Matching Items (27)
Description
The purpose of this study is to explore the lived experiences of African American women in pursuit of doctoral degrees in the southwest, their challenges and motivations, and plans for the their next chapter. Drawing from critical race theory and a sociocultural framework, this qualitative study uses Dan McAdams' Life Story Interview (McAdams, 2005) to explore the journeys of these high achieving minority women and how achievement is conceptualized in their stories. Particular emphasis is placed on their critical events, challenges, and alternative futures. Seven separate themes (parental support and advocacy in early education, improved experiences among other African American students, perseverance through struggles/experiences led to purpose, poor department support, family support, impact of spirituality, and relocation and desire to give back) emerged that address three main research questions. Implications for findings and suggestions for future research are offered.
ContributorsManning, Linda (Author) / Nakagawa, Kathryn (Thesis advisor) / Moore, Elsie (Committee member) / Arzubiaga, Angela (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
Description
ABSTRACT The present study examined the relationship between the experience of trauma during childhood (ages birth -12 years) and life satisfaction in adulthood (ages of 30-45) in a sample of convenience consisting of eight (8) adults, six (6) women and two (2) men, who volunteered to participate in this qualitative study, and self-identified as having experienced trauma between birth and age 12 years. Participants were asked to describe the trauma(s) they experienced in childhood and to discuss their thoughts and feelings about present circumstances in their lives, and how their lives have been impacted by the trauma they experienced. Data were collected via in-person interviews that were audio-taped and transcribed. The data were analyzed using a process of thematic coding. Nine (9) emotional themes were identified: aggression, anger, fear, frustration, helplessness, insecurity, irritability, loneliness and sadness. Participants reported a variety of traumas experienced, and their responses to difficult experiences were varied. Participants reported being impacted differently in eight domains of life that were examined in the study: mood related problems, self-care, social support, primary partner relationship, career, decision to have children, parenting and adult life satisfaction. All participants stated they had been impacted by early life trauma, and all stated that early-experienced trauma(s) had an impact on their life satisfaction in adulthood. Inter-coder reliability for emotional thematic codes and domains of life impacted by early trauma was .82.
ContributorsCrawford, Sarah (Author) / Moore, Elsie (Thesis advisor) / Stamm, Jill (Committee member) / Caterino, Linda (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
Description
The immigration process changes personal narratives and professional trajectories and challenges identities and individual beliefs. Yet there is currently limited research on European women immigrants' transitions in the United States. This study examines personal and professional trajectories, in the United States, of Eastern European immigrant (EEI) women with prior educational attainment in their country of origin. This study examines the following issues: personal/social learning, developmental and professional experiences prior to and post migration, and social lives after the women's arrival in the United States. The study discusses the results of in-depth interviews with eight EEI women living in Arizona and California and recounts these women's life stories, gathered through open-ended questions that focused on areas of their personal and professional lives, such as childhood, marriage, immigration, education, family relations, socio-economic status, employment, child- rearing, and other significant life events. These areas impacted the women's creation of personal beliefs and their ability to develop new identities in the United States. The study examines EEI women's identity constructions within their life trajectory narratives.
ContributorsEllis, Kateryna A (Author) / Arzubiaga, Angela (Thesis advisor) / Nakagawa, Kathryn (Committee member) / Kozleski, Elizabeth B. (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2014
Description
Human experience exists within space; it is the studio for the stories of our lives. Bounded by time, location and personal experience we assign our own meanings and feelings to them, and they become personal, symbolic places: some are unique to us, imagined places where we act out stories or dreams; most are part of the natural world.
Most spaces, though, are built or controlled by others; these constructed environments can become places where we may, or may not, like to be.
This research examined spaces and places of children's lives through the material worlds of their neighborhoods and schools, focusing on the visible environment outside of the school building. The intersection of school and community, it is a material embodiment of, and evidence toward, how a community's resources are apportioned to
important aspects of children's developmental years. These visible representations speak of that society's values and goals for the children for whom they (we) are responsible.
This examination used multiple research tools, primarily using visual approaches such as current photographs, archival images and data, descriptive census materials and maps. Historical documents, (many of which are now digitized), as well as other academic literature, local journalistic efforts and school district publications added important materials for analysis.
