Political Science Commons^™

Self-Determination In American Discourse: The Supreme Court’S Historical Indoctrination Of Free Speech And Expression, Jarred Williams

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

Within the American criminal legal system, it is a well-established practice to presume the innocence of those charged with criminal offenses unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. Such a judicial framework-like approach, called a legal maxim, is utilized in order to ensure that the law is applied and interpreted in ways that legislative bodies originally intended.

The central aim of this piece in relation to the First Amendment of the United States Constitution is to investigate whether the Supreme Court of the United States has utilized a specific legal maxim within cases that dispute government speech or expression regulation. …

Offensive Cyber Operations: An Examination Of Their Revolutionary Capabilities, Madelyn Wardle

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

Since the cyber realm has become a prevalent area in society, states have been developing ways to use this realm to their advantage. Popular literature asserts that cyber attacks are equalizing, frequently-occurring events that make them “revolutionary” tools of warfare; however, this study hypothesizes that cyber operations are not as revolutionary as the literature asserts. This study examines the revolutionary capabilities of offensive cyber operations by studying documented cases of state-sponsored offensive cyber operations from 2005-2019. By utilizing statistical methods, first the paper examines the documented cases and analyzes which states conduct most of these operations. Then, the paper will …

U.S. Government And Politics In Principle And Practice: Democracy, Rights, Freedoms And Empire, Samuel Finesurrey, Gary Greaves

Open Educational Resources

This book is written for students early in college to provide a guide to the founding documents and structures of governance that form the United States political system. This book is called American Government and Politics in Principle and Practice because you will notice that what has been inscribed in law has not always been applied in practice-particularly for indigenous peoples, enslaved peoples, people of color, women, LGBTQIA+, people with disabilities, those formerly incarcerated, immigrants and the working class within U.S. society. In designing this book, we have two goals. First, we want you to know what the founding documents …

Batman Saves The Congo: How Celebrities Disrupt The Politics Of Development, Alexandra Cosima Budabin, Lisa Ann Richey

Books and Book Chapters by University of Dayton Faculty

How celebrity strategic partnerships are disrupting humanitarian space: Can a celebrity be a "disrupter," promoting strategic partnerships to foster ideas and funding to revitalize the development field, or are they just charismatic ambassadors for big business? Examining the role of the rich and famous in development and humanitarianism, this book argues that celebrities do both, and that understanding why and how yields insight into the realities of neoliberal development.

Contents:

• Introduction
• Chapter 1. Celebrity, Disruption and Neoliberal Development
• Chapter 2. Narrating the Congo: Dangerous Single Stories and the Organizations that Need Them
• Chapter 3. Choosing the Congo: How a Celebrity …

Clinging To Power: Authoritarian Leaders And Coercive Effectiveness, Christian J. Wolfe

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This study identifies three tactics authoritarian leaders use to attempt to effectively coerce their citizens without losing power: 1) performance legitimacy, 2) nationalist legitimacy, and 3) institutional legitimacy. To demonstrate these tactics of what I call “coercive effectiveness,” the author employs a most-different-systems analysis on the regimes of Xi Jinping (2012 2015) and Bashar al-Assad (2000-2004). The author finds that coercion is more likely to be effective under the following conditions: 1) when leaders use economic performance and institutionalist strategies rather than nationalist tactics, 2) when an authoritarian leader climbs the ladder to power rather than inheriting leadership and 3) …

The State And Cannabis : What Is Success? A Comparative Analysis Of Cannabis Policy In The United States Of America, Uruguay, And Canada, Gideon C. Cunningham

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Globally, the policies that states engage in concerning the cultivation, production, distribution, and sale of recreational cannabis in the 21st century is changing rapidly. Three countries have now legalized, regulated, and implemented recreational cannabis frameworks, albeit in starkly different ways. These countries are The United States of America, Uruguay, and Canada. This research identifies the contradictory nature of cannabis policy goals and compares the similarities and differences of each countries’ recreational cannabis framework. It proposes a theory of understanding the contradictory nature of creating cannabis policies post-legalization and presents a framework from which to analyze the success of individual cannabis …

Exploitation And Domination: A Marxist Analysis Of The Impact Of Class Structure On State Terrorism, Joseph J. Hammons

