Matching Items (16)
Description
Children's academic experiences during first grade have substantial implications for their academic performance both concurrently and longitudinally. Using two complementary studies, this dissertation utilizing data from the National Institute of Child Development Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development helps create a better understanding of the importance of first-grade experiences for children's academic performance. The first study expands upon current literature by focusing on how children's academic experiences simultaneously influence children's academic performance through behavioral engagement. Specifically, study one examined the mediating role of first-grade behavioral engagement between first-grade academic experiences (i.e. parental involvement, positive peer interactions, student-teacher relationship, and instructional support) and second-grade academic performance. Using a panel model, results showed that behavioral engagement mediates relations between peer interactions and academic performance and relations between instructional support and academic performance. Implications for interventions focusing on children's positive peer interactions and teacher's high-quality instructional support in order to promote behavioral engagement during early elementary school are discussed.
The second study expands the current literature regarding instructional quality thresholds. Limited research has addressed the question of whether there is a minimum level of instructional quality that must be experienced in order to see significant changes in children's academic performance, and the limited research has focused primarily on preschoolers. The goal of study two was to determine if high-quality first-grade instructional support predicted children's first-, third-, and fifth-grade academic performance. Using piecewise regression analyses, results did not show evidence of a relation between first-grade instructional support quality and children's academic performance at any grade. Possible reasons for inconsistencies in findings from this study and previous research are discussed, including differences in sample characteristics and measurement tools. Because instructional quality remains at the forefront of discussions by educators and policy makers, the inconsistencies in research findings argue for further research that may clarify thresholds of instructional support quality that must be met in order for various subgroups of children to gain the skills needed for long-term academic success.
The second study expands the current literature regarding instructional quality thresholds. Limited research has addressed the question of whether there is a minimum level of instructional quality that must be experienced in order to see significant changes in children's academic performance, and the limited research has focused primarily on preschoolers. The goal of study two was to determine if high-quality first-grade instructional support predicted children's first-, third-, and fifth-grade academic performance. Using piecewise regression analyses, results did not show evidence of a relation between first-grade instructional support quality and children's academic performance at any grade. Possible reasons for inconsistencies in findings from this study and previous research are discussed, including differences in sample characteristics and measurement tools. Because instructional quality remains at the forefront of discussions by educators and policy makers, the inconsistencies in research findings argue for further research that may clarify thresholds of instructional support quality that must be met in order for various subgroups of children to gain the skills needed for long-term academic success.
ContributorsBryce, Crystal I (Author) / Bradley, Robert H (Thesis advisor) / Abry, Tashia (Committee member) / Swanson, Jodi (Committee member) / Thompson, Marilyn S (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2015
Description
Many methodological approaches have been utilized to predict student retention and persistence over the years, yet few have utilized a Bayesian framework. It is believed this is due in part to the absence of an established process for guiding educational researchers reared in a frequentist perspective into the realms of Bayesian analysis and educational data mining. The current study aimed to address this by providing a model-building process for developing a Bayesian network (BN) that leveraged educational data mining, Bayesian analysis, and traditional iterative model-building techniques in order to predict whether community college students will stop out at the completion of each of their first six terms. The study utilized exploratory and confirmatory techniques to reduce an initial pool of more than 50 potential predictor variables to a parsimonious final BN with only four predictor variables. The average in-sample classification accuracy rate for the model was 80% (Cohen's κ = 53%). The model was shown to be generalizable across samples with an average out-of-sample classification accuracy rate of 78% (Cohen's κ = 49%). The classification rates for the BN were also found to be superior to the classification rates produced by an analog frequentist discrete-time survival analysis model.
