Digital Commons Network^™

"Expert" Versus "Subjugated" Knowledge In Political Sociology, Marisa Tramontano

Open Educational Resources

In this assignment, created for a 2025 seminar on OER-based Active Learning, Dr. Marisa Tramontano made an open, "low-tech" active learning module comparing excerpts from the book, "Poverty of Philosophy" by Karl Marx with the song of the same name by Immortal Technique. The assignment uses a remixable Google doc to guide students' analyses and comparisons of these texts. The assignment can easily be adapted to other courses or disciplines.

Who Gets To Run?, Martine Gulliver

ENGS 15.11: Design and Education

In this lesson, students will explore how jogging—an activity largely perceived as one of most accessible sports—has historically excluded Black Americans. By analyzing 1) historical maps from major jogging hubs and 2) historical & contemporary running media, students will uncover how discriminatory housing policies and lack of mainstream media representation worked in tandem to create structural obstacles within a supposedly inclusive space. Students will connect this idea of running as a ‘white’ activity to modern-day perceptions of Black runners and instances of racial violence. Beyond the knowledge itself, students should walk away from this lesson with confidence and motivation to …

How The Town Views The Gown: A Case Study Of A Campus-Community Relationship, Dora Kreitzer

Honors Theses

This research uses Bucknell and Lewisburg as a case study to understand the relationship between universities and their surrounding communities. While prior research has focused on urban, large, and/or research-oriented universities, the rural, small, and predominantly liberal arts nature of Bucknell provides an opportunity to explore how campus-community relationships vary by environment. Forty-eight qualitative semi-structured interviews and 12 months of observation of Lewisburg Borough Council meetings are used to explore three main areas of the town-gown relationship: economics, space, and social capital. These three themes emerged from interviews and observations as the most important determinants of residents’ perceptions of the …

Navigating The Neighborhood: Community, Identity, And Gentrification In Crown Heights, Brooklyn, Kayla Karyl Thomas

Yale Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Dissertations

Crown Heights, Brooklyn, New York. This dissertation is a multi-method community study focusing on 21st century gentrification, concurrent socio-political changes, and their relationship to the ways residents understand and negotiate routine interpersonal relationships. The empirical core of the dissertation consists of three distinct yet interrelated papers on the social landscape of the contemporary Crown Heights neighborhood. These papers detail a range of approaches that residents adopt to better understand their own experiences of discrimination, gentrification, and efforts at reconstructing community and responding to change. Complemented by a chapter on the history of a single ‘representative’ Crown Heights apartment building, its …

Soc 37 Syllabus, Gilbert Marzan

Open Educational Resources

The SOC 37 syllabus contains a course description, learning objectives, course readings divided by week and a link to the course's OER textbook.

Culturally Responsive Ai Module In Early Childhood Teacher Education: An Action Research, Xin Li, Seongryeong Yu

Teaching & Learning Faculty Publications

Recently, the focus on emerging AI in early childhood education has predominantly centered around the technological aspects of AI integration. However, it is critical to support all children from diverse backgrounds while applying AI in early childhood settings. A substantial body of literature emphasizes the importance of culturally responsive pedagogy, especially for children from diverse backgrounds. Despite the necessity for culturally responsive pedagogy among educators, most of the AI studies focus on users’ attitudes toward AI and its impact on task performance, but studies and concerns regarding the incorporation of AI remain less unexplored. This study endeavors to address this …

Ai Fetishism And Perverse Climate Disavowal: Why Denying Destructiveness Facilitates Our Ecological Collapse, Alexander M. Stoner, Alexander M. Stoner, Anthony J. Knowles

Journal Articles

As ecological crises intensify, scholars and activists increasingly question the sustainability of economic growth. Yet, the dominant growth-oriented paradigm remains foundational to advanced capitalist societies and cannot be altered without significant social disruption. The resulting tension between ecological limits and the imperative for continuous growth generates “climate anxiety.” This article advances the concept of perverse climate disavowal: a mode of climate denial that acknowledges climate threats while maintaining faith in the illusion of infinite economic expansion. This disavowal functions as a psychological defense mechanism, enabling individuals and institutions to avoid confronting structural contradictions. The article examines the increasing use of …

Mobilities, Migration, And Digital Humanities, Mayurakshi Chaudhuri, Chiranjoy Chattopadhyay, Nirmala Menon, Paul Longley Arthur, Sarah Kenderdine, Mattius Rischard, T. Shanmugapriya

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

No abstract provided.

