Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Waqf In Transition: Tracing Local Institutional Change During The British Mandate In Palestine, Zachary Murray

Theses and Dissertations

The British Mandate’s actions of state-building in Palestine were informed by a Zionist-Western modernist envisioned past of Palestine. This state-building ideology was embedded within much of the bureaucracy of the Mandate’s system and infringed on numerous Palestinian institutions such as Waqf. Waqf was disenfranchised in particular through the implementation of urban development programs, like town planning and archaeological regimes, which sought to support the British-Zionist recasting of Palestine.

This thesis aims to show how the British’s ideology of Palestine informed the Mandate’s internal polices and actions which infringed on the rights of waqf. This was done ...

Cities Of God Under Occupation: Settler Colonial Practices And Pacification In The Favelas Of Rio De Janeiro And The Occupied Palestinian Territories, Amanda Pimenta Da Silva

Theses and Dissertations

The 2002 film ‘City of God’ tells an anecdotal story of violence in the favelas of Rio de Janeiro, and is a reminder that the societies we tend to take for granted can actually be a luxury. The film portrays the daily life of the peripheries of Rio and its relation with drug trafficking, crime, and poverty, and how it has deteriorated into a war zone so dangerous that anyone risk being shot to death. Thousands of miles away from the Brazilian slums there is another so-called city of God, or the city chosen by God to be the home ...

Nudging Users Towards Data Privacy, Ossama Hanafy

Theses and Dissertations

The internet challenges users' privacy in unpreceded ways. Technology companies collect massive amounts of data from online users. They use algorithms that can track and analyze each activity by each user. Even though many users worry about their online privacy, they keep revealing more personal data. This study explores the causes behind online privacy erosion. While tech companies and governments aim to achieve economic and political goals, users are motivated by social motives. Online Privacy erosion leads to many harms to individuals and societies while collecting, processing, and disseminating data. Moreover, this study argues that the current legal approaches, especially ...

Studying Female Engineers' Experiences In The Egyptian Labor Market, Nada Abdelhay

Theses and Dissertations

With an aim to investigate and analyze the active participation of female engineers in the Egyptian labor market, this qualitative research study argues that gender-biased cultures embedded within formal educational and employment engineering institutions marginalize and undermine the representation of highly educated female engineers. Based on women’s shared experiences, it becomes apparent that their personal interests are not sufficient to ensure an engineering career. Other determinants–primarily in the form of impending challenges–during the pre-university, university and employment stages of life impact women’s lived experiences. On the one hand, challenges faced before graduation include: a) gender-based stigmas ...

Flexible Working Practices For Educated Egyptian Women In The Digital Era: A Study On Telework During The Covid-19 Pandemic And Its Potential To Reduce Gender Gap, Sarah Sherif El Ashry

Theses and Dissertations

Telework has recently gained popularity around the world, a trend that saw significant growth with the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic. Egypt is one of the many countries that adopted this new approach in an attempt to facilitate social distancing policies. This allowed more working mothers in Egypt to experience telework practices for the first time and be able to report their experience. These circumstances have presented a great opportunity to test its simultaneous application across different sectors throughout Egypt. Therefore, it is important to reflect on the adoption of telework during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study aims to examine ...

Promoting Secure Attachment In Children Without Parental Care In Egypt, Manar Nada

Theses and Dissertations

In Egypt, if not living with extended family members, the majority of children without parental care are placed in care homes. Research shows that children without parental care, particularly those raised in care homes, generally receive low-quality care. This can lead to adverse effects on their mental health, physical health, developmental growth, sense of belonging, intimacy, social and behavioral competence, and academic performance. Studies also relate institutionalization to problems in attachment and caregiver-infant relationships. The Secure Base Model is a therapeutic caregiving framework that target children who were abused and neglected or experienced loss and separation. The model has five ...

