Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

"What Are They Going To Do? Fire Me?" The Paradoxical Empowerment Of Nonbinary Teachers In Rural South Carolina, Chris Cyan Divens, Jonathan M. Coker

Journal of Queer and Trans Studies in Education

Nonbinary teachers are seldom the focus of teacher studies, particularly in challenging places such as the rural Southeastern United States. Through a critical ethnographic case study, we explored the stories of two nonbinary teachers who grew up and worked in rural South Carolina. We examined their cultural contexts, including legislative factors, school policies, and school cultures, and we highlighted how these systems created a hostile environment for queer and trans* individuals. Our participants shared how their lived experiences as queer and gender-diverse individuals provided them with an insider perspective about rural South Carolina culture and its limitations. We also found …

Sissies At The Cafeteria Table: Toward A Queer Black-Town Sense Of Place, Education And Life, Ezekiel Joubert Iii

Journal of Queer and Trans Studies in Education

Contemporary research has shown rural communities to be places with diverse identities and ideologies, disrupting much of the mainstream images of rural spaces as isolated, White, monocultural, and conservative. However, the persistent tendency to imagine racial inequality and queer life as urban contributes to the invisibility of intersectional struggle. Drawing from Critical Pedagogy, Black geographies, Black Queer Studies, and Mobility Studies, this study examines the collective educational experience and storytelling of Black rural queers in a Metro-Rural community in the Upper Midwest. Using an autogeographic approach, building from auto-ethnography and archival praxis reveal how the spatial structures that reproduce educational …

Queer Methods And Rural Education: Studying The Foxfire Program, Brooke Boling

Journal of Queer and Trans Studies in Education

During the summer of 2023, I conducted a study in rural Rabun County, Georgia, with a cohort of high school students as they worked to create a magazine focused on Appalachian culture. The magazine, known as Foxfire, has been published since 1966 by rural high school students who were led by writing teachers. In its heyday, the Foxfire Magazine was seen as a bastion of critical education, as its teachers and founder implemented Deweyan pedagogy and asked students to critically reflect on issues of rural Southern Appalachian culture in their writing. The Foxfire Magazine was wildly successful, resulting in a …

Reading About Gender Identity In A Rural Community: Discourse Around Young Adult Literature And Social Justice, Ashley S. Boyd, Rachael R. Wolney

Journal of Queer and Trans Studies in Education

This study explores how a rural adult book club engaged with gender identity through young adult literature (YAL), focusing on Mason Deaver’s I Wish You All the Best. Facilitated by two teacher educators, the club brought together local residents and a guest speaker from a regional support organization to discuss gender, pronouns, and the experiences of nonbinary youth. Using critical discourse analysis and thematic coding, the authors examine how participants, cisgender adults, navigated unfamiliar concepts, reflected on their own beliefs, and considered implications for their personal and professional lives. Findings highlight the power of YAL to serve as a …

The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly: Personifying The South In Rural Queer Collegians’ Stories, Miranda N. Rutan, Leia K. Cain

Journal of Queer and Trans Studies in Education

In this study, we explore the complex interplay between queer identity and Southern cultural narratives among rural college students in the U.S. Bible Belt. We integrated narrative inquiry and arts-based research to examine how participants personify the South within their own stories, revealing nuanced understandings of belonging and identity. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews, participant-created artwork, and discussions about these artworks. Our findings illustrate a dynamic representation of the South as both a source of support and a site of conflict, highlighting the dual roles of community and marginalization in shaping rural queer Southern identities. This research contributes to …

Queer Kids In The Country: Challenges, Resources, And Queer Cultural Capital Of Rural Lgbtqia+ Youth, Michelle L. Page

Journal of Queer and Trans Studies in Education

This qualitative study investigates the experiences of rural youth who identify as LGBTQIA+. Both rural young people and LGBTQIA+ youth are less likely to pursue higher education and more likely to report negative experiences in their schools and communities. Rural LGBTQIA+ youth face different challenges than do urban and suburban queer youth; therefore, different resources and strategies must be unveiled, developed, and employed in an effort to support rural LGBTQIA+ young people. This study explicates the challenges and assets of rural queer youth, finding that such young people continue to experience challenges in their schools and communities, particularly around identity …

Beyond The City Limits: Representations Of Rurality And Lgbtqia+ Youth In Young Adult Literature, Michelle L. Page

