Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

African Regional Organizations And Democracy, Stephanie Schoppert

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Instability and political repression are two reasons why many states in Africa are unable to develop. African regional organizations have the potential to encourage democracy, stability and development within their regions if they have the right tools. Using case studies of two major interventions by African regional organizations this thesis will determine what those tools may be. Both the intervention of ECOWAS into Liberia and the SADC into the DRC were rife with problems but they were able to bring some stability and even democracy to states in crisis. This thesis finds that African regional organizations can promote democracy and …

No Amotines El Gallinero: Domestic Worker Agency And Identity In Lima, Peru And The Daily Struggle, Janice Stiglich

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

For centuries, indigenous women have been forced to labor in slave-like conditions as domestic workers in Lima, Peru. With neoliberal practices on the rise, Peru’s domestic labor informal economic sector struggles with sociopolitical representation. The downtrodden women of the household work economy exemplify the national perception of desconfianza, or distrust, as it trickles down from the wealthier individuals to those living in poverty. Although the nature of domestic work is a product of hegemonic colonial relations and, recently, violent social movements in the late 20th century, increasing attempts for government transparency and nongovernmental involvement, have created a slowly recovering broken …

Childhood Predictors In The Severity Of Combat Related Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Among Veterans With Combat Related Exposure, Michael Bermes

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Emerging research suggests that childhood adversities may increase both the risk and symptomology of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in our veteran population. Over 40% of our reintegrating military veterans return with significant mental health issues led by combatrelated PTSD. PTSD impacts veterans in numerous areas including unemployment, increased criminal justice involvement, increased treatment costs, divorce, co-morbid mental illness, greater levels of domestic violence, homelessness, high college dropout rates, suicide, and long term health problems. The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of childhood adversities (abuse, neglect, and poverty) upon the severity of combat-related PTSD in veteran populations. …

Evaluation Of A Field Histology Technique And Its Use In Histological Analyses Of Mummified Tissues From Dakhleh Oasis, Egypt, Jennifer Branson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Use of paleohistology to identify histological structures in mummified tissues can allow insight into pathological conditions such as parasites, cirrhosis and lung scarring. However, increasing concerns in archaeological sciences include restrictions on removal of human remains from their site of origin for scientific study. In the case of mummified remains, the use of a field paleohistology kit may be deemed useful for ‘point-of-care’ pathological assessment of preserved tissues. This study evaluates field paleohistology protocols for mummified soft tissue based on techniques used modern medical field missions. The application of this technique alleviates the need for export or removal of remains …

Why They Stop Attending Church: An Exploratory Study Of Religious Participation Decline Among Millennials From Conservative Christian Backgrounds, Jessica Chase

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Using a grounded theory approach, this study examines the reasons why Millennials from conservative Christian backgrounds stop attending church. The purpose is to understand why attendance attrition is at an all time high for those in the Millennial generation, ages 18 to 29. Data from 18 semi-structured interviews with former attendees demonstrate that this phenomenon is not due to a simplistic list of reasons but is actually a result of a complex development involving varying interrelated processes. The primary processes at work are cognitive and spiritual disconnection and disengagement for personal wellbeing

Bisexuality And Identity Formation, Jessica Fuoss

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study explores the identity development and psychological adjustment of bisexual individuals (n = 138) as compared to homosexual (n = 45) and heterosexual participants (n = 558). Undergraduate students recruited from psychology classes at a large metropolitan university in Florida (67% female, 65% Caucasian) took an online survey for course extra credit. Bisexual and homosexual participants scored higher in identity exploration than the heterosexual participants. Bisexual participants scored significantly higher in psychological symptom severity than heterosexual participants. The three groups were not significantly different in identity commitment nor in identity distress. Female bisexual participants scored more similar to the …

The Development Of The Counselor Intuition Scale, Jesse Fox

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Intuition is an important aspect of counseling, several revered counselors have either attested to the powers of their intuition or have had such powers attributed to them by their contemporaries. Moreover, many counselors believe that their intuition is more influential in their work with clients than are evidence-based practices (EBPs). However, the academy criticizes intuition for its susceptibility to cognitive errors and its poor performance when compared to statistical methods. In addition, the exact nature of intuition’s role in counseling is largely unknown. Therefore, its contribution to client outcomes is equally a mystery, making it difficult for counselors to justify …

On Obama Administration Gun Policy With Continual Reference To The Multiple Streams Model, Michael Hristakopoulos

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Multiple Streams model developed by John Kingdon (1995) and Nikolaos Zahariadis (2007) provides a valuable framework for understanding the nature of policy change. This investigation draws extensively upon the Multiple Streams framework in order to understand the development of gun-control policy initiatives under President Barack Obama. The investigation uses a case-study approach with in-depth analysis of four different mass-shooting events that took place in the United States between 2009 and 2012. Reconstruction of the shooting events and detailed parsing of the Obama administration’s official responses to each incident, when viewed through the Multiple Streams lens, clearly explain why Obama’s …

