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Three Years Of Abrahamic Accords: A Contemporary Episode Of False Peace, Wael Abdelhafez

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The Abrahamic Accords mark the latest phase in the peace negotiation efforts concerning the Arab-Israeli conflict. Through diplomatic maneuvers, temptations, and promises, the United States managed to persuade four Arab countries to depart from the principles of the Arab Initiative and instead sign the Abrahamic Accords, establishing full normalization treaties with Israel. Many other countries and significant powers maintain divergent perspectives on the Abrahamic Accords. After three years, The Accords offer numerous potential economic, security, and strategic benefits, with Israel standing to gain the lion's share. This thesis explores the connection between the Frustration-Aggression Theory and the ongoing violence in …

Resource Wealth And Micro-Insurgency Duration, Michael Trevett

Dissertations

Why are some insurgencies small in scale but long-term in duration, particularly those involving natural resource wealth? This dissertation identifies and defines a specific type of intrastate conflict, the micro-insurgency. I then examine how and why micro-insurgencies fought over natural resources are almost always very long-term conflicts, often lasting decades. Two data sets from previous research, one by Michael Ross and the other by Paul Collier and Anke Hoeffler, are refined and then analyzed and tested using Fuzzy set Qualitative Comparative Analysis (FsQCA). Findings from the FsQCA testing and analysis reveal that ancestral lands and actual, or existing and exploitable, …

Muslim International Students’ Perception Of Islamophobia In Their Immigration Journey To The U.S.: A Case Study, Sheri Beyer

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

This study serves as an impetus for universities to address improving pre-arrival services and procedures for Muslim international students and a resource for practitioners and lawmakers to examine current policies specifically through the lens of Critical Race and Critical Muslim Theory. Policymakers can examine the effects of Islamophobia on international students and how it affects higher education, communities, and the economies.

Breaking The Mold: Voters’ Perceptions Of Femininity In Campaigns, Margaret E. Ulrich

Political Science Honors Projects

I designed a two pronged study to explore the relationship between femininity in candidate self- presentation and voter perception. First, I presented a sample of U.S. voters a series of images featuring either feminine or non-feminine female professionals. I then selected two images from this study to design two faux print political advertisements, one featuring a feminine candidate and one featuring a non-feminine candidate to establish a treatment and control condition featuring similarly “attractive” candidates. Then, I showed a quasi-representative sample of 540 potential U.S. voters one of these faux political advertisements and asked a series of questions regarding the …

“This Is Not A Game:” Exploring Qanon Conspiracy As An Arg Through The Lens Of Theodor Adorno, Corbin Poyer

Departmental Honors & Graduate Capstone Projects

Since 2017, an insidious conspiracy theory has spawned and spread across various internet forums and social media platforms. Named QAnon (often shortened to simply "Q"), this conspiracy exists as a "catch-all" conspiracy with an inherently ambiguous set of core beliefs and ever-changing end goal surrounding a mythical event named "The Storm," a period of civil unrest that ends with the purported cabals prevalent in the American government being brought to justice and the heroic Q-adherents being placed in positions of power. However, this "Storm" has yet to occur, highlighting the myriad of non-occurring events and claims that, logically, should have …

Which War Stories Get Told? How The Identifiability Of Villains And Victims Impacts Media Coverage Of Conflicts, Anna D. Sène

Political Science Honors Projects

In the last decade, armed conflicts have been proliferating around the world. While most conflicts still get covered in the mass media, some have received more international attention than others. This disparity in attention can affect the resolution of conflicts and the support victims can get to rebuild their lives. This study seeks to answer the question of why some armed conflicts receive more media coverage than others. I hypothesize that journalists cover conflicts with clearer victims and villains more than conflicts with more vague victims and villains, because clear victims and villains provide stronger narrative frames and fewer actors …

Charge The Cockpit Or Die: An Anatomy Of Fear-Driven Political Rhetoric In American Conservatism, Daniel Hostetter

Senior Honors Theses

Subthreshold negative emotions have superseded conscious reason as the initial and strongest motivators of political behavior. Political neuroscience uses the concepts of negativity bias and terror management theory to explore why fear-driven rhetoric plays such an outsized role in determining human political actions. These mechanisms of human anthropology are explored by competing explanations from biblical and evolutionary scholars who attempt to understand their contribution to human vulnerabilities to fear. When these mechanisms are observed in fear-driven political rhetoric, three common characteristics emerge: exaggerated threat, tribal combat, and religious apocalypse, which provide a new framework for explaining how modern populist leaders …

How Generation Z Canceled The United States Government: An Analysis Of Trust, Corrine Hofmann

