Digital Commons Network^™

It Ends With Us: How Social Media Algorithms Shape Recommendations In Online Reading Communities, Alana Nicole Whitley

Communication & Theatre Arts Theses

My thesis explores social media algorithms and their influence on recommendations of authors for people who engage with reading communities online. During a three-week research period, I examined algorithmic behaviors in online book communities using an alias. Findings revealed that BookTube, BookTok, and Bookstagram facilitate book discovery but offer weak algorithmic recommendations and suggestions. While social media algorithms excel at providing opportunities for creators and authors, they fail to promote trending and diverse books. These insights indicate that algorithms shape literary consumption by limiting readers’ choices. This research contributes to discussions of online reading communities and the role of algorithmic …

Investigating Gender Differences In Intimate Partner Violence Using Gendered General Strain Theory, Stephanie Victoria Dragon

Sociology & Criminal Justice Theses & Dissertations

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a public health concern impacting communities and criminal justice systems. Nationwide IPV prevention and reduction policies were emphasized in the media during the aftermath of COVID-19 specifically regarding the identification of IPV offending behaviors through law enforcement screening tools. Research on IPV offending has clearly established a link in offenders exerting methods of power and control to harm an intimate partner through verbal abuse, coercion, sexual violence, and physical violence. Further, research also identified significant disproportional experiences of lethality in female victims at the hands of an intimate partner. However, criminological theories outside of control-based …

An Examination Of The Role Bureaucratic Discretion Plays In Public Education Policy And Administration: A Revelation Of How Discretionary Discipline Impacts Historically Marginalized Students, Regina Francine Turner

School of Public Service Theses & Dissertations

An under-researched area of public administration, bureaucratic discretionary practices regarding student discipline and resulting inequitable consequences are explored throughout this study from a theoretical perspective. The study examines student discipline outcomes for conduct violations in America’s schools. Further, research will determine if data supports the notion that school leaders’ administrative discretion contributes to inequitable student disciplinary practices. Evidenced by research and corresponding data regarding discriminatory student disciplinary actions, this study relies on Critical Race Theory (CRT) as its foundation and theoretical framework.

Using relevant literature, research questions were formed, hypotheses were crafted, and statistical analyses were performed to test means …

Navigating Recovery: Community College Student Journeys Through Collegiate Recovery Programs, Eric Scott Klein

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Theses & Dissertations

There is an inherent regional need to support students in recovery, and often their demographics and lived experiences coincide with the student body of a community college. This is particularly salient to the segments of this population which concurrently suffer maltreatment due to other intersectional biases implicit in many health care and education-based systems inside the United States (Cole, 2009; Mance et al., 2010; Rosenthal, 2016). Community colleges are not doing enough to equitably support students in recovery from substance use disorder (SUD) and help buoy their recovery capital (Appiah, 2021; Ashford, Curtis, et al., 2018; Association of Recovery in …

Human Rights And Foreign Policy: South Africa's Genocide Complaint Against Israel At The International Court Of Justice, Penelope Andrews

Articles & Chapters

On December 21st, 2023 the South African Government filed an urgent application to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in the wake of Israel's military activities in Gaza in response to the attack in Israel on October 7th in which more than 1,200 Israeli citizens were killed and several hundred were taken as hostages. The Israeli government responded to the attacks and the taking of hostages by launching a military campaign into Gaza, with the express purpose of destroying Hamas and especially its ability to attack Israel in the way that it did on October 7th. The first few days …

Royal Canadian Mounted Police Cadets’ Exposure To Potentially Psychologically Traumatic Events During The Cadet Training Program, Katie L. Andrews, Kirby Q. Maguire, Laleh Jamshidi, Tracie O. Afifi, Jolan Nisbet, Robyn E. Shields, Taylor A. Teckchandani, Gordon J.G. Asmundson, Alain Brunet, Lisa M. Lix, Shannon Sauer-Zavala, Jitender Sareen, Terence M. Keane, J. Patrick Neary, R. Nicholas Carleton

Psychology Faculty Publications

Lifetime exposures to potentially psychologically traumatic events (PPTEs) among Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) cadets starting the Cadet Training Program (CTP) appear lower than exposures reported by serving RCMP, but the prevalence of PPTE exposures during the CTP remains unknown. The current study assessed PPTE exposures during the CTP and examined associations with mental disorders among RCMP cadets. Participants were cadets (n = 449, 24.7% women) from the larger RCMP Longitudinal Study who self-reported critical incidents, PPTE exposures, and mental health disorder symptoms at pretraining and predeployment. Most participants reported no exposures to a PPTE (n = 374, 83.3%) during …

Rethinking Behavior - Spring 2025, Midwest Symposium For Leadership In Behavior Disorders

ReThinking Behavior Magazine

A magazine for professionals serving children and youth with behavioral needs.

