Digital Commons Network^™

Religious Violence And Twitter: Networks Of Knowledge, Empathy And Fascination, Samah Senbel, Carly Seigel, Emily Bryan

School of Computer Science & Engineering Faculty Publications

Twitter analysis through data mining, text analysis, and visualization, coupled with the application of actor-network-theory, reveals a coalition of heterogenous religious affiliations around grief and fascination. While religious violence has always existed, the prevalence of social media has led to an increase in the magnitude of discussions around the topic. This paper examines the different reactions on Twitter to violence targeting three religious communities: the 2015 Charleston Church shooting, the 2018 Pittsburgh Synagogue shooting, and the 2019 Christchurch Mosque shootings. The attacks were all perpetrated by white nationalists with firearms. By analyzing large Twitter datasets in response to the attacks, …

“Never Anything About The Asian Experience”: An Asiancrit Analysis Of Asian American Teachers In The Midwest, Jung Kim

Education Department Faculty Articles

Although Asian Americans are the fastest-growing racial minority group in the United States, projected to be 10% of the population by 2050, they only comprise 2% of the teaching force. There is relatively little research about the experiences, recruitment efforts, or retention of Asian American teachers. This qualitative study seeks to add to the extant literature by seeking to better under the experiences of Asian American pK-12 teachers in the Midwest, primarily in northern Illinois. This study draws upon both a sociopolitical understanding of being Asian American and three specific tenets of AsianCrit: (re)constructive history; story, theory, and praxis; and …

Thank You To Minna And Gordon Hewes: Friends Of The International Society For The Comparative Study Of Civilizations From The Ecumene, John Grayzel

Comparative Civilizations Review

The ISCSC is always extremely appreciative when it receives a special gift from those who support its intellectual and organizational endeavors. This certainly was the case when it recently received a generous bequest from the estate of Mrs. Minna Hewes, the most substantial financial donation in the history of this organization.

Christopher I. Beckwith. Empires Of The Silk Road: A History Of Central Eurasia From The Bronze Age To The Present Day. Princeton And Oxford: Princeton University Press, 2011., Constance Wilkinson

Comparative Civilizations Review

Empires of the Silk Road is an ambitious work that fulfills its stated ambitions, fully. Written with boldness and authority, it packs many punches and pulls few. Author Christopher I. Beckwith manages to cover ~5,000-years-worth of Central Eurasian history in this single volume; he sees those events differently than your common or garden-variety Central Eurasian historian/philologist and demonstrates patiently and precisely why he does so in a way that is rich and insightful. Beckwith’s work is both complex and concise. It is provocative and persuasive. It is frequently captivating, often surprising, occasionally perplexing, and sometimes slightly weird 1 (not that …

Ottomanism: A Transition From Byzantinism To Balkanism, Blagoj Conev Phd

Comparative Civilizations Review

Ottomanism as an ideology and way of life is nothing but a pale copy of Byzantinism. Ottomanism is the direct successor of the Eastern Roman Empire (the Byzantine Empire), which is the legal and sole successor to the only Roman Empire. But Ottomanism itself has not been sufficiently studied because much more attention has been paid to the way the Ottoman Empire was governed than to the identities that it sought to define as its own, which were in fact nothing more than a faint copy of Byzantinism before 1204.

Ottomanism can be defined as the imperial identity of the …

Deep Roots In Eroding Soil: Building Decolonial Resilience Amidst Climate Violence And Displacement In A Louisiana Bayou Indigenous Community, Lia Mcgrath Kahan

Senior Independent Study Theses

The Pointe-au-Chien Indigenous community of coastal Louisiana is fighting for survival as climate change and socio-political factors threaten to displace them from their ancestral home. This project takes an ethnographic and historical approach to exploring how colonization and climate change have influenced Pointe-au-Chien tribal members’ ability to stay on their ancestral land. Climate projections estimate that the bayou this community has lived alongside of for generations will soon be unrecognizable, leading to potential displacement and devastating cultural loss. Due to the increasing severity of climate change, it is crucial to look to the experiences of frontline Indigenous communities to support …

The African American And The California Basic Skills Requirement For Teaching, Willie C. Thomas Ii

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

This study examines why the passing rates of African Americans on the CBEST are the lowest in California at 60%. Madkins (2011) identified licensure testing as a significant reason why African Americans cannot enter the teaching progression. According to Darling-Hammond et al. (2016), California has an ongoing credentialed teacher shortage. An even more significant need is for teachers of color. According to the California Department of Education (2021), 60% of the state’s educator workforce is White, while the state student body, multicultural and multilingual, is only slightly more than 22% White. While licensure testing for teachers is required in all …

