Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

A Past Never Past: An Analysis Of Slavery And Reparation At The University Of Mississippi, Allen Coon

Honors Theses

The University of Mississippi was built using slaves, but the enslaved and their descendants were willfully denied admission to the university until forced desegregation in 1962. This interdisciplinary study employs a qualitative content analysis of antebellum university board of trustees and faculty minutes to investigate the benefits that slavery conferred to the university and the harms that slavery inflicted upon the campus enslaved. Analysis finds that slavery was a standard operation, that extrajudicial violence against slaves was a campus tradition, and that white supremacy was an institutional ideology at the University of Mississippi. This thesis integrates African American reparations literature …

Social Class And Elementary Education: The Elementary Education Act Of 1870, Cameron Lowry

Honors Theses

No abstract provided.

American Foreign Policy Has A Masculinity Problem: A Discourse Analysis Of The Iran Deal, Rachel Emond

Honors Theses

The research in this paper seeks to analyze the rhetoric surrounding issues of American foreign policy using the Iran Deal as a case study. The main question this research intends to answer is: Are suggested soft power policy solutions, such as that of the Iran Deal, characterized as either feminine or masculine? I seek to answer this question through a discourse analysis of the rhetoric in newspaper articles from The New York Times and The Washington Post about the Iran Deal from the year 2015. I identify common themes and phrases among these articles and draw my own conclusions about …

Nasty Women: Television Portrayals Of Societal Anxieties Toward Female Leaders, Emily Sullivan

Honors Theses

Historically, women have been excluded from leadership positions around the world, while instead men occupy the highest positions of power in society. The lack of female leadership is especially prevalent in the United States, where there has never been a female president, and the majority of high political offices are still held by men. In a similar manner, women have also been excluded from the sphere of comedy throughout history. Women have constantly had to deal with the assertion that women are not funny. This double exclusion from both leadership and comedy has led to the development of my concept …

Deference To Deference: Examining The Relationship Between The Courts And The Political Branches Through Judicial Deference And The Chevron Doctrine, Christopher Yao

Honors Theses

Judicial review of agency rulemaking sits atop a nexus between all three branches of American government, the legislature, the executive, and the judiciary. Chevron v. NRDC (1984), a landmark case in administrative law, and its resulting doctrine of strong judicial deference to agencies in their interpretations of statute, are paradoxical in their creation. Although Chevron was decided at the height of Reagan-era deregulation, it greatly enhanced the power of administrative agencies, allowing them to reinterpret the meaning of their statutory directives as needed to justify changes to regulations with less scrutiny from the courts. It is only in recent years …

Policy Responses To Migration Flows Through The Mediterranean Sea: An Analysis Of European Union And Italian Policies, Megan M. Krynen

Honors Theses

This research seeks to understand the relationship between immigration policies enacted by both the European Union and the Italian Government and the amount of migrants entering Italy through the Mediterranean Sea. The three research questions that are addressed in this research are A) What were the key policy debates leading to the current policies regulating immigration at both European and Italian level? B) How did the policies affect migrants’ decision to move? C) How did the same policies influence and were influenced by native Italians attitude towards immigration? The methods used were a textual analysis of European Union and Italian …

Framing Effects In A Competitive Environment: Black Lives Matter Versus President Trump, Samantha M. Adams

Honors Theses

How is public opinion in the United States affected by the president and the Black Lives Matter social movement’s competing frames on racial inequality? Political elites have used frames to shape public opinion on a multitude of issues, showing success in select and specific conditions. However, it seems that competition, a moderator of framing effects, is always present in politics, especially between a social movement and president. I expand upon the theory that, in competitive environments, repetition or recent exposure increases a frame’s accessibility in memory, therefore the “loudest” of the two frames is the one that influences opinion. To …

Managing Church, Politics, And The End Of The World: Analysis Of Baptist Ecclesiology, Eschatology, And The Remobilization Of Conservative Baptists In The Moral Majority, Nathan Taylor Barron

