Digital Commons Network^™

Lessons For The Trump Administration From The Biden U.S. National Strategy To Counter Antisemitism, Lili Levi

FIU Law Review

In May 2023, the Biden Administration issued the first-ever U.S. National Strategy to Counter Antisemitism with a goal of hindering further normalization of antisemitism by increasing public awareness of antisemitism and highlighting positive Jewish contributions to America. Recent events, however, particularly the social and political upheaval over protests of the war in Gaza, have led to public contestation over Israel, increased instances of antisemitism, and the partisan politicization of Jewish issues. All this has raised questions about whether the National Strategy's assumptions about public attitudes, the viability of antisemitism awareness initiatives, and the possibility of whole-of-society agreement on countering antisemitism …

How Much Antisemitism Is There In The United States? Incidences Vs. Impacts, Ira Sheskin

FIU Law Review

The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) (www.adl.org), founded in 1913, is one of the nation's premier civil rights organizations and was formed to stop the defamation of the Jewish people and to secure justice and fair treatment to all. Every year since 1979, the ADL has published an Audit of Antisemitic Incidents in the US (https://www.adl.org/resources/report/audit-antisemitic-incidents-2023). The Audit receives significant publicity and is important in communicating the problem of serious antisemitic incidents and the year-to-year increases in such incidents. But, based on surveys of American Jews, the Audit underestimates the extent to which American Jews are being impacted by antisemitism. Survey data …

Exploring The Intersectionality Of Antisemitism And The Law: A Case Study Of The Crown Heights Riots And Aftermath, Stephen Sussman, Carole Huberman

FIU Law Review

Antisemitism does not exist in isolation; it often intersects with other forms of discrimination and prejudice. Examining these intersections is crucial to understanding the broader dynamics of discrimination and developing effective strategies. Antisemitism and racism often intersect in complex ways. Historical examples include the portrayal of Jews as racially inferior or “other” during periods of heightened racial tension. This intersection has implications for policies related to hate crimes, racial profiling, and equal protection under the law. This research examines the complex interplay between antisemitism and the legal system, using the Crown Heights Riots of 1991 as a focal point. The …

Being Pregnant In Someone Else's Body, Jennifer S. Hendricks

FIU Law Review

In the wake of the Dobbs decision overturning the right to abortion, now is a critical time to re-assess how legal feminism theorizes the pregnant body. Before Dobbs, feminist legal scholarship had blazed a path of anti-maternalism, a stance rooted in liberal, formalist notions of equality that denigrates the “feminine” and too often minimizes the importance of reproductive issues both as tools of sex-based subordination in the present and as foundations for liberation in the future. Anti-maternalism is attractive to legal scholars because it minimizes sex and gender differences and may appear to be gender-inclusive. It has produced arguments that …

Animating Soil: Cultivating Young Children's Soil Relations, Jane Merewether, Mindy Blaise, Stefania Giamminuti

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

This article explores young children's relations with soil, drawing on research that positioned soil as animate, lively and interconnected. The paper investigates how animist approaches offered a mode of encounter for children and their teachers, encouraging them to see themselves as part of a larger ecological community. The research began with a "soil biome immersion"experience where teachers engaged with soil through sensory and arts-based experiences. These initial encounters led to further exploration of child-soil relations through experiential learning and storytelling. Children, as active meaning-makers, co-constructed the inquiry through imaginative and sensory engagements. Findings suggest animism cultivates soil relations, challenging traditional …

Book Review: Biglaw's Race Problem, Angela Onwuachi-Willig, Anthony V. Alfieri

Faculty Scholarship

Ever since the 1970s when BigLaw firms began to hire Black lawyers into their associate ranks, these firms have wrestled with problems in both recruiting and retaining Black associates. During the ensuing decades, BigLaw firms have minimally increased the low numbers of Black attorneys who have become partners, particularly equity partners, within their organizations. Numerous scholars have explored how racial bias and discrimination, both within BigLaw firms and greater society, have contributed to such failures in the recruitment, retention, and promotion of Black lawyers. In his new book The Black Ceiling: How Race Still Matters in the Elite Workplace, …

Why Did Prosecution Strengthen President Trump In The 2024 Election?, Steven Arrigg Koh

Faculty Scholarship

Why did criminal prosecution strengthen President Donald Trump's electoral prospects in the 2024 federal election? It was not supposed to be this way: after President Trump's 2024 New York state conviction, many speculated that President Trump's "felon" status would imperil his political career. In fact, the opposite occurred: federal and state criminal prosecutions reenergized President Trump's 2024 presidential candidacy. Contemporary criminal law theories-traditional individualist, expressivist, and critical-struggle to explain why. 

