Browsing by Subject "Social Support"
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Item A Prospective Longitudinal Investigation of Effects of Nonparental Social Support on Early Adolescents' Academic Achievement and Academic Outcomes(2010-01-16) Allen, Chiharu S.The present study explored the prevalence and patterns of nonparental social support and investigated the effect of such support for 363 ethnically diverse elementary and middle school students. Using a prospective design, the study examined the effect of the availability of significant nonparental adult support as well as the effect of learning and affective support on students' academic achievement (reading and math) and academic outcomes (academic competence beliefs, classroom engagement, and school belonging), controlling for the baseline levels of functioning, cognitive ability, and demographic variables. The main and interactive effects of sex, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status were also examined. Furthermore, the study investigated the moderating effect of middle school transition on the relationship between the support variables and outcomes. A large majority of young adolescents in the current study reported having a significant nonparental adult or natural mentor. There was no racial or ethnic difference in the availability of natural mentors. A sex difference was found, with more female students reporting having such an adult. Extended family members were most frequently nominated as natural mentors by all students, but there was a statistically significant ethnic difference with more Hispanic and African American youths nominating extended family members than Caucasian students. Furthermore, 35% of natural adult mentors named by youth were employed in helping professions, more than in any other employment category, and nearly half of these adults were teachers. The availability of natural mentors had statistically significant and positive effects on female students' math achievement and both male and female students' reading achievement. The provision of learning and affective support from these adults exhibited additive effects on students' teacher-reported classroom engagement and interactive effects on student-reported academic competence beliefs and school belonging. These findings were often qualified by sex and in some instances ethnicity. Furthermore, there was some support for the moderating effect of middle school transition; however, the effect was in a negative direction for students who had recently transitioned to middle school. Study limitations and implications for formal mentoring programs, extracurricular activities, teacher training and educational policy are also discussed.Item Attachment Influences within a Gynecologic Cancer Population(2012-08-31) Adams, Cassandra Leigh; Evans, Harry Monty, Ph.D.Despite significant levels of distress and demonstrated benefits of psychosocial intervention, few women diagnosed with gynecologic cancers utilize psychosocial resources. Research indicates adult attachment style and perception of social support impact distress. However, relationships between these variables are poorly understood. Participants completed measures of distress, adult attachment style, and perception of social support and provided information regarding self-reported openness to psychosocial services and barriers to using those services. Our analyses identified significant relationships between adult attachment dimensions, distress, perceived social support, and openness to and use of psychosocial services. Distress was significantly associated with openness to and use of psychiatric medication. Perceived social support demonstrated significant mediation effects between attachment anxiety and distress. Similarly, perceived social support demonstrated significant mediation effects in the relationship of elevated depression and high attachment avoidance to use of psychiatric medication. However, significant study limitations may be assumed to have negatively impacted the ability to draw meaningful conclusions from the data. Future research would benefit from further examination of the relationships among adult attachment, distress, perceived social support, and openness to and use of psychosocial services. Clearer understanding the nature of these relationships could guide care providers in being able to more effectively provide services to women who are experiencing significant distress but fail to access services. More effective provision of services and subsequent reduction in distress would likely improve health outcomes.Item Impact of Physical Environment of a Rehabilitation Facility on the Social Support and Interaction Patterns of Spinal Cord Injury Patients and their Family and Friends: A Naturalistic Inquiry(2014-04-29) Setya, NidhiPrevious research has demonstrated the positive effects of family and friends support on the overall well-being of Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) rehabilitation patients. This study explores the ways in which physical environment can provide for social support to SCI patients in inpatient rehabilitation in order to improve their health outcomes. Since there is not enough literature available in the field of architecture to help in the development of hypotheses to be tested related to the physical environment of the social situation, the researcher aimed to develop a theory for future studies. This study was conducted as a naturalistic inquiry. Ten medical staff caring for the patient group and currently working at Willis-Knighton Health System (WKHS), Shreveport, LA were interviewed in order to understand their perceptions regarding the effect of the healthcare environment on the quality of interaction between patients and their family and friends. The results indicated that caregivers believed patient rooms to have highest potential of providing quality patient-family interaction because patients spend most of their days in their rooms. Physical Therapy gym, Occupational Therapy gym and leisure room (day room) were also discussed as important places that patients and families could use together. Lack of enough space was thought to be the biggest barrier in the nature of their interaction. Implications of this study are that additional studies are required to determine the minimum space requirement for SCI patient rooms with family zone. Architectural design of these spaces should account for the functional space requirement.Item Internet Technology and Social Support: Are They Beneficial for Overweight Older Adolescents?(2011-10-21) Olson, Wendy AnnIn recent years, literature in the area of web-based interventions for health-related concerns has burgeoned due to the increasing popularity and accessibility of the World Wide Web. Researchers have investigated the success of web-based programs to facilitate improved health behaviors, weight loss, and social support. However, due to the relatively recent application of web-based health-behavior programs, little research has studied whether these interventions are effective with overweight older adolescents. The purpose of this study was to test the application of health behavior theory in an on-line intervention designed to address health behaviors such as exercise and nutrition in a sample of overweight older adolescents. Using a pre-test, post-test, randomized, control group design, participants (n=71) were randomly assigned to either the comparison (Information) group, or the treatment (Information plus Discussion) group. Specific aims of the study were: 1) To test a new health behavior theory, the Model of Influence of Social Support on Health Behavior (MISSHRB), in a group of older adolescents; 2) To determine the feasibility and clinical utility of an internet intervention for social support for overweight older adolescents, and 3) To examine the impact of that intervention on the MISSHB variables. Results provided partial support for the MISSHRB, with social support correlating significantly with expectancies, attitudes, and perceived behavioral control. Results also provided support for the hypotheses that family general support, family specific support, attitudes, and engagement in health behaviors would improve over time. Results supported the feasibility of using an internet intervention with overweight older adolescents, with participants easily engaging in the study, fulfilling study requirements and reporting improved perceptions of the utility of online groups for providing social support. Additionally, results approached significance for medical outcomes, with trends representing Body Mass Index decrease over time, and suggesting that the Information plus Discussion group lost more weight than the Information group. These data suggest that internet information and discussion groups have promise as a means of social support for older overweight adolescents who are interested in improving their health behaviors. These results also provide information about the usefulness of web-based programs in facilitating overweight older adolescents? engagement in health-related behaviors and the utilization of internet support groups for other marginalized or socially stigmatized groups.