Cultural And Gender Shifts: Trends And Factors Hmong Male Students Face In Pursuit Of Higher Education, Sai Yang Xiong

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

The educational trends in the attainment of Hmong American students in higher education have grown significantly over the past 40+ years. However, modern academia is still somewhat new to most United States Hmong refugees since their resettlement in 1975 after the Vietnam War. Hmong students are children of refugee immigrants who came to the United States with no formal schooling, limited English proficiency, and a low-socioeconomic background. Hmong parents believe that having an education will enable their children to seek employment, perform well in society, and gain financial stability. The purpose of this study was to analyze challenges that contribute …

The Development Of Social Competence In Children With Disabilities, Soo-Young Hong, Elizabeth A. Steed, Lori E. Meyer, İbrahim H. Acar

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

Children with disabilities experience unique challenges in developing social skills critical to achieve their social goals. Although there are individual differences, children with delays and disabilities may struggle to communicate with others, understand gestures, and take other people’s viewpoints. These differences may prevent children with disabilities from initiating and sustaining social interactions and, in turn, from developing high levels of social competence (Hebbeler & Spiker, 2016).

To support social development of children with disabilities, it is important to promote positive relationships within the family system as well as the teaching of social skills in inclusive early learning environments (Mahoney et …

Spiritual Intelligence: The Next Intelligence Tool For Conflict Resolution Practitioners?, Peter Tokar

Department of Conflict Resolution Studies Theses and Dissertations

Abstract Spiritual intelligence is currently being utilized with positive results in many professional communities, yet it is practically unknown within the conflict resolution and peacebuilding communities, at least by name. Recent national polls have demonstrated a high percentages of Americans still embrace a spiritual dimension to their humanity. Although church attendance has been on the decline for the past couple decades, polls show that even the Millennial Generation and GenZ are still interested in spirituality, though in a non-ecclesiastically organized way. Although significant sensitivities remain in society and culture concerning the separation of church and state, literally millions of Americans …

The Amorphous Nature Of Hackers: An Exploratory Study, Kento Yasuhara, Daniel Walnycky, Ibrahim Baggili, Ahmed Alhishwan

Annual ADFSL Conference on Digital Forensics, Security and Law

In this work, we aim to better understand outsider perspectives of the hacker community through a series of situation based survey questions. By doing this, we hope to gain insight into the overall reputation of hackers from participants in a wide range of technical and non-technical backgrounds. This is important to digital forensics since convicted hackers will be tried by people, each with their own perception of who hackers are. Do cyber crimes and national security issues negatively affect people’s perceptions of hackers? Does hacktivism and information warfare positively affect people’s perception of hackers? Do individual personality factors affect one’s …

Comparing Readability Measures And Computer-Assisted Question Evaluation Tools For Self-Administered Survey Questions, Rachel Stenger, Kristen Olson, Jolene Smyth

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

Questionnaire designers use readability measures to ensure that questions can be understood by the target population. The most common measure is the Flesch-Kincaid Grade level, but other formulas exist. This article compares six different readability measures across 150 questions in a self-administered questionnaire, finding notable variation in calculated readability across measures. Some question formats, including those that are part of a battery, require important decisions that have large effects on the estimated readability of survey items. Other question evaluation tools, such as the Question Understanding Aid (QUAID) and the Survey Quality Predictor (SQP), may identify similar problems in questions, making …

'Indirect Pathways Into Practice': Philippine Internationally Educated Nurses And Their Entry Into Ontario's Nursing Profession, Lualhati Marcelino

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

While there are several studies that highlight the quantitative and statistical profiles of internationally educated nurses (IENs) from the Philippines who migrate to countries throughout Asia, the Middle East, Europe, the United States and Canada, there is little research that delves deeply into the qualitative review and analysis of their experiences in their own words. This study addresses that gap by applying the transnational feminist concept of “global care chains” in a single case study design that explores the experience of nurses who migrated to Ontario through permanent and temporary immigration streams and were interviewed in 2011 to 2012 to …

“No Matter Where You’Re From, We’Re Glad You’Re Our Neighbor”: Enacting Justice Initiatives And Community Formation In Faith-Based Organizations, Jenna M. Smith

