2007 - present
Smith College offers graduate work leading to the degrees of master of arts, master of arts in teaching, master of fine arts, master of education, master of education of the deaf, master of science in exercise and sport studies and master of Social Work. Each student is required to archive his or her thesis in Smith ScholarWorks for access and preservation.
Please note that access to some theses is restricted for a period of time as requested by the author. For example, a thesis may be submitted in May 2015, but not open access until May 2020.
- On Campus Access: limited to the Smith College community and researchers on campus
- Off Campus Access: limited to the Smith College community via Smith College log-in. Off Campus researchers may request a loan through Interlibrary Loan at their own library
Masters Theses from 2015
A study of how love is experienced over time in non-heterosexual relationships, Michelle Okun
Capacity for humanity : an exploratory study into the use of affiliative humor with clients who experience paranoid symptomatology, Lisa Orenstein
"Black is, Black ain't" : a theoretical exploration of the impact of systemic racism on African American adolescent identity development, Janae A. Peters
The role of mother tongue in therapy for limited English proficiency individuals : sense of self, emotional expression and the therapy relationship, Maria F. Plazas
Bridging the gap : integrating intersectional oppression and the unconscious mind in prostitution discourse, Hannah R. Pocock
How to best support clinical social workers in their practive with children who have experienced trauma, Anna N. Query
Ego development and anxiety during emerging adulthood, Alexander M. Rascovar
What's faith got to do with it : clinicians' experiences of addressing issues of religion and spirituality in therapy, Lauren Raymond
Advice giving in online eating disorder forums : what clinical social workers need to know, Elizabeth C. Reali
Settled debate or second wave? : clinical social workers' roles in treatment with youth who take ADHD drugs, Rachel B. Reed
The only one : exploring identity development in Black adolescent girls who are both educated and raised in White spaces, Jessica L. Ricardo
Oscillations, Anne Rudnik
Jewish annihilation anxiety : diasporic legacies of trauma, Alexandra T. Samets
The emergency department as a holding environment : using object relations theory and institutional transference to explore schizophrenia and emergency department overuse, Caroline B. Schnell
Childhood experiences of introversion : an exploration of navigating social and academic spaces and ways of coping, Leah S. Schwartz
Clinicians' experiences of personal wealth : impacts within clinical practice, Sarah Schwartz Sax
The work of André Green : an introduction, Louis Scuderi
Theories and interventions with transgender and gender non-conforming clients, Charles R. Shealy
Clinicians' experiences with child clients' explicitly stated love in the transference, Alexandra L. Shumway
Sleep with one eye open : specific safety concerns that homeless males face and how they cope with dangers, Rachel Sloane
The role of the rural family in opiate addiction, Elizabeth A. Slowinski
Adoption and the use of self-disclosure : a qualitative inquiry of the clincial professional, Heather L. Smith-Jackson
The contribution of negative social responses to self-blame among survivors of sexual violence : a psychodynamic and sociocultural perspective, Jessica J. Somers
Idealization : clinicians and the idealizing transference, Christine Spera
In the space of the father : father images, emptiness, and father mirroring in father absent men, Frank P. Tisano
Moral injury in veterans : a theoretical investigation of the psychic, moral and social sequelae of war trauma, Sarah C. Towers
Exploring clinicians' experience of countertransference in play therapy, Asya Tsarkova
Navigating a paradoxical identity : the experiences of mixed race individuals who are perceived as White, Marcella Emily Galvez Wagner
Farm work as treatment for posttraumatic stress disorder, Mindy L. Walls
Expectations in committed relationships, Amanda R. White
Shifting paradigms : the embodied intersubjective matrix, Joanna Wiederhorn
Social work and human sexuality : an examination of the country's top 25-CWSE ranked MSW curricula, Hannah R. Wineburg
What would increase the accessibility and desirability of college counseling services for music majors presenting with various mental health issues?, David J. Winston
Masters Theses from 2014
Pet ownership and perceived stress in social work students and clinicians, Karen E. Acheson
Best for baby : what factors influence new mothers when choosing between breastfeeding and bottle feeding babies under the age of two, Jacquelyn S. Andrews
Defining suffering : African American young men and conduct disorder, Sascha D. Atkins-Loria
The impact of parental narcissistic traits on self-esteem in adulthood, Brittany N. Bach
What do clinicians know about human sexuality after leaving graduate school?, Linzy K. Barnett
Therapy portrayal in the media : exploring how viewing scenes of therapy in film and television affect a person's decision to seek therapy, Melissa E. Bayer
Prospect Meadow Farm : clients perspective of beneficial farming acitivities, Frank J. Bayles
Muslim women in American and hijab : a study of empowerment, feminist identity, and body image, Anderson L. Beckmann