Honors Theses

The sudden and formidable political mobilization of fundamentalist Christians in the mid-to-late 1970’s quickly garnered the attention of politicians, pastors, and political scientists alike. Since the success of the Moral Majority in the 1980s, social science researchers have dedicated special attention to the intersection of religion and social life; however, such considerations have largely neglected to sufficiently discover why fundamentalist Christians were seemingly predisposed for the high levels of political activity characteristic of the Moral Majority. Building on a historical analysis of Baptist ecclesiological and eschatological development, the purpose of this research is to consider the theological framework behind the …

Gendered Speaking Patterns In Supreme Court Oral Arguments From 1981-2016, Gillain Purser

Honors Theses

This research attempts to discover whether or not the Supreme Court of the United State is subject to implicit gender biases during oral argumentation, largely through examining speaking time and the number of questions each justice is able to ask during a case's oral argumentation period. While there is substantial research on gender’s impact on communication and decision-making processes, as well as gender’s impact on court decisions, most research stops before it gets to the Supreme Court of the United States. There are two main goals to this research: First, to determine whether or not women Justices are impacted by …

Impact Of 2001 - 2016 Supreme Court Establishment Clause Cases, Nicole Cumming

Honors Theses

This study will look at United States Supreme Court Establishment Clause cases from 2001-2016. During those 16 years, the Court decided 1,276 cases. Only 10 of those cases dealt with the establishment clause.

At an absolute minimum, the Establishment Clause was intended to prohibit the federal government from declaring and financially supporting a national religion, which existed in many other countries at the time of America's founding. This idea has become vital to the values Americans hold dear. Throughout history, religious freedom and tolerance have been celebrated, and most of that is due to the Establishment Clause. However, there is …

The Changing Geopolitical Dynamics Of The Middle East And Their Impact On Israeli-Palestinian Peace Efforts, Daniel Bucksbaum

Honors Theses

In this thesis the status and feasibility of the two-state solution, the primary and most widely-accepted potential resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict will be analyzed. It considers aspects such as physical challenges (geography and topography of the land), regressive and damaging actions to the peace process by Israelis and Palestinians, and the newly developing changes in regional alliances and interests in the Middle East. The status of the traditional two-state solution, due to its history, obstacles, and current regional developments, has implications for future negotiations and have changed the direction of peace talks. Dramatic shifts in regional interests and the …

Party Identification At Western Michigan University, Melissa Heinz

Honors Theses

A high self-monitor is an individual who changes his/her political views to improve an impression made to others. This past election contained very controversial candidates making individuals very reluctant to show strong support for either party. My thesis topic examines the link between self-monitoring and party identification after the controversial election. I will be testing to see Western Michigan University students’ willingness to disguise political views based on what others think of them by using three different versions of the same survey. Many students are in positions on campus as well as off campus that require them to present themselves …

Guide To Understanding Catalonian Dissent: From Proclamation To Referendum, Andrew Larkin

Honors Theses

"Guide to Understanding Catalonian Independence Efforts: From referendum proclamation to 1-O" explains and chronicles key events from June 9 to October 1, 2017 that have impacted Catalonia's ploy for independence. The northeastern region in Spain is situated on the Mediterranean coast and plays a strong role in the Spanish economy. Although the region is well situated and prosperous, some push for an independent Catalonia. The guide is written with readers from the United States of America in mind and includes excerpts translated into English so that the struggle between Spain and independence-minded Catalans can be easily understood. Official statements, speeches, …

China’S Involvement In Latin America And Possible Ramifications For The United States, Tatiana Gozalez-Quiroga

Honors Theses

No abstract provided.

Ending Mass Incarceration: Support Among State Legislators For The Abolishment Of Monetary Bail In Favor Of A Risk Assessment Tool, Haley Grieshaber

Honors Theses

No abstract provided.

American Journeys: Quest, Displacement, Escape, Gianluca Avanzato

Honors Theses

The “American Way of Life” is deeply engrained into the narrative of America and the dreams of many Americas—so much so that it often goes unexamined. This thesis explores the American Way of Life and related narratives—including American individualism, American exceptionalism, and the American Dream—and examines its tendency to disappoint and damage those who strive for such a way of life. I ground this analysis in three major works of American literature: Herman Melville’s Moby-Dick, John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath, and Richard Wright’s Native Son. With a special attention to critical and political theory, my analyses …

The Duality Of Freedom: The Colony Of Rhode Island’S Slave Trade Complex, Thomas Shields

Honors Theses

In the eighteenth century British colonies there existed a duality of freedom, in which salutary neglect facilitated economic opportunism in the form of the slave trade. This paper examines how the colony of Rhode Island was a microcosm of this freedom duality in the merchant capitalist world. The colony became the epicenter of the slave trade in British North America, while also the home to a fervent abolition movement headed by the Quakers. This thesis contends that broad economic and individual freedoms in the colony created the environment where the slave trade prospered, the exact opposite of freedom.