ContributorsArcuria, Philip (Author) / Levy, Roy (Thesis advisor) / Green, Samuel B (Committee member) / Thompson, Marilyn S (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2015
Description
This study examined the influence of childhood aggression, peer exclusion and associating with deviant peers on the development of antisocial behavior in early adolescence. To gain a stronger understanding of how these factors are associated with antisocial behavior and delinquency, multiple alternative pathways were examined based on additive, mediation and incidental models. A parallel process growth model was specified to assess whether early childhood aggression and peer exclusion (in 1st grade) and intra-individual increases in aggressive behaviors and exclusion through childhood (grades 1 to 6) are predictive of associating with deviant peers (in 7th grade) and antisocial behavior (in 8th grade). Based on a sample of 383 children (193 girls and 190 boys), results showed the strongest support for an additive effects model in which early childhood aggression, increases in aggression, increases in peer exclusion and associating with more deviant peers all predicted antisocial behavior. These findings have implications for how children's psychological adjustment is impacted by their behavioral propensities and peer relational context and the importance of examining developmental processes within and between children over time.
ContributorsEttekal, Idean (Author) / Ladd, Gary W (Thesis advisor) / Eggum, Natalie D (Committee member) / Thompson, Marilyn S (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
Description
Although U.S. rates of college enrollment among 18-24 year olds have reached historic highs, rates of degree completion have not kept pace. This is especially evident at community colleges, where a disproportionate number of students from groups who, historically, have had low college-completion rates enroll. One way community colleges are attempting to address low completion rates is by implementing institutional interventions intended to increase opportunities for student engagement at their colleges. Utilizing logistic and linear regression analyses, this study focused on community college students, examining the association between participation in institutional support activities and student outcomes, while controlling for specific student characteristics known to impact student success in college. The sample included 746 first-time, full-time, degree-seeking students at a single community college located in the U.S. Southwest. Additional analyses were conducted for the 440 first-time, full-time, degree-seeking students in this sample who placed into at least one developmental education course. Findings indicate that significant associations exist between different types of participation in institutional interventions and various student outcomes: Academic advising was found to be related to increased rates of Fall to Spring and Fall to Fall persistence and, for developmental education students, participation in a student success course was found to be related to an increase in the proportion of course credit hours earned. The results of this study provide evidence that student participation in institutional-level support may relate to increased rates of college persistence and credit hour completion; however, additional inquiry is warranted to inform specific policy and program decision-making at the college and to determine if these findings are generalizable to populations outside of this college setting.
ContributorsBeckert, Kimberly Marrone (Author) / De Los Santos Jr., Alfredo G (Thesis advisor) / Thompson, Marilyn S (Thesis advisor) / Berliner, David C. (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
Description
This research addressed concerns regarding the measurement of cyberbullying and aimed to develop a reliable and valid measure of cyberbullying perpetration and victimization. Despite the growing body of literature on cyberbullying, several measurement concerns were identified and addressed in two pilot studies. These concerns included the most appropriate time frame for behavioral recall, use of the term "cyberbullying" in questionnaire instructions, whether to refer to power in instances of cyberbullying, and best practices for designing self-report measures to reflect how young adults understand and communicate about cyberbullying. Mixed methodology was employed in two pilot studies to address these concerns and to determine how to best design a measure which participants could respond to accurately and honestly. Pilot study one consisted of an experimental examination of time frame for recall and use of the term on the outcomes of honesty, accuracy, and social desirability. Pilot study two involved a qualitative examination of several measurement concerns through focus groups held with young adults. Results suggested that one academic year was the most appropriate time frame for behavioral recall, to avoid use of the term "cyberbullying" in questionnaire instructions, to include references to power, and other suggestions for the improving the method in the main study to bolster participants' attention. These findings informed the development of a final measure in the main study which aimed to be both practical in its ability to capture prevalence and precise in its ability to measure frequency. The main study involved examining the psychometric properties, reliability, and validity of the final measure. Results of the main study indicated that the final measure exhibited qualities of an index and was assessed as such. Further, structural equation modeling techniques and test-retest procedures indicated the measure had good reliability. And, good predictive validity and satisfactory convergent validity was established for the final measure. Results derived from the measure concerning prevalence, frequency, and chronicity are presented within the scope of findings in cyberbullying literature. Implications for practice and future directions for research with the measure developed here are discussed.
