Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'College students Australia Psychology'

The purpose of this study was to examine the impact that attachment (as measured by an adult attachment measure) has on a college student's perceived stress levels. A sample of seven hundred and twenty-seven college students ranging from 18 to 30 years (N=727; 73.2% female, 26.8% male; 46.8% Hispanic/Latino, 18.2% Asian/Pacific Islander, 13.3% Caucasian, 7.4% other/mixed, 5.0% Middle Eastern, 4.5% African American/Black, 4.5% Armenian, and 0.3% Native American) completed two self-report questionnaires assessing attachment styles (ECR-S) and perceived stress levels (PSS). Analyses revealed a statistically significant relationship between an adult's level of secure attachment and level of perceived stress. The overall results showed that secure attachment levels were significantly and negatively related to perceived stress levels. These results provide further evidence of the impact that earlier relationships have on a person's functioning in adulthood, specifically with regards to one's ability to cope with a physically and emotionally demanding environment. Implications for providing attachment related interventions and directions for future research are explored.

Lao American college students' holistic identity development was examined in this study. The research utilized modified grounded theory methods to generate a model of holistic identity development for Lao American students whose families immigrated to the United States after 1978 as a part of the third wave of Laotian immigrants. Chickering and Reisser's (1993) psychosocial identity development theory and Kodama, McEwen, Liang, and Lee's (2002) negotiating identity and development task model for Asian Americans were utilized as an a priori theoretical foundation. Interviews explored participant perceptions and lived experiences as related to the elements of these two theories. Grounded theory development techniques were utilized in the analysis to explore the nature and interactions of various elements of the a priori theories. Data were collected using one exploratory focus group followed by in-depth interviews. Each participant was a child of parents who were refugees; all but one was born in the U.S. Findings center around three themes related to Lao American college students' holistic identity development: (a) the enmeshment of purpose and identity, (b) the influence and integration of family and culture influences, and (c) the fluidity of community influence. The dissertation concludes with a discussion of implications for theory, policy, and practice.

The purpose of this research is to explore similarities and differences of student burnout and student depression through educational (engagement in studying) and personal (personality traits) perspective. Due to the claims in literature considering burnout a popular word for depression, the main research question was whether burnout can be considered an independent nosological entity. The study included 135 undergraduate students in a Midwestern university, who filled out self-report questionnaires to measure burnout, depression, engagement, and Big Five personality traits. Correlational analyses showed moderate correlation between burnout and depression, and a similar correlation pattern of burnout and depression with engagement and personality traits. However, several regressional analyses indicated major burnout-depression differences in predicting engagement and personality. Based on these findings, the moderate relationship between the two constructs assumes that burnout belongs to the category of depressive disorders. At the same time, however, it was concluded that the significant differences in the way burnout and depression relate to engagement and personality may suggest that burnout can be differentiated from depression.

Viewing motivation to volunteer through an attachment theory perspective may enhance understanding of volunteering motivations. A questionnaire was administered to (N=155) emerging adult college students using a Lykert-type scale (1 - 7) to assess attachment (Bartholomew & Horowitz, 1991) and motivation to volunteer (Omoto & Snyder, 1994). Five forward linear regression analyses were conducted to identify significant predictors of attachment style on motivation to volunteer. For each analysis, one of the five motivations to volunteer variables (values, understanding, esteem enhancement, personal development, community concern) was regressed on the combination of four attachment style variables (secure, avoidant, anxious ambivalent, dismissing avoidant). Findings indicate that Secure significantly predicted Values, Understanding, and Community Concern; Anxious Ambivalent predicted Understanding, Personal Development, Community Concern, and Esteem Enhancement; and Dismissing Avoidant predicted Understanding. These findings partially support the hypothesized notion that securely individuals would likely report selfless motivations; whereas, insecure individuals would likely report self-serving motivations.

Previous research has shown that individuals with disordered eating patterns who come from a family that is high in Expressed Emotion tend to have more disordered eating behaviors and over a longer period of time. There is less research on how a person’s perception of their family’s expressed emotion, specifically the criticism directed at them by a parental figure, affects their disordered eating patterns. The purpose of this research was to examine whether there is a relationship between perceived criticism and disordered eating patterns, as well as whether this relationship is influenced by self-criticism. One hundred and five undergraduate college students participated in an online survey that measured perceived criticism, their self-criticism, and their disordered eating behaviors and thoughts. The results suggest that levels of perceived criticism and disordered eating behaviors and thoughts were not related to each other. However, an individual’s perception of parental self-criticism was related to their level of self-criticism. Their level of self-criticism in turn was related to their disordered eating behaviors and thoughts, demonstrating an indirect relationship between perceived criticism and disordered eating patterns. These findings offer some potential areas of consideration for clinicians treating clients with disordered eating behaviors.

When international students come to the U.S. to study, they are faced with unique needs and challenges that influence their academic success, adjustment, and well-being. In particular, international students’ academic adjustment determines their academic success during the transition to U.S. universities. This dissertation examined the validity of a new scale and international students’ academic adjustment from self-determination theory (SDT) in three different papers. The first paper examined the validity of a new instrument assessing students’ beliefs about assessment in the context of second language learning. Specifically, this study was conducted with international undergraduate students to examine their beliefs about a high-stakes standardized English proficiency exam and the use of their self-regulatory learning strategies in the context of second language learning. This study discussed implications for researchers to use an alternative scale to measure four different aspects of students’ beliefs about assessments and for educators’ intervention in students’ developing adaptive beliefs about assessment in the learning process.

The second paper aimed to provide a comprehensive theoretical framework from a self-determination perspective that supports international students’ successful academic adjustment. This paper comprised of two phases: quantitative phase and qualitative phase. The quantitative phase explored the relationships between international students’ learning climates, basic psychological needs, discussion participation, beliefs about classroom assessments, and academic adjustment. The qualitative phase explored how international students perceive their learning environments and classroom experiences in more detail through semi-structured interviews. This study showed that SDT provides theoretical foundations to explain international students’ successful academic adjustment.

Finally, the third paper investigated the relationships between self-determined motivation, beliefs about classroom assessments, and the use of different types of learning strategy through the lens of self-determination theory. It was proposed that students’ self-determined motivation may shape adaptive beliefs about classroom assessments, which in turn, contributes to use of higher level of learning strategies and eventually academic adjustment as a learning outcome. Also, this study explored whether there is a difference in students’ motivation, beliefs about assessments, and the use of self-regulated learning strategies in two different instructional environments (lecture-based and discussion-based classrooms). This paper discussed how international students’ adapt themselves to U.S. universities through motivation to learn, perspectives about classroom assessments, and different types of learning approach in different academic disciplines at the university level.