International and Area Studies Commons^™

The Influences Of The Public Health Care System And Education System On The Economic Growth Of Swaziland, Grace Greer

International and Global Studies Undergraduate Honors Theses

The Kingdom of Eswatini, also known as Swaziland, has one of the youngest populations in the world with over 70% of citizens being under the age of 18 years old. This creates a substantial opportunity for economic, social, and educational growth in a country previously plagued with diseases such as HIV/AIDS, poor health care infrastructure cutting off thousands from basic care, and an educational system with a very low attendance rate and an even lower graduation rate. By evaluating the root causes of such issues dating back to the colonial era there is an opportunity to reprioritize health care and …

Commodification Of Korean Culture In The West: Orientalism In The Era Of Modern Social Media, Samantha Giudice

International and Global Studies Undergraduate Honors Theses

South Korea, hereafter referred to as Korea, lies within the Korean Peninsula. It currently boasts a population of 53 million people residing within 38,724 square miles and a GDP of 1.811 trillion US dollars, making it the 13^th largest economy in the world. Since the Korean War to today Korea has turned into a major economic and cultural epicenter remaining at the center of technological advancements and pop culture production. While the exportation of this pop culture has allowed the economy grow at unprecedented rates, it has also led to less favorable interactions with Korean culture by people all …

El Que No Tranza, No Avanza: Exploring The Lived Experiences Of Mexican American Community College Students On The U.S.-Mexico Border In Becoming Philosophers, Manuela Alejandra Gomez

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this phenomenological study is to explore the lived experiences of seven Mexican American community college philosophy students in their journeys to becoming philosophers in the U.S.-Mexico border, between El Paso, Texas, and Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua, Mexico. Philosophy is one of the least diverse academic fields in the United States (Jones, 2020) and often excludes women and people of color (Alcoff, 2013; Ferrer, 2012; Galea, 2017; Haslanger, 2013 Hutchinson & Jenkins, 2013; Leuschner, 2015; Saul, 2012; Wilson, 2012). Therefore, I examine what it means to be a philosopher to these seven Mexican American students and their processes of …

The Impact Of Rule Of Law And Property Rights On Development And Economic Growth: A Comparative Analysis Of Cameroon And Côte D'Ivoire, Raoul Tayou Tayou

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

The issues of economic growth and development occupy a central place in the studies of underdeveloped or developing countries. Many solutions have been proposed, including foreign aid or institutional reforms. This last aspect is the subject of this research, particularly the rule of law and the property rights.Analyzing what is the impact of these two institutions on economic growth and development is at the center of my dynamic. Over a period from 1960 to 2022, I carry out a comparative study of the growth, and development trajectories of two countries in sub-Saharan Africa, which share the same demographics: Cameroon, and …

The Civil War Conflict Between Anglophones/Francophones In The Northwest And Southwest Regions Of Cameroon, Myriam Jeter

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

The Civil War conflict between Anglophones and Francophones, also known as the Ambazonia war, is a long-standing issue that continues to plague the people living in the Northwest and Southwest regions of Cameroon. This paper explores the colonial history of the nation, the cause of the ongoing conflict, the reasons for its escalation, and how it gave rise to the Ambazonian separatists who want to have a separate nation called the Ambazonia Republic.

This study contributes to conflict understanding in two ways. First, it sheds light on the cultural and economic impacts of internally generated crises in a country. Second, …

Friends Can Help: The Effects Of Relationship In The Chinese Book-Building Process, Ting Luo, Wei Luo, Heng Yue, Lu Zhang

Research Collection School Of Accountancy

Using detailed bidding information in Chinese IPO book-building process, we find that institutional investors who have a close relationship with the underwriter are more likely to participate in bidding and their bidding prices are higher, compared to other institutional investors. We also find that related institutional investors bid higher when the underwriter is more likely to need or receive their support. Further analysis suggests that related institutional investors gain some benefits for their support to the underwriter, including receiving more shares in profitable IPOs, better timing their exit from the IPO in the open market, and receiving more optimistic earnings …

Dissertation On The Impacts Of Floods And Trade War On The Chinese Economy, Fan Zheng

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

In the first chapter of the dissertation, we study the impact of floods on microlevel firm performances in China for the period 2000-2009. Among the first in the literature, we identify the flood exposure directly at the firm level by combining the high-resolution satellite-observed inundation areas with the geocoded firm locations. We find that being hit by a flood is associated with an annual loss to output and productivity of around 6% and 5%, respectively, which persists in the long run. The impacts of floods extend to non-inundated firms in neighborhoods (of 4 kilometres in radius), but the negative effects …

Driving Forces Of Mining Outsourcing: Evidence From China, Bingxu Zheng

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

The outsourcing of services by mining enterprises has become a significant global trend. Classic studies have demonstrated that outsourcing can help enterprises obtain professional services, improving productivity and reducing production costs. However, as a transitional economy, China has its unique characteristics regarding the driving forces of service outsourcing. By employing a case study method, one mining service outsourcing provider, and five mining enterprises' interviews and archival data, this study constructs a theory to identify the driving forces and mechanisms of mining enterprises' choice of service outsourcing and a logic relationship between variables via a diagram.