Politics Honors Papers

Gen Z, the generation of Americans born between 1997-2012, is notable for its lack of trust in political institutions. While older generations have dismissed members of Gen Z as “cynical,” “lazy,” and “argumentative,” it is important to understand the sources behind Gen Z’s lack of trust in government. Using data from the American National Election Survey, this thesis presents an empirical analysis of nine macro- and micro-level concepts that could account for this lack of trust: 1) Gender 2) Race 3) Education 4) Income 5) Religiosity 6) Congressional Approval 7) Media Consumption 8) Economy 9) and Party Identification. Only party …

Is No News Good News?: Exploring The Impact Of Social Media Use On Misinformation Beliefs, Corbin Poyer

Departmental Honors & Graduate Capstone Projects

Does diminishing access to print news have an impact on people’s propensity to believe misinformation? What if this misinformation emanates from an online source as opposed to a print source? The focus of recent research on misinformation has been narrow: (1) recognizing its existence and acknowledging its potential impact, and (2) generating and categorizing potential analytical types of misinformation. However, the ramifications of vanishing print media have so far been overlooked. This paper asserts a connection between news sources and misinformation beliefs, further positing that the decline in the quality and availability of quality print journalism predicates an individual’s belief …

China: A Settler Colonial Empire?, Kaleb Horne

Helm's School of Government Conference - 2021-2024

China’s rapid expansion is a growing concern to many in the West, yet the history and pattern of its meteoric rise is deeply misunderstood. Surprisingly, its rise may be similar to that of many Western states. This paper will examine a constellation of China’s territorial and cultural expansions. Furthermore, it will examine ongoing and future expansions of the Chinese empire. It will examine Chinese actions in Tibet, the Yunnan Province, the Guizhou Province, Taiwan, the Belt and Road Initiative, and examine China’s ongoing treatment of Uyghur Muslims. These subjects will also be qualitatively compared to settler colonial theories, as described …

An Analysis Of The Abortion Fight's History, Facts, And Strategies In A Post-Roe V. Wade World, Jeremy Kang

Helm's School of Government Conference - 2021-2024

Despite the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision reversing Roe v. Wade - thereby giving states the freedom to regulate abortion as they saw fit - no significant decline in abortion numbers followed, raising the question: what is the right way to fight abortion?

One factor to be considered: how does the Constitution permit the different levels of government to tackle this topic? For half a century the Roe decision allowed the federal government to trump a state’s right to choose the level of abortion restrictions it deemed fit. Now the decision has been returned to the states. But which decision was …

Trump's 2016 Election Win: Why He Owes It To Jesus, Margaret Jones

Departmental Honors & Graduate Capstone Projects

The election of Donald J. Trump in 2016 was a shock that rippled across America. It came out of the blue and was pushed forward by the most religious sect of the US population. This left many questioning the power that Trump held to sway these voters and convince them of his religious fervor. What many people did not pay attention to was the unique religious background that Trump had. He was raised in the church of Norman Vincent Peale, famed prosperity gospel minister and creator of the “Power of Positive Thinking.” Peale’s teachings revolved around the effect of confidence …

Defendant Attractiveness And Gender: A Question Of Juror Bias, Genevieve Smiley

Honors Projects

Despite the United States’ punitive reputation, many perpetrators of sexual assault are often left unprosecuted. A reason for this, among many, may be the jury’s propensity for bias due to several extralegal factors. The current study examines the ways the extralegal factors of defendant attractiveness and gender affect juror decision-making in an acquaintance sexual assault case. Mock jurors read a short summary of a sexual assault case accompanied by a randomized photograph of a defendant manipulated by attractiveness and gender. Mock jurors were then asked to give determinations of guilt and sentencing length, their perceptions of the defendant, and responsibility …

Three Essays On Education Policy, Intergroup Relations, And Human Capital Accumulation, Wai Meng Jeremy Siow

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

The impact of education on fostering the development of human capital and molding sociopolitical attitudes from an early age is a well-explored topic in the field of social sciences. This dissertation takes a broader approach by delving into the consequences of two critical components of the education system: (1) the language used for instruction, and (2) citizenship education. To accomplish this, I employ a combination of observational and experimental research methods to disentangle the causal effects of these educational factors within the contexts of Malaysia and Singapore. Chapter 2 delves into the ramifications of adopting a non-native language of instruction …

Unmasking The Holder Of The Purse Strings: Countering Chinese Economic Coercion In The Indo-Pacific, Rachel L. Davis

