Digital Commons Network^™

The Lived Experiences Of Traditionally Aged College Women In Abusive Relationships, Kelly Gentry

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

The prevalence of intimate partner violence (IPV) has been well established in the literature, but most of the research is focused on the rates, risk factors, and consequences of IPV among adults (Hamby, 2014; Jennings et al., 2017). However, IPV is most common among women (ages 18-24), which is also the age of the traditionally aged college student. This qualitative study explored the experiences of 12 women who were abused by an intimate partner during their college years. The goal was to understand the unique experiences of college women who experience IPV; Hearing directly from survivors allows for capturing a …

“True Darkness And True Womanness” : A Study Of Sisterhood In Marlon James’ The Book Of Night Women, Jessica Schwartz

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

This paper focuses on the obstacles to building sisterhood and community in Marlon James’ novel The Book of Night Women (2009). I examine the acts of violence that the enslaved women at Montpelier Estate perform against one another and consider the influence the plantation environment has on these relationships. The violence that takes place among the enslaved women is especially prevalent within the group of “night women,” which consists of Lilith, Homer, Pallas, Iphigenia, Hippolyta, Callisto, and Gorgon. Despite the biological and symbolic sisterhood between these women, they more frequently express feelings of enmity than ones of community. By highlighting …

The Influence Of Heteronormativity On Sexual Health Disparities In Queer And Heterosexual Women, Jacqueline Bible

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

This research focuses on identifying how heteronormativity moderates links between individual and interpersonal processes (i.e., communication self-efficacy, safe sex behaviors) that influence comprehensive sexual health (CSH) disparities among queer and heterosexual cisgender women. The World Health Organization (2019) defines CSH as well-being across physical, emotional, and social domains; yet, the extant literature often fails to consider determinants of, or disparities in, CSH. The first aim was to validate a measure of CSH and test its validity across online survey samples of queer and heterosexual women (N = 246) using a multi-group confirmatory factor analysis in MPLUS. Data fit the model …

A Cell Of One’S Own? Incarceration And Other Turning Points In Women’S Journeys To Desistance, Venezia Michalsen

Department of Justice Studies Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

Research has shown the importance of turning points in desistance from criminal behavior. Using qualitative data from a sample of 100 formerly incarcerated mothers interviewed about their criminal behavior, this article explores their descriptions of transition moments and whether and how those moments affected their criminal behavior. The findings indicate that whereas parenting emerges as a turning point, the practical difficulties of reentry may reduce the impact of mothering on women’s desistance. More self-focused turning points, such as those due to incarceration, arrest, and sobriety appeared to be particularly important to the women’s desistance. This article emphasizes the need for …

History Of Housewives In First-Year Composition And Effects On Students, Pay, And Pedagogy, Vera Lynn Lentini

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

This thesis paper reviews the history of women in the field of composition as a discipline, paying particular attention to the evolution of the role of the writing instructor. Today, first-year composition classrooms are staffed by a mostly contingent and female workforce, which is an ethical problem for writing programs and English departments. As in the larger workforce, service-oriented careers like teaching tend to be underpaid and characterized by deference to the experts, who are in the position of authority. While this scheme seems to have functioned for housewives and breadwinners in the 1950s, in today’s dual-earner couple it is …

Retired Women And Volunteering: The Good, The Bad, And The Unrecognized, Olena Nesteruk, Christine A. Price

Department of Family Science and Human Development Scholarship and Creative Works

In this article, we examine varied attitudes and practices toward volunteering in later life, as shared by a group of 40 retired women. We categorize women based on their engagement in retirement and label the categories according to societal expectations as follows: traditional volunteers as "good," nonvolunteers as "bad," and caregiving volunteers as "unrecognized." Using critical gerontology and a feminist framework, we juxtapose the lived experiences of retired women with a prevailing discourse on successful aging and civic engagement. We advocate for societal recognition of caregiving as a valuable form of volunteering, as well as the need to respect multiple …

Creating Retirement Paths: Examples From The Lives Of Women, Christine A. Price, Olena Nesteruk

Department of Family Science and Human Development Scholarship and Creative Works

Through in-depth interviews with 40 retired women diverse in age, marital status, ethnicity, income, and occupational background, we explored how women experience retirement. Following our analysis, we identified five retirement pathways: family-focused, service-focused, recreation-focused, employment-focused, and disenchanted retirements. These pathways represent dominant activities and interests at the time the women were interviewed and challenge the cultural portrayal of retirement as an unvarying life stage. The participants' narratives provide a glimpse into the pathways retired women create by revealing the complexity of later life and the changing nature of retirement.

“Boadicea Onstage Before 1800, A Theatrical And Colonial History.” Studies In English Literature 1500-1900 49.3 (Summer 2009): 595-614., Wendy Nielsen

Department of English Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

This essay examines the theatrical legacy of Boadicea, the British warrior queen defeated by the Romans around 61 AD, in three plays: John Fletcher's "The Tragedy of Bonduca, or the British Heroine" and two unrelated dramas titled "Boadicea" by Charles Hopkins and Richard Glover. Performance histories attempt to explain why audiences respond to Boadicea with ambivalence. Each production underplays the defeated queen and gives starring roles to one or more of her daughters and a male lead, who contrast with Boadicea's supposed brutality and provide British audiences with lessons about ways to rule in an ostensibly civilized fashion.

Breast And Cervical Cancer Screening Practices Among Disabled Women Aged 40–75: Does Quality Of The Experience Matter?, Sze Yan Liu, Melissa A. Clark

Department of Public Health Scholarship and Creative Works

Background

Women with disabilities (WWD) face significant barriers accessing healthcare, which may affect rates of routine preventive services. We examined the relationship between disability status and routine breast and cervical cancer screening among middle-aged and older unmarried women and the differences in reported quality of the screening experience.

Methods

Data were from a 2003–2005 cross-sectional survey of 630 unmarried women in Rhode Island, 40–75 years of age, stratified by marital status (previously vs. never married) and partner gender (women who partner with men exclusively [WPM] vs. women who partner with women exclusively or with both women and men [WPW]).

Results …

Women, Re-Entry And Everyday Life: Time To Work?, Dina R. Rose, Venezia Michalsen, Dawn Wiest, Anupa Fabian

Department of Justice Studies Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

This study focuses on women at various stages of re-entry into the community after involvement with the criminal justice system. In particular, it takes a close look at how the participants in the study manage their time in the face of the types of competing demands that are all too common to most people.

Glycaemic Index, Glycaemic Load And Ovarian Cancer Risk: A Prospective Cohort, Stephanie A. Navarro Silvera, Meera Jain, Geoffrey R. Howe, Anthony B. Miller, Thomas E. Rohan

Department of Public Health Scholarship and Creative Works

Background

There is some evidence that plasma insulin levels might influence ovarian cancer risk. Glyacemic index (GI) and glycaemic load (GL) are measures that allow the carbohydrate content of individual foods to be classified according to their postprandial glycaemic effects and hence their effects on circulating insulin levels. Therefore, we examined ovarian cancer risk in association with GI and GL, and intake of dietary carbohydrate and sugar. Methods

The study was conducted in a prospective cohort of 49 613 Canadian women enrolled in the National Breast Screening Study (NBSS) who completed a self-administered food-frequency questionnaire (FFQ) between 1980 and 1985. …