The case study results reveal …

When Scrolling Turns Into Shopping: How Influencers Advertise To Consumers On Tiktok, Amanda E. Graves

Pell Scholars and Senior Theses

Every marketer wants to reach a larger audience and TikTok has become one of the most popular places for advertisers to sell products. Past research shows that social media can be an effective form of advertising because of influencers who seem more genuine in their reviews. My research expands on this to further develop how TikTok specifically helps these influencers reach their target audience and persuade their purchasing decisions to increase sales. Through careful analysis it was revealed that quick links and short-form advertising are allowing the app to experience a high volume of consumer sales. Understanding TikTok’s success can …

Whose Nation Is It? A Critical Analysis Of The Impacts Of Conservative Nationalism And Migration Security On Marginalized Groups In America, Joshua Jackson

International Studies (MA) Theses

This research aims to examine the effects of migration securitization on marginalized citizens in the United States of America by examining it through a conservative nationalist lens. While the securitization of migration is “the process through which the phenomenon of migration is framed as a threat to the survival of a certain referent object” (von Rosen, 2019, p. 36), the byproduct of that framing extends beyond the initially constructed threat (von Rosen, 2019). The framing of immigration and migrants as a threat to the United States is not a new occurrence and has served to bolster conservative politicians and construct …

Modern Slavery: A Thorough Examination On Human Trafficking Of Indigenous Women And Children In Mexico, Sarah Altuwaijri

International Studies (MA) Theses

Modern-day slavery is an international crime against humanity which affects millions of lives each year. Human trafficking, a form of Modern Slavery, has negative long-lasting implications on trafficked victims and society, particularly vulnerable members such as indigenous women and children. This study examines human trafficking and forced labor in Mexico with a focus on indigenous women and children. It uses a mixed methodology composed of both qualitative and quantitative data. Qualitative data is used to analyze historical materials related to Spanish colonialism in Mexico, while quantitative data is used to measure poverty, numbers of trafficked victims, and to establish the …

A Geospatial Assessment Of Turkey’S Military Campaigns Against The Autonomous Administration Of North And East Syria, Steven Lucas Escalante

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In addition to hosting more Syrian refugees than any other nation, Turkey has played a significant role in the dynamics of the Syrian civil war since 2011 under President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. As the dynamics in the war shifted, so did Ankara’s focus towards the preferred ground forces of the Global Coalition for the fight against the Islamic State, who Ankara views as an extension of the PKK. In turn, this PYD-led de-facto Autonomous Administration has faced multiple Turkish ground invasions since 2016 and a continuing series of aerial attacks. A geospatial assessment of the Turkish-Syrian Democratic Forces border conflict …

Regulating Cryptocurrency Derivatives: A Comparative Analysis Of Approaches In The Uk, The Eu And Singapore, Rachel Phang

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

Cryptocurrency derivatives have been attracting growing retail and institutional interest, raising the increasingly pertinent question of how such products should be regulated. This paper assesses different regulatory approaches in the United Kingdom, the European Union and Singapore, and considers what insights these might provide for the regulation of cryptocurrency derivatives generally.

Monoracials’ Perceptions Of Biracials In Singapore, Sheila Xi Rui Wee, Chi-Ying Cheng

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Objectives: Drawing on social identity theory, present research examined the effects of overlapping racial membership on monoracials’ categorization of biracials as in-/out-group members, as well as its impact on monoracials’ social perceptions of biracials in Singapore. Within Singapore, it is hypothesized that biracials who share racial membership with monoracials would be rated more as monoracials’ racial in-group and be evaluated more positively. Furthermore, monoracials’ positive perceptions of biracials with (vs. without) shared racial membership would be less influenced by biracials’ confrontation of racial prejudice. Method: Studies 1 (N = 242) and 2 (N = 153) sampled Chinese Singaporeans to assess …

Economic Forecasting In A Pandemic: Some Evidence From Singapore, Hwee Kwan Chow-Tan, Keen Meng Choy

Research Collection School Of Economics

This paper aims to investigate whether the predictive performance and behaviour of professional forecasters are different during the COVID-19 pandemic as compared with the global financial crisis of 2008 and normal times. To this end, we use a survey of professional forecasters in Singapore collated by the central bank to analyse the forecasting records for GDP growth and CPI inflation for the period 2000Q1–2021Q4. We first examine the point forecasts to document the extent of forecast failure duringthe two crises and explore various explanations for it, such as leader-following and herding behaviour. Then, using percentile-based summary measures of probability distribution …

