Digital Commons Network^™

Explaining Human Fertility: One Theory Or Many Theories?, Thomas K. Burch

PSC Discussion Papers Series

Abstract not available

On The Nature Of Norms: Biology, Morality, And The Disruption Of Order, Owen D. Jones

Michigan Law Review

For a long time - and through the now-quaint division of disciplines - morals and norms have been set apart from other behaviorbiasing phenomena. They have also been set apart from each other. Morals are generally ceded in full to philosophers. Norms have been ceded to sociologists. In retrospect, it is not clear why this should be so. Reality is notoriously impervious to taxonomy, and the axis supposedly distinguishing morals from other norms is, after all, arbitrary. Moreover, behavior-biasing phenomena interact in important ways, making the study of parts - without more - just the study of parts. But one …

Sociology Discipline Assessment Report 2000, Sociology Discipline

Assessment of Student Learning Reports

No abstract provided.

Laberintos Urbanos En América Latina, David (David Jiménez H.) Jiménez

Centro Cultural Abya Yala del Ecuador

Serie Pluriminor

Immigration And The Future Of Canada’S Population, Roderic Beaujot, Deborah Matthews

PSC Discussion Papers Series

This paper considers the effect of immigration on the size and demographic structure of Canada. Following a brief overview of the history of immigration in this country, we evaluate the effects of migration on population growth, age composition and geographic distribution. Immigration has a very limited impact on the age structure, and thus has very limited value as a tool to decrease the dependency ratio. However, given that fertility has stabilized well below the replacement rate for the past twenty years, immigration will play an increasingly important role in population growth and can be an effective tool to avoid population …

Country Of Origin, Date Of Entry, And English Speaking Ability As Predictors Of Immigrant Afdc And Ssi Usage., Rebel Mary Reavis

LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses

Immigration flows into the United States have changed over the last few decades. Before the 1960s, immigrants came mainly from European countries. Since the 1960s, immigrants coming from third world countries have increased while those from European countries have relatively decreased. This changing immigration pattern has sparked passionate debate over immigration policy and its role in adding members to welfare recipient rolls. Researchers have not come to an agreement on how to best examine immigrant welfare receipt. There is disagreement about immigrant status definitions, unit of analysis choices, and welfare measurements. These theoretical and methodological choices influence research results and, …

Civic Engagement, Local Capitalism And Poverty: The Effects Of The Black Belt, Single Female Household Headship, And Metropolitan Status., Michelle Marie Livermore

LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses

Recent research on the relationship between civic community and poverty concludes that high levels of civic involvement are associated with low poverty levels. I revisit the relationship between civic community and poverty by asking whether it differs across counties with different social structural characteristics. I test for interactions between the presence of civically engaged denominations and area racial composition, single female household headship, and metropolitan status. The association between the percent of a county's population in civically engaged denominations and poverty differs according to certain county social structural characteristics. First, areas with a critical percentage of African Americans demonstrate a …

Domestic Labor And The Earnings Of Professionals., Rebecca Sue Carter

LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses

This dissertation focuses on how time allocated to domestic responsibilities affects the earnings of professionals. Although the earnings gap between women and men has narrowed, women are paid less than their male counterparts and a substantial part of the gender earnings gap remains unexplained. Women's growing entry into the full-time labor force has created new challenges for working women and dual-earner families. Professionals may manage domestic responsibilities differently than non professionals because they are likely to have jobs that offer higher pay and more autonomy. With fewer domestic demands placed on these households, we would expect to observe more gender …

Social Networks And Stigmatization., William Craig Carter

LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses

An extensive body of literature on stigma exists in both sociology and psychology. However, the literature has virtually ignored how an individual's pattern of interactions might be affected as a result of being stigmatized. This dissertation develops theory concerning the nature of stigma management strategies and their consequences for social networks. Specifically, the theory predicts that stigmatized individuals tend to have relatively smaller and sparser personal networks, participate less in foci of activity, and draw fewer pairs of associates from the same focus than do nonstigmatized individuals. The data analyzed in this dissertation are especially useful for examining social networks …

Structuring Work And Family Lives: Flexible Employment Patterns Among United States Families., Melissa Oliver Stainback

LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses

This dissertation focuses on how working families use flexible employment to manage multiple demands associated with combining work and family responsibilities. I argue that flexible employment outcomes are family adaptive strategies and decisions about these strategies are embedded in the household and occur in a context in which husbands and wives make joint decisions about their career trajectories, family obligations and community commitments. Therefore, I expect household models, rather than individual models, to provide a richer understanding of decisions about family and employment outcomes. These models explore more fully how couples may diversify employment participation. Furthermore, household level variables provide …

Impacts Of Wildlife Viewing: A Case Study Of Dixville Notch Wildlife Viewing Area, Judith Kay Anderson Silverberg

Doctoral Dissertations

Major objectives of this study were to examine the motivations, knowledge level and attitudes of wildlife viewers as well as the response of moose to observation and other human caused stimuli at a designated wildlife viewing site. Moose and other wildlife are attracted to areas where road salt runoffs and pools in low areas around culverts and ditches creating wildlife viewing opportunities.

