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Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons™
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Articles 1 - 29 of 29
Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences
Changing Careers, Changing Identities: The Role Of Strong And Weak Ties On Career Change Decisions, Christopher S. Lienemann
Changing Careers, Changing Identities: The Role Of Strong And Weak Ties On Career Change Decisions, Christopher S. Lienemann
All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects
Career development theories and business management/human resources explanations for career change and employee turnover suggest that there are many potential influences on career change including a lack of congruence between an individual’s changing needs and their environment, the discovery of new career options previously ignored or overlooked, ineffective or harmful management practices, and organizational or life changes outside of the individual’s control. However, we do not have a comprehensive sociological understanding of how workers leverage and are influenced by their social networks when changing careers. Working from Granovetter’s theory that “weak” and “strong” network ties provide access to job leads …
The Use And Importance Of Gaming And Roleplay In Identity Negotiation, Sam Weigel, Justin Rudnick
The Use And Importance Of Gaming And Roleplay In Identity Negotiation, Sam Weigel, Justin Rudnick
Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal
This paper presents roleplaying games as a safe and effective venue for self-expression that can help to mitigate the effect of societal pressures when exploring identity. Interviews with 11 participants from the roleplaying game community demonstrate how roleplay can help facilitate the creation of safe spaces and foster creativity and inclusivity. A thematic analysis revealed roleplaying games contribute to the creation of safe spaces, opportunities for self-expression and individual agency, and steps towards greater self-actualization. This study builds upon existing research into identity adaptation theory, queer theory, symbolic convergence theory, organizational communication theory, and the performance of identity.
Unveiling Race And Japanese Identity Through Kokusai Kekkon, Manami Matsuoka
Unveiling Race And Japanese Identity Through Kokusai Kekkon, Manami Matsuoka
All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects
Kokusai kekkon, marriage among Japanese and non-Japanese nationals, are common, yet sometimes it comes with difficulties. The study aims to uncover Japanese people’s hidden perceptions of gaikokujins, foreigners, and Japanese identity shaped in relation to gaikokujins based on race and ethnicity within cross-national marriage. 18 Japanese spouses of U.S. Americans were interviewed for the study. The study employed thematic analysis to disclose Japanese beliefs and worldviews through interpreting Japanese interviewees’ experiences and their families’ discourses regarding marriage with U.S. Americans. The study found that whiteness and the sense of inferiority to the West and superiority toward the East influence Japanese …
Painted Nails: The Gender(Ed) Performance Of Queer Sexuality, Justin Rudnick
Painted Nails: The Gender(Ed) Performance Of Queer Sexuality, Justin Rudnick
Communication Studies Department Publications
In this essay, I interrogate my own experiences performing my queer identity through my painted nails. I attest to the ways queer bodies might performatively challenge and/or reinforce rigid norms of sexuality through mundane performances of (gendered) identity. To accomplish this, I engage in an autoethnographic exploration of queer performativity. I recount and analyze a series of anecdotes that illustrate how performances of queer identity in everyday life are accomplished—and policed—in mundane situations. In turn, I reflexively investigate the ways in which these performances situate me within a nexus of aesthetic, embodied, and ethical social interaction and performative resistance. I …
Holy Alliance? Navigating Evangelical Political Identity In The Era Of Donald Trump, Anthony Comer
Holy Alliance? Navigating Evangelical Political Identity In The Era Of Donald Trump, Anthony Comer
All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects
Evangelical Christians have always had a complex relationship with political issues in the United States, especially with the rise of the Christian right in the 1980s. Pastors and church leaders function as crucial communicators of political values in a contemporary American context. Since 2017 the Trump presidency has provided a new set of issues to consider. With Festinger’s (1957) Cognitive Dissonance theory and Tajfel’s (1981) Social Identity theory as the foundation, this study examines how evangelical Christian pastors conceptualize their religious and political identities, how they communicate with their congregants about political issues and how they handle differences between their …
Dreaming Of Eden: A Sociological Inquiry Into Sacred Selves And Public Places, Donald J. Ebel
Dreaming Of Eden: A Sociological Inquiry Into Sacred Selves And Public Places, Donald J. Ebel
Sociology Department Publications
A diverse literature from several different disciplines addresses the issues of identity, settings and spirituality. This paper focuses upon drawing these traditions together in order to understand the relationship from a more holistic perspective, and to discern to what degree the three domains interact in a sociological sense. Several hypotheses are tested to discover if setting influences the salience of people’s spiritual identity or the levels of their spiritual transcendence, as well as whether or not age, controlling for other factors, explains or influences these two aspects of spiritual expression. Findings indicate that neither setting nor age significantly influence identity …
Racial Identities On Social Media: Projecting Racial Identities On Facebook, Instagram, And Twitter, Nolan Brinkman
Racial Identities On Social Media: Projecting Racial Identities On Facebook, Instagram, And Twitter, Nolan Brinkman
All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects
Because social networks are an important aspect of the lived realities of those who participate in them, this study examined the way racial identity was signified, indicated, or displayed on social networks. A survey was distributed to 347 college students from a medium sized Midwestern university to assess ways in which participants depicted their racial identity on social media. The study looked at the use of photos, textual communication, concealment of racial identity, and interactions with race related content to assess how participants projected racial identity on social networks. Results suggested that racial identity is not intentionally projected on social …
African-Centered Pedagogy: Exploring Black Male Identity And Achievement Through An African-Centered Lens, Kenneth Turner Jr.
African-Centered Pedagogy: Exploring Black Male Identity And Achievement Through An African-Centered Lens, Kenneth Turner Jr.
All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects
This mixed method study researched African-centered pedagogy and examined if it made a difference for Black males in middle school. The study examined what it meant to be Black for the participants through administering the Multidimensional Model of Black Identity (MMBI) which measures Black males' connections to their own cultural group. Students were asked three semi-structured questions about their experiences in school. In addition, MCA test scores and GPA were compared. Twenty-four middle school students participated for two different middle school types in Minnesota: one traditional school and one African-Centered school. Findings revealed that there were substantially different scores on …
A Labor Of Love: Women's Perspectives On Gender And Identity In Informal Caregiving, Kirby O'Hara Hurd
A Labor Of Love: Women's Perspectives On Gender And Identity In Informal Caregiving, Kirby O'Hara Hurd
All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects
The elderly population (adults 65 and over) is larger than at any time in history, thanks to improved access to healthcare, advances in medical technology, and health services focused on addressing the needs of aging adults. However, support for this growing population remains insufficient; the costs of in-home and residential care are high, and consequently, family members often become providers of informal, unpaid care. Presently, there is inadequate literature regarding the academic study of family members providing informal caregiving, especially from a perspective that emphasizes sociological principles and theories. Existing studies of the family caregiver phenomenon show that middle-aged adult …
Drag Performance And Femininity: Redefining Drag Culture Through Identity Performance Of Transgender Women Drag Queens, Cristy Dougherty
Drag Performance And Femininity: Redefining Drag Culture Through Identity Performance Of Transgender Women Drag Queens, Cristy Dougherty
All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects
Viewing gender as a performance reveals how gender identity is shaped and formed. There is currently tensions associated with drag queen performance as an act of subversion and transgression from the heteronormative definition of gender and drag as a perpetuation of heteronormative definitions of gender. There is also a tension between the affirmation of femininity and transgression from gender binaries of womanhood. In order to address these tensions, this thesis project examined the reasoning behind how transgender women and gay men drag queen performers navigate the world of femininity. Specifically, this study explored the varied reasons behind performing femininity through …
Performing, Sensing, Being: Queer Identity In Everyday Life, Justin J. Rudnick
Performing, Sensing, Being: Queer Identity In Everyday Life, Justin J. Rudnick
Communication Studies Department Publications
Drawing from performance, affect, and queer theories, I explore how queer identity is storied, performed, and sensed in everyday life. I access performance and sensory ethnographic practices to examine how queer persons “do” their identities on a daily basis. I draw from data collected through ethnographic participation in a queer-friendly district of Columbus, Ohio in addition to in-depth interviews with fourteen self-identified queer persons I met through my fieldwork. My approach privileges observations and reflections of mundane moments of everyday life to position queer identity as a routine, repetitive, habitual, and otherwise performative practice. I question the emphasis on verbal …
Queer Stories Of Coming Out In The 21st Century, Bradley Wolfe
Queer Stories Of Coming Out In The 21st Century, Bradley Wolfe
All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects
Queer Stories of Coming Out in the 21st Century was written by Bradley Wolfe for his Communication Studies master’s capstone project. The research was conducted at Minnesota State University, Mankato during the 2015-2016 school year. The research problem was to analyze the relevance of the Cass Model of queer identity development in a cultural environment which has shifted greatly since its origination. 10 semi-structured interviews were conducted to understand what aspects of the model still held true and if other models better describe the identity development process for queer individuals. The research found the Cass Model was not correlating with …
Finding Parenthood- Parental Identity Through Assisted Reproductive Methods And The Implications For Efficacy Based And Worth Based Self-Esteem, Ashley Rae Steckler
Finding Parenthood- Parental Identity Through Assisted Reproductive Methods And The Implications For Efficacy Based And Worth Based Self-Esteem, Ashley Rae Steckler
All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects
This research examined the implications for efficacy based and worth based self-esteem among 266 infertile women who had utilized reproductive technologies within heterosexual partnerships in order to have genetic children and become parents. Drawing on a theory of self-esteem, within an identity theory framework, this research compared self-esteem between women who were currently utilizing assisted reproductive technologies to have children and women who had successfully used assisted reproductive technologies to have children and become parents. Self-esteem was measured by utilizing Cast and Burke’s (2002) Worth-Based and Efficacy-Based Self-esteem Scale in order to test the following three hypotheses: 1) self-verification (successfully …
Every(Day) Identities In Forensics: Performing Identities Within The Constraints Of Intercollegiate Forensics, Julie Louceil Germain Walker
Every(Day) Identities In Forensics: Performing Identities Within The Constraints Of Intercollegiate Forensics, Julie Louceil Germain Walker
All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects
Goffman's (1959) dramaturgical theory of identity provides a framework for making sense of complicated, mundane identity performances. Through in-depth interviews and focus groups conducted with intercollegiate forensic co-culture members, the current research builds on Goffman's dramaturgical theory of identity. Crystallization-based analysis showed identity performances are situated within one another like Russian matroyshka (nesting) dolls. Co-cultural expectations produce multi-level professionalism expectations, and overlapping co-cultures mean individuals manage conflicting conventions. Implications are offered for the forensics community, other co-cultures, and identity scholars.