Teaching In The Right Context: Textbook Supply Program, Language, And Vocabulary Ability In Vietnam, Tomoki Fujii, Maki Nakajima, Sijia Xu

Research Collection School Of Economics

An ethnic gap in education is prevalent around the world. This remains the case in Vietnam, a country that has achieved phenomenal economic growth and raised the educational attainment of the public. This paper examines the impact of language policy reorientation represented by the textbook supply program in Vietnam on the ethnic gap in children's learning measured by a vocabulary test. Applying difference-in-differences estimation to the Young Lives data between 2006 and 2015, we show that the program became more effective in narrowing the ethnic gap as the education policy became reoriented toward ethnic minority children. A causal mediation analysis …

Resale Hdb Price Prediction Considering Covid-19 Through Sentiment Analysis, Srinaath Anbu Durai, Zhaoxia Wang

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Twitter sentiment has been used as a predictor to predict price values or trends in both the stock market and housing market. The pioneering works in this stream of research drew upon works in behavioural economics to show that sentiment or emotions impact economic decisions. Latest works in this stream focus on the algorithm used as opposed to the data used. A literature review of works in this stream through the lens of data used shows that there is a paucity of work that considers the impact of sentiments caused due to an external factor on either the stock or …

Ethnicity, Nationalism, And Football: Exploring The Construction Of Ethnic Identities And Their Manifestations For Athletic Club Bilbao And Celtic Football Club, Kelly Wetherton

Honors Theses

This thesis centers on the construction of ethnic identities for fans of Athletic Club and Celtic F.C. and the two clubs’ roles in evincing nationalism. Utilizing survey data from an online, anonymous survey posted to fan forums, the research aimed to determine which of the three leading theories of ethnicity—primordialism, instrumentalism, or social constructivism—was most applicable to the formation of identities for Basque Athletic Club fans and Irish Celtic fans. The results demonstrated that the theory of social constructivism most closely aligns with the case of Basque Athletic Club fans while the identities of Irish Celtic fans can best be …

What Explains The Behavior Of Chinese Companies In Africa? Exploring The Nature Of African Agency In Focac Platforms And On The Ground, Woldemedhin N. Aklilu

Graduate Doctoral Dissertations

What explains the nature of environmental cooperation and the environmental behavior of Chinese companies in Africa? Have African actors been oblivious and agnostic whilst Chinese actors are driving and dominating the space? The research endeavored to address these questions by conducting three studies. The first study explored negative impacts of Chinese engagements in Africa, and how African and Chinese actors have responded to it. The second study examined the nature of environmental cooperation under the FOCAC framework and whether FOCAC has been used to shape environmental behavior of Chinese companies. The final case study examined the role and nature of …

Argentine Women’S Narratives Of Leadership, Ileana Andrea Mocciola

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The present study investigated and examined the narratives of Argentine women leaders while obtaining and exercising leadership positions. This research was based on narrative theory and the feminist standpoint theory. Argentine female participants (N = 10) were subject to interviews that overall lasted 600 minutes and were conducted through the Zoom platform. Fifty-five pages of single-spaced transcripts were analyzed and studied. The results of this study revealed that Argentine women face major challenges when it comes to tokenism, exclusion, mentorship, and stereotypes that prevent and limit them from reaching and succeeding in leadership positions.

Rethinking Asia-Pacific Regionalism And New Economic Agreements, Julien Chaisse, Pasha L. Hsieh

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

The neoliberal international order is facing a variety of pressing obstacles. One of the most contentious issues is the emergence of new Asian regionalism, which has been driven by the rising economic power of the region and integration based on the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Plus Six framework. The legalization of the ASEAN way has propelled the New Regional Economic Order (NREO), which reinforces a trade-development nexus alternative to the Washington Consensus and will have far-reaching normative, economic, and geopolitical effects on the world. Given the proliferation of trade and investment initiatives including the ASEAN Economic Community and …

U.S.-China Trade War: Phase One Agreement And Self-Enforcing Contracts, Hameedullah Hassani

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

Sino-American bilateral trade relations have increased significantly in the past four decades since China started its economic reforms in 1978. The bilateral expansion in trade has been accompanied by increased complexity and tensions, which emerged in the form of a trade war during the President Trump administration. After a series of tit-for-tat tariff increases, in an attempt to address concerns through negotiations, both sides reached a Phase One agreement. However, the commitments made in the agreement were not delivered. In my thesis, I use the “self-enforcing contracts” theory to analyze the status of Phase One deal. The examination indicates that …

Attitudes Of Ethnic Minorities Towards National Defense And Security In The Triadic Nexus: The Case Of Russian-Speakers In Estonia, Nikita Lumijoe

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

The contested loyalty of ethnic minorities between the host nation and ethnocultural homeland can play a significant role in the formation of geopolitical tensions as well as civil and ethnic-based conflicts. When the ethnocultural homeland of an ethnic minority increases the scale of intervention into the inner affairs of the host countries using hybrid, cognitive and even military wise, the attitudes of ethnic minorities towards national security and defense policy become a strategic asset for both sides.

