Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Understanding The Experiences Of White Female Elementary School Teachers Who Promote Racial Equity And Justice In White Schools, Meredith Valentine

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

In this qualitative study, I conducted semi-structured interviews of six white, female elementary school teachers to better understand how and why they enacted principles of racial equity to challenge the status quo of whiteness with their predominantly white middle-class students and school community. Teachers felt they lacked a formal, structured education to feel confident in their teaching of racial and social justice concepts. Teachers used other forms of social justice teaching that they were more experientially familiar with, such as gender equity, language diversity, and (dis)ability, as a catalyst to discuss topics of racial justice. Each educator navigated their classroom …

“We Are Trans, But We’Re Not Transitional”: Exploring Safety, Place, And Space In The Lives Of Transgender Individuals In Southeastern Virginia, Susana Avalos

Sociology & Criminal Justice Theses & Dissertations

In general, little research exists on trans people’s spatial experiences despite space being highly relevant to their experiences of violence and perceptions of safety. To date, two criminological studies have examined LGBTQ people’s fear of crime in relation to public or private places and spaces. This is in stark contrast to the sizable place and space literature on cisgender men and women. These topics from the perspectives of trans people are underexplored primarily because most criminological research has historically upheld binarized understandings of gender. Safety should not be privileged or limited to certain groups, individuals, or spaces. Instead, safety should …

Prone To Prejudice: Trans Experiences And Structural Harm In The U.S. Prison System, Margaret-Maria Pemu

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative study examines transgender individuals' experiences within the justice system. This study seeks to illuminate the complex realities of incarceration using social constructionism and reflexive thematic analysis. The social constructionist perspective offers a framework for understanding how gendered identities are shaped, constrained, and policed within institutional contexts. The analysis of narratives from Large Reddit communities allows this study to examine how transgender individuals make sense of and survive correctional environments. A comprehensive analysis of the data generated the following six major themes: (1) Solitary Confinement Universally Induces Horror, (2) Discriminatory Treatment Leads to Disillusionment with the Criminal Justice System, …

The Effects Of Background Child-Directed And Adult-Directed Singing On Reading Comprehension Performance, Agnes Yeboah Amfo-Adu

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Although music features in speech, such as those found in child-directed speech and song, are known to enhance language processing, the underlying mechanism of this benefit remains unclear. Prior research has primarily compared verbal materials presented in a musical, child-directed style to those in a less musical, adult-directed style, leaving it uncertain whether the benefit stems from the music style of verbal presentation or mere exposure to musical features. This study examined whether the language benefits of child-directed input persist when it is presented as background auditory stimuli rather than the primary focus of cognitive tasks. Experiment 1 found that …

Explanations For Racial Inequality In America; Effects Of Protestant Beliefs, Behaviors And Region, Qurshonda Shannae Lomans

Sociology & Criminal Justice Theses & Dissertations

The founder of the Center for the Study of Social Policy in Washington DC, Tom Joe (1987) released an article examining economic disparities between Black and White Americans. Across the measures of income, poverty and unemployment rates, Black Americans were found to be at an economic disadvantage. According to current data published by the U.S. Department of Commerce (2018), the economic wealth gap has remained unequal. Prior research examining racial inequality has found Protestantism to be a foundation from which Americans form their ideologies about social issues (Hunt, 2007; Edgell & Tranby, 2007; Taylor & Merino, 2011). Data provided by …

Educational Attainment Patterns Among Mena Adults: A Comparative Study Of Native- And Foreign-Born Groups In The Us, Michael Okyere

Department of Sociology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This study examines educational attainment patterns among Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) adults in the United States, focusing on how nativity status, residential patterns, and gender shape these outcomes. Drawing on segmented assimilation and spatial assimilation theories, I analyze data from the 2018-2022 American Community Survey using ordered logistic regression models. Results indicate that educational attainment varies by gender, with MENA women consistently achieving higher education levels than men across all nativity groups, though this advantage varies considerably in magnitude between native-born and foreign-born subgroups. Residence in ethnic enclaves demonstrates a strong negative association with educational attainment among foreign-born …

Hope Against Hope: Problems, Possibilities, Agency, And Survival, Erin Kay Chambers

