Digital Commons Network^™

Does Reliance On Kin Erode With Market Integration? A Social Network Perspective, Ruizhe Liu

Anthropology ETDs

Kinship has long shaped human societies. Yet globalization and market integration (MI) are reshaping social structures. This dissertation investigates how kinship-based networks persist, adapt, or erode amid rapid socioeconomic change. It draws on ethnographic and social network data from 229 Mosuo households in southwest China, a matrilineal society experiencing increasing MI, to examine shifts in everyday cooperation.

The first study analyzes fixed name-generator data and finds a general decline in kin support as MI increases, though with considerable variation. The second study uses count models to explore unbounded support networks, showing that kin ties remain central in reproductive contexts, while …

Rural Perspectives On Design: A Citizens' Institute On Rural Design National Participant Study & Multimedia Research Exhibit, Sierra Mack-Erb

Student Research – Stevenson Center

Sierra Mack-Erb is a 2025 graduate of the Stevenson Center’s Applied Community and Economic Development Fellows Program at Illinois State University, earning their M.S. in Cultural Anthropology. This report summarizes their experience conducting capstone research during their second year professional practice with the Housing Assistance Council, a national nonprofit that supports affordable housing efforts throughout rural America, and overviews their graduate capstone research study. As a fellow at the Housing Assistance Council, Sierra spent significant time supporting the Citizens’ Institute on Rural Design, a national rural design program and the focal point of their capstone research study. CIRD is a …

Physical Activity Mediates Age Differences In Cognition Among Tsimane Forager-Horticulturalists, Phoebe E. Imms, Nikhil N. Chaudhari, Daniel Cummings, Daniel Eid Rodriguez, Giuseppe Barisano, Paul L. Hooper, M. Katherine Sayre, Edmond Seabright, Randall C. Thompson, M. Linda Sutherland, James D. Sutherland, Benjamin C. Trumble, Michael Gurven, Jonathan Stieglitz, Caleb E. Finch, Hillard S. Kaplan, Wendy J. Mack, Margaret Gatz, Andrei Irimia

ESI Publications

Background: The Tsimane and Moseten of the Bolivian Amazon are highly physically active and exhibit low rates of cognitive impairment and brain atrophy.

Methods: We use structural equation modelling to examine how their physical activity levels mediate the relationship between (1) age and cognition, and (2) age and cognition via brain volume (BV).

Results: Tsimane males (n = 305, mean ± SD age = 59.94 ± 9.68) and Tsimane females (n = 265, mean ± SD age = 59.28 ± 9.79) exhibit significantly higher levels of physical activity than Moseten males (n = 106, mean ± SD …

Rishon Le-ẒIyyon, Winepress Park: Geomorphology And Sedimentology, Joel Roskin, Yotam Asscher

Qadum: Journal of Excavation Reports from Israel

An extensive brown sandy double-unit sediment, draping large parts of the archaeological remains at the Winepress Park in Rishon Le-Ẓiyyon, is suggested to be associated with the previously reported, undated ʻEn Ha-Qore clay. Based on relative age port-OSL profiling, the depositional mechanism of this unit and the overlying sand is suggested to be related to late Holocene, dune-dammed winter ponds. These aeolian-fluvial dune-damming processes may have been partly triggered by intensive Byzantine human activity that may have led to sand mobilization.

Rishon Le-ẒIyyon, Winepress Park: The Coins, Helena Sokolov, Lior Sandberg

Qadum: Journal of Excavation Reports from Israel

The excavation at the Winepress Park in Rishon Le-Ẓiyyon uncovered 26 bronze coins, 22 of which were identified. The coins range in date from the fourth century CE to the Umayyad period. The earliest coin is of Constantius II, dated to 341–346 CE, while the latest coins are Umayyad Post-Reform issues. The coin data is consistent with the archaeological context of the excavation and confirms the excavator’s conclusion that the site can be dated to the period of the sixth–ninth centuries CE.

