Digital Commons Network^™

Older Single Women In Transition: Moving To A Supportive Retirement Community, Linda L. Hansen-Kyle Phd

Dissertations

This study explored role changes, resilience, social, and health challenges encountered by older women who transitioned to a retirement community that provided social, health, and safety support structures. The aim of this study was to analyze and describe the transition from the viewpoint of the participants. Although previous research has shown transitions lead to psychosocial, emotional, physical, and health changes, the importance of this study stems from the lack of research on older women moving to supportive communities and their unique challenges. A convenience sample of 39 women, aged 70-94, who had been living alone before moving to a church …

Narcissuses, Medusas, Ophelias… Water Imagery And Femininity In The Texts By Two Decadent Women Writers, Viola Parente-Capkova

Wagadu: A Journal of Transnational Women's & Gender Studies

My concern is the way in which women writers whose work can be characterized as Decadent and/or Symbolist used the figures of Narcissus, Medusa and Ophelia, as well as the imagery of femininity and water. When analyzing this aspect of their work, I am looking at the ways in which these writers created and co-created the Decadent imagery, what strategies they adopted in their representations of woman and the construction of female subjectivity.

Images Of Water And Woman In The Arts, Zdenka Kalnicka

Wagadu: A Journal of Transnational Women's & Gender Studies

Archetypal connection of woman and water is ambiguous: it includes the connection of water and woman with life as well as with death. The paper explores the ways, how two sides of this connection were depicted in the artworks created by women and men artists, focusing on their gender differentiated approach (Albín Brunovsk_ and Germaine Richier, Edward Burne-Jones and Edith Rimmington). As an inspiration for reconsideration of the relationship between Life and Death, the potential of old symbol of the frog as the symbol of birth, death and re-birth is examined (Susan Makov).

The Changing Role Of Women In Watermanagement: Myths And Realities, Nandita Singh

Wagadu: A Journal of Transnational Women's & Gender Studies

Women and water are linked in several ways, an important pragmatic linkage being their role in water management. Several continuous efforts at positively transforming this role have been made during the last three decades, ranging from their improved role as domestic water managers to eliciting their greater participation in water management initiatives at community level. Studies tend to indicate that the anticipated ends of such exercises are universally achievable, in isolation of the prevailing social and cultural contexts where the women are placed. This paper seeks to unfold the realities underlying the universalistic claims regarding a transformed role for women …

How Beneficial Has Water Technology Been For Rural Nepalese Women?, Bhawana Upadhya

Wagadu: A Journal of Transnational Women's & Gender Studies

This paper aims to explore the effect of irrigation technology on women of rural Nepalese terai communities. This is done by looking at the effect of technological change on rural women of three different classes in terms of their absolute and relative access to income, food consumption and workload. The article also explores how technology adoption helps enhance rural women's bargaining power and how division of labor is gendered. Case study approach together with other participatory rural appraisal techniques had been used to gather field information.. The study reveals that even in a small social setting, gender identities prevail over …

Symbols Of Water And Woman On Selected Examples Of Modern Bengali Literature In The Context Of Mythological Tradition, Blanka Knotkova-Capkova

Wagadu: A Journal of Transnational Women's & Gender Studies

Woman-water homology appears in modern Bengali literature (namely poetry) in various aspects: as the archetypal symbol of creation and destruction, symbol of the womb as the beginning and end of life and rebirth (connoting both physical womb and eternal womb), and also of the womb as dark mysteriousness; a symbol of the continuation, preservation of life, symbol of transience and elusiveness, traditional male written poetic symbol of charm and beauty. In the demystifying, subversive (not only female) poetic imagination, it may also construct the symbol of eternal unity with the female principle, articulate a specific concept of female identity.

