Political Science Commons^™

Freedom 50: Leading The World In Rights And Liberties, Erica Jensen

Journal of Nonprofit Innovation

No abstract provided.

A Call For Change: Supporting Children With Tourette Syndrome, Matt Reall

Journal of Nonprofit Innovation

Tourette Syndrome affects 1 in 100 U.S. children but remains widely misunderstood due to stigma, delayed diagnosis, and media misrepresentation. This neurological disorder is characterized by involuntary tics and often co-occurs with ADHD, anxiety, and sleep disorders. Children with Tourette Syndrome face disproportionate challenges in social, academic, and emotional settings—despite having average or above-average intelligence. One-third engage in self-harm, and suicide rates are four times the national average. Peer-education programs like the Tourette Association of America’s Youth Ambassador initiative have shown promise in reducing stigma, but unequal access and weak institutional support limit their impact. This paper calls for early …

Living Heritage, Resilience And Ethically Informed Infrastructures In Malawi, Martha B. Lerski, Frank Puluputu Mwale

Publications and Research

Rooted in a rural community’s needs, this paper explores how historically, and ethically informed infrastructures can support community engagement towards identification, documentation, and dissemination of local, traditional, and indigenous knowledge relating to climate change. The paper examines climate adaptation and sustainability issues through the lenses of community organizing and Library & Information Science best practices. It draws on a growing body of literature identifying a role for expanded epistemological and subject discipline perspectives. While the impacts of climate on material culture are increasingly recognized, intangible, and biocultural heritage have not received as much attention. Living heritage traditions and knowledge systems …

Bench Strength: How Powerful Are Supreme Courts In Common Law Countries Really?, Nilesh Sinha

Dissertations - ALL

This thesis examines the extent of judicial power exercised by the top constitutional courts in common law countries, using judicial review as a proxy for this power. I analyze three apex constitutional courts—the supreme courts of the United States, India, and Canada—as they all engage in strong-form judicial review and have been referred to at different times by various scholars as “the most powerful court in the world.” To frame my analysis, I explore how these courts have evolved in power throughout their histories. I employ comparative historical analysis (CHA) and construct a typology that accounts for how these courts, …

Academic Summaries (Human Rights Violations Issue), Erica Jensen

Journal of Nonprofit Innovation

No abstract provided.

The Political Philosophy Of Habitude: Conservatism Analytically Explained, Kyle S. Hodge

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Conservatism is both undertheorized and poorly understood in philosophical political theory; all extant theories have proven deficient. They either conflate what is contingently associated with conservatism with its essence, draw mistaken generalizations from apparently conservative behavior, or else are explanatorily incomplete.

To avoid these deficiencies, I develop a rigorous, theory-neutral groundwork for evaluating theories of conservatism. This groundwork utilizes both traditional methods of analytic philosophy and, for the first time in the field, historiometry. Philosophical analysis determines the formal requirements of a successful explanation while empirical, historiometric data determines the most salient conservative exemplars whom any such theory must explain. …

America First: Make Nato Great Again, Matthew Thomas Becker

Faculty and Student Publications

This guest editorial appeared in multiple venues:

1. The Clarion Ledger (online: 7/8/2025, print: 7/13/2025)
2. The Commercial Dispatch (6/26/2025)
3. Hattiesburg American (7/8/2025)
4. Magnolia Tribune (7/1/2025)
5. USA Today (7/8/2025)
6. Press Reader (7/13/2025)

Digital Resistance And The Political Economy Of Authoritarian Decline And Economic Liberalization In Ethiopia, Anaol Dalle

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation aims to examine the impact increased consumption of digital technologies, like social media and the internet, has on the stability and autonomy of low-capacity authoritarian countries. By using Ethiopia (2015-2021) as a case study, the dissertation argues that the sudden adoption and proliferation of digital platforms serves as an exogenous shock that pushes the state into a critical juncture that unravels institutional equilibria and transforms domestic incentive structures and institutions. This creates a power vacuum, which triggers a period of intense, and often violent, competition between elite groups, significantly destabilizing the state. In the absence of a cohesive …

Director, Military Cyber Institute, Joseph Schafer

Military Cyber Affairs

No abstract provided.

Throughput Of Ascon Compared With Popular Iot Encryption Algorithms, Mitchel R. Harvey (Ryan), Andrew M. Kaiser, Garrett W. Hoiness

Military Cyber Affairs

No abstract provided.

