International and Area Studies Commons^™

Arab-Israelis And The Israeli Defense Force, Catherine K. Blakelock

CMC Senior Theses

Arab-Israelis make up a growing portion of Israel's population. While they are legal citizens of the state of Israel they are not held to the same standards as their Jewish-Israeli counterparts. Jewish-Israelis are mandated to serve in the Israeli Defense Force, while the Arab-Israelis are not. Even without conscription a small number of Arab-Israelis choose to serve every year. This paper examines how individual and community identity play into the decision to join the IDF. The key factor in why Arab-Israelis join the IDF stems from putting the love of country over the love of any other community or identity.

The Effectiveness Of Asean Under External Pressure: Cases Of Myanmar's Accession And The South China Sea Disputes, Timothy Rotolo

CMC Senior Theses

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is guided by a collection of principles known as the ASEAN Way, which emphasizes sovereignty and consensus. When external pressures have forced ASEAN to face contentious issues, internal divisions have torn at the group’s cohesion, and consensus has proved difficult to reach. When Myanmar’s military dictatorship was put on the fast track to ASEAN membership in the mid-1990s, democratic Thailand and the Philippines objected, and strong Western pressure to delay Burmese accession put the group in a difficult spot. Fifteen years later, territorial disputes in the South China Sea pitted ASEAN claimant states …

Organized Crime Violence In Mexico, John E. Oliphant

CMC Senior Theses

The following thesis outlines the current social and political situation surrounding organized crime violence in Mexico. Using Samuel P. Huntington’s Political Order in Changing Societies and regression analysis, the purpose is to highlight the lack of subnational data within Mexico. Political science and economic theories guide the reader to better understanding what types of policy change or reform may need to occur in Mexico’s future years.

Fossil Fuel Subsidies: Impacts And Reform Strategies, Jennifer E. Good

CMC Senior Theses

This thesis uses cross-country panel regressions to identify the effects of fossil-fuel subsidies for both oil importers and oil exporters on GDP growth, industry growth, crowding out of government expenditures in education, health, and infrastructure, government debt, carbon dioxide emissions, inequality and poverty. Fossil-fuel subsidies are found to be associated with lower levels of growth and industry growth, less government expenditure on health and education, poorer infrastructure quality, more government debt, and higher rates of carbon dioxide emissions. No relationship is found between fossil fuel subsidies and poverty and inequality. These results confirm the arguments of those that argue that …

Introducing The Stability Theory In Alliance Politics: The Us, Japan, And South Korea, Rachel Cone

CMC Senior Theses

Analyzing the current state of the United States' alliances with both Japan and South Korea underscores the failure of the traditional alliance theory concepts, realism, liberalism, and constructivism, to adequately describe their continuation. Introducing a concept termed the stability theory to alliance theory explains the current trajectories of the US-Japan and US-South Korea alliances. Stability theory is an extension of the conception of the three aforementioned theories and hedging, and is based in part upon the inherent inertia resisting change, in a long-standing alliance. In setting the stage for the introduction of stability theory, the past, present, and future of …

India: Subsidy State Or Developmental State?, Annie Jalota

CMC Senior Theses

India does not fit easily into existing models of thought on the nature of a state and defies ease of understanding. Though India is most often considered to be a subsidy state, I show in this thesis the notion of the subsidy state does not capture the true nature of the Indian state. Chapter two of the paper looks at various models of understanding the nature of the Indian state and draw out three essential features: competing interest groups, how economic liberalization facilitates corruption and works against India’s aim of equalizing the capabilities and freedoms of all its citizens, and …

China's Soft Power Offensive In The United States: Cultural Diplomacy, Media Campaigning, And Congressional Lobbying, Kalika A. Tullock

CMC Senior Theses

As China’s economic and military power develops and expands, it has been focusing recent efforts on upgrading its soft power in order to quell concerns and apprehensions about its rise. As the two most powerful nations in the world, China and the United States have both attached great importance to Sino-U.S. relations, recognizing that the structure of the future global community will be largely dependent upon these two countries effectively collaborating in shaping the global structure and improving global issues. Facing an American public that views China as a threat and competitor, as well as Western media that consistently paints …

Re-Evaluating The American Dream For Low-Wage Chinese Workers In Los Angeles, Priscilla Hsu

