Psychology and Counseling Electronic Theses and Dissertations (UMKC)
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The items in this collection are the theses and dissertations written by students of the Department of Psychology and Counseling. Some items may be viewed only by members of the University of Missouri System and/or University of Missouri-Kansas City. Click on one of the browse buttons above for a complete listing of the works.
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Item Hope's resilience: moderating climate threat and future outlooks(2025) Siems, Melànie Brianne; Nilsson, Johanna E.Literature on climate change reveals its existing power as a health threat to all of humanity. Research on the psychological impacts of climate change details the mental health toll that is exacted (e.g., distress and anxiety about what is to come with continued climate change). Many of these mental health concerns are future-oriented and indicate limited, negative, and uncertain views of the future. On the other hand, having open expectations and a positive outlook about the future has been shown to be important for a number of outcomes (e.g., well-being, protection against maladaptive behaviors, and lower anxiety and rumination). Thus, there is an important relation between perceptions of climate change and perceptions of the future, which both have implications for mental health. It is crucial to now consider what factors may protect from or provide resilience to these negative impacts. Hope is a well-known construct that indicates the belief that goals will be met in the future, or that desired outcomes may occur, which has been shown in many studies to be a protective factor. The purpose of the current study was to investigate the role of hope in relation to perceived climate threat and expectations about the future. A cross-sectional design was used with a sample of 231 undergraduate students (ages 18-29; M = 20.46; SD = 2.12) at a Midwestern university in the United States to investigate this research question. The results showed that having a higher perception of climate threat is related to a more limited view of the future. Additionally, this positive relation was strengthened by increasing levels of hope. The results also showed that, at low levels of hope, there is a positive relation between perceived climate threat and open future time perspectives; however, at high levels of hope, this relation becomes non-significant. Hope was found to have a null relation with pro-environmental behaviors, a positive relation with climate threat and limited and ambiguous views of the future, and a negative relation with open views of the future. Study limitations, implications, and future directions are discussed. Keywords: climate threat, future time perspectives, hopeItem Hope or hurt? Unpacking the complex effects of hope and ethnic identity on ethnic discrimination(2025) Jung, Joanne; Ternes, MichaelRacial discrimination remains a pervasive challenge for many racially minoritized college students, contributing to adverse mental health outcomes such as depression, anxiety, and trauma-related stress. Though hope and ethnic identity are often viewed as protective factors, recent evidence suggests their effects may vary or even be paradoxical depending on context and racial group. This study examined whether hope and ethnic identity moderate the impact of discrimination on well-being, general stress, and race-based traumatic stress (RBTS) among 286 college and graduate students (ages 18-60; M = 24.7, SD = 6.0). Participants were grouped into Participant Group 1 (Black/African American) and Participant Group 2 (American Indian/Alaska Native, Asian, Hispanic/Latinx, Multiracial/Other) based on self-reported skin tone differences. Results confirmed that discrimination was consistently associated with lower well-being, higher general stress, and greater RBTS. Hope was positively linked to well-being overall, but exhibited a paradoxical effect for Participant Group 2, where higher hope was linked to lower well-being under conditions of high discrimination. Similarly, individuals with high hope reported increased stress as discrimination rose, whereas those with low hope maintained stable stress levels, regardless of discrimination levels. Hope’s moderating effect on general stress did not differ between racial groups. For RBTS, hope was protective for Participant Group 1 under low discrimination but became a potential risk factor at higher discrimination levels. In contrast, hope did not significantly moderate RBTS in Participant Group 2. Contrary to expectations, ethnic identity moderated the association between discrimination and well-being but not general stress or RBTS, with its protective effects evident across both groups. Taken together, these findings suggest that protective factors like hope and ethnic identity may function differently across racial groups and contexts, highlighting the importance of considering sociodemographic and cultural factors when implementing interventions and conducting resilience research.Item Exploring grandmother kinship caregivers' perceptions of caregiving experiences(2025) Guhin, Taylor Anne; Berkel, LaVerne A.Grandmothers stepping in as kinship care providers is a growing subset of foster care. This study provided new insight into the changes a child endures when receiving care from their grandmother through Bronfenbrenner’s