Digital Commons Network^™

Playing With International Students From Asia: An Exploration Of Cultural Commonalities And Differences In Developmental Transformations (Dvt), Hazuki Okamoto

Expressive Therapies Capstone Theses

Asian international students in the United States face a multitude of challenges such as language barriers, differences in cultural norms and behaviors, and identity confusion while navigating a foreign landscape. Developmental Transformations (DvT), a form of drama therapy, may apply to these challenges by enabling participants to explore different identities and express themselves creatively beyond the language barrier. This community engagement project was designed for Asian international students to be seen and heard by utilizing DvT. Within an in-person workshop, five participants played with their shared stories, and explored international and cultural roles in group DvT. Key takeaways from the …

Independent Visions Of Marginal America: Reimagining A Nation Through Outsiders, Searching, And Non-Arrival, Z Evan Long

Film and Media Studies (MA) Theses

This thesis explores critical responses to American-ness, American identity, and most significantly American myth, in independent films about America in cultural terms, and their attempts to deconstruct the myths of nation and culture. The independent films about America analyzed in this thesis range from the 1960s to the 1990s, made by filmmakers across movements and cultures, but they all contain in some measure three key concepts: the “outsider,” the “search,” and a narrative “non-arrival.” Easy Rider (1969) will be explored as the prototype for this paradigm, contrasted with films that reinterpret the road-movie structure away from existential angst and toward …

Hózhó + Art Heals, Eugene Tapahe

Theses and Dissertations

The land where I grew up gives me a sense of purpose and belonging. It embodies the Navajo concept of hózhó, which represents harmony, beauty, and balance. Being in tune with this spiritual connection inspires me to bring people together through art and healing. I use natural materials like sand, sage, cedar, tree twigs, and yellow and blue cornmeal to create my art. To maintain the spirituality of my work, I employ traditional and ritualistic harvesting methods passed down from generation to generation. These techniques are deeply connected to the land and are essential to my identity as an artist …

The Great Cultural Commission: Fulfilling The Command Of Jesus To Lead And Create A Culture Different Than The World’S, Kevin D. Geer

Doctor of Ministry (DMin)

Jesus gathered his disciples together and shared with them how the leaders of this world love to use their influence, power, and titles to rule over those they lead. Jesus told his disciples “among you it will be different” (Matt 20:26) compared to the leadership of the world. Jesus called his disciples to the Great Culture Commission, a call to servant leadership in which one uses their opportunities, gifts, and advantages to lift everyone else around them. This call creates a culture that propels the Great Commission while cultivating servant-hearted leadership. The intent of this dissertation is to discover the …

Hidden Meanings In Elementary Instrumental Music Method Books: A Multimodal Critical Discourse Analysis, Mara Hope Thompson

Education Doctorate Dissertations

Textbooks serve as the primary resource utilized to deliver curriculum in a variety of subject areas and educational contexts. However, much previous research has found that texts often convey concealed meanings in the form of hidden and null curricula. This Multimodal Critical Discourse Analysis (MCDA) explored the musical discourses and cultural contexts of musical examples in two elementary instrumental music textbook series to investigate whose values, cultures, perspectives, and knowledge are conveyed by the texts and whose are excluded or misrepresented. Framed by the social theory of Postcolonialism, the research revealed binary ideologies of exoticism embedded in many aspects of …

Notes Toward A Personal Afrofuturism, Jalen T. Adams

Theses and Dissertations

This paper is penned by a young adult who is generally confused about a lot of things regarding life, but has one singular focus that is perhaps larger than life—trying to find the bridge between a future already lived, and a past yet to happen. These are his findings so far.

This Passing Shadow: The Role Of Trauma In Reforming Individual And Cultural Identity In The Lord Of The Rings And Anglo-Saxon Literature, Benjamin C. Benson

English MA Theses

Many scholars focus on J.R.R. Tolkien's personal history and attempt to locate his own trauma in the texts of his works. However, this focus often overlooks the role that trauma plays in the reshaping of individual and cultural identity within the works of Tolkien. Tolkien uses a number of methods to communicate trauma throughout his works, but these methods often have roots in Anglo-Saxon Literature. This study analyzes the various ways that Tolkien adapts Anglo-Saxon works to communicate trauma while simultaneously using the traumatic events to help communicate healing through the interaction of the traumatized with their community.