Senior Independent Study Theses

Faith-Based Organizations (FBOs) in the United States offer a variety of services and influence social dynamics within their communities, specifically in northeast Ohio. Churches, service agencies, and ministries often pursue immigration advocacy initiatives and ground their work in religious doctrine, using frameworks such as ‘hospitality’ and ‘welcoming the stranger’ to motivate their own initiatives and connect with uninvolved or antagonistic populations. Due to current climates of political polarization and dehumanizing rhetoric in immigration dialogues, this study seeks to analyze the ways in which religious actors define and enact community and explore the contributions of the groups in which they serve. …

Insistence: The Active Quest Of Citizens For Achieving Their Health And Justice Rights In Mexico, Julia Hernández-Gutiérrez

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

In Mexico’s public healthcare and justice institutions, where insufficient infrastructure, unnecessary, confusing procedures, and mistreatment are common obstacles to fundamental rights, insistence can be interpreted as an indicator of a citizen’s active quest to ensure their rights are respected. Even if citizen dependence on the State is reinforced on a daily basis within some public institutions, service users are not inactive patients or victims waiting for their turn, but rather are active agents claiming their rights, because access to healthcare and justice cannot be achieved in Mexico without the ability to cope with bureaucratic barriers and the despotic attitude of …

Relationship Dynamics, Sexual Practices, And Hiv Risk Of Black Behaviorally Bisexual Women, Dajaneil S. Mccree

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) risk that exists among women who have sex with women and men (WSWM) is influenced by behavioral factors related to condom use and penetrative sex with sex toys and body parts. Although women represent a large percentage in HIV diagnoses, research has lacked in determining the sexual behaviors that exist behind health-related risks of young women who have sex with women (WSW) and HIV. This study fills the gap in literature in HIV prevention and testing interventions for WSWM by representing Black young adult WSWM in behavioral research, identifying how their lived experiences in relationships …

Covid-19 Vaccination In Palestine/Israel: Citizenship, Capitalism, And The Logic Of Elimination, Nicolas Howard, Emily Schneider

Sociology & Criminal Justice Faculty Publications

Despite Israel’s responsibility under international law to combat the spread of contagious diseases and epidemics in its occupied territories, Israeli officials have refused to distribute COVID-19 vaccines to Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. Through a critical discourse analysis of Israeli officials’ statements regarding Israel’s COVID-19 vaccination campaign, this paper explores how Israel evades this responsibility while presenting itself as committed to public health and human rights. We find that Israeli officials strategically present Palestinians as an autonomous nation when discussing COVID-19 vaccinations, despite Israel’s ongoing attempts to prevent the creation of a Palestinian state. Relatedly, Israel justifies …

Puffins, The Charismatic Clowns Of The Sea: Examining The Relationship Between Community Identity And The Social Construction Of Animals, Megan Henry Tuennerman

Senior Independent Study Theses

This study analyzes the factors, internal and external, that affect the relationship between community identity and the social construction of animals, and the ways in which that social construction impacts the environment. Studied through the lens of the relationship between Atlantic Puffins and the human communities they live near, these questions situate our understanding of human societies as within, as opposed to above, the environment. Without this perspective, enacting environmental protections across the globe is ineffective. The study was conducted using ethnographic methods, including 11 formal interviews with community members and experts, along with observations in Iceland and Canada. Results …

A Comparative Study Of Immigration Integration Programs For Selected City Governments In California, Oregon, Washington, And Texas, Christelle Lorenzana

Master's Projects

Over the last eight decades, immigration into the United States has increased and has become a prominent political issue in the United States (Pew Research Center, 2015). Although the federal government is responsible for enforcing immigration laws, municipalities work with immigrants directly in a more supportive role. Currently, no national policy focuses on integration or welcoming immigrants to the urban community. In recent decades, the federal government has focused on immigration enforcement, border control, and what to do about the influx of undocumented immigrants entering the U.S. However, cities are working to develop their own programs, tools, and policies to …

“ขอเป็นเด็กเลวในประวัติศาสตร์ไทย”: การร่วมเวลาและการรื้อถอนเขตแดนเวลาในการเคลื่อนไหวทางการเมืองของนักเรียนมัธยมผ่านแคมเปญของเครือข่ายกลุ่ม “นักเรียนเลว”, กันต์ นาเมืองรักษ์