Spring 2025, Volume 8, Issue 3

Investing In Maryland Safety: Engaging Public Resources And Community Partnerships To Prevent Crime And Violence, Jeffrey A. Butts, Rebecca Balletto, Patricia A. Cobar

Publications and Research

The Research and Evaluation Center at John Jay College of Criminal Justice conducted a review of two innovative initiatives developed by the Maryland Department of Juvenile Services: The Thrive Academy (TTA) and the Safer Stronger Together (SST) intervention strategy. The study involved document analysis, online resource review, and interviews with agency staff and leadership. These efforts aimed to understand the design, implementation, and alignment of TTA and SST within Maryland’s broader public safety and crime prevention strategy. Key themes included program effectiveness, operational progress, and community-level impact, providing valuable insights into the Department’s evolving approach to juvenile justice and public …

From Flames To Change: An Exploration Of Housing, Fire, And Inequity, Helen Underhill, Charles R. Jennings, Brian Meacham, Danielle Antonellis

Publications and Research

Housing and fire safety are deeply connected: inadequate and poorly maintained housing poses heightened fire risk for occupants. An individual or household’s housing situation (including limited or constrained choice) interacts with issues such as affordability, access, location, quality, safety, occupancy levels, tenure type, and resident or immigration status. These dynamics shape vulnerability, and inequity becomes most visible in the event of a fire. The extreme end of this spectrum includes the unhoused, who occupy structures entirely outside of regulatory systems with little or no fire protection.

Program Review Report 4-1-25, Angela Brock

Program Review Committee

No abstract provided.

The Prerogative Of Mercy: Assisting Clemency Clients In Massachusetts, Stevie Leahy

Suffolk University Law School Faculty Works

Founding Father and Federalist Paper author Alexander Hamilton opined that “clemency was vital to temper the harshness of criminal codes because ‘without an easy access to exceptions in favor of unfortunate guilt, justice would wear a countenance too sanguinary and cruel.’” Hamilton and his contemporaries understood the need for a justice system that balanced strict enforcement of the law with the ability to recognize individual circumstances and extend compassion where warranted. Without the ability to make exceptions for people who are guilty but nonetheless deserving of compassion, the justice system would appear excessively harsh, violent, and unkind. The justice system …

"Price Discrimination" Discrimination, Talia B. Gillis

Faculty Scholarship

Credit price personalization, where lenders set prices based on individual borrower and loan characteristics, is a common practice across many loan types, with conventional accounts of its harms focusing on the ways in which risk-based pricing, or setting prices based on borrowers’ credit risk, can lead to disparities for protected groups like racial minorities and women. This Article examines an often-overlooked yet potentially harmful form of price personalization — charging borrowers different rates based on their willingness-to-pay, known as price discrimination — and argues that this practice can exploit vulnerable borrowers, including protected groups like racial minorities and women, by …

Understanding Processes That Produce Racial Disparities In California Death Sentences: A Review Of The Literature, Catherine M. Grosso, Michael Laurence, Jeffrey A. Fagan

Faculty Scholarship

A robust and extensive body of empirical research, and a rich historical record, documents a recurring and pervasive influence of race in the application of California’s death penalty. This article reviews the legal and social science research to document multiple paths through which institutions and processes produce these racial disparities over many decisions in many cases across four decades. The article reviews relevant literature by decision, institution, or actor and presents key findings. This includes documenting the history of the broad statutory design of the California capital punishment statue. The review also considers research on policing, including the influence of …

Outlaws, Lawmen, And The Emergence Of Justice On The Western Frontier, Kaci Krier

Research in the Capitol

My thesis covers the beginning of law and law enforcement in the Wild West, with a focus on the Arizona and New Mexico Territories between 1840-1890. I utilized historical records to understand a greater political landscape in these territories, to answer the question if the "Wild West" was as wild as it was remembered. From my findings, the "Wild West" might not be as wild as originally thought, due to the common historical representations not fully being supported by the numbers. Because numbers don't fully support the title, it is important that scholars look deeper into the research before deeming …

Navigating The Paths To Justice: A Study On The Role Of Social Supports In Responding To Justiciable Events, Andrew Pilliar

Journal of Law and Social Policy

This article reports the results of an in-depth qualitative study of advice-seeking behaviours in a large Canadian city. Nine participants were recruited from neighbourhood houses in the Vancouver area to discuss their experiences in responding to one of two kinds of justiciable event: a personal injury or a government benefits problem. The paper offers a detailed discussion of nuances in how individuals experienced, characterized, and took action in response to their justiciable problem. Notably, many of the research participants spoke about the importance of social supports and the contingent nature of those supports, both in understanding what they had experienced …

19th Annual Research In The Capitol [Program], March 31, 2025, University Of Northern Iowa. University Honors Program. Iowa State University. Honors Program. University Of Iowa. Honors Program.

