Identity formation is a pivotal milestone in the age range of emerging adulthood ("EA"; ages 18-29; Arnett, 2000; 2014). Most of the literature in the area emphasizes the role of identity within college student samples, but there is a lack of understanding of identity distress among graduate students. Graduate school is a prolonged…

Internalized oppression is a pervasive issue that disproportionately affects Women of Color in education. Continuous exposure to systemic oppression, such as sexism and racism, can further exacerbate existing internalized oppression (Crenshaw, 1991) and can result in severe implications on the overall emotional, physical, and spiritual health of…

Structured out-of-school programs (OSPs) can be contexts in which youth can be producers of their own positive change (Eccles & Gootman, 2002). However, despite a considerable body of research documenting the benefits of participating in OSPs, there is a lack of knowledge about how youth of color in low-income communities define positive…

I was a person who identified as culturally Deaf but at the same time had progressive vision loss. I embraced my Deaf identity, but I did not embrace any inkling of identifying myself as a DeafBlind person considering the stigma associated with it. Due to that stigma, the journey of identifying as a DeafBlind person is difficult mentally,…

The purpose of this study was to understand the unique mental health challenges of dual credit high school students, examine my contributions to these challenges, and explore possibilities for a curriculum to address those unique challenges to foster growth and healing in response to the escalating mental health crisis affecting high achieving…

The transition to postsecondary education can be challenging for any student, particularly for those facing impending personal crises, mental disorders, or with undiagnosed disabilities. The link between mental health and academic performance has been well established. Both work in tandem to predict important areas of concern for colleges and…

Are young children just random explorers who learn serendipitously? Or are even young children guided by uncertainty-directed sampling, seeking to explore in a systematic fashion? We study how children between the ages of 4 and 9 search in an explore-exploit task with spatially correlated rewards, where exhaustive exploration is infeasible and not…

One long-standing theoretical model of shyness proposes that the origins and maintenance of shyness are associated with an approach-avoidance motivational conflict (Asendorpf, 1990), such that shy individuals are motivated to socially engage (high approach motivation) but are too anxious to do so (high avoidance motivation). However, this model…

Student development of critical consciousness is essential in higher education if we are to promote civic engagement and educate students to be constructive global citizens. Research on consciousness raising reveals that instructors who have done due diligence in developing their own critical consciousness are best equipped to promote its…

This article focuses on transitioning from boys to men -- the possibilities of "becoming-man" -- through outdoor education programs, while acknowledging that a similar investigation could be carried out in relation to girls and women, as well as other gender identities. In relation to becoming-man, contact with nature through an…

The natural pedagogy hypothesis proposes that human infants preferentially attend to communicative signals from others, facilitating rapid cultural learning. In this view, sensitivity to such signals is a uniquely human adaptation and as such nonhuman animals should not produce or utilize these communicative signals. We test these evolutionary…

This qualitative study examined how novice leaders perceive mentoring in the development of their leadership identity in higher education. The study explored novice leaders in higher education and the tools needed to develop their leadership identity. Mentoring was examined as a tool that provides a strong support structure and supports the…

Youth with disabilities benefit from being included in extracurricular activities. However, often youth with a disability do not participate in extracurricular activities. The purpose of this basic, qualitative study was to explore the experiences of Extension Youth Development Professionals (YDPs) as they serve youth with disabilities in their…

The Georgia 4-H program is the largest youth organization in the state and empowers youth participants to become autonomous and productive members of society. 4-H involvement has been linked to positive youth development outcomes, including leadership and vocational skills, increased self-confidence, and meaningful relationships. The focus of this…

Discussions and practices focused on Black boys' literacy development and equity in U.S. classrooms require serious thought and interrogation if the aim is to move these boys toward advanced levels of reading, writing, intellectual development, and human development. Sorely, Black boys have become subjects of educational, programming, and policy…