Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Social And Human Capital: The Determinants Of Economic Integration Of South Asian Immigrants In Canada, Muhammed M. Raza

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

ABSTARCT

The labor market outcomes of immigrants have been a primary focus of the research to comprehend the integration of immigrants inCanada. The focus of the research is largely on human capital approaches for the investigation of the earnings of immigrants. This thesis takes a distinct approach in three ways: first, unlike traditional research that compares the earnings of immigrants with native born of the same ethnic/racial groups or with white native born population, the dissertation compares the earnings of visible minority immigrants with non-visible minority immigrants. Comparing across foreign born populations is important to neutralize the impact of exposure …

Gender Neutral? An Empirical Test Of Life-Course Theories Of Criminal Behaviour, Jennie M. Thompson

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The current study systematically assesses four mainstream theories – General Theory of Crime, Interactional Theory, Dual Taxonomy, and Age-graded Theory of Informal Social control – of criminal behaviour over the life-course; while examining the role of gender and several measures argued to be important in explaining the criminal behaviour of women. This study also explores both the within- and between-person variance (i.e., the role of population heterogeneity) and lag effects (i.e., the role of state dependence) in explaining the criminal behaviour. Random-Effects Negative Binomial Models were used to predict both serious and non-serious criminal behaviour over the life-course using panel …

Biopolitics Of Climate Change: Carbon Commodities, Environmental Profanations, And The Lost Innocence Of Use-Value, Emanuele Leonardi

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The analytical core of this study is the historical development of the relationship between nature and the capitalist mode of production. In particular, we aim at shedding light on the process through which the “grammar” of ecological crisis (and consequently of its possible solutions) turned into an exclusively economic one. In addressing this issue we discuss the successive problematisations of the environment that took place since the emergence of biopolitical governmentality (late Eighteenth century). Following Foucault's intuition, and supplementing it with aspects of Marxist analysis, we argue for a profound transformation – based on a crucial leap of abstraction – …

The When (And How) Of Intergroup Competition And Discrimination: Distinguishing The Contributions Of Competitive Perceptions And Motivations, Matthew A. Maxwell-Smith

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A new framework is proposed to examine the effects of intergroup competition on discrimination by assessing the influence of participants’ subjective construal of potentially competitive events. It posits that competitive intergroup perceptions (CIP; the perception that one’s ingroup and another group(s) are attempting to gain a reward or desired outcome at the expense of each other) and competitive intergroup motivations (CIM; the desire for one’s ingroup to acquire more of a reward than the other group(s)) are related but distinct constructs. This distinction implies that CIP and CIM should be strongly related, but not to the point of suggesting they …

Ascertaining The Impact Of Relativism On Moral Reasoning, Claire B. Henderson

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This research project is part on an ongoing effort in the social sciences to expand the understanding of those factors that may influence and promote moral development. Based on Lawrence Kohlberg’s developmental theory of moral reasoning, the main focus of the current study concerns the exploration of the relationship between moral reasoning and relativistic attitudes.

B-type moral reasoning is a more mature and developed form of reasoning at each of Kohlberg’s Stages 2 through 5. Hypotheses regarding the positive associations between the frequency of its use and scores on measures of relativism, equity, empathy, and open-mindedness were generated. Of the …

A Taste For Distinction: Food Representations In Popular Canadian Magazines, Rory A. Davis

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This study uses an exploratory approach to analyze the content of seventy-two individual lifestyle magazines, covering the 2010-2011 monthly publication periods for Chatelaine, Canadian Living and Reader’s Digest. Food content therein is approached from two broad, non-mutually exclusive modes of consumption. The broad-spectrum category of distinction is used to classify food content pertaining to identity, conspicuous consumption, and co-optation. Co-optation is used in a narrow sense to identify the usage of terms reflecting ‘localness’, ‘realness’, and ‘artisanry’. The plundering of these terms by mass marketers acts as a foil to the second broad-spectrum category, ethical food consumption. Ethical consumption as …

The Cross-Border Migrant Experience In Lang Son Province, Northern Viet Nam, Donald Hickerson

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The crossing of national borders between nations of the developing world provides opportunities for the poor who seek sources of livelihood, while putting migrants, especially women migrants, at risk of exploitation and abuse. It is against the backdrop of these contradictory effects of migration for poor women that this thesis examines the experiences of a group of daily cross-border migrant women in northern Viet Nam. The study focuses on the role of networks in their lives. Based on 22 in-depth interviews with Vietnamese women migrants who work at the Viet Nam-China border region, I develop an analytical framework that seeks …

Health Implications Of A Delayed Transition Into Adulthood, Lisa K. Zaporzan

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This thesis considers mental and physical health outcomes experienced by young adults who live in their parents’ home during young adulthood. The life course perspective suggests that this “off-time” transition may lead to stigmatization and stress, and subsequently, health problems. This research uses the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health), a nationally representative longitudinal sample of adolescents living in the United States. Wave four was primarily used, during which respondents are between 25-34 years of age (N=2776).

