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Asian Americans are facing unprecedented and growing mental health issues brought by anti-Asian Racism and other forms of hyper-visible oppression (Yellow Horse et al., 2021). In response to racism, one potential solution for bolstering mental health outcomes among Asian Americans is critical reflection. Critical reflection is the process through which

Asian Americans are facing unprecedented and growing mental health issues brought by anti-Asian Racism and other forms of hyper-visible oppression (Yellow Horse et al., 2021). In response to racism, one potential solution for bolstering mental health outcomes among Asian Americans is critical reflection. Critical reflection is the process through which oppressed and marginalized people critically analyze oppressive social conditions (e.g., racism, sexism, and more) and consider actions they can take to change them (Watts et al., 2011). Recent research suggests that, overall, there is a strong link between critical reflection and the well-being of youth of color (Maker Castro et al., 2022). However, this relationship may vary based on additional factors, such as strategies used to cope with racism-related stress. For instance, Asian Americans with lower critical reflection about racism (e.g., as evidenced by endorsement of colorblind racial ideology, or the belief that racial differences are irrelevant and racism no longer exists) had a higher tendency to use avoidant coping mechanisms to deal with discrimination (Yi et al., 2022; Lewis et al., 2019). Additionally, there is other evidence to support that Asian Americans who held more colorblind racial attitudes experienced less anxiety when challenged with ambiguous discrimination compared to Asian Americans who held less colorblind racial attitudes (Lee, 2016). Overall, the literature suggests the importance of the relationship between critical reflection and mental health. However, studies have yet to quantitatively explore the impacts of critical reflection and strategies to cope with discrimination on mental health outcomes among Asian Americans (Spanierman et al., 2021) and young adults (Maker Castro et al., 2022). The current study seeks to address this gap in the literature by examining the role of strategies to cope with discrimination in the relationship between Asian Americans’ critical reflection and mental health outcomes. It is crucial to explore these factors as Asian American students continue to shoulder prejudice, stereotypes, and systemic racism in professional and educational institutions. We hypothesize that the relationship between critical reflection and mental health will be mediated by the strategies used to cope with discrimination. More specifically, we expect that low levels of critical reflection (as indicated by high levels of color-blind racial attitudes) are related to greater use of internalization, substance use, and detachment strategies to cope with discrimination, which is related to greater endorsement of depression, anxiety, and stress symptoms. Data for this study were drawn from a larger study on college students’ experiences in ethnic studies courses. Participants were 288 Asian Americans recruited from ethnic studies courses at universities in various regions of the United States. During the first two weeks of their ethnic studies course, participants completed an online survey about their racial attitudes, critical consciousness, and psychological well-being. Mediation analyses will be conducted using the PROCESS macro (Hayes, 2022) on SPSS version 27. Critical reflection, as measured by participants’ total mean score on the Color-Blind Racial Attitudes Scale (Neville et al., 2000; Keum et al., 2018) will be included as the independent variable; subscale scores on the Coping with Discrimination Scale (Wei & Alvarez, 2010) will be mediators; and each subscale of the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale (DASS-21; Henry & Crawford, 2005) will be the dependent variable in separate analyses. Relationships between the study variables and Asian subgroup (i.e., East, Southeast, and South Asian) will also be examined. While analyses are currently ongoing, preliminary findings suggest that strategies to cope with discrimination and mental health outcomes vary between East Asians, Southeast Asians, and South Asians. Additionally, preliminary findings suggest that the use of substance use and detachment to cope with discrimination explains the relationship between low critical reflection and mental health outcomes. Findings have implications for encouraging mental health specialists and educators to have open conversations about racism while helping those who experience discrimination cope in healthy ways. Thus, this research can contribute to improved psychological well-being of Asian American young adults.
ContributorsInocentes, Angeline (Author) / Ahn, Lydia (Thesis director) / Tran, Alisia (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Department of Psychology (Contributor) / College of Integrative Sciences and Arts (Contributor) / School of Human Evolution & Social Change (Contributor)
Created2023-12
DescriptionResearch has shown that adverse and traumatic events negatively affect a person's psychological outcome. However, research is lacking in the area examining at which life stage trauma is more harmful to experience. Additionally, the role of vulnerability and resilience factors may strengthen or ameliorate this relationship.
ContributorsColvin, Carah (Author) / Davis, Mary (Thesis director) / Lemery-Chalfant, Katheryn (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Mathematical and Natural Sciences (Contributor) / Dean, W.P. Carey School of Business (Contributor)
Created2023-12
Description