University-Industry-Collaborations In Egypt: Academics’ Perception Of Motivators And Success Factors, Ingy Ibrahim Saad Darwish

Theses and Dissertations

In today’s knowledge-based economies immense attention has been given to the links between industry and academia. Industries have increasingly realized the value from forging strong ties with universities and are constantly seeking strategic alliances in order to enhance their competitiveness and gain a stronger knowledge base. The Egyptian government has reaffirmed its intentions on boosting national innovation levels and has placed university-industry collaborations amongst its top priorities. While Egypt does have a considerably robust industrial sector, its potential in fostering innovation and technological development will remain hampered if policy makers remain unaware of the knowledge transfer channels in Egypt ...

Carving Spaces Of An Otherwise Within Urban Uncertainties On Sudanese People On The Move Creating Own Possibilities In Cairo, Iman Mohamed

Theses and Dissertations

With the increased urbanization of the world since the 1940s, people continue to be increasingly moving to cities. People are attracted to the city to access services and opportunities. However, the increased presence of persons on the move in the city comes with heightened bordering, augmented policing, and the involvement of more actors in the governance of people on the move. Against this, there are debates around understanding the urban space, its risks, and opportunities for all people dealing with it, including those on the move. This thesis thus looks at the urban space in Cairo that is uncertain, wherein ...

Predictors Of Emotional Health Across Autistic And Non-Autistic Students' First Semester Of College, Erin E. Mckenney

Theses and Dissertations

The prevention and treatment of mental health concerns, including depression, are significant priorities for autistic adults. While several theories have been proposed to explain the high prevalence of depression in autistic populations, little longitudinal research has been done on potential causal mechanisms. Additional research is needed to explore how proposed contributors to depression from general population research -- namely, negative repetitive thinking, lack of social opportunity, and attributional style -- predict and/or moderate the development of depressive symptoms in autistic individuals. The current study investigates these potential predictors' relationship to internalizing symptoms over the course of college students' first semester. We ...

Racial And Ethnic Differences In Health Insurance Coverage Among Workers In Texas, Trenton P. Overstreet

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the effect of race and ethnicity on health insurance coverage for working age (18-61) adults in Texas. I focus on Texas for three reasons. First, Texas is the second largest state in the United States. Second, Texas is a majority-minority state where Hispanics are the largest ethnic group. Finally, Texas has not yet expanded Medicaid eligibility to individuals with family incomes under 138% of the federal poverty threshold. In this analysis, I use data from the Annual Social and Economic Supplement (ASEC) to the Current Population Survey (CPS). The CPS is a ...

Investigating The Three Factor Model Of Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder: A Confirmatory Factor Analysis Of The Parent-Report Nine Item Arfid Scale, Emily Ruff

Theses and Dissertations

Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID) is an eating disorder with three presentations. These are sensory sensitivity, a lack of interest in eating or food, and fear of aversive consequences. The present study seeks to confirm the three-dimensional model of ARFID with the Parent-Report Nine Item ARFID Scale, which serves as a clinical measure of severity of ARFID symptoms. Participants were recruited through a pediatric anxiety clinic and given the Autism Quotient (AQ), Multidimensional Anxiety Scale for Children (MASC), Behavioral Pediatric Feeding Assessment, and the Nine Item ARFID Screen (NIAS). The final sample was one hundred and eighty two (n ...

Zinā In The Criminal Legislation Act (1999-2000): An Evaluation Of The Implication For Muslim Women's Right In Nigeria, Paul Orerhime Akpomie

Theses and Dissertations

The research engages in an exploration of human rights in Islam. Human rights issues are then contrasted with international law positions. The data gotten is then used for investigating women’s human rights issues in Shariʾa penal tradition regarding zinā (adultery) in Nigeria. The re-emergence of Sharia penal codes adopted by 12 Northern states in Nigeria in 1999 as an operative Islamic law has sparked concerns about rulings amounting to stoning to death in several cases of zinā. These events raised concerns about Shariʾa penal traditions’ legality and relationship with other legal traditions operational in Nigeria, a secular political space ...

