Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Uncharted Territory: Researching The Effect Of Implicit Bias On The Political Attitudes Of Black Participants, Briona Young

Scholars Week

Extant research suggests that implicit bias can predict behavior such as voting, policy preferences, and assessment of government performance (Pérez 2010). Yet, research on implicit bias has largely excluded people of color, leaving a wide gap in our understanding of implicit bias and its effects on society (Orey, 2013). In this study, we research implicit bias within the black community and test its effects on political attitudes. We administer Harvard’s Implicit Association Test (IAT) and a survey to measure levels of implicit bias and subsequently policy preferences and trust in government. We expect to find that the black participants with …

The Mobilizing Effect Of Descriptive Representation? The Impact Of Representatives’ Race And Gender On Participation, Akayla Henson, Brittany Wood

Posters-at-the-Capitol

Studies on the effect of increased descriptive representation on political participation have yielded mixed results. This research explores the relationship between descriptive representation and political participation. Specifically, we are interested in understanding how the race and gender of political representatives affect electorate participation. We conduct a unique survey experiment where participants receive communication from a political representative. The treatment conditions varied based on representative race (black, white) and gender (man, woman). We hypothesized that participants who receive correspondence from a representative of the same gender and race as themselves (i.e., in-group) will be more likely to participate than a participant …

The Impact Of Female Militia Units On Women’S Rights In Society, Grace Ball

Student Scholar Showcase

The question raised is, can women gain equality within the government, society, and culture due to their participation in militia units during times of revolution. This thesis evaluates the case study of Syrian Kurdish women fighters between the time frame 2011 to 2021. In particular the paper will analyze the Women’s Protection Unit which is composed of female Kurdish fighters, who fought against ISIS and the Syrian government. Previously, Kurdish women have a documented history of oppression due to their gender. In their society, culture, and government, females have been suppressed from equality. The study will analyze if women can …

Critical Thinking In The Age Of Misinformation: Information Literacy For Citizenship, Tamra Ortgies-Young, Jennfer Lobo Meeks, Barbara Robertson

Georgia International Conference on Information Literacy

As recent political events across the globe have shed a light on the fragility of democratic values, the role of the University in creating a framework for civic education becomes more urgent. Informed, caring and engaged citizenry must be a goal of higher education. Students currently face the emergence of faulty types of information - such as misinformation and disinformation, which undermines the notion of collective or public inquiry, not only within universities, but also within society as a whole. This challenge must be acknowledged and addressed by academic institutions.

Session presenters will provide an overview of their work, “Critical …

President Lopez Obrador’S Response To Femicide, Paola Briones

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Femicide is defined as the specific targeting and assassination of women. While femicide exists worldwide, particularly in Latin America, Mexico has one of the highest reported rates of femicide. This paper will analyze the Lopez Obrador administration’s lack of response to rising femicide rates. The administration has not created a special prosecutor’s office to address the phenomenon; ninety-three percent of femicides remain unsolved. Previous research maintains several factors contribute to femicide including machismo, high national crime rates, and poverty. Although previous research explores causes of femicide, it neglects to provide concrete explanations for the intentional inaction of acting administrations. In …

Liberalism, Settlement, Sacrifice: Towards A Genealogy Of Sacrificial Politics, Marshall Scheider, Adam Culver

McNair Symposium

In recent years, political theorists have begun to explore the sacrificial dimensions of liberalism and neoliberalism in the global North. Little of this work, however, grapples with the ways settler colonialism informs contemporary political sacrifice or conceptions of the sacrificial. This paper traces a genealogy of contemporary political sacrifice through the archive of early British colonialism in North America. When theorists ignore this archive, they do more than render colonization mute: they also fail to apprehend what I term political sacrifice’s differential function—the mechanism by which sacrifice’s burdens fall on subordinated groups while its benefits accrue to the socially, politically, …

Covid-19 And Policy Resistance, Zachary Armstrong

COD Library Student Research and Award Symposium

With the COVID-19 pandemic beginning more than a year ago, we've seen many policies put in place in order to combat the virus. These policies included economic lockdowns, mask mandates, and vaccine accessibility. Most people recognized the importance of these policies and acted accordingly while a subset found comfort in resistance. This resistance includes ignoring social distancing, not wearing masks, and denying the science behind vaccines. I wanted to know why this was occurring so I analyzed multiple national surveys while also conducting my own in order to find common trends within the data that could help me answer this. …

082— The Importance Of An Unbiased Media For American Democracy: An Analysis Of Media Affecting Public Opinion, Keith Hurley

