Digital Commons Network^™

Just A Stage: An Ethnography Of Booker High School’S Visual And Performing Arts Magnet Program, Chelsea Driver

Theses & ETDs

My ethnographic research was conducted at the Visual and Performing Arts (VPA) magnet program at Booker High School in Sarasota, Florida in the 2014-2015 school year. Booker was historically an all black neighborhood school and in 1979 the VPA was employed as a strategy for integrating the study body. I explore this complicated history of the VPA’s position within Booker and pursue a more nuanced understanding of how the program serves the student body today. Engaging with the history of school choice policy, I explore how the choice to be involved in this intensive program has particular meanings for its …

The Ground Shakes Even In Paradise: Identity, Resistance, And Image In Waiahole-Waikane Valley, Hawaii, James Carillo

Theses & ETDs

From December 2013 through January 2014 I conducted ethnographic fieldwork in the Waiahole-Waikane Valley of Oahu in the State of Hawaii. This ethnography traces anthropological ethics in fieldwork, the problems of historical narrative, compartmentalized views of space and place, and daily aspects of resistance(s) within a local context. I explore the openings of a heterogeneous theory and approach to my writing and fieldwork – as well as the film portion of this thesis. The film compiles three separate events that I attended: A family Christmas Party, The Honolulu City Lights, and A first Baby Luau. These two portions combine to …

No Future In “Progress” The Embodiment Of Illegality Among Migrants In Rabat, Morocco, Zachary Natale

Theses & ETDs

This thesis explores experiences of "illegality in a community of irregular sub- Saharan migrants in Takadoum, a quarter of Rabat, Morocco. Since the early 2000s, increased migration flow from sub-Saharan Africa to the European Union and Europe's exertion of extraterritorial power over its southern Mediterranean neighbors have turned Morocco into a place of immigration rather than a point of transit. Morocco's increasingly punitive measures against irregular migration have "criminalized" migrants, turning them into social pariahs in popular discourse. Through ethnography, I explore the embodied expressions of abjection through the theoretical lens of biopower, or sovereign power over life. First, I …

Voodoo Fire : An Ethnographic Study Of The Multifaceted Nature Of New Orleans Voodoo, Harriet Barnes-Duke

Theses & ETDs

New Orleans, Louisiana is credited for the introduction of Voodoo to the United States. While Voodoo and its commodification began to catch fire more than a century past, it remains present in the city today as both a religious practice and a significant aspect of the tourist industry. In this study I focus on Voodoo as it is relevant to New Orleans currently, using ethnographic research and musical analysis of ritual practices and secular aesthetic tropes presented within the city. My research is based on interviews, observations, and participant-observation in events between June 2014 and January 2015. My fieldwork was …

Writing About Aj Pop B'Atz': Bruce Grindal And The Transformation Of Ethnographic Writing, Sarah Ashley Kistler

Faculty Publications

The works of Bruce Grindal teach us many things about anthropology’s humanistic tradition. With examples such as Redneck Girl and “Postmodernism as Seen by the Boys at Downhome Auto Repair,” Bruce Grindal demonstrated how we can creatively engage our ethnographic writing to reflect lived experiences. In this article, I examine Bruce’s influence on my ethnographic writing and collaborative research in the Maya community of San Juan Chamelco, Guatemala. Since 2006, I have worked collectively with a group of Chamelqueños to investigate the story of their local hero, Aj Pop B’atz’. In the sixteenth century, Aj Pop B’atz’ welcomed Spanish invaders …

Personal Space At Parkland College, Latianna Dumas

A with Honors Projects

Through three observations of social cues of students in a community college lounge area, the author concludes that personal space is not mutually exclusive with rudeness. Rather, allowing others their personal space is a way of showing respect.

Strategic Deployments Of "Sisterhood" And Questions Of Solidarity At A Women's Development Project In Janakpur, Nepal, Coralynn V. Davis

Faculty Contributions to Books

No abstract provided.

