Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Repetitive Negative Thinking Styles And First-Semester Academic Performance: Psychological Risk And Resilience Among Low-Income College Students., Darlene M. Davis

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

College students face significant mental health and academic challenges their first academic year. The college transition period can be stressful. In addition, students are increasingly endorsing anxious and depressive symptoms. Depressive and anxious symptoms are linked to repetitive negative thinking styles that present in college students, which contributes to academic interference. The first year of college can be challenging for students who are unable to adjust and adapt. Students who struggle and feel overwhelmed by life stressors experience psychological disruption that interferes with academic performance. Growing up in poverty has been associated with lower grade point averages and poorer graduation …

Making Occupations Possible? A Critical Analysis Of Social Assistance Policy In Ontario, Nedra R. Peter

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This thesis reports on a two-part study exploring the occupational possibilities of people receiving social assistance in Ontario. The research conducted in this thesis was guided by the research question: How does social assistance in the form of Ontario Works and the Ontario Disability Support Program influence occupational possibilities for adults living in poverty? Guided by a governmentality perspective, Laliberte Rudman (2010) proposes that social and political processes shape expectations and possibilities for occupations. Occupational possibilities refer to the occupations that are supported and promoted by various aspects of the broader systems and structures in which lives are lived (Laliberte …

Achieving Development In Destinations: Effects Of Tourism On Poverty, Inequality, And Quality Of Life, Jessica R. Linder

Theses and Dissertations

For decades, political scientists and development practitioners have focused on poverty and inequality alleviation, as well as increased quality of life as key goals for the field of development. Research focused on key concepts such as social capital and tools like microfinance and trickle-down tax structures for achieving these goals. Tourism, however, remained largely unstudied as a development tool, with most prior research focusing on sustainability and the economics of the industry. This study seeks to determine the effectiveness of tourism as a tool for development by examining its effects on poverty, inequality, and quality of life, as it becomes …

Drama, Low Wages, Fugitives, And Eviction: A Qualitative Analysis Of The American Underclass As Presented In Books And Trash Tv, Derrick Johns Jr.

Theses and Dissertations

Maury is a trash-talk television show that has presented American viewers with depictions of deceit, denials of paternity and portrayals of poverty since 1991. This thesis aims to qualitatively analyze Maury’s trashy televised depictions of the American underclass, and understand the differences between depictions of the American underclass based on immersive investigation and the way that Maury depicts the American underclass on a daytime trash-televised format.

Economic Pressure And Depressive Symptoms Among Latino Youth: The Role Of Control Beliefs And Family Obligation, Ashley Castro

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Latino youth in the United States experience high rates of both poverty and of depressive symptoms and disorders (CDC, 2012; DeNavas-Walt, Proctor, & Smith, 2014). According to the Adaptation to Poverty Related Stress model (APRS; Wadsworth, Raviv, Compas, & Connor-Smith, 2005), economic pressure is positively linked to adolescent depression via coping. Using a resilience perspective, the present study extends the APRS model by exploring the role that cultural values, namely family obligation, and control beliefs play in the relation between economic pressure and depressive symptoms for Latino youth. Participants in this study were 404 Latino children and adolescents (M …

Dropout Or Delinquent: An Ecological Analysis Of High School Attrition Rates In Correlation To Criminal Behavior, Mallory Kiley

Honors Theses

The high school student attrition rate in the United States is unexpectedly high. The purpose of this research is to demonstrate a correlation between high school non-completion and criminal arrest rates in order to establish the importance of improving the public school system in the country. I analyze dropout rates, crime rates, and demographic differences through an ecological study of the United States. States with high dropout rates also have high overall arrest rates, families living in poverty, and are more religious. These factors are particularly present across the Southeast United States as well as the Southwest, particularly those with …

Poverty In New York City: Consumption Expenditure As A Poverty Predictor, Michael Lomtevas

Student Theses and Dissertations

This thesis seeks to replicate the findings of a 2012 study published by Meyer and Sullivan in the Journal of Economic Perspectives using data provided by the Columbia University Longitudinal Wellness Survey. That study found that a poverty measure based on consumption predicted material hardship better than both the Official (OPM) and Supplemental Poverty Measures (SPM). This was found to be the case because a well-constructed consumption poverty measure (CPM) captures in-kind benefits that the OPM neglects. Such a measure also avoids issues inherent in the SPM that arise from respondents underreporting their income and includes the ability to consume …