Although living with parents did not significantly increase CES-D or BMI, findings suggest CES-D was affected for those who have physical …

"Proving Yourself" In The Canadian Medical Profession: Gender And The Experiences Of Foreign-Trained Doctors In Medical Practices, Vanessa Noelle Dolishny

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In recent years the medical profession has become feminized. Additionally, there has been an increased representation of foreign-trained professionals in the Canadian medical profession; many of which are women. Thus, there is a significant number of female medical practitioners who are foreign-born and foreign-trained. This demographic faces many barriers, which are often characterized as a “double disadvantage”. This paper investigates the experiences of foreign-trained medical professionals once they have gained access to the profession and whether the feminization of medicine has impacted the experiences of these individuals. Immigrant status was found to be highly significant to one’s experiences in the …

“Winds Of Change”: Explaining Support For Wind Energy Developments In Ontario, Canada, Chad Jr Walker

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This thesis addresses a major gap in the wind turbine and risk assessment literatures. It explains local support for wind energy in some areas in spite of vocal opposition in others. Findings from Port Burwell and Clear Creek, Ontario indicate that social and contextual forces may help explain much of the difference in opinion between the two communities. The case study was focused through 21 in-depth interviews. The interviews were analyzed verbatim using NVIVO 9 software. The findings were found to be consistent with Kasperson’s theory of the Social Amplification of Risk and seem to explain why Port Burwell is …

Intimate Partner Violence (Ipv) And The Social Determinants Of Aboriginal Peoples’ Health: A Case Study Of First Nations Women’S Resilience, Resistance, And Renewal, Julie A. George

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Worldwide, First Nations women are among the most vulnerable to Intimate Partner Violence (IPV); and yet, their lived experiences of violence are lacking in the literature. Using Photovoice methodology and a community-based, participatory action approach, this project addresses multiple questions pertaining to First Nations mothers’ experiences of IPV, including: What are the health and social consequences of IPV and how do the social determinants of Aboriginal peoples’ health shape the capacities of women survivors to manage and overcome IPV? Drawing on decolonization theory, a social determinants of Aboriginal peoples’ health framework, and aspects of feminist theory, this project was designed …

Communicating Crimes: Covering Gangs In Contemporary Canadian Journalism, Chris Richardson

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

In this integrated-article dissertation, I examine representations of gangs in Canadian journalism, focusing primarily on contemporary newspaper reporting. While the term “gang” often refers to violent groups of young urban males, it can also signify outlaw bikers, organized crime, terrorist cells, non-criminal social groups, and a wide array of other collectives. I build on Pierre Bourdieu’s theoretical framework to probe this ambiguity, seeking to provide context and critical assessments that will improve crime reporting and its reception. In the course of my work, I examine how popular films like West Side Story inform journalists’ descriptions of gangs. Though reporters have …

Do Women Engage In Self-Protection Because Of Violence Generally Or Sexual Violence Specifically? An Analysis Based On The 2009 General Social Survey, Pamela R. Glatt

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Using data from the 2009 General Social Survey on victimization, this study examines the relationship between Canadian women’s past experiences of sexual and physical victimization within the past five years and their subsequent engagement in self-protective behaviour. Self-protective behaviour is divided into three categories, including self-defense class enrollment, weapon carrying and overall protection (combines self-defense class and weapons). Three hypotheses are examined. Firstly, this study looks at whether women who have been victimized (regardless of type) are more likely to practice self-protective behaviour than their non-victim counterparts. Then, within the victims-only group, this study looks at whether women who have …

A Life Course Investigation Of The Differences In Psychological Distress Of Mothers By Family Structure Trajectories, Jason Novick

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The purpose of this thesis is to examine the relationships between family structure, employment patterns, and mental health among mothers using the life course perspective. The Single Parent Family Data Set conducted in London, Ontario, Canada by Avison et al. (2008) is used for this research. The sample consists of 349 single mothers and 430 married mothers. The Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D) is used as a measure of psychological distress. This thesis reveals significant differences in levels of psychological distress by family structure trajectory. In addition, the employment patterns of single mothers are more likely to be …

Flexible Workplace Practices In Small It Firms: A Multiple Case Study, Catherine E. Gordon

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Flexible workplace practices (FWPs), such as flex-time and working from home, facilitate employees’ work-life balance or integration and enhance their quality of work. Yet, their use is constrained by time-oriented and gendered workplace cultures. Typically past research involves either a quantitative analysis of individual-level data or a qualitative examination of a single large firm. Meanwhile inCanada, small businesses (with less than 100 employees) employ 48 percent of the total labour force in the private sector (IndustryCanada, 2010). In this dissertation, I investigate the FWPs available and used at small information technology (IT) firms. Cross-firm comparisons are made with respect to …

