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Variation In Female And Male Dialogue In Buffy The Vampire Slayer: A Multi-Dimensional Analysis, Amber Morgan Sanchez

Dissertations and Theses

Media representations of gender often reflect normative societal beliefs about gender and have the ability to both reinforce and subvert those beliefs. The current study examines the linguistic characterization of male and female characters on the television show Buffy the Vampire Slayer, a series with an overt feminist message. Previous studies of gender variation in dramatic dialogue have found that female characters tend to be portrayed as using more linguistic features associated with an interpersonal and emotional focus (involvement), while male characters are portrayed as using more features centered on the transfer of information. Previous research has also found …

The Role Of Caregiver Disruption In The Development Of Juvenile Sexual Offenders, Miranda Sitney

Dissertations and Theses

In the last decade, it has been recognized that juveniles commit as much as 20% of all sexual offenses in the United States (DOJ, 2004). Research that attempts to understand why young people commit sex crimes points to an array of family factors that may uniquely contribute to the development of sexual offending over and above general juvenile delinquency. This study specifically examines disrupted caregiving, or receiving insufficient or substitute care, as a potential moderator in the relationship between offense status and caregiver-child relationship quality. Four distinct moderators were tested: gender of caregiver, biological relationship between caregiver and child, number …

The Rising Threat Of Food Security; A Keynesian Solution To A Global Problem, Auour Heoinsdottir

Dissertations and Theses

"Is food security a threat to Global security? Recent history suggests so. After all, since 1947 the international community has struggled to implement agreements on agriculture in the name of preserving peace. Most recently, in the last of the Doha Development Round negotiations, efforts have been made to enhance food security (with measures such as equal access to resources, trade liberation, and the removal of tariffs for developing countries). In my thesis I will explore both the theory of these policies and their efficacy in practice. More specifically, I will examine the limitations of past policies (such as ""anti-dumping"") aimed …

Attitudes At The Bank : A Survey Of Reactions To Different Varieties Of English, Sean Wilcox

Dissertations and Theses

In the modem world of international communication, it is more common for speakers of different varieties of English to come into contact with each other on a daily basis. This can occur not only in face to face communication, but in telephone communication as well.

This study investigates the attitudes towards a non-native or Expanding Circle (ECE) variety of English held by telephone customer service representatives at a large American financial institution. The central question of this study asks whether or not these telephone representatives will rate a speaker of a Korean-accented variety of English higher or lower than a …

Trouble In River City: An Analysis Of An Urban Vice Probe, Joseph S. Uris

Dissertations and Theses

This dissertation is an historical case study of a highly publicized investigation of vice and official corruption which took place in Portland, Oregon from 1954 to 1958. Three major relevant areas of social science literature are reviewed. These are: historical material on American reform and corruption, criminology and political science. This literature suggests both the ubiquity and usefulness of vice and corruption in the urban situation.

A set of propositions regarding vice, corruption and reform was developed from these works. These propositions were then examined in terms of the vice probe and political situation in Portland, Oregon.

The triangulation method …

A Study Of The Speech Philosophy Of Alexander Campbell And The Application Of That Philosophy, Rudy L. Morrow

Dissertations and Theses

A great religious Awakening was taking place in 1805 until the end of the Civil War. Religious debates became the order of the day, and were at least equal in importance to the political debates. Alexander Campbell was one of the leading debators of the period. He was born September 12, 1787, in Ireland, but moved to America in 1809, settling in western Virginia. In 1812, Alexander and his father, Thomas Campbell, launched what they called "The Restoration Movement", in which they were seeking for the unity of all Christians on the basis of the Bible.