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

วิทยานิพนธ์เล่มนี้ได้ทำการศึกษาความเปลี่ยนแปลงในการรับรู้ประวัติศาสตร์ของสังคมไทยจากปฏิสัมพันธ์ทางสังคมเชิงเวลาที่กลุ่มนักเรียนเลวได้สร้างขึ้นในสังคมไทยผ่านแคมเปญและกิจกรรมทางการเมืองต่างๆ โดยงานวิจัยชิ้นนี้ได้ใช้มโนทัศน์ “การร่วมเวลา” และ “เขตแดนเวลา” ที่เกิดจากการบรรจบกันของปฏิสัมพันธ์ทางสังคมภายใต้พลวัตของ "ความเป็นสังคม” แบบสมัยใหม่ที่แยก “ความเป็นประวัติศาสตร์” และ “ความเป็นประวัติการณ์” ออกจากกัน และใช้ชาติพันธุ์วรรณนาเชิงสถาบันที่ใช้จุดยืนทางสังคมของผู้ถูกศึกษาอย่างกลุ่มนักเรียนเลวและแนวร่วมเป็นวิธีวิทยาหลักในการสืบเสาะกระบวนการทางสังคมและเล่าผ่านการเขียนวิทยานิพนธ์ชิ้นนี้ จากการศึกษาปฏิสัมพันธ์ทางสังคมในระดับต่างๆ ของกลุ่มเครือข่ายนักเรียนเลวและแนวร่วม ผู้วิจัยได้ทำการเล่าออกมาเป็น 3 บท โดยการใช้การข้องเกี่ยวทางสังคมเชิงเวลา 3 แบบเป็นแกนในการเล่า ได้แก่ ความทรงจำของการเป็นนักเรียน การต่อสู้สิทธิเสรีภาพเหนือเรือนร่างของนักเรียน และสถานะของนักเรียนในฐานะเยาวชนในการเมืองระดับชาติ อันสะท้อนถึงการร่วมอดีต ปัจจุบัน และอนาคตในการต่อสู้ทางการเมืองร่วมสมัย ซึ่งกลุ่มนักเรียนเลวได้ใช้กลวิธีและทรัพยากรต่างๆ ในการเคลื่อนไหวได้อย่างโดดเด่น จนทลาย "พรมแดนเวลา" ของการเติบโตทางความคิดเกี่ยวกับความเป็นผู้เยาว์แบบอนุรักษ์จารีตนิยมในวัฒนธรรมไทยได้สำเร็จ ซึ่งมีนัยยะสำคัญต่อแนวคิดเรื่องความก้าวหน้าทางสังคม แต่ก็ทำให้เห็นถึงการแบ่งขั้วทางเวลาที่เข้มข้นขึ้นในสังคมไทยไปด้วย ส่งผลให้ความเป็นผู้เยาว์กลายเป็นวาระทางการเมืองในสังคมไทยไปโดยสมบูรณ์

Informal Science, Technology, Engineering And Math Learning Conditions To Increase Parent Involvement With Young Children Experiencing Poverty, Tricia A Zucker, Gloria Yeomans Maldonado, Michael Assel, Cheryl Mccallum, Cindy Elias, John M Swint, Lincy Lal

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Broadening participation in early science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) learning outside of school is important for families experiencing poverty. We evaluated variations of the Teaching Together STEM pre-kindergarten program for increasing parent involvement in STEM learning. This informal STEM, family engagement program was offered in 20 schools where 92% of students received free/reduced lunch. The core treatment included a series of family education workshops, text messages, and family museum passes. The workshops were delivered at school sites by museum outreach educators. We randomly assigned schools to business-as-usual control or one of three additive treatment groups. Using an additive treatment …

An Analysis Of Collective Efficacy As A Predictor Of Gun Violence In Toronto, Carly Richards

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

There has been a 42% increase in gun violence in Canada since 2013, largely due to increases in Toronto (Statistics Canada, 2022a). To gain a better understanding of this phenomenon, this study evaluated collective efficacy as a predictor of gun violence. Seven correlates of collective efficacy were identified including, low economic status, ethnic diversity, mobility, family disruption, employment rate, low educational attainment, and youth percentage in a population. This study included data from the City of Toronto’s Open Data Portal and the 2016 Canadian Census. The data were pulled from various datasets and then were reorganized into one file, which …

Neo-Emancipatory Sex Education In Germany: Sexual Abuse And Gender Confusion, Bernd Ahrbeck, Karla Etschenberg, Marion Felder

Dignity: A Journal of Analysis of Exploitation and Violence

This article focuses on two related areas of concern with regard to sex education and implications for children and youth in Germany. The first one is the history of the currently dominant neo-emancipatory sexual education and its implications for today. This direction of sex education is highly influenced by theories of Helmut Kentler who with the help of the German city of Berlin youth protection services department sent homeless and troubled boys to known pedophiles for care. This experiment went on for 30 years, ending in 2001. Only now has the extend of this horrific practice been fully discovered. The …

Group Social Capital And The Employment Prospects Of Refugee Women Who Experience Domestic Violence, Donella Caspersz, Renata Casado, Carol Kaplanian, Farida Fozdar, Loretta Baldassar

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

This paper offers research insights on how refugee women who experience domestic violence develop employment prospects. Guided by social capital theory and the concept of group social capital, the paper uses a qualitative approach to identify intrapersonal and interpersonal processes in a group intervention that assist women members to adjust their cognitive reasoning about their domestic violence experience and engage in behaviours that potentially enhance their employment prospects. The paper contributes to understanding how group processes can foster small wins that may enhance the employment prospects of this vulnerable group.