GREAT Day Posters

A free and unbiased media is a cornerstone of any properly functioning democracy. It is the primary means of information transfer between the federal government and its constituents on policy matters. While there are a number of democratic countries around the world that have taken steps to limit press freedom, thereby moving away from a full democratic system, the United States has, for the most part, not been one of them. However, mass media in the United States is far from perfect, and in some instances can be damaging to American society and democracy itself. I will conduct a literature …

Victims Of Terrorism At The Intersection Of Race And Gender, Charlotte Lang, Candice Ortbals

Seaver College Research And Scholarly Achievement Symposium

El-Nawawy and El-Masry (2017) argue that media “devalue black lives” and “race, then, cannot be ignored as a factor” when considering the media and political treatment of terrorism’s victims (2017, 1810). Furthermore, media give less coverage to victims of terrorism in attacks occurring in countries outside the Global North (Nevalsky 2015). In this paper, we theorize race and terrorism along with gender. We discuss the ways that scholarship, media, and political actors give (or do not give) attention to victims of terrorism. We show through a historical analysis of Rapoport’s waves of terrorism and an analysis of recent cases of …

The Effects Of News Media Bias On Affective Polarization, Timothy Song

Seaver College Research And Scholarly Achievement Symposium

In an age of divided media, levels of affective polarization, or personal dislike and preference against members of a different political affiliation, appear to have grown. Using a survey experiment, I examine the extent to which biased news media can inflame levels of affective polarization, and to what extent balanced news media can reduce affective polarization in audience members. I also examine the political and academic implications of my findings that affective polarization is present in even the youngest of American voters, and that balanced news coverage is able to somewhat mitigate rates of affective polarization.

Cold Turkey: Will The Recent Freeze In Turkish-Nato Relations Spiral Into A Bigger Problem?, Reagan Nelson, Paul Prentice, Ashlyn Cowell, Nathan Waite, Brent Schuliger, William Waddell

Liberty University Research Week

Undergraduate

Applied

Pornography: Social, Emotional And Mental Implications Among Adolescents, William Kelly Canady

National Youth Advocacy and Resilience Conference

This presentation will explain the historical development of pornography. It will highlight four segments: 1- Porn’s impact on brain development of reward pathways, ultimately increasing the appetite for more porn. 2- Porn can be a false substitute for real intimacy, resulting in decreased sexual satisfaction with a real person and increased verbal and physical aggression. 3- Porn promotes sex trafficking, promotes multiple sex partners and reduced STD prevention. 4- A review of interventions available to assist clients in navigating a lifestyle away from pornography.

How Sociological Factors Influence Political Party Affiliation In The U.S., Christa Mcdowell

Capstone Showcase

There are several factors that contribute to political party affiliation in the United States, but it is not clear precisely to what extent. Two theories in particular, Social Force Theory & Parental Value Transmission Theory, argue that identity politics, a child’s perception of the parent, and shared racial struggles are all factors which contribute directly to political party affiliation. Using pattern matching, I operationalize several concepts or factors such as race, gender, and religion as indicators. Compiling data from the Pew Research Center, Gallup, and case studies, I found that most of these factors are intersectional and that intersectionality is …

The Impact Of The Prescription Drug User Fees Act (Pdufa) On The Food And Drug Administration (Fda), Gabriella Ravin

Capstone Showcase

This research questions the impact that the Prescription Drug User Fee Act (PDUFA) has had on the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The FDA is a regulatory system that was established in 1938 and created in order to manage and regulate standards related to food and drugs and to ensure that these standards are being followed by individuals and firms. The PDUFA was legislated in 1992 in order to provide more resources to the FDA through user fees. While the PDUFA was enacted in order to help the FDA process applications of new drugs and medicines and review standards more …

Hong Kong, Alvaro Harrison Hucker '22, Blake Barth '22, Philip Yi '22

Student Leadership Exchange (SLX)

The relationship between China and Hong Kong has been very tense for years ever since Britain allowed Hong Kong to become for 50 years in 1997, before the region would have to officially return to China. Knowing that their 50 years of having a self-governing body will end in 2047, Hong Kong citizens are constantly afraid of their rights. Now to add to the tension, China attempted to pass the Extradition Bill, which would have any citizen of Hong Kong, Taiwan, Macau who has committed a crime, be tried in China instead of where they live. This created an uproar …

Deindustrialization And Voting Behavior In Ohio Rust Belt Counties, Casey B. Craig

Digital Repository: Showcase of Undergraduate Research Excellence

No abstract provided.