Music With A Racial Nexus: Culture Clash In Los Angeles Punk Rock Communities, 1976-1981, Lawson Hammock

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The chief argument of this work rests on the idea that culture-blindness—especially White ethnic-cultural blindness—contributed as much as issues of race to the heavily documented social rift between predominantly Chicanx, Eastside punk and the mostly-White, Westside punk rock communities of Los Angeles, 1976-1981. To date, historical blame for the divide has centered on racism, including racist intent. The second area of analysis directly relates to the first in that it demonstrates the inextricable link between cultural and spatial identity formation and assignment among the various scenes. This aspect of the study evaluates the complaints of some Eastside acts who have …

Falling Down The Rabbit Hole: World Building In Ya Literature, Claire Webb

Undergraduate Honors Theses

World building is a key component to many young adult novels, but what is world building and what are some different styles and techniques that authors use when constructing fictional universes? In this thesis, Falling Down the Rabbit Hole: World Building Techniques in YA Literature, I will examine Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll (1865), The Princess Bride by William Goldman (1973), and my own unpublished novel, The Sun Kingdom, to compare different techniques and styles of world building. These works will be explored through the aspect of world building, focusing specifically on the importance of the geography, language, …

Christ As Dialogue With Culture: Reimaging The Church For Incarnational Discipleship And Ministry, Sean Sloan

Doctor of Ministry (DMin)

God spoke, and Logos created. Increased polarization and divisiveness in USAmerican society and the resulting social pain and even violence inspired this project to pursue a healthier and restorative dialogue. If God’s spoken and incarnate Word originated human life and was and is the means of redeeming humans to life with God and one another, how might such a dialogical Christology impact a theology of dialogue capable of addressing brokenness in a culture? As action research, this project tested the potential for a theology of dialogue to impact perceptions as a precursor to altering behaviors through a presentation at Calvary …

Breaking Bridges: A Latina's Role In Familismo And Higher Education, Desiree Trejo

Theses and Dissertations

This research and collective experiences have been recorded to bring together an autoethnography that demonstrates my personal experiences of being the eldest daughter in a Latino family and how these experiences situate within a social context. The primary purpose of this autoethnography is to provide insight on Latino culture expectations placed upon first born daughters. My own experiences connect to my research covering Latino culture and gender expectations to further understand social meanings and understandings of this culture. This autoethnography presents qualitive research that allows me to self-reflect and apply these findings to my personal experiences within my family to …

African-American Parents’ Cultural Understandings Of The Concept Of Autism And Implications For Parental Communication And Health Management, Kellie J. Fennell

Communication & Theatre Arts Theses

In 2023 the Centers of Disease Control reported that around 1 in 36 children are diagnosed with Autism in America and that the prevalence has increased by 178% since 2000 (CDC, 2023). Despite increases in awareness and diagnosis past research finds that the discussions of ASD in African American communities is minimal (Fombonne, 2003; Yeargin Allsopp et al., 2003). This disparity is important considering that African American children receive an ASD diagnosis years later than their white counterparts and are much more likely to be misdiagnosed (Mandell et al., 2009, 2002).

Given the history of a lack of representation of …

Effective Leader Development Within A Church-Planting Organization For A Changing And Chaotic World, Jeremy Davis

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

A challenge in cross-cultural church planting is developing leaders. Cross-cultural church-planting organizations like Latin American Mission (LAM; pseudonym) that lack a leadership development strategy struggle to form lasting leaders, sending missionaries with Biblical training but not leader development training. Additionally, developing leaders in a volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous (VUCA) environment creates specific challenges that missionaries must address. The purpose of this qualitative, Delphi method study was to investigate the leadership development perceptions and experiences among existing LAM missionaries in the regions of Latin America (Colombia, Cuba, Mexico City, Peru, Brazil, and Ecuador) to provide suggestions for improving effective leadership …

Son Otros Tiempos: Generational Experiences Of Male Friendships Amongst Mexican And Mexican American Men, Marisela Rodríguez Molina

Dissertations and Theses

Culturally specific work with Latinx men has also discussed the way Latinx masculinities are being redefined by younger generations. Grounded in Chicana Feminist epistemologies, I use Gloria Anzaldua's borderlands framework to analyze data from 20 interviews with sons and their father figures in understanding experience of masculinities within the context of male friendships. Differences between father's and son's experiences can be attributed to social context in which men are socialized and their borderlands experiences. Findings illustrate how understandings of masculinities represent a melding of cultural values between the dominant individualistic perspective in the U.S. and the collectivist perspective from men's …

Translational Placemaking: The Diasporic Archive, Alia Varawalla

Masters Theses

Globalization and mass migration has propelled a hybrid existence, as individuals that occupy multiple geographies we live in a constant state of translation. Our museums and cultural institutions are in opposition to this; static, preserved and de-contextualized. At the intersection of printmaking and architecture, this thesis proposes a living archive to document the collective migratory journey across sites, materials, and hybrid identities. A network of centers for knowledge sharing and production centered on India and its diaspora. As art practices and people migrate, cultural production evolves with its context, gaining new meaning as it changes hands generationally and globally.

