Digital Commons Network^™

So Who Gets To Be Modern? Jadidism And Reform In Late Nineteenth And Early Twentieth Century Russia, Grant Douglas Linville

University Honors Theses

Jadidism was a sociocultural reformist project from the 1880s to 1920s developed by Muslim intellectuals in the Russian Empire and the Soviet Union. The Jadidist movement derives its name from the "new-method" (usul-al Jadid) schools that spread Jadid pedagogy, which revolved around the inclusion of secular topics and Western knowledge as well as instruction in local, Tatar, and Russian languages, in addition to the already present religious studies accompanied by Arabic and Persian taught in the Islamic educational institutions the maktab and madrasa (primary and higher education respectively). Over time Jadidism grew to encompass a host of societal …

Self-Representation In Manga: The Importance Of Gay & Lesbian Visibility In Japanese Society, Rylan Newsom

University Honors Theses

This thesis examines the evolving landscape of gay and lesbian self-representation in Japanese manga through a hermeneutic analysis of three key texts: My Lesbian Experience with Loneliness by Kabi Nagata, and My Brother's Husband and Our Colors by Gengoroh Tagame. It investigates how manga functions not only as a storytelling medium but as a sociocultural mirror, uniquely positioned to illuminate the often-invisible negotiations of identity, shame, and social position that queer individuals experience in Japan. Through the lens of Takie Lebra's concept of bun (role or place in society), this project explores the ways in which queer characters seek legitimacy, …

At Home In Horror: Women And Body Horror, Brooklynn Kreps

University Honors Theses

While most discussion around the subgenre of body horror focuses on its birthplace of film, the richest iterations come from women writing body horror fiction to explain the experience of womanhood. As body horror focuses on fear of painful or absurd mishap with the body. Women experience pain or absurdity in their own bodies every day with processes like menstruation, pregnancy, puberty, and heightened chances of becoming a victim of sexual assault. Furthermore, women experience society's forceful shaming and fear about natural processes of the body and experiences such as anger and sexual desire. Using this idea as a framework, …

Translating Legalese: Deconstructing Lease Language For New Renters, Erin Clarke

University Honors Theses

This thesis investigates the relationship between legal English and the general public, focusing on the challenges laypersons encounter in reading contract language. By examining specific linguistic features of legal writing, along with the systems and practices of US law, this research highlights the problematic disconnect between the complexity of legalese and the fluency level of average citizens in this specialized variety of English. This issue is particularly salient in the realm of rental agreements for housing, given the mounting housing crisis and historically high eviction rates in the state of Oregon. The culmination of this research is a digital guidebook …

Indigenous Cultural Healing In The Pacific Northwest: The Columbia River Tribes And The Potential Return Of The Falls, Cj Senn

University Honors Theses

This thesis examines the historical, cultural, and ecological significance of Celilo Falls (Wyam), a once-sacred Indigenous site on the Columbia River, and the profound impacts of its submergence by The Dalles Dam in 1957. It looks into the history of the area as well as the potential for a return of the falls in the future. Drawing from a mixed-methods approach that includes a systematic literature review and qualitative interviews with Indigenous scholars, elders, and community members, the study explores how the loss of Celilo Falls disrupted Indigenous governance, economies, and spiritual practices. It further investigates how Celilo continues to …

Working Paper No. 95, Jeremy Bentham And English Common Law, Anastasia Klingler

Working Papers in Economics

This inquiry seeks to establish that in his book, The Theory of Legislation [1802], author Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832) critiqued English Common Law while also posing solutions and alternatives. The first part of this inquiry considers Bentham’s critique of the degrees of vagueness and confusion that could be associated with what is noted as “Common Law” with its emphasis upon the “principle of expectation.” In addition, this inquiry introduces and considers Bentham’s warnings against uses associated with the English legal system and its emphasis upon the importance of “precedent,” as this emphasis is argued to open risks for abuse by courts …

Working Paper No. 98, Selma Mushkin And The Emergence Of The Field Of Health Economics, Sadie Kautz

