Digital Commons Network^™

Birdcage, Mirella Martinez

Theses and Dissertations

Birdcage is a coming of age story. It is, ultimately, a story about a young woman dealing with issues that she is now barely confronting, and with the help of positive outside influences, comes to accept herself and continues her path with a new perspective. There are prevalent themes such as mental illness, sexual and romantic identity, and the confrontation of toxic parental roles and how it can affect a child as they grow up. The purpose of this Critical Introduction of Birdcage is to explain my goals and purpose with this story, as well as to explain certain themes …

Perspectives On Shame Among Palestinian Women, Andrea Sakleh

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis will examine the ways in which Palestinian women in Ramallah experience and think about shame (eib). I will approach this topic with the intention of complicating the traditional anthropological narrative regarding the honor/shame dichotomy. Within studies focused on honor and shame in the Middle East, anthropologists have examined the ways that honor and shame impact men and women (Abu-Lughod 1986; Baxter 2007; Glick et.al. 2016; Harik & Marston 1996; Kanaaneh 2002; Rasmussen 2007; Zoepf 2016), yet rarely are the two concepts, especially shame, examined independently. Overarchingly, I wish to understand what Palestinian women in Ramallah think about shame, …

The Experiences Of Black Women In Diversity Roles At 4-Year Predominantly White Institutions, Tristen Brena� Johnson

Theses and Dissertations

Many Black women professionals at predominantly White colleges and universities share similar experiences regarding racism, sexism, and classism at their institutions. However, there is a dearth of research regarding the experiences of Black women who specifically work in diversity related positions at four-year predominantly White institutions (PWI). The purpose of this study was to explore the lived experiences of Black women who hold diversity related roles at PWIs. For the purpose of this study, diversity positions were defined as roles held in housing and residence life as well as in multicultural affairs departments and centers. Using a qualitative research approach …

A Woman’S Portion: 5000 Years A Slave, Ann R. Glickman

Theses and Dissertations

Slavery has existed for all of recorded history. The evidence is conclusive that slave systems have almost always been majority female. I suggest that slavery originated as an attempt to control female reproductive capacity, and that this attempt to control was not limited to enslaved women.

Men, Women And Witchcraft: The Feminist Reclamation Of The Witch In The Modern Horror Film, Brian Joseph Hadsell

Theses and Dissertations

The witch as a figure possesses a powerful and enduring legacy in Euro-American culture; she is both a victim of patriarchal persecution and the natural enemy of a deeply-gendered society. Recent horror films that employ the witch, however, have generally done so in the form of reclaimed feminist icon: a violently retributive figure avenging the wrongs done to women both past and present. The purpose of this research is to provide insight about our acutely gendered society and culture in the times during and preceding the #MeToo movement through a semiological analysis of three recent horror films that center on …

Together We Can An Analysis Of Barriers To Women In Leadership And The Unique Challenges Facing Women Of Color, Alexandria Redmond

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to examine and develop a scale on the current challenges facing women in leadership while giving special attention to the unique challenges facing women of color in leadership. The current study is the first of a multi-study scale development project for the Perceived Barriers to Women Leaders Scale (PBWLS). This paper aims to bring together literature on gender and ethnic differences in leadership and obstacles for women and women of color in attaining high-level positions in the workforce, and it also seeks to address measurement gaps in the literature. The final sample included 161 …

African Refugee Women In Egypt: Lacunae In International Refugee Law And The Erasure Of Disadvantaged Groups, Wigdan Mohamad

Theses and Dissertations

Migration is not a recent phenomenon. From the first humans, to people all around the globe today, leave their homes in search of a better life. Since February 2020, Egypt, an attractive destination due to its strategic geolocation, homes the “fifth largest urban refugee population in the world ”. Persecution, political instability, climate degradation, protracted conflicts, unrest, and new wars throughout Africa and Middle Eastern region has caused a dramatic rise of refugees, many of whom make their way to Egypt with the hopes of finding refuge. Egypt hosts a diverse community of refugees, asylum-seekers, and failed asylum-seekers from 58 …

Cis-Resveratrol Upregulates Tyrosyl-Trna Synthetase And Inhibits The Proliferation Of Select Breast Cancer Cell Lines, Marion Cone Hope Iii

Theses and Dissertations

Breast cancer is one of the most commonly occurring cancers in women. 70% of breast cancer patients express ERα and are treated with tamoxifen (Tam), a drug that is used to directly target ERα. However, 20-30% of cancer patients develop a resistance to Tam. This resistance leads to a worse prognosis and other treatments such as DNA damaging drugs or radiation to eliminate these cells. Resveratrol (RSV) is a polyphenolic- compound found in plants such as grapes and hellebore and is known to evoke anti-cancer effects. While natural resveratrol exists as a mixture of both cis- and trans- isomers, so …

The Deconstruction Of Patriarchal War Narratives In Svetlana Alexievich’S The Unwomanly Face Of War, Liubov Kartashova

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines how the Soviet construction of womanhood resulted first in females’ active participation in World War II and then in the silencing of women’s war experiences by fabricating a reality in which women’s trauma did not exist. Such a deprivation of women’s agency led to female soldiers’ confusion of identity, experience of shame and consequential self-censorship. In The Unwomanly Face of War (У войны не женское лицо, 1985), Svetlana Alexievich acknowledges these neglected experiences and traumas, and creates a space in which women’s stories have a right to exist. Applying Jean Elshtain’s theory on the lack of attention …

Antisaccade Performance As A Measure Of Executive Dysfunction In Women With The Fmr1 Premutation, Lyndsay Schmitt

Theses and Dissertations

Women with the FMR1 premutation appear to be at increased risk for executive dysfunction. Findings in this regard have been mixed, leading to controversy surrounding the executive phenotype. Inhibitory deficits have been a more consistently documented component of this cognitive profile (Klusek et al., 2020; Shelton et al., 2014). This study aimed to clarify the executive phenotype through use of the antisaccade task, a well referenced eye-tracking paradigm that targets oculomotor inhibition and motor control and imposes time constraints that may increase sensitivity to executive deficits in women with the FMR1 premutation. The effects of aging were examined in both …

Pratiquer Ou Incarner La Vertu? L'Agentivité Des Femmes Chez Marie De France Et Christine De Pizan, Kathe Blydenburgh

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis studies the treatment of women in Medieval literature as active agents in their roles of upholding the virtues of the societies in which they live. This study focuses on works written by the female authors Marie de France and Christine de Pizan.