The Legitimacy Of Israel: A Sociological Perspective, Luis Fleischman

FIU Law Review

The article focuses on the foundations of Israel’s legitimacy. It explores the issue of Israel’s legitimacy from the viewpoint of the sociology of law and the sociology of politics. It aims to provide perspective and nuance to some highly problematic and inherently anti-Zionist arguments raised by the Palestinian narrative and academic paradigms, such as "settler colonialism" and reductionist manichean theories of conflict.

Large Landlords, Code Violations, And Eviction Filing: Evidence From Albany, Ny, Andy Kaier

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

Eviction is a major contributor to cycles of urban poverty, and a growing body of research has documented eviction’s harmful effects. This study finds that landlord size and the number of code violations associated with the landlord’s portfolio both predict higher numbers of eviction filings. Using eviction filing data and newly available code violation data from Albany, NY in 2023 and 2024, this study examines landlord characteristics and their association with eviction filing. This study also examines public housing, finding that the Albany Housing Authority is the largest eviction filer in Albany in the study period. These findings are concerning …

The Texas Electorate's Views Of Health Care As A Human Right, Community Health Centers, And Certain Matters Of The Health Care Safety Net, Scott Elphingstone

Graduate Liberal Studies Theses and Dissertations

In a country in which the government does not recognize a right to health care,social safety nets are the last hope for persons without insurance or other means to pay for needed care. In United States, community health centers, hospital emergency rooms, and private charities comprise that safety net. Community health centers offer a practicable alternative for politicians and citizens who want to help improve the lives of persons who struggle to access health care. This dissertation reviews the political history of community health centers from their founding as part of the War on Poverty in the 1960s through Democratic …

Legacy Effects Of Crop Diversity On Weed-Crop Competition In Maize Production, Uriel D. Menalled, K Ann Bybee-Finley, Richard G. Smith, Antonio Ditommaso, Heather M. Darby, Sarah J. Pethybridge, Matthew R. Ryan

Faculty Publications

The legacy effects of crop diversity on maize (Zea mays L.) tissue nutrient composition, weed community structure, and intensity of weed-crop competition were assessed through a field experiment at two sites in the northeastern United States. Fields were conditioned with crop diversity gradients from summer 2016 to spring 2019. The crop diversity gradients ranged from a single cultivar to sixteen intercropped cultivars (four species, four cultivars per species) and were established in organic annual and perennial cropping systems. Following the three-year conditioning phase, maize was planted across the entire experiment, and each conditioning-phase diversity treatment was split into weed-free, ambient-weed, …

Legacy Effects Of Crop Diversity On Weed-Crop Competition In Maize Production, Uriel D. Menalled, K Ann Bybee-Finley, Richard G. Smith, Antonio Ditommaso, Heather M. Darby, Sarah J. Pethybridge, Matthew R. Ryan

Faculty Publications

The legacy effects of crop diversity on maize (Zea mays L.) tissue nutrient composition, weed community structure, and intensity of weed-crop competition were assessed through a field experiment at two sites in the northeastern United States. Fields were conditioned with crop diversity gradients from summer 2016 to spring 2019. The crop diversity gradients ranged from a single cultivar to sixteen intercropped cultivars (four species, four cultivars per species) and were established in organic annual and perennial cropping systems. Following the three-year conditioning phase, maize was planted across the entire experiment, and each conditioning-phase diversity treatment was split into weed-free, ambient-weed, …

Mapping The Modern Geography Of Floyd Dell’S Port Royal And Susan Glaspell’S Freeport, Megan Yarusso

English: Student Scholarship & Creative Works

No abstract provided.