Findings lead to deeper understanding of ways that visible, material worlds of schools and neighborhoods -- past and present - can reflect, and direct the experiences of childhood today, and often mirror those of children past. These visual and narrative approaches contributed to understanding the importance of material evidence in revealing
inequity and class differences in ways that children, then, must &ldquodo school &rdquo
Most spaces, though, are built or controlled by others; these constructed environments can become places where we may, or may not, like to be.
This research examined spaces and places of children's lives through the material worlds of their neighborhoods and schools, focusing on the visible environment outside of the school building. The intersection of school and community, it is a material embodiment of, and evidence toward, how a community's resources are apportioned to
important aspects of children's developmental years. These visible representations speak of that society's values and goals for the children for whom they (we) are responsible.
This examination used multiple research tools, primarily using visual approaches such as current photographs, archival images and data, descriptive census materials and maps. Historical documents, (many of which are now digitized), as well as other academic literature, local journalistic efforts and school district publications added important materials for analysis.
Findings lead to deeper understanding of ways that visible, material worlds of schools and neighborhoods -- past and present - can reflect, and direct the experiences of childhood today, and often mirror those of children past. These visual and narrative approaches contributed to understanding the importance of material evidence in revealing
inequity and class differences in ways that children, then, must &ldquodo school &rdquo
Contributorsvan Walsum, Joyce I. (Author) / Margolis, Eric M. (Thesis advisor) / Moore, Elsie (Thesis advisor) / Collins, Daniel (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2014
Description
The primary objective of this study was to develop the Perceived Control of the Attribution Process Scale (PCAPS), a measure of metacognitive beliefs of causality, or a perceived control of the attribution process. The PCAPS included two subscales: perceived control of attributions (PCA), and awareness of the motivational consequences of attributions (AMC). Study 1 (a pilot study) generated scale items, explored suitable measurement formats, and provided initial evidence for the validity of an event-specific version of the scale. Study 2 achieved several outcomes; Study 2a provided strong evidence for the validity and reliability of the PCA and AMC subscales, and showed that they represent separate constructs. Study 2b demonstrated the predictive validity of the scale and provided support for the perceived control of the attribution process model. This study revealed that those who adopt these beliefs are significantly more likely to experience autonomy and well-being. Study 2c revealed that these constructs are influenced by context, yet they lead to adaptive outcomes regardless of this contextual-specificity. These findings suggest that there are individual differences in metacognitive beliefs of causality and that these differences have measurable motivational implications.
ContributorsFishman, Evan Jacob (Author) / Nakagawa, Kathryn (Committee member) / Husman, Jenefer (Committee member) / Graham, Steve (Committee member) / Moore, Elsie (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2014
Description
In this dissertation I present data gathered from an eleven-month qualitative research study with adolescents living and working on the streets of Lima, Peru. Through the pairing of photovoice with participant observations, this work incorporates distinctive methodological and theoretical viewpoints in order to complicate prevailing understandings of street life. In this dissertation, I examine the identities that children and adolescents on the street develop in context, and the ways in which photography can be a useful tool in understanding identity development among this population. Through a framework integrating theories of identity and identity performance with spatial theories, I outline how identity development among children and adolescents living on the street is directly connected to their relationships with the urban landscape and the outreach organizations that serve them. The organizations and institutions that surround children on the street shape who they are, how they are perceived by society, and how they view and understand themselves in context. It is through the interaction with aid organizations and the urban landscape that a street identity is learned and developed. Furthermore, as organizations, children and adolescents come together within the context of the city, a unique street space is created. I argue that identity and agency are directly tied to this space. I also present the street as a thirdspace of possibility, where children and adolescents are able to act out various aspects of the self that they would be unable to pursue otherwise. Weaved throughout this dissertation are non-traditional writing forms including narrative and critical personal narrative addressing my own experiences conducting this research, my impact on the research context, and how I understand the data gathered.