Tolerated Terror: Mexico's Failure To Punish Gender-Based Violence In Ciudad Juarez And Potential Avenues For Relief Under U.S. Asylum Law, Timothy Atler

Student Thesis Honors (1996-2008)

This paper examines the phenomenon of gender-related violence in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico and surveys what legal mechanisms exist to protect the human rights of the women who are being targeted there. The first section of the paper presents background information regarding the violence in Ciudad Juarez. This section first explores the historical and economic developments in Mexico that led to the migration of thousands of young, rural women to Ciudad Juarez. I then discuss the nature of the violence against these women in Ciudad Juarez as it has been reported by human rights agencies, journalists and scholars. Finally, I survey …

Rethinking Yamashita: Holding Military Leaders Accountable For Wartime Rape, Joshua H. Joseph

ExpressO

This note explores the current controversy over the proper international standard for punishing commanders whose subordinates have committed rape, and examines the interplay between the nature of rape, the underlying theories of command responsibility, and an international legal system that has failed to produce fruitful results. The note contends that the continued occurrence of rape in times of war results in large part from the international community’s reluctance to punish high-level military officials who neither physically perpetrated the crime, were not present at the crime scene, and did not necessarily order rape.

The note proposes a slight expansion of the …

Toward An International Standard Of Abortion Rights: Empirical Data From Africa, Chad M. Gerson

ExpressO

In the Fall of 2005 I published a brief Development in the Chicago Journal of International Law concerning the prospects for establishing the right to obtain an abortion as a fundamental human right. See 5 Chi. J. Int’l L. 753. In that article I argued that the right to choose and access to abortion services would greatly improve the health and status of women and children in the developing world.

In this article, I follow up with empirical data regarding the status of abortion rights in African countries. These data are compared to maternal and infant mortality and contraceptive use. …

Pregnancy & Policing: Are They Compatible?, Karen J. Kruger

ExpressO

A paper advocating that law enforcement agencies provide adequate accommodations and legal protections to women officers who become pregnant.

The Law Of Unintended Consequences: The Far-Reaching Effects Of Same-Sex Marriage Ban Amendments, C. Susie Lorden

ExpressO

In 2004, thirteen states passed same-sex marriage ban amendments in response to a Massachusetts ruling from the previous year that sanctioned marriage for gay couples. Most of the amendments contained two prongs that defined marriage and also prohibited legal recognition of unmarried relationships in an attempt to avoid marriage substitutes, such as civil unions.

These amendments not only blatantly discriminate against same-sex couples by barring them from marriage, but the amendments also insidiously cause further damage by using undefined and ambiguous language capable of discriminating against gays and lesbians in ways not admitted by the proponents and not intended by …

Tolstoy And The Woman Question, Jeanna Marie Whiting

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This work examines the perceptions of women in art and literature in Russia during the later half of the nineteenth century. It specifically focuses on the women question and examines women's function and role in Russian society and how different visual artists along with Tolstoy examine this issue through their artwork.

The first section of the work focuses specifically on women's social conditions in Russia highlighting their role as daughter, wife and mother. It examines the educational system in place designed for women and the limitations placed upon women concerning marriage and family life. Along with the historical and social …

To Catch A Sex Thief: The Burden Of Performance In Rape And Sexual Assault Trials, Corey Rayburn Yung

ExpressO

Despite decades of efforts to reform American rape law, prosecution and conviction rates remain low compared to similar crimes. While activists led legislatures to adopt important statutory changes for rape and sexual assault, only modest effects in the levels of sexual violence have been observed. Nonetheless, reform-minded scholars continue to focus on statutory and rule tinkering as a means to quell sexual violence.

This article argues against the commonly-held belief that the crucial factors in determining the outcome of rape trials are substantive and procedural in nature. Rather, the issues of performance, representation, and language often pre-determine the outcomes of …

Type 2 Diabetes And The Risk Of Osteoporotic Hip Fracture In Utah Men And Women, Megan Bunch

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Prior studies have unequivocally established a consistent association between osteoporotic hip fracture risk and type 2 diabetes mellitus. One reason this association still remains unclear is primarily due to the limited amount of research conducted in this area. The Utah Study of Nutrition and Bone Health (USNBH) is a case-control study conducted in Utah during the period of 1997-2001 to determine risk factors for osteoporotic hip fracture. All study participants (n = 2590) were determined from Utah residents 50-90 years of age. Cases were determined from 18 Utah hospitals during 1997-2001. Age and gender-matched controls were randomly selected from the …

