Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Hip-Hop, Medellín And Social Change, Veronica Henao Posada

Master's Theses

This study explores the ways in which the Hip-hop movement is producing social change in Medellín, Colombia. Looking specifically at a Hip-hop school called Cuatro Elementos Skuela, which exists autonomously and with very little state support in the Medellín neighborhood of Aranjuez, I argue that young people are contributing to the reconstruction of the city’s social, cultural and economic fabric. I start by explaining the historical context of Medellín, describing the different sets of conflicts that unleashed high levels of violence and caused the fragmentation of the social, cultural and economic fabric. Moreover, I review the role of the …

Land Grabs And Implications On Food Sovereignty And Social Justice In Senegal, Joanna Lafrancesca

Master's Theses

This thesis focuses on the case study of Senegal to examine the implications of large- scale land acquisitions on the livelihoods of small-scale farmers. I investigate the diverse perspectives of market enthusiasts, human rights organizations, peasants, the state, and international financial organizations on large-scale land acquisitions. Based on primary research, I argue that the state of Senegal plays an active role in permitting “land grabs” and that they pose a threat to food sovereignty among Senegalese host communities. Lastly, I argue there needs to be a broader understanding of long-term consequences and risks to insure social justice in areas affected …

The Role Of Information And Communication Technology In The Acculturation Of Vietnamese Refugees, Khanh A. Tran

Master's Theses

One of the most significant refugee populations in the United States is the Vietnamese. This group initially fled their native country to escape political oppression at the conclusion of the Vietnam War in 1975 and continued to flee in a series of separate waves that continued for more than three decades. As a relatively new immigrant group in the U.S., the Vietnamese still face a variety of challenges as they try to reestablish their lives and adapt in a new cultural environment. Acculturation is a complex process that is influenced by a number of factors. Throughout history, U.S. immigration policy …

From Corps To Co-Ops: Are Co-Operatives A Viable Reintegration Strategy For Ex-Combatants?, Patrick Moses Musibi

Master's Theses

From 1989, Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration (DDR) programmes have played a major role in peace agreements worldwide. The first United Nations peacekeeping mission with a DDR mandate was ONUCA, (Observadores de las Naciones Unidas en Centroamerica) or the United Nations Observer Group in Central America and involved the reintegration of ex-combatants after the conflict had finished. While the disarmament and demobilization phases of the DDR programs are fairly straightforward events, success in the reintegration phase remains a great challenge. In this thesis I argue that paying closer attention to the challenges facing ex-combatants at an individual level can help in …

The Plight Of Kenyan Domestic Workers In Gulf Countries, Caroline Muthoni Gikuru

Master's Theses

Kenya’s economy remains the regional leader within the East African Community (EAC) and among East African countries at large. However, political instability such as the 2007 post-election violence and the region’s social and political instability trickling into Kenya, have negatively affected the country’s economic growth. To bridge the economic gap, Kenyan women are seeking employment in the domestic service sector in the Gulf Countries, with Saudi Arabia being the most popular destination. At their destination countries, some domestic workers are subjected to various forms of abuse by their employers, leaving the worker without recourse due to the lack of legal …

Accounting For Gender In International Refugee Law: A Close Reading Of The Unhcr Gender Guidelines And The Discursive Construction Of Gender As An Identity, Johanna N. Tvedt

Master's Theses

This thesis conducts a close reading of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees’ “Guidelines on International Protection: Gender-Related Persecution within the context of Article 1A(2) of the 1951 Convention and/or its 1967 Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees” – a document that explains how legal definitions of refugee status might take into account gender issues. In it, I investigate the relationship between gender identity and the refugee status to understand how gender is constructed in relation to other terms or identity categories that determine whether an individual will be granted asylum. Performing a close reading of this text, …

The Lion & The Ringmaster: Croatia's Accession To The European Union, Jelena N. Bilandzich