Department of English: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

In response to a critique of hope put forth by queer theorist Jack Halberstam, this thesis is a reassessment of what makes us capable of response—to “stay with the trouble,” in the words of Donna Haraway—in the face of overwhelming collapse. If not hope, then what? This thesis explores a number of questions about hope and its absence, opposites, and various deployments: is hope always an effective tool for survival? Does hopelessness always spell doom? Are hope and its apparent opposites necessarily incompatible? And if there is no hope, how do we keep going?—how do we survive? I explore these …

Thematic Analyses Of Session Data With Transgender And Gender Diverse Adults Obtained During A Clinical Trial, Brenna Rose Lash

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Transgender and gender diverse (TGD) adults in the United States experience high rates of discrimination and marginalization, contributing to adverse mental health outcomes. While clinical guidelines for gender affirming care have been developed, these guidelines often lack empirical grounding or specific, actionable strategies for clinicians. Although theoretical models such as the marginalization stress model and the psychological mediation framework offer useful foundations for case conceptualization, they do not fully capture the lived experiences or the resilience mechanisms of TGD individuals in therapeutic contexts. This project aims to bridge the gap between research and clinical practice through thematic analysis of therapy …

Intergenerational Family Dynamics Among Caregivers And Children’S Social-Emotional Development In China, Weiman Xu

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

The early years of a child’s life are pivotal for social-emotional development. While extensive research has explored the role of family settings in fostering children's social-emotional development (Bornstein, 2005), the impact of grandparental involvement, particularly the caregiving dynamics between generations, remains less well understood. This study aims to fill this gap by examining two critical aspects of intergenerational dynamics among caregivers (i.e. parent-grandparent coparenting and parent-grandparent relationship quality) and their associations with children’s social-emotional development (i.e. social skills and problem behaviors). Two specific aims were delineated: 1) examine the unique contribution of parent-grandparent coparenting, especially the power and authority domain …

The Career Resilience Of Women Of Color Amidst Intersectional Racism-Sexism In The Us: A Consensual Qualitative Study, Hannah Ahmad Ridzuan

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Women of color have historically and presently experienced both sexism and racism on interpersonal, institutional, and cultural levels (Sue et al., 2007). While discrimination based on racial-ethnic and gender identities has by far the most extensive literature base (Duffy et al., 2016), literature on the development of women of color career resilience is not as expansive. Informed by the Psychology of Working Theory (PWT) (Blustein, 2006; Duffy et al., 2016), the intersectionality framework (Crenshaw, 1989; Collins et al., 2021), and critical consciousness (Freire, 1971; Quiñones-Rosado, 2020), this consensual qualitative research (CQR; Hill, 2006) explored how women of color in the …

Between Two Worlds: A Case Study Of Third Culture Identity And Reentry For Unl International Students, John S. Tessalee

Department of Agricultural Leadership, Education, and Communication: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Third Culture Kids (TCKs) and international students share many commonalities, such as their globalized nature, adaptability, and the adoption of cultural components from their host country versus their home country. However, they contain enough differences to be considered separate groups. Traditionally, people need to be immersed in a culture different from their parents’ culture between the ages of 0 and 18 to be considered a TCK, whereas international students are typically between 18 and 24 years old by the time they attend universities overseas. The cultural absorption of TCKs in their formative years is usually greater than that of international …

Exploring The Landscape Of Collective Leadership Practice In Rural Nebraska: A Qualitative Sequential Multimethod Study, Haden Myles Botkin

Department of Agricultural Leadership, Education, and Communication: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Rural communities across Nebraska face a myriad of complex challenges that cannot be solved by individual, heroic leaders. As such, collective leadership has begun to emerge in these communities as actors coalesce around local issues. However, little is known about collective leadership practice and development in rural contexts, resulting in a theory-to-practice gap. To that end, this qualitative sequential multimethod study sought to explore how rural community leaders and community development educators perceive, describe, and make meaning of collective leadership practices in rural Nebraska. Three phases comprise this study.