Understanding Universal Coverage: An Overview Of Universal Health Care & Studies Of Real-World Implementations, Amanda Dombroski

Capstone Showcase

The purpose of this project is to dispel the confusion and misunderstandings surrounding universal health care coverage. To do this, I will identify the four models of universal health care identified by scholars - Beveridge, Bismarck, National Health Insurance, and Out-of-Pocket - and provided real-world examples of these health care systems in practice through analyses of health care in the United Kingdom, Germany, Canada. The Out-of-Pocket model is not analyzed in practice, given it does not allow for equal access for all to health care. Through the identification and evaluation of the four forms of universal health care coverage, I …

Criminals In Action: The Cia And The Crack Epidemic, Krystine O'Connor

Capstone Showcase

The Crack Epidemic hit the United States in the early years of the 1980’s. Crack was cheaper to produce and therefore cheaper to distribute. The Crack Epidemic disproportionately affected black communities and created long lasting issues that crippled many communities for decades to come. Incarceration rates, death rates, gang violence, fetal death rates and long term health effects rose dramatically between 1980- 1995. With the epidemic reaching its peak and its effects becoming unavoidable, communities struggled to find a reason as to how crack had gotten into the country and into their cities. In 1996 a small town journalist from …

Democratization In The Post Soviet Space: A Case Study Of The Republic Of Georgia And Ukraine, Serena Anton

Capstone Showcase

In the early 21^st century, public unrest grew in the post-Soviet spaces with many demanding better democracy for themselves. This period, known as the Color Revolutions, swept across the Post-Soviet space with democratic and anti-corruption reforms at the forefront of policy. Yet, almost two decades later, democratic consolidation has crawled to a standstill amongst the region with many states experiencing democratic backsliding. The Republic of Georgia and Ukraine represent an interesting paradox as both states seemed to have beat the impossible and have continued their journey of democracy despite the current atmosphere in the region. Through a controlled comparative …

"Your Enemy Is Anyone Who Opposes The Fourteen Words" Murdoch Murdoch: A Case Study In Presentations Of Threats To Ontological Security In Far Right Propaganda, Julian Morein

Capstone Showcase

Adapting the Ethnographic Discourse Analysis method developed by Stanton Wortham and Angela Reyes this thesis traces the language employed in the ethno-nationalist web series Murdoch Murdoch. While not as widely known as other examples of the burgeoning landscape of far-right internet content such as news sites like InfoWars or Brietbart, Murdoch Murdoch can still reveal crucial details about how far right propaganda seeks to radicalize its viewers. This thesis argues that Murdoch Murdoch uses its visual and discursive indexicals to present a near absolute dichotomy between a Positive Self that consists of white ethno-nationalism, and a Negative Other that …

International Policy And Climate Change-Induced Displacement Of South Pacific Island Nation Populations, Karissa Noragon

Capstone Showcase

Climate change has advanced significantly in the last few decades resulting in some of the predicted effects, such as sea level rise, to start to appear and to cause displacement, especially in more vulnerable, developing nations. Though current estimates have found that the majority of the displaced populations will be able to relocate within their country’s borders, there are some nations, such as many of the small island nations in the South Pacific, where internal relocation will not always be an option. The question that will be explored in this paper is, what are the limits to current international policy …

How News Media Coverage Of Crises Promotes Conspiracy Beliefs, Richard Kornrumpf, Adam Enders Phd

Posters-at-the-Capitol

While scholars of conspiracy theories have recently made great strides in understanding the basic nature and correlates of conspiratorial thinking, we still know little about how conspiracy beliefs are disseminated and communicated, especially when it comes to traditional media. In this instance, we use a unique experiment to investigate whether media coverage of mass shootings – complete with the uncertainty, conflicting reports, and dubious official narratives that characterize such coverage – provides the raw material for conspiracy theories and promotes conspiracy beliefs among viewers. We find that implicit conspiratorial information – that which causes confusion and foments uncertainty – does …

“Paying” The Way For A Better Bart Future: A Call For Better Enforcement Of Fare Evasion Policies And Strategic Planning At Bart, Ethan S. Tan

Creative Activity and Research Day - CARD

The Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) system has undoubtedly shaped the way the San Francisco Bay Area operates today. BART has molded itself to becoming a popular form of transportation for citizens of the area. However, numerous problems have arisen in recent years in regard to the overall “healthiness” of the BART system with its ex-aging fleet of trains, undertrained staff, lack of BART Police presence, rampant illegal drug use, etc. which has made BART unpopular with riders. The root cause of these problems through, is the lost revenue through “stolen” rides. At any one of BART’s 48 stations in …