Working Papers in Economics

This inquiry seeks to establish that through her effective efforts, Selma Mushkin promoted and shaped the field of Health Economics. Perhaps most importantly, she redefined health as a form of human capital that needed to be considered as both essential and integral to economic growth. In her 1958 paper: “Toward a Definition of Health Economics,” she defined the scope of this emerging field through emphasizing how improved resource allocation could lead to efficiency gains. Appearing as her 1962 article in the Journal of Political Economy, with “Health as an Investment” Mushkin advanced the idea that--much like education--public spending on health …

Working Paper No. 103, Russia And The Myriad Of Challenges Associatedwith ‘Relative Backwardness’, Jacob Wood

Working Papers in Economics

This inquiry seeks to establish that over recent of centuries Russia exhibits signs of what is termed as ‘relative backwardness.’ Drawing from Alexander Gershenkron’s (1962, 62-70) understanding of ‘backwardness in historical perspective,’ as well as Karl Marx’s ([1845] 1977, 39-43) concept of ‘historical materialism,’ this inquiry examines how successive Russian regimes sought to close the developmental gap with western countries through state-led modernization efforts. What stands out is that when confronted with attempting deep structural challenges, each leader turned to centralized authority and coercive reforms—not by choice, but out of necessity. Our inquiry considers Nicolas II’s failure to modernize Russia’s …

How Do Montessori-Based Activities Affect Behaviors For Older People With Dementia: A Literature Review, Isabel Quigley

University Honors Theses

Objectives: This literature review is meant to analyze the development on the research on Montessori-based activities for adults with dementia.

Introduction: Baby Boomers are the largest generation to enter senior age (65+) in history due to the advancement in medicine to increase life expectancy. Dementia is a neurocognitive disease that affects parts of the brain related to memory and signs typically surface around 65 years old. Dementia is not considered healthy aging. Montessori-based activities have been recently developed as an intervention to encourage a feeling of accomplishment and success for adults with dementia.

Methods: Two electronic databases …

Testing Their Limits: Impact And Intentions Of Standardized Testing In K-12 Schools, Grace O. Herd

University Honors Theses

The integration of High-Stakes standardized testing into U.S. public education to serve as an accountability system has been a disputed issue since the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) mandated these assessments nationwide in 2002. NCLB aimed to locate and identify schools failing to reach Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) and trigger a chain of interventions based on student performance, as an effort to track measurable outcomes from federal education funding. While supporters view these standardized tests as quantifiable data for school effectiveness in academics, critics challenge the claim of validity.

This review integrates current psychological research in the area of …

The Potential For Improv As A Therapeutic Tool In The Context Of Dialectical Behavior Therapy: Suggestions For Dbt Clinicians, Jocelyn Borden

University Honors Theses

This thesis explores the theoretical and practical intersections between improvisational theater and Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), proposing that the core tenets of improv closely align with the philosophical foundation and therapeutic goals of DBT. Aimed at mental health professionals, this work provides a conceptual framework and praxis for incorporating improv-based activities into DBT skills training to enhance client engagement, experiential learning, and emotional resilience. Through an examination of improv theory, parallels with DBT principles, and practical suggestions for integration, the thesis outlines how applied improvisation can be used as a supplemental tool in traditional DBT treatment. The final section includes …

Where's The Dim Sum? Art, Oral History, And The Chinese American Diaspora In Portland, Or, Rayli Dornan

University Honors Theses

This thesis examines the history, transformation, and contemporary significance of Portland's Chinatown through an oral history framework, emphasizing the voices of Chinese American artists. Beginning with a comprehensive historical overview from the mid-nineteenth-century Gold Rush migrations and railroad labor to twentieth-century exclusion, dispossession under urban renewal, and the late-twentieth-century dispersal into suburbs, the thesis traces how structural racism and policy shaped both the physical landscape and communal life of Oregon's Chinese diaspora. Through in-depth interviews with local artists, this research aims to illuminate how individual experiences of identity, belonging, and creative expression navigate the tensions between heritage and adaptation.

