Does shame influence nonsuicidal self-injury among college students? An investigation into the role of shame,negative urgency,and brooding

College students experience high levels of life stress that put them at increased risk for nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI). It is important to understand which vulnerabilities put students most at risk, in order to inform treatment in college counseling centers. This study investigated the joint contributions of specific vulnerabilities to lifetime history and frequency of NSSI among a sample of undergraduates (50% reported a history of NSSI). Results showed shame-proneness was uniquely associated with NSSI frequency beyond other negative emotions. Negative urgency and brooding exacerbated this effect. This study provides insights into the contributions of specific vulnerabilities to NSSI and implications for practice.     

A Relative Commitment Approach to Understanding Power in Romantic Relationships

In some romantic relationships, one partner has more power over joint decisions than the other. This study examines relative commitment as a key predictor of which partner has more power and developed a model based on classic interdependence theory. A survey was conducted (N = 324) using new measures of the key variables to test the model. When desire for control was high, relative commitment predicted self-perceived power, which predicted major and minor decision making as well as dominant conflict strategies. These results are consistent with the proposed modification of interdependence theory concerning desire for control.     

What Kind of Literacy? Reflections on the Experiences of Migrant Domestic Workers Negotiating Learning in London

This article is concerned with the literacy learning experiences of a group of female migrant domestic workers from Nepal and India who participated in weekly literacy support sessions at the Migrant Resource Centre in London. The article draws on qualitative research to explore the women’s engagement with different forms of learning, and considers how this was affected by the transnational nature of their lives and the way they navigate and negotiate identities across different contexts.     

‘Adults don’t understand’: exploring how teens use dialectical frameworks to navigate webs of tensions in online life

As communication increasingly takes place online and via mobile technologies, young people are the fastest growing adopters of new online platforms. Consequently, communication scholars have begun to consider young people’s experiences online, comparing online and offline interactions, establishing how developmental stages affect youth’s engagement with online content, and documenting risks for youth’s experience online. We argue that much can be gained from a ‘tension-centered’ approach that highlights the competing demands of young people’s online engagement and problematizes current conceptions of risk. Through focus group interviews with teens, we examine current trends of online activity and re-conceptualize opportunities for conducting research with youth. Teens’ ‘local logics’ for negotiation webs of communicative tensions online reveal articulation of formal rules, which are later eclipsed by lived experiences. We offer strategies for parents, caregivers, and educators to more productively engage with youth about their online experiences, as well as implications for communication researchers.     

Development and Validation of the Metacognitive Strategies for Library Research Skills Scale (MS-LRSS)

The possession of metacognitive strategies can contribute to successful library research experiences. Accordingly, these skills should be explicitly taught during library instruction. In order to facilitate further examination of student metacognitive strategies, the Metacognitive strategies for Library Research Skills Scale (MS-LRSS) was developed and deployed to 224 graduate and undergraduate students at two post-secondary institutions. Development and validation of this instrument is described in this article. Overall, this instrument demonstrated to be a valid and reliable measure of metacognitive strategies in the context of information literacy and library research.     

A Target’s Perspective: Verbal Aggressiveness,Coping Strategies,and Relational Harm

A total of 361 college students recalled situations when they were the targets of verbally aggressive messages. Results indicated that message source predicted perceived relational harm better than the trait variable of verbal aggressiveness. Greater relational harm was perceived from romantic partners and short-term acquaintances. Males were higher in verbal aggressiveness. Targets’ levels of trait verbal destructiveness predicted which coping strategy each reported, and which coping strategy they chose predicted perceived relational harm.     

Learning through personal connections: cogenerative dialogues in synchronous virtual spaces

This study describes the role of cogenerative dialogues in a synchronous virtual classroom. Cogenerative dialogues are a way for students and instructors to reflect upon in-class events and work collaboratively during the course to optimize teaching and learning. In the present study, cogen has been found to be a tool for enhancing connections among graduate students in the class leading to a reported increase of motivation and engagement. Cogenerative dialogues were essential in shifting responsibilities so that students took a more active role in their own learning while supporting each other.     

“I’m Being a Man Here”: Urban Boys’ Performances of Masculinity and Engagement With Science During a Science Museum Visit

The importance of increasing and widening participation in post-compulsory science and informal science learning (ISL) spaces is widely recognized—particularly for working-class and minority ethnic communities. While there is a growing understanding of the intersection of femininity with class, ethnicity, and science learning across formal and informal settings, there has been little work on how masculinity may shape urban boys’ science (non)participation and (dis)engagement. This article analyzes performances of masculinity enacted by 36 urban, working-class boys (from diverse ethnic backgrounds) during school science museum visits, exploring how these performances relate to science identity and engagement. We identify three main performances of masculinity enacted during the visits (“laddishness,” “muscular intellect,” and “translocational masculinity”), and trace the implications of each for boys’ science engagement. We consider the power implications of these performances, notably the extent to which hegemonic masculinity is normalized within the science museum space, the ways in which this normalization is co-constitutive of the boys’ performances of masculinity, and the implications of the boys’ performances of masculinity for other students (notably girls and less dominant boys). The article concludes with implications for research, policy, and practice regarding how to promote equitable participation and science learning within ISL.