ContributorsSavage, Matthew (Author) / Roberto, Anthony J (Thesis advisor) / Palazzolo, Kellie E (Committee member) / Thompson, Marilyn S (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2012
Description
School and educational psychologists have a shared imperative to understand the complex inter-play of a student’s home life and perceived self-efficacy. Self-efficacy is the central facet of Bandura’s social cognitive theory (SCT, 1986, 1997). The current study improved upon the extant literature by exploring how home life in Arizona, Arkansas, California, and Oklahoma impacts the self-efficacy for self-regulated learning of mid-to-late adolescents. Although it is difficult to identify how specific aspects of life (including home life) matter for particular areas of functioning, the present study explored self-efficacy for self-regulated learning through the lens of three scales of the Late Adolescence version of the Home Observation for Measurement of the Environment Inventory (LA-HOME) (Caldwell & Bradley, 2016). The LA-HOME documents actions, objects, events and conditions connected with the home environment of children ages 16 to 20, who are still residing at home with parents or guardians (Caldwell & Bradley, 2016). This paper addresses the following research question: How are various aspects of the home life of mid-to-late adolescents, namely (1) modeling and encouragement of maturity, (2) family companionship and investment in adolescent, and (3) warmth, acceptance, and responsiveness, associated with self-efficacy for self-regulated learning? The sample of 333 adolescents is quite diverse demographically; it includes variations in family composition, race/ethnicity, household SES, language spoken in the home, and geography (rural, urban, suburban). The study utilizes a sub-sample of adolescents from the larger study who were 15 to 19 years of age (N = 333). Descriptive statistics, means, and standard deviations are reported for continuous variables, frequencies are reported for categorical variables, and correlations are presented. A hierarchical regression model was estimated in two steps. The first step included the complete set of control variables (household income, ethnicity, gender, and adolescent general health and depressive symptoms), and the second step included the set of three home life indicators. The hierarchical regression model had good fit. Study assets and limitations, as well as alternate theories for consideration and directions for future research, are discussed.
ContributorsGreen, Shannon Noelle (Author) / Bradley, Robert H (Thesis advisor) / Abry, Tashia (Committee member) / Bryce, Crystal I (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2018
Description
Across the globe, schools are seen as an essential context for building socio-emotional capacities in adolescents, particularly for marginalized youth, who have been systematically and historically excluded from accessing opportunities and resources typically available to members of different social groups (Gil-Kashiwabara, Hogansen, Geenen, Powers, & Powers, 2007). However, despite this ideal, education has not yet reached its potential in promoting equal outcomes for all children andadolescents (American Psychological Association Presidential Task Force on Educational Disparities, 2012; Burkham & Lee, 2002; Gurria, 2016; Hampden-Thompson & Johnston, 2006). There exists a need to identify school practices that may enhance socio- emotional development and have implications for reducing disparities in academic achievement, educational attainment, and other indicators of well-being.
The aim of this dissertation, therefore, is to explore school and classroom practices that may be particularly effective in supporting the socio-emotional development of marginalized adolescents. I focus on two distinct populations: youth affected by violence in Colombia, and students of color within the United States. In Study 1, I explore whether three aspects of school climate – safety, connectedness, and services – buffer the negative implications of violence exposure for adolescent development in a Colombian sample. In Study 2, I determine how culturally responsive teaching practices in schools with high concentrations of students of color in the United States can be integrated into our current conceptualization of what constitutes high quality teaching, by examining profiles of teaching practices and associations between these profiles and teacher and classroom characteristics and student behaviors.