The President's Party At The Midterm: An Aggregate And Individual-Level Analysis Of Seat Loss And Vote Choice In U.S. House Elections, David Macdonald

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis provides a comprehensive analysis of midterm U.S. House elections using a multi-level research design. At the aggregate-level, multiple regression analysis is used to examine the variables that affect seat loss for the president’s party. This integrates, updates and extends the extant literature of the topic, and offers a means of explaining and predicting seat losses by the president’s party in the U.S. House. To further probe the findings at the aggregatelevel, the thesis develops a pooled cross-sectional model of individual-level vote choice in midterm U.S. House elections using data from the American National Election Studies (1982- 2002) and …

Framing, Public Relations, And Scientology: An Analysis Of News Coverage And A Controversial Organization, Kristy Mcallister

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study investigated the most common frames used in news coverage of the Church of Scientology from 2009 to 2013. Using textual analysis, with framing and public relations theories as lenses, this study examined recent news coverage – both print and television – to identify frames used, and the potential public relations crises the Church is currently facing due to this media exposure. Analysis showed three major frames used during coverage, along with their corresponding sub-frames, which highlight certain aspects of the frame: Culture of Abuse (Imprisonment, Controlling, Family Disconnection, Exploitation of Children, Violence, and Financial Abuse), The Information Paradox …

Latinos In Massachusetts Selected Areas: Brockton, Phillip Granberry, Sarah Rustan, Faye Karp

Gastón Institute Publications

This report provides a descriptive snapshot of selected economic, social, educational, and demographic indicators pertaining to Latinos in the Brockton-Abington area. It reflects a commitment by UMass Boston’s Mauricio Gastón Institute for Latino Community Development and Public Policy to provide periodic updates on the growing Latino population in Massachusetts.

The report on the Brockton-Abington area is part of a larger series that covers fourteen other cities, or clusters of cities, in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Each report analyzes data from the 2010 American Community Survey (ACS) conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau. Data are analyzed by Public Use Microdata Area …

Latinos In Massachusetts Selected Areas: Chelsea, Phillip Granberry, Sarah Rustan, Faye Karp

Gastón Institute Publications

This report provides a descriptive snapshot of selected economic, social, educational, and demographic indicators pertaining to Latinos in the cities of Chelsea, Revere, and Winthrop. It reflects a commitment by UMass Boston’s Mauricio Gastón Institute for Latino Community Development and Public Policy to provide periodic updates on the growing Latino population in Massachusetts.

The report on Chelsea, Revere, and Winthrop is part of a larger series that covers fourteen other cities, or clusters of cities, in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Each report analyzes data from the 2010 American Community Survey (ACS) conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau. Data are analyzed …

Latinos In Massachusetts Selected Areas: Boston, Phillip Granberry, Sarah Rustan, Faye Karp

Gastón Institute Publications

This report provides a descriptive snapshot of selected economic, social, educational, and demographic indicators pertaining to Latinos in Boston. It reflects a commitment by UMass Boston’s Mauricio Gastón Institute for Latino Community Development and Public Policy to provide periodic updates on the growing Latino population in Massachusetts.

The report on Boston is part of a larger series that covers fourteen other cities, or clusters of cities, in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Each report analyzes data from the 2010 American Community Survey (ACS) conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau. Data are analyzed by Public Use Microdata Area (PUMA), which consists of …

Latinos In Massachusetts Selected Areas: Framingham, Phillip Granberry, Sarah Rustan, Faye Karp

Gastón Institute Publications

This report provides a descriptive snapshot of selected economic, social, educational, and demographic indicators pertaining to Latinos in the cities of the Framingham area. It reflects a commitment by UMass Boston’s Mauricio Gastón Institute for Latino Community Development and Public Policy to provide periodic updates on the growing Latino population in Massachusetts.

The report on the Framingham area is part of a larger series that covers fourteen other cities, or clusters of cities, in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Each report analyzes data from the 2010 American Community Survey (ACS) conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau. Data are analyzed by Public …

Latinos In Massachusetts Selected Areas: Holyoke, Chicopee, And Easthampton, Phillip Granberry, Sarah Rustan, Faye Karp

Gastón Institute Publications

This report provides a descriptive snapshot of selected economic, social, educational, and demographic indicators pertaining to Latinos in the cities of Holyoke, Chicopee, and Easthampton. It reflects a commitment by UMass Boston’s Mauricio Gastón Institute for Latino Community Development and Public Policy to provide periodic updates on the growing Latino population in Massachusetts.

