Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Volume 4, Full Contents

Butler Journal of Undergraduate Research

No abstract provided.

The Reification Of Hegemonic Masculinity Via Heteronormativity, Sexual Objectification, And Masculine Performances In Tau Kappa Epsilon Recruitment Videos, Viki Tomanov

Butler Journal of Undergraduate Research

Fraternity members constitute a large percentage of men who hold highly influential jobs in politics, large corporations, and the like. Since fraternities are limited to men-only, it is important to examine how masculinity is both rhetorically constructed and subsequently performed. Tau Kappa Epsilon (TKE), the fraternity with the largest amount of chapters nationwide, is the focus of my analysis. Its popularity among college campuses signifies that its recruitment is successful and that, regardless of initiation into the fraternity, many men (and women) view TKE as an example of masculinity. In my analysis, I examine TKE recruitment videos from various universities …

Public Financing And The Underrepresentation Of Women In United States Elected Political Offices, Libby P. Moyer

Butler Journal of Undergraduate Research

Approaching the 100-year anniversary of the Nineteenth Amendment, women comprise approximately 51 percent of the American population but hold only 24.8 percent of state legislative seats and 19.4 percent of United States Congressional seats. The scholarly literature suggests that one contributing factor to this inequality is a real or perceived gender difference in fundraising success. My hypothesis is that state public financing programs will decrease gender inequality in state legislative offices. I examined the role campaign finance plays in gender inequality in elected office by conducting a comparative case study of the state legislatures of Minnesota and Iowa from 1975 …

Using Random Forests To Describe Equity In Higher Education: A Critical Quantitative Analysis Of Utah’S Postsecondary Pipelines, Tyler Mcdaniel

Butler Journal of Undergraduate Research

The following work examines the Random Forest (RF) algorithm as a tool for predicting student outcomes and interrogating the equity of postsecondary education pipelines. The RF model, created using longitudinal data of 41,303 students from Utah's 2008 high school graduation cohort, is compared to logistic and linear models, which are commonly used to predict college access and success. Substantially, this work finds High School GPA to be the best predictor of postsecondary GPA, whereas commonly used ACT and AP test scores are not nearly as important. Each model identified several demographic disparities in higher education access, most significantly the effects …

Do Black And White Americans Hold Different Views On Marijuana Legalization? Analyzing The Impact Of “The War On Drugs” On Racialized Perceptions Of Legalizing Marijuana, Benjamin S. Kaminoff

Butler Journal of Undergraduate Research

This study examines whether Black and White Americans develop their views regarding the legalization of marijuana based on different life experiences and, specifically, their involvement with the criminal justice system and drug laws. It aims to investigate if Black Americans generate their views regarding marijuana legalization differently than Whites based on concerns about Blacks as a group and the experiences of Black communities with the criminal justice system. It relies on qualitative interviews of White and Black Americans (n = 7) over the age of 35. The results preliminarily show that while White Americans develop views on legalizing marijuana based …

A Blend Of Absurdism And Humanism: Defending Kurt Vonnegut’S Place In The Secondary Setting, Krisandra R. Johnson

Butler Journal of Undergraduate Research

This essay argues that Kurt Vonnegut blends a unique humanist stance into his absurdist plots and characters, ultimately urging readers to confront the absurd with a kindness and human decency his protagonists often find rare. As a result of this absurd and humanist synthesis, I defend and promote Vonnegut’s place in the secondary English curriculum, despite his rank on many banned books lists, since his characters’ journeys correlate thematically with the growth and process of postmodern adolescents and encourage moral responsibility without sentimental manipulation.

Focusing on Cat’s Cradle, God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater, and Slaughterhouse-Five as primary sources, specifically …

Inferences On Criminality Based On Appearance, Hannah Johnson, Morgan Anderson, Hayley R. Westra, Hayden Suter

Butler Journal of Undergraduate Research

In our research study, we tested whether people can tell if someone is a criminal or not based on a photograph of their face. The importance of the subject lies in the fact that many people are unfairly judged as criminals based on stereotypes such as race. In this study, we wished to eliminate race and see if any purely facial characteristics are stereotypically defined as criminal or if a person’s initial judgment is an accurate predictor of someone’s character. Extensive research has been dedicated to finding if people have facial features that portray some characteristic about them and this …

Individualized Music Improves Social Interaction Of Women, But Not Men, With Dementia, Emily Farrer, Diana Hilycord

Butler Journal of Undergraduate Research

Dementia is tragic both for patients with the disease and for their family members. As this neurodegenerative disorder progresses, cognitive functions deteriorate, agitation and aggression increase, and mood worsens (McDermott, Orrell, et al., 2014; Spiro, 2010; Vasionyté & Madison, 2013). Non-pharmacological approaches, such as active music therapy or passive music listening, can be effective in reducing these symptoms. However, no past studies have examined how music listening affects the social interactions of patients with dementia. As such, this study examined whether nursing home residents with dementia are more engaged and interactive if they listen to individually selected music for 15 …

Allopathic Medicine’S Influence On Indigenous Peoples In The Kumaon Region Of India, Eliana M. Blum

Butler Journal of Undergraduate Research

This paper focuses on the use of western medicine in the Kumaon region of Uttarakhand, India. The goal of this research is to understand which healing practices are preferable in rural villages. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 53 participants, including two spiritual healers, two doctors, and one pharmacist. Results indicate that allopathic medicine, otherwise known as modern medicine or western medicine, has become the go-to remedy for even the most remote people in India. Nearly all participants use allopathic medicine, but less than half of the participants experiment with other forms of healing, such as Ayurveda, homeopathy, meditation, and yoga. …

A Community's Collective Courage: A Local Food Cooperative's Impact On Food Insecurity, Community And Economic Development, And Local Food Systems, Tabitha C. Barbour

Butler Journal of Undergraduate Research

According to the USDA’s “Food Security Status of U.S. Households” in 2014, 48.1 million people live in food insecure households. In Indiana, more than 1 million people suffer from food insecurity with rates as high as 19.2% of Marion County’s population according to the Map the Meal Gap 2014 report. The Community Controlled Food Initiative (CCFI) is a local food cooperative operated by the Kheprw Institute and neighborhood residents in the Mid-North Indianapolis Community. The cooperative formed to address food insecurity in August 2015 in response to the closing on the local Double 8 Foods grocery stores. CCFI hosts a …

Volume 4 Table Of Contents

Butler Journal of Undergraduate Research

No abstract provided.