Digital Commons Network^™

Eng 3001-840: Advanced Composition, Marjorie Worthington

Summer 2020

No abstract provided.

Eng 4906z-600: Issues In Teaching English, Melissa Caldwell

Summer 2020

No abstract provided.

Reducing Hiv Risk Among Young Women And Their Partners: Highlights From The Dreams Implementation Science Research Portfolio, Population Council

HIV and AIDS

The Population Council, with funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the U.S. Agency for International Development through Project SOAR, led a set of implementation science studies to capture multiple perspectives that reflect the innovative aspects of DREAMS. These mixed-method studies conducted across seven countries (Eswatini, Kenya, Malawi, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia) provide critical evidence that fill knowledge gaps on how to reduce HIV risk among AGYW and their male partners. This brief presents key findings grouped around four areas of inquiry: 1) HIV vulnerability and risk; 2) social drivers of HIV risk; 3) effects of …

Women's Groups And Covid-19: Challenges, Engagement, And Opportunities, Thomas De Hoop, Sapna Desai, Garima Siwach, Chinmaya Holla, Yulia Belyakova, Sohini Paul, Roopal Jyoti Singh

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

COVID-19, a novel infectious disease, was declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization in March 2020. Unlike the world’s persistent, high-burden infectious diseases—such as tuberculosis and malaria—that are more prevalent among the most vulnerable in low and middle-income countries, COVID-19 is unique because of (1) its wide geographic spread across a range of populations, (2) its partially asymptomatic transmission, (3) a disproportionate effect on older people and those with underlying morbidities, and (4) potentially, the level of intensive care required when geographic areas experience a large number of severe cases. Many countries and states have chosen to place entire …

The Health, Economic, And Social Effect Of Covid-19 And Its Response On Gender And Sex: A Literature Review, Hannah Briggs, Thoai Ngo

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

Large-scale emergencies, like the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, demonstrate pervasive effects across multiple sectors. There is a continually growing body of evidence demonstrating gender and sex differences in COVID-19 disease, as well as its health, social, and economic impacts. While online resources have worked to compile this evidence, there is a need to evaluate and synthesize the available gender- and sex-disaggregated data related to COVID-19. This literature review will systematically assess and compile current literature and evidence from different disciplines. We will include peer reviewed articles, clinical studies and reports, and relevant working papers using secondary data analyses and primary research …

What Are Adolescent Girls' And Young Women's Pregnancy Experiences, Fertility Desires, And Hiv-Related Risk Behaviors? Findings From Dreams Implementation Science Research In Zambia, Population Council

HIV and AIDS

As part of the DREAMS Initiative, the Population Council is conducting implementation research in Zambia to build needed evidence to inform decision-making around effective implementation of community-based, girl-centred interventions and to assess their effectiveness in reducing HIV vulnerability among adolescent girls and young women (AGYW)—a population in which AIDS is the leading cause of death in the region. This results brief summarizes key findings from a cross-sectional survey of 1,915 AGYW, half of whom were 15–19 years old and the other half 20–24 years old, residing in urban districts of Lusaka and Ndola.

Gender Integration In Social And Behavior Change: What Does It Take?, University Research Co., Breakthrough Research

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

This document pulls from a recent review of social and behavior change (SBC)-focused literature and highlights eight promising practices regarding how to integrate gender considerations in health and non-health SBC interventions. The practices are operationalized at different levels of the Socio-Ecological Model for Change and are mutually reinforcing. The purpose of this document is to share these promising practices with SBC partners to strengthen gender integration and mainstreaming efforts in SBC programming.

