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Social and Behavioral Sciences

University of Mississippi

Honors Theses

2016

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Reinventing National Identity In A World Of Globalized Soccer: The Case Of The Uruguayan National Team, Maia Cotelo May 2016

Reinventing National Identity In A World Of Globalized Soccer: The Case Of The Uruguayan National Team, Maia Cotelo

Honors Theses

Soccer played a central role in Uruguay’s national identity throughout the 20th century. The national team’s triumphs in the first half of the century were seen as proof that the small nation could perform on a world stage. The mutually reinforcing relationship between soccer success and national identity weakened after 1950 when the national team stopped winning and when it entered into profound crisis in the 1990s as Uruguayan star players began leaving the country to play in better leagues abroad. The national team no longer provided the country with glory and the players were no longer mirrors of Uruguayan …


The Theoretical Argument For Disproving Asymptotic Upper-Bounds On The Accuracy Of Part-Of-Speech Tagging Algorithms: Adopting A Linguistics, Rule-Based Approach, William Foley Jan 2016

The Theoretical Argument For Disproving Asymptotic Upper-Bounds On The Accuracy Of Part-Of-Speech Tagging Algorithms: Adopting A Linguistics, Rule-Based Approach, William Foley

Honors Theses

This paper takes a deep dive into a particular area of the interdisciplinary domain of Computational Linguistics, Part-of-Speech Tagging algorithms. The author relies primarily on scholarly Computer Science and Linguistics papers to describe previous approaches to this task and the often-hypothesized existence of the asymptotic accuracy rate of around 98%, by which this task is allegedly bound. However, after doing more research into why the accuracy of previous algorithms have behaved in this asymptotic manner, the author identifies valid and empirically-backed reasons why the accuracy of previous approaches do not necessarily reflect any sort of general asymptotic bound on the …


A Study Of The Demographic And Socioeconomic Factors Influencing The Placement Of Retail And Urgent Care Clinics, Cody A. Smith Jan 2016

A Study Of The Demographic And Socioeconomic Factors Influencing The Placement Of Retail And Urgent Care Clinics, Cody A. Smith

Honors Theses

Urgent care and retail care clinics are a developing model of health care providers that focuses on immediate walk-in care. This paper explores the influence that hospitals, demographic, and socioeconomic factors have on the placement of these clinics. This study employs a comparative quantitative design to explore the association of these variables with the placement of urgent care and retail clinics in Mississippi's Public Health Districts I and II, which comprise the northernmost twenty counties in the state. The findings show that a high population size, high median household income, low percent of families in poverty, and a low uninsured …


Exogenous Barriers To The Incorporation Of The Second Generation North Africans In France, Amber Malone Jan 2016

Exogenous Barriers To The Incorporation Of The Second Generation North Africans In France, Amber Malone

Honors Theses

Immigration is a polemic subject in French society today. The 2005 riots in the banlieue and the government's response to the outraged and discontented immigrant populations brought forth a topic left out of public discourse for years before the heavily televised protests. At the forefront of this public debate surrounding identity and incorporation was one of France's largest immigrant populations, North Africans. Marginalization of a particular group often appears in the terms of social and cultural conflict. While this is true, incorporation of the culture of migrants and their representation in French society are not the only exogenous factors that …


Barriers To Access Under The Affordable Care Act: An Analysis Of Marketplace Enrollment, Jessica Ann Johnson Jan 2016

Barriers To Access Under The Affordable Care Act: An Analysis Of Marketplace Enrollment, Jessica Ann Johnson

Honors Theses

This thesis seeks to understand how the Affordable Care Act impacted certain groups who had faced barriers to accessing health insurance prior to the passage of the act. It provides a fundamental understanding of the major provisions of the Affordable Care Act and discusses dis- parities amongst, and challenges incurred, by different groups in the current health insurance sys- tem, Research focused specifically on demographic factors of income, gender, primary language spoken, ethnicity, education and age as Ill as looked at the effect that urban setting and sufficient internet access had on enrollment rates. In order to understand the impact …


Dillon's Rule Versus Home Rule: A Comprehensive, Comparative Review Of The Impacts, Joseph R. Latham Jan 2016

Dillon's Rule Versus Home Rule: A Comprehensive, Comparative Review Of The Impacts, Joseph R. Latham

Honors Theses

There are two primary configurations of the American state-local relationship. The status quo configuration, pure Dillon's Rule, is a top-down organizational structure in which the state, primarily through its legislature, exercises close-to-complete oversight over decision-making at the local level — in municipalities, counties, towns, etc. An alternative configuration may be brought about by the institution of home rule, a constitutionally or legislatively conferred devolution of powers to substate governments that allows, at least nominally, for greater autonomy at the local level. This study utilizes institutional theory and a systematic review of the current body of literature concerning the tangible impacts …