After the …

Denying Refuge, Creating An Industry: Migrant Smuggling And The Human Cost Of The Turkey-European Union Asylum Framework, Olivia Campochiaro

Honors Theses

This thesis examines how state responses to irregular migration impact human smuggling activity and the experiences of asylum seekers in Turkey and the European Union within the context of the current refugee crisis. To do so, I first discuss relevant global and regional policy frameworks regarding border security, human smuggling, and the rights of displaced people. I then embark on a case study of the Eastern Mediterranean Migration Corridor from Middle Eastern and North African states through Turkey to the Schengen Zone, a primary irregular pathway for migrants seeking asylum in the EU. Turkey hosts more internationally displaced people than …

Strategic Nationalism: Deciphering Chinese Strategy In The South China Sea, William Levesque

Honors Theses

Over the last two decades, the South China Sea has become an international flashpoint and site of frequent Chinese aggression. Chinese naval, coast guard, and militia vessels frequently sail the natural-resource rich waters, and China has undertaken a massive campaign of island building to support its claims. The motivations behind China's aggression and their choice of strategy, however, remain ambiguous and the topic of major academic discussion. This Honors Thesis provides a new hypothesis, strategic nationalism, which is capable of explaining China's recent actions in the South China Sea.

Terrorism In The Time Of Schengen, Alaina Bierdz

Honors Theses

This paper investigates the relationship between the Schengen area in Europe and terrorism. The Schengen agreement was implemented in 1995; since then, internal borders between the contracting parties have been abolished. This paper emphasizes the rationale that Schengen made member-states more vulnerable to terrorist attacks because the agreement inherently involved less regulation. In order to test this rationale, this study uses James Q. Wilson's choice theory. This theory refers to the school of thought which maintains that rational wrongdoers act as if they weigh the possible benefits of criminal or delinquent activity against the expected costs of being apprehended. Specifically, …

The Effect Of Participation In Party Politics On Terrorist Organizations: A Case Study Of Hamas And Hezbollah, David Newman

Honors Theses

This thesis sought to explore the effect of participation in party politics on terrorist organizations through a comparative case study of Hamas in the Palestinian Territories and Hezbollah in Lebanon. The project was inspired by the existing literature on party-terror linkages and inclusion-moderation theory. The methodology used to test this relationship required analysis of the histories of the two organizations to identify each organization's years of participation and non-participation in party politics. Then, using the data compiled by the Global Terrorism Database, I calculated the average number of terrorist incidents per year across the phases of participation in party politics …

It Is Impossible To Overdo Luxury: French Variety Of Capitalism And Its Contribution To Luxury Market Presence, Emily Henderson

Honors Theses

This study seeks to explain the dominance of French companies in the luxury fashion industry. The study aims to prove that France's unique model of capitalism contributed to the strong position of French luxury fashion. By using the theoretical framework of the varieties of capitalism the study analyses France's variety of capitalism, the evolution of the French luxury market, and ultimately compare how French luxury fashion firms fit the needs of the luxury fashion industry. Ultimately, the findings indicate that while the history of French fashion is the cause for its dominance until the postwar period, the French variety of …

Abortion Access And Child Maltreatment: A Cross-National Analysis, Alexandra Gersdorf

Honors Theses

This thesis has examined the impact of restricted abortion access on different indicators of child maltreatment. Drawing from literature linking unwanted pregnancies to child maltreatment, I posited that given the proposed relationship between unintended pregnancies and child maltreatment, we should expect to see increased instances of maltreatment within countries that allow less of forbid women from accessing abortions. For this purpose, I created an index of abortion access to numerically rate a country's level of liberality or restrictiveness. Then, using data from 49 countries, this thesis examined the potential linkage across a variety of measures that indicate child maltreatment while …

The Meridian House Speech And Academic Influence On U.S. Policy In The Middle East, Shant Eghian

Honors Theses

This paper will examine United States foreign policy in the Middle East Post Cold War through the lens of the Meridian House Speech, an influential speech given in 1992 that has shaped the United States’ foreign policy framework for the past twenty-five years. It will examine the work of Edward Said and John Esposito, two influential academics whose work heavily influenced the content of the speech. Finally, this paper will give a critical analysis of the speech and the implications it has had for our foreign policy in the Middle East.

