Digital Commons Network^™

The Long-Term Consequences Of Adolescents' Comparative Economic Position In School, Kiwoong Park

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

The goal of this dissertation project is to investigate how adolescents’ comparative socioeconomic positions within their schools shape their short- and long-term outcomes, including later health, educational expectations and attainment, and the risk of having a nonmarital first birth. Although social comparison theory posits that individual well-being depends on the standings of others with whom one compares oneself, as well as on one’s own absolute standing, the empirical evidence of the theory has been mixed and controversial. This project argues that inconsistent findings may arise from difficulty in measuring reference groups, temporal ambiguity between exposures and outcomes, and methodological limitations.

Making The Most Of Mentors: Recruitment, Training, And Support Of Mentors For Adolescent Girl Programming—Toolkit, Miriam Temin, Eva Roca

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

Mentors are an important part of many effective programs for girls, yet little information is available about the practical aspects of developing and supporting a successful mentor cadre. This toolkit pulls together lessons, tips, and insights that can be adapted and used to find, train, monitor, support, and evaluate mentors. The information is based on materials from programs for adolescent girls implemented by the Population Council. The resources are applicable to program planners, mentor supervisors, and mentors. All resources may be adapted to local contexts.

Give Us A Twirl: Male Baton Twirlers’ Embodied Resistance In A Feminized Terrain, Trenton M. Haltom

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

There is a persistent perception that baton twirling is only for girls. This insight is not unwarranted because more often than not, audiences only see girls twirling. Baton twirling, however, is not exclusive to girls; boys twirl too.

In this chapter, I explore how the participation of men and boys in the sport of baton twirling exemplifies forms of embodied resistance. In defiance of more masculine and male-dominated sports, men and boys who twirl exhibit embodied resistance in three key ways: through their participation in this feminized sport, by redefining components of twirling to downplay gender, and through choreography involving …

Sexual Behaviours Of Adolescents In Creek Town, Cross River State, Nigeria, Kabiru K. Salami, Rowland E. Edet

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

Risky sexual behaviors of adolescents in Creek Town have not been fully profiled. This study investigated the sexual behaviors of adolescents and their various dimensions in Creek Town, in Cross River State, Nigeria. This cross-sectional survey design adopted multi-stage sampling procedure to administer a 112-items questionnaire to 422 adolescents, to elicit information on their sexual behaviors and practices. Four focus group discussion sessions were also conducted with in-school and out-of-school adolescents. The mean age of adolescents was 17 years. Majority (65.4%) of the adolescents were sexually active. The mean age at sexual debut was 15 years for both male and …

The Effects Of Ambient Benevolent Sexism And Its Implications In The Workplace, Amanda E. Mosier

Masters Theses

"The purpose of this study was to examine women's reactions to witnessing benevolent sexism (i.e., ambient benevolent sexism). Female participants (n = 59) witnessed another woman being treated with hostile sexism (HS), benevolent sexism (BS), or no sexism and their reactions were examined in respect to a) working memory capacity, b) task-specific self-efficacy, c) mental intrusions of incompetence, and d) negative affect. The study also examined how participants' personal endorsement of BS impacted the relationship between sexism condition and the outcome variables. Results indicate that there were no direct effects of sexism condition on the outcome variables, though there was …

Jail Administrators' Compliance With The Prison Rape Elimination Act, Leone M. Lee

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Correctional institutions across the United States continue to experience prisoner sexual assault despite the enactment of the Prison Rape Elimination Act of 2003 (PREA). The purpose of this correlational study was to examine the association between jail administrators' difficulty complying with the PREA and their transformational leadership styles. The theories of punctuated equilibrium theory and general strain theory formed the theoretical framework of the study. The data were collected through an Internet-based survey from 22 local and regional jail administrators from the East Coast. Data analysis using Pearson's correlation coefficient was performed on leadership scores to test the hypotheses. There …

Clown Eggs, David Fagundes, Aaron Perzanowski

Faculty Articles

Since 1946, many clowns have recorded their makeup by having it painted on eggs that are kept in a central registry in Wookey Hole, England. This tradition, which continues today, has been referred to alternately as a form of informal copyright registration and a means of protecting clowns’ property in their personae. This Article explores the Clown Egg Register and its surrounding practices from the perspective of law and social norms. In so doing, it makes several contributions. First, it contributes another chapter to the growing literature on the norms-based governance of intellectual property, showing how clowns—like comedians, roller derby …

Deputizing Family: Loved Ones As A Regulatory Tool In The “Drug War” And Beyond, Matthew B. Lawrence

Faculty Articles

Many laws use family members as a regulatory tool to influence the decisions or behavior of their loved ones, i.e., they deputize family. Involuntary treatment laws for substance use disorder are a clear example; such laws empower family members to use information shared by their loved ones to petition to force their loved ones into treatment without consent. Whether such deputization is helpful or harmful for a patient’s health is a crucial and dubious question discussed in existing literature, but use of family members as a regulatory tool implicates important considerations beyond direct medical impacts that have not been as …