CMC Senior Theses

The research in this thesis will look at the lives of a very specific group of Chinese immigrant workers in the restaurant industry, particularly those in the metropolitan city of Los Angeles. While unskilled Chinese workers are popular in the Chinese restaurant business because of the lack of skills required, they are quite mobile between the manufacturing and construction sectors as well. Working conditions are less than ideal for these immigrants, who find that life in America may not be what they expected prior to arrival. Though there are many organizations that seek to improve the lives of immigrants already …

A Thread In Japan’S History: The Historical Journey Of Japanese Christianity To The Brink Of Modern Japan, Rebecca Velker

Senior Honors Theses

A Jesuit missionary named Francis Xavier pioneered the Christian faith in Japan in 1549. Japan was open to the gospel, and many missionaries followed Francis Xavier. Japanese people from a wide range of social standings supported Christianity for a variety of reasons. The Tokugawa government soon viewed Christianity as a threat to the authority of the Japanese government. Japan persecuted the Christians and the Japanese church was driven underground. Over two hundred years later during the Meiji Restoration, Japan altered its policies towards the West and tolerated Christianity in Japan. Despite never being fully welcomed, the Christian belief resonated with …

Governing Through Permanent Campaigning: Media Usage And Press Freedom In Ecuador, Maria J. Flor Agreda

Calvert Undergraduate Research Awards

In Ecuador, media and politics have been historically tied together. Over time, the banking industry has had financial stakes in the media and vice versa. Yet, from the time that President Rafael Correa took office in 2007, the situation has been turned around. Correa has used a permanent campaign to appeal to the public and change the media ownership environment of the country. The President’s strategy has included the acquisition of private media such as newspapers, and radio and television station; as well as the establishment of governmental media entities. Additionally, as part of Correa’s permanent campaign scheme, the president …

The Demand/Withdraw Communication Pattern And The Success Or Failure Of Marriage Where One Partner Is From A Traditionally Non-Confrontational Culture, Marty Ray Rush

Communication & Leadership Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this research is to take foundational theories on demand/withdraw, StellaTing-Toomey’s Face Negotiation Theory, and conflict management, and analyze how these factors impact a relationship when one partner is from a traditionally non-confrontational culture such as Japan, Korea, or the Philippines. Through the use of online surveys and interviews with couples in intercultural relationships, this study seeks to breakdown the successes and failures in exogamous relationships and how the cultural eccentricities can help or hinder marital satisfaction. This research merely scratches the surface of the issue of demand/withdraw, but opens the door to more focused studies dealing with …

Population Pressure And Family Planning In The Case Of Sub Saharan Africa's Demographic Transition, Jessica T. Ysunza

Social Sciences

No abstract provided.

Associative Duties And Immigration, Javier S. Hidalgo

Jepson School of Leadership Studies articles, book chapters and other publications

This paper evaluates an argument for immigration restrictions that appeals to the costs that immigration imposes on the citizens of a recipient state. According to this argument, citizens have associative duties to protect each other’s interests, immigration can damage these interests in certain cases, and the associative duties between compatriots justify immigration restrictions in these cases. Call this: the partiality argument for immigration restrictions. I argue that the partiality argument is unsound. Immigration restrictions violate negative duties to refrain from interfering with people’s liberties and these duties silence compatriots’ associative duties to one another. Furthermore, I argue that compatriots lack …

The Spirit-Mediums Of Singkawang: Performing Peoplehood Of West Kalimantan, Margaret Chan

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Chinese New Year in the West Kalimantan town of Singkawang is marked by a parade featuring hundreds of possessed spirit-mediums performing self-mortification and blood sacrifice. The event is a huge tourist draw, but beyond the spectacle, deeper meanings are enacted. The spirit-medium procession stages a fraternity of Dayak, Malay and Chinese earth gods united in the purpose of exorcising demons from the neighborhood. The self-conscious presentation of the Chinese as brethren among pribumi [sons-of-the-soil] Dayak and Malay, proposes the Chinese as belonging to the ‘peoplehood’ of West Kalimantan.

