Browsing by Subject "Self-esteem"
Now showing 1 - 17 of 17
Results Per Page
Sort Options
Item A follow-up study of a skills training approach to postdivorce adjustment(Texas Tech University, 1979-08) Goethal, Kurt GordonNot availableItem An experimental study of the effectiveness of attitude change techniques for enhancing self-esteem(Texas Tech University, 1977-08) Friedenberg, William PNot availableItem An analysis of the literature on self-compassion, self-esteem, and body image as predictors of adolescent reckless behavior(2009-12) Holder, Christen Marie; Schallert, Diane L.; Tharinger, DeborahAdolescent reckless behavior is a major concern for society because it leads to the three most common causes of mortality for this age group. Body image and self-esteem have been proposed as constructs that have an effect on adolescents’ participation in reckless behavior. Self-esteem, however, has been garnering criticism in recent years for promoting narcissism and downward social comparison with others. Self-compassion is an alternative to self-esteem that focuses on accepting oneself and having feelings of common humanity. This report proposes a study that would measure reckless behavior in adolescents, and look at the effect self-compassion, self-esteem, and body image has on it. In addition, self-compassion will be examined to see if it moderates the effect body image has on self-esteem.Item Conditions affecting the occurrence of causal attributions in response to a learned helplessness induction(Texas Tech University, 1984-12) Miller, David KirkIn their reformulation of learned helplessness theory, Abramson, Sellgman, and Teasdale (1978) maintained that when humans encounter uncontrollable events, they ask themselves why? The causal attribution made to explain the uncontrollability affects the generality and chroniclty of resulting helplessness deficits, and determines whether or not a loss of self-esteem will occur. One of the weaknesses of this reformulation has been a lack of experimental evidence to support the assumption that people usually make causal attributions in response to uncontrollable outcomes. The present study was designed to test this assumption and to examine some conditions which might affect whether or not such attributions occur. In the present study, 150 college students were randomly assigned to nine experimental groups and one no treatment control group. The two independent variables studied were type of attribution measure (a rating scale questionnaire versus a free response or "no information" questionnaire) and strength of attrlbutlonal cue (strong versus weak external cues). All experimental subjects were given a series of unsolvable concept-formation problems designed to induce learned helplessness After the experimental manipulations, causal attributions were measured and subjects were tested for learned helplessness deficits.Item Exploring the mutual influence of self and relationship : a theory of couple identity negotiation(2010-08) Kwang, Tracy Nai; Swann, William B.; Neff, Lisa A.Relationships can shape the self-concept, draw out unique aspects of an individual’s personality, and influence individual perspectives and goals. Yet the self is not a passive player in relationships as self-related goals and motives can also influence how relationships form and develop. While the field is replete with research on the unidirectional influence between self and relationships, surprisingly little has been done on synergistic effect of combined self and relationship influences. I present a new theory of couple identity negotiation that captures how two individuals in a relationship negotiate their independent identities to form a unified couple identity. I hypothesize that the process through which an individual and his/her partner merge to create a new couple identity is crucial in determining relationship longevity and satisfaction. I draw from social identity theory (Turner et al., 1987) and identity fusion theory (Swann et al., 2009) to propose three models of couple identity negotiation: Model A involves the self being subsumed by the partner; Model B involves a negotiation wherein the self and partner both contribute to the couple identity; Model C the self subsuming the partner’s self. Study 1 tests the links between the different models to relationship outcomes, namely relationship satisfaction and commitment. Study 2 explores personality correlates of the models. Results demonstrate that couple identity negotiation models predict different levels of relationship quality. Furthermore, the models are not significantly correlated with personality variables, suggesting that the models are specific to the relationship, and are not driven solely by individual differences.Item Factors associated with female work involvement(Texas Tech University, 1977-08) McCunney, NancyThe major purpose of this study was to explore several variables, namely self-esteem, desired family size, and mother's work history, as they relate to the anticipated work involvement for a random sample, stratified according to sex, of 406 unmarried college females. Four patterns of work involvement were developed—no work involvement, long interruption of work involvement, short interruption of work involvement, and continuous work involvement. Nearly 99% of these women planned to work at some time during their married lives, if only before or after children. Mother's work history was positively related to anticipated work involvement. Desired family size was negatively related to anticipated work involvement. Interestingly, self-esteem was not related to anticipated work involvement, and it was suggested that achievement via career involvement for women may represent a potential threat in terms of perceived affiliative loss, and that college