The report on Holyoke, Chicopee, and Easthampton is part of a larger series that covers fourteen other cities, or clusters of cities, in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Each report analyzes data from the 2010 American Community Survey (ACS) conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau. Data are analyzed …

Latinos In Massachusetts Selected Areas: Lawrence And Methuen, Phillip Granberry, Sarah Rustan, Faye Karp

Gastón Institute Publications

This report provides a descriptive snapshot of selected economic, social, educational, and demographic indicators pertaining to Latinos in the cities of Lawrence and Methuen. It reflects a commitment by UMass Boston’s Mauricio Gastón Institute for Latino Community Development and Public Policy to provide periodic updates on the growing Latino population in Massachusetts.

The report on Lawrence and Methuen is part of a larger series that covers fourteen other cities, or clusters of cities, in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Each report analyzes data from the 2010 American Community Survey (ACS) conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau. Data are analyzed by Public …

Latinos In Massachusetts Selected Areas: Lowell, Phillip Granberry, Sarah Rustan, Faye Karp

Gastón Institute Publications

This report provides a descriptive snapshot of selected economic, social, educational, and demographic indicators pertaining to Latinos in Lowell. It reflects a commitment by UMass Boston’s Mauricio Gastón Institute for Latino Community Development and Public Policy to provide periodic updates on the growing Latino population in Massachusetts.

The report on Lowell is part of a larger series that covers fourteen other cities, or clusters of cities, in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Each report analyzes data from the 2010 American Community Survey (ACS) conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau. Data are analyzed by Public Use Microdata Area (PUMA), which consists of …

Latinos In Massachusetts Selected Areas: Lynn, Nahant, And Saugus, Phillip Granberry, Sarah Rustan, Faye Karp

Gastón Institute Publications

This report provides a descriptive snapshot of selected economic, social, educational, and demographic indicators pertaining to Latinos in the cities of Lynn, Nahant, and Saugus. It reflects a commitment by UMass Boston’s Mauricio Gastón Institute for Latino Community Development and Public Policy to provide periodic updates on the growing Latino population in Massachusetts.

The report on Lynn, Nahant, and Saugus is part of a larger series that covers fourteen other cities, or clusters of cities, in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Each report analyzes data from the 2010 American Community Survey (ACS) conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau. Data are analyzed …

Latinos In Massachusetts Selected Areas: New Bedford, Phillip Granberry, Sarah Rustan, Faye Karp

Gastón Institute Publications

This report provides a descriptive snapshot of selected economic, social, educational, and demographic indicators pertaining to Latinos in New Bedford and surrounding towns. It reflects a commitment by UMass Boston’s Mauricio Gastón Institute for Latino Community Development and Public Policy to provide periodic updates on the growing Latino population in Massachusetts.

The report on the New Bedford area is part of a larger series that covers fourteen other cities, or clusters of cities, in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Each report analyzes data from the 2010 American Community Survey (ACS) conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau. Data are analyzed by Public …

Latinos In Massachusetts Selected Areas: Salem-Beverly Area, Phillip Granberry, Sarah Rustan, Faye Karp

Gastón Institute Publications

This report provides a descriptive snapshot of selected economic, social, educational, and demographic indicators pertaining to Latinos in Salem, Beverly, Marblehead, and Swampscott. It reflects a commitment by UMass Boston’s Mauricio Gastón Institute for Latino Community Development and Public Policy to provide periodic updates on the growing Latino population in Massachusetts.

The report on Salem, Beverly, Marblehead, and Swampscott is part of a larger series that covers fourteen other cities, or clusters of cities, in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Each report analyzes data from the 2010 American Community Survey (ACS) conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau. Data are analyzed by …

Latinos In Massachusetts Selected Areas: Somerville And Everett, Phillip Granberry, Sarah Rustan, Faye Karp

Gastón Institute Publications

This report provides a descriptive snapshot of selected economic, social, educational, and demographic indicators pertaining to Latinos in the cities of Somerville and Everett. It reflects a commitment by UMass Boston’s Mauricio Gastón Institute for Latino Community Development and Public Policy to provide periodic updates on the growing Latino population in Massachusetts.

The report on Somerville and Everett is part of a larger series that covers fourteen other cities, or clusters of cities, in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Each report analyzes data from the 2010 American Community Survey (ACS) conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau. Data are analyzed by Public …

Latinos In Massachusetts Selected Areas: Springfield, Phillip Granberry, Sarah Rustan, Faye Karp

Gastón Institute Publications

This report provides a descriptive snapshot of selected economic, social, educational, and demographic indicators pertaining to Latinos in Springfield. It reflects a commitment by UMass Boston’s Mauricio Gastón Institute for Latino Community Development and Public Policy to provide periodic updates on the growing Latino population in Massachusetts.