Sanctions: Where Law And Justice Collide: Kraze Entertainment (S) Pte Ltd V Marina Bay Sands Pte Ltd [2013] Sghc 39, Denise Huiwen Wong

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

This is a cautionary tale for litigation practitioners and their claimant clients. The decision emanates from the High Court of Singapore, but is equally applicable to any jurisdiction in which security for costs can be sought against the claimant in an action. In Singapore, the Rules of Court set out the procedural rules governing all civil proceedings in the High Court and Subordinate Courts. Unlike the Civil Procedure Rules (CPR), the Singapore Rules of Court do not expressly articulate an overriding objective of timely and proportionate justice. However, the courts have consistently prioritised robust case management and “an uncompromising but …

Corporate Social Responsibility As Corporate Soft Law: Mainstreaming Ethical And Responsible Conduct In Corporate Governance, Eugene K. B. Tan

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

This article explores corporate social responsibility ("CSR') as a viable mode of regulation and governance in the corporate arena. A starting premise is that good corporate governance must move resolutely beyond a compliance mindset to one which recognises that effective corporate governance must have an ethical backbone in which the dimensions of responsibility, transparency, and accountability are evident, recognised and supported. Regulatory endeavours and corporate governance reforms in the past decade have increasingly intersected with mainstream CSR motivations. CSR is increasingly inducted and mainstreamed into corporate governance thinking, characterised by the dual perspective ofrisk management and values-driven/principled governance and operations. …

Hong Kong’S New Year’S Resolution: A Single Mediator Accreditation Body, Nadja Alexander

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

In this post on the Kluwer Mediation Blog, the establishment of a single body for accrediting mediators in Hong Kong is discussed.

Is Nigeria's Conflict Ethnic Or Religious?: Resolving The Escalating Conflict In Nigeria, Ejikeme Nonso Alo

Masters Theses

The history and politics in Nigeria have often been characterized and marred with conflict, ranging from political to religious, ethnic and electoral violence. In this study, Edward Azar's Protracted Social Conflict theory which advocates for a multidimensional analysis of conflict was adopted in an attempt to properly understanding the nature and manifestation of the current Boko Haram insurgence in Nigeria. Methodologically, both the qualitative and quantitative methods were deployed. Survey's (questionnaires and evidence from social media) was conducted in the three regions with the aim of comparing and contrasting various perspectives on the root cause of the conflict. While lack …

Policies Of Inequity--A World Apart: A Comparison Of The Policies Toward Indigenous Peoples Of A Post-Colonial Developing Nation To Those Of A Post-Industrial Developed Nation, Caitlain Devereaux Lewis

American Indian Law Review

No abstract provided.

How To Improve Theatre Arts Education In Chinese Higher Educational Institutes, Ji Ding

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

This document is a thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the Master of Arts degree in theatre. Theatre Arts in China is in a state of decline. There are several possible ways to change this situation. This thesis will, through the comparison of Theatre Arts in higher education between China and the US, discuss what good lessons China may draw from the US in order to improve. The improved education of Theatre Arts in Chinese higher educational institutes may then be able to help the decline of Theatre Arts in China.

Secularity, Religion And The Possibilities For Religious Citizenship, Lyn Parker, Chang Yau Hoon

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Scholarly predictions of the secularization of the world have proven premature. We see a heterogeneous world in which religion remains a significant and vital social and political force. This paper reflects critically upon secularization theory in order to see how scholars can productively respond to the, at least partly, religious condition of the world at the beginning of the twenty first century. We note that conventional multiculturalism theory and policy neglects religion, and argue the need for a reconceptualization of understanding of religion and secularity, particularly in a context of multicultural citizenship — such as in Australia and Indonesia. We …

Rosenberg Institute For East Asian Studies At Suffolk University Annual Report For 2012-2013, Rosenberg Institute

Rosenberg Institute Annual Reports

These reports summarize the activities of the Rosenberg Institute during the academic year, including information related to public programming, visiting scholars, cooperation with the Asian Studies program at Suffolk College of Arts & Sciences, promotion of Suffolk's Asia-related activities, community outreach, and funding. Most reports also contain photographs of scholars, staff, and events.

After Assad: Syria’S Post-Conflict Reconstruction, H. M. Roff

Human Rights & Human Welfare

Simon Adams and Condoleezza Rice warn us that with the portended fall of Syria's Bashar al-Assad, the country could witness even more heinous crimes and, potentially, regional political fallout. These worries are not unfounded. However, what seems to be truly missing in their discussions is any mention of post-conflict reconstruction planning. This is unfortunate, as much handwringing is still occurring over "what to do" in Syria, and it will continue until there is a clear vision of what to do after this civil war. Syria's post-conflict reconstruction plan is—or should be—inherently tied to its current operational agenda.