Master's Theses

July 1, 2013 marked Croatia's official induction into the European Union. For Croatia this was the culmination of a long negotiation process filled with concessions and challenges. This situation inspired the question of how Croatia's alliance with the EU has affected the state? In order to analyze this relationship the aspects of Croatian identity and sovereignty were explored, in addition to the EU's principles and problems regarding member and candidate states. The evidence found within this investigation came from a number of literary sources ranging from the academic to official government documents. Furthermore, nine interviews were conducted within Croatia, which …

Building Women’S Solidarity To Advance Women’S Rights In Bolivia, Luzdary Hammad

Master's Theses

This paper takes a historical look at the deep-seated ethnic and class divisions between women in Bolivia. It also examines the cultural challenges that help explain the status of women in Bolivia and the obstacles women face to become politically active. It provides the theories of decolonization and depatriachalization as practical ways Bolivia can move past their colonial and patriarchal history. It also looks into what feminism means overall in Latin America and what strategies Latin American women have used to make change for women. It then provides a political history of Bolivia from 1994 to the present giving the …

Anticipated Life Role Salience And Career Decision-Making Difficulties, Emily A. Schedin

Master's Theses

With the dual-earner population increasingly becoming the norm, undergraduate students are forced to consider the ways in which their career choice may affect their future family life, as well as how their family life may affect their career. Research has shown that undergraduate students may alter their vocational aspirations or adjust their future family plans to avoid work-family role conflict thus implying that students are making career decisions based on their prioritization of anticipated future life roles. The present study sought to investigate how the salience of different life roles may factor into the level of career decision-making difficulty (CDMD) …

An Investigation Of The Relationship Between Measures Of Service Quality And Satisfaction Of Golf Spectators In A Korean Ladies' Professional Golf Association Tournament, Jaemon Sun

Master's Theses

A variety of spectator sports, leisure activities, and internet media developments have changed the sport market environment into a serious global competition. In this sport market environment, it is necessary to execute customer satisfaction management to meet the wants and needs of sport spectators. Understanding which service quality factors best predict customer satisfaction is an important issue in the sport events industry. The primary purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between service quality and customer satisfaction for spectators in attendance at a Korea Ladies' Professional Golf Association Tournament event. A secondary purpose of the study was to …

A Critical Examination Of Green Economic Development As A Post-Disaster Recovery Approach: The Case Of Greensburg, Kansas 2007-2012, David Edgardo Leiva

Master's Theses

In May 2007, an EF-5 tornado ripped through and annihilated 95% of Greensburg, Kansas, a town of about 1,500 people in the southwestern portion of the state. On the heels of the disastrous Hurricane Katrina federal response and with the promise of two sitting presidents to use all of the federal support available, the town vowed not only to "survive, but thrive." Months later, Greensburg civic, business and elected leaders - with a host of external expertise - unveiled a recovery plan that not only set in motion the rebuilding of the two-square mile town but also offered the opportunity …

Seasonal And Diurnal Behavioral Patterns Of Bottlenose Dolphins, Tursiops Truncatus, That Exhibit High Site And Low Site Fidelity To Mississippi Sound, Shauna Marisa Mcbride

Master's Theses

This study examined whether bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) exhibit site fidelity to the Mississippi Sound and how the seasonal and diurnal behavioral patterns of dolphins that exhibit high site fidelity to the Mississippi Sound differ from those of dolphins with lower site fidelity. Opportunistic surveys conducted from July 2006 to April 2010 were analyzed. Statistical analyses consisted of nonparametric tests (Spearman's correlation, loglinear models, and Pearson's chi-square) to compare behavioral patterns of high site fidelity, mixed, and low site fidelity groups. Behavioral patterns significantly differed between site fidelity groups across seasons and diurnal periods. Feeding behavior was observed significantly more …

Legislated Landscape: A Comparison Of New Deal Farm Communities In Hattiesburg, Mccomb, And Tupelo, Mississippi, Joy Delaine Rhoads