Journal of Queer and Trans Studies in Education

Narratives of flight from rural to urban areas predominate in research related to LGBTQIA+ communities. Thus, rural LGBTQIA+ young people rarely see representations of themselves or their environments, especially positive portrayals. Such representations are important in that they are productive of identities, not just reflective of them. This study examines a collection of young adult literature with LGBTQIA characters and rural settings, analyzing the portrayals of place (rurality) and identity (LGBTQIA+). In this paper I will demonstrate how current LGBTQIA+ young adult literature reinforces dominant narratives that privilege urbanity and I assert that counternarratives to the rural flight story are …

Rural Geographies, Queer Youth And Metronormativity, Fenton Litwiller

Journal of Queer and Trans Studies in Education

In 1995 Weston articulated an oft recited story where queers move from persecutory rural geographies to the more accepting city. While Weston interrogated this spatial binary and demonstrated failed promise of the metropolis to deliver, particularly across intersections of gender, the urban flight narrative persists. Jack Halberstam (2005) used the term ‘metronormativity’ to illustrate the power of this narrative that influences a research focus on urban queers. This study contributes insights on how queer youth who live in remote Canadian geographies navigate and express gender and sexuality. Eight participants (12 – 24) attended an informal educational space, a genderplay workshop, …

Queer Of Color Critique And The Politics Of Epistemic Agency: Rural Educators Desettling Curricular Expectations, C.A. Langerud, Madelaine Adelman, Daniel D. Liou

Journal of Queer and Trans Studies in Education

The purpose of this research is to use queer of color critique (QOCC) as an analytical framework to explore rural K-12 educators’ epistemic agency. The research focuses on educators’ engagement with a national initiative by an advocacy organization to distribute LGBTQ+ and racially diverse books to K-12 schools. The analysis centers on the educators’ praxis of epistemic agency against settled expectations associated with including queer and trans People of Color’s (QTPOC’s) stories in their schools. Our findings on educators’ epistemic agency center on three areas of knowledge and activity. First, educators demonstrate their ability to be aware of their local …

“I’Ve Already Invested So Much Time, Effort, And Money Into This, So I Stay For Me”: A Case Study Of Paulina A First-Generation Trans Latina Rural Community College Student, Ángel De Jesus Gonzalez

Journal of Queer and Trans Studies in Education

While research continues to emerge on queer and/or trans (QT) experiences in higher-education, a paucity remains on the nuanced realities of those who exist at the intersections of identities, institutional, and regional contexts. Guided by jotería identity-and-consciousness, this intrinsic case study focuses on Paulina, a first-generation trans Latina rural community college student via queer pláticas. She informs ways that trans Latina students in rural community colleges exists and resists hostile ecological educational environments and in doing so generate queer futurities of rurality. Paulina’s jota-historia disrupts notions of QTs communities presence in rural spaces, rural spaces as synonymous with white, …

Rotating Along The Borderlands: Contextualizing Border Rurality Among Queer Transfronterizxs College Students, Carlos A. Fitch

Journal of Queer and Trans Studies in Education

Queer Transfronterizx students at rural higher education institutions experience an array of systemic and racialized inequities related to Queerphobia, residential nativism, and immigration challenges. Through a Critical Race Feminista Methodology (CRFM), seven Queer Transfronterizx college students engaged in testimonios and a Queer plática to shed light into the navigation of their rural higher education contexts and lived experiences. The findings note the collaborators’ experience of (1) endangered educational oases, (2) the dual identity isolation pertaining to Queer and Latinx belongings, (3) transborder hypervigilance emerged from border- crossings practices, and (4) a rural border flexibility that provides Queer privileges. Recommendations for …

A Trans Youth’S Encounters With Queerness In Puerto Rico, Gabriel T. Acevedo

Journal of Queer and Trans Studies in Education

This article explores the lived experiences of Pedro, a transgender youth from rural Puerto Rico, to examine how queer and trans identities are negotiated within contexts shaped by colonialism, Catholic traditions, machismo, and rural community life. Drawing on queer theory, Latinx studies, rural education research, and narrative inquiry, the study highlights Pedro’s voice through interviews, self-narratives, and reflections, positioning youth as knowledge creators rather than passive subjects. Findings reveal three interconnected themes: (1) the importance of educational relationships in fostering belonging and dialogue, (2) the disruption of normative expectations around adolescence, queerness, and urban migration, and (3) the expression of …