Senior Honors Theses

The Indo-Pacific is a key focal point of U.S.-China competition due to its geographical, economic, and military significance. China is using political warfare to achieve its strategic goals in the region, influencing other nations to align with its interests. Economic coercion is a key tool of this warfare. This is evident in the Pacific Islands, among America’s treaty allies, in Southeast Asia, and in South Asia. To prove itself the superior partner, maintain access to key points of land, and keep the Indo-Pacific open for trade, the U.S. must counter China’s activities. This can be achieved via a stronger economic …

How Social Movements Have Influenced Child Custody Standards Over Time, Victoria Miller

Honors Theses

Child custody standards have evolved over time due to societal attitude shifts regarding gender roles. The stereotypes present within the decision-making process of child custody laws have been challenged repeatedly in order to attack sexism within the laws. Child custody decisions are important for the child and family in question, because whichever parental guardian has custody over the child has the legal authority to make life changing choices for the child. These choices can include education, religion, and the environment the child grows and develops in. Parental choices can affect a child's mental and physical well-being, which makes it crucial …

Hgs-3 The Influence Of A Tandem Cycling Program In The Community On Physical And Functional Health, Therapeutic Bonds, And Quality Of Life For Individuals And Care Partners Coping With Parkinson’S Disease, Leila Djerdjour, Jennifer L. Trilk

SC Upstate Research Symposium

Purpose Statement: Several studies have shown that aerobic exercise can have a positive impact on alleviating symptoms experienced by individuals with Parkinson's disease (PD). Despite this evidence, the potential benefits of exercise for both PD patients and their care partners (PD dyad) remain unexplored. This research project investigates the effectiveness, therapeutic collaborations, and physical outcomes of a virtual reality (VR) tandem cycling program specifically designed for PD dyads.

Methods: Following approval from the Prisma Health Institutional Review Board, individuals with PD were identified and screened by clinical neurologists. The pre-testing measures for PD dyads (N=9) included emotional and cognitive status …

The Influence Of Social Media On The Political Identification Of Generation Z, Addison Cates

2024 Student Academic Showcase

The purpose of this research is to determine the impact that social media plays in people’s political identification. Today, children have access to politics through multiple social media platforms. While this could be a good way for children to grow into mature, individualistic adults, it could also expose them to aspects of politics they may not yet understand. Generation Z is the first adolescent generation to navigate social media as a source of political knowledge. It has been previously found that, yes, people usually follow in their parents’ footsteps when it comes to politics. However, with the recent surge of …

Ua12/2/1 College Heights Herald: Big Red By Ai, Wku Student Affairs

WKU Administration Documents

Magazine edition of the College Heights Herald for the period March 3 - April 8, 2024.

• Big Red, Is That You?
• Anderson, Alexandria. Letter from the Editor - Artificial Intelligence
• Phelps, Maggie. What is AI? - Artificial Intelligence
• AI’s Impact on Higher Education
• Reed, Bailey. Students Share Opinions on AI
• Abney, Shayla. WKU Faculty Discuss AI in Courses
• Hawkins, Kaylee. AI’s Impact on Blackboard Ultra
• Randolph, Eli. AI Recreates a WKU Tour
• Shaw, Cameron. WKU Department of Political Science Hosts Dead President’s Tour

Textual Assessment Of Leaders Individual Differences: Exploring Talid, Michael Young

Emergency Preparedness, Homeland Security, and Cybersecurity Faculty Scholarship

The Textual Assessment of Leader Individual Differences (TALID) is a growing archive of leader speech and a dataset of individual difference scores for more than 750 global leaders. TALID includes texts accumulated by Social Science Automation, Inc and Margaret G. Hermann during a variety of research projects conducted since 1997. Recent additions to TALID include documents for Joseph Biden and Donald Trump contributed by the Xiamen University Digital Presidents Project. The scores in the data set are all generated using automated coding schemes running on Profiler Plus (Levine & Young, 2014). Variables included in TALID are for Leadership Trait Analysis …

What Can We Learn About Teaching Excellence From Our Students? Lessons From Six Years Of Teaching Award Data, Christopher Shortell, Kris Henning, Carl Christiansen

Political Science Faculty Publications and Presentations

Teaching excellence in higher education can be defined and studied in different ways, but research efforts to date have often focused on institutional or instructor perspectives. This article uses a data set of over 500 open-ended comments submitted by Political Science undergraduates as part of a teaching award process to identify themes that matter most to students. We find that being supportive, bringing humor, enthusiasm, and passion to the classroom, and engaging students with relevant, challenging, and exciting activities are what defines teaching excellence from a student’s perspective. Building on these themes and using quotes to illustrate key concepts, we …