Exporting A Brand: A Comparative Analysis Of The French Model Brand Elle Decoration With The American Edition Elle Decor, Kate Hayes Jan 2016

Exporting A Brand: A Comparative Analysis Of The French Model Brand Elle Decoration With The American Edition Elle Decor, Kate Hayes

Honors Theses

This thesis explores the history and editorial design of the French and American publications within the ELLE Déco brand network. The ELLE Déco network of interior design magazines is the only truly global brand of the shelter category with 25 editions published in 28 countries. By studying corresponding issues of the original French edition, ELLE Decoration, and American, ELLE DECOR, I have determined the different personalities of each publication, as well as what elements are used in the cover and editorial design of each. In doing so, I uncovered what consistencies of both content and design have led to success …


More Than Skin Deep: An Examination Of The Negative Effects Of Advertising On Women, Kathryn A. Bridgers Jan 2016

More Than Skin Deep: An Examination Of The Negative Effects Of Advertising On Women, Kathryn A. Bridgers

Honors Theses

This thesis will examine how the way women are portrayed in advertising creates an unattainable ideal standard of beauty and negatively affects the self- image of women. The first chapter will look back on the history of advertising to women. It will examine where this ideal standard of beauty originated from and how it was spread throughout American society. The next chapter explores how advertisers use specific psychological techniques to sell not only a product to consumers, but also sell an ideal, attitude or lifestyle. The third chapter examines trends in advertisements, such as objectifying and sexualizing women, stereotyping women …


The Impact Of Survival Processing And Collaborative Inhibition On Memory Performance, Lindsey Hardin Jan 2016

The Impact Of Survival Processing And Collaborative Inhibition On Memory Performance, Lindsey Hardin

Honors Theses

This study examines the effects of survival processing and collaborative inhibition on memory performance. The purpose of this research is to determine whether survival processing produced more accurate memory recall than pleasantness processing, as well as determine the impact of collaborative inhibition when compared to nominal groups. In this experiment, participants were given the instructions to rate a given list of words based on survival or pleasantness depending on which scenario they were assigned to. Then, the participants recalled the list of words in either collaborative groups or nominal groups. The results indicated that the survival condition did produce better …


Perceptions And Attitudes Regarding Preparedness For Campus Crises: A Focus Group Study Of Undergraduates At A Southern University, Christal Davis Jan 2016

Perceptions And Attitudes Regarding Preparedness For Campus Crises: A Focus Group Study Of Undergraduates At A Southern University, Christal Davis

Honors Theses

Objective: To explore student perceptions and attitudes toward disaster preparedness and university readiness for various disasters in order to promote future development of effective strategies to change the culture of preparedness on campuses. Methods: A total of 10 focus groups were conducted with 54 students. Participants completed general demographic information before discussing topics related to preparedness. Results: Findings revealed complacency and lack of preparedness among students for many of the disaster types discussed. Participants reported feeling most prepared for pandemic outbreaks, citing various campus preparedness efforts, while they showed the least amount of confidence in their preparedness for incidents of …


Oneworld Stories: Intercultural Competence Through Literature, Jessica M. Bunch Jan 2016

Oneworld Stories: Intercultural Competence Through Literature, Jessica M. Bunch

Honors Theses

For this study, I focused on the effective ways and benefits of teaching intercultural competence in schools. Without intercultural competence, children in the United States are unable to make a connection with the different cultures that surround them in the world. Basing my methods from Darla K. Deardorff Process Model of Intercultural Competence (256) and cultural reflection of folktales, I researched whether a child can connect to the world around them by comprehending a different culture more through interactive writing or informative reading. In order to answer this question, I conducted a two-part project to collect data. The first part …


Brains In Motion: How To Utilize The Connection Between Movement And Learning In The Classroom, Keely Kennedy Jan 2016

Brains In Motion: How To Utilize The Connection Between Movement And Learning In The Classroom, Keely Kennedy

Honors Theses

Recent research reveals that the state of Mississippi ranks among other states as the highest in obesity and ADHD and among the lowest in education. These rankings negatively affect the state as a whole by associating Mississippi with an image of being unhealthy and unintelligent. Studies show that physical activity is related to the brain and its processes, so there is obviously a connection between Mississippi's high obesity and ADHD rates and inferior education. However, teachers are unaware of the relevance of the connection between movement, high levels of obesity, low education rates, and high levels of ADHD; thus, they …


