Date of Award
Summer 2024
Document Type
Open Access Thesis
Department
Psychology
First Advisor
E Huebner
Abstract
Better understanding and fostering positive development within youth has become increasingly popular among psychologists, educators, and parents (Seligman & Csikszentmihalyi, 2000). One aspect of positive adjustment is the development of hopeful thinking, which has been demonstrated to be associated with more positive outcomes in terms of positive development, academic achievement (e.g., Marques et al., 2017), and greater career success later in life (e.g., Hirschi, 2014). However, relatively little is known regarding the development and maintenance of hope in children and adolescents, particularly regarding the effects of their school experiences on hope. Both theory (Snyder et al., 1991; Marques & Lopez, 2017) and some empirical evidence (Archer et al., 2019, Xiang et al., 2020; van Ryzin, 2011) support the notion that central figures (e.g., parents, teachers, peers) play a key role in the fostering of hope in childhood and adolescence, although the mechanism(s) by which hope is instilled from central figures to the child is unknown. In the current study, it was hypothesized that behavioral engagement in school is a mediating factor between various forms of social support experienced in the context of youths’ schooling and changes in hope in adolescents. This study utilized data from a sample of 566 students from a middle school in the Southeastern United States. Linear regression-based mediation analyses were utilized to examine a potential mediation of the association between perceived social support for schooling and hope via behavioral engagement. It was found that behavioral engagement fully mediated the association between perceived social support from teachers and hope, while behavioral engagement partially mediated the association between perceived social support for learning from family and changes in hope. Consistent with previous findings (Archer et al., 2019), there was no statistically significant association between perceived social support from peers and hope (and therefore also no mediation). Implications for theorists and practitioners are discussed, as well as potential directions for future research.
Rights
© 2024, Jackson Whitmire
Recommended Citation
Whitmire, J.(2024). Fostering Hope in Schools: Behavioral Engagement Mediates the Relationship Between Perceived Social Support for School and Hope in Adolescents. (Master's thesis). Retrieved from https://scholarcommons.sc.edu/etd/7888