Digital Commons Network^™

November Uri Community Diversity Project 2010, Joseph A. Santiago Mr, Riley Davis Ms, Richard V. Travisano Mr

November Diversity Project

November is National Novel Writing Month. For the first time at the University of Rhode Island November was a month for the URI community to share their stories, poems, art, and photos with the world. The Writing to Model Diversity project intends to connect individuals across cultural boundaries and borders by sharing the stories and experiences that challenge our everyday experiences and the dreams of the future. Built on the efforts of the World Voice series, URI presents a book that shares the stories and culture of the students, faculty, staff, and community members who embrace the idea of becoming …

Racial Attitude Effects In The 2008 Presidential Election: Examining The Unconventional Factors Shaping Vote Choice In A Most Unconventional Election, Herbert F. Weisberg, Christopher J. Devine

Political Science Faculty Publications

Every election has unique elements, but the 2008 U.S. presidential race had it all: an African-American presidential candidate who won his party’s nomination by defeating a former first lady, an historically unpopular outgoing president, two ongoing wars, a failing economy, and a war hero running for president with a female vice-presidential running mate. With so many unique elements to account for, disentangling their independent effects to identify the dominant factors shaping the 2008 election is a tremendous challenge. This paper explores a wide variety of factors potentially influencing the 2008 vote, but it devotes particular attention to two exceptionally relevant …

A Community In Bloom: An Affordable Housing Needs Assessment Of West Bloomington, Margaret L. Anderson, Lloyd Banwart, David F. Becker, Dana Bulba, Jared Dellinger, Mimi Duong, Julie Ornee, Katie Mitchell, Andrew Piotrowski, Hillary Smith, Dustin Stoltz, Mandy Swartzendruber, Niko Valaris, Katie Weber

Community Project Design and Management Reports - Sociology

Purpose of Report

This report was written in response to a request from Habitat for Humanity of McLean County. The report expands upon and updates an affordable homeownership needs assessment for the Bloomington-Normal community – with an emphasis on West Bloomington – that was created in 2004. Because the housing market and economic conditions of the area have changed drastically in the last 6 years, an updated report is necessary.

Data Sources and Methodology

This report uses a combination of primary and, mainly, secondary data sources. Interviews were conducted with representatives of, among others, Bloomington Housing Authority, the Economic Development …

Demographic Analysis Of Recovery Act Supported Jobs In Massachusetts, Quarters 1 And 2, 2010, David Sparks, Paige Ransford, Carol Hardy-Fanta, Christian Weller, Meryl Thomson, Robert Turner

Publications from the Center for Women in Politics and Public Policy

Massachusetts policy makers decided to go beyond existing ARRA federal reporting requirements and collect additional data in order to gauge the effectiveness of ARRA’s fiscal policy by counting the number of individuals who have received an ARRA-funded paycheck. In addition, policy makers wanted to look at some of the demographic characteristics of this population. This report provides an in-depth analysis of the data that the MA Recovery Office collected during the first and second quarters of 2010, with a particular focus on job creation and retention by race, ethnicity, gender, disability status, and geographic location.

Highlights of the report include: …

Mountain Monitor-3rd Quarter 2010, Jonathan Rothwell, Kenan Fikri

Mountain Monitor Quarterly

One year after the Mountain Monitor began tracking recession and recovery in the Intermountain West, the Southern Nevada economy has yet to turn around. The rate of slippage across a range of indicators has slowed measurably, but evidence of a nascent recovery eludes. Las Vegas' poor relative performance over the past year can be attributed not only to the legacy of a particularly devastating initial wave of economic distress, but also to a continued struggle to slow and reverse the downward trend.

Who's To Blame? Elaborating The Role Of Attributions In General Strain Theory, John P. Hoffmann, Karen R. Spence

Faculty Publications

Agnew’s general strain theory (GST) has motivated dozens of criminological studies over the past two decades. Borrowing in part from Cloward and Ohlin’s model of delinquency, Agnew claimed that anger, a key component of GST, occurs when adolescents externalize blame for their adversity. This implies that adolescents who blame strain on an external causal agent (e.g., a parent, a teacher, economic disadvantages) are more likely to get angry and thus lash out through delinquent acts. However, this essential characteristic has been largely neglected in studies of GST. The purpose of this article is to show that external attributions of blame …

The Effect Of Early Maltreatment, Victimization, And Partner Violence On Hiv Risk Behavior Among Homeless Young Adults, Lisa A. Melander, Kimberly A. Tyler