Nondepository Credit Intermediation And Its Effects On The Financial Well-Being Of Consumers, Nathan Simpson Jan 2016

Nondepository Credit Intermediation And Its Effects On The Financial Well-Being Of Consumers, Nathan Simpson

Honors Theses

This paper investigates whether the availability of consumer loans has a positive or negative effect on the indicators of financial well being for consumers in the same area. By observing the number of consumer lending establishments and regressing those numbers on financial indicators, such as percent in poverty and median household income, this paper observes any statistically significant correlations that arise out of the presence of these establishments as well as the sign (positive or negative) of the correlation. The data period is 2007 to 2013. This process is used for nationwide numbers as well as six selected Southern states. …


Personality Correlates Of Cardiovascular Reactivity, Sara Bolen Jan 2016

Personality Correlates Of Cardiovascular Reactivity, Sara Bolen

Honors Theses

Neuroticism is a personality trait characterized by one's susceptibility to experience negative emotions, such as loneliness, self-consciousness, sadness, and worry. Neuroticism also has been found to be linked to blunted cardiovascular reactivity, which in turn has been shown to be associated with negative health outcomes, such as stroke or heart disease. The present study examined 50 undergraduate females at the University of Mississippi in order to examine the relationship of neuroticism and cardiovascular reactivity rates during a stressful speech task. Heart rate (HR) and blood pressure (BP) levels were recorded during rest and the stress periods, and neuroticism levels were …


A Comparative Analysis Of Curriculum Content Among Undergraduate Integrated Marketing Communications Programs, Braxton A. Jones Jan 2016

A Comparative Analysis Of Curriculum Content Among Undergraduate Integrated Marketing Communications Programs, Braxton A. Jones

Honors Theses

The following thesis is an analysis of Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) undergraduate programs. This thesis asks what the characteristics of an ideal undergraduate IMC program are and does any existing program have all these characteristics. The rise of IMC as a communication approach, combined with its adoption by many companies as the new marketing standard, has led many different universities to offer a curriculum in IMC, but the curriculum varies greatly. Since it is still a new subject, colleges place the new program in different disciplines, including the business school, the communications program, and the journalism department. While there are …


Harbor Magazine: Preaching The Gospel Of Philanthropy Through The Analysis Of Benefit Corporations, Caroline Hughes Jan 2016

Harbor Magazine: Preaching The Gospel Of Philanthropy Through The Analysis Of Benefit Corporations, Caroline Hughes

Honors Theses

Harbor magazine is a philanthropic, fashion magazine that advocates the use of sustainable goods in an industry of business moguls simply seeking monetary gain. The brands and philanthropists interviewed and highlighted in the publication have made a difference in some way to the community and the world, developing revolutionary companies that are radically altering the way business is conducted. The brands included in Harbor magazine are recognized as Certified Benefit CorporationsTM, promising to align their business intentions around a public good. Businesses, along with consumers, have an equal responsibility to the planet, and Harbor magazine seeks to make these powerful, …


A Comprehensive Study Of Voter Identification Laws And The Discriminatory Effect They Have On Voting Rights, Christine Sim Jan 2016

A Comprehensive Study Of Voter Identification Laws And The Discriminatory Effect They Have On Voting Rights, Christine Sim

Honors Theses

One of the most primary and essential rights of every American is equal opportunity to access the polls. Voting rights have been tirelessly fought for by people from many demographic backgrounds throughout the history of the United States. Now, due to the weakening of the Voting Rights Act, it is now easier for states across the nation to place voting identification legislation on the books that may change not only voter turnout at the polls, but also the ability of all Americans to exercise their fundamental right to vote. This thesis covers all aspects of the controversy over voter identification …


Their Brothers' Keepers? Ethnicity, Rebel Diplomacy, And State Support For Insurgency, Connor Somgynari Jan 2016

Their Brothers' Keepers? Ethnicity, Rebel Diplomacy, And State Support For Insurgency, Connor Somgynari

Honors Theses

This thesis aims to contribute to the filling of a theoretical lacuna by asking: what role do ethnic ties play in rebel groups' efforts to lobby for state support? Researchers have examined many facets of state support for armed rebel groups. Most literature on this topic has been dedicated to decision calculi of states choosing to support rebel groups. However, comparatively little has been said about the other side of this relationship: the demand for these goods and services by rebel groups themselves. Salehyan, Gleditsch, and Cunningham (2011) introduce the concept of the demand side into the literature, maintaining that …