The Person We Knew: Perceptions Of The Identity Of Loved Ones With Dementia By Family Caregivers, Amber Jannusch, Dena Huisman
The Person We Knew: Perceptions Of The Identity Of Loved Ones With Dementia By Family Caregivers, Amber Jannusch, Dena Huisman
Speaker & Gavel
While several studies have looked at the identity of dementia patients, most focus on the point of the view of the patient. However, caretakers’ and family members’ view of the identity of the dementia patient is unstudied. This study attempts to see how family caregivers’ view of their family member’s dementia manifests in communication about the loved one. This study is a preliminary examination of family caregivers’ constructions of the identity of their loved one, revealing that caretakers have one of three views: the patient without an identity, the patient as a different person, or the patient as “not lost” …
The Muscular Female Athlete: Negotiating Conflicting Identities And Bodies, Kelsey J. Mischke
The Muscular Female Athlete: Negotiating Conflicting Identities And Bodies, Kelsey J. Mischke
Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato
Competing assumptions, expectations, and discourses surrounding the institution of sports, femininity, and the feminine body create a conflicting paradox for female athletes. Existing research was investigated to examine the ways in which female athletes negotiate their conflicting roles in society and how they feel about their muscular bodies. Feminist theory, gender-role conflict theory, and identity work are used. Results show athletes employ apologetic behaviors, defensive othering, and create fluid identities in response to experiencing gender-role conflict. In terms of their bodies, female athletes feel differing sentiments dependent on environment, reject conflicting messages about their body, and/or reject their musculature. Due …
What Happens Now?: Identity And Commitment Among Lesbian Women With The Passing Of Same-Sex Marriage Laws In Minnesota, Kendra Michaela Klump
What Happens Now?: Identity And Commitment Among Lesbian Women With The Passing Of Same-Sex Marriage Laws In Minnesota, Kendra Michaela Klump
All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects
Marriage equality has become a hotly debated topic within public and political discourse within recent years. The personal choices we make based on our sexuality and intimate relationship have been taken out of the private arena and spotlighted as issues of institutional ideology, morality, and equality. Throughout this, the impact felt within LGBTQ communities based on this discourse has been largely overlooked. This study explores the immediate impact newfound marriage equality may have on individuals and couples identifying as members of a diverse sexuality group. Using semi-structured interviews, sixteen respondents self-identifying as lesbians provided narratives exploring the possible impact legalization …
The Basis Of Self And Other In Gender Constructed Identity, Julie L. Lemley
The Basis Of Self And Other In Gender Constructed Identity, Julie L. Lemley
Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato
This paper is an extension of previous research projects wherein I applied theories of identity and labeling (Garfinkle), power (French and Raven) and gender (Pearson, West and Turner) to adolescent girls’ identity construction. Using methods of textual criticism, I argued then that the advertising targeting adolescent girls at the crucial transitional period between child identity and adult identity was dominated by patriarchal imagery, the implications of which are sexual violence, low-self esteem and self-objectification by young women. This paper applies the same methodology but to identity formation of adolescent boys, arguing on the basis of Hegel’s master-slave dialectic that adolescent …
You've Got Mail: Identity Perceptions Based On Email Usernames, Laura Pelletier
You've Got Mail: Identity Perceptions Based On Email Usernames, Laura Pelletier
Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato
This study explores the idea that email recipients use the email username of the sender as a mediated cue to make basic assumptions of the identity of the sender. For this study 215 participants completed self-report surveys asking their perceptions of a fictional work group member including sex, age, race, and work productivity. Most participants were able to create a basic identity of their fictitious group member based solely on their email username.
Becoming Mom: Understanding Challenges And Presentations Of Self Among Mothers, Annakeiko Frink Reichel
Becoming Mom: Understanding Challenges And Presentations Of Self Among Mothers, Annakeiko Frink Reichel
Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato
When a woman becomes a mother it is arguably one of the most life changing and defining moments of their lives. Becoming a mom and the emotions that are involved in the process are often a neglected topic in the United States. It is clear that the social world assumes mothers will automatically adjust to the role of being a mom without asking questions such as, what are the challenges moms face after having children? Or more importantly, how is a mother’s identity shaped after having children and while adjusting to the role as mom? The first author (AR) became …
The Secret Life Of Your Personal Information: Government Resources On Identity Theft, Washington State University
The Secret Life Of Your Personal Information: Government Resources On Identity Theft, Washington State University
Consumer Fraud
Bibliography and photographs of a display of government documents from Washington State University.