Anomaly Detection Of Network Layer Attacks Against Cyber Physical Systems Using Machine Learning And Deep Learning Techniques, James Alger, Michael Tu

Military Cyber Affairs

This research paper presents the analysis of using machine learning and deep learning algorithms on detecting anomalous network traffic in Cyber-Physical Systems (CPS). Using a real PLC CPS-based system, normal and anomalous network traffic will be captured using Wireshark. The research analyzes a DDoS attack. The focus of the research is to identify the most effective feature combinations and evaluate them on ML and DL models. The emphasis is on enhancing detection strategies rather than exploiting device vulnerabilities. The detection of network attacks often involves handling a vast array of high-level features. Previous studies (Li & Chasaki, 2022) apply machine …

Characterizing Caldera’S Cyber Attack Emulation Capabilities, Caleb Chang, Matthew Cao, Kenyou Teoh, Ekzhin Ear, Shouhuai Xu

Military Cyber Affairs

Autonomous cyber attack emulation can aid cyber defenders to identify and remediate cyber risks. MITRE’s Caldera software is the state-of-the-practice for automated attack emulation. Yet, it has not been systematically analyzed, putting its performance and effectiveness into question. This paper systematically characterizes Caldera’s architecture, abilities and use cases, and assesses its strengths and weaknesses. It draws useful insights, such as: Caldera excels in stealthy access and execution tactics to pilfer data against Windows operating systems. It also discusses two directions for Caldera improvement: module-level automation and end-to-end attack emulation.

The Digital Battlefield: Safeguarding Military Drones Against Cyberattacks, Jason Ashong, Arun Venkitanarayanan, Benjamin Yankson

Military Cyber Affairs

The Internet of Battlefield Things (IoBT) is an advanced network of interconnected devices that significantly enhance military operations through real-time data exchange and situational awareness. While IoBT offers tactical advantages like improved surveillance, reconnaissance, and operational effectiveness, it also introduces substantial cybersecurity risks. Adversaries can exploit vulnerabilities within these networks, potentially compromising mission integrity and national security. This research examines the cybersecurity measures of commercial drone controllers and their correlation with military devices. It aims to enhance future vulnerability assessments with advanced tools and approaches to better secure critical military operations. The study highlights the need for robust security architectures …

Using Blockchain Technology To Help Secure America's Defense Critical Infrastructure, Vimal Buck, Aerin Krebs, Brynn Hillard, Jakob Gerha, Joseph Lutma, Srikar Maduposu, Ted Allen

Military Cyber Affairs

Critical water infrastructure in the United States faces increasing cybersecurity threats from state-sponsored actors, with potentially devastating consequences for national security, economic stability, and public health. (Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, 2025). This infrastructure supports defense critical assets and is actively being targeted by various state-sponsored hacking groups, which poses a major concern for civilians and military alike. K. Herath (personal communication, February 24, 2025) reported being aware of two attacks on Ohio water systems during his tenure as Cybersecurity Strategic Advisor to Ohio Governor Mike DeWine.

Water is essential to everyday life and defense and presents as a high-value …

Network And Multipath Traceroute Visualization, Cameron Makowski

Military Cyber Affairs

TraceCam introduces a new paradigm in network path analysis, leveraging GPU-accelerated WebGL visualization, advanced traceroute integrations, and AI-driven insights to transform complex routing data into actionable intelligence. Early prototypes have demonstrated significant improvements in performance, clarity, and multi-path discovery, overcoming traditional limitations in traceroute analysis. By incorporating retrieval-augmented language models and enriched metadata sources like IPinfo.io, TraceCam enables automated anomaly detection, contextual explanations, and rapid root-cause analysis, enhancing operational efficiency. The platform’s architecture ensures scalability and adaptability, supporting deeper investigations and real-time situational awareness. Future development will focus on clustering-based anomaly detection, expanded geographic visualizations, and enhanced AI-generated analysis to …

Quantifying Adversary Military Forces’ Susceptibility To Cognitive Attacks, Bonnie Rushing, Cole Nelson, Shouhuai Xu, Christofer “Raven” O’Keefe, Olga Karpoyan

Military Cyber Affairs

This paper introduces a method to quantify international populations’ susceptibility to cyber cognitive attacks using press freedom and media trust metrics. We present the Cognitive Influence Calculator, a tool that estimates susceptibility (𝑆) based on Press Freedom Scores (PFS) and media trust levels. Findings show that while authoritarian regimes are harder to reach, successful cognitive attacks have greater impacts due to higher trust in state-controlled narratives. Using U.S. wargaming data and international trust metrics, we compute susceptibility scores for the U.S., Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea. Results show an inverse relationship between PFS and media susceptibility, with local/allied …

Forward, Amy Hamilton

Military Cyber Affairs

No abstract provided.

