Digital Commons Network^™

Graduate School Newsletter Winter 2024-2025, Sandra Spiroff, Martha Caroline Helms

Newsletters of the Graduate School

No abstract provided.

Tedx University Of Mississippi Presents Purpose And Potential, Staff Report

University of Mississippi News

OXFORD, Miss. – The 10th annual TEDx University of Mississippi event features an evening of music, art and thought-provoking short talks on Feb. 18 at the Gertrude C. Ford Center for the Performing Arts.

Puntos Extra, Heather Allen, Diane Marting

Recursos y ayuda

No abstract provided.

Comprehensibility, Accentedness, And Intelligibility Of English Varieties As Perceived By Japanese Learners Of English, Kana Machida

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In response to Japanese learners of English having limited exposure to various English accents in education, this study investigates their comprehensibility, accentedness, intelligibility, and familiarity with different accents. Twelve participants evaluated how easy speakers were to understand and the extent of their accentedness, and transcribed their speech.

Quantitative analysis revealed that Japanese learners of English struggle with understanding certain accented varieties of English, particularly Nigerian English, and are unfamiliar with them. In contrast, General American English and Southern American English speakers were generally perceived as less accented and easier to understand. However, results from the listening transcription task indicated that …

Positive Behavior Supports To Minimize The Placement Of Students Into Disciplinary Alternative Classrooms, Valarie Buford

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation consists of four manuscripts to explore implementations of positive behavior supports to minimize the placement of students into disciplinary alternative classrooms. Manuscript 1, sheds light on the ideas of teaching practices which reflect that teachers are often unprepared for student behaviors in their classroom which leads to traditional forms of discipline. These disciplines negatively impact African American male students disproportionately higher than their peers.

Manuscript 2, the Literature Review indicates that disproportionate discipline occurs due to exclusionary practices, implicit bias, lack of cultural knowledge, and lack of implementations to provide positive behavior support. The researcher found it relevant …

Attitudes And Motivation Of Saudi Students Learning Chinese As A Foreign Language In Saudi Arabia, Emad Hamuh

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study aims to examine the attitudes and motivation of Saudi learners toward learning Chinese as a foreign language (CFL), the effectiveness of Chinese teaching pedagogy, and the learners’ perceptions of Chinese culture and its impact on cross-cultural communication. This study is qualitative in nature, incorporating a qualitative instrument of data collection (in-depth interviews). The target population includes 8 Saudi CFL learners and 4 instructors at two universities in Saudi Arabia, namely King Abdulaziz University (KAU) and the University of Jeddah (UJ). The findings revealed that some Saudi CFL learners exhibited positive attitudes toward CFL learning, primarily influenced by their …

A Sociolinguistic Study Of The Bani Malik Dialect In Mecca, Saudi Arabia, Mansour Almalki

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

My research aims to examine how the dialect of the Bani Malik community, a minority group in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, has been influenced by its contact with the urban dialect of Mecca. It also aims to record Bani Malik speakers’ attitudes toward their heritage dialect. Thirty-six Bani Malik speakers of different age groups, genders, and amounts of contact with Meccan speakers were interviewed for 30 minutes each. Quantitative data analysis was used to investigate the influence of the Meccan dialect on one Bani Malik morphological feature, the first-person singular possessive marker < -i:h>, and two phonological features, the diphthongs [ai] and …

In Defense Of Intellectual Autonomy, Paisley Agyare Boaitey

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Recent attention in virtue and social epistemology has been devoted to analyzing intellectual virtues. However, intellectual autonomy is underappreciated and has been underexplored. The lack of specificity about the formal character of autonomy makes evaluating it as an intellectual character trait and virtue difficult. Here, I will examine extant accounts of intellectual autonomy and show why puzzles about them remain. I then offer intellectual autonomy under a compositional framework. Ultimately, I aim to show that intellectual autonomy—when adequately conceived—is a viable intellectual virtue that epistemic agents in an intellectual community [ought] to cultivate and maintain.

On Developing A Behavioral Paradigm To Measure Intolerance Of Uncertainty: The Ambiguous Approach Index, Heather Clark

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Research in clinical psychology over the last 40 years has solidified intolerance of uncertainty (IU) as an important transdiagnostic etiological and maintenance factor of affective psychopathology. Theoretically, IU is the dispositional cognitive tendency underlying anxiety related avoidance behaviors, such as worry, checking, and hypervigilance which lead to increased functional impairment. IU is associated with increased severity of numerous psychological concerns including anxiety, depression, and other commonly comorbid conditions. Further, higher levels of IU are found in clinical than non-clinical samples, emphasizing its role in mental health outcomes. However, behavioral paradigms used to differentiate between individuals of different diagnostic groups or …

Lucumí Language Preservation In Cuban Literature: A Study Of Miami Santeros’ Perceptions, Dayni Deysi Diaz Mederos