Drawing …

Working Paper No. 102, Knowledge And Power: Towards Anintellectual Biography Of Michel Foucault, Amanda Bergeson

Working Papers in Economics

This inquiry seeks to establish that in his efforts as an intellectual, scholar, and author of books that would include Discipline and Punish [1975], Michel Foucault emphasizes the importance of power and power relations, especially of an authority (such as a sovereign) over the common people. Drawing from Discipline and Punish [1975], this inquiry considers how Foucault’s understanding of genealogy got rooted and shaped by Friedrich Nietzsche’s critique of history; a view which altogether challenged the idea of historical progress, while also revealing the contingent nature of truth. The second section considers how sovereign power evolves into disciplinary mechanisms embedded …

Working Paper No. 97, Business Sabotage In Theory And Practice, Nathan Lewis-Lusso

Working Papers in Economics

This inquiry seeks to establish that theoretical advances offered earlier on by one Karl Marx and some decades later by one Thorstein Veblen offer insights into forms of business sabotage. Drawing upon their writings, this inquiry considers how in the writings of Marx, already in the mid-nineteenth century surplus value extraction and pecuniary sabotage serve as structural features found in a market-based economy. Marx’s consideration of surplus labor and artificial scarcity reveals how private investment seeks to constrain production in order to preserve and enhance profitability. Veblen’s theory of institutional sabotage complements Marx’s view by showing how firms could delay …

Beyond Capitalist Realism: Indigenous Worldviews As Critique And Alternative, Celine Jessup

University Honors Theses

This paper engages Mark Fisher's Capitalist Realism: Is There No Alternative? as a foundational critique of late capitalism's ideological dominance, and proposes Indigenous worldviews as both a critical lens and a generative alternative. Fisher defines capitalist realism as a pervasive structure that colonizes imagination, depoliticizes systemic crises, and renders other ways of living unthinkable. He illustrates how capitalism commodifies resistance, pathologizes dissent, and obscures accountability, particularly through institutions like the call center and discourses on mental health and climate change. In contrast, the paper turns to Indigenous political theories—drawing on thinkers such as Kim TallBear, Daniel Heath Justice, Ocean Ripeka …

Intrapersonal And Interpersonal Factors Of Participation In Physical Activity And Resistance Training In Adolescent Girls: A Narrative Review, Ben Banse-Fay

University Honors Theses

Low rates of participation in physical activity and resistance training among adolescent girls are a concern due to increased health and injury risks. Adolescent girls participate in physical activity and resistance training at a lower rate than boys, which may explain higher rates of injury. Research examining physical activity of adolescent girls often utilizes an ecological framework, identifying intrapersonal, interpersonal, and environmental factors. Of these ecological levels, intrapersonal and interpersonal factors are modifiable without large costs.

Therefore, this review aimed to identify and summarize recent research that explores the intrapersonal and interpersonal factors associated with participation in physical activity and …

Working Paper No. 99, Adam Smith And The American Experiment, Cole Soliz

Working Papers in Economics

As the noted author of a tome titled An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations, Adam Smith [1776] is often cited as a proponent of Laissez-faire capitalism. However, the reality is that his writings offer a more nuanced vision that includes suggesting constraints on economics activity, while encouraging the importance of what he views as state or public institutions. In Smith's writings we find that he speculates that for a perfectly functioning market system to operate effectively depends upon the enforcement of contracts, the protection of property rights, and the maintenance of justice. These, along …

How Different Forms Of Exercise Affect Bone Mineral Density In Postmenopausal Women, Jonathan Mccanless

University Honors Theses

This paper analyzed 20 studies to understand how bone health in postmenopausal women is impacted by different forms of exercise. The primary aspect of bone health examined in this paper is bone mineral density (BMD). Resistance and impact training demonstrated clear signs of maintenance and increases in BMD, particularly in the lumbar spine and femoral neck. Aquatic exercise demonstrated mixed results in positively impacting BMD in a significant way, but it’s worth noting that there were still some signs of increased BMD. Impact exercise on its own can maintain BMD, and these effects can be seen in total hip BMD. …