Rishon Le-ẒIyyon, Winepress Park: Early Islamic Pottery / ראשון לציון, גן הגיתות: ממצא כלי החרס מן התקופה האסלאמית הקדומה, Hagit Torgë

Qadum: Journal of Excavation Reports from Israel

The excavations at the Winepress Park in Rishon Le-Ẓiyyon uncovered a large pottery assemblage dated to the Early Islamic period. The assemblage was discovered in three squares, in clay soil that was exposed after the sand dune covering the site was removed. The repertoire included simple bowls, open cooking pots, jars, jugs, a flask and an oil lamp. Most of the vessels were simple household wares, suggesting that during this period the site was a rural, possibly isolated, farmstead. The absence of glazed or imported vessels may indicate the poor economic status of its inhabitants. While most of the vessels …

Rishon Le-ẒIyyon, Winepress Park: Byzantine Pottery / ראשון לציון, גן הגיתות: ממצא כלי חרס מן התקופה הביזנטית, Aviva Bouchenino, Ayelet Dayan

Qadum: Journal of Excavation Reports from Israel

The excavations at the Winepress Park in Rishon Le-Ẓiyyon uncovered a large pottery assemblage dated to the Byzantine period, including locally produced bowls, casseroles, cooking pots and bag-shaped jars, as well as bowls imported from Asia Minor, Cyprus and Tunisia. The rich and varied assemblage uncovered at the site, along with architectural remains, may indicate that this was a residential area—possibly a farmhouse inhabited by tenant farmers who operated the nearby winepresses. The pottery vessels served as a primary dating tool and contributed to establishing the site’s chronology. The ceramic finds, together with the numerous repairs identified in the winepresses, …

Rishon Le-ẒIyyon, Winepress Park: Remains Of Agricultural Activity From The Byzantine And Early Islamic Periods And Remains From The Ottoman Period And The British Mandate Era / ראשון לציון, גן הגיתות: שרידי פעילות חקלאית מהתקופות הביזנטית והאסלאמית הקדומה ושרידים מהתקופה העות'מאנית ומימי המנדט הבריטי, Ayelet Dayan, Aviva Bouchenino

Qadum: Journal of Excavation Reports from Israel

Five excavation seasons conducted in and around the archaeological Winepress Park in Rishon Le-Ẓiyyon uncovered the agricultural hinterland of a settlement active during the Byzantine and Early Islamic periods. The finds included architectural remains, three winepresses and several installations. The locally produced and imported domestic pottery from the Byzantine period suggests a residential zone—possibly a farmhouse—that likely served the tenants operating the nearby winepresses. The number and size of the winepresses indicate that wine production at the site was intended not only for local consumption but also for export. Activity at the site ceased during the Early Islamic period, when …

When Culture Becomes Law: Mayan Heritage And The New Constitutional Recognition Of Collective Rights In Mexico, José Israel Herrera, Victor Manuel Colli Ek

Journal of Maya Heritage

Abstract. The constitutional reform of September 30, 2024 to article 2 marks a substantive change in the recognition of indigenous peoples as subjects of public law, with their own patrimony, valid normative systems and express right to conserve, protect and develop their cultural, material and immaterial heritage. This article analyzes the legal implications of this reform in the context of the Maya people, especially with regard to collective intellectual property, the right to prior consultation and the constitutional recognition of bioculturality. A critical reading of the new normative framework is proposed, with emphasis on its transformative potential for the territorial …

Global Scale Assessment Of The Human-Induced Extinction Crisis Of Terrestrial Carnivores., Erik Joaquín Torres-Romero, Timothy M. Eppley, William J. Ripple, Thomas M. Newsome, Miha Krofel, Neil H. Carter, Andrés Ordiz, Tadeu G. De Oliveira, Nuria Selva, Vincenzo Penteriani

Anthropology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Human impacts on carnivores are a persistent conservation challenge worldwide. We present a global analysis showing the overlap of conservation lands and the cumulative impact of humans on the distribution ranges of 257 terrestrial carnivore species. Our findings reveal that 64% of carnivore ranges overlap with areas characterized by high human pressures. We found that Indigenous peoples' lands emerge as crucial for carnivore population viability, potentially safeguarding 26% of carnivore ranges globally, while protected and wilderness areas cover roughly 10 and 16% of carnivore ranges, respectively. These three areas combined cover 35% of the global range of carnivores. Reducing human …

Shoham: A Byzantine-Period Farmhouse (Monastery?) / שוהם: בית אחוזה (מנזר?) מן התקופה הביזנטית, Israel Kornfeld, Ayelet Dayan