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Santería is an Afro-Cuban religion that has played a significant role in shaping Cuba’s cultural identity and that of its diaspora. Lucumí, a liturgical language primarily derived from Yoruba, is at the core of its religious practices. This language has been incorporated into the works of Cuban writers such as Lydia Cabrera, Alejo Carpentier, Nicolás Guillén, Miguel Barnet, and Nancy Morejón. While previous scholarship has examined Lucumí from linguistic and literary perspectives (Olmstead, 1953; Castellanos, 1939; Concordia, 2012; Ramos, 2013; Matibag, 2017), little attention has been given to how santeros, practitioners of Santería, perceive the representation of their sacred language …

Differing Russian Translations Of British Pre-Victorian Era Politeness In Literary Texts: A Case Study Of Jane Austen's Pride And Prejudice, Olga Ponomareva

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This case study investigates the translation of pre-Victorian-era politeness in Jane Austen’s novel Pride and Prejudice into Russian. The study addresses translators’ challenges when transferring cultural and social nuances from the original English texts to their Russian counterparts. The primary objective of this research is to analyze how Russian translations handle the concept of politeness, comparing strategies used by two translators, which is achieved through a comparative analysis of selected excerpts from the novel, focusing on the translation of politeness as defined by Brown and Levinson’s (1987) politeness theory. The study contributes to translation studies, showing the importance of cultural …

"Keep Coming Back!": How Recovering Addicts Use Narcotics Anonymous For Social Rehabilitation., Taylor Leigh Ransom

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study examines the role of Narcotics Anonymous (NA) in shaping identity transformation and social reintegration among individuals in recovery. Using an ethnographic approach, including participant observation at NA meetings and semi-structured interviews with members, along with textual analysis of Narcotics Anonymous literature, this research explores how NA fosters social recovery by providing a structured yet flexible space for identity reconstruction. Through shared narratives, rituals, and peer support, members navigate the transition from an “addict” identity to one centered on personal accountability, community, and long-term abstinence from drugs.

By situating NA within broader sociological discussions of addiction recovery, social capital, …

The View From Ventress - 2023-2024 Academic Year, University Of Mississippi, College Of Liberal Arts

Liberal Arts Newsletters

News from the College of Liberal Arts

The Sec Spanish Consortium: Foundations For Linguistic Gratuity And Language Documentation Among Latinx Populations In New Destination Communities Of The U.S. South, Stephen Fafulas, Chad Howe, Rafael Orozco, Alicia Cipria, Erin O'Rourke, Nina Moreno, Matthew J. Van Hoose

Research Products

Latinx populations in the USA have grown steadily in recent decades, with significant increases taking place in “new destination communities” of the U.S. South. The focus of our paper is to highlight opportunities for working with these populations, including traditional sociolinguistic ethnographies and community-engaged research. We highlight an initiative named “The SEC Spanish Consortium” which is an interinstitutional collaboration centered on scholarship and service involving Latinx populations in new destination communities of the U.S. South. We show that ongoing and future scholarly work in the U.S. South can act as a mechanism for documenting these emerging Latinx communities while simultaneously …

November 7, 2024, The Daily Mississippian

Daily Mississippian (all digitized issues)

No abstract provided.

October 3, 2024, The Daily Mississippian

Daily Mississippian (all digitized issues)

No abstract provided.

Issue 452: September 19-October 3, 2024, The Local Voice

The Local Voice

No abstract provided.

September 5, 2024, The Daily Mississippian

Daily Mississippian (all digitized issues)

No abstract provided.

Dental Modification Among The Classic Maya Of Chac Balam And San Juan, Ambergris Caye, Belize, Katherine Kelly

Honors Theses

Perceptions of beauty and health are embedded within everyday actions, even a simple smile. How do dental modification practices among the Classic Maya from Ambergris Caye, Belize relate to these perceptions and a person’s identity and status? This thesis analyzes the practice of notching, filing, and placing inlays in maxillary incisors and canines through a qualitative analysis of Classic period AD 250-1000 Maya teeth from the sites of San Juan and Chac Balam. A lack of patterns related to sex, socioeconomic status, and the type of modification in the dentition of five individuals, including two males, two females and one …

New Faculty Guide, 2024, University Of Mississippi. Provost

New Faculty

No abstract provided.