Communities Of Water: An Examination Of Cooperation And Conflict In Water Management Practices In The Central Peruvian Andes, Sylvie D. Littledale

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis explores two examples of water management in the highland Peruvian villages, San Pedro de Llancha and San Antonio de Chinchina. One example is of cooperation and union between the two communities. The other is of conflict between the same two villages just 40 years prior. I examine ethnographic and ethnohistorical data from both the collaborative period and the conflictive period of these two communities’ relations over water. The data suggest that, while the outcomes of these two periods were drastically different, the processes through which these communities came into relation with one another were quite similar. Their communal ...

Outdoor Air Pollution And Psychological Well-Being: A Meta-Analysis, Jeremy Stanley Bekker

Theses and Dissertations

Human life takes place as part of a global ecosystem, meaning that human mental health is at least partially tied to the health of the planet. Health experts who seek to promote psychological well-being should consider how changes to the broad ecological system may impact their efforts. Given the potential impact of the environment on human well-being, we conducted a meta-analysis to assess the impact of air pollution on subjective well-being. The goal of this project was to outline the current state of the research on these constructs and provide a clear framework for what research is still needed. Nonsignificant ...

Witches, Victims, And Villains: #Metoo And The Political Polarization Of Sexual Violence, Hannah Shoaf

Theses and Dissertations

The MeToo movement, which sought to combat sexual violence, evolved into a partisan problem, where support for or against the movement fell across party lines. This polarization negatively impacted the progress of the MeToo movement, fitting the larger pattern of increasing polarization in the United States. My thesis seeks to understand the politicized nature of sexual violence and to explore what language and themes are drawn on to politicize conversations around sexual violence by using the MeToo movement as a case study. My thesis found that the political polarization of sexual violence increased during the MeToo movement (and especially during ...

Psychometric Properties Of The Survey On Flourishing (Surf) In A Nationally Representative Adolescent Sample, Gus C. Salazar

Theses and Dissertations

Background: Adolescent subjective well-being is a topic that has gained significant focus over recent years. This focus is reflected in the formation of measurement tools and interventions used to better understand and improve adolescent mental health. While these are important steps, there still exist problems related to adolescent subjective well-being measurement. Notably, current measurement tools are limited in their content, applicability to various populations, and in their accessibility. Aims: The purpose of this paper is to examine the psychometric properties of the Survey on Flourishing (SURF) when used with a nationally representative adolescent sample. The SURF aims to address some ...

Orienting Pacha: Value As Action In The Late Horizon Xauxa-Pachacamac Axis, Ridge C. Anderson

Theses and Dissertations

The Andean Late Horizon (ca. AD 1438–1532) was a period of exceptionally rapid and far-reaching cultural change. Over this short span of only a few generations, the Inka ethnic group established an empire that was greater in size than any other pre-colonial American polity. The Inka accomplished their expansion without the use of certain institutions (i.e., a standing army, formal writing system, monetary system, or price-setting markets) that the received anthropological wisdom has long held as being necessary preconditions to imperial expansion. Standard explanations of Late Horizon culture change tend to overemphasize the roles of environmental constraints, social ...

Older Adults Home-Based Care In Cairo: Asset Mapping Towards Community Development, Yomna El-Taweel

Theses and Dissertations

The health and economic consequences of the rapid growth of the older adults’ population above 60 have led to new and more flexible forms of care, including home-based care. In Cairo, Egypt, there seems to be a high demand and preference for home-based care services over other care services like nursing homes. From a policy makers’ perspective, older adults’ needs are sometimes approached in a deficit-oriented way. This might contribute to the disempowerment of older adults and make them feel like people with needs that can only be met by external support. This mixed-method study aimed to contribute to the ...