Qadum: Journal of Excavation Reports from Israel

Two salvage excavation seasons conducted in the center of the Ḥamanyot neighborhood in Shoham uncovered the remains of a large building, adjacent tombs, a complex winepress and several additional agricultural installations, all dating to the Byzantine and Early Islamic periods (sixth–eighth centuries CE). The building can be identified as either a large farmhouse or a monastery. Its solid walls, agricultural installations and small finds—such as fragments of glass windows, a marble chancel-screen column and a marble table leg likely from an offering table—all indicate the presence of a church at the site, supporting the interpretation that the building functioned as …

Savoring The Seaweeds: Health And Sustainability Through Creole Foods, Roxanna Belleau

Ursidae: The Undergraduate Research Journal at the University of Northern Colorado

Incorporating kelp into American diets offers a promising avenue for enhancing nutrition and environmental sustainability. Despite its nutritional richness and ecological benefits as a "superfood" and carbon sink, cultural resistance presents a barrier to its widespread acceptance. This study delves into kelp's nutritional content and ecological advantages, exploring its potential to reshape dietary habits. Drawing insights from interviews and surveys, cultural norms emerge as a significant obstacle to kelp's integration into American cuisine. Strategies inspired by successful culinary adaptations, such as creole dishes, are proposed to navigate these challenges and shift societal perceptions. Furthermore, integrating kelp into familiar American foods …

Navigating Modernity: Hallyu, Religious Identity And Muslim Youth In Yogyakarta, Indonesia, Euiyoung Kyung

Student Works (2020-2029)

This study explores how young Indonesian Muslims navigate their religious identity while engaging with the global Hallyu (Korean Wave) phenomenon. In the world's largest Muslim-majority nation, Hallyu has created a vibrant youth subculture that has sparked social debate about the intersection of global cultural trends and Islamic values. Using ethnographic methodology, this research gathered data through in-depth interviews with 36 participants, participant observation of K-pop dance teams and events, and analysis of social media accounts including "Hijrah K-pop" and jogjakpopersmedia. The study reveals that women constitute the overwhelming majority of active participants, making this a predominantly female-centered phenomenon. The …

The Heritage Conversation Partners Project: Virtual Cultural Heritage Exchange In An Anthropology Course, Michael J. Kimball, Karin L. Bates, Miranda Bermudez, Liner Emilce Solarte Chourio, Amanda Consol

Journal of Community Engagement and Higher Education

We describe the structure, benefits, and challenges associated with a virtual cultural heritage exchange (VCHE) between undergraduate students in an applied anthropology class and a group of English language learners (ELL). Using qualitative data collection and analysis methods, the project aimed to teach anthropological methods and perspectives to the students while investigating three research questions: Will a VCHE (1) build social bonds and bridges, (2) improve English language acquisition, and (3) raise “heritage consciousness” (awareness and appreciation of, along with an associated sense of agency toward, cultural heritage) among participants? Results support the research questions and show the effectiveness of …

Syntax-Enhanced Boundary-Aware Named Entity Recognition Model, Chuanming Yu, Bin Deng, Zhengang Zhang

Journal of Scientific Information Research

[Purpose/significance] This study addresses the issue of inadequate perception of entity boundaries in traditional character-level modeling-based named entity recognition models by integrating syntax information containing entity boundary features into the task using a multi-head graph attention network with dense connections. This integration enhances the effectiveness of named entity recognition.

[Method/process] This study proposes a Syntax-enhanced Boundary-aware Named Entity Recognition Model (SynBNER), which utilizes BERT for text semantic representation and integrates syntax information using a dense-connected graph attention network. This integration incorporates implicit entity boundary information from syntax information into word representations, thereby enhancing the model's entity boundary perception capability.

[Result/conclusion] …

Justice Making, Justice Spaces And Justice Users, Dean D' Cruz, Reboni Saha, Siddhrath Peter De Souza, Varsha Aithala, Naomi Jose, Sharada Kerkar

Books

This insightful book reimagines how justice systems can be reshaped to better serve the needs of people—especially those who are disadvantaged. Focusing on public spaces in Goa—courtrooms, police stations, protest sites, and classrooms—it asks how these spaces are structured, and what must change for them to truly support those seeking justice.