Expressionism And Ethnography: Max Pechstein In Nidden And Palau, Roland M. Coffey

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis offers a new way to conceptualize Hermann Max Pechstein’s “primitivism” as a kind of ethnographic “primitivism.” By creating a constellation that connects Pechstein’s Nidden and Palau-based projects, Paul Gauguin’s “primitivist” aesthetic, and the research produced by German ethnographers, I argue that the “documentary” nature of Pechstein’s work paradoxically merges the “scientific” aspects of ethnography with his, and more generally, other Expressionists’ interest in the “primitive.” In addition, the following work demonstrates that the purportedly “scientific” representations and visual accounts of South Seas natives that ethnographers like Otto Finsch produced in the late 1800s and early 1900s heavily and …

‘‘Where I’M From’’ And Belonging: A Multimodal, Cosmopolitan Perspective On Arts And Inquiry, Tiffany A. Dejaynes

Publications and Research

The paper draws upon a year-long practitioner inquiry with adolescents who conducted auto-ethnographies as part of a research course in their urban public high school. Through ethnographic data collection, youth researched their own lives, cultures, and beliefs with the end goal of producing multimodal films that represented their embodied senses of ‘‘Where I’m From’’, broadly defined. As youth collected and interpreted culturally and personally meaningful artifacts, stories, memories, and family discourses, the cosmopolitan habits of mind and heart that it is argued are important for nurturing reflective citizens of the world. In the process of video production or self-curation, youth …

My Family, My Identity: An Ethnohistorical Exploration Of A Multiethnic Family, Sarah Oosahwee-Voss

All Master's Theses

This thesis focuses on family identity in a time when multiethnic couples are increasing in population. How will this populace choose to define who they are? The purpose of this thesis is to focus on a multiethnic family, specifically one with different tribal heritages, and explore how their identity was formed over time and maintained through various times in their history. Multiple ethnographic methods were utilized in tandem to collect the information. A framework was then created to determine the main themes found throughout the history and information compiled in order to define the core values within their family identity. …

Dual Language K-2 Latina Teachers: Juxtaposing Linguistic Identities And Pedagogical Practices On The U.S.-Mexico Frontera, Brenda Oriana Fuentes

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

This ethnographic study explored the linguistic identities and pedagogical practices of Latina bilingual-certified K-2 teachers in a dual language (DL) program in the U.S.-Mexico border area. Drawing on sociocultural theory, methods of data collection and analysis focused on linking DL Latina teachers' identity formation with both their conceptions of teaching and their actual pedagogical practices related to language use. The findings from this study painted a portrait of how DL teachersâ?? languages, literacies, and identities intertwined to shape their pedagogical practice. The linguistic backgrounds of DL teachers on the border were shaped by country of origin and languages, schooling experiences, …

Seeing Success: Biographies Of Low-Income Students, Julia M. Morrice

Master's Theses

The purpose of this narrative ethnographic study was to explore the success stories and lived experiences of six low-income students, utilizing an asset-based approach and attention to cultural wealth. Low-income students are less likely to attend college, and those that do are less likely to complete a degree. There is presently a lack of asset-based research that explores the successes of low-income students. A semi-structured interview protocol yielded biographical narratives of low-income students, which included discussions about identity and provided insight into the cultural wealth possessed by low-income students. In an effort to better understand the use of visual methodologies …

The Edible Landscape: Plant Breeding, Farming, And Sustainbility In Northwest Portugal, Joseph Blanchard Powell

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation is an ethnographic analysis of a participatory plant breeding project in northwest Portugal. Participatory plant breeding (PPB) is a crop enhancement strategy that brings farmers and plant breeders together in the effort to conserve crop genetic resources in-situ, improve yield, and increase the overall agricultural sustainability in agriculture. One strategy in PPB calls for plant breeders to spend considerable time on working farms to understand better farmers’ knowledge and skill, and to survey the existing crop genetic diversity within the existing resource limitations on farms. Although there are clear social implications for PPB, the bulk of PPB evaluative …

Musicking New Orleans Street Musicians: A Methodology For Writing About Music, Savannah Cadi Rose Ganster

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This project argues for the use of performative writing as a methodology for writing about musical performances. An analysis of recent scholarship on music and musical performances written by performance studies scholars supports the use of performative writing in texts that address musical performances. In order to further this methodological claim, this study uses performative writing to document both historical and present day accounts of musical performances of street musicians in New Orleans. Utilizing Foucault’s theories on and Roach’s model of genealogy, Bruner’s notion of reflexive ethnography, and Small’s concept of musicking, I theorize, on a meta-methodological level, that performative …

Torino Is My Town, Elisabetta D’Amanda

Theses

Elena is 20 years old. Born in Italy to an Italian mother and an American father she grew up in Rochester, New York and she is currently living in New York City. Like any American kid she is a mix of different cultures, but her Italian roots are very well grounded in her soul. In the summer of 2013, she traveled with her mother to Torino, the town were her mother grew up and the place about which she has always heard many stories. This thesis film will demonstrate that Elena and her mother's trip is not just a geographical …