Child-Headed Households In Rural Zimbabwe: Perceptions Of Shona Orphaned Children, Eucharia Gomba

Theses & Dissertations

This qualitative ethnographic case study explored the phenomenon of Child- Headed Households (CHHs) in rural Zimbabwe from the perspectives of a Shona community. My intention was to gain an understanding on how these children access necessities like food, clothing, shelter, education, health care, and cope on a daily basis without parental care, or adult supervision. The perceptions of both the orphaned children and the adults in their community were investigated through the integrative lens of the Shona philosophy of unhu, Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, and Bronfenbrenner’s ideas of systems. The findings of this study show that children from child-headed …

The Effects Of Food Security On Socioeconomic Mobility In The United States: A Case Study In Allendale County, South Carolina, Taylor St Clarke

Senior Theses

This thesis examines the relationship between food security – defined as accessibility to an affordable, nutritious, and sustainable source of food – and socioeconomic mobility in the continental United States. This thesis is primarily focused on the effects of food insecurity on both individuals and communities, examining the chronic long-term effects of such insecurity on areas known as “food deserts,” which are often given status as areas of persistent poverty. This research further examines the effects of a sustained poor diet, brought about by food insecurity, on the individual and overarching community in a food desert and how such a …

Assessing Cumulative Barriers To Transportation: An Integrated Framework Of Equity Analysis For Housing Choice Voucher Families In The Dallas Fort Worth Region, Myriam Igoufe

Public Affairs Dissertations

Transportation is said to be affordable if it does not consume more than fifteen percent of a household’s budget. The widespread normative threshold of transportation affordability, becomes increasingly problematic as households slide down the income spectrum. Most fundamentally, low-income households have vastly different financial capabilities to purchase transportation services, hence to travel. Yet, little is known about the financial capabilities of very-low income households, and the use of a normative cost-to-income-ratio-threshold of transportation affordability obscures our understanding of travel capacities, in monetary terms, of these populations. Failure to comprehensively conceptualize and evaluate transportation affordability inevitably inhibits the formulation of adequate …

Spatial Effects Of Foreign Direct Investment (Fdi) On Poverty Reduction In Colombia: A Mixed Methods Approach, Mayra Alejandra Yat Aguilar

Masters Theses

Foreign direct investment (FDI) has been identified as an important factor in stimulating economic growth and decreasing poverty. In particular, the relationship between FDI and economic growth has been extensively debated in the academic literature but with mixed results. Meanwhile, considerably less work has been done towards investigating the effects of FDI on poverty reduction. Evidence from the limited research linking on FDI and poverty levels is also mixed. Through a more comprehensive survey-based multi-scale method of assessing poverty, this empirical study investigates the contribution of FDI with respect to concurrent quantitative and qualitative assessment of changes in living standards …

Comparison Of Religious Problem-Solving Styles On The Use Of Problem-Focused And Maladaptive Emotion-Focused Coping Related To Financial Strain And Stress, Kirk A. Vander Molen

Dissertations

Poverty negatively impacts individuals and society as a whole in various ways, including emotional and physical health, relationships, education, crime, stress, and the economy (Adler & Ostrove, 1999; Anakwenze & Zuberi, 2013; Caplan & Schooler, 2007; Yoshikawa, Aber, & Beardslee, 2012). How people cope with the stress of poverty and engage with its causes and potential solutions impacts their capacity to survive, manage, and work toward improving their situation (Caplan & Schooler, 2007; Cohen & Wills, 1985; Santiago, Etter, Wadsworth, & Raviv, 2012). Problem-focused coping involves a person’s engagement to make plans, mobilize resources, and take action to manage or …

Poverty Through Simulation: Examining Concerns With Affordable Housing In Relation To The Cycle Of Poverty, Emily Mccaffrey

Community Engagement Student Work

This social justice-based project used evaluated the level of understanding that students of Endicott College had regarding poverty within the United States. This project provided a space for students to communicate with each other using discussion questions about poverty to guide the conversations. All students were given the chance to participate in an online simulation during class that provided them with an opportunity to live in someone else's shoes for thirty days, after losing their housing. This project was conducted with one traditional class setting while the other was conducted completely online using an online platform provided by Endicott. The …