Understanding Russia’S Cyber Policies, Strategies, And Doctrines, Bryan Hancock, Hanh Nguyen, Olga Karpoyan, Ekzhin Ear, Shouhuai Xu

Military Cyber Affairs

This study analyzes the strengths and weaknesses of Russia’s cyber policies, strategies, and doctrines through a systematic set of attributes, leading to key insights: (i) Russia has proactively adapted its cyber policies, strategies, and doctrines to its evolving environment; (ii) Russia actively conducts cognitive warfare, but remains equally vulnerable to it; and (iii) Russia’s cyber posture faces significant challenges, including a limited technological base, shortage of skilled personnel, and restrictive approach to information control, all of which undermine the effectiveness of its strategies. These insights offer valuable implications for US Cyber Command and the Department of Defense.

Characterizing Cyberattacks Against Operational Technology Infrastructures Through The Lens Of Attack Flows, Sherman Kettner, Caleb Chang, Ekzhin Ear, Shouhuai Xu

Military Cyber Affairs

Operational Technology (OT) infrastructures play a critical role in modern society and economy. However, their increasing connectivity with public networks such as the Internet has made them vulnerable to cyberattacks, much like traditional Information Technology (IT) systems. In particular, cyberattacks against OT infrastructures remain relatively underexplored and little understood. In this paper, we aim to deepen our understanding of cyberattacks against OT infrastructures. For this purpose, we propose a methodology, including novel cybersecurity metrics to analyze the attack flows of these attacks in an end-to-end fashion, which allows us to draw useful insights. We demonstrate the utility of the methodology …

The Evolution Of Global Gold And Copper Trade Networks, Oleksandr Hulianskyi

Northeast Journal of Complex Systems (NEJCS)

Gold and copper have emerged as two of the most vital commodities in global trade. Despite serving distinct purposes, their international trade networks reveal interconnected patterns, critical to understanding the dynamics of global economics. This paper studies these attributes and their evolution during the last 36 years for both metals and finds correlations between them. The first part of the research is focused on the sustainability of networks through efficiency and robustness indexes; the second part is dedicated to interconnectedness – the Louvain and Bayesian SBM algorithms, partition, and modularity instruments are used. Community detection algorithms provide valuable insights into …

Diversity, Equity, And Inclusion Under Siege Worldwide: Moving Beyond Limiting Notions Of Gender And Sexuality In Education Organizations And Leadership, Margaret Grogan

Education Faculty Books and Book Chapters

As 2025 gets underway in the United States, educators across this country, like in many others, are bracing for unprecedented opposition to their diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs and policies. Newly elected President Trump is rapidly dismantling many federal agencies, cutting off aid to foreign entities, and causing major apprehension across the globe. His stated agenda to eradicate progressivism echoes many other international ultraconservative and far-right movements, who applaud his authoritarian regime. To mount the best possible resistance to these disturbing developments, and, indeed, to expand and strengthen DEI work, this chapter argues for collective action across all the …

Algorithms Of Eversion: Contemporary States And Digital Sovereigns, James Libengood

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The rapid development of artificial intelligence (AI), the internet of things (IoT), and digitization have pushed digital sovereignty to the top of the governance agenda in the 21st century. This notion is expanded upon in this work through seven chapters encompassing theoretical underpinnings, methodological frameworks, and real-world case studies. It shows how multinational corporations dominate digital coloniality, and how the merge of physical and digital reality or eversion poses challenges. The study compares contrasting governance approaches, such as the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), geared to ethical AI and data protection, versus BRICS nations’ stance on data localization …

Free Speech In An Age Of Democratic Backsliding, Thomas Keck

Political Science - All Scholarship

The growth of judicial power globally has renewed scholarly debates about who benefits from increased judicial authority. Using original data, we examine the full universe of constitutional free expression decisions issued by three apex courts—in Colombia, India, and South Africa—across three categories of disputes that feature a diverse array of rights claimants. By so doing, we shed light on the limits of elite-driven accounts of judicial empowerment. We find that even where constitutional courts are empowered by elites seeking to advance their own interests, activist courts can develop a practice of rights-protection that benefits a diverse range of less-powerful actors. …