"My Baby Is A Dog": Exploration Of Pet Parent Identity, Lacey Y. Boston
"My Baby Is A Dog": Exploration Of Pet Parent Identity, Lacey Y. Boston
All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects
This quantitative research examined dog owners (n = 100) regarding their relationship with their pets. After beginning to treat her own dog as a child she questioned what happens when a human child enters a family and what impact that has on the pet owners' identity. The researcher hypothesized that having children under the age of 18 in the home would impact dog owners' identity and salience based on their relationship with their pet. She created 13 questions for the survey which operationalized the concepts of identity salience and prominence. By surveying 100 dog owners and asking them about certain …
Defining Traditional American Indian Identity Through Anishinaabe Cultural Perspective, Joshua Edward Maudrie
Defining Traditional American Indian Identity Through Anishinaabe Cultural Perspective, Joshua Edward Maudrie
All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects
This study addresses the question of American Indian Identity, specifically, what makes an Indian an Indian from a traditional Anishinaabe Indian cultural perspective? Perspectives were gained through life experiences as an active member of Anishinaabe Indian communities in Wisconsin, Minnesota and Michigan, as well as traditional cultural ceremonies. There are two primary reasons for this study: first to provide insight into the traditional cultural perspective of American Indian identity for non-Indians and its relevancy in present day; and second, to start a discussion within tribal nations about utilizing their traditional culture in governance and membership issues. For this Qualitative study, …
"It's Not About You": Exploring The Liminal Experiences Of Graduate Forensic Coaches, Christopher Paul Outzen
"It's Not About You": Exploring The Liminal Experiences Of Graduate Forensic Coaches, Christopher Paul Outzen
All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects
The following document is a capstone thesis project focusing on the unique experiences of graduate forensic coaches through lens of liminality, a performance theory used to describe a sense of being between social identities when going through a rite of passage. The author contends that this liminal experience has unique characteristics which are important to consider in the context of identity and forensic culture. In order to gather data, the author utilized qualitative, semi-structured interviews with current graduate forensic coaches. The resulting interviews were interpreted using a process of open coding to determine key themes of the experience. The author …
The Co-Occurrence Of Multiple And Overlapping Demands Among Women Leaving Prison, Jennifer Jo Schweitzer
The Co-Occurrence Of Multiple And Overlapping Demands Among Women Leaving Prison, Jennifer Jo Schweitzer
All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects
The findings presented in this thesis result from an analysis of the experiences over a three-year period of thirteen women recently released from prison, all of whom simultaneously struggled with severe physical and mental health problems, drug and alcohol addiction(s), and histories of trauma. The purpose of this study was to better understand the strategies women with these multiple and overlapping vulnerabilities utilized as they attempted to reintegrate into the community. This group of thirteen women is a subsample of a population of 41 women whose reentry experiences were the focus of a larger, longitudinal research project. The data consist …
"I Now Pronounce You...Uhh": A Qualitative Autoethnographic Exploration Of Women's And Men's Marital Surname-Choice Experiences, Julie Louceil Germain Walker
"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 …
Manning Up: A Look At Women In The Military And Their Sense Of Self, Kari Elizabeth Davis
Manning Up: A Look At Women In The Military And Their Sense Of Self, Kari Elizabeth Davis
All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects
The purpose of this study is to uncover identity shaping in women of the military. I interviewed eleven women from various branches of the military to uncover changes in their sense of self, emotion management, and role person merge. Six of these my respondents were deployed to combat zones. The women of this study went to basic training and learned how to be a soldier. They go through a process of "manning up" where they leave behind prior behaviors and beliefs and display a masculine front in order to be successful in their military careers. They also demonstrate a role …
Identity Theft - Don't Get Hooked!, Poplar Creek Public Library
Identity Theft - Don't Get Hooked!, Poplar Creek Public Library
Consumer Fraud
Bibliography and photographs of a display of government documents from Poplar Creek Public Library, Illinois.
Identity Theft: Are You Vulnerable?, Minnesota State University, Mankato
Identity Theft: Are You Vulnerable?, Minnesota State University, Mankato
Consumer Fraud
Bibliography and photographs of a display of government documents from Minnesota State University, Mankato.