age women seem particularly sensitive to this threat which may contribute to lower self-esteem.Item Guided imagery concepts applied to esteem enhancement in classroom settings to improve studio art products(Texas Tech University, 1989-08) Kennedy, Linda CarolNot availableItem Perceived acceptability of abusive behavior in the maintenance of psychologically abusive relationships(2011-08) Chang, Christine Susan, 1977-; Swann, William B.; Gosling, Samuel D.; Beevers, Christopher G.; Pennebaker, James W.; Loving, Timothy J.In this series of studies, I hypothesized that people’s perceptions of certain psychologically abusive acts as acceptable or not acceptable would impact whether they would remain in psychologically abusive relationships. In Study 1, I explored the historic link between low self-esteem in women and receiving high levels of abuse. I found that women who were low in self-esteem found psychologically abusive behavior depicted in a series of vignettes to be significantly more acceptable than did women who were high in self-esteem. In Study 2, I found that women who were currently in abusive relationships found psychologically abusive behavior depicted in a video to be significantly more acceptable than did women who were currently in non-abusive relationships. Furthermore, I found that the woman’s own abusive behavior toward her partner was a stronger predictor than the abusiveness of her partner of whether she endorsed that she would stay in the depicted abusive relationship. Also, I found that among women who were highly abusive toward their partners and high in self-esteem, the more abuse they were receiving from their current partners, the more acceptable they found the depicted abusive behaviors. Based on these findings, in Study 3 I explored whether priming women’s (a) awareness of their own aggressive behaviors and (b) how these behaviors could change might have stronger impact on women’s views of the acceptability of their own abusive behaviors than women’s awareness of their partner’s aggressive behaviors. Furthermore, I explored whether these different foci would have impact on real-life consequences in changing abuse levels in the current relationship. The findings were mixed; short-term effects implied that writing about conflict, no matter whether the focus is on the self’s aggression or the partner’s aggression, seemed to encourage women to regard leaving an abusive relationship as more acceptable than writing about a neutral topic. Over the long-term, however, writing about conflict, no matter whether the focus was on the self’s aggression or the partner’s aggression, exacerbated the partner’s psychologically aggressive behavior.Item Predictors of self-esteem and locus of control in Mexican-American women(Texas Tech University, 1989-05) Adams, Russell P.The purpose of the study was to elicit the best overall predictors of self-esteem and locus of control in a sample of 708 Mexican-American women. In spite of the growing number of Mexican-Americans, psychological variables have not been addressed sufficiently, especially among Mexican-American women. Therefore, this type of research can contribute significantly to the understanding of Mexican-American women. A modified, multistage, cluster sampling strategy was used in order to obtain the sample. Using role theory as the theoretical orientation, three types of predictors were introduced as independent variables: cultural predictors, demographic predictors, and male/female relationship predictors. Initial correlation analyses were used to view the relationship of the variables in each of the predictor groups with self-esteem and locus of control. The second step of the analysis involved regressing variables from the three predictor groups onto self-esteem and locus of control. In order to reduce the large number of variables in the regression equation, three separate factor analyses were conducted, one on each of the three groups of variables. The final regression equation included these factor scores and three interaction terms. The multiple regression analysis found the strongest predictor of self-esteem to be the factor score representing relationship quality. The second significant predictor of self-esteem was a factor which included relationship egalitarianism. The interaction terms and other variables in the regression were nonsignificant. The factor representing marital quality also emerged as the strongest predictor of locus of control. This was followed by the demographic factor score representing education and income. The final significant predictor of locus of control was the factor score representing relationship egalitarianism. Again, other variables in the equation, including interaction terms were nonsignificant. These results are discussed together with implications of these findings for the Mexican-American population, as well as recommendations for future research.Item Predictors of self-esteem and locus of control in Mexican-American women(Texas Tech University, 1989-05) Adams, Russell P.The purpose of the study was to elicit the best overall predictors of self-esteem and locus of control in a sample of 708 Mexican-American women. In spite of the growing number of Mexican-Americans, psychological variables have not been addressed sufficiently, especially among Mexican-American women. Therefore, this type of research can contribute significantly to the understanding of Mexican-American women. A modified, multistage, cluster sampling strategy was used in order to obtain the sample. Using role theory as the theoretical orientation, three types of predictors were introduced as independent variables: cultural predictors, demographic predictors, and male/female relationship predictors. Initial correlation analyses were used to view the relationship of