Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2018, Social Work

The emerging adult population, individuals between the ages of 18-29, has grown to 53.7 million in the United States (U.S. Census Bureau, 2017). College students form a significant subset of this population, with 29 percent enrolled at a college or university (National Center for Education Statistics [NCES], 2015). One in three emerging adults will experience some form of mental health disorder (Eisenberg, Hunt, Speer & Zivin, 2011; Lipson, Gaddis, Heinze, Beck & Eisenberg, 2015) and the prevalence of substance use disorders is higher than any other age group (Substance Abuse & Mental Health Services Administration [SAMHSA], 2005). Emerging adult college students with behavioral health concerns face a myriad of challenges that include negative implications for education (Arria et al., 2013; Eisenberg, Golberstein, & Hunt, 2009; Eisenberg, Hunt, Speer, & Zivin, 2011; Sontag-Padilla et al., 2014), long-term health (Eisenberg, Hunt, Speer, & Zivin, 2011), and socioeconomic status (Wang et al., 2007). Despite these challenges, few emerging adults receive help for their behavioral health concerns (Kessler et al., 2007; Lipson, Gaddis, Heinze, Beck, & Eisenberg, 2015; SAMHSA, 2012; Wang et al., 2007). Few researchers have examined this phenomenon, but some evidence shows that institutional and individual-level characteristics may play a role (Cadigan, Lee, & Larimer, 2018; Dunbar, Sontag-Padilla, Ramchand, Seelam, & Stein, 2017; Eisenberg, Hunt, Speer, & Zivin, 2011; Miller et al., 2016). The aims of the Emerging Adult Behavioral Health (EABH) study were to (1) evaluate the association between behavioral health service use and academic outcomes among emerging adult college students; and (2) determine if emerging adult college students' decisions to use or not use behavioral health services are associated with specific student- or institution-level characteristics. Using secondary data from the 2015-2016 Healthy Minds Study (HMS), the EABH study employed a combination a (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Audrey Begun (Advisor); Kathryn Maguire-Jack (Committee Member); Joseph Guada (Committee Member) Subjects: Education; Higher Education; Mental Health; Social Work

Doctor of Philosophy, University of Akron, 2017, Sociology

ABSTRACT Frequent consumption of fast food, irregular condom use, high risk partnering, and heavy episodic drinking (HED) are risk behaviors that threaten both individual and public health. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2017) emerging adults (18-25) and males are more likely to engage in these behaviors when compared to older adults and females. There is also evidence of variance by race as African Americans engage in more frequent fast food consumption and high risk partnering, while White Americans engage in more HED behavior and irregular condom use. This dissertation uses the Doing Difference framework to provide socio-structural context for these trends (West and Fenstermaker 1995). According to the framework, social constructions of race, class, and gender are structured at the macro level and reproduced dramaturgically at the interactional level. A review of the literature and an application of the Doing Difference framework led to the following hypotheses, when compared to all other intersections of race, gender, and sex: White American, feminine women consume less fast food, White American, feminine women use condoms less frequently, White American, feminine women have a smaller number of sexual partners, and White American, masculine men have the highest odds of engaging in HED behavior. Hypotheses were tested using data collected for the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (ADD health). Results indicated that the impact of sex and gender on engaging in health risk behavior varies by race. While there is evidence that White American health is structured by male sex and masculine gender orientation, race itself appears to have the greatest impact on African American health.

Committee: Robert Peralta (Committee Co-Chair) Subjects: African American Studies; African Americans; Gender; Gender Studies; Health; Sociology

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2016, Human Ecology: Human Development and Family Science

Adolescents are at an increased risk for developing depression and the incidence of major depressive disorder peaks among individuals in their 20s (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). Depression among emerging adults and college students in particular, is understudied and has rarely been investigated in relation to family relationships. Guided by Bowen theory, we investigated the relationships between parent-child differentiation during adolescence and emerging adulthood, depressive symptoms and the fear of negative evaluation. 58 emerging adults, aged 20 – 25 years and their mothers, were recruited through undergraduate classes at a public, Midwestern University and the participants provided information about the variables of interest for two time points, adolescence and after the transition to college. Results of structural equation models suggested that both dimensions of differentiation, togetherness and individuality, were related to depressive symptoms in emerging adulthood. During emerging adulthood, the child's perception of togetherness with both parents was negatively related to depressive symptoms. Interestingly, while the perception of individuality with fathers was negatively related, individuality with mothers was positively related to depressive symptoms. Family differentiation was related to the fear of negative evaluation via the pathway of depressive symptoms. Overall, our results suggest that family differentiation continues to impact the well-being of emerging adults after their transition to college. Importantly, the dimension of individuality emerged as a significant factor, both during adolescence and emerging adulthood. This study provides evidence for the increased use of family therapy in the treatment of depression during emerging adulthood and for the continued assessment of family processes at the relationship versus the family-level.