Research in the Capitol Programs

Program of research presentations given at the Capitol by students from the University of Northern Iowa, Iowa State University, and the University of Iowa.

The Case For Expanding The Right To An Interpreter Beyond The Courtroom, Ivy Tengge Xu

Journal of Law and Social Policy

For an accused who is not proficient in an official language, interpreter assistance is critical to ensure a basic level of understanding and participation in the criminal process. Section 14 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms constitutionalizes the protection against linguistic prejudice in legal proceedings. The Supreme Court of Canada has given section 14 a generous interpretation in the criminal context, but the availability and quality of courtroom interpretation is often compromised in practice due to a shortage of qualified interpreters and concerns about delays. Outside the courtroom, however, neither the Charter nor any statutory right in Canada …

Faculty Senate Agenda March 31, 2025, Utah State University

Faculty Senate & Faculty Senate Executive Committee

• 3:00 Call to Order
• Approval of Minutes March 3, 2025
• 3:05 University Business
• 3:20 Faculty Senate Business
• 3:35 Information
• EPC Report - March 6, 2025
• 3:40 Report
• Budget and Faculty Welfare Committee
• Sustainability Council
• Policy 323, 378, 389
• 4:00 Old Business
• 4:05 New Business
• 2025-2026 Calendar and Committee Reports
• President-Elect Nominations
• Adjourn: 4:30 pm

Domestic Violence Court: A Grand Forks Experiment, Adam K. Matz, Roni Mayzer, Jackson Archbold, Sierra Schartz, Aj Buntrock, Leanne F. Alarid

Criminal Justice Faculty Publications

In late 2018, the Northeast Central Judicial District, in collaboration with the Community Violence Intervention Center (CVIC) and numerous community stakeholders, implemented the first domestic violence court in North Dakota. Since inception through the end of 2023, the Grand Forks Domestic Violence Court (GFDVC) successfully processed about 250 perpetrators of intimate partner violence (IPV) through their court-ordered programming. A team of researchers from the University of North Dakota, in collaboration with CVIC, examined case records to determine the extent to which the GFDVC was effective in reducing recidivism compared to a sample of IPV perpetrators prior to the court’s implementation. …

Managing The Cost Of Services For People With Disabilities: International Approach. Part Ii: Ohio, United States, Dana Pugh, Jaroslaw Richard Romaniuk

Faculty Scholarship

Introduction: Four years of managing a housing network for people with disabilities prompted a rethinking of the financial management of the services offered. Clients with different needs require diverse professional staff for their home care. Emergency situations require that professionals offering assistance maintain the highest level of education possible. Financial resources often limit the quality of care for people with disabilities. Method: This paper is based on a literature search and on professional experience (Dana Pugh) in the management of a housing program for people with disabilities in Cleveland, Ohio (USA). Findings: In Poland, people with disabilities usually live with …

The Rider (2025-03-31), Rebeca Salinas

The Rider Archives

Vol. 10, No. 24

The Effect Of An ‘Appearance, Presentation And Demeanour’ Instruction On Credibility And Deception Judgments In Mock Refugee Status Decisions, Hilary Evans Cameron, Sean Rehaag, Katrina Friesen

Journal of Law and Social Policy

Can a written instruction convince refugee status decision-makers not to rely on a claimant’s ‘appearance, presentation, and demeanour’ in judging the claimant’s credibility? How else might such an instruction affect the decision-makers’ deception judgments? This study explored the effects of an APD instruction on the judgments of lay decision-makers making credibility judgments in a simulated refugee hearing (n=275). It sought, by means of an experiment, to quantify the instruction’s effects both on decision- making outcomes and on the written reasons that the decision-makers offered to justify their conclusions. The APD instruction in our study had no significant effect on whether …

Operating Fund Budget/ Expenditure Summary Report 2024-25, Csusb Budget Office

University Budget Office records

No abstract provided.