The Mentor In You:Expected And Recieved Study Abroad Preparation, Emily Miner, Hannah Meyer

ISU Ethnography of the University Initiative

When you think of studying abroad, visions of exotic locations and wild adventures come to mind. However, have you ever thought about the process before going abroad? This study examines the steps and programs offered to a student before going abroad. The research process involved examining existing literature about the study abroad process and what programs are offered at Illinois State University. Two interviews were conducted with students who have already studied abroad and one interview with a student who is about to study abroad. Further investigation included reviewing blogs and examining the data through narrative analysis. The research findings …

Imagined And Activated Capital Within Study Abroad: Ethnographic And Auto-Ethnographic Reflections, Amanda Miller, William Shaw

ISU Ethnography of the University Initiative

Through ethnographic interviews and auto-ethnographic reflections of Illinois State University students about the meanings and experiences of study abroad, demonstrates that students imagine the study abroad experience as that which is individually transformative, advantageous within the employment sector, and an experience that increases cultural competence and global citizenship. Study abroad participation is influenced by race and socioeconomic status; individual habitus is argued to factor into how study abroad is perceived. Focusing on how class and race determine the ways in which study abroad is constructed through analysis of the meanings of the study abroad experience through imagined, transformed, and activated …

Marketing Mutuality: Boundary Spanning Approaches To Marketing Strategy, Alexander Scott Rose

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation, arranged in three essays, is grounded firmly in the crossroads of sociology and marketing. Theories of the former inform phenomena of the latter. In particular, the sociological theory of the gift and the rich tradition of anti-utilitarian social science inform contemporary debate regarding the rise of the sharing economy and its much-heralded potential to alter the landscape of the market. Through an ethnography of brand and retail service settings in the particular context of American craft beer festivals, the concept of mutuality is used to provide a line of demarcation between effective and ineffective forms of the sharing …

Using Ethnography To Understand Meaning: A Review Of Sam Ladner's Practical Ethnography: A Guide To Doing Ethnography In The Private Sector, Richard H. Rogers

The Qualitative Report

Ethnography is a qualitative research methodology that explains the meaning of a culture within context. Ethnographers take the emic position, participants’ point of view, and try to understand their language, concepts, categories, and opinions that defines their research. The author, Sam Ladner, wrote a thorough text that bridges the research and the practical use of ethnography in the private or public sector. An experienced or new researcher could gain knowledge by reading this text and implementing the methods in his or her private or public sector job. If a client wants to understand why consumers make certain decisions, the methods …

Friend In The Field: A Reflexive Approach To Being A Quaker Ethnographer, Eleanor Nesbitt

Quaker Studies

Acknowledgement of the significance of reflexivity in social research has generated numerous autobiographical references in introductions to reports of field studies of faith communities. In particular the relevance of the researcher's gender- or at least female gender - has been a subject for scholarly reflection. Moreover, the insider/outsider dichotomy has been invoked and contested, and the changing relationship between the ethnographer and the field during field work has been charted. In this article it is some ethnographers' religious context and orientation that is the focus. With particular reference to some contemporary British Quakers whose field work has had a religious …

Studying Street Art Entrepreneurship: Methodology Of Ethnographic Field Research In The Experience Economy, Marta Połeć

European Management Studies

The article presents the methodology of ethnographic field research which the author used to study entrepreneurial aspects of Polish street artists’ activities. The presented ethnographic, started in 2012, was based mainly on interviews and participant observation. The activity of performers, mimes and musicians working in the street is regarded as an instance of experience economy. Artists earn money thanks to their handmade costumes and their invented creations, providing people with memories and experiences. This essay also presents some of the ethical dilemmas and methodological problems experienced by a novice ethnographer. The author describes her qualitative research in detail: preparations, enactment, …

Reflections On The Conduct Of Research With Human Subjects Across Two Cultures, Kimberly Maas

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

This study examined the potential benefits, challenges, and barriers faced by university students and research colleagues who were involved in international partnerships for cross-cultural research projects between the USA and Russia. In scholarly investigations in the USA, research subjects must be informed of the precautions that will be taken to protect their safety and their privacy (Amdur & Bankfert, 2002). Particularly in Russia, there are no corresponding policies for working with human subjects that compare to the procedures followed by American university Institutional Review Boards. Furthermore, international partnerships have faced new challenges as a result of the restructuring of American …