This study examined whether moose behaviors such as visitation time and rate of use of the salt lick changed from preconstruction (1996) of a wildlife blind to wildlife viewing establishment (1999). Trailmaster monitors strategically located on trails entering …

The Significance Of Sexed Bodies: An Analysis Of Moira Gatens' "A Critique Of The Sex/Gender Distinction", Anna Gullickson '00

Undergraduate Review

No abstract provided.

Empowerment Through Dancing?: Perceptions Of Occupational Power And Control Among Female Exotic Dancers, Patricia A. Hernandez

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

The purpose of this thesis is to examine female sex workers and issues of power. My investigation focuses specifically on female exotic dancers and whether they perceive power in their work. The question I intend to answer is do exotic dancers see themselves as having power in relation to the men they dance for? Drawing on both feminist theory and women’s experience in the sex industry, I expect to discover whether or not strippers gain a sense of power from their work, whether they feel they have control over the conditions of their work, and how power and control can …

Education As Prison Reform: A Meta -Analysis., Ronald Edward Wells

LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses

Corrections administrators have long recognized the possibility of education as a method of creating a favorable change in incarcerated individuals. Through education the individual would be encouraged in his/her attempts to succeed within society. However, this feeling has been more of an intuitive notion rather than empirically determined. The goal of this dissertation has been the development of a model of recidivism prediction which could overcome the problems of subjectivity, inaccuracy, and invalidity found in many currently used methods of prediction. This investigation was designed to explore relationships between several educational variables and post-release behavior of criminal offenders. The results …

Human Agency And The Process Of Social Change In The Religious Structure Of A Traditional Society, Jonathan Mermis-Cava

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

This thesis is an examination of human agency within the process of social change as it has been displayed by the members of a traditional society. It is based on participant observation data that was collected between 1995-97 when the author served as a Peace Corps Volunteer living amongst a tribe of maroons, known as Saramakans, deep in the rainforest of South America. Exploring the assumption that changes in traditional societies have been forced upon them, this thesis examines the transformations that have occurred in the religious structure of the Saramakan tribe. From a social constructionist theoretical viewpoint, data suggests …

The Internet As A Source Of Informal Social Control: Social Support In Pedophile Online Culture, Teelynn T. Mauney

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

This thesis is an examination of pedophile use of the World Wide Web as a source of social support. I conduct a content analysis of pedophile Web sites that advocate sexual contact between men and boys. The themes on these sites are examined and compared to the themes found in stage one of my research program, which analyzed four of the eleven sites in the pedophile Web site sampling frame. This monograph draws on Mirkin’s (1999) theoretical framework that states that pedophiles are in stage one of a battle to legitimize their sexual orientation. This study finds that pedophile sites …

Turner's Model Of Human Sociality And Missionary-Host Relationships: A Case Study In Intercultural Bonding, Jerry Lee Page

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

The Economic Re-Emergence Of China Within The World System, Daniel Sarabia

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Through the course of history nation-states have undergone immense socioeconomic transformations as they shuffle positions in the world economy. In tracing the development of the global economy we can see that the accumulation of capital is not a new phenomenon, but a continuous part of human history. This global economic system emerged in Afro-Eurasia and can be traced back a millennium before European hegemony. Long before European economic dominance, the global economy was centered in Asia with its hegemonic center in China. This thesis will bring to light the historical presence of Asia within the world system and argue that …

A Tender Fury: Zapatismo And The Predicament Of The Rural Peasantry And Indigenous Peoples Of Mexico, Alicia Rachelle Balassa

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

The primary objective of my research is to investigate and do a thorough analysis into the current status and problems facing Mexico’s rural and indigenous peoples. The Zapatista Movement within the state of Chiapas serves as a barometer for the fragile and ever increasingly endangered life ways of the rural peasantry throughout rural Mexico as they struggle to maintain their culture and hold onto their dignity and land. For many this means their indigenous heritage as well. For much of the rural peasantry land and dignity and cultural identity go hand in hand, with the land being the vital link …

A Unifying Approach For Researching Disasters: Disrupted Social Logic And Triangulating Interdisciplinary Methods, Andrew J. Hund

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

This thesis develops a meso-level theory of disrupted social logic and suggests triangulation for its study. This theory addresses the inadequate definition, classification, and theoretical foundations of disaster research. The lack of control groups and researchers’ reliance on single methods are also addressed. Based on over 400 academic articles, books, published reports, and non-verbal communications, from 2500 BC to present, analytical induction was employed to develop the theory of disrupted social logic. A best evidence synthesis was also used to examine seventy-two proposed or in practice disaster research methodologies. Implications of this interdisciplinary theoretical approach are discussed. A new historical …

