Master's Theses
http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12648/34
2024-03-29T07:24:54ZCreating, Implementing, and Assessing Equitable Environmental Education Among Students who Identify as Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC)
http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12648/8260
Creating, Implementing, and Assessing Equitable Environmental Education Among Students who Identify as Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC)
Kara, Jillian
This thesis investigates interventions to increase environmental literacy among Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) students and examines the systemic racism that has been embedded throughout the field of natural resources and environmental education (EE). I took a case study approach to research environmental literacy among northern New York and Vermont high school students who qualify as coming from “modest income households” and whose parents did not obtain a four-year degree. I conducted qualitative analysis on student observations and pre- and post-survey data to understand student’s levels of environmental stewardship, connectedness to nature, and environmental career aspirations. The results are organized into four chapters: an introduction chapter, two manuscripts intended for stand-alone publication (Chapters 2-3), and a conclusion chapter. Chapter 2 reports on the current state of the field of natural resources and the development of an equitable survey tool which indicated that students across similar socio-economic backgrounds have similar levels of environmental interest yet career paths shift in BIPOC youth. Chapter 3 discusses strategies for increasing stewardship, connectedness to nature, and environmental career aspirations among students. Finally, Chapter 4 synthesizes the findings from Chapters 2-3. These results provide useful information about the current state of environmental education and provides recommendations on how environmental education can be more inclusive.
2022-12-12T00:00:00ZEnabling Behaviors, Stigmatization, and Attitudes towards Substance Abuse and Bulimia
http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12648/1228
Enabling Behaviors, Stigmatization, and Attitudes towards Substance Abuse and Bulimia
Mattice, Melissa
Enabling behaviors may impair the recovery of individuals with substance use and eating disorders. Participants read one of six vignettes portraying a character with either a substance use disorder or bulimia and were asked how they would react. The effects of several factors, such as gender, knowledge of disorder, disorder type, and enabling behaviors, on the likelihood of specific responses were examined for the most common responses. Some notable results included that females were more likely to intend to provide support. Participants who had higher enabling scores were less likely to tell a professional and were more likely to do nothing. Higher stigma scores were observed for those in the other category, which encompassed several less definitive responses. Responses did not vary by character gender, knowledge of disorder, or disorder type. The results point to the need for education and stigma reduction efforts for substance use and eating disorders.
Master's thesis, Department of Psychology, SUNY Plattsburgh
2018-01-01T00:00:00ZIs There a Relationship Between Art and Theory of Mind? A Review of Findings
http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12648/1229
Is There a Relationship Between Art and Theory of Mind? A Review of Findings
Brucker, Christina
Art interpretation, or perception of art, reflects the intrapersonal relationship to emotions, thoughts, and seductions that a person experiences while viewing artwork (Barret, 2002). Alongside the importance of artwork interpretation, Theory of Mind (ToM) can be defined as the capacity to imagine or form opinions about the cognitive states of others (Pam, 2016). Together, art interpretation and the measure of one's Theory of Mind could provide further insight into those with weaker ToM abilities. The purpose of this research is to discover whether a relationship between Theory of Mind and art interpretation exists for future directions such as art therapy or ToM interventions.
Master's thesis, Department of Psychology, SUNY Plattsburgh
2017-01-01T00:00:00ZRecognition of and Attitudes Toward Autism Spectrum Disorder in College Students
http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12648/1220
Recognition of and Attitudes Toward Autism Spectrum Disorder in College Students
O'Connell, Morgan
The present study explored the intended reactions to a hypothetical character with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and the effect of several variables on those intended reactions, using a convenience sample of 172 introductory psychology college students. Preliminary analyses of the results were concerning regarding the low recognition of this disorder, and a high endorsement of myths, stigma, and social distance. We predicted that those who correctly identified ASD would state an intention to provide more supportive responses than those who failed to correctly identify the disorder as autism. Frequency counts, chi-squared analyses, and an independent t-test were used to summarize the participants' intended responses to the character, assess the relation between categorical variables, and compare the means of continuous variables by each of the behaviors endorsed. Significantly more participants who correctly identified autism in the vignette said they would offer support to the character than if they did not correctly identify it as autism. Those who said they would provide general support had less personal stigma about the character and lower scores on the Autism Quotient. Participants who said they would do nothing in response had higher preferred social distance scores. No significant effects of participant gender and character gender were found. This research is important for the purposes of education of the public on autism spectrum disorders and how best to support such individuals, especially when transitioning to post-secondary education.
Master's thesis, Department of Psychology, SUNY Plattsburgh
2017-01-01T00:00:00Z