Master's Theses

Government New Deal farm policies of the 1930s changed the realities of farming and the landscape in Mississippi. This research endeavors to compare three farm communities created by New Deal legislation in the state: Hattiesburg, McComb, and Tupelo. The economic crisis that was the Great Depression created a highly politicized environment as citizens looked to the government for economic relief. A crisis this severe would require an exceptional effort to mitigate the economic hardships it created, in varying degrees, for millions of Americans. The actions of the federal government during the Great Depression were an interesting mix of paternalism, desperation, …

Sensitivity And Species Specificity Of Bisulfite Modification And Pyrosequencing Technology Used To Identify Tissue-Specific Dna Methylation Patterns In Common Biofluids Foudn In Crime Scenes, Sitara Christian Shirwani

Master's Theses

In order to convict the guilty or exonerate the innocent in criminal cases, it is crucial to reconstruct the crime scene and/or determine the nature of the crime. Identifying the different biofluids found at a crime scene can help shed light on these aspects of forensic casework. Recently, DNA methylation has been used as a means of identifying biological materials, as opposed to conventional protein/enzyme based methods. DNA methylation is the addition of a methyl group to the 5' carbon on a cytosine base (C), which is directly followed by a guanine base (G) and are called CpG sites. The …

Alcohol Consumption And Unwanted Sexual Experiences Among College Females: The Mediating Role Of Protective Behavioral Strategies, Kayla Darlene Moorer

Master's Theses

The narrowing gender gap regarding consumption has resulted in more alcoholrelated consequences specific to females. Compared to males, females report more sexual consequences, such as doing something they later regret, as a result of alcohol consumption. For this reason, there is a vital need for researchers to identify active methods that females can engage in while consuming alcohol in order to reduce the risk of unwanted sexual experiences (UWS). Protective behavioral strategies (PBS) have been shown to decrease overall alcohol-related consequences, but further investigation is needed to determine which strategies are most influential in reducing the occurrence of specific alcohol-related …

A Cross-Cultural Comparison Of American And Chinese College Students' Attitudes Toward Seeking Professional Psychological Help And Expectations About Counseling And Counselors, Xiaowei Qiao

Master's Theses

The number of international students in the U.S. has increased steadily since the early 1990s. Based on this trend, the current study compared American and Chinese college students� attitudes toward seeking professional psychological help and expectations about counseling and counselors. In addition, it compared the stress levels of these two groups and examined Chinese international students� specific stressors. A total of 100 American and 71 Chinese students from a small Midwestern university participated in this study. ATSPPH-SF (Attitudes toward Seeking Professional Psychological Help � Short Form), EAC-BF (Expectations about Counseling � Brief Form), PSS (Perceived Stress Survey), and QSSCSCIS (Questionnaire …

Women And The Second Estate In 16th Century Zambezia: Gendered Powers, A 'Puppet' African Queen And Succession In Vakaranga Society, 1500–1700, George G. Levin

Master's Theses

Women in vaKaranga society of the 15th to 17th centuries have been portrayed as oppressed by an "extremely patriarchal" system, but the reality, while still fitting the simple classification of a 'patriarchal' monarchy, indicates quite a bit more negotiation of gendered powers than women, as a class, experienced in the Mediterranean or East Asia. The vaKaranga were the architects of Great Zimbabwe, the capital of a growing state, colonizing their cousins of the Zambezi river, which their Kusi-Mashariki Bantu forefathers had traversed southward a millennium before. Civil war had (apparently) split one nation into two states, Mutapa (Monomotapa) and Khami …

Effects Of Racism And Discrimination On Personality Development Among African American Male Repeat Offenders, Tiffany Nicole Lockett

Master's Theses

ABSTRACT

Effects of Racism and Discrimination on Personality Development among

African American Male Repeat Offenders

Tiffany Nicole Lockett

Throughout history in the United States, the African American community has consistently been the victim of social policies put in place to disenfranchise this population (Mauer & Chesney-Lind, 2002; Painter, 2007; Parham, White & Ajamu, 1999). With a longstanding presence of systemic racism and discrimination, the criminal justice system and the dominant culture continues to pathologize this minority group and advocate for increased penalties which further stigmatize African Americans, particularly males in this group (Reiman, 1996; Russell, 1998). Though most criminology research …