Behavioral Sentinel Surveillance Survey In Nigeria: Baseline Technical Report, Emily White Johansson, Paul Hutchinson, Elizabeth Omoluabi, Akanni Akinyemi, Andrea Smith, J. Clint Welty, Udochisom Anaba, Dominique Meekers, Alejandra Leyton, Dele Abegunde, Paul C. Hewett

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

This technical report presents results of the baseline Behavioral Sentinel Surveillance survey by Breakthrough RESEARCH in Nigeria in September and October 2019. From 2019 to 2021, baseline, midline, and endline surveys will assess the effectiveness of Breakthrough ACTION integrated social and behavior change activities for malaria, family planning, and maternal, newborn and child health plus nutrition in Kebbi and Sokoto in comparison to Breakthrough ACTION's exclusively malaria activities in Zamfara state. Malaria activities were initiated in Zamfara in October 2019. This technical report presents detailed baseline results, including comparisons of results for the Breakthrough ACTION integrated and malaria-exclusive program areas. …

A Phenomenological Study Of Performance Assessments In Detracked Secondary English Classes, Susan Renee Mahlburg

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to understand how teachers described the experience of using performance assessments in detracked English classrooms. The theory guiding this study was constructivism, a psychological theory of learning based on the work of Vygotsky, which holds that learning, especially lasting, meaningful learning, results from the activity and self-organization resulting from learners’ attempts to create meaning. The central research question addressed how teachers described the experiences and purposes of teaching in detracked secondary English classrooms, with additional research questions focusing on the use of performance assessments, advantages and disadvantages of detracking, professional development, and other …

Evidence To Inform Social And Behavior Change For Family Planning In Francophone West Africa, Breakthrough Research

Reproductive Health

Breakthrough RESEARCH’s suite of research activities in francophone West Africa aims to build the evidence base on the extent to which various approaches address behavioral determinants and improve family planning (FP) and reproductive health (RH). This brief summarizes how Breakthrough RESEARCH is creating a body of knowledge on social and behavior change (SBC).

Toward "English" Phonetics: Variability In The Pre-Consonantal Voicing Effect Across English Dialects And Speakers, James Tanner, Morgan Sonderegger, Jane Stuart-Smith, Josef Fruehwald

Linguistics Faculty Publications

Recent advances in access to spoken-language corpora and development of speech processing tools have made possible the performance of “large-scale” phonetic and sociolinguistic research. This study illustrates the usefulness of such a large-scale approach—using data from multiple corpora across a range of English dialects, collected, and analyzed with the SPADE project—to examine how the pre-consonantal Voicing Effect (longer vowels before voiced than voiceless obstruents, in e.g., bead vs. beat) is realized in spontaneous speech, and varies across dialects and individual speakers. Compared with previous reports of controlled laboratory speech, the Voicing Effect was found to be substantially smaller in …

Kenya: Covid-19 Perceptions, Prevention Practices, And Impact—Responses From Third Round Of Data Collection In Five Nairobi Informal Settlements (Kibera, Huruma, Kariobangi, Dandora, And Mathare), Population Council

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

This brief presents findings from Round 3 of data collection in five Nairobi informal settlements (Kibera, Huruma, Kariobangi, Dandora, and Mathare). On May 10–11, 2020, phone interviews were completed with 1,750 adults, representing 87% of the original COVID-19 KAPstudy cohort. The average age of respondents was 36 years, and 63 percent were female. Almost all resided in the same location as in the previous interview three weeks prior. Overall, most participants are impacted economically and socially by the COVID-19 pandemic and associated social distancing and lockdown policies. Many report losing their source of income while also reporting increased costs of …

Nairobi Informal Settlements: Covid-19 Perceptions, Prevention Practices And Impact—Round 3, Population Council

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

This presentation provides an overview from the third round of data collection from a phone survey conducted May 10–11, 2020, in five informal settlements in Nairobi (Kibera, Huruma, Kariobangi, Dandora, and Mathare). Total number of interviews completed was 1,750 (87 percent of Round 1); 37 percent of participants were male, 63 percent were female. Almost all resided in the same location as in the previous interview three weeks prior. The presentation covered myths and misconceptions on COVID-1; risk of being infected; what individuals would do if they had symptoms of COVID-19; testing; stigma; movement outside the home; handwashing behavior; use …