Exploring Announcement Dynamics In Select Republican Primary Elections, Mitchell Redd

Honors Theses

This thesis is a reflection of my general interests in intra-partisan electoral conflict. Empirically, my study is motivated by Aaron King's (2017) theory about the relationship between announcement timing in U.S. Senate primary contests and experience in the arena of federal elections. I develop a measure that credits candidates with the highest score if they are an incumbent Senator, then three lower scores ranging from higher office to no experience. I then examine how this measure relates to the timing of candidacy announcements inside nine upcoming Republican primary contests for U.S. Senate nominations. I test two, tentative hypotheses about how …

Social Media Use And Negative Partisanship Among College Students, Savannah Maas

Honors Theses

Since the creation of the United States of America, the political climate has vastly changed and adapted, each time period with its own distinct characteristics. Today, the American electorate and Congress are more polarized than ever and negative partisan-ship has become a central characteristic in politics. Partisan identities of voters are more homogenous than ever and approval rates of people's opposing parties are at an all-time low. People's political decisions have begun to be more driven by dislike of the opposing party than support of their own. Social media has also grown over recent years and has begun to play …

Emerging Care Regimes: An Analysis Of The Domestic Labor Market Of Shanghai, Nellie S. Lavalle

Honors Theses

The People’s Republic of China today faces a rapidly growing demand for care. Care consists of childcare, eldercare, and various domestic duties. Due to the increased pressures for dual-earner families and the aging population, there has emerged a significant deficit between the amount of care needed and the care available. In recent years, private employee-based enterprises have risen to a prominent position in the system of care provision. The phenomenon leads to questions of how states structure care provision. This paper seeks to answer two questions. First, what care-regime model has arisen in Shanghai to meet the demands of the …

Welcome To Europe? Consequences Of The Eu-Turkey Deal For Refugees Contained On Lesvos, Julia Endicott

Honors Theses

In 2015, the world experienced the greatest flow of migrations since World War II. During that year, more than one million people entered Europe, the majority of whom werefleeing civil war and political unrest in the countries of Syria, Afghanistan, Iraq, and Eritrea, aswell as many other places. The quantity of refugees was unprecedented and challenged theexisting borders of Europe. Some countries on the continent were willing to accept newcomers,while others acted to keep them out. One tactic developed by European Union (EU) policymakers to manage the migration flows was the EU-Turkey Deal, which was implemented onMarch 20, 2016. Under …

A Prediction Of Masterpiece Cakeshop Ltd. V. Colorado Civil Rights Commission, Hilary Price

Honors Theses

This is a study of the Supreme Court ruling in the case of Masterpiece Cakeshop, Ltd. v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission. The paper attempts to make a prediction of the ruling based on factors relevant to the Court's decision. I studied the facts of the case, the briefs submitted by petitioners and respondents, Supreme Court precedents, interpretive tests, amicus curiae briefs, and voting patterns of the Supreme Court Justices. Based on this information, I came to the conclusion that I believe the Court will issue a conservative ruling in favor of petitioners, Masterpiece Cakeshop.

Bit By Bit: An Analysis Of The Role Of Bilateral Investment Treaties On China's Investment In Latin America, Matthew Forgette

Honors Theses

Over the past 15 years, the political and economic relationship between China and Latin America has progressed rapidly. Chinese investment in Latin America has risen to unprecedented levels, and numerous Latin American leaders have praised and welcomed China's growing influence in the region. A key component of this burgeoning relationship has been the emergence of bilateral investment treaties between China and Latin American nations. Over the past 30 years, China has signed a bilateral investment treaty with 12 different Latin American countries. In light of their increasing importance, this paper seeks to analyze the role of bilateral investment treaties in …