Divorce As Liberation: Marital Expectations Among The Working-Class In The 1950s, Kristin M. Catrone

Theses and Dissertations

Divorce was a remedy employed by working-class Americans in the 1950s when their marital expectations went unmet. Spouses left emotionally, physically, or sexually abusive marriages. Expectations for marriage also centered around assumptions based on gender. Working-class women showed how divorce could be used as a tool of liberation and empowerment.

Judith Leyster: A Study Of Extraordinary Expression, Nicole J. Cardinale

Theses and Dissertations

Judith Leyster’s innovative application of expression in her Self Portrait serves as the focus, whereby she is shown to blend conventional painting categories, preserve a sense of innocence, and confidently flaunt her skills. In turn, Leyster challenged the male-centric art market and stood apart from her artistic predecessors and contemporaries.

The Participation Of Women Believers And The Family In Later Languedocian Catharism, 1300-1308, William Grant Edmundson

Theses and Dissertations

This master’s thesis means to contribute to scholarship on the nature of lived Catharism in later medieval Languedoc. The study uses depositions from the inquisition registers of Jacques Fournier and Geoffroy d’Ablis, as well as Bernard Gui’s Liber sententiarum (book of sentences) to examine and compare how men, women, and families who were friends, relatives, accomplices, believers, and defenders of Cathar perfecti (the Cathar spiritual elite) participated in and supported the sect during the “Authié revival” from 1300 to 1308 by means of a case study on the Benet family from Montaillou and Ax.

The study argues that although the …

Exploring The External Barriers Faced By Female Military Spouses In Pursuit Of Higher Education, Richelle Keilholz

Theses and Dissertations

The study discusses the insufficient amount of research concerning the unique barriers faced by female military spouses in the pursuit of higher education. Although the information on military veterans in education has increased exponentially over the last decade, little is known about their female spouses. By adopting a narrative analysis approach to qualitative research, the study explored the perspectives of female military spouses and the barriers they may face in pursuit of higher education. Seven female military spouses were asked to complete 30-minute to 60-minute interviews with the researcher, to consider a more personalized experience. The following three primary research …

Impact Of Gender, Socioeconomic Class And Product Involvement On The Portrayal Of Women In Egyptian Tv Commercials, Alia El-Mohandes

Theses and Dissertations

The study aims to analyze the relationship between the target audience gender, the socioeconomic classes, and the level of product/service involvement in the ad with the portrayal of women in Egyptian TV commercials during Ramadan 2019 from a professional perspective. Furthermore, it is essential to see if TV commercials portray women in a way that reflects the reality or challenge it in the Egyptian society. This research is both qualitative and quantitative study as it mainly depends on three methods, which are content analysis, focus groups, and In-depth interviews. The study used a census of all the ads aired on …

Benevolent Women And An Orphan Asylum: The Case Of Rochester, New York, Joseph Resch

Theses and Dissertations

Rochester, New York typified the rapid growth towns were experiencing in the early 19th century. Benevolent women established charitable societies and institutions like the Orphan Asylum to combat the social ills brought on by that growth. Their humanitarian endeavors laid the foundation for today’s child welfare agencies.

Women In (Em)Power: A Qualitative Study Of Orthodox Women Principals, Yael Wakslak Rosenberg

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to explore the experiences of Orthodox Jewish women who occupy the role of school principal in Orthodox Jewish schools. What distinguishes these individuals is that they are accomplished females who, in addition to overcoming the common challenges of women in leadership positions, as Orthodox Jews, their environments, both the ones they were raised in and the ones they currently work in, create a distinct expectation of gender roles, cultural identity and leadership characteristics. Additionally, this study explores how the shaping of their gender, cultural and leadership identities continue to manifest themselves and impact the …

A Randomized Trial Of Cbt4cbt For Women In Residential Treatment For Substance Use Disorders, Sydney S. Kelpin

Theses and Dissertations

Women with substance use disorders (SUD) face unique barriers to substance use treatment, and as a result, are less likely than their male counterparts to seek treatment for the disorder. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is an evidence-based treatment known to reduce relapse rates by teaching clients to recognize and respond to their cues for substance use. Recent research suggests CBT may be particularly of benefit to women. Despite the effectiveness of CBT, its dissemination in clinical practice is limited due to a range of barriers (e.g., time, cost). Computer-based training for cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT4CBT) offers an opportunity to improve …

An Intuitive Eating Intervention For College Women With Disordered Eating: Evaluating Two Accessible And Affordable Approaches, Carolyn B. Burnette

Theses and Dissertations

Undergraduate women of all racial and ethnic groups engage in disordered eating behaviors (DEBs) at alarming rates. Most women do not receive treatment, with the largest disparities observed in women of color and those at higher weights. Prevailing interventions have limitations that could exacerbate these disparities, such as an emphasis on the thin ideal, which is often considered less relevant for some women of color. This is concerning, as disordered eating is often chronic and symptom crossover is common. Thus, a transdiagnostic, inclusive secondary prevention approach could enhance outcomes by addressing the spectrum of DEBs in diverse women. The purpose …