Schizophrenia is a mental health disorder that affects an individual's ability to function per societal expectations, leading to the onset of stigmatization and discrimination. This can affect the course and outcome of the individual's diagnosis, which impacts several aspects of life, including interpersonal relationships, self-care, and medical attention. Reclassifying the

Schizophrenia is a mental health disorder that affects an individual's ability to function per societal expectations, leading to the onset of stigmatization and discrimination. This can affect the course and outcome of the individual's diagnosis, which impacts several aspects of life, including interpersonal relationships, self-care, and medical attention. Reclassifying the term "schizophrenia" can create a better understanding of the disorder's symptoms and increase funding and research to alleviate the stigmatization currently affecting individuals with this diagnosis.

ContributorsMosher, Madison (Author) / Falkman, Kayleigh (Co-author) / Arce, Alma (Thesis director) / Sellner, Erin (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Humanities, Arts, and Cultural Studies (Contributor) / School of Social and Behavioral Sciences (Contributor)
Created2023-05
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Description

As the use of social media becomes more prevalent, especially in adolescents and young adults, there is a growing need to understand how social media use affects psychological well-being in the emerging adult population. Prior research has found that exposure to nature reduces stress and increases attention in comparison to

As the use of social media becomes more prevalent, especially in adolescents and young adults, there is a growing need to understand how social media use affects psychological well-being in the emerging adult population. Prior research has found that exposure to nature reduces stress and increases attention in comparison to urban environments, but nature has not been studied as a way to reduce the potentially negative effects of social media. The current study aimed to determine if viewing social media or nature for a brief time affected psychological well-being, social comparisons, future self-identification, and awe, and to test whether viewing nature scenes could buffer the effects of viewing social media. Data was collected from 275 participants using a survey on Amazon Mechanical Turk. Results showed that emerging adults exposed to nature scenes had significantly less negative affect compared to those exposed to their social media feeds. Exploratory analyses showed that those who spent more time outside tended to experience decreased negative affect when they viewed both social media and nature photos, but those who spent more time outside experienced increased negative affect when only viewing social media. Those who used social media more often generally experienced lower negative affect. Findings show that relations between humans, social media, and nature, are complex, and further research into these relations and their underlying causes may be beneficial.

ContributorsHall, Megan (Author) / Kwan, Virginia (Thesis director) / Corbin, William (Committee member) / Kenrick, Douglas (Committee member) / McMichael, Samantha (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Department of Psychology (Contributor) / Watts College of Public Service & Community Solut (Contributor) / School of Human Evolution & Social Change (Contributor) / School of Life Sciences (Contributor)
Created2021-12
Description

This paper analyses key papers in audience cost literature and proposes a direction forward in audience cost literature by examining how an audience gets influenced and or how the audience's preferences are created. The paper posits that by looking at how audiences are influenced a leader's decision structure can be

This paper analyses key papers in audience cost literature and proposes a direction forward in audience cost literature by examining how an audience gets influenced and or how the audience's preferences are created. The paper posits that by looking at how audiences are influenced a leader's decision structure can be further clarified. The paper places an emphasis on how information and agenda-setting are crucial to developing a framework for the task of elucidating audience costs.