Probative Of Prejudice: Procedural Unfairness Underlying Security Threat Group Classifications In Canadian Prisons, Shane Martinez

Journal of Law and Social Policy

Achieving meaningful oversight and enforcement of prisoners’ rights has long been a challenge for those incarcerated in Canada’s prison system. This is illustrated in part by how the Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) applies the Security Threat Group (STG) classification to Black prisoners. CSC disproportionately classifies Black prisoners as being members or affiliates of STGS–even when those allegations are of unknown reliability. This paper analytically highlights how this practice impacts the liberty interests of these prisoners on the basis of unproven allegations. It also considers how a lack of procedural safeguards in this context contributes to a larger pattern of …

Who Killed The Law? An Analysis Of The Syrian Drama Series "Ahmar", Lovisa Berg

Regards

The 2016 Syrian TV series Aḥmar, directed by Jūd Sa‘īd and written by Yāmin Ḥajalī and ‘Alī Wajīh, is an intelligently constructed detective drama infused with political and social critique. This article employs media studies and theories of detective drama to analyse the plot and narrative of the series. In the first episode, the well-known judge Khālid is brutally murdered, prompting three separate investigations into his death. The first is conducted by his childhood friend, who works in the police force; the second by a radio journalist; and the third by an old friend of the judge, who is …

Student Senate Meeting Minutes March 31, 2025, Student Senate-Winona State University

Student Senate Meeting Minutes

This document is the official Winona State University Student Senate Minutes for March 31, 2025.

The Crime In "Little Wars" And "Very Big Shot": A Microcosm Of A Lost Generationlebanese Cinema, Civil War, Crime, Fiction, Youth, Maroun Baghdadi, Mir-Jean Bou Chaaya, Nadine Asmar

Regards

Since the 1970s, Lebanese cinema has developed alongside the country’s changing political and social landscape, with crime narratives reflecting these shifts. During the Civil War (1975–1990), filmmakers like Maroun Baghdadi used crime to highlight the chaos and moral complexity of the time, as seen in Little Wars (1982). Several years later, crime stories reappeared in Lebanese cinema, combining genre conventions with themes of social struggle. By the 2010s, films like Very Big Shot (2015) by Mir-Jean Bou Chaaya redefined crime cinema through dark humor and social critique, reflecting Lebanon’s ongoing instability. This article examines the development of crime narratives in …

Radical Resistance In The Penumbra Of The Law: Legal Mobilization For Migrant Farmworkers Under Neo-Colonial Racial Capitalism, Vasanthi Venkatesh

Journal of Law and Social Policy

Workers from the Global South with temporary immigration status provide a transitory, cheap, exploitable workforce that is responsive to economic vicissitudes and supremacist anti-migration discourse. They are created as an exceptional category of persons “essential” for their work but with no right to remain and claim citizenship-type entitlement to the Global North. The programs in agriculture are rooted in the legacies of indentureship, plantation, and other forms of racialized coerced labour. These programs continue to entrench a neocolonial racial capitalist global order where “unfree labour” is sanctified by contemporary liberal laws. Caught in the vice of a hegemonic, racial, state-governed …

Quo Vadis Hak Atas Kesehatan Reproduksi: Analisis Rekonstruksi Pengaturan Aborsi Di Indonesia (Perbandingan Hukum Indonesia Dengan Perancis), Dian Kencana Putri, Erna Dyah Kusumawati

Jurnal Hukum & Pembangunan

Pembatasan akses aborsi di Indonesia menyebabkan banyak perempuan dengan kehamilan tidak diinginkan terpaksa berhadapan dengan hukum. Pembatasan aborsi yang mengakibatkan kriminalisasi ini dapat menyebabkan dilema moral bagi banyak perempuan yang mengalami kehamilan tidak diinginkan. Padahal aborsi berpotensi terjadi pada setiap perempuan berusia produktif di Indonesia. Aborsi di Indonesia merupakan tindakan ilegal dan aborsi hanya dapat dilakukan dalam dua kondisi saja, yakni kedaruratan medis dan kehamilan yang disebabkan perkosaan. Artikel ini menganalisa bagaimana sebenarnya substansi aborsi dapat dimasukkan pada kategori hak kesehatan reproduksi perempuan dan mengapa negara Indonesia perlu mengubah kebijakan dan hukum mengenai aborsi. Untuk melihat seberapa pentingnya negara harus …

Enforcement Activities And Profiling Techniques Of Wildlife Rangers In Nigeria's Lowland Forest Reserves: A Mixed-Methods Study On Wildlife Law Transgressions, Norris I. Erhabor, Gloria Aimien Erhabor

Journal of Bioresource Management

This mixed-methods study investigates the enforcement activities and profiling techniques employed by wildlife rangers in Nigeria's lowland forest reserves to address wildlife law transgressions. The research integrates enforcement strategies, socio-economic factors, community involvement, and governance structures to evaluate the effectiveness of ranger activities. Data collection was conducted in the Omo Biosphere Reserve, Gele Gele Forest Reserve, and Okomu National Park, utilizing both primary and secondary sources, including interviews with 24 wildlife rangers. Key findings reveal that unauthorized entry, possession of specific tools, and suspicious behaviors are primary indicators used by rangers to identify potential law violators. Poaching activities predominantly occur …