Nondisclosure Of Trans Group Status Among Transgender Individuals, Alexander Williams

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The purpose of the study was to investigate motivations for concealment of transgender group status beyond a qualitative scale. Additionally, the study aimed to identify the role one’s identity centrality, salience, and valence played in concealment behavior and attitudes. It was hypothesized that factors found in the extant literature (i.e., gender dysphoria, lack of connection, safety, stigma, and discrimination concerns) would apply presently. It was hypothesized that those individuals with low identity centrality, salience, and valence would be less likely to disclose their trans status. Results indicated that the previously named factors for concealment were present among participants with particularly …

Rape Beyond Fantasy: Exploring The Influence Of Booktok's Erotica And Dark Romance Literature On Young Adult Perceptions Of Consent And Boundaries, Teagan Bailey Fortune

Master's Theses

Advances in technology and media, particularly TikTok, have had a significant impact on the younger generation. BookTok, a community that emerged from TikTok, is a platform where users can promote, share, and discuss book recommendations, using “spice level” or chili emojis to indicate the rating of explicit content. While recommendations often focus on erotica and dark romance fiction, concerns arise when such content glamorizes and normalizes rape culture, especially for young adults (YA). The normalization of toxic relationships can potentially influence YA perceptions of consent and boundaries. This study explores how YA perceive rape culture and consent in erotica and …

They Can't Know I Wanna Kiss Robots: Stigma And Audience Segregation In Fanfiction, Micah Arrow Callin

Master's Theses

Fanfiction writers have long faced public stigma, which emerged with the rise of fandom and, according to recent claims, may be lessening as fandom identities gain wider acceptance. However, the practice of fanfiction writers intentionally segregating their audiences remains a deeply embedded aspect of fandom culture, with limited understanding of its underlying motivations. The purpose of this study was to analyze the audience segregation employed by online fanfiction authors in order to understand why they choose to segregate their audiences, and specifically to determine the influence of social stigma on these choices, answering these main questions: Is there segregation between …

Humphries, Tara, Fatima Hagi

Querying the Past: LGBTQ Maine Oral History Project Collection

Tara Humphries uses they/them pronouns. They identify as queer, trans, nonbinary, and lesbian. They were born in Portland, Maine, but grew up in North Yarmouth and Durham. Tara Humphries received their bachelor’s degree in sociology at Bates College. They completed their Master of Divinity at Yale Divinity School, a program to prepare people for ordination to the Christian ministry. They work as a Minister at the Allen Avenue Unitarian Universalist Church in Portland, Maine. In this interview, Humphries shares how their Unitarian Universalist faith has shaped their perspective on their queer identity in their personal life and professional settings. They …

Lady Gaga Meets Ritzer: Using Music To Teach Sociological Theory, Kenneth Culton, José A. Muñoz

Dialogue: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Popular Culture and Pedagogy

This paper presents methods for instructors to deal with student anxiety over theory courses. The method is an interactive class exercise that provides instructors with direction as to using popular music. The paper accomplishes this through the use of several cases for including music in order to spark discussion and suggestions for helping students to interpret the theory presented. Additionally, suggestions for incorporating writing assignments with the exercise are provided here. A table linking music to a theorist is also provided.