ContributorsMcAnulty, Miles (Author) / Peterson, Timothy (Thesis director) / Neuner, Fabian (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Politics and Global Studies (Contributor)
Created2023-05
Description
Victim advocacy is a free and confidential service provided to individuals who have experienced sexual violence. Due to the intense expectations associated with this role, victim advocates often suffer from mental health issues, including compassion fatigue. Compassion fatigue occurs when individuals in helping professions become overly exposed to clients’ traumatic

Victim advocacy is a free and confidential service provided to individuals who have experienced sexual violence. Due to the intense expectations associated with this role, victim advocates often suffer from mental health issues, including compassion fatigue. Compassion fatigue occurs when individuals in helping professions become overly exposed to clients’ traumatic experiences and suffer from debilitating symptoms that impact their daily lives. Through this project, I identified aspects of the role that put victim advocates at a high risk for developing compassion fatigue. I then explored methods for mitigating the negative effects of compassion fatigue including The Accelerated Recovery Program for compassion fatigue, humor as a coping technique, Eye Movement Desensitizing and Reprocessing therapy, comprehensive training efforts, personal and organizational self-care, and social support. With an emphasis on the benefits provided by social support, I developed a resource guide about the prevalence of violence in our community, aimed to help create more open dialogue surrounding sexual violence.
ContributorsSagarin, Rosa (Author) / Sturgess, Jessica (Thesis director) / Soares, Rebecca (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Computer Science and Engineering Program (Contributor) / Dean, W.P. Carey School of Business (Contributor)
Created2024-05
Description
The pursuance of higher education has always been a competitive feat and as the years progress competition amongst students becomes tighter. This competition increases when focus is placed upon the Asian American student population and the stressors that are placed on them to excel in their respective fields of academics.

The pursuance of higher education has always been a competitive feat and as the years progress competition amongst students becomes tighter. This competition increases when focus is placed upon the Asian American student population and the stressors that are placed on them to excel in their respective fields of academics. The Asian American population in particular also has a high prevalence of not seeking out mental health services as a whole due to high stigma associated with the topic (Zhang et al 2019). This study intended to determine the psychological and social impacts that academic stress may have on female Asian American students and why university mental health services go underutilized by this crowd. The impacts of academic stressors on student’s lives were measured using a 5 point survey scale (1 being not stressful and 5 being extremely stressful). Willing participants were then selected for an interview in which 10 individuals' experiences were recounted. The results indicate that an overwhelming majority of students reported experiencing negative impacts to multiple aspects of psychological well being. A high number of these students also reported feeling uncomfortable to seek mental health aid due to familial judgment and cultural taboos. These findings indicate significant numbers of students struggling to cope with the implications of poor mental health in their lives. This study serves to decrease the prevalence of academic stress in the lives of Asian American students by increasing their therapy seeking behaviors. Upon its completion, the researcher provided ASU counseling services with suggestions to increase utilization by female Asian Americans.
ContributorsJones, Shredha (Author) / Kappes, Janelle (Thesis director) / Jimenez, Laura (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Counseling and Counseling Psychology (Contributor) / College of Health Solutions (Contributor)
Created2024-05
Description
This paper examines the effect of a weekly student self-assessment assignment on student performance in an undergraduate math course. Self-assessment is an increasingly popular type of formative assessment with close ties to self-regulated learning theory. In this randomized controlled trial, 88 students enrolled in MAT 142 were divided into four