Germanic Identity And Othering At The Inception Of Modernity: A Critical Translation Of The Geographic Addendum Of The Nuremberg Chronicle (1493), Nina Martin

University Honors Theses

The Nuremberg Chronicle (1493) is a late medieval humanist world chronicle compiled in its original Latin by Hartmann Schedel and translated into vernacular German by Georg Alt in the same year. It features exquisite woodcut illustrations from the studio of Michael Wohlgemut which bolstered the text's contemporaneous popularity among scholarly and lay audiences along with the unauthorized cheaper editions released by Johann Schönesperger within the decade. This project investigates depictions of collective identity as presented in the Geographic Addendum, a section of the endmatter discussing the peoples and lands of Europe which Schedel compiled from the writings of humanist scholar …

Knowing Remembers Joe Christmas: An Exploration Of Trauma In William Faulkner's Light In August, Kendall Boyd

University Honors Theses

William Faulkner wrote Light in August in 1932, during the American prohibition and national Jim Crow laws. As a southern gothic/American modernism text, Light in August is a fictional story that takes place in the southern states of the U.S. and primarily relies on memory and ambiguity to reveal its dark themes of racism, sexual violence, and collective trauma. The novel features two separate narrators as main characters: Lena Burch and Joe Christmas. Joe Christmas, a man of mysterious heritage who lives a life of tragedy and violence, is the focus of my analysis of Light in August. Using …

Changing Minds, Changing Modes: Optimizing Public Perception Strategies For Urban Cycling Through Behavior Change Theory, Brandon Barnhart

University Honors Theses

This thesis addresses the recent decline in bicycle mode share in cities like Portland, Oregon, despite decades of investment in cycling infrastructure. While the "build it, and they will come" approach succeeded through the early 2000s, it no longer meets targets for bicycle use or broader goals related to sustainability, congestion, health, and safety. A new approach is needed that effectively rebuilds the cultural and behavioral components of cycling. This research asks: What role can behavior change theory play in increasing the effectiveness of public perception campaigns to promote urban cycling? Using a qualitative methodology, this study draws on behavior …

We Are Still Here: Intersectional Collaborations In Research, Practice, And Resistance Among Mfp Scholars, Antonia R.G. Alvarez, Sameena Azhar, Tyrone M. Parchment, Judith Perrigo, Anne S. J. Farina, Tania Paredes, Jonathan P. Edwards, Susan Klumpner

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

As Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) Minority Fellowship Program (MFP) scholars, we formed meaningful connections as academics, students, and friends. Throughout this reflective article, we explore the profound impact of our intersectional and critical race-informed scholarship on our professional practice and pedagogy while highlighting the ways that collaborating on this work enriched our journeys as scholars of color. These collaborations have expanded our perspectives and fostered new ways of thinking about the unique health and mental health experiences of ethnoracial communities. Through these partnerships, we have advanced diverse scientific literature and addressed critical gaps within the existing canon of …

The Intersection Of Education And Empowerment: How Comprehensive Sex Education Equips Adolescents To Navigate Complex Relational Dynamics, Joleigh Wood

University Honors Theses

This thesis examines the impact of comprehensive sex education (CSE) on adolescents' understanding of consent, personal boundaries, and relational competence. Drawing upon social learning theory, intersectionality, and relational-cultural theory, the study employs a multidisciplinary framework to analyze how CSE functions as both an instructional practice and a sociocultural intervention. Utilizing an integrative thematic review of empirical studies, policy analyses, and national curriculum standards, the research evaluates the extent to which CSE promotes emotional literacy, fosters ethical relationship skills, and addresses structural inequities in educational access. Findings indicate that well-implemented, inclusive CSE contributes to healthier developmental outcomes by enhancing students' emotional …

Variation Of Oregon Law Enforcement Agency Clearance Rates And Their Influencing Factors, Kendra Macsaveny

