Date on Master's Thesis/Doctoral Dissertation

12-2014

Document Type

Doctoral Dissertation

Degree Name

Ph. D.

Department (Legacy)

Department of Educational and Counseling Psychology, Counseling, and College Student Personnel

Committee Chair

Pössel, Patrick

Committee Co-Chair (if applicable)

Osborne, Jason

Committee Member

Estes, Eileen

Committee Member

Munoz, Marco

Subject

Suicide--Prevention; Cyberbullying--Prevention

Abstract

Quality program evaluation investigates both the process and the outcomes of an intervention in order to accurately determine its effectiveness and impact. In the present study, the effectiveness of CHOICES, a brief, applied-theatre intervention that addresses cyberbullying and suicide was evaluated. The fidelity of implementation of the intervention was assessed to determine whether the delivery of CHOICES was consistent with the original goals of the program, as well as consistent across multiple deliveries. Investigation of the fidelity of implementation revealed that CHOICES was not implemented with high levels of fidelity. The study also determined whether exposure to CHOICES led to significant gains in students’ knowledge of effective strategies to address cyberbullying and the warning signs of suicide, as well significant increases in students’ ability to correctly identify the warning signs of suicide. This study also determined if exposure to the program led to significant increases in student willingness and confidence in their ability to apply newly acquired knowledge about cyberbullying and suicide. The analyses of the outcomes found no significant changes in student knowledge of effective strategies that address cyberbullying and suicide. No significant change was found in student confidence or willingness to intervene on behalf of a peer in a cyberbullying situation. No significant change was found in student confidence or willingness to intervene on behalf of a peer exhibiting the warning signs of suicide.

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