Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Commons^™

To Share Or Not To Share: The Impact Of Disclosing Sexuality On Instructor Communication Apprehension, Instructional Effectiveness, And Student Relationships, Justin Rudnick

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

Previous research has explored the role LGBTQ instructor sexuality plays in the classroom. However, little research explores the effects of disclosing LGBTQ sexuality on the individual instructor. This study examines how LGBTQ instructors report disclosures of their sexuality to influence their Communication Apprehension, Instructional Effectiveness, and their Relationships with Students. Qualitative interviewing methods were used to survey nine self-identified LGBTQ college instructors from mid-size Midwest universities, and a grounded theory approach was used to identify emergent themes pertaining to LGBTQ instructors' experiences with their sexuality in the classroom. Interviewees reported varying degrees of communication apprehension, instructional effectiveness, and heightened personal …

"I Now Pronounce You...Uhh": A Qualitative Autoethnographic Exploration Of Women's And Men's Marital Surname-Choice Experiences, Julie Louceil Germain Walker

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

Marital name change has been a topic of fierce debate in social settings and has received some attention from academia, but largely scholarship on marital name change focuses on female choices and their rationale. Using a combined in-depth qualitative and autoethnographic approach, I sought to understand the connections between name and identity. I interviewed 11 heterosexual, married women and men about their marital name choices to explore the possible name-identity connections. Choosing a surname requires some type of pre-choice negotiation, either individually or with a partner, and several post-choice negotiations, such as with family members and the process of changing …

Tying It All Together: An Autoethnographic Exploration Of Lgbtq Forensic Competitors, Alyssa Barrie Reid

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

It is a common held belief amongst the intercollegiate forensic community that it breeds a culture of affirmation towards marginalized identities. However, as a competitor I never felt confident portraying my LGBTQ identity while at a forensic tournament. This prompted me to employ interviews of former LGBTQ competitors to explore how they managed their identity. Using grounded theory and autoethnography I uncovered themes related to gender, sex, sexuality, and gender identity performance as they confronted and interacted with forensic competition.

The Prettiest President I Ever Saw: Cold War Film Portrayals Of Women Political And Military Leaders, Michael Flannery Hatchett

Communication & Leadership Dissertations and Theses

This thesis offers generic criticism of the portrayal of women political and military leaders in Cold War films. The study uses textual analysis of several films to judge certain factors, including ethical, philosophical, and aesthetic concerns. The films examined in this thesis are: Project Moonbase, The Manchurian Candidate, Kisses for My President, and By Dawn’s Early Light. This thesis traces the evolution of attitudes about women leaders, identifies qualities that are shown to be important to leaders during the Cold War, and examines the ways in which these leaders manage to defy stereotypes in each of their films. It also …

Gender Bias In Network News Reporting: Inaccurate Risk Information About Male And Female Birth Control, Krista Currer

Communication & Leadership Dissertations and Theses

Pharmaceutical companies spend considerable amounts of revenue on advertising; therefore, media networks must portray an agenda which supports those companies. This thesis attempts to discover if and to what extent women are marginalized by the promotion of hormonal birth control. Particular focus is placed on the link between these drugs and breast cancer risk, as well as the existence of gendered messages. Framework for the study is established through Agenda-setting Theory and Marxist and feminist criticism. Media messages about birth control are then interpreted through content analysis. Only 9% of messages about female birth control mention the link with breast …

An Evolving Dyke-Otomy: Lesbianism And Learning, Megan Pugh

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Homophobia and prejudice against the lesbian community have been argued to be consequences of lack of education within academic and non-academic spaces. This study introduces a pedagogical model of gendered lesbian identity that can act as a tool for educators to understand lesbian experiences, and thus contribute to addressing issues related to homophobia and prejudices in the classrooms and beyond. Based on thematic analysis of data generated by a qualitative online survey of 29 participants, this study argues that notions of social norms, individual agency, and importance of advocacy are critical points of emphases in the proposed educational model. Although …

Masculinity, Sexuality, And Soccer: An Exploration Of Three Grassroots Sport-For-Social-Change Organizations In South Africa, Sarah Theresa Mcghee

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Programs that utilize soccer as a tool for social change are steadily emerging throughout townships and rural areas in South Africa, the most economically disadvantaged areas of the country. In South Africa, grassroots sport-for-social-change organizations are compensating for failed government policies and programs that seek to help at-risk youth. As a result, program staff are often members of the community who are not versed in academic critiques of the use of sport in development initiatives. Additionally, much of the existing literature on sport-for-social-change champions the advancement of specific projects without asking critical research questions, which should include the appropriateness of …

Ua12/2/1 College Heights Herald, Vol. 87, No. 25, Wku Student Affairs

WKU Administration Documents

WKU campus newspaper reporting campus, athletic and Bowling Green, Kentucky news.