Regional Analysis Of Human Development In Canada, Srimanta Mohant

PSC Discussion Papers Series

Regional imbalances in development occur in most societies. This study is an example of comparing human development across the provinces of Canada. The study has four directions of emphasis: education, economy, health, and society. In this study seventeen variables are investigated, which reflect the various dimensions of human development. These variables are aggregate in nature. Using the taxonomic method, the variations among the provinces are examined. The analysis reveals that British Columbia has the highest scores and Newfoundland has the lowest scores on the human development index. The results also show the aspects of human development that are not satisfactory …

On Measuring The Cost Of Children:The Case Of Rural Maharashtra., Manisha Chakrabarty Dr.

Doctoral Theses

In this dissertation we have attempted to measure the cost of children, which plays a crucial role in matters relating to welfare and public policy like child benefits and compensation policies of the government. The cost is measured based on the single equation as well as the systems approach using the 38th round National Sample Survey (NSS) data on household consumer expenditure for rural Maharashtra (relating to the period of January to December, 1983).The first chapter provides a brief account of the basic literature on empirical demand analysis which is relevant for welfare comparison between households. To be specific in …

Multiracial Social Identities And Self-Esteem: How Physical Appearance And Heritage Affect The Categorization Self And Others, Estrella Aurora Ramirez

Student Work

One’s self-concept is comprised of both personal and social identities. This study will focus on the racial/ethnic component of social identity for the multiracial population: individuals with heritage from two or more different racial/ethnic groups. The primary purpose of this study is to investigate the racial identity process for multiracial individuals and how this process is impacted by the relative status of racial/ethnic groups that comprise one’s heritage and the perceived physical appearance of an individual. Of central concern is how multiracial individuals racially self label as well as how multiracial and monoracial individuals racially categorize other multiracial individuals. Secondly, …

Life Course Trajectories Before And After Retirement, Rajulton Fernando, Zenaida R. Ravanera

PSC Discussion Papers Series

Abstract not available

Lone-Father Families In Canada, 1971-1996, Kevin Mcquillan, Marilyn Belle

PSC Discussion Papers Series

Abstract not available

Age-Uniformity In Life Course Transitions: What Does The 1995 Gss Tell Us?, Zenaida R. Ravanera, Rajulton Fernando, Thomas K. Burch

PSC Discussion Papers Series

Abstract not available

Alternative Spring Break And Social Responsibility Is There A Relationship?, Judith Angela Biggs Garbuio

Thesis, Dissertations, Student Creative Activity, and Scholarship

Humans are living in a complex, interdependent, global society. Violence by youth is at an all-time high, the school system is failing to educate students (especially in urban areas), and all of this is compounded by major economic and social forces that are significantly altering the fabric of our lives. According to Keith (1994) these forces include: “… the impact of technology and the globalization of the economy on social relations and the structure of work (Broyn. 1991; Mingrone, 1983; Offee & Heinz. 1992; Wilson. 1987); the depletion of non-renewable resources and the ecological crisis; the mounting pace of population …

The Effects Of Ethnicity, Ethnic Salience And Ethnic Identification On Consumers' Sources Of Information And Purchase Behavior, Patricia Wooten Humphrey

Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine if there were any significant differences in the search and purchase behavior between white and black consumers due to ethnicity, ethnic identification, ethnic salience and ethnic situation.

The sample was chosen from two universities, one predominately white, the other predominately black. Of the 360 questionnaires administered, 345 were usable. The sample was representative of the student population of each university with respect to age, gender, and ethnicity. Statistical techniques used were ANOVAs, t-tests and paired comparisons.

The findings indicate that ethnicity plays an important role in an individual's sources of information used …

Computer Modelling Of Theory: Explanation For The 21st Century, Thomas K. Burch

PSC Discussion Papers Series

Abstract not available

Diagnostic Tests On Assessing The Quality Of Maternal Orphanhood Data From The 1996 South African Census And Implications For The Indirect Estimation Of Adult Mortality, Sulaiman Bah

PSC Discussion Papers Series

The maternal orphanhood technique is one of the oldest indirect demographic techniques used for the estimation of adult mortality in populations with inadequate vital statistics. One of the pioneers of the technique had cautioned for the careful assessment of the maternal orphanhood data. All researchers have not heeded this caution and as a result, improbable adult mortality estimates could not be adequately explained. In this paper, the maternal orphanhood data from the 1996 census have been subjected to a battery of diagnostic tests. The diagnostics attempted in the paper have shown that among the factors that affect the estimates of …