This paper examines the effect of a weekly student self-assessment assignment on student performance in an undergraduate math course. Self-assessment is an increasingly popular type of formative assessment with close ties to self-regulated learning theory. In this randomized controlled trial, 88 students enrolled in MAT 142 were divided into four treatment groups, receiving the self-assessment assignment for either half the semester, the full semester, or not at all. There was no main effect of the treatment on students’ course performance (F(3,80) = 0.154, p = 0.999). However, students’ level of compliance with the assignments (F(1, 63) = 6.87, p = 0.011) and class attendance (F(1, 83) = 12.34, p < 0.001) both significantly predicted exam scores, suggesting that conscientiousness predicts performance. I conducted focus groups to understand how students felt toward the self-assessments. Participants expressed distaste toward the assignments and provided suggestions for improvements. I describe these improvements, among others, in an effort to outline future directions for this research. I also describe a new model of student self-assessment based on theories of adaptive testing and self-regulated learning.
ContributorsDuque-Baird, Santiago (Author) / Zheng, Yi (Thesis director) / West, Stephen G. (Thesis director) / Slominski, Tara (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Department of English (Contributor) / Department of Psychology (Contributor)
Created2024-05
Description
Social anxiety is a growing problem for multiple demographics in our society. One such group of people dealing with social anxiety is the college student population, specifically honors students. College students have been struggling with the aftereffects of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has caused social anxiety to become more prominent

Social anxiety is a growing problem for multiple demographics in our society. One such group of people dealing with social anxiety is the college student population, specifically honors students. College students have been struggling with the aftereffects of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has caused social anxiety to become more prominent than it has ever been before. Honors students have been hit especially hard with this, because expectations and requirements are held to higher standards than for traditional students. Having social anxiety does not have to halt life for students, however. There are many different paths that a person can take to manage their social anxiety and better their lives overall. From managing social anxiety on your own time, to using university resources, to exploring therapies and other available options, there are multiple avenues that a person can take depending on their situations and preferences. This project also includes a guidebook for the practical application of techniques researched in this paper.
ContributorsGnerer, Rhiannon (Author) / Sturgess, Jessica (Thesis director) / Gruber, Diane (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Interdisciplinary Forensics (Contributor) / School of Social and Behavioral Sciences (Contributor)
Created2024-05
Description
The cerebellum is recognized for its role in motor movement, balance, and more recently, social behavior. Cerebellar injury at birth and during critical periods reduces social preference in animal models and increases the risk of autism in humans. Social behavior is commonly assessed with the three-chamber test, where a mouse

The cerebellum is recognized for its role in motor movement, balance, and more recently, social behavior. Cerebellar injury at birth and during critical periods reduces social preference in animal models and increases the risk of autism in humans. Social behavior is commonly assessed with the three-chamber test, where a mouse travels between chambers that contain a conspecific and an object confined under a wire cup. However, this test is unable to quantify interactive behaviors between pairs of mice, which could not be tracked until the recent development of machine learning programs that track animal behavior. In this study, both the three-chamber test and a novel freely-moving social interaction test assessed social behavior in untreated male and female mice, as well as in male mice injected with hM3Dq (excitatory) DREADDs. In the three-chamber test, significant differences were found in the time spent (female: p < 0.05, male: p < 0.001) and distance traveled (female: p < 0.05, male: p < 0.001) in the chamber with the familiar conspecific, compared to the chamber with the object, for untreated male, untreated female, and mice with activated hM3Dq DREADDs. A social memory test was added, where the object was replaced with a novel mouse. Untreated male mice spent significantly more time (p < 0.05) and traveled a greater distance (p < 0.05) in the chamber with the novel mouse, while male mice with activated hM3Dq DREADDs spent more time (p<0.05) in the chamber with the familiar conspecific. Data from the freely-moving social interaction test was used to calculate freely-moving interactive behaviors between pairs of mice and interactions with an object. No sex differences were found, but mice with excited hM3Dq DREADDs engaged in significantly more anogenital sniffing (p < 0.05) and side-side contact (p < 0.05) behaviors. All these results indicate how machine learning allows for nuanced insights into how both sex and chemogenetic excitation impact social behavior in freely-moving mice.
ContributorsNelson, Megan (Author) / Verpeut, Jessica (Thesis director) / Bimonte-Nelson, Heather (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Department of Psychology (Contributor) / School of Life Sciences (Contributor) / School of Mathematical and Statistical Sciences (Contributor)
Created2024-05