• Bratcher, Nick. Parking Offers Backup Plans with High School Fans in Bowling Green
• Wade, Katherine. Block 12 Hotel Bid Possible from Campbell Lane Developer
• A Big Red Birthday
• Ransdell Hall Receives Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design Gold Certification
• West, Natalie. L is for Lesbian – Mariah Yelverton
• Bratcher, Nick. WKU Store to Open New Location in Spring
• Anderson, Anna. WKU Glasgow Instructor Represents Habitat for Humanity in Haiti – Patrick Brown
• Koch, Cameron. WKU Grads Hope to Create Next Big Social Network – Adam McDonald, Antonio Bruna
• Vogt, …

A Case Study Of The Rhetorical Styles And Content Used In Devising And Delivering A Workplace Intimate Partner Violence Awareness Program As An Example Of A Gender-Related Power Construct In A Private Sector Workplace With A Predominantly Male Workgroup, Kimberly Campbell

Communication & Leadership Dissertations and Theses

This work examines what rhetorical approaches were used in the devising and delivery of workplace training materials that address intimate partner violence and gender-related power constructs in a predominantly male workplace and why these approaches were chosen. Specifically, this study analyzes the language used throughout the discourse for the purposes of determining how language can shape the perceptions, attitudes, and behaviors of the participants. The data was obtained using the qualitative methods of rhetorical analysis and interviewing. The materials were analyzed and this data was synthesized with the results of interviews with the author of the discourse. Supporting research examines …

Media Portrayal Of The Feminist Movement: The Seattle Times Coverage From 1970 To 1979, Kelly Patricia Darrah

Communication & Leadership Dissertations and Theses

This research examines how feminism has been covered by mass media in general, and specifically how The Seattle Times portrayed the women’s movement in the 1970s. The fight for women’s suffrage in the early 20th century marks the beginning of the modern women’s movement for equal rights. Most young women today agree with many of the feminist ideals but reject the label. Because media have been proven to have a strong influence on public opinion, the question arises as to whether agenda-setting and negative media coverage are reasons for this disconnect. Using content analysis, this study analyzes print news media …

Creating Blended Environments That Connect Classroom To Community, Joseph A. Santiago

Office of Community, Equity and Diversity Publications

Creating Blended Environments That Connect Classroom to Community

Objective: To outline a blended environment model linking multiple systems, departments, and people together, that can be easily integrated into the culture of how we already live, work, and learn. Further, this model seeks to highlight mechanisms within said blended environment that would support students who might feel isolated or disconnected when they first get to URI.

Creating Blended Environments That Connect Classroom to Community; Creating Blended Environments That Connect Classroom to Community; Objective; To outline a blended environment model linking multiple systems, departments, and people together, that can be easily integrated …

3 G Diversity Summit, Joseph A. Santiago, Trip Hutchinson, Joe Mercadante, Kevin Cruz, Dana Speesler, Brian Sit, Marquel Wright, Ryan Vignean, Alex Papa

Office of Community, Equity and Diversity Publications

The 3G Summit sought to bring students together from multiple Universities to create collaboration across diversity groups in the New England area. The I Am U URI group put a call out to new members to work across Universities on collaborative goals.

The summit was designed to accomplish 3 goals. Get people from multiple Universities to come together and talk about their experiences. Brainstorm things that everyone wants to work on. Establish contact information and ways to work together.

This Summit was sponsored by HRL and the GLBT Center. Audio from this event can be streamed directly from this page.

Climbing The Himalayas: A Cross-Cultural Analysis Of Female Leadership And Glass Ceiling Effects In Non-Profit Organizations, Chin-Chung Chao

Communication Faculty Publications

Purpose – The present study aims at contributing to the knowledge of organizational communication and cross-cultural leadership by examining the relationship between cultural values and expected female leadership styles in non-profit organizations in Taiwan and the US. Design/methodology/approach – In total, 307 Rotarians in Taiwan and the US completed a survey meant to reveal their cultural values and expected female leadership styles. In addition, the method of semi-structured interviews was used to raise the participants’ consciousness of and critical reflections upon social practices regarding female leadership.