Introduction: Queering Rural Education, Leia K. Cain, Ty Mcnamee, Darris Means

Journal of Queer and Trans Studies in Education

In this editorial introduction, we situate this dual-journal special issue within the current legislative landscape targeting queer and trans people across North America in rural communities. We describe our collaboration with the editorial teams of the Journal of Research in Rural Education and the Journal of Queer and Trans Studies in Education to illuminate the experiences and perspectives of queer youth and adults in and from rural spaces. We then introduce the articles published in JQTSiE, which are organized into four interrelated themes: (1) Embodied Pedagogies and Spatial Navigation, (2) Institutional Structures and Resistance, (3) Community, Literacy, and Representation, …

Does Sequence Matter? Impact Of Redesigning Sequential Calculus Course On Students’ Learning Outcomes, Chantal Levesque-Bristol Dr., Wonki Lee Dr., Emily M. Bonem, Benjamin C. Wiles, Jennifer D. Moss, Wilella D. Burgess, Weiling Li

International Journal of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education

As colleges and universities increasingly transform their STEM courses through the adoption of more active, student-centered pedagogies, there is a growing need to understand the impact of these educational innovations on student outcomes. This study is conducted in the context of a university-wide faculty development and course redesign project, IMPACT (Instruction Matters, Purdue Academic Course Transformation). IMPACT supports faculty in implementing student-centered pedagogical practices and creating equitable and inclusive learning environments. This study focuses on a sequence of two introductory calculus courses (Calculus 1 and Calculus 2, hereafter CALC 1 and CALC 2) that were transformed as part of the …

Diet: Another Piece Of The Crime Puzzle?, Jerrod Brown, Jeremiah Schimp, Leanne Skehan, Amanda Fenrich, Janina Cich

Nutritional Neurocriminology Today

An expanding body of research suggests that diet and nutrition may play an influential yet underrecognized role in problematic and criminal behaviors. This article synthesizes research linking excessive consumption of sugar and ultra-processed foods to adverse neurobehavioral outcomes, impaired impulse control, aggression, mood dysregulation, and sleep problems. Integrating research suggests that metabolic disruption, neuroinflammation, and gut–brain axis dysfunction may influence cognitive and emotional regulation. While criminal behavior is complex and multifactorial, this article emphasizes nutrition as a modifiable factor to inform forensic mental health practice, correctional policy, and rehabilitative strategies.

The Impact Of Premium Income And Claim Expenses On Property Insurance Underwriting Results, Debrina Vita Ferezagia, Marta Yuniar, Finisha S. Hardanto

Jurnal Administrasi Bisnis Terapan

ABSTRACT

The objective of this study is to examine the influence of premium income and claim expenses on the underwriting outcomes of property insurance. Property insurance is a form of insurance that provides protection for property against potential hazards, including fire, theft, and damage caused by natural catastrophes. The data were analyzed utilizing IBM SPSS Statistics 25. The data indicates that both premium income and claim expenses have a substantial influence on underwriting results. However, it is important to note that only premium income has a substantial influence on underwriting performance, accounting for an effective contribution of 83.3%. The coefficient …

Defining And Evaluating Performative Activism: A Mixed Methods Approach, Caitlyn Renee Upton Massaro

Theses and Dissertations

Activism, specifically Performative Activism (PA), has been difficult to study due to its wide variation and individual complexity. Study 1, a qualitative exploration of PA, involved interviews with 9 individuals, who were highly variable on the ADDRESSING Framework, regarding their experiences with and opinions on PA. Study 1 used Reflexive Thematic Analysis to identify 6 behavioral markers of PA which were used to create a definition of Performative Activism based on the voices and opinions of diverse people in activist spaces. Study 2 was an ABA (test-retest) design using fictional scenarios to train participants to identify PA. Participants were 54 …

Gendered Paths To Cancer Knowledge And Screening Behavior Among Black Adults: Results From A Community-Partnered Study, Carolyn M. Tucker, Guillermo M. Wippold, Kirsten G. Klein, Logan Marcum, Ji-Hyun Lee, Gonghao Liu, Staja Q. Booker, Elliott Leighton, Danielle E. Jake-Schoffman, Adrian S. Taylor, Ron Rawls, Kenyarda T. Feathers, Kevin A. Thorpe, Gwendolyn Saffo, Deborah Johnson

Faculty Publications

Background

Efforts are needed to promote cancer knowledge and the uptake of cancer screening behaviors among Black Americans. Such efforts must be customized for the unique differences in facilitators/barriers among Black men and women. The present study leverages the potential of the UF Health Cancer Institute Community-Partnered Cancer Disparities Research Collaborative (CDRC) to identify the psychosocial and structural factors associated with cancer knowledge and screening behaviors among Black American men and women.