The report on Springfield is part of a larger series that covers fourteen other cities, or clusters of cities, in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Each report analyzes data from the 2010 American Community Survey (ACS) conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau. Data are analyzed by Public Use Microdata Area (PUMA), which consists of …

Latinos In Massachusetts Selected Areas: Worcester, Phillip Granberry, Sarah Rustan, Faye Karp

Gastón Institute Publications

This report provides a descriptive snapshot of selected economic, social, educational, and demographic indicators pertaining to Latinos in Worcester. It reflects a commitment by UMass Boston’s Mauricio Gastón Institute for Latino Community Development and Public Policy to provide periodic updates on the growing Latino population in Massachusetts.

The report on Worcester is part of a larger series that covers fourteen other cities, or clusters of cities, in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Each report analyzes data from the 2010 American Community Survey (ACS) conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau. Data are analyzed by Public Use Microdata Area (PUMA), which consists of …

Latinos In Massachusetts Selected Areas: Massachusetts, Phillip Granberry, Sarah Rustan, Faye Karp

Gastón Institute Publications

This report provides a descriptive snapshot of selected economic, social, educational, and demographic indicators pertaining to Latinos in Massachusetts. It reflects a commitment by UMass Boston’s Mauricio Gastón Institute for Latino Community Development and Public Policy to provide periodic updates on the growing Latino population in Massachusetts.

The report on Massachusetts is part of a larger series that also covers fifteen cities, or clusters of cities, in the Commonwealth. Each report analyzes data from the American Community Survey (ACS) conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau; this report uses 2011 data.

Since ACS data are collected from a sample of the …

The Problem And Prospect Of Getting Information Literacy Into The Academy: Keynote Address For The Annual Conference Of The Association Of Christian Librarians, June 11, 2013, Tami Echavarria Robinson

The Christian Librarian

ACL was most fortunate to listen to a distinguished thinker in the field of Information Literacy at the 2013 Annual Conference. William Badke, who hails from Trinity Western University in Langley, British Columbia, is a librarian and a professor who has been thinking well about the conundrum of teaching and learning information literacy since 1985 when he began teaching this subject. He shared his most current thoughts about getting information literacy into the academy with the Association of Christian Librarians assembled at Point Loma Nazarene University on June 11, 2013.

Instructional Literacy: Acl 2013 Preconference With Char Booth, Becky Fisher

The Christian Librarian

No abstract provided.

The Only Thing That Stops A Guy With A Bad Policy Is A Guy With A Good Policy: An Examination Of The Nra’S “National School Shield” Proposal, Gordon A. Crews, Angela D. Crews, Catherine E. Burton

Criminal Justice Faculty Publications

With the recent tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown, CT, the public and the government are looking for solutions to school violence. The National Rifle Association (NRA), a Second Amendment, pro-gun advocacy group, has proposed an “education and training emergency response program” called The National School Shield, which advocates the placement of armed security in schools. Although the program sounds provocative, serious questions complicate its plausibility, necessity, motive, and effectiveness. Furthermore, the potential policy and practical ramifications of encouraging armed security forces in U.S. schools are complex. The authors examined the proposal’s key elements from a public policy …

The Impact Of Social Capital On Bank Risk-Taking, Wenjing Xie

Lingnan Theses

The concept of “social capital” has received considerable attention these years. Yet, few studies have explored the connections between social capital and bank risk-taking. In this study, I discuss the theory of social capital and its relevance to financial market behavior, and then I analyze the relationship between social capital and bank risk-taking across countries. To measure social capital, I follow Knack and Keefer (1997) and use the data of trust and civic norms collected from the World Values Survey. My measure of bank risk-taking is the nature logarithm of Z-score of each bank. Empirical results show that bank risk-taking …

Three Essays On Large Panel Data Models With Cross-Sectional Dependence, Yonghui Zhang

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

My dissertation consists of three essays which contribute new theoretical results to large panel data models with cross-sectional dependence. These essays try to answer or partially answer some prominent questions such as how to detect the presence of cross-sectional dependence and how to capture the latent structure of cross-sectional dependence and estimate parameters efficiently by removing its effects. Chapter 2 introduces a nonparametric test for cross-sectional contemporaneous dependence in large dimensional panel data models based on the squared distance between the pair-wise joint density and the product of the marginals. The test can be applied to either raw observable data …

Social Differentiation And Age-Friendly Characteristics : A Case Study In Tuen Mun, Yuen Ling, Elaine Yau

Lingnan Theses

Hong Kong is one of Asia’s more demographically-aged cities, with 14% of population aged 65+ in 2012, projected to be 23% by 2025. Facilities and transport are generally good by world standards although the urban environment may not consistently be particularly ‘age-friendly’. Drawing on a range of urban sub-areas, this research investigated the ‘age-friendliness’ of Tuen Mun, a ‘new town’ of half a million population in Hong Kong. This study was also interested in socio-cultural variables and age-friendly cities (AFC) characteristics in its predominantly Chinese population, and relationships with psychological well-being (PWB).

A total of 503 participants aged 50 years …