Drawing on insights from practitioners, activists, and researchers, the authors explore how ordinary people relate to these spaces and the barriers they face. Through grounded case studies and theoretical reflections, the chapters of this work offer a wider commentary on how we might design justice systems that are more …

Global Studies Initiative Faculty Report: Anthropology 101 Course Redesign, Lauren Anaya

Global Studies Initiatives in Arts and Sciences 2025

No abstract provided.

Global Studies Initiative Faculty Report: Anthropology 103 Course Redesign, Sarah Latham

Global Studies Initiatives in Arts and Sciences 2025

No abstract provided.

Editing Japan: Pornography Commentary As Postcolonial Revenge In China's Digital Sphere, Yichi Zhang

Theses and Dissertations

This study examines how Chinese male audiences reconstruct postcolonial masculinity through the consumption and reinterpretation of Japanese pornography. By analyzing commentary videos produced by "Team Strawberry," I argue that this phenomenon constitutes a symbolic revenge against Japan's historical dominance. Through degrading Japanese female performers and mocking Japanese culture and male actors, Chinese viewers invert colonial hierarchies, transforming sexual consumption into a nationalist project. However, this mimicry of colonial violence ultimately reinforces patriarchal structures rather than subverting them, while also framing nationalism through sexual conquest that mimics collective historical trauma. The re-editing and mocking of Japanese pornography by Chinese content creators …

Hunter-Gatherer Subsistence Strategies In Changing Environments In Prehistoric Mindoro, Philippines, Alfred Ferdinand F. Pawlik

Sociology & Anthropology Department Faculty Publications

As an archipelago straddling two distinct biogeographic zones, Sunda and Wallacea, the Philippines have acted as a conduit for the movements of people, material culture and ideas across Southeast Asia throughout prehistory. The Mindoro Archaeology Project investigates several caves and rockshelters from the late Pleistocene and early Holocene, located in Sta. Teresa and Ilin Island in Occidental Mindoro on the southern end of Mindoro and explores the deep history of the first anatomically modern humans in the Philippines, the timeline of their arrival and dispersal, and their adaptation to coastal and island environments. By at least 40,000 years ago, anatomically …

A Spatial Examination Of Colonial Anglican Landscapes In The South Carolina Lowcountry, Madeleine Paige Blaze

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis project will focus on the early colonial landscape of the South Carolina Lowcountry to analyze the placement of Anglican churches that were built between 1700 and 1730. My research will expand on previous analysis of the Anglican landscape to incorporate additional components that will aid in a better understanding of regional organization. To do so, I will incorporate a landscape archaeology theoretical frame that will allow my research questions to be explored. This project will also include GIS analysis to examine spatial visualizations, navigation paths, and colonial relationships to understand the Church’s early interactions with and on the …

Extractivism And Water Crisis In The Moroccan Draa Oasis: Global South Reflections On Responsibility And Resistance, Ahmed El Khatabi

Journal of Maya Heritage

Abstract. The Draa Oasis in southeastern Morocco is experiencing severe water scarcity, driven by climate change and intensified by the expansion of watermelon agribusiness and desert tourism. This article explores how external investors, empowered by national agricultural policies, have disrupted traditional water governance systems rooted in collective management. Through ethnographic fieldwork involving interviews, focus groups, and spatial mapping, the study examines the socio-environmental consequences of groundwater depletion and land commodification. It argues that investors fail to assume ethical accountability for the ecological degradation they cause, despite being aware of the oasis’s fragile ecosystem. Meanwhile, local communities and civil society actors …

Vulnerabilidad Socioambiental A Inundaciones En Dos Humedales De San Cristóbal De Las Casas, Chiapas, México, Ender Fabian Toledo Alcázar, Salvador Adame Martínez, Marcelino García Benítez

Journal of Maya Heritage

Abstract

This study encompasses the following urban wetlands: "La Kisst," situated in the city center, and "María Eugenia," located in the southern part of the city of San Cristóbal de las Casas. There are four wetlands within the municipality, all of which have been protected as natural areas by a Ramsar decree since 2008. The research aims to assess the socio-environmental vulnerability of the two wetlands using indicators in the environmental, social, and legal dimensions, thereby establishing the degree of vulnerability of the urban population exposed to flooding. The methodological process is defined by the proposal of CENAPRED, which establishes …