Method

411 Black Americans participated in this cross-sectional study; 75.9% identified as cisgender women and 24.1% as cisgender men.

Results

Older age, higher education and income level were …

Resistance Is Not Futile: Rethinking Ethnicity, Tactics, And Outcomes In Civil Conflicts, Robert Bivens, Ches Thurber

All Faculty Scholarship

Recent studies have questioned whether nonviolent tactics can be effective for ethnic minorities. However, they often overlook multiethnic coalitions, shifts in campaign composition, and ethnicity’s parallel role in armed tactics. This paper reevaluates the relationship between ethnicity, tactics, and outcomesin civil conflicts. To do so,we introducenewdata on ethnic groups in contention that offer time-variant measures of the ethnic attributes of campaigns. We find that the effectiveness of nonviolent tactics for ethnic minorities depends on the point of comparison. Campaigns composed solely of excluded groups succeed less often than those made up entirely of privileged groups. However, minorities have still fared …

Using Westlaw And Lexis: The Many Ways In, Joshua Levine

Library Staff Online Writings

Researching the law depends on finding connections between information. No case or statute exists in a vacuum. The primary advantage of using Westlaw and Lexis is that they point out, on a high level, the connections between individual resources. It is disappointing how often students use natural language search terms or basic AI queries to find all their answers. Within the limitations of class time, it is essential to teach our students as much as possible how pieces of information are connected on these platforms.

For Whom Do Labels Work? Heterogeneous Effects Of Popularity And Environmental Information In Coffee Choice, Dede Long, Joaquín Gómez-Miñambres, Hongxing Liu

ESI Publications

We examine the impact of two common food labels on consumers’ choices: environmental certification and popularity cues. In a randomized experiment, participants chose between two similar coffee products, with treatments varying the presence of environmental and/or popularity information. We also collected measures of conformity preferences, environmental concern, political identity, and demographics. At the aggregate level, the environmental and combined labels significantly increased the selection of the target coffee, whereas popularity information alone had no effect. These averages conceal substantial heterogeneity: high-conformity participants responded to all labels, especially popularity cues, while those with domain-specific environmental concerns responded only to environmental and …

Challenges In Alaskan Rural Pharmaceutical Delivery, Faith Ozer Green, Michael S. Jones

CAEPR Presentations

In remote Alaska, aviation supply chains are critical to maintaining timely flow of food and medicines to communities. We map these supply chains, and present preliminary findings from a pharmaceutical shipment data partnership with a state Tribal Health Organization. Mean and distributional shipment time are presented for communities on versus off the road system, and a multiyear regional map is presented outlining propensity for shipment times over one week. Ongoing work will incorporate multiple additional Tribal Health Organization datasets in a comprehensive econometric framework.

Technology Competition Risk Situation And Response Strategies In China’S Energy Sector Under Great Power Competition, Yong Shi, Shanghua Li, Fei Wu, Kun Guo

Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Chinese Version)

With the advancement of the global energy transition and the intensification of global geopolitical uncertainties, technological competition in the energy sector has become a key area in the great power competition. This study constructs a logical framework for energy technology competition and reveals the new trends in current technological competition in the energy sector. On this basis, this study systematically analyzes the three main types of risks that China faces in energy technology competition and further proposes corresponding countermeasures. China must continuously enhance the core competitiveness and institutional voice over energy technology to achieve the strategic goals of energy security …

Research On Energy Security Governance And Preventive Measures In China Under Century Long Changes, Qiang Ji, Ying Fan, Yu Song

Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Chinese Version)

Against the backdrop of unprecedented changes in a century, multidimensional internal and external risks are intertwined and stacked, and energy security is constantly developing towards diversification, integration, and globalization. Balancing energy security and climate governance under the “dual carbon” goal is bound to encounter many major challenges, and climate issues have become an important part of the energy security concept that cannot be ignored. This study comprehensively analyzes the internal and external multidimensional risks faced by China’s energy security, and elaborates on the new energy security governance system of “one body, two wings, three ends, and four characteristics” from the …

Strategies For Enhancing China’S Energy Resilience: Trade-Offs Between Diversification And Localization, Zhongwei Song, Yu Zhao, Xiang Gao, Jiaofeng Pan

Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Chinese Version)