University Honors Theses

Clearance rates are one of the few ways to measure the efficiency and performance of a law enforcement agency. So, if an agency has a low clearance rate, then this reflects poorly on an agency's capabilities when it comes to solving crimes and making arrests. This study's purpose is to (1) present the clearance rates for a sample of police agencies in Oregon; (2) determine how the agencies vary from each other; (3) determine if the clearance rates for individual agencies remain stable over time; and (4) determine what agency factors might be influencing the clearance rate. Although agency factors …

Did Dobbs Reduce The Supreme Court's Legitimacy?, Ava Steinmetz

University Honors Theses

This thesis examines the impact of the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision on public perceptions of the Supreme Court's legitimacy. Over the two decades preceding Dobbs, the Roberts Court had already become the center of intense debate over judicial impartiality, driven by an increasingly politicized series of high-profile rulings. Dobbs generated an unprecedented level of media attention and partisan commentary. Employing a mixed-methods approach, this study combines longitudinal analysis of national survey data on trust and confidence in the Court with content analysis of editorial and scholarly reactions before and after June 2022. Findings reveal a statistically …

Consumer Choice And Indoor Air Quality, Crystal Jadach

Civil and Environmental Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

Outdoor air pollution has drastically improved for everyone since the passage of the clean air act. However, indoor air quality is not monitored or enforceable in the United States. Yet, the EPA estimates that people of developed nations spend approximately 90% of their time indoors. Candles, a common ambiance setting choice for many household consumers, have been well characterized as a source of volatile organic compounds (VOCs). VOCs can have a wide variety of negative effects on human health. A benchtop and pilot scale study were used to characterize the difference in the accumulation and displacement of total volatile organic …

Rationality And Discomfort: Stance In "The End Of The Altaic Controversy" And "In Defense Of The Comparative Method, Or The End Of The Vovin Controversy", Logan Mcdowall

University Honors Theses

This study will use corpus linguistics techniques and Hyland's framework for stance in academic discourse to analyze authors' discoursal roles in different framings of a famous controversy in historical linguistics: the classification of the Altaic language family. Two significant pieces of discourse in this debate include "The End of the Altaic Controversy" by A. Vovin and "In Defense of the Comparative Method, or the End of the Vovin Controversy" by A. Dybo and G. Starostin. Despite the importance of these works, no one has analyzed how these authors use stance to position themselves within it. After performing a corpus word …

Shadowed Identities: The (Mis)Representation Of Communities Of Color In Classic Film Noir, Yolanda Porter

University Honors Theses

This thesis is an inquiry into the (mis)representation of women, Latinx, and BIPOC individuals in classic film noir, examining how race, gender, class, and sexuality intersect to perpetuate stereotypes in Hollywood. Through a deep analysis of films like Gilda (1946) and Touch of Evil (1958), this project explores how the conventions of film noir, such as chiaroscuro lighting, moral ambiguity, and non-linear storyline, work to expose and also reinforce social hierarchies that preserve whiteness and oppression of minorities. The research positions these films within the postwar socio-political context of the United States, addressing the influence of the Hays Code, Cold …

How Did I Get Here? A Capstone Review, Michael Koach

University Honors Theses

In this thesis, I highlight my personal and professional growth as a college student. I use structured reflection and meta-analysis to uncover insights about how I learn and develop new skills. Over the past five years, I have built a toolbox of skills, including teamwork, public speaking, navigating uncertainty, strategic thinking, and leadership. I trace the development of each of these skills back to my coursework as a business student, my role in PSU's student-run advertising agency, and my professional experience. I show how these skills culminated in my business capstone project. My communication and leadership skills allowed me to …

Effect Of Ipv On Latino Children's Perspectives Of Fatherhood, Elizabeth Berks

University Honors Theses

Intimate partner violence (IPV) can be found in many cultures throughout the world, with varying levels of acceptability, victimization, and perpetration. Approximately one in five couples report experiencing at least one instance of IPV in a given year. Women are victims of IPV more frequently than men, and experience more severe injuries. 20% of women report a lifetime history of physical IPV victimization by their current or past partners. Further, women are also ten times more likely to be killed due to IPV than men are. Presently, empirical research literature surrounding the dynamics and impacts of IPV is heavily focused …