Spaces Of Wait And Their Weight, Eman Alhashemi

Masters Theses

i have been exploring, researching and observing what influences affect a space within the traditions, rituals, food, thoughts and behavior. what happens when that space of comfort disappears and changes? through a series of work that waits, melts, merges, and exaggerates in am attempt to find its place. as i borrow objects and movements from daily life observing my surroundings and extracting mundane things that take on different forms whether exaggerated or unidentifiable. this recent culmination of work over the two years at risd look at objects and spaces of waiting, discomfort, longing and sharing. our behavior is affected by …

Exploring Core Concepts And Uses Of Makeup In Expressive Arts Therapy And Mental Health: A Critical Review Of The Literature, Rhys Triolo-Rodriguez

Expressive Therapies Capstone Theses

According to Merriam Webster (2022) the definitions for Makeup are as follows; “Cosmetics (such as lipstick, mascara, and eye shadow) used to color and beautify the face”, “A cosmetic applied to other parts of the body”, and “Materials (such as wigs and cosmetics) used in making up or in special costuming (as for a play).” Many of the articles reviewed also discuss the importance of skin care and the rituals that one goes through when applying or removing facial products. For this research, a combination of all definitions above will be most beneficial. However one may define makeup, within the …

The Sounds Of The Shore: An Afrofuturistic Double Record Performed Through Vernacular Technology, Collin Bright

Masters Theses, 2020-current

Predominately white institutions are socially exclusive hostile environments that uphold white heteronormative patriarchal systems (Harper, 2013; Holliday & Squires, 2021; Razzante, 2018). The everyday task of existing on campus is a struggle for students of color as they are asked to enter spaces/places that are not diverse, inclusive, equitable, or accepting. To address the oppressive and dismissive forces of campus, my thesis uses Afrofuturism to reimagine what it means to exist as a student of color at a PWI. Afrofuturism is a “counter-imaginative cultur[al]” aesthetic-based practice that uses creative postcolonial critiques to reimagine future possibilities (Asante & Pindi, 2020; Pirker …

For What Is A Man?: Towards Languaging Contemporary Dance In A Black, Queer, Male-Presenting Body, Thomas Ford

Theses and Dissertations

This paper examines Queering Blackness: Solo on a Theme of Reconciliation, a performance event that invokes movement, spoken text, projections and sound to explore the mechanisms of identity. Engaging performance, Black, queer and dance studies, the paper contextualizes cultural identity markers, towards an understanding of what it means to be Black, queer and male-assigned in Black spaces.

Artificial: A Study On The Use Of Artificial Intelligence In Art, Hayden Ernst

Theses/Capstones/Creative Projects

In the past three to five years there have been significant improvements made in AI due to improvements in computing capacity, the collection and use of big data, and an increase in public interest and funding for research. Programs such as ChatGPT, DALL•E, and Midjourney have also gained tremendous popularity in a relatively short amount of time. This led me to this project in which I aimed to gain a deeper understanding of these art generator AI and where they fit into art as a whole. My goal was to give recommendations to museums and exhibits in Omaha on what …

Adapting Cultural Storytelling Styles To Modern Media, Julie Huang

All Theses

In the face of modern media, it is inevitable that certain cultural art forms will fade in popularity. Some may even fade out of existence altogether. However, there are continuous efforts to reframe these cultural gems in contemporary forms to preserve them for the younger generations. Digital media, such as animation and video games, provide the perfect vehicle to bridge the gap between traditional and contemporary. This paper investigates how storytelling practices have been carried through time and the creative ways they have evolved in the face of an ever-changing mediascape.

To support this research, I present a narrative in …

Cross-Cultural Adjustment Factors Influencing International Collegiate Student Athletes, Samantha Young

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to further investigate the experience of international student-athletes (ISA) studying and competing at the collegiate level in the United States. This mixed methods study used a survey and interviews to probe ISAs' challenges and support sources. ISAs attending a large private four-year university located in the western United States along with university athletic support staff participated in this study. In the survey comments and interviews the ISAs expressed that they are highly concerned with their ability to financially survive in this new environment. A demanding schedule requiring the balancing of athletics and academics does …

How Properly Contextualized Christianity Could Benefit Japan, Benjamin Highsmith

Honors Theses

This thesis aims to ask the question “how could Christianity, if properly contextualized, benefit Japan?” It does so through the use of academic sources, interviews, and personal observations. Topics covered include Japanese culture, its perception of Christianity, and the lifestyles of Japanese Christians. This thesis uses cultural concepts to explain how Christianity and Japanese culture might find themselves at odds, but also explains how Christianity could work in unison with Japanese culture in order to benefit Japanese society as a whole, defending its argument using Biblical concepts intertwined with Japanese values.