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

Purpose: The purpose of our study was to examine the relationship between child maltreatment, physical and sexual victimization, and partner violence victimization with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) risk behaviors among a sample of homeless young adults from the midwestern United States.
Methods: Data are from the Homeless Young Adult Project. A total of 199 young adults aged 19–26 years were interviewed over 14 months using a systematic sampling strategy. The final sample included 172 young adults who were homeless or had a history of running away and being homeless.
Results: Results from the path analysis revealed that sexual abuse is …

Research To Practice: Vocational Rehabilitation Services Received By Youth With Autism: Are They Associated With An Employment Outcome?, Jaime Lugas, Jaimie Ciulla Timmons, Frank A. Smith

Research to Practice Series, Institute for Community Inclusion

While youth with autism represent a small percentage of all vocational rehabilitation (VR) closures, the number who closed out of VR more than tripled between 2003 and 2008 (see Institute for Community Inclusion Data Note 26). As increasing numbers of youth with autism are accessing VR services, it is important to understand how they are using these services and the relationship of these services to outcomes and costs.

The Disutility Of Injustice, Paul H. Robinson, Geoffrey P. Goodwin, Michael Reisig

All Faculty Scholarship

For more than half a century, the retributivists and the crime-control instrumentalists have seen themselves as being in an irresolvable conflict. Social science increasingly suggests, however, that this need not be so. Doing justice may be the most effective means of controlling crime. Perhaps partially in recognition of these developments, the American Law Institute's recent amendment to the Model Penal Code's "purposes" provision – the only amendment to the Model Code in the 47 years since its promulgation – adopts desert as the primary distributive principle for criminal liability and punishment. That shift to desert has prompted concerns by two …

Medicinal Plant Use And Health Sovereignty: Findings From The Tajik And Afghan Pamirs, Karim Aly Kassam, Munira Karamkhudoeva, Morgan Ruelle, Michelle Baumflek

Sustainability and Social Justice

Medicinal plants are indicators of indigenous knowledge in the context of political volatility and socio-cultural and ecological change in the Pamir Mountains of Afghanistan and Tajikistan. Medicinal plants are the primary health care option in this region of Central Asia. The main objective of this paper is to demonstrate that medicinal plants contribute to health security and sovereignty in a time of instability. We illustrate the nutritional as well as medicinal significance of plants in the daily lives of villagers. Based on over a decade and half of research related to resilience and livelihood security, we present plant uses in …

Criminal Offending Among Respondents To Protective Orders: Crime Types And Patterns That Predict Victim Risk, Carol E. Jordan, Adam J. Pritchard, Danielle Duckett, Richard Charnigo

Office for Policy Studies on Violence Against Women Publications

Research has shown that respondents to protective orders have robust criminal histories and that criminal offending behavior often follows issuance of a protective order. Nonetheless, the specific nature of the association between protective orders and criminal offending remains unclear. This study uses two classes of statistical models to more clearly delineate that relationship. The models reveal factors and characteristics that appear to be associated with offending and protective order issuance and provide indications about when a victim is most at risk and when the justice system should be most ready to provide immediate protection.

Noticias De Naccs, Vol. 39, No. 4, December 2010, National Association For Chicana And Chicano Studies

Noticias de NACCS Newsletter

No abstract provided.

From Peasants To Farmers: Peasant Differentiation, Labor Regimes, And Land-Rights Institutions In China's Agrarian Transition, Q. Forrest Zhang, John A. Donaldson

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

The development of factor markets has opened Chinese agriculture for the penetration of capitalism. This new round of rural transformation—China’s agrarian transition— raises the agrarian question in the Chinese context. This study investigates how capitalist forms and relations of production transform agricultural production and the peasantry class in rural China. The authors identify six forms of nonpeasant agricultural production, compare the labor regimes and direct producers’ socioeconomic statuses across these forms, and evaluate the role of China’s land-rights institution in shaping these forms. The empirical investigation presents three main findings: (1) Peasant differentiation : capitalist forms of agricultural production differentiate …

Recessions And The Social Safety Net: The Alternative Minimum Tax As A Countercyclical Fiscal Stabilizer, Brian Galle, Jonathan Klick

All Faculty Scholarship

As recent events illustrate, state finances are procyclical: during recessions, state revenues crash, worsening the effects of economic downturns. This problem is well known, yet persistent. We argue here that, in light of predictable federalism and political economy dynamics, states will be unable to change this situation on their own. Additionally, we note that many possible federal remedies may result in worse problems, such as by creating moral hazard that would induce states to take on excessively risky policy, both fiscal and otherwise. Thus, we argue that policymakers should consider so-called “automatic” stabilizers, such as are found in the federal …

Bringing The Endangered Barn Owl Back To Mclean County, Illinois: Implementing A Local Nest Box Program, Anna Groves '11

Outstanding Senior Seminar Papers

Barn owls are an endangered species in Illinois, but populations have been known to increase where nest box programs have been implemented. In conjunction with the John Wesley Powell Audubon Society, a barn owl nest box program was established in McLean County and the surrounding area. Seventeen boxes are now scheduled for construction and installation this winter in the McLean County area in order to enhance existing barn owl populations, and the nest box program will continue in the future through the JWP Audubon.

