Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Chinese Political Rhetoric And Ideology: Tension And Pretension, Israel Paredes

Honors Theses

This changing nature of the Chinese government’s ideology leads one to believe that its core beliefs are not dogmatic, despite the foundation for their ideology being rooted in specific societal and economic theories. Starting with Mao Zedong to modern day, the Chinese government officials will continue to support the original tenets (and, no doubt, future presidents’ additions to the tenets). However, the interpretation of their ideology over time is fluid and is used to support policies and actions during a political cycle. Chinese political leaders are unlikely to disagree with a past leaders, and will rather use their own interpretation …

Brain Drain In Mississippi, Clifford Adam Conner

Honors Theses

Brain drain is the out-migration of educated individuals from an area. It is a problem with which Mississippi is overly familiar. This thesis uses data gathered from a survey of 965 respondents to identify who is leaving the state and for what reasons. The data gathered suggest confirmation that brain drain is an issue for the state, with roughly two-thirds of respondents having left the state or seriously considering doing so. The impetus for this varies with each individual, but respondents underscore economic and societal factors within Mississippi as pushing them away from the state. Quality of life factors are …

The Politics Of Taxation: An Economic Analysis Of Politically Motivated Tariffs Placed On French Wine By The United States, Katelyn Hutson

Honors Theses

In this paper, I research the economic distortions caused by a 25% retaliatory tariff placed on French wine by the United States in October 2019. This tariff was enacted as retaliation for airline subsidies provided by various European countries to Airbus and was approved by the WTO as a valid compensation for the loss these subsidies caused to the American company Boeing. In order to view the correlation between fluctuations in US import quantities of French wine and the retaliatory tariff, I estimated the effect of the tariff on the wine market using linear regression analysis. Through this regression, I …

Crisis And Catalonia: An Analysis On The Impact Of Crisis On The Public Opinion Of The Secessionist Movement In Catalonia, Rachel Ducker

Honors Theses

Catalonia, the autonomous region of Spain has seen an increase in secessionist sentiments in recent years. While the past inclination toward independence has been centered on economic autonomy and cultural identity, there has been a recent emphasis on political independence, particularly in the times of crisis. In this thesis. I analyze the relationship between the economic changes during the period of a crisis and the public opinion about the potential Catalan secession. Specifically, it investigates the relationships between the economic change and public sentiment during the financial crisis of 2008, the political crisis of 2017, and the pandemic crisis of …

Liberté, Égalité, Manifester: Explaining The Yellow Vest Movement In France, Brady L. Cole

Honors Theses

Les Gilets Jaunes, or the yellow vests, is a movement of protestors that have had a large presence in France since 2018. Beginning as an online petition against French President Emmanuel Macron’s fuel tax hike, the movement has quickly amassed several hundred thousand protestors in Paris and other cities across the country. It is the objective of this thesis to examine potential reasons why 300,000 people have felt the need to protest throughout France, apart from the now rescinded fuel tax.

To this end, a sample of data from the Varieties of Democracy database was selected. These variables covered various …

Separate And Unequal: The Causes And Effects Of Economic Inequality In Our Communities, And What We Must Do About It, Jonathan Payne

Honors Theses

This project seeks to create a deep understanding of some of the key causes and effects of economic inequality. In it, I review a wide variety of research and reporting on inequality as well as interview people that have been impacted by inequality in my community, Oxford, Mississippi. This information, as a whole, is not meant to create a complete, comprehensive understanding of income and wealth inequality, which would be impossible. Instead, it is a meditation on the origins, cycles, outcomes and ethical implications of the phenomenon. In it, I contend that the vast majority of negative outcomes of inequality, …