The Development And Use Of A Color Discrimination T-Maze Learning Task In The Zebrafish (Danio Rerio), Elizabeth Ann Lamb

Master's Theses

Zebrafish (Danio rerio) are becoming increasingly utilized in behavioral studies as a model of human learning and memory. The results of a previous study by Colwill, Raymond, Ferreira, and Escudero (2005) indicated that this species is capable of discriminating between colors and learning to respond to an assigned hue at either arm of a T-maze, indicating a learned association between the neutral stimulus and reward. While this original study showed that this task was appropriate for use in this species, we proposed that it had the potential to provide more data on specifics of the learning process with amended methods. …

Lincoln: Reformer Or Revolutionary? An Analysis Of Lincoln's Legacy As Compared To The Political Ideals Of The Amerian Revolution, Hayley Elizabeth Patterson

Master's Theses

Despite the fact that his greatest legacies departed from American traditions, Abraham Lincoln coveted the political ideals espoused by the Founding Fathers. As president, Lincoln inherited the unprecedented challenges that resulted from decades of politicians tabling the insoluble problem of slavery. He operated within the realms of constitutionally allocated authority to meet those challenges. Where the Constitution provided no direction, Lincoln developed solutions that more closely resembled the political philosophies of the American Revolution than any of his political opponents' alternative solutions. The unprecedented circumstances he faced not only enabled Lincoln to reconcile the right to freedom as described in …

Do Gender, Delinquent Peer Affiliations, And Parenting Practices Moderate The Relation Between Callou-Unemotional Traits And Delinquency, Nicole Rivera-Hudson

Master's Theses

The present study examined how contextual factors differentially influence the relation between the components of callous-unemotional (CU) traits and delinquency for male and female adolescents. More specifically, it considered delinquent peer affiliations and ineffective parenting practices as moderators in this relation with the belief that those moderators would exert a different influence for males and females. The study was conducted with a sample of 238 adolescents (166 males, 72 females) ages 16 to 19 attending a voluntary military style residential program. Analyses demonstrated a general lack of support for the central hypotheses of the present study. There was a significant …

Religious Fundamentalism And Death Penalty Attitudes: Towards A New Operationalization Of The Constructs, William H. Whited

Master's Theses

The death penalty has remained a highly debated topic in the United States. Due to the link between public support for the death penalty and its utilization as a sanction, it is important to continue investigating the factors related to differences in death penalty support. Religion has a complicated relationship with death penalty attitudes in that certain religiosity factors are associated with support for the sanction while others are linked with opposition. Religious fundamentalism, for instance, is one variable that has been inconsistently associated with death penalty support in the literature. This discrepancy could be due to the poor measurement …

Utilizing Atcs Data To Inform A Dynamic Reassignment System For Muni Metro Light Rail Vehicles Departing Embarcadero Station, April M. Hickey

Master's Theses

This is a report of a professional project intended to act as an informational tool for the evaluation of a dynamic dispatch system at Embarcadero Station for the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA). Systems that operate dispatch algorithms do so in response to on-time performance and reliability. The optimization problem is documented in many transportation contexts including airline networks, bus dispatch, and freight routing. According to the research, optimizing available options and re-routing based on available options can create a more efficient system that would minimize operating costs and improving service reliability for customers.