In recent years, intensified geopolitical conflicts worldwide have increasingly exposed the vulnerabilities of traditional energy security frameworks, necessitating a shift in perspective from “ensuring stable supply” to “building systemic resilience”. This study explores pathways to enhance China’s energy resilience, analyzes how diversification and localization strategies can strengthen national energy security, and reviews related policy practices. Building on this analysis and considering China’s current energy landscape, the study proposes that in the short term, emphasis should be placed on diversifying import sources and routes while strengthening domestic supply assurance. In the medium to long term, it is essential to accelerate the …

Forecast Of China’S Economic Growth Rate In 2026 And Policy Suggestions, Xikang Chen, Cuihong Yang, Kunfu Zhu, Huijuan Wang, Xinru Li, Yu Zhao

Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Chinese Version)

In 2025, China’s economy has shown a steady progress while maintaining stability. The industrial structure continues to be optimized, the new-quality productive forces enjoyed thriving development, people’s wellbeing was effectively ensured. China’s GDP growth rate ranks among the first tier of the world’s major economies. This study reviews the economic performance of China in 2025 and analyzes the domestic and international conditions for the next period. Using a system-based comprehensive factor prediction method, the study forecasts the economic growth rate for 2026, indicating that China’s economy is expected to maintain stable operation, with a growth rate of around 5.0%. This …

Thoughts On Accelerating The Capture Of Technological High Ground For Precise Marine Environmental Assurance, Yuantao Wu, Mingyue Wan, Deke Chen, Danhong Dong, Yao Yu, Miao Chen

Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Chinese Version)

The marine environment serves as a critical foundation for the development, utilization, protection, and governance of the ocean. Marine environmental support holds significant strategic importance for the exploitation of marine resources, ecological and environmental conservation, and the safeguarding of maritime rights and interests. It has become a strategic high ground in the new wave of marine technological innovation and development. This paper reviews the current status of global marine environmental support technologies, with a focus on the establishment and capabilities of the comprehensive “observation–forecasting–application–assessment” precision support technology system for the marine environment developed by the Chinese Academy of Sciences. It …

Frontiers In Ocean Non-Equilibrium Dynamics And Challenges In Operational Oceanography Application, Yuhong Zhang, Yan Du, Tianyu Wang, Minyang Wang, Qin Duan, Xinlong Li, Yuhang Zheng, Yifan Xia, Shilin Tang, Yineng Li, Jianping Yin

Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Chinese Version)

Ocean circulation exhibits complex multiscale dynamics, among which non-equilibrium processes, marked by transient behavior, strong perturbations, and pronounced nonlinearity, are of particular importance for maritime environmental support. However, limited observational capability has long constrained the study of subsurface non-equilibrium dynamics, leaving numerical models insufficiently validated and positioning this issue at the forefront of modern physical oceanography. Artificial intelligence (AI) offers a promising pathway to overcome this bottleneck. Built on this concept, the “iEddy” AI large ocean model can efficiently reconstruct high-resolution, high-accuracy three-dimensional temperature, salinity, and velocity from sea-surface remote sensing data, demonstrating strong capability in capturing non-equilibrium ocean currents …

Current Status And Prospects Of Ocean Data Reanalysis, Chuanyu Liu, Fan Wang

Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Chinese Version)

Ocean data reanalysis (ODR) is a technique that combines ocean observational data with ocean circulation models to produce gridded data with higher accuracy and greater spatiotemporal coverage. The generated reanalysis data serve as a foundational dataset for conducting oceanographic research and developing artificial intelligence-based large ocean models. This study reviews the technical approaches of ODR, the current status of global and regional ocean data reanalysis systems developed in the world, and puts forward recommendations for the development of China's ocean reanalysis system.

Transparent West-Pacific: Frontier Advances In Earth System Science, Lixin Wu, Jiwei Tian, Weidong Sun, Hailong Liu, Tianyu Chen, Zhimian Cao, Zhao Jing

Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Chinese Version)

The West-Pacific hosts a well-developed trench-arc-basin system characterized by intense fluid–solid interactions, making it an ideal region for studying multi-sphere interactions within the Earth system. Research on cross-sphere dynamic processes and material-energy cycles in the West-Pacific not only represents a core frontier in Earth System Science, but also crucial to addressing major strategic needs, such as global climate change response, sustainable use of marine resources, and protection of the deep-sea environment. This article highlights key advances achieved under the Major Program on West-Pacific Earth System Multispheric Interactions (WESPMI), in areas including multi-scale oceanic interactions, cross-sphere material exchange, plate subduction and …