In 2014, pro-Russian separatism in Ukraine focused the attention of the international community to the political attitudes of Russian-speaking ethnic minorities in Eastern …

Tort Law, Amirthalingam Kumaralingam, Gary Kok Yew Chan

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

No abstract provided.

An Example Of Cle Pedagogy From The Singapore Management University, Wing Cheong Chan, Yen Kee Ruby Lee

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

This session will showcase a course taught at the Singapore Management University where students were tasked to design aone stop online resource portal to help litigants-in-person, caregivers and family members to navigate legal issues related tothe ageing process. During the course, the students not only met with various community partners providing services to theelderly to find out what services were required but also the elderly to find out their positive and negative online experiences.The students were sensitized to the needs of the community, learnt the law through independent research, assessed theusefulness of existing legal resources available, and learnt the importance …

Inflation Dynamics And Expectations In Singapore, Hwee Kwan Chow-Tan

Research Collection School Of Economics

Inflation dynamics in Singapore have primarily been shaped by foreign factors, including global inflationary pressures and external macroeconomic shocks. More recently, the normalisation phase of the Covid-19 pandemic crisis has led to domestic price pressures from pent-up demand and supply-chain disruptions. Meanwhile, the war in Ukraine has resulted in a hike in the global prices of food, energy, and industrial commodities. Using inflation forecasts from the MAS Survey of Professional Forecasters as our measure of inflation expectations, we show that short-term inflation expectations have shifted up recently. Moreover, greater disagreement amongst survey respondents in the more recent surveys suggests individual …

The Distributional Impacts Of Transportation Networks In China, Lin Ma, Tang Yang

Research Collection School Of Economics

This paper evaluates the distributional impacts of transportation networks in China. We show that the quality of roads and railroads vary substantially over time and space, and ignoring these variations biases the estimates of travel time. To account for quality differences, we construct a new panel dataset and approximate quality using the design speed of roads and railroads that varies by vintage, class, and terrain at the pixel level. We then build a dynamic spatial general equilibrium model that allows for multiple modes and routes of transportation and forward-looking migration decision. We find aggregate welfare gain and less spatial income …

Asset-Rich And Cash-Poor: Which Older Adults Value Reverse Mortgages?, Joelle H. Fong, Olivia S. Mitchell, Benedict S. K. Koh

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Home equity represents a substantial share of retirement wealth for many older persons, particularly in Asia where national housing policies have encouraged home-ownership. This paper explored the potential for reverse mortgages to help 'asset-rich and cash-poor' older Singaporeans unlock their home equity while ageing in place. The empirical analysis was based on a nationally representative survey of home-owners age 50+ in the 2018 Singapore Life Panel (N = 6,258). Our analyses showed that the average older home-owner holds some 60 per cent of total net wealth in housing equity, suggestive of high demand potential for reverse mortgage products. Nevertheless, actual …

The Unheard Voices Of Al-Intifadah Al-Shabaaniyah: An Exploration Of The 1991 Uprising And America’S Betrayal Through The Testimonies Of Iraqi Participants Residing In America, Zainab Alhussainy

Honors College Theses

This thesis delves into the often-overlooked 1991 uprising in Iraq, a significant early instance of resistance against Middle Eastern dictatorship. Rooted in the experiences shared within Michigan's Iraqi community. Focusing on southern Iraq, the thesis investigates the catalysts and mechanisms that enabled oppressed individuals under Saddam Hussein's Ba’athist regime to unite and rebel. Through extensive oral history methodologies, this research engages with diverse survivors—mothers, youth, and children—across various southern Iraqi cities. Their narratives unveil the hardships endured before, during, and after the rebellion.

Remarkably, despite oppressive conditions and violent impediments, the southern Iraqi populace achieved a formidable mass uprising. This …

The Soviet Union's Foreign Policy In The Balkans During The First Years Of The Cold War (1945-1960), Elio Zhilla

Honors College Theses

This paper will examine how Russia’s foreign policy politically, economically, and culturally affected all of the nations in the Balkan region during the first years of the Cold War. I will further look into the differences and similarities between Russia’s interests and geopolitics in the context of the different disagreements in the region of the Balkans that concerned the Soviet Union, such as the Balkan Pact (1953), the Cyprus Agreement (1960) or the Warsaw Pact (1955), which will be discussed later. The focus will be on how the different leaders of the Soviet Union (Joseph Stalin and Nikita Khrushchev) changed …