Living Heritage, Resilience And Ethically Informed Infrastructures In Malawi, Martha B. Lerski, Frank Puluputu Mwale

Publications and Research

Rooted in a rural community’s needs, this paper explores how historically, and ethically informed infrastructures can support community engagement towards identification, documentation, and dissemination of local, traditional, and indigenous knowledge relating to climate change. The paper examines climate adaptation and sustainability issues through the lenses of community organizing and Library & Information Science best practices. It draws on a growing body of literature identifying a role for expanded epistemological and subject discipline perspectives. While the impacts of climate on material culture are increasingly recognized, intangible, and biocultural heritage have not received as much attention. Living heritage traditions and knowledge systems …

Customer Lifetime Value: Dimensionalities And Conceptual Connections, Sharmistha Bhattacharyya, Mrinmoy Kumar Sarma

Markets, Globalization & Development Review

Customer Lifetime Value (CLV) has a strong relationship to customer satisfaction and firm profitability . This review indicates that once such a relationship is developed and cemented, multiple benefits accrue to the brand and the firm. The review lays the groundwork for further studies of CLV, especially in the emerging economies.

Global Trends In Youth Employment: Key Statistics And Cultural Commentary, Anatolii Mazaraki, Tetiana Melnyk, Oksana Losheniuk

Markets, Globalization & Development Review

The issue of youth employment receives constant attention of global organizations, governments, and researchers. Young people have the potential to positively reshape the national and global economies. Furthermore, the youth also constantly reshape the social, cultural, technological, and political environments. Global unemployment rate among youth, however, is three times higher than among older workers. In 2023, one in five young people did not work, study, or acquire professional skills. The negative factors of the Ukrainian youth labor market have been significantly exacerbated by the war, which has caused an economic crisis in the country, a huge migration of young people, …

Institutions: Facilitators Or Detractors Of Development?, Nikhilesh Dholakia, Deniz Atik, Zeynep Ozdamar Ertekin, Delphine Godefroit-Winkel

Markets, Globalization & Development Review

No abstract provided.

Untangling The Threads Of Hope: A Qualitative Media Analysis Of Discourse Relating To Futures For Sickle Cell Disease, Amanda R. Malerba

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Sickle cell disease (SCD) is the most common inherited blood disorder worldwide, with a disproportionate burden on people of African ancestry. Life with this illness is characterized by chronic physical pain, overlapping health conditions, and often early death. In the United States, the physical symptoms of the disease are frequently compounded by experiences of racial inequality and oppression embedded in the medical system that contribute to detrimental outcomes. Because of the complex biocultural web of factors contributing to the suffering of people with SCD, much of the anthropological scholarship surrounding this illness prioritizes deconstructing systems of power, oppression, and inequality. …

Research Proposal: Complex Relationship Of Religious Community, Psychological Health, And Socioeconomic Status Of Spanish Speaking Residents Ages 18-50 In Lynchburg, Va, Faith Park

NEXUS: The Liberty Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies

Previous research has shown a clear quantitative correlation between socioeconomic status and religious gatherings as well as psychological health and religious gatherings. However, there have been few studies on the interconnectedness of mental health, socioeconomic stability, and religious identity and gathering. Research thus has not addressed the personal implications and the benefits of individual perspectives that can be offered through a qualitative methodology. Thus, this research proposes an ethnographic methodology which may provide insights that do not limit the subjectivity of mental health, religious experiences, and socioeconomic struggles.Through an integration of psychology, anthropology, and sociology, the proposed research hopes to …

Making Space For Our Own Rhythms, Lauren Mark Dr.

Feminist Pedagogy

This original teaching activity invites students to investigate dominant influences on enacted daily rhythms to arrive at a clearer understanding of their own rhythms and those around them. Students are guided to somatically sense habitual rhythms and understand how habits of accent collectively form to hold us together. Through a two-part activity, involving large group interaction and paired observation, students explore degrees of releasing or withholding natural rhythmic impulses through concession to or freedom within group rhythms and when navigating online platforms. The aim is to explore desired emotional arcs of how experiences might unfold.