Resource Access And Equity In Humboldt County (How Social Myth Becomes Social Fact), Colton J. Hubbard

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Rural areas of Northern California have gone without health and social services for decades. The shortcomings of local services have given rise to the idea that there are no services in these rural and isolated communities. Conditions and beliefs have brought up two important questions. The first question is how can access and knowledge of available services be improved in rural areas? The second question is, through what mechanisms do communities develop their facts?

To address the previous questions, I worked with the primary health and social service provider in Humboldt County, CA. We developed a database of local services …

Investigating The Marketing Language Among Online Retailers Of Violin Strings To Determine The Implied Aesthetic, Kira Kay Browning

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

The aim of this research is to determine if language in the advertising of violin strings is acting as an exclusionary tool in favor of a Western art music “sound” produced by “classical” violinists. It posits that the marketing of strings to violinists is a topic laden with unacknowledged biases and values of musicians within Western art music. The aesthetic values attached to playing Western art music for the violin in the United States are passed on through pedagogic practice and acculturation of language. Product descriptions for strings in the United States employ language which adheres to these cultural values …

Early Hearing Screening Policy And Deaf Children’S Language Acquisition, Marla Hatrak

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The federal Early Hearing Detection and Intervention Act (EHDI) guarantees medical and communication interventions for deaf children and audiological, medical, and language intervention data collection. However, the policy and its implementation have not been analyzed in regard to policy goal attainment of deaf children’s language acquisition. A qualitative case study was conducted to analyze seven federal- and state-level early hearing screening policy websites and implementation and intermediary documents to assess the federal and state policy formation and implementation of EHDI. In addition to the document assessment, data were collected from interviews to obtain the perspectives of two early childhood educational …

Working With Families With Refugee Experiences In The United States: The Impact Of Forced Displacement On Parent-Child Relationships After Resettlement, Sakshi Kapur

Graduate School of Professional Psychology: Doctoral Papers and Masters Projects

Refugees resettled in high-income countries like the United States have a unique set of challenges ranging from great psychological disturbance to acculturation challenges. With recent changes to policies related to immigration and refugee resettlement in the United States after the 2016 presidential elections, the refugee diaspora was left with resettlement services focused more on ensuring national security and economic independence rather than services that catered to re-integration beyond economics like acculturation stress, family functioning, and cultural adjustment. This systemic literature review explores the impact of forced displacement and migration on individuals, with an emphasis on family systems and parent-child relationships. …

The Detrimental Impact Of Alcohol Intoxication On Facets Of Miranda Comprehension, Amelia Mindthoff, Jacqueline R. Evans, Andrea C. F. Wolfs, Karina Polanco, Naomi E. S. Goldstein, Nadja Schreiber Compo

Psychology Faculty Articles and Research

Objective: Law enforcement officers often encounter alcohol-intoxicated suspects, suggesting that many suspects are presented with the challenge of grasping the meaning and significance of their Miranda rights while intoxicated. Such comprehension is crucial, given that Miranda is intended to minimize the likelihood of coercive interrogations resulting in self-incrimination and protect suspects’ constitutional rights. Yet, the effects of alcohol on individuals’ ability to understand and appreciate their Miranda rights remain unknown—a gap that the present study sought to address. Hypotheses: Informed by alcohol myopia theory (AMT), we predicted that intoxicated individuals would demonstrate impaired Miranda comprehension compared to sober …

Exploring Promotoras As Influencers Of Physical Activity And Diet Acceptability Among Latinas, Gladys Orock Tataw-Ayuketah

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Promotoras are frontline community health workers who help link Latino community members to health and social services. Latino women have high rates of attrition and lack of participation in weight loss programs due to various barriers, and the promotora model is vital to address these concerns. The approach incorporates strong family support and influence to address health and social issues through interdependent ties of promotoras and families who live and work within the community they serve. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore how promotoras influenced the acceptability of and participation in physical activity and dietary modification programs …