Vulnerability And Social Justice, Martha Albertson Fineman

Faculty Articles

This Article briefly considers the origins of the term social justice and its evolution beside our understandings of human rights and liberalism, which are two other significant justice categories. After this reflection on the contemporary meaning of social justice, I suggest that vulnerability theory, which seeks to replace the rational man of liberal legal thought with the vulnerable subject, should be used to define the contours of the term. Recognition of fundamental, universal, and perpetual human vulnerability reveals the fallacies inherent in the ideals of autonomy, independence, and individual responsibility that have supplanted an appreciation of the social. I suggest …

Indigenous Masculinities And The Tarascan Borderlands In Sixteenth-Century Michoacán, Daniel Santana

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

This Dissertation studies the hypermasculine narratives related to the expansion of the Tarascan state and its borderlands in early colonial Michoacán. Colonial texts such as the Relación de Michoacán and the relaciones geográficas depict the ascendance of the powerful Uacúsecha dynasty whose solar deity and male rulers oversaw the conquest of the Lake Pátzcuaro Basin and succeeded in holding back the Mexica (Aztecs) from penetrating their territories. The Dissertation pays particular attention to how contemporary political events, namely the Spanish conquest of Michoacán, endemic warfare in center-west Mexico, and political rivalries amongst Indigenous elites, influenced these accounts. Consequently, these narratives …

How Visual Confidence On Global Motion Is Affected By Local Motion Ambiguity And Type Of Motion Noise, And Its Correlation With Autistic Trait Tendency?, Man Wai, Angela Lam

Bachelor of Social Sciences – Senior Theses

Perceptual confidence has been found to correlate with task performance in general, and is believed to be independent of stimulus features. However, certain stimulus feature could induce a subjective sense of uncertainty, which could potentially influence confidence judgments beyond task performance. The present studies aimed at assessing the effects of the ambiguity of local motion signals on perceptual confidence on a global-motion task. Participants first discriminated the global motion directions of two multiple-aperture, global-motion patterns, one generated using multiple Gabor elements and the other using multiple Plaid elements. They then performed a two-interval, forced-choice confidence task by choosing which of …

Working With Transgender And Gender-Variant Youth: Teacher Knowledge, Attitudes, And Perceived Competence, Charla J. Curtis

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

Despite the fact that research shows that access to supportive adults within the school is consistently associated with better outcomes for LGBTQ students (McGuire, Anderson, Toomey, & Russell, 2010; Kosciw et al., 2018), most teachers do not receive significant training—either preservice or post-certification—about some diversity issues, including gender and sexual orientation (Jennings, 2005). Consequently, many educators lack knowledge about transgender individuals, their needs, experiences, and the unique challenges they face. This survey study explored teachers’ perspectives about working with transgender and gender-variant children and adolescents. A total of 76 teachers in the Greater Philadelphia Metropolitan Area, serving students in public …

Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is: Reforming Organized Dentistry To Address Persistent Oral Health Disparities In The U.S., Aparna Chintapalli

Pomona Senior Theses

The importance of oral health has been largely neglected from the conventional standards of healthcare in terms of public understanding & prioritization, the industrial infrastructure, and the scope of prevention & early-intervention services. Its adjunctive locus to the field of medicine has lead to the bifurcation of the oral cavity from the rest of the human body. As a result of this divide, there have been multiple factors that have allowed socially stratified oral health outcomes to manifest. This thesis examines the determinants of oral health disparities through a multidisciplinary lens (i.e. biology, public policy, infrastructure), and offers evidence of …

Conceptions About Terrorism: How Fearful Are We And How Does That Affect Us?, Rebecca Jackson

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Since the crusades, terrorism has been a form of violence used to promote some kind of agenda, whether political, social, religious or ideological (Martin 2018). With many different definitions of what constitutes terrorism, it is somewhat difficult to measure what exact impact terrorism has had globally. Attacks such as those on 9/11 in the United States and the Manchester bombings have been accepted worldwide as examples of acts of international terrorism. International terrorist attacks have lasting effects on both those directly affected as well as the larger community and beyond. Studies have shown that Americans are overly afraid of terrorism …

Gender Negotiation Among People In Poly/Consensual Non-Monogamous Relationships, Vanessa Rijo - Sánchez

Honors Undergraduate Theses

In the United States, people are encouraged and even coerced by social forces to behave and interact according to rigid social mores that tend to privilege individuals from a specific gender, racial, and class backgrounds. As many theorists have stated, sexual, gender, and racial minorities navigate their lives experiencing oppression at different levels and at the intersections of different systems of inequality. The marginal social location of these identities often results in people re-defining the social meanings through which they construct their social lives. Although much research has been devoted to investigating the different ways in which people resist the …