Returning Thanks To God And Others: The Relational, Prosocial, And Emotional Consequences Of Transcendent Indebtedness, Jenae Marie Nelson

Theses and Dissertations

Gratitude and indebtedness facilitate cooperative relationships and altruism. Although most of the world endorses some belief in God, gratitude and indebtedness to God have not received adequate empirical attention. The "Gratitude to God" research initiative was created to address this gap, of which the current project is an appendage. This project encapsulates a multiphase research proposal, including three parts; a pilot study and two experimental studies. The purpose of the pilot study (N = 475) was to create and test experimental manipulations for the two experimental studies. Experiment 1 (N = 659; highly religious emerging adult sample) was a 3x2 experimental design ...

Critical Incidents In Sustaining A Behavior Management Level System With Special Education Students In A Self-Contained School, Stephanie Johnson

Theses and Dissertations

Level systems provide systematic support for teachers and students who need additional behavior support. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the perspectives of faculty members from a self-contained school, for special education students with severe behavior needs, which has sustained the use of a school-wide, behavior management level system for nearly 30 years. A total of 11 faculty members were interviewed using the critical incident technique, a qualitative methodology used as an exploratory tool in early stages of research. Interviews detailed the observable behaviors and specific events, critical incidents, that helped or hindered the sustainability of their school ...

Physical Aspects Of Sexuality, Attachment, And Sexual Satisfaction, Chelsea Zollinger Allen

Theses and Dissertations

Healthy sexuality includes relational, emotional, and physical elements (Busby et al., 2021). However, there are gaps in what is known about the physical aspects of sexual relationships. Genital acceptance and physical sexual knowledge are two areas of physical relationships that may have an effect on the satisfaction of sexual relationships. Attachment, namely levels of anxious and avoidant attachment, is another factor that has been related to sexual relationships (Allsop et al., 2021; Bennett et al., 2019; Busby et al., 2020). Results from a dyadic sample of 515 couples who had been in a relationship for at least two years were ...

Psychological Distress Of Spousal Caregivers Of Older Adults: The Moderating Role Of Marital Quality, Avalon White

Theses and Dissertations

Caregiving, specifically caregiver burden, is commonly related to decreased psychological well-being. Conversely, marital quality is positively related to psychological well-being, though existing literature presents mixed findings as to whether or not a gender difference exists in this relationship. The current study examined the relationship between objective and subjective spousal caregiver burden and psychological distress with marital quality as a moderator. Gender differences in this relationship were also explored. 1,066 spousal caregivers from the National Study of Caregiving (NSOC) were used to estimate cross-sectional moderation models and plot significant interactions in Mplus. Results indicated a significant positive relationship between subjective ...

International Financial Assistance And Inequality In Emerging Markets: Colombia, Egypt And Turkey, Sara Farag

Theses and Dissertations

This research study investigates the effects of the three main pillars of structural adjustment policies imbedded in IFI funding facilities on income inequality in three specific cases; Colombia, Egypt and Turkey to uncover if income inequality present in those emerging markets is attributed to; the policy reforms conditionality or to pre-existent country features. The three main pillars of policy conditions discussed in this thesis are 1. Government Expenditure Reforms, 2. External Sector Reforms, and 3. Financial Sector Reforms. My hypothesis is that, although pre-existent country features may have had an impact on the levels of inequality a populace faces, the ...

Be With Me: Well-Being And Singling Contact; The Moderating Role Of Autistic Traits, Michelle Lupien Lieber

Theses and Dissertations

Sibling contact (synchronous or asynchronous) in young adulthood may have implications for individual well-being (health, life satisfaction & depressive symptoms). This link may be moderated by each individuals' traits, specifically autistic characteristics. Current literature has examined sibling contact, mediums of contact, autism relationships, but has yet to consider sibling contact moderated by autistic traits. This study analyzed data from 390 young adults 61% female, mean age = 25.65) who gave self-reports over two collection waves. Structural Equation Models found that regardless of autistic traits, synchronous contact was linked with increased life satisfaction as well as lower depressive symptoms, and asynchronous contact ...