نظريات المؤامرة في الثقافة السياسية العربية, Banan Salem Mohammad Alshdaifat

Journal of the Association of Arab Universities for Research in Higher Education مجلة اتحاد الجامعات العربية للبحوث في التعليم العالي

هدفت هذه الدراسة الموسومة بــ "نظريات المؤامرة في الثقافة السياسية العربية" إلى التعرف على مفهوم نظرية المؤامرة، وبيان مفهوم الثقافة السياسية العربية، والبحث في مدى انتشار وشيوع نظريات المؤامرة في الثقافة السياسية العربية من خلال استعراض شواهد تاريخية قديمة ومعاصرة على ذلك، مستندةً إلى الجمع بين مقولات المدارس الفلسفية التحليلية والتاريخ الثقافي والدراسات الثقافية التي عالجت نظريات المؤامرة. وقد تم التوصل إلى أن المدارس التي نظّرت للمؤامرة مختلفة ومتعددة، فمنها ما يرى نظريات المؤامرة كحقل بحثي دون وجود موقف أيديولوجي أو قيمي معها أو ضدها، ومنها ما يرى في نظريات المؤامرة أنها غير علمية، وأنها تمثل خطراً على القيم التعددية …

حقوق الإنسان: دراسة مقارنة بين التشريع الإسلامي والقانون الدولي, Wasan Mohammed Marie, Faisal Oudeh Alrfoua

Journal of the Association of Arab Universities for Research in Higher Education مجلة اتحاد الجامعات العربية للبحوث في التعليم العالي

هدفت الدراسة إلى التعرف على مفهوم حقوق الإنسان، وبيان مصادرها وأنواعها، وبيان موقف الشريعة الإسلامية من حقوق الإنسان، وإبراز أهم المواثيق الدولية التي أصّلت لحقوق الإنسان، وتوضيح أوجه التشابه والاختلاف بين حقوق الإنسان كما وردت في الشريعة الإسلامية، والقوانين الوضعية. ولتحقيق هذه الأهداف اتبعت الدراسة المنهج الوصفي التحليلي والمنهج المقارن. وقد تحققت الدراسة من صحة فرضيتها الرئيسة والتي مفادها: "وجود اختلافات جوهرية في حقوق الإنسان التي رسختها الشريعة الإسلامية، وتلك التي نصت عليها المواثيق الدولية"، حيث اتضح أن حقوق الإنسان في الشريعة الإسلامية والقانون الدولي متشابهة، ولكنها تختلف في العديد من الخصائص ممثلةً بمصدر الحقوق، وصفة الإلزام، وصفة القدم، وصفة …

توجهات السياسة الخارجية الأردنية تجاه العدوان الاسرائيلي على قطاع غزة خلال الفترة 2008-2023, Ibrahim A. Alharahsheh, Mohammed Ahmad Mogdad

Journal of the Association of Arab Universities for Research in Higher Education مجلة اتحاد الجامعات العربية للبحوث في التعليم العالي

هدفت الدراسة إلى تحليل وعرض توجهات السياسة الخارجية الأردنية تجاه الصراع بين إسرائيل وحركة حماس في قطاع غزه بعد عام 2008، واعتمدت الدراسة في تحليل موضوعتها على توظيف المنهج الوصفي التحليلي، ومنهج صنع القرار، وتبين من خلال الدراسة أن المواقف الأردنية تجاه الحروب الإسرائيلية على قطاع غزة منذ عام 2008 ثابته تجاه دعم حقوق الشعب الفلسطيني في قطاع غزة، ورفض الممارسات الإسرائيلية العدوانية الهادفة إلى تهجير سكان القطاع، وتدمير البنية التحتية بهدف حماية أمن اسرائيل، وتنظر الدولة الأردنية إلى الحرب الإسرائيلية على قطاع غزة (2023-2024)م كونها تمثل اعتداء على الشعب الفلسطيني في قطاع غزة، وتوصي الدراسة بالعمل على تعزيز بنية …

تقييم تجربة الإصلاح والتحديث السياسي في الأردن (2011-2023), Tamara Ahmad Yousef Aledwan, Mohd Khair Sulieman A.Eiedat

Journal of the Association of Arab Universities for Research in Higher Education مجلة اتحاد الجامعات العربية للبحوث في التعليم العالي