An Examination Of Oppression Via Anti-Abortion Legislation, Saphronia P. Carson

Honors Undergraduate Theses

This thesis utilizes a reproductive justice framework to discuss the impact of anti-abortion legislation and the anti-abortion movement on women of color and low-income women, arguing that reduced access to abortion is oppressive to minority women. Chapter 1 outlines the theoretical framework of this thesis, focusing on feminist Marxism, Intersectionality, Critical Race Theory, and radical and third wave feminist perspectives. Chapter 2 provides an overview of the anti-abortion movement and the major state and federal laws and court cases that have defined women's access to abortion in the United States, including Roe v Wade, the Hyde Amendment, Planned Parenthood v …

The Wonder Women: Understanding Feminism In Cosplay Performance, Amber Grissom

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Feminism conjures divisive and at times conflicting thoughts and feelings in the current political climate in the United States. For some, Wonder Woman is a feminist icon, for her devotion to truth, justice, and equality. In recent years, Wonder Woman has become successful in the film industry, and this is reflected by the growing community of cosplayers at comic book conventions. In this study, I examine gender performativity, gender identity, and feminism from the perspective of cosplayers of Wonder Woman. I collected ethnographic data using participant observation and semi-structured interviews with cosplayers at comic book conventions in Florida, Georgia, and …

Fp-19-09 Characteristics Of Foster Children In The U.S., 2016-2018, Valerie J. Schweizer

National Center for Family and Marriage Research Family Profiles

No abstract provided.

“Your Picture Looks The Same As My Picture”: An Examination Of Passing In Transgender Communities, Alecia D. Anderson, Jay A. Irwin, Angela M. Brown, Chris L. Grala

Sociology and Anthropology Faculty Publications

Transgender people remain one of the groups most susceptible to discrimination in the U.S. Previous studies have examined the discrimination and stress transgender people face, but few studies have examined trans identities using existing sociological theories of marginalized groups and identity formation. Using the theories of Dubois and Cooley, this study explores identity formation in conjunction with the phenomenon of passing among transgender people residing in Nebraska. Results suggest that while trans people do pass as a mechanism for subverting discrimination, there are other factors that influence an individual’s choice and strategy to pass or not. The current investigation lends …

Socioeconomic Impacts: Exploring Relationships Between Parenting Styles And Emotional Intelligence In Odd, Radhia Afif

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Children diagnosed with Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD) are at a higher risk to develop other serious problems based on reoccurring symptoms such as; aggression, hostility, and lack of empathy for others. Based on the emotional intelligence theory, it may be possible that understanding emotional intelligence in children with ODD could help reduce future psychological and social problems. This quantitative study addresses the problem of poor or low Emotional Intelligence (EI) in children diagnosed with ODD. A correlation between parenting style, as defined by Baumrind's parenting style theory, and the development of emotional intelligence has been found in current research. However, …

Self-Injurious Behavior And Social Media Use By Adolescents, Victoria Lynn Fye

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

There is a surprising dearth of research related to the phenomenon of self-injurious behavior/nonsuicidal self-injury (SIB/NSSI), such as cutting. Research conducted on SIB has revealed that this maladaptive behavior is more common among adolescents than other populations. The act of posting SIB on social media deserves research attention, as it seems to contradict what had previously been considered a very private behavior. The goal of this qualitative case study was to better understand why adolescents engage in SIB as well as investigate why they post these behaviors on social media. Merton's theory of social strain and anomie, which focuses on …

Women Into Advanced Manufacturing: Can Community College Open This Door?, Carissa Bradley Schutzman

Theses and Dissertations--Educational Policy Studies and Evaluation

Women still rarely choose to seek employment in advanced manufacturing. Lack of familiarity with manufacturing jobs and education programs, lack of role models, and too few experiential opportunities contribute to women not choosing manufacturing jobs as well as other jobs traditionally held by men (Reha, Lufkin, & Harrison, 2009; St. Rose & Hill, 2013; Starobin & Laanan, 2008). Nontraditional jobs for women often provide higher wages and more opportunity for advancement than traditional jobs for women. This study is a qualitative thematic narrative analysis of factors that influenced women who chose an advanced manufacturing program at a community college to …

Maternal Relationships, Bullying, And Deviance: A Comparison Of Adolescents With And Without Medical Conditions, Kristina M. Hayes

Theses and Dissertations--Family Sciences

The purpose of the current study was to examine and compare the quality of the mother-adolescent relationship, the prevalence of bullying and cyberbullying perpetration and victimization, and the prevalence of externalizing behaviors, as well as the relationship among these constructs, in a clinical and a nonclinical sample of adolescents. It tested a series of hypotheses focused on group differences in the mother-adolescent relationship, peer victimization, and externalizing behaviors (i.e. deviant behaviors and bullying perpetration) for the clinical and nonclinical samples. It also tested the relationships between the mother-adolescent relationship and peer victimization, deviant behaviors, and bullying perpetration, and whether these …