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 …

Power, Control, And Policy: A Comparison Of State Policy Responses To Domestic Violence, Emily A. Neuman

Political Science Honors Projects

What policies are most effective at addressing and lowering cases of domestic violence? In the United States, there have been, and continue to be, a variety of responses and solutions brought forward by governments, communities, and individuals on how to prevent violence within families and what the consequences are when it occurs. Following federal policy guidelines, state and local governments have adopted different approaches to address domestic violence that focus on specific programs and systems that contribute to the reduction of domestic violence. This project is an in depth analysis of different policy approaches to identify the strategies that have …

The Effects Of Racial Prejudice And Humanization On Private Aid Donations, Mary Harris, Ashlynn Hokanson, Zeke Peters, Phoebe Roberts, Daniel Nielson

Sigma: Journal of Political and International Studies

World Vision predicts that there are more than 719 million people living in poverty (Peer 2023). Charitable organizations often strive to fill gaps of government programs and alleviate poverty by offering food, clothing, and support to these millions of individuals in need. To be successful in realizing the goals of these charitable organizations, the quantity of charitable donations must be large to create change. Charitable organizations regularly attempt to obtain donations through means of advertising; however, are these methods of advertising effective in soliciting donations to help underprivileged populations across the globe? By improving the understanding of effective donation solicitation …

Full Issue

Sigma: Journal of Political and International Studies

No abstract provided.

Lobbying Impact: Assessing The Effects Of Lobbying On Healthcare Access For Minority Communities, Aastha Soni

Honors Projects in Politics, Law, and Society

The United States healthcare system suffers from significant flaws stemming from the absence of universal healthcare and entrenched systemic racism, resulting in a predominantly market-driven approach to healthcare provision. Unfortunately, this has created barriers that disproportionately limit access to healthcare for minority communities. The unequal healthcare landscape reflects the culmination of disparate health policies and social determinants of health. Moreover, the influence of large corporations and Washington's K Street on the legislation through lobbying further exacerbates these systemic disparities. This paper aims to explore the impact of lobbying on healthcare access for minority communities by analyzing two bills. By identifying …

Is There Room For Grace In The American Dream?, Ali Critchfield

Sigma: Journal of Political and International Studies

In the face of growing inequality in the United States, researchers have sought to understand why there is not a proportionate level of public concern over widening economic disparities (Kim 2023, 39–54). Much research in this area is grounded in the idea that America has become a meritocracy, where success is earned by merit. Despite the nation’s Puritan beginnings that emphasized that God’s grace, not works, are what led to salvation and success, the country has taken on a meritocratic core, one that effectively eliminates grace in the pursuit of material success. This way of thinking has compounded with the …

Controlling The Narrative: The Effects Of Media Coverage On Fear Of Crime And Socio-Political Ideology, Andrew Koppelman

Theses

Several decades of study have established an understanding that media have a unique power to influence the perspectives and worldviews of audiences. This phenomenon has been explored through the lenses of Social Learning and Cultivation theory, wherein media appeal to base human tendencies of self-preservation and teaches audiences how to maximize rewards for their actions by acting as a sort of instructor or friendly warning from members of the community. While prior studies have suggested the presence of this effect, little research has been devoted to understanding the ways that this may influence behaviors in viewers. My research seeks to …

Is Asia On The Precipice Of A Currency Crisis? Exploring Regional Risks And Implications On The Global Economy, Hannah Deng

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This paper examines the economic stability of Asia in the face of a potential currency crisis through drawing upon the historical context provided by the 1997 East Asian Financial Crisis. It systematically explores the characteristics and precursors of currency crises, analyzes the Asia-Pacific region’s response to past financial upheavals, and evaluates current macroeconomic vulnerabilities as well as policy frameworks. By juxtaposing the changes in Asia’s financial landscape from the late 20th century to the present, the study identifies persistent structural weaknesses and the region’s ongoing exposure to volatile global financial markets. It also considers the possibility of emerging markets establishing …

Analyzing The Intersectionality Of Race And Socioeconomics In Foster Care And Child Welfare, Isabella Gallardo

Political Science Theses and Capstones

Racial disparities continue to persist in the child welfare system, resulting in disproportionate representation and differential treatment for children from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds. Understanding the root causes, systemic factors, biases, and consequences of these disparities is vital for discovering solutions to ensure fair and equitable treatment for all children. I synthesize existing research conducted on racial disparities in child welfare, delving into systemic factors, biases, and their consequences. The dataset I most utilized is from the National Data Archive on Child Abuse and Neglect (NDACAN). Correlation analysis was used to show the relationship between racial disproportionality and systematic …