Exploring The Truths And Fabrications Of Sir John Mandeville, Jake Sanborn

Undergraduate Honors Theses

The Travels of Sir John Mandeville presents a unique and nuanced perspective of the Eastern World during the time of the Crusades. By critically analyzing the still-unknown author’s depictions of the Eastern lands and their peoples, I demonstrate that it is possible to gain a deeper understanding of the status of Christianity during the late 14th century. The Travels comments upon the concepts of Eastern religions and cultural practices in a way that is remarkable and surprising — instead of reacting to such topics with hostility or aggression, the likely-Christian author of The Travels is willing to learn from those …

A Diagnostic Assessment Of The Health System's Response To Fgm/C Management And Prevention In Nigeria, Osasuyi Dirisu, Adetayo Adetunji, Mayokun Adediran, Otibho Obianwu

Reproductive Health

In Africa, it is estimated that 27 million, 24 million, and 20 million girls and women have undergone FGM/C in Egypt, Ethiopia, and Nigeria, respectively, making them the countries with the highest absolute numbers of women and girls living with FGM/C in the continent. Despite the existence of laws, policies, and plans of action that should drive the health system’s response, the practice persists at a substantial level in Nigeria. The goal of the study, detailed in this working paper, was to contribute to a reduction in the prevalence and ultimately the abandonment of FGM/C through a diagnostic assessment of …

Swedd & Covid-19: Considering Adolescent Girls During Crises, Population Council

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

No abstract provided.

Swedd & Covid-19: Opportunities And Risks For Adolescent Girls, Population Council

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

No abstract provided.

Swedd & Covid-19: Gender-Based Violence And Adolescent Girls, Population Council

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

No abstract provided.

When And How The Law Is Effective In Reducing The Practice Of Fgm/C: A Cross-Border Study In Burkina Faso And Mali, Josephine Wouango, Susan L. Ostermann, Daniel Mwanga

Reproductive Health

Female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) is recognized globally for being associated with risks to both the physical and psychological health of girls and women; it is also considered to be a violation of human rights. At present, an estimated 200 million girls and women in 30 countries have undergone FGM/C and as many as 30 million under-15 girls are at risk. A common policy response to FGM/C is to enact laws and enforce criminal prohibitions. This policy brief summarizes key findings from a cross-border study of two neighboring countries: Burkina Faso, which has a strong FGM/C law, and Mali, which has …

Adolescent Girls Initiative–Kenya: Endline Evaluation Report, Karen Austrian, Erica Soler-Hampejsek, Beth Kangwana, Nicole Maddox, Yohannes Dibaba Wado, Benta Abuya, Valsa Shah, John A. Maluccio

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

Early pregnancy is a challenge for girls in Kenya that often has immediate effects on their educational opportunities, future implications for their social, health, and economic outcomes, and negative impacts on their children. For girls to achieve well-being in early and late adolescence, no single-sector intervention—whether education, health, wealth creation, or prevention of violence—will be adequate. The Adolescent Girls Initiative–Kenya (AGI-K) delivered multisectoral interventions to over 6,000 girls aged 11–15 in two marginalized areas of Kenya: the Kibera informal settlement in Nairobi and Wajir County in Northeastern Kenya. These interventions were carried out for two years (2015–17) and comprised a …

End Of Programme Webinar Series: Using Research To Understand And Accelerate Abandonment Of Fgm/C, Bettina Shell-Duncan, Jacinta Muteshi-Strachan, Agnes K. Meroka-Mutua, Samuel Kimani, Flavia Mwangovya

Reproductive Health

No abstract provided.

Bossiere Authors Startling Essay ‘Fear In The Time Of The Javelina’, Ohio University College Of Arts & Sciences

All Forum Articles

No abstract provided.