A Medieval Pirate's Life: The Role Of Piracy In Medieval Life Versus Its Role In Modern Historiography, Leah Lam

History ETDs

Medieval piracy is a mysterious phenomenon that is interwoven within the politics, culture, economic histories of the Middle Ages. Its presence throughout the Middle Ages is not questioned, yet it is rarely researched thoroughly. The subject of medieval piracy falls prey to the biases and assumptions that modern historians carry towards piracy as a whole, making the subject be under researched and improperly utilized. In this thesis, I will be highlighting the role that piracy played in medieval life and the way that modern historiography has neglected it. To do so thoroughly, I have pulled examples from different times, regions, …

Nous Sommes Tous Des « Djadjas » : La Question De L’Identité Dans La Musique Française Et Francophone Au 21^E Siècle, Molly Earle

Honors Theses

Le titre de mon travail fait référence à une chanson qui représente les thèmes de la race,1 du genre, de la transculturalité et de la collaboration musicale : « Djadja », une chanson écrite par la chanteuse franco-malienne Aya Nakamura qui a eu beaucoup de succès en 2018 et puis en 2020 avec le remix en duo avec Maluma, un chanteur colombien. Comme d’autres chansons de Nakamura, « Djadja » utilise des sons africains et urbains, mais l’ajout d’influences latino-américaines a aidé la chanson à toucher une plus grande partie du monde (Nakamura et Maluma). Par exemple, cette chanson est …

Poked Zine, Geneva Lindsley

Graphic Communication

It is well-known that a stigma exists toward tattooed individuals. In the corporate world, many employers have asked their employees to cover any skin ink to preserve the image the company may have. Even in the U.S. Army, recruits are restricted in the placement of their tattoos, not being able to have designs on their face or certain sizes on their neck and hands (Lacdan, 2022). Studies show that “people view tattooed individuals as possessing a number of negative character attributes'' (Broussard & Harton, 2018). The question we must ask ourselves is why these stigmas exist. Not only are the …

Re-Innergized The Ministry Of The Holy Spirit, Stacey Spence-Baldwin

Doctor of Ministry

In this Project Portfolio, I will address the following NPO: The church is in decline or dying because it lacks connection with the Holy Spirit. Through the church relying on human reason instead of the will of the Holy Spirit, the church has lost its light. The key finding in my research is that when a church embraces the guidance of the Holy Spirit, it will live again. This finding came from my personal experiences of the Holy Spirit resurrecting three small rural churches which were in decline/death back to life. When congregations allowed the Holy Spirit to prompt their …

Navigating The Soviet Experiment: Travels And Writings Of John Dos Passos And Edmund Wilson In Soviet Russia, 1928-1935, Robert Allan Winslow

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The travel accounts of Soviet Russia by John Dos Passos (1896-1970) and Edmund Wilson (1895-1972) vividly demonstrate how Western writer-travelers were drawn into Soviet cultural experiments. Only rarely was this process one of literary influence. This thesis focuses on published travel writings by Dos Passos (In All Countries, 1934) and Wilson (Travels In Two Democracies, 1936), as well as journals, letters, and essays, in terms of Soviet cultural developments both writers noted as historically significant in shaping Western views of the Soviet state, and of the methods involved in building socialism and Communism.

In the …

Gender Dynamics In The Management Care Of Internally Displaced Persons: The Boko Haram Insurgency, Evelyn Kikelomo Ikuenobe Otaigbe

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The Boko Haram asymmetric insurgency and warfare have decimated the Northeastern region of Nigeria and its neighboring environs of Chad, Niger, and Benin. The purpose of this study was to explore the peculiar socioethnic and cultural challenges encountered by female victims of Boko Haram terrorism at internally displaced persons camps in Abuja, Nigeria, including challenges in functioning, relocating, and acclimating back into society. A phenomenological approach was applied to understand participants’ lived experiences. Data collection occurred through interviews and observation. Data analysis involved the synthesis of narratives, and generation of themes. Among the emergent themes were poor feeding; lack of …

Japanese Colonialism: Unraveling The Complex Historiography And Cultural Genocide In The Korean Peninsula, Madison Huckabay

History | Senior Theses

Upon the influence of western imperialism reaching East Asia, Japan began its own imperial conquests as it worked to establish itself as a world power alongside Russia and Western powers. After the first Sino-Japanese war between Qing China and Imperial Japan, China was forced to recognize independence to Korea, along with ceding the Taiwan, Pescadores and Liaodong territories to Japan as of 1895. While Japan initially claimed to promote Korea’s independence and nationalism, they officially ended up annexing Korea as of 1910. From the perspective of the western powers and historians, they were initially optimistic about Japan’s reform on Koreans. …