Gender Influences In The Graduate Classroom: An Investigation Of Female And Male Student Perceptions, Gerald B. Blanton Edd

Dissertations

Defined by Mary Rowe (1977) as micro inequities, seemingly insignificant gender bias behaviors create an inequitable academic environment and marginalize groups and individuals in the American classroom. Popularized by Hall and Sandler's 1982 report on the "chilly" classroom, gender bias is subtle and differs from the more obvious behaviors associated with sexual harassment. However, gender bias research appears incomplete. Study findings contradict each other, few studies explore gender bias in the graduate classroom, and fewer yet compare the perceptions of women and men concerning gender influences in the graduate classroom. This dissertation investigates perceptions of the influence of gender in …

Shifting Experiences: The Changing Roles Of Women In The Italian, Lowland, And German Regions Of Western Europe From The Middle Ages To The Early Modern Period, Susan Papino

Senior Honors Projects

As the culture of the Middle Ages declined and Early Modern period characterized by a revival of humanistic ideals of the Renaissance commenced, the society of Western Europe underwent many changes. Different attitudes emerged concerning cultural values, and the medieval feudal way of life that has often been interpreted as being antiquated and obsolete gave way to more modern political, economic, and social systems. The question still remains, however, of exactly how women, an often underrepresented part of society, were affected by these so-called modernizing changes. The scope of this research is to basically address this question and examine the …

Mirror Of Culture: The Study Of A Nineteenth-Century Sewing Diary, Elizabeth M. Dellabadia

Senior Honors Projects

Hidden inside the library of the American Textile History Museum in Lowell, Massachusetts is wonderful resource for the study of late nineteenth-century America. When Ann Eliza Cunningham was middle aged, she compiled a sewing diary that included scraps of material from dresses she wore or China trade fabrics brought home by her father. Ann Eliza not only included assorted swatches; but she associated the fabrics with different events in her life. She includes swatches from dresses she wore on her wedding day in 1856, for Thanksgiving, and for various family celebrations like birthday parties. Similar to the work of a …

Exercise Self-Efficacy, Stages Of Exercise Change, Health Promotion Behaviors, And Physical Activity In Postmenopausal Hispanic Women, Pamela Wolfe Kohlbry Phd

Dissertations

The purpose of this correlational research is to understand the relationships among the variables of exercise self-efficacy, stages of exercise change, health promotion behaviors, body mass index (BMI), health problems, and the level of physical activity in postmenopausal Hispanic women. The significance of this study is to contribute research that enhances the understanding of the relationship of psychosocial and health promotion correlates and physical activity in postmenopausal Hispanic women. On a national level, this is important because Hispanic women make up one of the fastest growing minority populations and they experience the second highest level of obesity. This research is …

The Relative Effects Of Education And Cognitive Complexity Of Employment Experience On The Rate Of Cognitive Decline In Elderly Women, Janet M. Lundahl

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This thesis examined the lifetime exposure of women's employment on cognitive functioning and cognitive decline in late life.

From the Cache County Study on Memory, Health, & Aging data, a sample of 2,588 women, aged 65 and older gave retrospective occupational history and were screened using the Modified Mini-Mental State Exam at study entry and approximately 3 years later. Non-demented women were used.

Ordinary least squares regression was used cross-sectionally and longitudinally to test the association between cognitive complexity level of the longest job and baseline cognitive status, and rate of cognitive decline over approximately 3 years.

Cross-sectional analysis revealed …

The Labour Of Her Own Hands: Nineteenth Century Gardening Discourses And The Work Of Jane Webb Loudon, Kelli Lee Towers

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Jane Webb Loudon, wife of eminent horticulturist and landscape architect John Claudius Loudon, has been largely ignored by historians and literary critics. Yet in her brief career she produced some of the most practical and influential gardening works of the early nineteenth-century. Beginning with Gardening for Ladies in 1840, Loudon published seventeen books and edited two magazines on gardening, botany, and natural history, most of them specifically directed to a female audience. These books would educate an entirely new class of gardeners, and allow women in particular to engage not only with gardening, but also with aesthetics, social reform, morality, …