Loyalty Marketing To Millennials, Debra L. Whitley Jan 2016

Loyalty Marketing To Millennials, Debra L. Whitley

Honors Theses

The purpose of this study is to examine the most effective techniques businesses use to attract and retain loyalty program memberships targeted to the Millennial demographic group. The methodology used to reach insights around this topic includes secondary and primary research that aided in the understanding of the effectiveness of communication strategies used to appeal to Millennial consumers. Initially, the researcher conducted secondary research by consulting books and surveys written by industry professionals as well as scholarly articles. Next, the researcher designed two electronic surveys. One survey had 63 anonymous respondents and the other survey had 119 anonymous respondents, all …


Political Underrepresentation And Domestic Terrorism: The Deficiency Of Minority Descriptive Representation As A Causal Factor Of Violent Radicalization In Western European Democracies, Erica Shannon Mcgraw Jan 2016

Political Underrepresentation And Domestic Terrorism: The Deficiency Of Minority Descriptive Representation As A Causal Factor Of Violent Radicalization In Western European Democracies, Erica Shannon Mcgraw

Honors Theses

Electoral systems are vital in controlling the levels of minority descriptive representation in a government because each system contains characteristics that make it easier or more difficult for a member of a minority group to be elected to office. Because of this power, I focus on the role of electoral systems in Western European democracies as a possible, causal factor of domestic terrorism by way of their effect on the level of a country's minority descriptive representation, and therefore, levels of minority inclusion. To test my hypotheses, I use both quantitative and qualitative data in linear regression models, and a …


Urbanization And Exclusion: Examining The Wages Of Migrant Workers In The Chinese Urban Labor Market, Evan Heitzmann Jan 2016

Urbanization And Exclusion: Examining The Wages Of Migrant Workers In The Chinese Urban Labor Market, Evan Heitzmann

Honors Theses

This work is primarily an examination of the economic effects of the Hukou system on migrant workers who live in cities. By endeavoring to control for any differences in background and human capital, I will attempt to isolate any premium attached the possession of urban Hukou. What, if any, benefit or advantage do urban citizens have over rural migrant in cities? Will they be favorably treated and will migrants be discriminated against? These are all questions that my project seeks to answer through the construction of a linear regression model that estimates the wages of both urban and migrant workers. …


The Supply Of Volunteer Labor: Focusing On Board Members, John Larkin Jan 2016

The Supply Of Volunteer Labor: Focusing On Board Members, John Larkin

Honors Theses

Understanding the types of people who volunteer is an important part of understanding why people volunteer and the indications of what could make others volunteer. First, understanding the types of volunteers, specifically board members, provides the needed background and overall understanding of volunteering. This information could lead to a stronger idea of how to recruit volunteers. I will also update R. B. Freeman's results which used 1989 CPS data compared to 2014 CPS data. I find that the 2014 CPS provides similar results compared to Freeman's. We both found individuals are more likely to volunteer if their characteristics are associated …


Portrayals Of Pinochet: Historical Narratives In Chilean Schools, Katie J. Wright Jan 2016

Portrayals Of Pinochet: Historical Narratives In Chilean Schools, Katie J. Wright

Honors Theses

How is the Augusto Pinochet dictatorship represented historically in contemporary Chilean society? To answer this question, this thesis examines the education system, with a focus on high schools and universities in Valparaíso, Chile. I argue that there are two competing discourses about the Pinochet administration - a majority, anti-dictatorship perspective and a minority, pro-regime position - which selectively emphasize differing aspects of the regime. The anti position focuses on human rights violations while the pro perspective puts greater weight on economic achievements. This maps onto Chilean high school institutions, with a majority of upper and upper-middle class students attending private …


Someday My Prince Will Come: How Are Gender Roles Enabled And Constrained In Disney Music, During Classic Disney, The Disney Renaissance, And Modern Disney?, Lauren Hughes Jan 2016

Someday My Prince Will Come: How Are Gender Roles Enabled And Constrained In Disney Music, During Classic Disney, The Disney Renaissance, And Modern Disney?, Lauren Hughes

Honors Theses

The purpose of this project is to study how Disney has promoted gender roles through its music over three different Disney eras: Classic, Renaissance, and Modern Disney. While Disney movies have been criticized in the past for having characters with unattainable bodies and unrealistic views on love and life, the role that Disney music plays in promoting gender roles has not been as thoroughly researched or as widely criticized. With the immensity that children learn and are surrounded by Disney music, it is imperative that the message that the children take in is a healthy one. Through the analysis of …


The Role Of Pharmacists In Prenatal Healthcare Concerning Obesity, Hypertension, And Diabetes, Madeline Ott Jan 2016