the variables in each of the predictor groups with self-esteem and locus of control. The second step of the analysis involved regressing variables from the three predictor groups onto self-esteem and locus of control. In order to reduce the large number of variables in the regression equation, three separate factor analyses were conducted, one on each of the three groups of variables. The final regression equation included these factor scores and three interaction terms.Item Social competence, peer victimization, and depression in young adults with high-functioning autism spectrum disorders(2013-08) Stark, Kate Harris; Allen, Greg, doctor of clinical psychologyThe goal of this study was to examine the contributing factors to depression in young adult males with high-functioning autism spectrum disorders (HFASD) and controls. Specifically, this study examined the relationship between recalled relational peer victimization, self-perceived social competence, global self-worth, and symptoms of depression in individuals with HFASD compared to normal controls. Depression is one of the most prevalent comorbid conditions in the HFASD population. Individuals with autism are also subjected to high rates of peer victimization. Given that social abilities are impaired in individuals with autism, it was hypothesized that their experiences with victimization by peers, along with their self-perceived social competence and global self-worth, would help explain levels of depression. It was expected that higher levels of peer victimization, lower levels of self-perceived social competence, and lower levels of global self-worth would explain higher levels of depression. Additionally, it was expected that self-perceived social competence would mediate the effect of peer victimization on depression, global self-worth would mediate the effect of peer victimization on depression, and global self-worth would mediate the effect of self-perceived social competence on depression. Variables were measured with self-report questionnaires. Multiple regression and bootstrapping measures of indirect effects were used to examine the presumed effects. Participants included 40 males, ages 18-26; there were 21 control participants and 19 individuals with HFASDs. Individuals with HFASD had significantly higher levels of depressive symptoms, lower levels of self-perceived social competence, lower levels of global self-worth, and a trend towards higher reports of peer victimization. Multiple regression analyses determined that peer victimization, global self-worth, and self-perceived social competence significantly predicted depressive symptoms in the total sample. Also, peer victimization significantly predicted self-perceived social competence and global self-worth. Additionally, self-perceived social competence significantly predicted global self-worth. Tests of indirect effects indicated that global self-worth mediated the effect of peer victimization on depression, self-perceived competence mediated the effect of peer victimization on depression, and global self-worth mediated the effect of self-perceived competence on depression. As a follow-up, this study also examined select HFASD participants' responses about how they defined bullying, as well as their perceived experiences with victimization.Item The effects of expectations of loss of control and experiences of success and failure on the development of learned helplessness(Texas Tech University, 1980-08) Lester, Gregory WilliamLearned helplessness (Seligman, 1975; Abramson, Seligman, & Teasdale, 1978) has recently gained prominence as a model of depression The theory states that an expectation of loss of control over reinforcements results in cognitive and motivational deficits, and, in certain cases, reduced self-esteem and increased depressed affect. While the theory has received some experimental support, at least three major areas of uncertainty remain in the theory: 1) Perceptions of loss of control have never actually been shown to cause helplessness; 2) most studies supporting the theory have confounded an experience of failure with an expectation of loss of control; 3) some studies have found facilitated cognitive and motivational functioning following an experience of loss of control. The present study was designed to investigate these three areas of uncertainty. A total of 165 students were randomly assigned to 11 groups, ten of which were given experimental treatments and one of which was a No Treatment group. Students in the experimental groups received an experimental treatment based on a combination of two independent variables: a) Success/Failure; b) Level of Expectation of control over future reinforcements. The Success/Failure manipulation consisted of students being given five concept-formation problems. Students in the Failure condition were induced to fail each problem, while students in the Success condition were allowed to solve each problem. The Level of Expectation manipulation consisted of stating one of five probability numbers to each student. This probability number was presented as the students' best chance of scoring well on an anagram task which was given after the concept-formation task. All students were told that they had a 20% chance of scoring well on the task if they did not try hard to score well, and either an 80%, 75%, 50%, 25%, or 20% chance of scoring well on the task if they did try hard to score well. Only the group being told that they had a 20% chance of scoring well if they did try hard to score well and a 20% chance if they did not try hard to score well fit Seligman's (1975) definition of loss of control. The Success/Failure and Level of Expectation variables were crossed, resulting in a 2(Success, Failure) X 5(80%, 75%, 50%, 25%, 20% Level of Expectation) factorial