The Women House Church Leaders Of China: Interviews With A Muted Group, Timothy R. Wommack

Masters Theses

While studying the Bakweri people of Cameroon in the 1960s, Edwin and Shirley
Ardener discovered that it was the men who dominated and controlled the power and language of the group and created the societal understanding and the cultural makeup of their tribe's identity. The men did not allow the women to speak or have a say in the elements of their culture; these women were muted. Throughout history many individuals, especially women, have been muted in any number of ways. These include political, economical, social, cultural constrictions, even to the point of death, to keep them from being represented. …

Disclosure Interviews Ida Susser. Women's Autonomy And The Political Contours Of Hiv/Aids In Southern Africa

disClosure: A Journal of Social Theory

No abstract provided.

Title Ix Versus Candian Human Rights Legislation: How The United States Should Learn From Canada's Human Rights Act In The Context Of Sexual Harassment In Schools, Brianne I. Weiss

ExpressO

This Article critically examines the success of Title IX in eradicating sexual harassment in educational settings after the Supreme Court decisions in Gebser v. Lago and Monroe v. Davis. Regrettably, the high bar for recovery established by these cases, in addition to poor administrative enforcement of Title IX have eroded its ability to maintain discrimination-free schools. After an examination of the manner in which the Canadian human rights model operates in the context of sexual harassment in educational settings, recommendations are made that the United States should use the Canadian example to improve its own system. Specifically, the United States …

The Weldon Amendment: The Ongoing Restrictions On A Woman's Right To Choose, John Patton Fortuno

ExpressO

Under the Weldon Amendment, a “physician or other health care professional, a hospital, a provider-sponsored organization, a health maintenance organization, a health insurance plan, or any other kind of health care facility” may refuse abortions, counseling, or referrals, even in cases of rape, incest, or medical emergency.

Women And Microfinance: Why We Should Do More, Elissa Mccarter

Women, Leadership & Equality

No abstract provided.

The Well Women Of Scripture Revisited, Jo Ann Davidson

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Voices Raised, Issue 12, University Of Dayton. Women's Center

Women’s Center Newsletter

Included in this issue: Enhancing the Climate for Women; Gay? Fine by me; Wisdom from some of UD’s busiest women; Don’t forget…Mother’s Day; WGS Moves Forward; Mentoring Program: Continuing to Grow; Connecting to UD; Committee strives for feminist voices to be heard; Women’s roles may not be as expected; Fighting oppression, one pornographic image at a time; Music can be a source of empowerment or degradation or women.

He Said-She Said: On Credibility And The New Reason, Nancy Rourke

ExpressO

The traditional wisdom in the field of evidence holds that, if there is a direct contradiction in the testimony of two witnesses, one of them must be lying. The jury is to discover which version is more credible. The traditional wisdom is wrong. This article uses an actual criminal case to establish that a direct contradiction in testimony can arise from another source - a fundamental difference of conceptual frame. In this case, both witnesses were telling the truth as they knew it, but were talking past one another. Words that were 100% true in the victim's conceptual frame were …

Paid Family Leave In American Law Schools: Findings And Open Questions, Laura T. Kessler

ExpressO

There exists a substantial literature on the status of women in the legal profession, including studies on women students’ experiences in law schools, gender bias on law school faculties, and family leave policies and practices among legal employers. However, no recent study examines the family leave policies and practices in American law schools. This study seeks to fill that gap. Its findings are threefold. First, almost three quarters of law schools provide wage replacement during a family leave that is more generous than required by federal law. Second, there is a positive relationship between teaching at top-tier and private law …

Homeless Mothers' Perceptions Of Parenting In Shelters, Sarah E. Young Whitaker Dnsc, Msn, Rn

Dissertations

Descriptions of parenting in a homeless shelter were obtained from nine single mothers housed in one of two shelters in a major southwestern border metroplex. Case study methodology was used to obtain their perspectives on parenting in this unique context. Content analysis was used to organize and analyze emerging themes. Major themes that emerged from the study were (a) a lack of autonomy, (b) gaining access to material resources, (c) lack of privacy, (d) constant change and insecurity in the environment, (e) differing values, and (e) psychosocial support.