Findings – The research results are threefold. First, among the three major leadership styles, …

An Analysis Of Feminism As Reflected In Media Objectification, Kimberly Alsop Hobson

Communication & Leadership Dissertations and Theses

Nearly 50 years after the National Organization for Women's Statement of Purpose vowed to revolutionize the artificial and sexist depiction of women in media and to promote images of women in self-respecting and active partnerships with men, objectification is more of a problem than ever before. This study examines the interplay of Cultivation theory, Social Comparison theory, Objectification theory and Feminist writings in order to study the origins and consequences of objectification for women. Dissemination of a survey instrument consisting of 14 questions and completed by 235 women over a period of five days, assesses the discernment women have about …

How To Be The Best At Everything: The Gendering And Embodiment Of Girl/Boy Advice, Barbara Lesavoy

Journal of Interdisciplinary Feminist Thought

This paper explores the binary divide packaged under the children’s How be the Best at Everything (2007) girl/boy advice books. Postmodern and materialist feminist thought as a lens into media-infused social and class reproduction provide a theoretical framework in interrogating this gender binary. I argue that that the books, as heteronormative nostalgia, operationalize a theory I term “gender retraction,” a phenomenon in which the vast knowledge that informs our identity spectrum propels us into a cultural time warp, where, with an array of socially inscribed possibilities, the binary clarity of age old girl/boy categories has resurging appeal The paper exposes …

Popular Culture And The Feminist Ideal: A Feminist Critique Of Home Box Office's "Sex And The City", Koryna Zendejas

Communication Studies

No abstract provided.

Oral Presentation: Depictions Of Sexuality And Gender Construction In Japanese Manga And Anime, Sarah Huerta

Festival of Communities: UG Symposium (Posters)

This presentation will explore research into gender and sexuality in anime and manga as compared to popular U.S. displays of gender and sexuality using a brief historical and cultural contextual background on manga and anime. I will discuss a comparison between U.S. and Japanese gender and sexual depictions in anime/manga and popular American media. Lastly, I discuss the potential for anime and manga in exploring gender and sexuality in U.S. studies, as well as my current, ongoing research with individuals in anime/manga groups

In Amerika They Call Us Dykes: Lesbian Lives In The 1970s, Sarah Chinn

Center for LGBTQ Studies (CLAGS)

This past October, CLAGS hosted a historic conference to commemorate, celebrate, and evaluate the diverse contributions of lesbians over the course of the 1970s. The conference culminated a semester-long series of events that unfurled over the Spring 2010 term. In planning for the conference, the organizing committee (made up of Melissa Gasparotto, Andrea Freud Loewenstein, Roberta Sklar, Urvashi Vaid, and myself) imagined this conference as embracing as broad a field of lesbian lives as it could.

Culturally Universal Or Culturally Specific: A Comparative Study Of The Anticipated Female Leadership Styles In Taiwan And The United States, Chin-Chung Chao, Dexin Tian

Communication Faculty Publications

Guided by Bass and Avolio’s leadership frameworks and Hofstede’s modified cultural dimensions, the present cross-cultural study aims to compare and explore the relationships between cultural values and anticipated female leadership styles in non-profit organizations in Taiwan and the US. Regression and t-test analyses of 307 participants in 138 Rotary Clubs in the two societies reveal two research findings. First, Rotary Club members in Taiwan have higher scores in all the cultural dimensions of collectivism, masculinity, and life-long relationships than their US counterparts. Second, transformational leadership proves to be the most anticipated leadership style among Rotary Club members in both cultures. …

Caring Work: Opening A Space Of Possibility For Exploring Transnational Feminist Solidarity Between Privileged And Marginalized Women, Beverly Romero Natividad

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Neoliberalism, through its emphasis on personal responsibility and individual freedom in accelerating economic development globally, has only pushed women further into the margin of society. Structural adjustment programs (SAPs), which impose state budget cuts on healthcare and welfare programs, particularly have kept poor women and women of color in poverty and generally, have exploited women's labor. However, in this age of neoliberalism, women's solidarity becomes more significant. Because neoliberalism is founded on individualism, its downfall rests on alliance-building. Against this backdrop, I explore the possibility of fostering transnational feminist solidarity between privileged and marginalized women engaged in formal caring work. …

Ua98/2 Potter College For Young Ladies Administration, Wku Archives

WKU Archives Collection Inventories

Administrative records related to Potter College. The series includes grade books, textbook list and a receipt.

Ua19/16/1 Volleyball Media Information Guide, Wku Athletic Media Relations

WKU Administration Documents

Athletic media guide for volleyball team.