Phase I, the QUAL phase, was guided by the question, How …

Navigating Spaces: Understanding Lgbtq+ Families Who Homeschool Amid Shifting Legislative And Societal Landscapes, Ana Ferrante

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

This qualitative case study explored the motivations and lived experiences of caregivers of LGBTQ+ youth who chose homeschooling amid escalating anti-LGBTQ+ legislation in the United States. Guided by Self-Determination Theory (SDT) (Deci and Ryan, 1980) and Queer Theory (Chevrette, 2013), the study examined how caregivers navigated educational decisions to construct affirming, identity-conscious learning environments in response to exclusionary policies and systemic marginalization. Data was collected through semi-structured interviews with four caregivers residing in politically conservative states in the U.S.. The findings revealed that homeschooling functioned both as a protective measure against institutional harm and as a proactive strategy for fostering …

A Cultural Mapping Of Local Knowledge For Flood And Landslide Mitigation In The Sendi Community, Mojokerto, East Java, Ahmad Mujahid Arrozy Arz, Abyoso Romadhoni Wicaksono Arw, Kusuma Sabrina Wardhani Skw, Lora Septrianda Putri

Masyarakat: Jurnal Sosiologi

This article investigated the irrigation sustainability and landslide prevention in the Sendi community, Mojokerto, East Java, by applying a cultural mapping approach to examine everyday practices through which local knowledge was enacted and produced, while linking the analysis to broader structural formations. The approach informed a participatory data collection process, that is also designed to protect the intangible cultural heritage of the community. The findings demonstrated how everyday practices function as an integral component of flood and landslide mitigation. This knowledge has been passed down through community archives since 1915 and included practices, such as planting local crops (bamboos and …

Simmel’S Reification In The Digital Era: The Commodification Of Emotional Relationships In Rent-A-Partner Services On Social Media, Juliana Pramesti

Masyarakat: Jurnal Sosiologi

This study examines the commodification of emotional relationships in Indonesia through the rise of “rent-a-partner” services on social media platforms such as Instagram and TikTok. Existing scholarship on digital intimacy has largely focused on Western and East Asian contexts, particularly dating applications, offering limited insight into how commodified intimacy operates in non-Western settings shaped by distinct socio-cultural and moral frameworks. Addressing this gap, the study draws on Georg Simmel’s concept of reification to analyze how emotional intimacy is transformed into purchasable service packages within platform-mediated environments. Using a qualitative approach that combines netnographic observation and in-depth interviews, the study demonstrates …

Central Halmahera In Power Relations, Development, And Environmental Crisis, Herman Usman

Masyarakat: Jurnal Sosiologi

Abstract This paper analyzes the relationship between power relations, development, and environmental crisis in Central Halmahera, North Maluku, a region that has undergone socio-ecological changes due to the expansion of extractive industries, especially nickel mining. Such development is controlled by state actors and corporations, creating unequal power relations in which local communities are often marginalized. This development model based on natural resource extraction resulting in ecosystem degradation, water pollution, and the loss of living space for indigenous peoples and coastal communities. This paper uses the approaches of political ecology and the sociology of development, to examine how the state facilitates …

"No One Leaves For Free": A Media Analysis Of The Lived Experiences And Cumulative Impacts Of The Flint Water Crisis., Jordan Leigh Gatewood

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In April 2014, the city of Flint, Michigan changed their municipal water source from Lake Huron to the Flint River. The effects of this change have been felt far and wide as news broke across the nation that this water was contaminated with lead and residents of Flint were getting sick. This research analyzes 170 news articles from three local and three national news outlets over a 10-year span, 2014 to 2024, to determine how community voice is presented in news media to portray the lived experiences and cumulative impacts of the Flint Water Crisis. Applying a Critical Environmental Justice …

Promoting Understanding Of Soft Power Theory : A Case Study Of Confucius Institutes Along The Belt And Road, Dan Yang

Lingnan Theses (Doctoral degree)

This dissertation explores the function of Confucius Institutes (CI) as key tools within China’s soft power approach, particularly in the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). It provides a detailed and empirically based analysis of how these institutes operate within various national contexts. Drawing upon Joseph Nye’s soft power theory and supported by literature on public diplomacy, this study assesses the ways in which CIs translate cultural, linguistic, and educational assets into international influence. Despite the rapid expansion of CIs globally, their actual effectiveness in achieving cultural diplomacy and tangible soft power outcomes remains uncertain. Advocates emphasize the …

Understanding The Physical Health Associations Of Intra-Individual Variability In Life Satisfaction Among Older Adults, Frosch Y. X. Quek, Kenneth Tan, David Chan

