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Set Trippin': An Intersectional Examination Of Gang Members, Lea Marzo

Sociology Dissertations

Typically, when most people hear the word “gangs,” the usual connotation is that of boys and men. However, recent studies show that women and girls make up about 30% of the gang population and that most gangs are mixed-gender (Curry 1998, Miller and Brunson 2000, Sutton 2017). The experiences of gang-affiliated women remain under-theorized and understudied. Moreover, studies in criminology often dehumanize gang members and advance archaic ideas of inherent criminality. By utilizing a critical race theory (CRT) framework, I analyze how gang membership results from the intersection of racist practices and U.S. laws (Bell 1995, Crenshaw 1995, Ladson-Billings and …

Thinking Cis: Racialized Cissexism, Cis-Heterosexual Men, And Cis-Lbq Women, Alithia Zamantakis

Sociology Dissertations

While Trans Studies analyzes, critiques, and rethinks the epistemological, ontological, and material mechanisms through gender shapes and is shaped by the social world, few studies in the Sociology of Trans Studies have thoroughly theorized and analyzed what exactly constitutes cis-ness. As such, I ask what constitutes cis-ness vis-à-vis sexuality, and how do the desirability discourse of cisgender-heterosexual men and cisgender-lesbian/bi/queer women enact necropolitical boundaries around Black trans women and trans women of color’s subjectivity? Utilizing semi-structured, in-depth interviews with a sample of 32 predominantly Black, cisgender-heterosexual men and cisgender-lesbian/bi/queer women, in addition to a focus group with four white/white-passing participants, …

Doing Pregnancy Without Doing "Womanly" : Non-Conventionally-Feminine Gender Expression And The Provision Of Pregnancy-Related Medical & Midwifery Services, Zoe Rf Freggens

Sociology Dissertations

There is a long and pervasive history of conflating “womanhood” and “motherhood” in the United States (U.S.). Expectations (and privileging) of particular gender identities and expressions and “what it means to be a woman” leads to a narrow depiction of how pregnancy (and those who do and don’t go through it) should look. What happens when those identities and expressions diverge from the generally expected standards? Anecdotal evidence and prior research on pregnant lesbians suggest the potential for backlash and poor medical experiences. There has been little attention to pregnant sexual and gender minorities (SGMs) and their medical and/or midwifery …

But Where Are You Really From?: Black And Asian American Women's Experiences Of Gendered Racialized Microaggressions, Dresden Lackey

Sociology Dissertations

Though microaggression research has grown across disciplines in recent years, existing work often centralizes intergroup experiences, disregarding the ways intragroup spaces perpetuate dominant white racial framing. Utilizing thirty-five in-depth, semi-structured interviews, this dissertation addresses that gap, revealing that Black and Asian American women experience gendered racialized microaggressions within co-ethnic spaces, enacted by family and peers who may share a dual identity as both targets and maintainers of a white supremacist patriarchal system. Gendered racialized microaggressions within intraracial spaces centralize specific themes I identify as: Whiteness is the Ultimate Goal, Not Asian/Black Enough, Body Talk, and Racialized Sexualization, each defined within …

Black And Foreign: Haitian Immigrant Identities And Well-Being In America, Mollie Innocent-Cupid

Sociology Dissertations

Black Immigrants who come from Black majority nations must face a unique assimilation to the United States’ racial hierarchy, which places them at the bottom as a racial minority. While theoretical models address the double-consciousness of being a Black American, racial identity models fail to address the identity negotiations of this “invisible immigrant” (Bryce-Laborte 1972) minority group. Black Immigrants experience a deterioration in mental health as they increase their exposure to American society. This trend continues with each subsequent generation, causing second and third generations to display significantly poorer health than Non-Black immigrants.

Haitian Immigrants, who are considered one of …

Where Is Hope In Old Age? A Study Of Chinese Migrant Workers' Migration Experience And Well-Being, Jing Liu

Sociology Dissertations

China has been undergoing massive rural-to-urban migration in the past four decades. As of 2019, there are approximately 300 million migrant workers in China’s labor force, which accounts for approximately 20% of its entire population. However, policy makers and society as a whole have paid insufficient attention to migrant workers’ well-being. This dissertation examines the relationship between Chinese migrant workers’ migration experiences and their well-being into aging and retirement. Using a sample of 1,083 migrant workers from three Chinese emigration provinces (Anhui, Sichuan, and Henan) in a quantitative dataset and 30 follow-up interviews, this dissertation examines: (1) factors of migration …

Minority Stress In The Context Of The Disablement Process Model, Jeffrey Lentz

Sociology Dissertations

The changing demographics and growing diversity in the United States pose significant challenges for researchers, particularly scholarship involving sexual minority adults’ health and aging processes. Not much is known about how all minority stressors could lead to a disability. Sexual minority adults are at a greater risk of developing a disability later in life than their heterosexual counterparts (Fredriksen-Goldsen, Kim, and Barkan 2012). Drawing from critical components of the disablement process model (Verbrugge and Jette 1994), this dissertation sought to understand the relationship between minority stress and disability status among sexual minority adults 50 years and older. Minority stress in …

Birth Lost In Translation: Obstetric Violence And The Plight To Humanize Institutional Birth, Claudia Tillman

Sociology Dissertations

My study investigates the contemporary global concept of obstetric violence. This concept originated in Venezuela in conjunction with the movement to humanize birth. At the same time, global public health initiatives to combat maternal mortality increased the number of facility-based births internationally with unintended consequences. I use content analysis of popular and peer-reviewed texts, podcasts, and in-depth interviews with birthing people and birth service providers to explore the ways various groups define, understand, and are using this term. I also investigate the ways autonomy and medical authority interact during institutional birth. My methods include illuminating cultural influences and focusing on …