Committee: Suzanne Bartle-Haring Dr. (Advisor); Sarah Schoppe-Sullivan Dr. (Committee Member); Kelly Purtell Dr. (Committee Member); James Onate Dr. (Committee Member) Subjects: Families and Family Life; Individual and Family Studies; Mental Health; Therapy

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2013, EDU Policy and Leadership

Two-thirds of college students will borrow money to attend college or university. Among them is a group categorized as `independent' according to federal criteria, including age, income, familial status, veterans, and those for whom dependency is not possible, such as foster children. This qualitative study explores the meaning that independent undergraduate students ascribe to the debt they encumber while enrolled in college. What is their perception of their student debt? Do they believe their education is worth the debt? The researcher originally sought to ask twenty independent undergraduate students in their junior year or above about their experience of student debt while enrolled at a large regional public university in the Midwest. In addition to interviewing, twenty individuals who met the original criteria, an additional eight were interviewed who expanded the original definition of independence beyond the federal criteria and the need to focus on those close to graduation. Results suggest that student debt is considered a necessity by all of the participants as it relates to their college attendance and their lifestyle choices. College attendance was seen as a requirement to gain access to future employment. Student loans often were used to supplement or provide full support for external living expenses. Acceptance of this syllogism may explain expanded levels of debt tolerance, consistent with the application of prospect theory to the data. Their own needs and networks facilitated the participants' understanding of their student debt. Some of the participants viewed the impact of debt on their academic and social experience as negative, while the majority recognized student debt as a “necessary evil” and a personal “investment” in their own human capital. Student debt was viewed as distinctly different from other kinds of debt. While all of the participants recognized the value of their education, some level of distrust of the current structure of (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Ada Demb Ed.D. (Advisor); Scott Sweetland Ph.D. (Committee Member); Chris Zirkle Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Adult Education; Education; Education Finance; Education Policy; Educational Leadership; Higher Education; Higher Education Administration; Public Administration; Public Policy

MA, University of Cincinnati, 2011, Arts and Sciences: Communication

This study applies Relational Dialectics Theory (Baxter & Montgomery, 1996) to the sibling relationship, focusing on how dialectical tensions are expressed and negotiated between siblings during emerging adulthood. Specifically, this study investigates how the popular social network site Facebook might introduce and influence these tensions siblings experience. Using RDT as a framework, the research analyzes siblings' survey responses, interview data, and Facebook posts for evidence of competing discourses (i.e., connectedness vs. separateness, openness vs. protections, etc).

Committee: Teresa Chandler Sabourin PhD (Committee Chair); Nancy Jennings PhD (Committee Member); Heather Zoller PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Communication

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2012, EDU Physical Activity and Educational Services

The low degree completion rate for college students is problematic in the U.S. Many scholars and practitioners focus on the effects of developmental education due to its cost and effort incurred by students and institutions. However, research has not decisively concluded that developmental education is either bad or good. This study extended this important stream of research by examining the factors that contribute to emerging adults' degree completion over time. Event History Analysis (EHAs) was applied to treat participation in developmental education as a time-varying indicator of degree completion. Other primary time-varying indicators include enrollment status and GPA. The results are as follows. After the third year of enrollment, students have a greater likelihood of degree completion. Behaviors such as enrolling as a full-time student and the attainment of a higher GPA outweigh the disadvantage of taking developmental education. Findings show that students' declaration of major is driven by financial aid, rather than the motivation of career choices. Given that empirical studies fail to examine the relationship between developmental education and students' declaration of major, a further investigation from a sociological approach was conducted. Based on this study, solutions to deal with bureaucratic dysfunctions include: Workshops as a means to reach consensus and to strengthen sentiments in bureaucracy, and reforms of implementing a proper ratio of counselors to students. Moreover, surveys are suggested for future research to clarify the relationship between participation in developmental education and students' declaration of major.

Committee: Joshua Hawley D. (Committee Chair); John Casterline B. (Committee Member); David Stein S. (Committee Member) Subjects: Adult Education