Embodiment And Meaning: Muay Thai In Different Cultural Contexts, Dana B. Dawson

Proceedings of the annual meeting of the Southern Anthropological Society

This qualitative meta-analysis, drawing from published articles, books, and ethnographies, examines Muay Thai through the interdisciplinary lens of martial arts studies, cultural studies, and anthropological literature. I argue that the interpretation of Muay Thai is intricately tied to its cultural context, revealing dimensions such as cultural heritage, systemic violence, and the global dissemination of martial arts. Framed within anthropological literature on embodiment and cultural performance, the paper understands Muay Thai, akin to dance, as an embodied cultural performance shaped by bodily knowledge and practice. The analysis delves into the nuanced meanings of Muay Thai across three cultural contexts: native practitioners …

“A Strongman With A Wig”: Mountaineering, Gender Dynamics, And Feminine Marginalization In The Club Andino Bariloche, Kaitlyn C. Sisco

Proceedings of the annual meeting of the Southern Anthropological Society

The Club Andino Bariloche (CAB) is an Argentine mountaineering and winter sports club that was established in San Carlos de Bariloche in 1931. This paper provides a historical assessment of gender dynamics and mountaineering subjectivities in the CAB’s digital archive from 1931 to 2011. Specifically, I examine the CAB’s gendered ideologies of mountaineering as pertaining to: 1) the Andean landscape; 2) masculine protagonism; 3) feminine (in)action; and 4) transitional feminism in the late 20th and early 21st centuries. I argue that a history of feminine marginalization marks much of the CAB expeditionary record, drawing attention to the gendered ideologies of …

Tenure And Promotion Announcement, 2024, University Of Mississippi. Provost

Tenure and Promotion Announcements

No abstract provided.

Record Number Of Um Flagship Students Accepted For Capstone, Marvis Herring

University of Mississippi News

OXFORD, Miss. – Seventeen seniors in the University of Mississippi Language Flagship programs have been accepted into competitive Chinese and Arabic capstone year programs, setting a record for the university.

University Of Mississippi 171st Commencement, 2024, University Of Mississippi, Glenn F. Boyce, Noel E. Wilkin, Wright Thompson

Commencement Programs

No abstract provided.

Development Of A Course-Based Undergraduate Research Experience (Cure) Using The Bess Beetle, Sreya Maddali

Honors Theses

Participating in scientific research has increasingly been important in helping students develop necessary science learning skills, like critical thinking. One way of introducing students to these experiences is a Course-based Undergraduate Research Experience (CURE). CUREs enable students to improve in similar ways to internships and are more accessible to students from diverse backgrounds. The goal was to create a CURE centered around ecological genetics, using the Bess Beetle (Odontotaenius disjunctus) as the focal organism of a 16-week course. This species was selected because of its wide geographic range and divergent genetic lineages based on mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase subunit 1 (COI) …

Framing Identity: Russian Media In The Baltics As A Mechanism Of Soft Power, Jackson Mcarthur

Honors Theses

Societal tensions surrounding language, national identity, collective memory, citizenship, and integration exist between the titular Baltic population and Russian speakers living in the Baltic states (Simons, 2015). The Russian government has tried to exploit these tensions via non-violent yet subversive political and cultural influence—or “soft power”—with limited success, particularly through Russian-language media (Kudors, 2015). While many scholars have focused on the reception of Russia’s soft power among the Baltic Russian-speaking population, which has been primarily ineffective at advancing Russia’s political goals (Cheskin, 2015; Kallas, 2016; Coolican, 2021), few have analyzed Russian-language media as a mechanism of Russian soft power in …

Exploring The Efficacy Of The Advancement Via Individual Determination (Avid) Program At Promoting Student Motivation, Nya Thompson, Nya J. Thompson

Honors Theses

The Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) Program was founded by Mary Katherine Swanson in 1980 in Southern California. She created the program as a social justice initiative to provide additional resources to her students of marginalized backgrounds (e.g., low socioeconomic status, racial and ethnic backgrounds) to prepare them to graduate high school and be accepted into colleges. Decades later, the AVID program is nationwide, but there is only one school district in Mississippi with this program that is founded on the roots of equity. In this specific school district located in Northern Mississippi, the AVID program is available in elementary, …

La Langue Des Autres: The Linguistic Evolution Of African Representation In French Popular Culture, Colonialism To Present, Kathrynanne Eastman

Honors Theses

This thesis examines the linguistic representation of African peoples and cultures in French popular culture, specifically as this pertains to immigration. The foundational research question of this project is: how has the representation of Africans in French popular culture evolved since the colonial period? In order to answer this question, I examine seven sources of popular culture, all works of either literature or cinema, depicting three different time periods: 19th-century French colonization in Algeria (1830-1900), the post-World War II “Trente Glorieuses” [Thirty Glorious Years] (1945 to 1975), and the contemporary era (1990-present). I lay out and analyze the language present …

Around The World In 80 Days: Navigating Culturally Diverse Texts In Secondary English Education, Abby Boyer

Honors Theses

In the secondary English classroom, the inclusion of diverse texts holds importance in fostering a rich and inclusive learning environment that reflects the realities and complexities of our diverse world. Diverse texts encompass a wide range of voices, perspectives, and experiences that represent various cultures, races, ethnicities, genders, sexual orientations, abilities, and socioeconomic backgrounds. By incorporating such texts into the curriculum, educators not only honor the diversity of their students but also provide them with opportunities to engage critically with different narratives, develop empathy, and cultivate a deeper understanding of the complexities of the human experience.
Moreover, diverse texts offer …