Amatonormativity, Aromanticism, And What Defines A Relationship, Rilee Granger

Honors Program Theses and Projects

Romance is seen in many aspects of western culture, from movies and tv, to songs and language, but beliefs about romance go beyond what is portrayed in the media. Portrayals of romance with the marriage plot in movies show the underlying belief that romance is a goal everyone is striving towards. This belief that all people are striving towards an exclusive, romantic coupling is called amatonormativity. Professor Elizabeth Brake coined the term amatonormativity and defines it as “the assumption that a central, exclusive, amorous relationship is normal for humans, in that it is a universally shared goal, and that such …

African American Vernacular English: A Language Necessarily Adorned, Christelle Lauture

Honors Program Theses and Projects

African American Vernacular English (AAVE) has been spoken by African Americans for centuries but has only recently been acknowledged as a distinct dialect. It is often used in tandem with Standard English, through a concept referred to as code-switching. Although linguists have done substantial work to validate AAVE, there is an incomplete understanding of why the dialect developed, and, in particular, what functions the dialect serves for its speakers. In order to begin the work of discovering why AAVE developed the specific features it manifests, I synthesized other linguists’ observations into a taxonomy of five categories that account for most …

“Pen Is Envy”: Education, Feminine Sexuality, And Fruitfulness In Christina Rossetti’S “Goblin Market” And “An Apple Gathering” And Margaret Atwood’S The Handmaid’S Tale And The Testaments, Hannah White

Honors Program Theses and Projects

The Victorian era was a time in which people were very much interested in morality and sinning, especially when it came to women’s sexuality. It was also time in which conversations about women and education often linked women to their bodies—even medical doctors during this era spoke of the dangerous consequences education might have on a woman’s reproductive capabilities. While men’s sexual transgressions were often viewed as a natural result of their being in the public sphere, women were expected to be the pure and domestic moral compass there to guide men that could not help but sin because of …

Beat The Church Crowd, Evelyn Alston Tyer

Honors Theses

Beat the Church Crowd is a collection of poems that explores a variety of topics and themes, from personal family legacy and natural disasters to bestiary, ekphrastic, and southern locale poems. It is divided into four sections: “Blue Danube,” “Anecdotes,” “Urban Legends,” and “Something Worth Protecting.” While the subject matter and forms of the poems vary, the common thread weaving each poem to the next is the slight touch of the macabre.

More Than A Language: A Detailed Look At The English Major, Hannah Woods

Honors Theses

This thesis analyzes the perceptions of the English Major in order to come up with suggestions for the Univeristy of Mississippi English Department with the purpose of increasing enrollment in the English Program. The last decade has seen a large decrease in the number of English Majors throughout the country, and this decrease has been reflected in the University of Mississippi. This thesis looks at recent opinions of the English Major in society, including popular criticisms of the major and responces from the English community. It was found that the two main criticisms of the English Major are that graduates …

Religion In George R.R. Martin's "A Song Of Ice And Fire" Franchise, Sydney A. Craven

Honors Theses

This thesis is a study of religion in George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire franchise. Specifically, George R.R. Martin's use of medievalisms, his interpretation of the Middle Ages, when creating the religions in A Song of Ice and Fire.

Salt In The Deep Marine, Rachel Bollinger

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

ABSTRACT

Rachel Allison Bollinger: Salt in the Deep Marine

(Under the direction of Dr. Christine Butterworth-McDermott and Dr. John McDermott)

The surface tension present between liquid and air is due to the fact that liquid molecules are highly attractive to one another. Because of this, the surface of water acts like an elastic membrane, allowing human hands or light insects to sit or slide on its surface. For a moment or two, the hand or the insect seems to occupy both the water and the air simultaneously. This commonplace phenomenon is explored in the poetry collection, Salt in the Deep …

The Hair You Wished To Comb, Sarah Barch

Honors Theses

This thesis is a collection of poems exploring gender and trauma in Greek mythology by retelling classical stories in a female voice.