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

It is well established that inter-individual differences in life satisfaction positively predict health, but it is less clear how intra-individual variability in life satisfaction across time could influence health, particularly across individuals with different satisfaction levels. To address this gap, we analysed a large panel dataset from a national sample of 8,674 older adults, aged 50–70 (M = 59, SD = 5.42) in Singapore who completed surveys over 53 consecutive months. Results from multi-level modelling showed an interaction between variability in life satisfaction and life satisfaction mean on physical health. Specifically, there was no association between variability and health among …

Behaviour Change Design For Reducing Plastic Usage By Perceived Similarity Nudge, Quentin Ehkirch, Ferdi Raharja, Udari Samaranayake, Ken Ichi Sawai, Akane Matsumae

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

This study explores the influence of perceived similarity on pro-environmental behavior, focusing on plastic reduction. Participants' daily plastic use and reduction were tracked over 30 days via online chat software, with controlled nudges from an agent. Each group included two examinees and one agent. Behavioral data were analyzed to evaluate predictability from various perspectives and its relationship with behavioral change. Results showed significant differences in predictability based on perceived similarity, particularly during the first 10 days. Furthermore, nudges, consumption levels, and behavioral changes significantly affected predictability within the first 20 days. These findings contribute to understanding how perceived similarity can …

Islamism And Women’S Movements In Iran: Hijab As A Burden Of Representation, Samah Ahmed

International Studies (MA) Theses

Throughout history, Islamic discourse, political Islam, and the status of Muslim women have been subjects of study. Still, few research efforts have concentrated on the changes and dynamics between Islamic discourse and feminist resistance. Particularly in Iran, attention has primarily been given to the Islamism project, often treated as separate from social movements in post-Islamism. This thesis explores how social movements have used the symbolism of the veil in their resistance, focusing specifically on the women's social movement during the Islamic Revolution. Drawing on Assef Bayat's approach of Islamism and social movements and Gender and power dynamics theory, the main …

Wild Water: Hydrosocial Dislocation, Dispossession, And The Symbolic Geographies Of The American West, Leonard Alexander Henderson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

This dissertation investigates how the confluence of community change and water politics in the American West shapes a discussion about a Wild and Scenic designation for the Crystal River on Colorado’s Western Slope. Ideas about the “Wild West,” influence how many people think about wilderness and small mountain towns, driving growing populations, housing prices, and, as a result, social inequality in many of these areas. At the same time, many people on Colorado’s Western Slope feel that region’s water is taken away by both the state’s more populous Front Range or more politically and economically powerful states like California. Climate …

The Associations Of Childhood Adversities And Mental Disorders With Suicidal Thoughts And Behaviors - Results From The World Mental Health International College Student Initiative, Philippe Mortier, Xue Yang, Yasmin Altwaijri, Jacob Holdcraft, Nancy Sampson, Yesica Albor, Ahmad Alhadi, Jordi Alonso, Nouf Al-Saud, Lukoye Atwoli

Internal Medicine, East Africa

Objective: To investigate the associations of demographic variables, childhood adversities (CAs), and mental disorders (MDx) with onset, transition, and persistence of suicidal thoughts and behaviors (STB) among first-year university students.

Method: Poisson regression models within a discrete-time survival framework were constructed using web-based self-report survey data from 72,288 incoming university students across 18 countries (response rate=20.9%; median age=19 years, 57.9% female, 1.4% transgender, 21.0% non-heterosexual). These models examined the associations of four demographic variables, five CAs, and eight MDx with STB outcomes.

Results: Lifetime prevalence of suicidal ideation, plans, and attempts was 47.0%, 26.0%, and 9.6%, respectively; 12-month estimates were …

Supporting Autistic Students' Mental Wellness: A Community Readiness Model Approach, Cady Walker

Capstone Experience: Master of Public Health

Autism spectrum disorder or difference (ASD) is a lifelong neurodevelopmental disability, usually identified during childhood. However, many adults miss the opportunity for diagnosis during childhood due to previous misunderstandings about autism presentation, camouflaging behaviors, and misdiagnoses. While current diagnostic tools for assessing autism in children are more robust, similar measures are lacking for adults who were not diagnosed in childhood. This gap poses risks for poor mental health outcomes among adults who missed a timely ASD diagnosis, which can be especially challenging for autistic college students. Although some higher education institutions offer support programs for autistic students, most do not, …