design. Students in the No Treatment group were given neither of the experimental manipulations. Following the experimental manipulations, students were given an anagram task to measure cognitive and motivational functioning along with checklists to measure depressed affect and self- esteem. Experimental predictions hypothesized that both failure and expectation of loss of control would produce impaired cognitive and motivational functioning, decreased self-esteem, and increased depressed affect. A combination of success and a high level of expectation of control over reinforcements was predicted to produce facilitated cognitive and motivational functioning, increased self-esteem, and decreased depressed affect. Results showed that the Level of Expectation variable had no effect on cognitive or motivational functioning, self-esteem, or depressed affect. Decreased self-esteem was found when students experiencing failure were compared with students who experienced success. Increased depressed affect was found when students experiencing failure were compared with students who were not given the experimental manipulations. In addition, no facilitation was produced from any combination of the independent variables. These results conflict with the learned helplessness theory and suggest that failure, rather than an expectation of loss of control, produces decreased self-esteem and increased depressed affect. Thus, it is possible that because studies producing learned helplessness commonly confound failure with loss of control, Abramson et al. (1978) chose the wrong variable as the variable responsible for producing learned helplessness. Failure is different from an expectation of loss of control as it includes an experience of reduction in the amount of positive reinforcement. The present study produced no cognitive or motivational deficits. One explanation for this result is that anagrams are inadequate measures of cognitive and motivational functioning. Additional research, utilizing improved dependent measures and refined methodology, with the intention of continuing to investigate the effects of failure and loss of control as independent variables is suggested.Item The effects of Hispanic children's literature on the self-esteem of lower socioeconomic Mexican American kindergarten children(Texas Tech University, 1991-05) Ramirez, GonzaloCulture plays an important part in the development of a child's self-esteem. Experts have stated that minimizing the differences between the home of culturally different children and the school is a major step in helping these students experience success in school. Incorporating the life experiences (through real or vicarious experiences) of these children will bring their home life into the classroom. It was assumed that culturally oriented literature may help fill this need. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to determine if being exposed to stories about the culture of Mexican Americans significantly affected the self-esteems of lower socioeconomic (SES) Mexican American kindergarten children, and to see if any differences detected could be explained by the language level of the child, as determined by the Language Assessment Scales (LAS). The first experimental group, designated Group A, listened to 18 selected stories about Mexican Americans. The second experimental group, designated Group B, listened and discussed the 18 selected stories. The third control group, designated Group C, neither listened to nor discussed the selected material. Subjects for this study were 123 Mexican American kindergarten children from three different elementary schools who participated in the free or reduced lunch program.Item The effects of self-disclosure, self-esteem, and love/sex attitude similarity on marital satisfaction: a multidimensional analysis(Texas Tech University, 1986-08) Greenfield, David NThis research examined the effects of spousal self-disclosure, self-esteem, and love/sex attitude similarity on marital satisfaction. Married couples were recruited through a variety of local sources, including samples from several clinical settings and divided into three independent groups utilizing the mean husband-wife Global Distress Scale score from the Marital Satisfaction Inventory (MSI) (Snyder, 1981). Following Snyder's clinical breakdown, the groups reflected satisfied, moderate, and distressed couples. Couples were also administered the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (1965), the Opener Scale and Discloser Index (Miller, Berg, & Archer, 1983), and the Love/Sex Attitude Scale (Hendrick & Hendrick, 1984). A comprehensive demographic questionnaire was also given. Utilizing a correlational design, the dependent variables of self-disclosure, self-esteem, and love/sex attitude similarity were analyzed by an analysis of variance. Each dependent variable was also correlated with the mean husband-wife marital satisfaction level. An intercorrelation matrix for all variables and composite variables was computed and a stepwise regression analysis was applied post hoc. Results of this research support the importance of communication in marital satisfaction. When sex differences were examined, this effect was far greater for wives than for husbands and appears to apply more to the elicitation (opening) of self-disclosure, as compared to the expression of disclosure. Opener scores for both husband and wife were also correlated with their spouse's individual marital satisfaction scores. (The relationship was greater for wives' opener scores with husbands' marital satisfaction.) Self-esteem proved to be significantly related to marital satisfaction for husbands and wives, Differences between husband and wife self-esteem levels were not noted among the three couple groups. Individuals' ratings "as