The Piracy And Terrorism Nexus: Real Or Imagined?, Karine Hamilton

Australian Counter Terrorism Conference

The waters off the coast of Somalia and in the Gulf of Aden have been the location of a dramatic proliferation of pirate activities in recent years. Security officials around the world are concerned about the risks posed by Somali piracy to maritime shipping and to national security. These risks relate to the susceptibility of world trade shipments to terrorist attack and to the emergence of an increasingly powerful Islamist movement in Somalia with connections to global terrorist networks. Whilst Somali piracy has been the topic of growing media speculation, reliable information about the phenomenon is scant. This paper reports …

The Emergent Challenges For Policing Terrorism: Lessons From Mumbai, Simon O'Rourke

Australian Counter Terrorism Conference

On November 26, 2008 ten armed terrorists from Lashka-e-Toiba utilised military assault style tactics to attack a number of establishments including restaurants and hotels in the city of Mumbai, India. This new attack paradigm indicated a significant shift in tactics from the placement of improvised explosive devices or deployment of suicide bombers, and contains valuable lessons for contemporary law enforcement particularly with regard to intelligence, response, and media management. There are few agencies currently geared to deal with the sheer scope of an event involving trained terrorists well versed with small team tactics, heavily armed and equipped conducting operations in …

Attitudes About Addiction: A National Study Of Addiction Educators, Angela D. Broadus, Joyce A. Hartje, Nancy A. Roget, Kristy L. Cahoon, Samantha S. Clinkinbeard

Criminology and Criminal Justice Faculty Publications

The following study, funded by the National Institute of Drug Abuse (NIDA), utilized the Addiction Belief Inventory (ABI; Luke, Ribisl, Walton, & Davidson, 2002) to examine addiction attitudes in a national sample of U.S. college/university faculty teaching addiction-specific courses (n = 215). Results suggest that addiction educators view substance abuse as a coping mechanism rather than a moral failure, and are ambivalent about calling substance abuse or addiction a disease. Most do not support individual efficacy toward recovery, the ability to control use, or social use after treatment. Modifiers of addiction educator attitudes include level of college education; teaching …

Hearts And Minds, Psuedo Gangs And Counter Insurgency: Based Upon Experiences From Previous Campaigns In Kenya (1952-60), Malaya (1948-60) & Rhodesia (1964-1979), Bill Bailey

Australian Counter Terrorism Conference

Pseudo gangs form the steely side of Hearts and Minds and were used with great effect in counter-insurgency campaigns in Kenya (1952-60) Malaya (1948-60) and Rhodesia (1964-1979). Although the use of pseudo gangs was not new to counter-insurgency tactics, with the British using a similar tactic in the Boer war (1899-1902), the use of such gangs was certainly perfected during these later campaigns producing good results. The Kenya Police Special Branch re-instigated this concept, developing its use during the ‘Emergency’. The principal concept was to ‘turn’ or co-opt insurgents through a series of inducements to change sides and join the …

Hard Times Made Harder: Struggling Caregivers And Child Neglect, Wendy A. Walsh

The Carsey School of Public Policy at the Scholars' Repository

Poverty is only one of many challenges tied to a report of child neglect. The analysis in this brief finds that neglected children whose caregivers struggle with substance abuse and mental health problems are at significant risk for out-of-home placement. Risk factors for out-of-home placement for neglected children are discussed, as well as a multifaceted approach to services to prevent neglect and out-of-home placement.

Hospitality And Destination Marketing's Role In Medical Tourism: A Call For Research, Dan Cormany

Faculty Publications

Like business travel, where the primary focus is on business and travel is the simply the conduit by which it is performed, medical tourism is a growing trend in which individuals journey to foreign countries primarily to secure specific medical procedures or health benefits. The medical tourist is a newly defined segment of the travel industry, and while still small in numbers, is growing rapidly. This paper seeks to identify research questions related to the hospitality elements that contribute to the medical tourism experience. The answers to these may aid hoteliers, tourism operations, and visitor bureaus better understand, service and …

Coaching Efficacy With Academic Leaders: A Phenomenological Investigation, Deanna Lee Vansickel-Peterson

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The purpose of this psychological phenomenological research was to understand the efficacy of life coaching from the perspective of academic leaders. To date, not one investigation or attempt has been made towards the above stated purpose. This study includes a theoretical overview and a review of the coaching literature from Socrates (469-399 BC) to current day Humanistic theory presented in part by Roger (1902-1987).