The Shirt Of Nessus: International Debt As A Tool Of Hegemonic Control, Omar Hamed Ghannam

Theses and Dissertations

International debt has been a fixture of the global economy and state financing for centuries. The economic logic of accruing international debt and its management is rarely questioned in the literature, even as sovereign debt crises abound. These crises offer a point of examination, re-assessment, and negotiations concerning allocating the burdens. This paper aims to study these debt crises to interrogate the issue of international debt, the depoliticized economic mantras that govern it, their validity, sincerity, and the political and social implications on the indebted polity. This is done by looking at the origins of debt crises, and examining how ...

Group Psychotherapy For Pain: A Meta-Analysis, Cameron Todd Alldredge

Theses and Dissertations

Chronic pain is common and frequently interferes with people’s regular functioning and reduces quality of life. Though pharmacological approaches are used most frequently to treat pain-related issues, the side effects of these medications often lead to other problems. Group therapy has been used and studied for decades in treating pain though it’s general efficacy for addressing pain is not clear. Objectives: to determine group therapy’s efficacy for patients with pain-related issues and whether the effects are moderated by study, patient, leader, or group characteristics. Method: potential articles were selected from searches completed in major databases based on ...

God, Me, And Thee: Associations Between Religion, Sexuality, And Marital Connection, Rebecca Walker Clarke

Theses and Dissertations

There is a well-established and positive association between religiosity and marital satisfaction. What is less clear is the effect of religiosity on marital sexual outcomes, with research findings that have run the gamut from negative to positive. Given that most religions teach that marriage is the divinely appointed context for a sexual relationship, religious persons who are married and in sexual relationships could have a different experience with sex than those who are not in a marital sexual relationship. Although the majority of the population in the United States is religious, sex in religious marriages has received scant research attention ...

Cryptocurrencies Bandwagon…Fad Wave Or Investment Asset? Firm Level Analysis Of Panel Data In Egypt, Yasmine Galal

Theses and Dissertations

The crypto market is growing rapidly and gaining momentum globally. The current study is tackling the impact of the crypto exchanges on the stock market in Egypt. The author consolidated firm level data from DataStream and Cryptocurrency data from CoinDesk to conduct this study over the period 2014-2020. The methodology is based on Fixed Effect and IV-GMM models to study the differential impact across sectors and firm attributes. Our main findings can be highlighted as follows: (a) cryptocurrencies are substitutes to stocks. (b)Two periods are highlighted in the analysis: 2016 post currency devaluation and COVID-19 pandemic, where the adoption ...

Financial Inclusion And Monetary Policy - Investigating The Relationship Between Financial Inclusion And Monetary Policy: The Case Of Egypt, Salma Maher

Theses and Dissertations

In the past decade, financial inclusion has become an issue of increasing importance to developing nations. This is due to its perceived effects on poverty alleviation, sustainable growth and enhancing monetary policy effectiveness. Unfortunately, there is little empirical research on the effects of financial inclusion. The thesis hopes to contribute to the literature by inspecting the relationship between financial utilization indices and monetary policy in Egypt. The thesis utilizes quarterly data on outstanding deposits and loans from 2004 to 2020 as well as a VAR model – supplemented with an ARDL model – to test the aforementioned relationship. The thesis contributes to ...

Entrepreneurship Education As Part Of Higher Education Reform In Egypt: An Exploratory Qualitative Case Study, Mona Mersal

Theses and Dissertations

Higher Education plays a key role in developing societies’ economies through preparing successful leaders and citizens who can compete in today’s rapidly-changing labor market. Entrepreneurship education can pave the way for job creation, innovation, critical thinking, and economic growth. The aim of this study is to explore the views of higher education stakeholders about the economic, socio-cultural, and pedagogical implications of entrepreneurship education in a private international higher education institution in Egypt, namely the American University in Cairo (AUC). Moreover, the study seeks to investigate some of the obstacles and best practices of entrepreneurship education at the AUC. The ...