Impacts Of Foreign Direct Investment (Fdi) On Rural Poverty In Developing Countries: The Case Of Mining Fdi In Ghana, Gabriel Adu

Major Papers

This study assesses the impacts of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the mining sector on rural poverty in Ghana. To this end, the study uses qualitative research techniques, and employs New Institutionalist and Marxist theoretical perspectives. The study notes that large-scale mining activities in Ghana have intensified with increased foreign capital involvement in the mining industry following the mining sector reforms in 1986. The study finds that whilst mining has the potential to reduce rural poverty by way of revenue generation, employment creation, and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), the weak institutional capacity in the country manifesting through the pro-investor mining …

Incarceration Rates And Single Motherhood, Ethan Zurbrugg, Colt Hall

Student Scholarship - College of Business

Traditionally, the family unit consists of a mother, a father, and one or more children. There are many instances throughout the United States where this traditional family structure is not found. One of these situations, the single motherhood situation, occurs when a father figure is absent and the mother has to provide for her children on her own. Could the lack of a father figure in a child’s life cause them to be more likely to break the law and become incarcerated? Is there a causation between a state’s single motherhood rate and their incarceration rate, or are the two …

Beyond The Reach Of The Safety Net: The Geography Of Social Service Provision In The Context Of Suburban Poverty, Christine Breit

Master's Theses

Poverty rates have risen across the United States since 2000, but the fastest growth in poverty is occurring in the suburbs (Berube and Kneebone 2013). Today, more poor people live in suburbs than cities (Berube and Kneebone 2013). Parallel to this increase in suburban poverty has been federal retrenchment in cash assistance in exchange for service-based assistance (Allard 2004). By and large, the federal government administers social service funds to state governments who then allocate the money to nonprofit entities. This reliance upon local providers creates an uneven patchwork of care (Peck 2008; Allard 2009; Berube and Kneebone 2013) as …

Generational Homelessness In New York City Family Homeless Shelters, Deborah Johnson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Homelessness has been a problem in New York City (NYC) for decades. Part of the problem is children who grew up in the shelter system and then returned as adults, a phenomenon known as 2nd-generation homelessness. Literature indicates that no researchers have interviewed second-generation homeless adults about their experiences. The purpose of this study was to explore the experience of 2nd-generation homelessness from the perspective of homeless adults returning to the shelter system. The sample included 1 second-generation homeless adult and 10 case managers at Tier II homeless shelters. Interviews were conducted and data were analyzed using hand coding to …

Cumulative Disadvantage, Poverty, And The Role Of Community Capitals: A Spatial Analysis Of Uneven Development In The Multi-State Delta Region, Katrina Danielle Alford

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Understanding space and how space impacts uneven development is crucial when examining inequalities within sociology. Uneven development perpetuates the segregation of space, highlighting disparities in power and inequalities that are rooted in spatial design and relations. Characteristics like geographic location and history have long-term influences on development, yet are not able to be easily changed within a community. Historical events have helped shape the successes and failures of communities, creating a "path dependence" that goes beyond any one individual's control. There are, however, locally-modifiable characteristics of people in spaces, such as human and social capital. These community capitals can be …

Essays On Transfer-Program Interactions Among Low-Income Households, Nicholas S. Moellman

Theses and Dissertations--Economics

This dissertation consists of three essays examining the role of transfer-program interactions for families and households who participate in the social safety net. The safety net is comprised of many different programs, run by different agencies, governed by different rules, and often administered by disparate and secluded entities. However, many households participate in multiple programs, subjecting them to the milieu of administrative hurdles. In this dissertation, I try to untangle some of the intended and unintended effects of program participation that may be experienced by these households.

In Essay 1, I examine the effect of the Patient Protection and Affordable …

Financial Inclusion In The City: Examining The Democratization Of Finance In Boston, Massachusetts, Jessa M. Loomis

Theses and Dissertations--Geography

This doctoral dissertation examines how the financialization of the economy affects the everyday lives of low and moderate-income (LMI) urban residents in the United States. Specifically, the research presented in this dissertation provides a critical examination of the democratization of finance by examining financial empowerment programs designed to promote financial inclusion for LMI residents in Boston, Massachusetts. These programs were created in the wake of the financial crisis to promote financial security by training participants to manage their debt, to monitor their credit scores, to avoid predatory lending, and to invest using mainstream financial products.