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This study qualitatively examines the impact of three socio-economic inequalities on state terrorism: (1) income inequality; (2) unequal collective labor rights; and (3) land inequality. It proposes a theory of class structure and state terrorism based on the Marxist theory of exploitation and domination and uses Marxist class analysis in the comparison of two case studies, Brazil (1985-1990) and the Philippines (1986-1992), to determine which of the three socio-economic inequalities is most likely to lead to class struggle that will prompt the state to respond with terrorism. Findings from this study indicate that issues concerning land inequality may be a …

A Model Of Regime Change: The Impact Of Arab Spring Throughout The Middle East And North Africa, Omar Khalfan Bizuru

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This study examined the catalysts for social movements around the globe; specifically, why and how the Arab Spring uprisings led to regime change in Tunisia, why they transformed into civil war in some countries of the Middle East and North Africa (Syria), and why they did not lead to significant change at all in other places (Bahrain). The overall results of the study confirmed that political and socio-economic grievances caused the Arab uprisings in Tunisia, Bahrain, and Syria. Tunisian protesters succeeded in regime change because of a united and structured social movement leading to an effective transitional democracy in the …

China’S Legal Environment For Domestic Ngos: Standardized Policies For Greater Party-State Control Over Civil Society, Kelly E. Tursic

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This thesis examines one angle of state-society relations in authoritarian states through the lens of Chinese nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and their legal environment. While grassroots organizations have not prompted political liberalization in China, they have not been entirely co-opted by the party-state either. Through an examination of policy changes, a study of 120 organizations, and a case study of a non-profit incubator, this thesis explores whether the political environment for China’s domestic NGOs varies by geographic region and issue area. The findings suggest there is not significant variation as the party-state has implemented standardized policies for increased control over civil …

The Nana Yaa Asantewaa War: Analysis Of The Political Institutions Of The Asante During The War Of The Golden Stool And The Existing Narratives, Angela Danso Gyane

Senior Independent Study Theses

The War of the Golden Stool was the last in the Anglo-Asante Wars, where the Asante fought against the British colonial agenda. According to the Asante oral history, Nana Yaa Asantewaa was at the forefront of this war. She was the commander, but most of the literature to not reflect this oral history. Therefore, this study seeks to address two essential questions: how did gender dynamics in the Asante Kingdom's political system shape their Resistance against the British in 1900- 01? Moreover, how does the analysis of oral histories from the matrilineal culture of the Asante decenter Western narratives of …

Emotions And Opinions: The Causes And Effects Of Contemporary Populism, Hunter Driggers

Masters Theses

Populism has experienced a global resurgence. Yet at the individual level, little empirical research has been conducted to validate theories surrounding this phenomenon, including claims that anger is necessary to trigger populist sentiment and that contemporary populists have a strongly negative perception of society. I conduct a novel survey experiment on US adults (n = 488) that induces anger among various groups and measures populist sentiment as well as opinions on domestic society and the global commons. I perform this examination by first comparing control and treatment groups, ascertaining anger’s impact on populist sentiment while accounting for preexisting anger and …

Foreign Election Interference And Hybrid Warfare, Jonathan Davies

Senior Independent Study Theses

Election interference has long been a tool of foreign policy available to state actors but has recently risen in prominence as a result of Russia’s efforts to influence the 2016 presidential election in the United States. Although much has been written about election interference, most existing scholarship focuses on its use to promote a certain candidate or party. Hybrid warfare theory, which posits that modern conflict is increasingly characterized by the coordinated use of a wide range of tactics, provides a powerful alternative framework for understanding election interference. This Independent Study considers election interference through the lens of hybrid warfare …

A Case Of Mistaken (Ethnic) Identity: Rethinking Civil War Duration, Ethnic Saliency, Terrorism, And The Real Factors Discouraging Resolution, Angie Bittar

Senior Independent Study Theses

The field of political violence has consistently emphasized understanding the way that civil wars end, with less emphasis placed on the circumstances which elicit extended civil war duration. This analysis shifts the focus of study on to the internal factors of civil war, following the question: What are the domestic factors of civil war that cause some wars to be more durable and resistant to resolution than others? Building off of several prominent theories within the field of political violence and the anthropological study of ethnic saliency, I hypothesize that civil wars that are characterized as identity based will be …

What Causes Participation In International Non-Governmental Organizations?, Sophia Mann

Honors Program Theses and Projects

Participation in non-governmental organizations allows individuals to volunteer their time in the name of service. Public participation in non-governmental organizations can be garnered from all corners of the globe and regions of the world for various indirect reasons. There is a focus in this study on humanitarian and human right organizations.