Myths About Syria, James Pattison

Human Rights & Human Welfare

In my contribution, I want to focus on five fallacious claims and arguments that have been presented about the conflict in Syria. (Please note that this piece was written in Dec 2012).

Maximizing Citizenship With Minimal Representation: An Analysis Of Afro-Argentine Civil Society Organizing Strategies, Prisca Suarez

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines the organizing strategies and successes of Afro-Argentine civil society organizations (CSO) in Buenos Aires. I argue that despite low representation, Afro-Argentines have strategically designed their initiatives in ways that draw on national discourses of identity rights and nationalism; and, as well, have used cultural inclusion to influence state actors, creating agency and increasing visibility. Afro-Argentines are a highly understudied population due to the common belief that they do not exist in Argentina as a group. This thesis not only dispels that myth with a history of the long hidden importance of Afro-Argentines contributions to the formation of …

The Role Of Connectedness And Religious Factors On Bullying Participation Among Preadolescents In Puerto Rico, Melissa C. Mercado-Crespo

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Relationships or connections with caring pro-social others (e.g., parents, teachers, school, friends, neighborhood, religion) serve as pro-resilience assets that may enhance children's abilities to cope with bullying. The purpose of this research study was to explore the roles of connectedness and religiosity as potential factors that could enhance resiliency against bullying among preadolescents in Puerto Rico (PR). This doctoral dissertation also addressed several gaps in the children's bullying, resilience and religiosity research literature.

A sample of 426 community-based afterschool program preadolescents (ages 10-12 years old) participated in this exploratory, cross-sectional study, by completing a quantitative questionnaire in paper and pencil …

Negotiating Successfully In Asia, Michael Benoliel

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Cross-cultural negotiations are complex, challenging, and difficult to navigate because much of the Asian culture is unstated, implicit, and internalized in subtle behavioral patterns. It is like an iceberg; more is invisible and less is visible. To understand how the Asian negotiation values and practices are different from those in the West, I describe briefly the Asian cultural roots, highlight the major dimensions that differentiate cultures, explore the factors that influence the Asian negotiation processes and outcomes, and provide a list of practical suggestions for negotiating successful deals with Asian negotiators.

Review On The State Of Sustainability Reporting In Singapore, Soo Chiat Hwang, Teng Aun Khoo, Dan Chi Wong

Research Collection School Of Accountancy

The trend of sustainability reports has increased inexorably as the clamor by various stakeholders including NGOs have been growing louder and louder. Some countries have even made sustainability reporting mandatory. In Singapore only a small percentage of listed companies are voluntary providing sustainability reporting but this number is set to increase in line with the world trend. As sustainability reporting in Singapore will continue to grow this study attempts to address the perceptions of the importance and usefulness of sustainability reporting, the reporting framework and the training needs of both users and preparers to provide such reports. The results from …

Significance Is Bliss: A Global Feminist Analysis Of The Liberian Truth And Reconciliation Commission And Its Privileging Of Americo-Liberian Over Indigenous Liberian Women's Voices, Morgan Lea Eubank

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of my research is to analyze the Liberian Truth and Reconciliation Commission (LTRC) lack of attention towards accessing rural Liberian women's voices as opposed to privileged Liberian women residing in urban and Diaspora spaces. By analyzing the LTRC and its Final Report from a critical global feminist perspective, I was able to not only illuminate, but bring a spotlight over issues including access, privilege, and multicultural insensitivity related to Liberia's indigenous tribal cultures. Liberia, being a country founded by American colonials, is socially constructed by Western ideological norms. As Western ideology is mainly normalized and enforced by the …

Framing Colombian Women's Beliefs, Values And Attitude Towards Sex And Sexual High-Risk Behaviors, Rosa Ore

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Hispanic immigrants constitute the largest and fastest growing groups of minorities in the United States. According to the 2010 Census, there are 50.5 million Hispanics in the United States, making up 16.3% of the total population (Passel, Cohn & Lopez, 2011). Furthermore, the state of Florida is home to 4,223,806 Hispanics (U.S. Census Bureau, 2010). Because the Hispanic population continues to grow, it is important to study their sexual health behaviors because diseases linked to risky sexual behaviors account for approximately 20,000 U.S. deaths each year, and are linked to a number of adverse reproductive outcomes (Abraido-Lanza, Chao, & Florez, …