Modernizing The Hermit Kingdom: Bridging The Economic And Cultural Gap Through Soft Power Diplomacy, Jane Son

Creative Activity and Research Day - CARD

Modernizing the “Hermit Kingdom”:

Bridging the Cultural and Economic Gap through Soft Power Diplomacy

Following the Korean War, the Republic of Korea embraced modernization and rose as an economic power while its Northern counterpart employed isolationist policies and acquired the name “Hermit Kingdom.” In recent years, however, the “Hermit Kingdom” is exhibiting potential for change in under the Kim Jong-Un regime. In the wake of continued economic strife, shifting East Asian political dynamics, and insecure power consolidation, Kim appeared in the international scene with a different attitude: eagerness for dialogue. Such change in Pyongyang’s political stance engenders renewed hope for …

A Comparison Of Two Methods Of Increasing Voter Turnout Among African Americans, Korriee De'vonne Green

Show Your Stripes Research and Creative Showcase

Many of the studies about minority voting are from the 1990s, and they effectively say neither representation nor redistricting affect turnout for African Americans. We hypothesized that making people politically aware is more likely to get them to vote rather than directly telling people to vote. There were 117 participants in this study, with ages ranging from seventeen to thirty-six. These groups were split into two populations: “Aware” and “Unaware”. Only 10% of the Unaware population voted because they were told to vote but the informed participants (Aware) were 71% more likely to vote (p<.01).

The Process Of Radicalization: Understanding The Road To Terrorism, Matt Slade

Student Scholar Showcase

This thesis attempted to create a better understanding of how the transition from Islamic and right-wing radicalization to violent terrorism occurs in Western countries. The hypothesis that was tested was that the greater level of radical actions an individual takes part in based on their extreme views, the greater likelihood that they will participate or attempt to participate in violent terrorism. There are eight fanatical behaviors that have to be combined with three contextual factors in order for a radical extremist to be pushed towards violence. This research added on to the Fanaticism school of thought that has been under-researched …

Syrian Refugee Camps In Jordan: An Assessment, Athena-Rose Jennings

Seaver College Research And Scholarly Achievement Symposium

Syrian Refugee Camps in Jordan: An Assessment explores how and why the Government of Jordan created camps to house its 670,000 Syrian refugees. Examining Jordan’s four Syrian refugee camps, Jennings considers to what extent their different operating models are effective and why. Metrics of camp effectiveness include degree and type of support from non-Government of Jordan humanitarian actors, the availability of education and medical care in the camps, and the degree to which camp residents themselves engage in the camp communities. She posits that using the camp model affords Jordan greater internal security, and influence over refugee matters internationally by …

An Exploration Of Iranian Use Of Gray Zones And Their Deterrence, Lauren Zimmerman, Amanda Urick

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Iran, being the religious minority in the Middle East, has begun to extend its reach outside of its borders by influencing the stability of other states within the region. They have been utilizing their economic revenue to fund terrorist organizations and cyber capabilities to threaten free use of the internet in the Middle East. Iran is the world's most active state sponsor of terrorism, but how do we deter them? Our paper will explore the history of deterring Iran and future possibilities.

Is Oil Nationalization For The Nation? The Causal Nature Of Institutional Impacts And Economic Hindrances Of The “Resource Curse”, Imani Sherrill

Creative Activity and Research Day - CARD

This thesis examines the theory of the “oil resource curse” and how structural, demographic, and economic variables presented by previous scholars and academics do not fully unpack the narrative and mechanisms of how the “resource curse” is developed. Different oil wealthy nations around the world have varying levels of development. Why? Adding to the existing literature of the Resource curse and Institutions, my hypothesis remains that through institutions that history has developed, mechanisms, such as oil nationalization lead to different varieties of the economic resource curse. Using a most-difference case scenario in a historical analysis, statistical and empirical data will …

Three Strikes Law: Penal Extremism And Draconian Rhetoric, Marcelo Swofford

Creative Activity and Research Day - CARD

In our modern political history, there has been a separation between the two main political parties, the Democrats and Republicans, on virtually every major issue that has surfaced in our society aside from incarceration, which was emphasized by Democrat Bill Clinton’s introduction of the Three Strikes Law at the beginning of his term in 1994. The logistics of the Three Strikes Law are that once a criminal has been convicted of two violent/serious crimes, once they are convicted of a third felony then they will be sentenced to anything between a 25 year sentence and life sentence; the Three Strikes …