The aim of this dissertation, therefore, is to explore school and classroom practices that may be particularly effective in supporting the socio-emotional development of marginalized adolescents. I focus on two distinct populations: youth affected by violence in Colombia, and students of color within the United States. In Study 1, I explore whether three aspects of school climate – safety, connectedness, and services – buffer the negative implications of violence exposure for adolescent development in a Colombian sample. In Study 2, I determine how culturally responsive teaching practices in schools with high concentrations of students of color in the United States can be integrated into our current conceptualization of what constitutes high quality teaching, by examining profiles of teaching practices and associations between these profiles and teacher and classroom characteristics and student behaviors.
ContributorsGaias, Larissa Michelle (Author) / Lindstrom Johnson, Sarah R (Thesis advisor) / Dumka, Larry E (Thesis advisor) / Pettigrew, Jonathan (Committee member) / White, Rebecca M B (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2018
Description
Accurate data analysis and interpretation of results may be influenced by many potential factors. The factors of interest in the current work are the chosen analysis model(s), the presence of missing data, and the type(s) of data collected. If analysis models are used which a) do not accurately capture the structure of relationships in the data such as clustered/hierarchical data, b) do not allow or control for missing values present in the data, or c) do not accurately compensate for different data types such as categorical data, then the assumptions associated with the model have not been met and the results of the analysis may be inaccurate. In the presence of clustered
ested data, hierarchical linear modeling or multilevel modeling (MLM; Raudenbush & Bryk, 2002) has the ability to predict outcomes for each level of analysis and across multiple levels (accounting for relationships between levels) providing a significant advantage over single-level analyses. When multilevel data contain missingness, multilevel multiple imputation (MLMI) techniques may be used to model both the missingness and the clustered nature of the data. With categorical multilevel data with missingness, categorical MLMI must be used. Two such routines for MLMI with continuous and categorical data were explored with missing at random (MAR) data: a formal Bayesian imputation and analysis routine in JAGS (R/JAGS) and a common MLM procedure of imputation via Bayesian estimation in BLImP with frequentist analysis of the multilevel model in Mplus (BLImP/Mplus). Manipulated variables included interclass correlations, number of clusters, and the rate of missingness. Results showed that with continuous data, R/JAGS returned more accurate parameter estimates than BLImP/Mplus for almost all parameters of interest across levels of the manipulated variables. Both R/JAGS and BLImP/Mplus encountered convergence issues and returned inaccurate parameter estimates when imputing and analyzing dichotomous data. Follow-up studies showed that JAGS and BLImP returned similar imputed datasets but the choice of analysis software for MLM impacted the recovery of accurate parameter estimates. Implications of these findings and recommendations for further research will be discussed.
ested data, hierarchical linear modeling or multilevel modeling (MLM; Raudenbush & Bryk, 2002) has the ability to predict outcomes for each level of analysis and across multiple levels (accounting for relationships between levels) providing a significant advantage over single-level analyses. When multilevel data contain missingness, multilevel multiple imputation (MLMI) techniques may be used to model both the missingness and the clustered nature of the data. With categorical multilevel data with missingness, categorical MLMI must be used. Two such routines for MLMI with continuous and categorical data were explored with missing at random (MAR) data: a formal Bayesian imputation and analysis routine in JAGS (R/JAGS) and a common MLM procedure of imputation via Bayesian estimation in BLImP with frequentist analysis of the multilevel model in Mplus (BLImP/Mplus). Manipulated variables included interclass correlations, number of clusters, and the rate of missingness. Results showed that with continuous data, R/JAGS returned more accurate parameter estimates than BLImP/Mplus for almost all parameters of interest across levels of the manipulated variables. Both R/JAGS and BLImP/Mplus encountered convergence issues and returned inaccurate parameter estimates when imputing and analyzing dichotomous data. Follow-up studies showed that JAGS and BLImP returned similar imputed datasets but the choice of analysis software for MLM impacted the recovery of accurate parameter estimates. Implications of these findings and recommendations for further research will be discussed.