Aesthetic Labour At The Coffee Shop: Exploring Young Workers' Perceptions Of The Service Encounter, Diana Judit Szabo

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Using qualitative data gathered from in-depth interviews, this research aims to elucidate how young coffeehouse baristas experience the service encounter. As "aesthetic labourers," baristas are hypothesized to possess a certain level of embodied capital, which empowers them in their interactions with customers. However, many young interactive service workers are stopgap workers who do not intend to make careers out of their part-time jobs. How does their unique position in the labour market influence the ways in which these workers experience employment in the lower tier of the service sector? The findings suggest that age and class intersect in the coffeehouse …

Identity Formation And Acculturation: The Case Of Karen Refugees In London, Ontario, Secil Erdogan

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Refugees resettling in new societies may be at greater risk of experiencing identity problems, such as identity distress, crisis and its resolution, than are their non-immigrant peers. However, the formation and resolution of identity in refugees and its relationship to their acculturation preferences have not been fully considered in mainstream identity theories and empirical studies. This study, first, explored identity (re)formation and resolution of fifty Karen refugees who were resettled in London, Canada. Fifty non-refugee Canadians served as comparisons. Secondly, the acculturation attitudes of Karen refugees were examined. Lastly, the relationship between identity and acculturation process was explored.

The findings …

Underemployment, Unemployment, And Mental Health, Heather L. Maddocks

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Inadequate employment, through unemployment or underemployment is expected to have consequences for the health and well-being of Canadians. This dissertation presents three studies centered on the relationship between underemployment and mental health. In the first study, ideal indicators for underemployment are described, and the stress process model is proposed as a theoretical framework for understanding the relationship between underemployment and adverse health outcomes. The second and third studies use data from a community-based survey conducted in London, Ontario, Canada in 1994/5 and 1996/7. Four indicators of underemployment are used including: lower income or benefits than in a previous job, involuntary …

Heavy Handed: A Multi-Level Approach To Understanding Regional Variation In The Use Of Force By Police, Zachary R. Young

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Using data from the Survey of Inmates in State and Federal Correctional Facilities, 2004 (ICPSR 4572) from the United States Department of Justice Bureau of Justice Statistics, the goal of this paper is to determine whether or not there are regional variations in the way in which American police officers use force at the time of arrest. Specifically, this paper suggests that lower levels of police-suspect violence are present in the Southern United States owning to a culture of violence. Conversely, higher levels of police-suspect violence are likely to be found in the Northern United States as a result of …

The Changing Nature Of Homicide And Its Impact On Homicide Clearance Rates: A Quantitative Analysis Of Two Trends From 1984-2009, Lauren Korosec

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The following analyses uses the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) Supplementary Homicide Report (SHR) data from 1984 to 2009 to examine factors that predict whether a homicide will be cleared or not (N=439,542). Two theories inform the current study: 1) Black’s theory of law (discretionary variables) proposes that characteristics of the victim, such as age or race, influence how diligently police work to solve a homicide; and 2) non-discretionary theories propose that characteristics of the homicide act, such as geographic location and weapon use, are more important to the solvability of a homicide. Preliminary analyses of clearance rates indicate decreasing …

The Aftermath Of Intergenerational Trauma: Substance Use Risk And Resiliency, Laurel E. Pickel

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The present study explored resilience factors to substance use within Canada’s First Nations adults. This was explored through a lens of historical trauma experienced as a group through the Residential School establishments. Secondary data from phase II (2008/10) of the Regional Health Survey were analyzed in coming to determine the effects of resiliency factors in the lives of abstainers/low substance users, moderate users and heavy users. Analysis of variance tests revealed some significant differences in experience with resilience factors in the lives of abstainers/low users versus heavy users; no significant observations were had for the moderate group. Logistic regression analysis …

The Transformation Of Conjugal Partnerships: Union Transitions And Trajectories In Canada, Ching Jiangqin Du

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Conjugal partnerships have undergone unprecedented changes in Canadathroughout the past several decades, especially with regard to the flexibility in entry and exit from intimate relationships. The development of longitudinal datasets and advanced methods further facilitates analyses of partnership transformations from a life-course theoretical perspective and in a wide analytical scope. This dissertation investigates partnership transformations in Canadaby examining conjugal partnership trajectories and by exploring the risk factors associated with these partnership transformations.

Employing dynamic analytical approaches (e.g., LIFEHIST analysis and survival analysis), this dissertation examines data from the retrospective General Social Survey (GSS) on Family Transitions, conducted by Statistics Canada …