Award Date

12-15-2025

Degree Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department

Early Childhood, Multilingual, and Special Education

First Committee Member

Joseph Morgan

Second Committee Member

Alain Bengochea

Third Committee Member

Heather Van Ness

Fourth Committee Member

Kenneth Varner

Number of Pages

239

Abstract

Adolescents with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD) face significant challenges in forming and maintaining peer relationships, yet their voices and lived experiences remain largely absent from the research literature. This phenomenological study explored how high school students with EBD perceive the impact of peer relationships on their academic, social, and emotional experiences at school. Using Moustakas's (1994) modification of the StevickColaizzi-Keen method, the researcher conducted in-depth semi-structured interviews with seven high school students (ages 15-18) who had received special education services under the EBD eligibility category for 5 to 10 years in a large, urban southwestern school district.

Five universal themes emerged from the analysis: (1) hypervigilant authenticity assessment, (2) strategic emotional protection architecture, (3) selective intimacy frameworks, (4) academic-social navigation tension, and (5) intelligence as survival tool. Findings revealed that participants demonstrated sophisticated social intelligence and adaptive capacity in navigating peer relationships, challenging traditional deficit-based understandings of this population. Rather than exhibiting simple social skill deficits, these students employed complex protective systems designed to maintain emotional safety while preserving access to necessary social benefits. Their relationship experiences reflected remarkable resilience and strategic thinking adapted for navigating challenging social environments.

The study's findings have important implications for theory, practice, and policy. Theoretically, the results suggest the need to expand social support and school connectedness frameworks to account for protective strategies and graduated trust-building processes among students who have experienced relationship trauma. Practically, the findings call for strength- iv based interventions that recognize and build upon students' existing social intelligence rather than focusing solely on perceived deficits. For policy, the results underscore the importance of trauma-informed approaches, comprehensive support services, and inclusive education policies that acknowledge the complex relational needs of students with EBD. By centering student voices, this research provides a foundation for developing more effective, student-centered approaches to supporting the development and success of this vulnerable population during the critical high school years.

Keywords

Adolescent Experiences; Emotional and Behavioral Disorders; Peer Relationships; Phenomenology; Social Intelligence; Trauma-Informed Education

Disciplines

Disability and Equity in Education | Education | Special Education and Teaching

File Format

PDF

File Size

1556 KB

Degree Grantor

University of Nevada, Las Vegas

Language

English

Rights

IN COPYRIGHT. For more information about this rights statement, please visit http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/

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