Cultural Contexts Differentially Shape Parents’ Loneliness And Wellbeing During The Empty Nest Period, Andree Hartanto, Lester Wei Xiang Sim, Davelle Jing Yi Lee, Naydanna M. Majeed, Jose C. Yong

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

The coming decades will see a substantial increase in the population of older adults, accompanied by significant demographic and family structure changes worldwide. As a result, the empty nest period—the postparental phase in parents’ lives when their children have left home and they are no longer engaged in childrearing—is becoming an increasingly common experience in Western and Asian cultures. The current theoretical review examines the psychological consequences of the empty nest period on loneliness and well-being across cultures, emphasizing the impact of cultural factors on these experiences. By synthesizing research from Western and Asian contexts, we explore two primary theoretical …

Designing A Scale For Clinical Social Workers’ Participation Skills In Developing Mental Healthcare Policy In The Kingdom Of Saudi Arabia, Noha Abdullah Al-Jehani Mrs, Ahmed Abdelhamid Elebshehe Dr.

Journal of Arabic Sciences and Humanities

This study aimed at designing a scale to evaluate the participation skills in developing mental healthcare policy among clinical social workers in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. An initial form of the scale was designed and the validity thereof (content, internal consistency, and external consistency) was verified. Then, the reliability of the scale was also verified via Cronbach's alpha and the split-half, after applying it to a sample thirty-three (33) clinical social workers. Hence, the final form of the scale consisted of thirty-eight (38) items, distributed as follows : needs assessment skills (10 items), communication skills (9 items), negotiation skills …

Law Enforcement Agency Practices And Policies For The Investigation Of Child Sex Trafficking: Are Agencies Using Victim-Centered Approaches?, Kimberly J. Mitchell, Jennifer E. O'Brien, Lisa M. Jones, Alli Puchlopek-Adams

Faculty Publications

Over the past decade, efforts have been made to reform the way in which law enforcement responds to child sex trafficking (CST). Law enforcement agencies are being urged or required to use victim-centered approaches that provide exploited youth with support and services. However, researchers have yet to empirically examine law enforcement’s recognition of CST at the agency-level, their arrest practices, or the services that are being offered to CST victims. We have little information about the utilization and effectiveness of various law enforcement agency policies, practices and training programs related to CST. The National Law Enforcement Agency Child Sex Trafficking …

American Capitalism And The Decline Of Debtors’ Prison In The 19th Century, James Parisot

Sociology Faculty Publications

This paper examines the dynamics of capitalism and the penitentiary system through an analysis of the decline of debt imprisonment in 19th-century United States. It argues that class transformations in the early to mid-1800s created a context for social experiments with new forms of punishment. The penitentiary systems that formed developed logics that contingently fit with the rising mode of production. The decline of debt imprisonment, in this context, was much in part the result of transformations in class power and class structure.

Diverse Disconnectedness: Homophily, Social Capital Inequality, And Student Experiences In Law School, Anthony Paik, Swethaa Ballakrishnen, Carole Silver, Steven Boutcher, Tanya Rouleau Whitworth

Faculty Publications

Law school students are encouraged frequently to “network.” However, depending on demographic categories, they may have access to differently resourced social networks in law school. In this article, we draw from our mixed-methods research to explore this diversity of experience, its limitations of access, and the possible network inequalities that may limit the value of legal education to diverse students across different institutional contexts. Using survey and network data (N = 744), collected during the fall of 2019 from three law schools, as well as supplementary interview data (N = 55), we examined students’ social networks, the structures of these …

Diverse Disconnectedness: Homophily, Social Capital Inequality, And Student Experiences In Law School, Anthony Paik, Swethaa Ballakrishnen, Carole Silver, Steven Boutcher, Tanya Rouleau Whitworth

Faculty Publications

Law school students are encouraged frequently to “network.” However, depending on demographic categories, they may have access to differently resourced social networks in law school. In this article, we draw from our mixed-methods research to explore this diversity of experience, its limitations of access, and the possible network inequalities that may limit the value of legal education to diverse students across different institutional contexts. Using survey and network data (N = 744), collected during the fall of 2019 from three law schools, as well as supplementary interview data (N = 55), we examined students’ social networks, the structures of these …