For Life Or Choice: Abortion Views In America, Alyssa C. Ritchie

Student Publications

Abortion is one of the most controversial political topics in the United States of America at any point in time. In an election year, it is even more so. Countless Americans choose who to vote for based on whether or not the politician is pro-life or pro-choice. But why do some Americans vote pro-choice or pro-life? What variables affect their beliefs on abortion and how strong are those variables in relation to others? This paper dives into the ways in which education and religion affect abortion opinions and researches the strength of those variables in relation to one another. In …

Does Poverty Rate Increase Terrorism In A Country?: An Analysis From 1970-2019 ★, Sarah E. Distefano, Matthew Placek

University of South Carolina Upstate Student Research Journal

While terrorism has been a constant product of society, its determinants have been sporadic at best and inconclusive at worst. With the scientific community failing to arrive at a common consensus in reference to poverty as defined by GDP per capita, I hope to find a concrete conclusion by taking a different approach and examining the relationship between poverty rate and terrorism. In order to define the impact of poverty rate on terrorism, I utilized the Quality of Government Index Standard Time Series Dataset and the Global Terrorism Database. Further analysis was conducted by performing an OLS regression on the …

Understanding Sovereignty And The Us Constitution: A View From The Massachusetts And Virginia State Ratifying Conventions, Hannah Novotny

Honors Program Theses and Projects

Eighteenth-century American politics does more than simply provide us with the US Constitution. According to Gordon Wood (1991, 32), the stakes of eighteenth-century historical arguments are very high, as they deal with “nothing less than the kind of society we have been, or ought to become.” Barry Shain (1994, xiv) concurs with Wood, arguing that an understanding of the American founding “defines how Americans understand themselves as a historical people, as well as constraining what they might become.” As Wood and Shain indicate, an understanding of eighteenth-century American political thought shapes how we understand our past and informs the decisions …

Putting The Pieces Together: Ideology Beyond Policy, Natalia Quevedo De La Espriella

The Review: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Research

Ideological differences exist far beyond policy preferences. Our ideologies are built from much more intrinsic building blocks, and as such the effects of this are seen far outside of what is generally considered the political realm of existence. When explaining these ideologies we must look past the policy preferences and more into the base parts of what makes people who they are. Liberals and conservatives differ on important measures, and these differences between us have a deeper root than most see. Morality, motivations, and personality all combine to form the expression of ideology. This paper explores these three aspects of …

The Working Class Pandemic In The Us, Robert Ovetz

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

No abstract provided.

Chinese Nationalism And The South China Sea, Jordan M. Sandy

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What role do domestic audiences play in authoritarian policy making? This study examines the relationship between newspapers and assertive foreign policy. Specifically, this study conducts content analyses of state-published newspapers during periods of unprecedented assertiveness in the South China Sea. Borrowing from Galtung’s theory of peace journalism, this study analyzes valence patterns used in 99 separate articles published in Xinhua, China Daily, People’s Daily, and Global Times. Additionally, this study examines the visibility of these articles, to better understand their prominence in national coverage. This study discusses nationalism in the case of China, as well as the overwhelming control that …

The Role Of Language Education In Peacebuilding: The Case Of Cyprus, Maya Hunter

Undergraduate Honors Theses

No abstract provided.

Game Of Survival: External Actors' Support For Separatists, Joshua C. Underwood

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This research develops a novel model for external actors’ support for separatists.Three variables measuring external actors’ support are identified through two case studies, Kosovo Liberation Army and Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, with an emphasis on Military Aid’s impact. The variables are then applied to a quantitative analysis of external actors’ support in a dataset of 75 observations during the years 1991-2020, utilizing the Uppsala Conflict Data Program External Support Dataset. The findings for this research show that Military Aid and Moral Support improve the probability of survival for a separatist group. A deeper analysis reveals that military aid among …

Targeting The Minority: A New Theory Of Diversionary Violence, Nathaniel M. Arnold

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This research develops a novel theory for domestic diversionary violence, contending that the main drivers for this type of conflict are the specific characteristics of state-targeted domestic minority groups. Seven new variables measuring minority group characteristics are identified through a case study of the Kurdish minority in the Turkish Republic, then applied to a quantitative analysis of domestic diversionary violence in a dataset of 284 observations across 117 countries during the years 2004-2005, utilizing data from the University of Maryland’s Minorities at Risk Project, the University of Illinois Cline Center SPEED Database, and World Bank. A proportional odds logistic regression …