Don't Settle For Less: Incorporating Postcolonial And Settler Colonial Perspectives Into The Sociological Canon, Eli Xavier Ornelas

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

For decades now, post-/de-/settler-/ and anticolonial scholars have advanced the argument that sociology has largely failed to incorporate critical insights from theories of empire into the sociological canon. In this dissertation, I argue that introduction to sociology textbooks offer an important vantage point from which to assess conventional sociological knowledge as textbooks are often thought to be “reflections of the discipline.” I analyze the social theory and race chapters of 21 of the most often used introduction to sociology textbooks in the United States to investigate two chapters where insights from theories of empire would be present if indeed incorporated: …

Carrying Light In The Shadows: Four Portraits Of Critical Literacy Teacher Agency In Unlikely Contexts, Cassandra Schroeder

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

This qualitative study utilizes portraiture methodology to explore how educators in politically conservative and predominantly White schools enact critical literacy teacher agency. Using a theoretical lens of critical literacy and second-wave Whiteness studies, this research examines the lived experiences and instructional moves of four veteran English/language arts teachers. Through cross-case analysis, the study traces how teacher agency is contextually responsive and dependent on their professional identity, awareness of sociopolitical issues, and traditional school curricular expectations. The findings highlight how educators assess risk, navigate community norms, and maintain critical literacy through dialogic pedagogy and strategic adaptation. The four teachers in the …

Rhetorics Of Encounter: Toward A Biocentric Theory Of Discourse, Matthew D. Whitaker

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Encounters with more-than-human identities are transformative moments that stand to affect dispositional and bodily change in individuals. From close brushes with wild animals in National Parks to everyday interactions with local ecologies, encounters invite us to feel and think differently about the nature of our realities. In Rhetorics of Encounter: Toward a Biocentric Theory of Discourse, I draw from interdisciplinary perspectives to disrupt the idea of rhetoric as a representational medium, arguing that rhetoric occurs not just through textual exchanges of words and symbols, but through embodied moments of contact with other responsive beings. Invoking George Kennedy’s theory …

Farmers’ Perceptions About Drivers Of Poverty: A Case Study Of Cocoa Farmers In Ghana, Felix Agyei Boamah

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Cocoa farmers in Ghana face numerous challenges that undermine their incomes and living standards, including high labor costs, fluctuating cocoa prices, high cost and limited access to inputs, lack of credit, illegal mining, weather risks, small farm sizes, outdated farming and drying technologies, and inadequate extension services. These issues reduce productivity, lower incomes, and perpetuate poverty. This study examined farmers’ perceptions about the importance of these challenges and assessed possible differences across regions and farm households’ socioeconomic status. In the summer of 2024, data were collected from 400 cocoa farmers in major cocoa-producing areas of Ghana’s Eastern and Ashanti regions. …

Link Between Adverse Childhood Experiences And Parenting Styles Of African American Fathers, Tatianna P. Johnson

Dissertations

African American fathers may be more susceptible than fathers of other races to having a negative parenting style due to their high levels of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs). ACEs are traumatic experiences during childhood that can affect a person’s mental and physical health, income and adult parenting style. African American adults tend to have experienced multiple levels of ACEs at a higher rate than White and Asian adults (Maguire-Jack et al., 2021). ACEs can lead to adults experiencing higher levels of alcoholism, depression, health-related issues, mental illness, substance use, and academic problems. The purpose of this cross-sectional study was to …

Perceived Obligations Of Older Partners In Living-Apart Together Relationships, Allison M. Martin

Human Development and Family Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

Older and middle-aged adults are increasingly in Living-Apart-Together (LAT) relationships characterized by committed romantic relationships without marriage and cohabitation. Because of assumptions that older adults will receive family caregiving as they grow older and need caregiving, it is not clear how people are likely to perceive obligations to provide caregiving assistance. As adults move into old age and incidence rates of Alzheimer’s Disease or Related Dementia (ADRD) increase, questions about the availability of family members to provide needed assistance are complicated by LAT relationships. The purpose of this study was to examine perceived obligations to provide assistance to older adults …