Book Review - Black Folk: The Roots Of The Black Working Class, Michael Bean

LWLC Faculty Research

Blair Kelley's Black Folk: The Roots of the Black Working Class offers a comprehensive examination of the experiences of working-class African Americans from the Reconstruction era to contemporary times. The book challenges prevailing stereotypes associated with the working class, particularly the imagery that often excludes black Americans, and emphasizes their central role in labor movements and the quest for dignity in work. Through extensive historical research and personal narratives, Kelley highlights the struggles faced by newly emancipated African Americans, who encountered devaluation of their labor and systemic discrimination in the workforce. The narrative intertwines individual stories with broader themes of …

On The Effect Of Driving Turbulent-Like Fluctuations On A Harris Current Sheet Configuration And The Formation Of Plasmoids, Jeffersson A. Agudelo Rueda, Yi-Hsin Liu, Kai Germaschewski, Michael Hesse, Naoki Bessho

Faculty Publications

Energy dissipation in collisionless plasmas is one of the most outstanding open questions in plasma physics. Magnetic reconnection and turbulence are two phenomena that can produce the conditions for energy dissipation. These two phenomena are closely related to each other in a wide range of plasmas. Turbulent fluctuations can emerge in critical regions of reconnection events, and magnetic reconnection can occur as a product of the turbulent cascade. In this study, we perform 2D particle-in-cell simulations of a reconnecting Harris current sheet in the presence of turbulent fluctuations to explore the effect of turbulence on the reconnection process in collisionless …

The Role Of Family In Promoting Healthy Habits For Children When Using The Internet In Saudi Arabia: A Study Applied To A Sample Of Mothers In Dawadmi City, Magda Khalifa Khalifa Dr.

Journal of Arabic Sciences and Humanities

The study explores the role of family in promoting healthy habits for children when using the internet in Saudi Arabia, focusing on a sample of mothers in Dawadmi. Utilizing a descriptive-analytical approach, 162 mothers were selected via convenience sampling. Data collection involved questionnaires, with analysis conducted using SPSS. The results revealed that both family and children exhibit positive internet habits when using the internet. Families were found to actively manage and advocate for healthy internet practices, recognizing their significant role in this regard. Mothers' perceptions of the family's role did not significantly differ based on age or education, though variances …

Exploring The Role Of Disciplinary Knowledge In Students' Covariational Reasoning During Graphical Interpretation, Nigar Altindis, Kathleen A. Bowe, Brock Couch, Christopher F. Bauer, Melissa L. Aikens

Faculty Publications

Background: This study investigates undergraduate STEM students’ interpretation of quantities and quantitative relationships on graphical representations in biology (population growth) and chemistry (titration) contexts. Interviews (n = 15) were conducted to explore the interplay between students’ covariational reasoning skills and their use of disciplinary knowledge to form mental images during graphical interpretation.

Results: Our findings suggest that disciplinary knowledge plays an important role in students’ ability to interpret scientific graphs. Interviews revealed that using disciplinary knowledge to form mental images of represented quantities may enhance students’ covariational reasoning abilities, while lacking it may hinder more sophisticated covariational reasoning. Detailed descriptions …

Mixed-Methods Assessment Of Farmworkers’ Perceptions Of Workplace Compliance With Worker Protection Standards And Implications For Risk Perceptions And Protective Behaviors, Carly Hyland, Lisa Meierotto, Rebecca L. Som Castellano, Cynthia L. Curl

Public and Population Health Faculty Publications and Presentations

Introduction: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)’s Worker Protection Standards is the primary set of legislation aimed at protecting farmworkers from occupational pesticide exposure in the United States. Previous studies suggest that worker adoption of Pesticide Protective Behaviors (PPBs) promoted by WPS is associated with lower urinary pesticide concentrations. However, adoption of PPBs is often outside of the control of individual farmworkers and dependent on workplace factors such as employer provisioning of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and access to trainings/resources.

Methods: We conducted a mixed-method study including urinary pesticide biomonitoring, surveys, and interviews with 62 Latinx farmworkers in southwestern Idaho from …