if" spouse were rating their self-esteem differed across the three groups. Love/sex attitude similarity differed significantly for sex attitudes only (not for love attitudes) with greater distress with greater husband-wife attitude differences. Results of the regression analysis indicated that the wife's communication eliciting ability accounted for nearly 50 percent of the couples' mean marital satisfaction variance. The second highest amount of variance was accounted for by husbands' level of self-esteem with 13 percent of the mean marital satisfaction variance. Results are discussed from an interpersonal and individual perspective.Item The relationship between attitudes toward love, attitudes toward sex, and contraceptive behavior(Texas Tech University, 1989-08) Adler, Nancy LRecent research has indicated that there is currently a problem with unintended pregnancies in the United S t a t e s. In 1982, Forrest (1987) found that 54% of the pregnancies that occurred ware unplanned. Henshaw (1987) reported that approximately 30% of the pregnancies in 1983 were aborted. Although a large percentage of the abortions were performed on teenagers (27%), the majority involved woman in the 18-to-24 age range. The purpose of the present study was to explore the variables that appeared to be related to contraceptive use. It was an attempt to ascertain variables that need to be addressed during contraceptive counseling and sex education programs. Reiss, Banwart, and Foreman (1975) and Rains (1971) have developed theories to explain woman's contraceptive behavior. Although they approach the problem differently, both theories agree on the importance of self-esteem and sexual self-esteem (a woman's feelings about her sexual self and her sexual behavior) on contraceptive behavior. These theories also indicate that attitudes toward love and attitudes toward sex may affect contraceptive behavior. Other scholars (Cacioppo, Patty, Kao, & Rodriquez, 1986; Handrick & Handrick, 1987b) have highlighted other variables that may impact on contraceptive behavior (specifically, need for cognition and sensation seeking). The present study used undergraduate introductory psychology students from Texas Tech University to test hypotheses based on the research and theories mentioned above. Sexually active men and woman were used to test these hypotheses, despite the fact that previous research has mainly focused on woman. Results of the present study found statistical support for the proposed relationships between self-esteem and contraceptive behavior, and between dyadic commitment (as measured by various love and sex attitudes) and reliable contraceptive use. Support for sexual self esteem was mixed. There was no support for the hypotheses proposing relationships between contraceptive behavior and either the Sensation Seeking Scale or the Need for Cognition Scale. These results indicate that during contraceptive counseling and sex education programs, exploring relationship variables and fostering self-esteem may help to improve reliable contraceptive use.Item The relationship between level of self-esteem and ambitiousness among institutionalized retardates(Texas Tech University, 1974-05) Green, Richard KeithNot availableItem Weight control, self-perception, and self-esteem in adolescence : the role of schools and social comparison(2011-05) Mueller, Anna Strassmann; Muller, Chandra; Raley, R. Kelly; Frank, Kenneth; Hayward, Mark; Umberson, Debra; Crosnoe, RobertFor adolescents, body weight can be a complicated and sometimes difficult issue. Though the majority of adolescents report being aware of normative gendered body ideals, how adolescents incorporate or reject these ideals into their own weight-control decisions or sense of self can vary dramatically, largely in reaction to their social experiences with body ideals in the local, immediate contexts of their daily lives. The role of one such local context - schools - has remained largely unexplored in existing literature. Using the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health) and multi-level modeling, I investigate the role high school weight cultures play in the development of adolescents’ weight-loss behaviors, overweight self-perceptions, and self-esteem. I employ social comparison theories, specifically the idea of who may serve as a likely target for social comparison - general others, similar others, or high status others - to develop hypotheses about which aspects of the school context may be associated with various aspects of adolescents’ body weight. Overall, my results indicate that there is a strong relationship between adolescents’ weight-loss behavior, self-perception and self-esteem and the weight-related culture in the school. For example, adolescent boys, on average, are significantly less likely to report perceiving themselves as overweight or engaging in weight-loss behaviors when they attend schools where there are many overweight boys in the student body. I also find that there is some variation within the school in terms of which peers are most salient to adolescents’ behaviors and self-perceptions. Both boys and girls are particularly impacted by the values and behaviors of similar others, when similarity is defined by same-sex adolescents of a similar body size. For example, on average, overweight adolescent girls are significantly more likely to report engaging in weight-loss behaviors when a higher proportion of overweight girls in their school also are engaged in weight-loss behaviors. The same pattern is found among adolescent boys. Overall, these findings suggest that meso-level social contexts - like schools - may be particularly important to how individuals incorporate macro-level beliefs or values - like gendered body ideals - into their own behaviors and self-concepts.