The Role Of Pharmacists In Prenatal Healthcare Concerning Obesity, Hypertension, And Diabetes, Madeline Ott

Honors Theses

This thesis explores the role of pharmacists in prenatal health care for women with chronic diseases. This study consists of a systematic review of Medline and Academic Search Premier listed articles concerning pregnant women and obesity, hypertension, or diabetes and pharmacy, focusing special attention on 40 articles. The second part of the study consisted of pharmacist interviews with thirteen pharmacists on how they view the current role of pharmacists in caring for pregnant women who are obese, hypertensive, and diabetic. The literature review suggested that chronic diseases can have a detrimental effect on children, and that there were many gaps …


Keeping Students In School: An Analysis Of Dropout Prevention Methods In Canton, Mississippi, Mary Elizabeth Kakales Jan 2016

Keeping Students In School: An Analysis Of Dropout Prevention Methods In Canton, Mississippi, Mary Elizabeth Kakales

Honors Theses

With a graduation rate of 29.7% and a dropout rate of 59.8% reported in 2005, the Canton Public School District qualified as one of the most low-performing school districts in the United States. Recently, though, the district has experienced significant improvement in these areas, reporting a graduation rate of 72.2% and a dropout rate of 17.8% in 2013. In this thesis, I analyze Canton, Mississippi's dropout prevention methods and conclude that their success is attributed to the combination of a community-wide effort and desire to be worthy of honor and respect alongside Canton Public School District's extensive Dropout Prevention Plan. …


The Effect Of State Capacity On Civil Conflict In India, Rimen Brar Singh Jan 2016

The Effect Of State Capacity On Civil Conflict In India, Rimen Brar Singh

Honors Theses

This thesis seeks to study the relationship between state capacity and civil conflict in India. This thesis provides insight on concepts such as state capacity, intrastate rebellious conflict, and greed and grievance, but the main focus of this thesis is on sub-national differences. The thesis attempts to demonstrate how sub-national differences may affect state capacity and influence intrastate conflict. Two aspects of sub-national differences are investigated: topography and roads. Specifically, data for topography and roads are confined within India. India is chosen to be a case study due to its diverseness in people and geography. The methods used to record …


A More Perfect Union? An Analysis Of Schuette V. The Coalition To Defend Affirmative Action And Minority Group Rights In Multicultural Democracies, Robert Barber Jan 2016

A More Perfect Union? An Analysis Of Schuette V. The Coalition To Defend Affirmative Action And Minority Group Rights In Multicultural Democracies, Robert Barber

Honors Theses

In 2006, the State of Michigan passed Proposal 2, an amendment to the Michigan Constitution which effectively banned affirmative action and race-conscious admissions policies at Michigan's public universities. Despite arguments that this policy placed an undue burden on certain ethnic and racial minorities by suppressing their participation in the American political process, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld Proposal 2 as constitutional in the 2014 case Schuette v. Coalition to Defend Affirmative Action. This thesis seeks to argue for the necessity of restoring the access to political participation removed with the passage of Proposal 2, as well as present a convincing …


It's About Time: The Effectiveness Of Time Perception As A Measurement Of Cognitive Load, Victoria Robinson Jan 2016

It's About Time: The Effectiveness Of Time Perception As A Measurement Of Cognitive Load, Victoria Robinson

Honors Theses

This study examines the effectiveness of time perception as a measurement of cognitive load. The purpose of this research is to determine whether the concept of time perception can efficiently indicate high or low cognitive load in a task, and to compare this measurement to the standard mental effort rating scale that is typically used to measure cognitive load. In this study, participants completed both simple and complicated math problems at their own pace. After they were told to stop, participants either rated their level of mental effort used in the task, or wrote down how long they believed it …


The Entrepreneurship Center At The Mississippi Development Authority: An Assessment Of The State's Small Business Engine, Ryan Snow Jan 2016

The Entrepreneurship Center At The Mississippi Development Authority: An Assessment Of The State's Small Business Engine, Ryan Snow

Honors Theses

The importance of a strong entrepreneurial environment for overall economic development is well established. Mississippi, this Mississippi Development Authority's Entrepreneur Center is the state's leading authority on small business development. However, there has been little to no analysis of the effectiveness and efficiency of the Entrepreneur Center. Two surveys were conducted. The Mississippi Entrepreneurial Ecosystem Survey (MEES) was administered by the University of Mississippi's McLean Institute for Public Service and Community Engagement last fall to a population of 4214 business and community leaders with a responsive sample of n= 573. This survey is used to contextualize the business ecosystem of …