This research has two significant …

The Opportunity Cost Of Violence: An Analysis Of The Relationship Between Foreign Aid And Terrorism In Sub-Saharan Africa, Brendan T. Byrne

Senior Projects Spring 2018

Senior Project submitted to The Division of Social Studies of Bard College.

Locus Of Control, Poverty And Health Promoting Lifestyles, Cara Stephenson-Hunter

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Despite increased access to care and interventions aimed to change health behavior, socioeconomic health disparities have remained unchanged, even for preventable illness and disease. Health behavior theories and interventions heavily rely on perceptions of control over one's fate and thus ignore populations with low perceptions of personal control. Poverty is associated with an external locus of control (LOC), while both poverty and external LOC are associated with less health protective behavior. The purpose of this quantitative study was to explore the role of LOC as an adaptive response to poverty and to discover the risks and benefits to physical and …

A Multidimensional Poverty Index For The United States, Nate Kratzer

Theses and Dissertations--Public Policy and Administration

A multidimensional poverty index for the United States is designed, evaluated, and defended as a useful measurement tool for policymakers to evaluate poverty. Chapter 1 presents a normative case for the index. Chapter 2 reviews the literature on poverty measures. Chapter 3 constructs the proposed index. Chapter 4 is a statistical examination of the internal structure of the index. Chapter 5 explores the index across states, over time, and among population subgroups, as well as presenting policy applications.

The Role Of Conflict In Sub-Saharan Africa, Samy Lemos

CMC Senior Theses

Sub-Saharan Africa is the provider of many critical natural resources. With such resources, one would expect these countries to have thriving economies. Why is the opposite case true? To answer such a question, this paper examines a few critical causes that may justify the current economic situation these African countries are experiencing. Specifically, the paper observes the economic impact of civil war and terrorist conflict in sub-Saharan Africa from 1971 to 2016. To explore the changes in GDP per capita for all these years, this thesis sheds light on three independent variables: year of conflict, education level, and foreign direct …

The Responsibility To Prevent : Neocolonialism, Poverty And Mass Atrocity Crimes In Africa, Eileen Brino

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

The Responsibility to Protect principle was founded on the premise that sovereignty requires responsibility. The principle establishes the responsibility of states to protect their citizens from mass atrocity crimes and shifts the responsibility to the international community if states fail. This thesis explains how former colonies have had particular difficulty in meeting this responsibility and often fail to protect their populations from things like severe poverty and human rights abuses including mass atrocity crimes. In former colonies the matter of responsibility is complicated by the residual effects of colonial policies that often leave former colonies impoverished, dependent, socially fragmented and …

Banking For The Future: An Ethnographic Study On The Local Food Bank, Its Role On Food Justice, And Patron Perception, Edward Fernandez

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Food banks are antithetical to the food justice movement because they usually rely on government commodity surplus to alleviate need and promote notions of dependence through the charity model. This research examines Food for People, the only food bank in Humboldt County, within the context of local food security and patron perception using ethnographic observation, surveys, literature review, and interviews to generate data that would allow the food bank to fulfill its mission of ending hunger. Through ethnographic approaches, this thesis focuses on food security, what affects perception and actual food security in the context of food justice and food …

Who Really Controls Haiti's Destiny? An Examination Of Haiti's Historical Underdevelopment, Endless Poverty, And The Role Played By Non-Governmental Organizations (Ngos), Patrick Scheld

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

The presence of NGOs and development agencies is often considered an apolitical phenomenon, and that the very presence of NGOs within a country is a symbol of a global humanity in action; in short, NGOs equal charity which equals good work. Unfortunately, the reality is often much more complicated as NGOs can also be found to be self-serving, anti-democratic and strictly in pursuit of their next funding source. In this thesis I advance the central hypothesis that the international community’s continued pursuit of an NGO-led neoliberal economic development model has systematically failed to contribute to the sustainable development of Haiti …

Human Development And Subnationalism: A Disaggregated Analysis Of Indian States: Kerala And Uttar Pradesh, Manika Garg

CMC Senior Theses

This thesis investigates achievements in human development outcomes on health, education, and poverty indicators across Indian states, in order to discern what factors might influence a state’s better orientation toward social policies. After conducting data analysis, the study explains differences in outcomes, as achieved by Kerala and Uttar Pradesh, by building an argument of subnational solidarity and its impact on determining the state’s policy agendas.