This Article advances a theory of criminal coalescence to explain why the Trump prosecutions led the former President to political victory. Criminal coalescence is the intensification of mass support for …

Challenging The Law, Steven Arrigg Koh

Faculty Scholarship

Frédéric Mégret’s engaging contribution, A Look Back at The Women’s Hague Peace Conference: What Contribution To International Law Today?, exposes a legal duality. On one hand, the legalist perspective: law is a closed system. From this perspective, law is objective, hard, universal, and bounded. On the other hand, the sociocultural perspective: law is a human practice. From this perspective, law is subjective, organic, particular, and porous. This Essay reads Mégret’s analysis of the 1915 International Congress of Women in The Hague as a “sociocultural challenge,” disrupting the legalist perspective on international law, war, and peace during World War I. …

The Complex And Marginalized Experiences Of Bipoc Trafficked Women: An Examination Of Disabilities, Aces, Discrimination, And Racism, Jacquelyn C. A. Meshelemiah, Fabian Arroyo Rojas, Hannah Ruth Steinke, Marlene Carson, Justin A. Haegele

Human Movement Studies & Special Education Faculty Publications

The purpose of this study was to examine the lived experiences and multiple identities of disabled BIPOC trafficked women. The findings from this study help to identify a carousel of victimization experienced by disabled BIPOC trafficked women, starting with adverse childhood experiences, onto trafficking victimization that differed between Black and White women, and later while seeking services. These findings highlight the need for providers and researchers to think beyond monolithic identities and consider the intersecting ways in which various forms of oppression (ableism and racism) influence the experiences of disabled trafficked BIPOC women.

Conceptualizing And Problematizing Inclusion Porn In Education Scholarship And Practice, Justin A. Haegele, Anthony J. Maher

Human Movement Studies & Special Education Faculty Publications

Discourses of inclusion are currently used without clear and consistent meaning and multiple and varied interpretations exist, therefore stunting our ability to enhance or utilize the concept in social justice and education scholarship and practice. In this article, we argue that the ambiguous, conflicting, and contested features of inclusion have opened a door for nondisabled policy makers, academics, practitioners, and other stakeholders to exploit the concept of inclusion by crafting the logics and taken-for-granted assumptions that become associated with it. Accordingly, these nondisabled stakeholders gain social, cultural, and symbolic capital in the fields that they operate, while (some) disabled students …

Modified Constraint-Induced Movement Therapy After Stroke: A Process Evaluation Of Implementation In An Early-Supported Discharge Rehabilitation Service, Ashan Bimalka Weerakkody

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Background

Modified constraint-induced movement therapy (mCIMT) improves upper limb (UL) function after stroke, but its routine delivery in rehabilitation settings remains limited.

Aims

The objectives were to determine the feasibility, acceptability, and sustainability of implementing mCIMT within an early-supported discharge (ESD) rehabilitation service, using existing resources and staffing.

Aims were to:

• Develop and deliver a multi-modal behaviour change intervention to clinicians to increase mCIMT delivery.
• Explore the acceptability of mCIMT among stroke survivors, carers, therapists, and allied health managers.
• Identify program adaptations to better suit stakeholder needs.
• Evaluate the process of implementing mCIMT in the ESD service.