How Does Relative Deprivation Cause People To Condone Political Violence? A Case Study Of Bangladesh, Md Mamunur Rashid

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How does relative deprivation cause people to condone political violence? This thesis investigates this question by utilizing survey data conducted in Bangladesh. Scarcity of public resources, lethal political confrontation and poor resource allocation make Bangladesh a fertile ground for violence. Although the survey suggests a relationship exists between relative deprivation and the public attitude toward condoning political violence, the regression analysis reveals that the relationship is imprecise. Small sample size, lack of technical capacity, and limited applicability of the foundational theory may have caused this imprecise outcome. The study concludes by providing recommendations for future research to undertake a mixed …

Mother Nature And Menvironmental Politics: Analyzing How Gendered Frames Affect Support For The Clean Air Act, Grace Montgomery

Senior Independent Study Theses

While environmental issues are becoming more significant and frequent, concern for the environment varies. Research has shown a gender gap in environmental concern, particularly in that males see helping the environment as compromising their masculinity (Brough et al. 2016, 568). My I.S. examines whether and how gendered frames shape public support for the United States’ environmental air pollution policy, the Clean Air Act. In order to connect an issue to a frame, an individual will draw upon a relevant schema and apply elements from that schema in order to understand the issue. Gender is an accessible schema that strongly shapes …

How Minority Candidates' Intersectional Identities Affect Their Use Of Race And Gender Issue Ownership Campaign Strategies, Mary ("Emma") M. Cotter

Senior Independent Study Theses

This Independent Study explores the ways in which a candidate’s intersectional identity affects their use of gender and race issue ownership techniques in their political campaigns. While prior research has studied the campaign strategies of (white) female candidates and black (male) candidates, it has not studied the effects of possessing multiple minority identities on the campaign strategies employed by black female candidates. Scholars have found that female candidates benefit from embracing gender issue ownership in their campaigns, while black candidates benefit from rejecting race issue ownership in their campaigns. I theorize that black female candidates’ intersectional identities preclude them from …

Arguing Over America's Best Idea: Examining The Congressional Partisan Divide With Regards To Public Lands Policy, Anna Medema

Senior Independent Study Theses

This Independent Study investigates the effect of political party on Congressional roll-call votes on public lands policies and how this effect changes over time. Many scholars have documented the role that political party plays in influencing roll-call voting behavior, but this study fills a gap with regards to public lands policy specifically. I argue that, over time, political party has become more predictive of whether or not a member of Congress will vote in favor of public lands policies. The results of my study show that, beginning around the 1990s, Senators began to divide along party lines on public lands …

Human Rights? What A Good Idea! From Universal Jurisdiction To Crime Prevention, Daniel Feierstein

Genocide Studies and Prevention: An International Journal

Over the last decades, Genocide Studies has entered in a “comfort zone.” With fellowships and support from governments or NGOs, we have developed a very comfortable environment in which the knowledge we produce about genocide prevention is neither critical nor useful. We have become trapped by assumptions we have never checked against reality and many of us have chosen to work inside the circle of those assumptions: genocide and mass violence are horrible acts committed by horrible people; we cannot stand by and do nothing; we have the responsibility to protect civilian populations and that responsibility takes the form, as …

Book Review: To Swim With Crocodiles: Land, Violence, And Belonging In South Africa, 1800-1996 By Jill E. Kelly. East Lansing, Mi: Michigan State University Press, 2018, Pp. 396. $49.95 (Pbk)., Robin L. Turner

Scholarship and Professional Work - LAS

This is a Review of To Swim with Crocodiles: land, violence, and belonging in South Africa, 1800–1996 by Jill E. Kelly. East Lansing, MI: Michigan State University Press, 2018. Pp. 396. $49.95 (pbk). Originally published in The Journal of Modern African Studies.

Exiting The Fragility Trap : Rethinking Our Approach To The World’S Most Fragile States, David Carment, Yiagadeesen Samy

Ohio University Press Open Access Books

State fragility is a much-debated yet underinvestigated concept in the development and international security worlds. Based on years of research as part of the Country Indicators for Foreign Policy project at Carleton University, Exiting the Fragility Trap marks a major step toward remedying the lack of research into the so-called fragility trap. In examining the nature and dynamics of state transitions in fragile contexts, with a special emphasis on states that are trapped in fragility, David Carment and Yiagadeesen Samy ask three questions: Why do some states remain stuck in a fragility trap? What lessons can we learn from those …