The methodology presented here uses …

The Effects Of Coping, Self-Esteem, And Social Support On Stress And Wellbeing, Emily Meyerhoffer-Kubalik

Master's Theses

The present study aimed to add to the literature on the internal and external factors that may buffer the negative effects of stress. Specifically, the present study examined the effects of coping styles, self-esteem, and social support on both psychological wellbeing and stress. Participants (N = 198) were administered a measure of coping styles (COPE), self-esteem (Rosenberg's Self-Esteem Scale), social support (SSQ-R), psychological wellbeing (MHI), and stress (ICSRLE). Results showed problem-focused coping and emotion-focused coping were associated with better psychological wellbeing and lower stress. Avoidant coping was associated with lower psychological wellbeing and higher stress. Self-esteem was also related to …

Suicide Attempts Among Emotionally And Behaviorally Disturbed Adolescents Removed From The Home, Faith M. Wanja

Master's Theses

This study was conducted to examine the relationship between adolescent suicide behavior and the age of removal from home amongst children with emotional and behavioral disturbance. The study aims to determine whether a child�s removal from home can be counted as a viable basis for the development of suicide prevention programs and an expansion for evidence based practices. The study was conducted using archived de-identified data collected and provided by a private not-for-profit behavioral health treatment facility located in rural Kansas. The participants included male and female adolescents between the ages of thirteen to eighteen years old that were admitted …

Measuring Bonds In Equine-Facilitated Psychotherapy, Carla K. Sloan-Brown

Master's Theses

Equine-facilitated psychotherapy is a type of animal-assisted intervention that has potential to be an effective therapeutic modality in the treatment of psychiatric disorders. It is theorized that a meaningful relationship is formed between client and horse; this relationship is thought to inspire meaningful change in the client. The current study found evidence of human-equine bonds and determined they can be measured quantitatively using adapted bonding scales. This study also explored variables that may impact bonds formed between clients and horse co-therapists. Finally, a potential correlation between the strength of the bond and the severity of symptoms over the course of …

Temperament, Attachment, And Co-Parenting As Risk And Protective Factors Of Depression In Young Adulthood, Whitney Giesing

Master's Theses

Depression is a serious mental illness that affects millions of people. Depression can cause severe life impairment and is associated with numerous life threatening risk factors. Though treatment of depression is important, prevention is ideal. Therefore, it is important to understand associated risk and protective factors of depression. Several factors may precede the development of depression in young adulthood. This study sought to better understand the role of temperament, parent-child attachment relationships, and child reported co-parenting quality on the development of depressive symptoms in young adults between the ages of 18 and 22. Previous studies have suggested that some temperament …

Social Isolation And Cell Phone Use By College Students, Nichol Elise Myers

Master's Theses

In our technologically ever-advancing world, cell phones can either help us remain socially connected or can contribute to social isolation by substituting for face-to-face contact. This study examines the levels of social isolation in terms of the state of loneliness and trait of shyness and their correlations with academic achievement in 206 community college and university students to examine the connection between social isolation, GPA and cell phone use in college students. Two instruments used in the collection of data were the Revised Cheek and Buss Shyness Scale (RCBS) and the DeJong Gierveld Loneliness Scale. Correlational analysis was used …

Addressing The Administration Of Planned Developments: The Case Of Arroyo Grande, California, Matthew J. Downing

Master's Theses

The City of Arroyo Grande, California has a problem administering the

regulations of five Planned Developments in the City. This problem arises

from these regulations being included in a 167-page appendix at the back of

the City’s Development Code. This appendix includes the original approvals

for the Developments. It also includes amendments to those approvals.

These amendments are only added to the appendix. Therefore, changes to

the regulations governing the Planned Developments are not tracked. It

takes City staff considerable amounts of time to research answers when

members of the public have questions regarding development in one of these

Developments. …

The City Of Morro Bay, California Sign Ordinance Update And Tourism-Oriented Directional Sign Plan, Erik Berg-Johansen

Master's Theses

ABSTRACT

The City of Morro Bay, California – Sign Ordinance Update and Embarcadero District

Tourism-Oriented Directional Sign Plan

Erik Berg-Johansen

This report includes a Draft Sign Ordinance, a Tourism-Oriented Directional Sign Plan, and a background report for each product. The final products were created thought a process involving extensive research, community outreach, and detailed discussions among City of Morro Bay staff.

The Sign Ordinance

It was discovered that signs are important to business owners and residents due to their effect on both economic and aesthetic issues in communities. This report documents research of scholarly articles, case studies, and community outreach …