Methods

This thesis …

Correlate Of Savings Attitude And Generational Poverty As Mediated By Financial Literacy: Evidence From Ghana, Adu Bismark Owusu-Sekyere, Williams Kwasi Peprah [email protected]

Faculty Publications

This study examines the mediating role of financial literacy between savings attitudes and generational poverty in Ghana. Generational poverty is a significant issue in Ghana, with a multidimensional poverty rate of 45.6% and a consumer expenditure poverty rate of 23.4%. The problem persists due to low financial literacy and poor savings attitudes, which hinder economic growth and development. The research employed a quantitative methodology, utilizing a series of regression analyses to test the mediation effects of financial literacy. A correlational design was adopted to assess the relationships between the variables. The study’s population included 400 individuals from the five regions …

Mythogenesis In As I Lay Dying: A Comparative Exploration Of Mythmaking And Counter-Myths, Allison K. Groupp

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

This thesis explores William Faulkner’s As I Lay Dying through the lens of comparative mythology, arguing that the novel constructs a counter-myth that challenges dominant Western narratives. By engaging with non-Western mythological traditions—particularly Proto-Indo European, Hindu, and Indigenous cosmologies—the study reveals how Faulkner embeds symbolic structures that transcend Christian and Greco-Roman frameworks. Using semiology and structuralist frameworks developed by Ferdinand de Saussure, Claude Lévi-Strauss, and Roland Barthes, the analysis deciphers a mythopoetic narrative that refocuses marginalized myths to destabilize binary oppositions such as Christian/Pagan, civilized/uncivilized, and male creation myths with female creation myths. Each chapter examines a different mythic layer: …

How Does Social Capital Influence The Preferences For Aging In The Community? Based On The Study Toward Older Adults In Yuexiu District, Guangzhou City, Biyun Xiang

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

This study examines how social capital influences older adults’ preferences for aging in the community, focusing on Yuexiu District, Guangzhou. Using a mixed-methods approach, the study explores family, structural, and cognitive dimensions of social capital.

Quantitative data were collected through 439 surveys, with 400 valid responses from adults aged 60 and above. Regression analysis identified key predictors of aging-in-community preferences, including family financial support, care commitment, activities with grandchildren, community trust, mutual help, and service satisfaction.

Qualitative data from 10 interviews with community service workers revealed six themes: (1) access to services like fitness and health screenings; (2) levels of …

The Emotional Side Of Migration: Peruvian Women Migrant's Experiences In The U.S., Arinka A. Abad

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

Migration is a complex social, economic, cultural, and political issue. While research often highlights the positive aspects of migration, the emotional well-being of migrants is frequently overlooked. This qualitative dissertation examines the emotional experiences of heterosexual Peruvian women migrants, focusing on those who migrate either to join male partners in the United States or alone after abandonment. It analyzes how their emotional health is affected during pre-migration, migration, and post-migration stages. The study reveals persistent stressors impacting emotional well-being using migration, transnational, and human capital theories, a gender-focused perspective, and the Ulysses Syndrome or Immigrant Syndrome concept.

The research question …

The Senior International Officer: A Sociological Perspective On The Development Of A Higher Education Profession, Mohammad Mansoor Khan

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

Internationalization of higher education institutions in the United States has progressed rapidly since World War II. The pace and specifics of this internationalization vary by institution. However, there are some shared characteristics including, but not limited to, increase in student mobility, both inward and outward, exchange of scholars, cross-border research, and internationalization of the curriculum. This increased the institutional administrative burden and necessitated the centralization of internationalization activities under a single administrative unit and led by an individual capable of providing leadership at their institution in the area of higher education internationalization. This individual is recognized as the Senior International …

Grandparenthood And Psychological Well-Being Of Middle-Aged And Older Adults: Multigenerational Family Relationships In China, Dandan Zhao

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

This dissertation examines whether and how experiences of grandparenthood—including becoming a grandparent, providing grandchild care, living with grandchildren, and exchanging intergenerational support—affect the well-being of middle-aged and older adults in China. Drawing on data from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS, 2011–2018), a nationally representative survey of Chinese adults aged 45 and older, the study employs Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) regression and random effects models to investigate the associations between multigenerational family relationships and depressive symptoms among this population.