Book Review Forum: Glenn Petersen, Traditional Micronesian Societies: Adaptation, Integration, And Political Organization, Glenn Petersen

Pacific Studies

Response: GLENN PETERSEN

PROFESSOR AND CHAIR, DEPARTMENT OF SOCIOLOGY AND ANTHROPOLOGY, BARUCH COLLEGE, CITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK

Vol. 37 No. 2 (2014): Pacific Studies Full Issue, The Jonathan Nāpela Center For Hawaiian And Pacific Islands Studies

Pacific Studies

Pacific Studies is published two times a year by The Jonathan Nāpela Center for Hawaiian and Pacific Studies, Brigham Young University Hawai‘i #1979, 55–220 Kulanui Street, Lāʻie, Hawai‘i 96762, but responsibility for opinions expressed in the articles rests with the authors alone. Subscription rate is US $26.00 yearly, payable to The Jonathan Nāpela Center for Hawaiian and Pacific Studies. The Jonathan Nāpela Center for Hawaiian and Pacific Studies (formerly The Pacific Institute) is an organization funded by Brigham Young University Hawai‘i. The Center assists the University in meeting its cultural and educational goals by undertaking a program of teaching, research, …

Book Review Forum: Glenn Petersen, Traditional Micronesian Societies: Adaptation, Integration, And Political Organization, Nancy J. Pollock

Pacific Studies

Glenn Petersen. Traditional Micronesian Societies: Adaptation, Integration, and Political Organization. Honolulu: University of Hawai'i Press, 2009. Pp. 288. ISBN: 978-0-8248-3248-3. US$42.00 cloth.

Review: NANCY J . POLLOCK

RESEARCHER, VICTORIA UNIVERSITY (RETIRED )

Vol. 37 No. 2 (2014): Pacific Studies Front Matter, The Jonathan Nāpela Center For Hawaiian And Pacific Islands Studies

Pacific Studies

Front Matter for the Vol. 37, No 2-Aug 2014 edition of the Pacific Studies Journal.

A Difficult Conversation: Corporate Directors On Race And Gender, Kimberly D. Krawiec, John M. Conley, Lissa L. Broome

Pace International Law Review

This symposium essay summarizes our ongoing ethnographic research on corporate board diversity. This research is based on fifty-seven interviews with corporate directors and a limited number of other persons of interest (including institutional investors, executive search professionals, and proxy advisors) regarding their views on race and gender diversity in the boardroom.

Using a method rooted in anthropology and discourse analysis, we have worked from a general topic outline and conducted open-ended interviews in which respondents are encouraged to raise and develop issues of interest to them. The interviews range from forty-five minutes to two hours in length and each interview …

Expanding The Scope And Relevance Of Health Interventions: Moving Beyond Clinical Trials And Behavior Change Models, Khary K. Rigg, Hilary H. Cook, John W. Murphy

Mental Health Law & Policy Faculty Publications

An overemphasis on clinical trials and behavior change models has narrowed the knowledge base that can be used to design interventions. The overarching point is that the process of overanalyzing variables is impeding the process of gaining insight into the everyday experiences that shape how people define health and seek treatment. This claim is especially important to health decision-making and behavior change because subtle interpretations often influence the decisions that people make. This manuscript provides a critique of traditional approaches to developing health interventions, and theoretically justifies what and why changes are warranted. The limited scope of these models is …

Medical Pluralism In A Neoliberal State: Health And Deservingness In Southern Belize, Douglas Carl Reeser

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This ethnography explores the varied contours of a national health care system and how it is used in conjunction with traditional forms of health care in Toledo District, Belize, focused on the largest town of Punta Gorda (P.G.), In a medically plural environment, a variety of health care options are used based on a wide range of social, economic, and structural factors that shape people's choices and decisions. The convenience of and experience with low-cost home- and self-care options make these the most common first choice during an illness event in P.G., however a deeper exploration of health behavior reveals …

Research In Special Education: Using A Research Poem As A Guide For Relationship Building, Rama Cousik

The Qualitative Report

Building positive relationships with participants is an important component of qualitative research in the field of special education. Research poems allow expression of the evolution of participant-researcher relationship in a sensitive and nuanced manner. In this paper, I use a research poem about gardening to demonstrate how a researcher can construct a positive relationship with his/her participants. Each line of the poem represents the sequence and evolution of relationship development between the researcher and families who participated in the research.