ContributorsJoanou, Jamie Patrice (Author) / Swadener, Beth B. (Thesis advisor) / Margolis, Eric (Committee member) / Arzubiaga, Angela (Committee member) / Fischman, Gustavo (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
Description
ABSTRACT The major hypothesis tested in this research is that the psychological well-being and life satisfaction of elderly adult individuals can be predicted from religiosity (organizational and non-organizational religious beliefs and behaviors). The sample consisted of 142 adults between the ages of 65-90, with the majority in the 65-70 age group (48%) (SD = 1.176). The entire sample resides in the state of Arizona, in both urban and rural communities. Participants were administered a questionnaire which requested demographic information, and three instruments: the Duke University Religion Index (the DUREL), and the Affect Balance Scale and the Life Satisfaction Index - Z (LSIZ). Correlational and Multiple regression analyses were used to examine the relation between these adults' psychological well-being, life satisfaction and their religiosity. Independent t-tests were also used to examine possible sex, ethnic and religiosity effects on psychological well-being and life satisfaction. Findings revealed that psychological well-being and life satisfaction are higher when religiosity is higher, regardless of sex or ethnicity. These findings are consistent with those of previous research in this field.
ContributorsMoreno-Weinert, Inez (Author) / Moore, Elsie (Thesis advisor) / Nakagawa, Kathryn (Committee member) / Ladd, Becky (Committee member) / Cohen, Adam (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2012
Description
This study explored female identity formation, of Ethiopian women and women of Ethiopian heritage as they participate in a coffee (buna) ceremony ritual. The study is anchored in the theoretical framework of a sociocultural perspective which enabled an examination of culture as what individuals do and believe as they participate in mutually constituted activities. Participants in Ethiopia were asked to photograph their daily routine beginning from the time they awoke until they retired for the night. Thematic analysis of the photographs determined that all participants depicted participation in the Ethiopian coffee ceremony in their photo study. Utilizing the photographs which specifically depicted the ceremony, eight focus groups and one interview consisting of women who have migrated from Ethiopia to Arizona, responded to the typicality of the photographs, as well as what they liked or did not like about the photographs. Focus groups were digitally recorded then transcribed for analysis. A combination of coding, extrapolation of rich texts, and identifying themes and patterns were used to analyze transcripts of the focus groups and interview. The findings suggest that this context is rich with shared meanings pertaining to: material artifacts, gender socialization, creation of a space for free expression, social expectations for communal contributions, and a female rite of passage.
ContributorsPlatt, Jennifer Brinkerhoff, 1971- (Author) / Arzubiaga, Angela (Thesis advisor) / Nakagawa, Kathryn (Thesis advisor) / Warriner, Doris (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
Description
The present study examined the relations between indices of parental involvement (parental aspirations, expectations, help with schoolwork, home learning and language materials) and children's academic achievement in a sample of 291 kindergarten-2nd grade children. Children's academic achievement was assessed with the Woodcock Johnson and parents reported on expectations, aspirations, help with schoolwork, home learning and language materials. Latent Growth Curve Models were used to test whether there was growth in the parent involvement variables and whether growth in the parent involvement variables predicted growth in academic achievement. The intercept for parental expectations was the only intercept to predict the intercept of academic achievement. Rates of growth in parental expectations, parental help with schoolwork, and home learning materials predicted rates of growth in academic achievement.
ContributorsSeeley, Bridget Granville (Author) / Valiente, Carlos (Thesis advisor) / Nakagawa, Kathryn (Thesis advisor) / Arzubiaga, Angela (Committee member) / Eggum, Natalie D (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2012
Description
This multiple case study examined Mexican mothers' beliefs on social and moral development in light of their adaptation to the United States. Super and Harkness' (1986, 2002) ecocultural framework and more specifically, the concept of the developmental niche, guided the analysis. Participants were five Mexican immigrant mothers living in the Phoenix metropolitan area with children between three and four years old. Using participant observation, mothers were shadowed during the day for a period of nine months and were interviewed four times. Additionally, a Q-sort activity on cultural values and a vignette activity were conducted. Evidence of continuity in the importance given to traditional beliefs such as being "bien educado" (proper demeanor) and showing "respeto" (respect) was found. However, the continuity on the teaching of cultural values was accompanied by changes in beliefs and practices. The traditional construct of a "chipil child" (a needy, whiny child) was connected to the idea that mothers somehow need to restrict how much affection, time and gifts they give to their children. This concern was in turn related to the higher access to consumption goods in the United States. It is argued that acculturation is lived differently by mothers, according to their educational attainment, use of expert advice and contact and knowledge with American mainstream culture.
ContributorsFuster, Delia Tamara (Author) / Arzubiaga, Angela (Thesis advisor) / Tobin, Joseph (Committee member) / Nakagawa, Kathryn (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2012