ecological lens. Conceptualizing child development through Bronfenbrenner’s ecological model helps explain how human development can be influenced by a child’s constantly changing immediate and larger social systems (Bronfenbrenner, 1977). Our study reviews the foster care system; including relative or nonrelative care, which can be formal or informal, as well as congregate care. There are many strengths highlighted in kinship care. For instance, in previous research, children shared that kinship care provided a protective environment that supported emotional recovery and helped them cope with adverse life circumstances (Burgess et al., 2010; Geen, 2004). Also, kinship care provides children with permanence and stability within their microsystem. However, many obstacles arise during this type of caregiving placement. Specifically, kinship caregivers are more likely to be older and have fewer economic resources (Stein et al., 2014), have received fewer educational services (Sakai et al., 2011), and to be in worse physical health than non-kin caregivers (Liao & White, 2014). Therefore, it is imperative to learn more from the grandmother’s perspective, specifically the caregiving struggles and how this change has direct and indirect effects on the child’s microsystem, mesosystem, exosystem, and macrosystem. Through a qualitative study, the research team interviewed 12 grandmothers and used Braun and Clarke’s (2006) thematic analysis guide to derive themes and subthemes from the data. This study found three main themes: challenges in caregiving, strengths in caregiving, and resources needed. Specific challenges discussed by the grandmothers were navigating relationships with biological parents, the lack of financial assistance, and the need for childcare. Some unique strengths found were that stability and safety were maintained in the child’s microsystem. Overall, this study offered insight into the child’s functioning in grandmother kinship care through the grandmother's perspective, while utilizing Bronfenbrenner’s ecological lens to examine each level of the child’s ecological system. This study's findings gave specific ideas on how to support grandmother kinship families in clinical settings and identified future research directions.Item The effect of racial representation on rejection sensitivity(2025) Nelson, Samuel Christopher; Ha, Oh-RyeongThis study examined how racial representation within small group settings impacts experiences of social rejection among people of color. Grounded in Minority Stress Theory and Rejection Sensitivity Theory, this project explored whether the presence of racial diversity can reduce expectations of discrimination and buffer against the negative effects of social exclusion. Using an experimental paradigm (Cyberball), the study tested how individuals respond to rejection in racially homogeneous vs. racially diverse groups. Self-report results indicated People of Color have experienced higher rates of race-based discrimination in their lifetimes compared to their White peers. Similarly, the study showed higher levels of race-based rejection sensitivity for People of Color. Results of the experimental portion of the study revealed that racial representation for People of Color can lead to reduced expectations and perceptions of race-based discrimination but may not have an impact on stress or subsequent avoidance or aggravation.Item Emotional intensity in therapy scale (EITS) : development of a multidimensional state-trait measure(2025) Bierman Wetrich, Bethany Rose; Marszalek, Jacob M.Emotional intensity in therapy sessions is a concept that is undefined psychometrically, though it may be referred to in the basic training of therapy. Measurement of emotion and understanding its presentation through human experience is essential for informing the creation of treatments and interventions which are rooted in theory and empirically supported mechanisms of change (Burum & Goldfried, 2007). The current study developed and refined a scale to better understand the emotional intensity within a single therapy session based on the involvement of both the client and the clinician, while also considering the impact of trait differences in emotionality. There is currently no other measure that detects the experience of emotional intensity while also considering the impact of individual differences and the environment. Utilizing the process of scale development outlined by DeVellis (2013) and exploratory factor analysis (EFA) with responses from a sample of 405 participants, we observed the state and trait subscales each have good reliability and best fit a structure of four dimensions. These subscales explained 53% and 52% of the variance in state emotional intensity and individual propensity towards heightened emotional experiences, respectively. While four factors were extracted from both the state and the trait subscales, the items in these factors do not mirror each other. It was hypothesized that state and trait differences would be similarly explained by the mental, emotional, and physical dimensions. Rather, both were explained for four different factors that were closely related to mental, emotional, and physical changes, but not exactly the same. The Emotional Intensity in Therapy Scale (EITS) has the potential to assist in growing the research on the role of relational drivers and emotional experience in therapy and its impact on client outcomes.