This process included data collection from five academic leaders who have been coached for at least two years. Levels of analysis of 365 statements, quote and/or comments produced finding of efficacy in life coaching with academic …

To Me, Goffman Was A Shakespearean Figure, The Fool Who Spoke The Wisdom Of The Play, Marvin B. Scott

Bios Sociologicus: The Erving Goffman Archives

Dr. Marvin B. Scott, Professor Emeritus at Hunter College, wrote this memoir at the request of Jackie Wiseman.

Women Of African Descent: Persistence In Completing A Doctorate, Vannetta L. Bailey-Iddrisu

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study examines the educational persistence of women of African descent (WOAD) in pursuit of a doctorate degree at universities in the southeastern United States. WOAD are women of African ancestry born outside the African continent. These women are heirs to an inner dogged determination and spirit to survive despite all odds (Pulliam, 2003, p. 337).This study used Ellis’s (1997) Three Stages for Graduate Student Development as the conceptual framework to examine the persistent strategies used by these women to persist to the completion of their studies.

Predicting Intentions To Continue Exclusive Breastfeeding For 6 Months: A Comparison Among Racial/Ethnic Groups, Yeon Bai, Shahla M. Wunderlich, Alyce D. Fly

Department of Nutrition and Food Studies Scholarship and Creative Works

The purpose of this study was to explore how mothers of different races/ethnicities make decisions to continue exclusive breastfeeding (EBF) for 6 months under the Theory of Planned Behavior. Participants were recruited from hospitals and WIC clinics in Central Indiana and Southern New Jersey from 2008 to 2009. Mothers (N = 236: 93 non-Hispanic African American, 72 non-Hispanic white, 71 Hispanic/Latina) completed a self-administered questionnaire that measured theoretical constructs and beliefs related to their intention to practice EBF for 6 months. Intentions to continue EBF for 6 months were similar (P = 0.15) across racial/ethnic groups. Significant proportions of the …

From Forgotten Intranet To Successful Wiki, Darcy C. Del Bosque, Kristen Costello

Library Faculty Publications

Communication within an academic library can be challenging. The collective nature of wikis and their ability to allow multiple people to edit them have made wikis an ideal technology to help address communication issues within organizations. A successful wiki implementation can help to improve communication issues, but only if staff adopt the new technology. University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) libraries implemented an internal staff wiki in 2007 to replace the staff intranet. Information routinely stored on the wiki includes meeting minutes and committee work, policies and procedures and training materials. This paper illustrates the implementation process by providing an …

The Oromo In Exile: Creating Knowledge And Promoting Social Justice, Asafa Jalata

Sociology Publications and Other Works

Although it has been impossible to freely study, write, and publish on the issues of the Oromo people in the Ethiopian Empire because of political repression, activist Oromo scholars in the Diaspora have been engaging in the development critical Oromo scholarship to address the political, economic, cultural and social problems of this down-trodden people for almost two decades. As a member of the Oromo Diaspora, I have been participating in and observing the development of Oromo scholarship. Successive Ethiopian governments have been targeting for imprisonment or elimination activist Oromos suspecting their participation in the Oromo national movement for national self-determination, …

Facing Up: Managing Diversity In Challenging Times, Carol Hardy-Fanta, Paige Ransford

Publications from the Center for Women in Politics and Public Policy

Since its launch in 2008, Commonwealth Compact has grown steadily, employing several strategies to promote diversity statewide. The Benchmarks initiative has collected data, analyzed in this report, on a significant portion of the state workforce. Guided by Stephen Crosby, dean of the McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies at UMass Boston, Commonwealth Compact has conducted newsmaking surveys of public opinion and of boards of directors statewide. In addition, it has convened ongoing coalitions with its higher education partners, and established a collaborative of local business schools aimed specifically at increasing faculty diversity. The Compact has sponsored or co-sponsored …

Working Alone: Protecting And Building Solidarity In The Workplace Of The Future, Charley Richardson

Labor Resource Center Publications

This paper explores the foundations of solidarity in the workplace and the challenges to building solidarity in the modern day workplace. The author identifies eight workplace trends that are increasing individual isolation and destroying workplace-based social networks. After comparing two models of social networks, the author suggests specific steps workers and unions can take to protect solidarity at work.

Pine Tree Notes (November-December 2010), General Federation Of Women's Clubs - Maine Chapter Staff

Maine Women's Publications - All

No abstract provided.