ContributorsKunze, Katie L (Author) / Levy, Roy (Thesis advisor) / Enders, Craig K. (Committee member) / Thompson, Marilyn S (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2016
Description
The overall goal of this dissertation was to examine teacher characteristics, teachers’ beliefs, and contextual factors that may motivate teachers’ decisions to engage in high quality teacher-child interactions. I use two complementary studies to meet this goal. These two studies provide insight into several aspects of early childhood teachers’ and children’s interactions including the complexity of the conversations and teachers’ supportive practices. Findings from both studies reveal that teachers are selective in how they distribute their time and attention across various types of high-quality interactions with children. Study 1suggests that teachers’ perception of how often children interact with one another motivates their decisions to engage in high quality teacher-child interactions (i.e., facilitate children’s peer interactions). Study 2 suggests that teacher well-being, specifically teacher depression, limits the extent to which teachers engage in high quality interactions (i.e., complex conversations with children). Importantly, this dissertation also showed that teachers’ motivation for engaging in teacher-child interactions does not stem from their own characteristics or perceptions alone. In addition to these factors, contextual aspects of teacher-child interactions also appear to influence teachers’ motivation to engage in high-quality teacher child interactions. Study 1 revealed that the gender composition of the children involved in each teacher-child interaction was associated with the extent to which teachers use facilitative practices, as well as with the direction and magnitude of both quality and frequency effects on teachers’ facilitation. Moreover, Study 2 revealed that the relation between teacher depression and complex conversations is changed when teachers and children are engaged in academic activities (e.g., math, books, language) relative to play or routine activities. In both Study 1 and 2, I used a teacher-focused observational coding system. Use of this observational coding system contributes novel, objective information about teacher-child interactions, as prior work on teacher-child interactions has most often relied on teachers’ self-reports of how often they interact with students. Findings from this dissertation will contribute new knowledge about teacher and contextual classroom characteristics and teacher-child interactions that will inform efforts to promote positive teacher child interactions and, in turn, student and teacher well-being.
ContributorsGranger, Kristen (Author) / Hanish, Laura (Thesis advisor) / Bradley, Robert (Committee member) / Abry, Tashia (Committee member) / DeLay, Dawn (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2017
Description
For most people, sexual activity is a normal and healthy part of intimate romantic relationships. However, for some, sexual behaviors can become problematic to the extent their behaviors begin to impair or disrupt critical aspects of effective functioning. The inability to control problematic sexual behavior is among the most prominent traits for diagnosing compulsive sexual behavior or what is commonly referred to as sex addiction. Sex addicts in committed romantic relationships routinely engage in secrecy and deception as a maladaptive means to cope with the shame and guilt associated with such severe relational transgressions. Although ongoing disclosures with one’s dyadic partner regarding addiction-related struggles may be a healthy exercise in transparency and accountability, such honest disclosures risk re-injuring the transgressed partner while simultaneously upending the recovering addict’s attempt to restore face. Hence, recovering sex addicts who wish to repair their blighted dyadic relationships must carefully navigate self-disclosure and privacy implications as they attempt to restore themselves and their intimate relationships. Accordingly, this dissertation utilizes thematic analysis to explore the face and privacy implications surrounding addiction-related disclosures (ARD) in committed dyadic relationships. This qualitative study conducted semi-structured interviews with 14 recovering sex addicts attending 12-step Sex Addicts Anonymous groups. Key findings from this study suggest a relationship between recovery progress and how ARD are comprised, articulated, and interpreted by dyadic partners. Additionally, this study found that ARD, although damaging, largely did not result in relationship termination. Rather, relationships impacted by such disclosures simultaneously experienced two disparate relationship stages of bonding and stagnating. Finally, this study suggests that the reverberation of salacious ARD across the romantic dyad fundamentally upends the transgressor’s positive face. Such severe face damage was found to attenuate participants’ ability to regulate privacy boundaries with their partners.
ContributorsMims, Christopher W. (Author) / Pettigrew, Jonathan (Thesis advisor) / Sharabi, Liesel (Committee member) / Waldron, Vincent (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2023