Who cares? : psychotherapy as care work, explored through socialist feminist and relational perspectives, Sarah L. Beller
Youth incarceration : restorative justice and social work practice, Elissa N. Berlinger
The call for help : a theoretical study on the changes that occur between a school social worker and his or her child client after reportinng to Child Protective Services on suspected abuse and neglect, Aramie Brooks-Salzman
Chitlins and lemonade : the impact of the word "nigger" on college educated men in the African diaspora, Thomas W. Brown
Of course off course, Shaina Cantino
Clinician's treatment decisions for a combat-related trauma and military sexual trauma : a comparative study, Stefanie Carreiro
Replicating a couples group intervention to enhance father involvement and co-parenting in a Canadian sample, Todd B. Chen
We need a good war : factors that influence the experience of racism in the United States military, Sarah E. Chotkowski
Exploring ways White children are taught about race and racism, Angela M. Clark
Body Abandoned, Sara Coffin
Clinical perspectives on etiology, assessment, formulation and treatment of imaginary companions in adolescents with attachment trauma, Kathryn M. Collins
Alone with the other : paradoxes of shame and recognition in psychoanalytic theory, case material and Home alone, Nicholas J. Collura
How de we do no harm? : exploring adult children of alcoholics' perspectives on disclosure and support from childhood peers, Erica B. Cormier
Heterosexual men in the United States of America : are the oppressors also oppressed?, Shanta P. Cortez-Greig
Does internalized racism affect the mate selection process of African American men and women?, Afrika N. Cotton
Racial hierarchy and mental health outcomes among rich nations, Jamie D. Daniels
"I know that I'm strong" : survivors of sexual violence and their experiences with pregnancy and childbirth, Gretchen J. Davidson
Reaching the end : an exploration of attachment and existential theory as a path to assist in the dying process, Jillian DeBenedetto
Identity, colonial mentality, and decolonizing the mind : exploring narratives and examining mental health implications for Filipino Americans, Ashley M. Decena
More than unreal : clinicians' practice experiences with clients affected by chronic depersonalization and derealization, Meghan E. Doherty
"Unconditional positive regard" : clinicians' reflections on the impact of animal co-therapists in therapy, Carolyn M. Duncan
Trauma-focused equine assisted psychotherapy : a quantitative study of intervention effectiveness, Nakita Dziegielewski
Spirituality, community and action : an exploration of Catholic sisters in social work, Melissa L. Eells
Protective factors for African American suicide : a theoretical intersection of social integration and religious coping, Shaunna T. Evans
Emotional abuse : the subjective experience of professionals and the obstacles to prevention and intervention, Rachel H. Flichtbeil
Men in social work : a qualitative exploratory study of the male experience, James E. Flood
Estrogen receptor analysis after a single bout of exercise in murine biceps brachii, Justine Amber Gelzinis
A critique of the concept "consciousness" in psychodynamic theory : implications for understanding repression, Inna Goldberg
"Don't call us, we'll call you" : the cell phone and the therapeutic relationship, Rachel C. Gordon
Conceptualization of anorexia nervosa : a theoretical synthesis of self-psychology and family systems perspectives, Molly E. Gray
Impact of LGBTQ school climate policy on rates of suicide : planning and attempt among high school populations, Patrick N. Hagan
Trans enough : trans/gender identities and (mis)representation in social work, Christopher C. Hamann
Saudade, Safi Simone Harriott
Working with gender nonconforming children : why does the debate continue?, Gillian A. Harvey
Origins of clinician bias against people diagnosed with borderline personality disorder, Lindsay K. Heightman
College bound : factors that influence first generation college student process, Claudia Y. Hernandez
Feminist identification in heterosexual encounters : exploring the relationship betweeen women's personal values and their experiences of verbal sexual coercion, Shawna M. Hershberger
The clinical implications of dissolutioned adoption : a theoretical intersection of the neurosequential model of therapeutics and attachment theory, Mikayla C. Holcomb
Mortality practices : how clinical social workers interact with their mortality within their clinical and professional practice, Joseph K. Hovey
Sex and sexuality in formerly Ultra-Orthodox Jews : defining sexual health, Abigail R. Hurvitz-Prinz
How service learning impacts identity formation and social responsibility in emerging adults, Paige M. Hustead
Heavy impact : the experience of sustaining a concussion as a college athelete, Brittainy C. Johnson
Social and academic experiences of AAGBM who graduate from HBCUS, Isaiah L. Jones
Hidden in plain sight : the sibling relationship and psychodynamic theory, Jenny A. Joyal
The adaptation of trauma therapies for use with children and adolescents diagnosed on the autism spectrum : a qualitative study, Benjamin A. Katz
Critical race theory : a lens for viewing racism in American education policy and school funding, Susan A. Klupchak
Sex trafficking : an exploration of clinician perspectives of the type and efficacy of treatment interventions, Jennifer Kung
Who does what? : navigating gender roles in early parenthood, Annabel L. Lane