of care and both care and justice significantly more often than the comparison sample. No difference was found for expression of self care, though the quality of self care expressed was different. Subjects from the bulimic sample mentioned self care in conjunction with self-preservation, while subjects in the comparison group mentioned self-care as an ordinary consideration in conflicts. A significant difference was found between the two groups on mention of a problematic relationship with father, with bulimics describing an emotionally distant relationship with father more often. Finally, the quality of the conflicts described by bulimics tended to be more critical to self than those described by the comparison sample. Results were related to what Gilligan (1990) calls the biggest challenge of the adolescent female: how to integrate inclusion of self with inclusion of others. Disturbances in relationships within the family resulted in the women from the bulimic sample having difficulty with this task. Two coping styles were identified: role reversal and hostile avoidant (Salzman, 1990). The relevance of these coping styles to bulimia was discussed. Implications for therapy were reviewed and recommendations were made for future research. / Graduation date: 1992

The purpose of the study was to determine whether the motivational factors, vocational personalities, barriers to enrollment, and enabling factors of the reentry women nursing majors were different from those of women nursing majors of traditional college age. Participants were female nursing majors from all four grade levels of a baccalaureate program at one midwestern university.The Chain-of-Response Model (Cross, 1981) was adapted as a conceptual framework. The sample consisted of 46 reentry women and 73 traditional college age women nursing majors. The Education Participation Scale (Boshier, 1982) and The Vocational Preference Inventory (Holland, 1985) were utilized. Barriers to Enrollment and Enabling Factors questionnaires were compiled by the researcher after a review of the literature and interviews with ten reentry and ten traditional age women nursing majors. The qualitative data were used to strengthen the study by triangulation with the quantitative data.FINDINGS1. The reentry women differed from the traditional age women in terms of motivational factors. The reentry women were found to be less motivated by social contact and more motivated by social stimulation than the traditional age women nursing majors.2. Differences in vocational personality were found on two scales of The Vocational Preference Inventory (Holland, 1985): (a) The reentry women scored higher on Acquiescence, and (b) The traditional age women scored higher on Self-Control. Both groups scored highest on the Social Scale.3. Barriers to enrollment that were of greater importance to the reentry women included: cost of college, other responsibilities, fear of failure, arranging for child care, attitudes towardeducation by family of origin and significant others. Barriers that were of greater importance to the traditional age women included: leaving home and friends and being tired of attendingschool.4. Enabling factors that were of greater importance to the reentry women included: encouragement from husbands and college personnel, change in responsibilities at home, change in priorities, making a decision on a career in nursing, and deciding they could get a degree in nursing if they really tried. The support of significant others was an enabling factor of greater importance to the traditional age women.

Thesis (M.Ed.)--Memorial University of Newfoundland, 2000. / Bibliography: p. 112-119.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Kent State University, 2008. / Title from PDF t.p. (viewed Nov. 2, 2009). Advisor: Kristin Mickelson. Keywords: social support; stigma; controllability. Includes bibliographical references (p. 74-88).