There is limited evidence that the transition to grandparenthood itself has a significant impact on psychological well-being. However, patterns …

The Rights Of Nature Meaning-Making Experiments In Ecuador: A Pragmatist Inquiry, Lourdes Aguas Gonzalez

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

Ecuador is the first and only country in the world to recognize nature as a subject of rights in its national Constitution, with the most court cases to date, and with a vibrant moral imagination regarding the more-than-human world. Building on the pragmatist tradition, my research examines three questions: What are the rights of nature in Ecuador? How is nature politically represented in Ecuadorian legal forums? And how can collective problem-solving experiments around the rights of nature in Ecuador inform moral inquiry? To answer these questions, I bring sociology in conversation with philosophy. My theoretical and methodological tools as a …

Street Outreach And Reentry: The Role Of Community Violence Intervention In The Reintegration Of Returning Citizens, Hilary Jackl

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

Amidst ongoing efforts to reduce the nation’s prison population, as well as calls to defund the police and invest in civilianized public safety strategies following the murder of George Floyd, community-based violence intervention (CVI) strategies have been increasingly recognized as a critical means by which to ameliorate the United States’ enduring gun violence problem without exacerbating the harms of overpolicing and mass incarceration. However, most contemporary CVI research has assessed program impacts on neighborhood rates of gun violence and has produced conflicting findings, leading scholars to call for the need to examine a wider range of program-related functions and outcomes. …

Exploring Identity And Belonging Through Housing Pathways: Resettlement Experiences Of Female Ukrainian Refugees, Stephanie M. Duncan

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

Background: This dissertation examines the resettlement experiences of female Ukrainian refugees in Germany following the escalation of the Russia-Ukraine conflict in 2022, which displaced over 8.5 million Ukrainians, including 1.2 million to Germany by April 2024. Focusing on Munich, the study explores the interplay of housing pathways, identity, and belonging, emphasizing gendered challenges faced by women, particularly single mothers and caregivers, navigating trauma, systemic barriers, and cultural adaptation. Organized into three articles, this work employs a social justice lens to address structural barriers, such as discriminatory housing markets, economic exclusion, and limited access to resources, which disproportionately impact marginalized women, …

Rethinking Rural Identity: Reimagining Rural Politics, Matthew B. Kirk

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

This work chiefly consists of a genealogical critique of rural identity. Tracing the development and deployment of the concepts of rurality and rural consciousness, I argue that our current depictions of rurality as “spatial other,” replete with its harmful stereotypes, stem from a misconception about the nature of power. Political theorists’ and political scientists’ appraisals of rurality suggest that the set of actions that define rural politics are a product of their relative powerlessness. Rural locales’ removal from the center of power in urban spheres means that rural politics is reduced to reactionary, violent, and conservative political thought and engagement. …

Y’All Means All: Pro-Choice Abortion Activism In West Texas Post-Dobbs, Hannah S. Noblewolf

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

In the spring of 2021, a six-week abortion ban passed by popular vote in the city of Westerburg, Texas. It had a civil enforcement mechanism, allowing someone to collect a reward of $2,000 if they successfully sued someone they reported for “aiding and abetting” abortion. The ban, called the Westerburg Sanctuary City ordinance, was referred to as “bounty hunting.” When the ban passed it became the template for the state-level Texas Heartbeat Act, which provides a greater financial reward for a successful civil suit, with a minimum of $10,000 plus legal fees. In the face of this ban, pro-choice activists …

How Do Young Adults With Drug Use Disorder (Dud) Utilize Treatment? Exploring And Examining Lived Experiences Towards Treatment Completion In Indonesia, Dewi Kartikawatiningsih

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

In Indonesia which has the highest rate of drug addiction in Southeast Asia, there is currently little knowledge about how young adults perceive the barriers faced when completing treatment or how treatment providers' perspectives influence their treatment completion. Understanding and identifying barriers to treatment completion is essential to making drug treatment more effective. The purpose of this study is to explore the perspectives and live experiences of young adults with DUD and their addiction counselors to develop a deeper understanding of treatment needs. This study interviewed 33 clients and 15 counselors from the rehabilitation center of the Badan Nasional Narkotika …

Officers’ Perceptions Of Body-Worn Cameras: An Exploratory Study Of Small Police Departments In Upstate New York, Stefan A. Dela Riva

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

The aim of this exploratory study is to examine how police officers perceive the impact of body-worn cameras (BWCs) on their use of discretion when communicating with members of the public. In this context, “discretion” refers to an officer’s authority to make independent judgments while enforcing the law; deciding whether to issue a warning, make an arrest, or resolve an incident informally when legality permits. To understand officers’ opinions, a cross-sectional, quantitative online survey was distributed to various police departments and sheriff’s offices in upstate New York. Participants completed a series of Likert-style survey items addressing their general views on …