The Poetics Of Professionalism Among Dialysis Technicians, Laura L. Ellingson

Gender and Sexuality Studies

The vast majority of care for end-stage renal disease (ESRD) patients is provided by skilled (but not formally educated) paraprofessional technicians. Using Goffman's (1959) framing of the performance of self in everyday discourse, this study examines discourse from dialysis technicians and technical aides to explore these paraprofessionals' construction and performance of professional identity and professional communication within the context of an outpatient dialysis clinic. Themes of professionalism—individualized care, vigilance, teamwork, and emotion management—are illustrated via poetic transcription of interviews with technicians. I contend that such representation offers validity equal to that of traditional research accounts while embodying alternative representational strengths.

Audience Engagement With Mother-Daughter Relationships In Prime-Time Television Of The 21st Century: A Qualitative Analysis Of Interpretation, Sensemaking, And Perceived Effects, Meghan L. O'Briend

Mass Communications - Dissertations

This qualitative analysis examines audience engagement with fictional portrayals of mother-daughter relationships in prime-time television of the 21st century. I used in-depth interviews with women of different backgrounds to explore how real mothers and daughters interpret portrayals of mother-daughter relationships on television; how they make sense of their own mother-daughter relationships through their engagement with these portrayals; and how and to what extent their engagement with these portrayals influences their own lives and mother-daughter relationships.

The results of this study uncovered a process of audience engagement with mother-daughter relationships on television that involved the viewing experience, interpretation, sensemaking, and perceived …

Investigating Student Gender And Grade Level Differences In Digital Citizenship Behavior, Robert Lyons

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The rapid rise of technology, which has become embedded in all facets of 21st century society during the past decade, has fostered a corresponding rise in its misuse. Digital citizenship abuse, a relatively new phenomenon of this electronic age, is a rapidly growing global problem. Parents, schools, and society play roles in supporting appropriate online behavior. Schools must take the lead role to assess and address digital citizenship issues. This ex post facto study investigated the online actions of students in a medium-sized K-12 school district and explored possible causal relationships between online misbehavior and student grade and gender based …

Re-Examining “In A Different Voice” For The New Millennium, Brittany Morris

The Journal of Undergraduate Research

Carol Gilligan’s In a Different Voice (1982) first presented the concept of different moral reasoning as key to understanding how men and women seem to arrive at different conclusions in similar situations. Contrasting her work with the influential model of Kohlberg, Gilligan argues that women’s concept of moral decision-making is inherently relational, rather than reflecting the acceptance of abstract justice deemed to be the highest level of decision-making by Kohlberg. Here, I explain this contrasting perspective, and then examine modern integration of Gilligan’s perceptions as seen through print and broadcast media.

Ua98/1 Potter College For Young Ladies Publications, Wku Archives

WKU Archives Collection Inventories

Publications created by Potter College. This series consists of catalogs, yearbooks and the college newsletter.

An Individual Of Feeling: Emotion, Gender, And Subjectivity In Historical Perspectives On Sensibility, E. Deidre Pribram Ph.D.

Communications: Faculty Publications

This chapter explores the intricacies of analyzing emotions as historical and cultural phenomena. Focusing on gendered assumptions that conflate emotions with women and the private, the chapter examines the contradictions between scholarly views of a wide-spread, public sensibility movement (in politics, economics, philosophy, aesthetics) and a more specific cult of sensibility associated with novels, a female readership and a separate domestic sphere. It argues that sensibility was pivotal to the development of Enlightenment emotional as well as rational subjectivity. Approaching emotions as complex cultural and historical formations clarifies how an individual of feeling was central to the emergence of the …

Play Education Video Games On Their Terms, Wendi M. Kappers

Publications

It is imperative when utilizing educational video games in K-12 classrooms that student preferences with regard to game play, purpose, and design be considered in order to maximize game play efficiency for learning. As Web 2.0 content infiltrates our educational medium, student customization is key. This manuscript intends to share customization requests gleaned during an 18-week experimental study examining educational video game effects upon 7th graders enrolled in Mathematics and Mathematics 2 courses.

Investigating Trait Attribution Through Gendered Avatar Play: An Analysis Of The Sims 3, Erika M. Behrmann

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

This study investigates whether the life-simulation videogame, The Sims 3, enables the deconstruction of the gender binary. The Sims 3 permits its players the capability to attribute similar traits to male or female avatars. In doing so, players can experiment with taboo trait attributions and potentially defy a male-female binary. A group of 82 The Sims 3 players was surveyed to determine their overall male and female Sims trait selections during gameplay. Participants were questioned on how their trait selection related to their personal identities. Results indicated that players tend to select traits that maintain a gender binary. This …