The Relationship Of Spirituality, Religiosity And Attitudes Toward Lesbians And Gay Men Among Students At A Faith-Based Institution, Megan C. Cormier Castaneda

Doctor of Psychology (PsyD)

Research indicates heterosexual students at faith-based universities often hold negative attitudes toward gay men and lesbian women. The factors that can influence these attitudes are complex. This study examines the relationship between attitudes toward gay men and lesbian women, religiosity and spirituality in students who are enrolled in a faith-based institution. A correlation was run to examine the relationship between these variables along with further statistical analyses to gather more information. There is a small positive relationship between higher levels of spirituality and positive attitudes toward gay men and lesbians. There is a medium positive relationship between high levels of …

Spinning Charlotte's Web: Resident Perceptions And Neutralizations Of A Slaughterhouse Town, Ashley L. Flaherty

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

Meat production, consumption, and slaughterhouses significantly affect the environment, public health, and non-human animals. Those who live in communities that house slaughterhouses must negotiate what it means to live and work in this community, and be financially supported by the industry. Understanding how people negotiate the roles that the industry plays in their community through semi-structured interviews was the primary purpose of this study. To reconcile the issues the town faces, the respondents in this study used excuses and justifications, specifically techniques of neutralization, to account for both the company's actions and the social issues the city itself faces.

Demography, Risk, And Power: An Examination Of The Deceased Patient Population At The Hastings State Hospital, 1900-1978, Dawn T. Whitney

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

The purpose of this research is to investigate the Hastings State Hospital (HSH) and its cemetery (HSHC) within a multidisciplinary framework, invoking discourse analysis, demography, and critical race theory to examine how power and risk factors impact the treatment and disposal of the body at death. It incorporates perspectives from both anthropology and sociology to interpret the data, relying heavily on the ideas of Michel Foucault. Integrating these diverse analytical tools is important to this research because social and structural forces all intersect in the creation of identity, power, and inequality.

All data in this study represent patients that have …

Associations Between Income, Acculturation, Country Of Origin, And Type Ii Diabetes Among African Immigrants To Ontario, Canada, Girma Aman Goshe

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Diabetes has become a longstanding public health challenge around the world. Over the last 3 decades, the number of people with Type II diabetes (T2DM) has grown to an epidemic level in Canada. Prior research indicated African immigrants residing in Ontario, Canada experienced a 2-4 times higher prevalence of T2DM than Canadian-born individuals. The social determinants of health theoretical framework guided this study assessing the relationship of the risk factors with T2DM. A quantitative, cross-sectional design was employed using the 2007-2014 Canadian Community Health Survey data. The random sample included 1,526 African immigrants residing in Ontario, Canada. Descriptive, bivariate, and …

Marijuana Legalization And Traffic Fatalities Involving Cannabinoids, Mark Lewn Hake

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Washington State and Colorado were the first states to legalize recreational marijuana. According to the Washington Traffic Safety Commission, the number of drivers who tested positive for marijuana in traffic fatalities increased 48% from 2013 to 2014, and marijuana legalization may have influenced this increase. Since marijuana legalization is new to the United States, the effects of this change in policy are untested in the literature. The purpose of this quantitative study using a regression point displacement design was to examine the relationship between traffic fatalities involving cannabinoids in Washington State before and after marijuana legalization. Rational choice theory and …

Reintegration Process Of Previously Incarcerated African American Women Older Than 50 Years, Eva Carol Brent

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Successful reintegration of ex-offenders is difficult for most, evidenced by high recidivism rates. Ex-offenders face a broad range of obstacles once released from prison, including personal, social, and employment barriers. This study was an examination of the issues that contributed to a successful or unsuccessful reintegration as reported by ex-offenders. Participants included 10 ex-offenders who participated in interviews regarding the conditions that they believed were necessary for successful community reintegration. The conceptual framework for this study came from the ecological perspective, also known as the person-in-environment theory. Data collection involved one-on-one interviews with the participants. Data analysis was conducted through …

Separated By The Child Welfare System: The Journey Of One Set Of Fraternal Twins, Jocelyne Coan Bond

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This study explored the separation of twins in foster care and examined how their lived experiences relate to their interpersonal relationships as adults. Many researchers have studied the long-term impact of nontwin sibling separation in foster care, but little is known about the separation of twins, leaving a significant gap in existing literature. The purpose of this study was to examine the lived experiences twins who were separated in foster care as relates to their interpersonal relationships during adulthood. A qualitative, narrative approach was used to gather the lived experiences of one set of twins. The research questions examined how …