Explaining Mass Shooting Motivations: A Case Survey Analysis Of Us Mass Shootings (2006-2024), Isaiah H. Harris

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

Research on the motivations behind mass shootings remains inconclusive as these events often lack a singular or explicit cause. The motivations of mass shooters are complex, shaped by the interplay of psychological, social, and ideological factors. While some attacks are clearly driven by extremist beliefs, others appear to stem from less defined forces such as depravity or sadistic intent. Existing typologies, such as Langman’s (2009) analysis of school shooters, offer valuable insight but are limited in scope. This study expands upon previous research by examining U.S. mass shootings from 2006 to 2024 to determine whether such events are more frequently …

Welfare States And Imprisonment Rates: Revisiting The Study Of Public Assistance And Punishment In The United States, Stefan Ivanov

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

In the past fifty years, the United States has seen significant changes in both the criminal legal system and the welfare state. The incarceration rate surged by 475% from 1972 to 2007, driven by state-level decisions about criminal legal policy and disproportionately affecting Black Americans. Simultaneously, welfare programs became less generous, especially for those deemed “undeserving.” A long line of social science scholarship emphasizes that these two major social institutions—the welfare state and the carceral state—must be considered as complementary and alternative methods of managing marginalized groups. Quantitative research often confirms these claims, finding a durable inverse relationship between welfare …

Pathways To Disclosure And Treatment Among Individuals With An Attraction To Minors, Theodore Jackson

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

Child sexual abuse prevention is a significant social concern in the United States and internationally. While there have been some successful efforts to reduce recidivism risk among individuals who have committed sexual offenses, we fall short when preventing first time offenses. Therefore, looking at ways to provide treatment to those who are more at-risk for a first offense seems like a potential solution to this problem. One such relevant risk-factor is attraction to minors. This study is a qualitative examination using Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis of how people who are attracted to minors make the decision to disclose their attraction, seek …

Can Financial Inclusion-Based Interventions For Poverty Alleviation Build Sustainable Livelihoods? Voices From Mutual Solidarity Groups (Muso) In Haiti., Meera R. Bhat

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

Scholars, policymakers, changemakers, and social workers have attempted to define, understand, and eradicate poverty. Its endurance raises the prospect that these efforts may be incomplete or faulty. This thesis will probe this concern by examining poverty and poverty alleviation programs through the lens of a holistic intervention-based framework known as the Sustainable Livelihoods Framework (SLF). The first paper introduces the SLF and uses it to undertake a conceptual analysis comparing demand and supply driven poverty alleviation interventions that are based on financial inclusion. Next it uses the SLF as a methodological tool to compare financial inclusion programs, as operationalized by …

A Theoretical And Empirical Adaptation Of Signaling Theory For Digital Communication: Examining Organizational Brand Identity And Credibility, Victoria Barbeisch

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

This dissertation adapts signaling theory for digital communication and tests its relevance in strategic communication, specifically concerning unobservable organizational traits like brand identity values. Signaling theory explains how parties with unequal information (senders/signalers and receivers) use signals to bridge knowledge gaps and influence decision-making. While rooted in biology and economics, its application in computer-mediated communication (CMC) remains limited. This research addresses this gap through two primary aims. Aim 1 presents the first comprehensive theoretical adaptation of signaling theory for digital communication, consolidating fragmented research across multiple disciplines. Aim 2 investigates the theory's relevance in strategic communication related to unobservable brand …

Effects Of Actualized Language Policy On Ukrainian Stability, 1989-2022, Dawn Hersey

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

This dissertation seeks to generate a new perspective of the complicated relationship between actualized policy and stability through looking at Ukraine’s language policies and stability in a mixed manner approach that includes both primary and secondary sources. Russia justified its irridentist activities through claiming to protect Russian nationals within Ukraine’s borders: language policies within Ukraine appear to be a trigger for Russian antagonism. Neither Russian irridentism nor Ukrainian nationalism are being considered as right or wrong in this dissertation: the intent is to highlight trends, patterns, and perceptions in alignment with Ukrainian language policy. This dissertation does not present a …