هدفت الدراسة إلى بيان مفهوم التحديث ومفهوم الإصلاح السياسي، وخصائصه وأهدافه، وإلقاء الضوء على أبرز مضامين الإصلاح السياسي في الأردن خلال الأعوام 2011-2023، ومحاولة تقييم تجربة الإصلاح والتحديث السياسي في الأردن خلال تلك الفترة. وقد توصلت الدراسة إلى أن التجربة الإصلاحية في الأردن تتميز بالتدرج والسلمية، حيث إنها مستمرة منذ عهد الاستقلال في العام 1946، ولكن هناك محددات إقليمية تحول دون استكمال هذه التجربة، ومن أهم المحددات الإقليمية التي أثرت بشكل كبير على الإصلاح السياسي كانت ثورات الربيع العربي التي دفعت النظام السياسي الأردني إلى القيام بإصلاحات كثيرة كان من أهمها تعديل ثلث الدستور الأردني، تبعه تعديلان في العام (2014)، …

المراحل الانتقالية في النظام السياسي الليبي وأنعكاساتها على تحديات بناء الدولة بعد عام 2011م, Emparik Raheil Said, Faisal Oudeh Alrfoua

Journal of the Association of Arab Universities for Research in Higher Education مجلة اتحاد الجامعات العربية للبحوث في التعليم العالي

هدفت الدراسة لتحليل نطورات المراحل الانتقالية في النظام السياسي الليبي خلال المراحل الإنتقالبة، وأنعكاساتها على تحديات بناء الدولة بعد عام 2011م، واعتمدت الدراسة على استخدام المنهج الوصفي التحليلي، وإطار تحليل النظم، وخلصت الدراسة الى أن المراحل الانتقالية التي شهدتها ليبيا بعد الثورة في عام 2011م، أسهمت بشكل جلي في بروز تحدبات لإعادة بناء الدولة الليبية، وبرز ذلك بشكل واضح في ضعفها في الوصول إلى توافق بين القوى السياسية حول التأسيس لمرحلة بناء المؤسسات الدستورية والقانونية، وتكوين السلطة التنفيذية والأجهزة الأمنية التي تعمل لحماية مكتسبات الثورة وتضمن الأمن والاستقرار في ليبيا، وذلك لضعف تركيزها على قضية المصالحة الوطنية، كونها مرتكز أساسي …

الحرب الروسية الأوكرانية وتداعياتها على الأمن الغذائي العربي "2024-2022", Amani Haitham Irshed Al-Shdifat, Abed Alftah Al-Rshdan

Journal of the Association of Arab Universities for Research in Higher Education مجلة اتحاد الجامعات العربية للبحوث في التعليم العالي

هدفت الدراسة التعرف على أثر الحرب الروسية الأوكرانية على الأمن الغذائي العربي. وانطلقت الدراسة من فرضية رئيسة مفادها "أثرت الأزمة الروسية الأوكرانية بشكل سلبي على الأمن الغذائي العربي"، ولتحقيق أهداف الدراسة تم الاعتماد على المنهج الوصفي التحليلي والمنهج التاريخي، وتوصلت الدراسة إلى عدد من النتائج، أهمها: أن كلاً من روسيا وأوكرانيا تمثلان أهمية كبيرة في الأسواق العالمية للغذاء، وقد أثرت الحرب ما بين الدولتين على الدول العربية كونها المستورد الصافي للغذاء من هاتين الدولتين، وتواجه الدول العربية نتيجة للحرب ارتفاعاً في الأسعار العالمية للغذاء (القمح) بسبب ارتفاع تكاليف الشحن والنقل والمحروقات واضطراب سلاسل الإمداد، وانخفاض توريد الحبوب وزيوت الطعام من …

التّطوّر التّكنولوجي العسكري وأثره على توازن القوى الدوليّة, Islam Abdallah Falah Almashaqbeh, Amin Awwan Muhanna Almashaqbeh

Journal of the Association of Arab Universities for Research in Higher Education مجلة اتحاد الجامعات العربية للبحوث في التعليم العالي

هدفت هذه الدّراسة إلى التّعرف على ماهيّة مفهوم التطور التكنولوجي العسكري، وتوضيح التّقنيات العسكريّة الرئيسة التي تُسهم في تحسين القدرات العّسكريّة، وتقييم كيفيّة تأثير هذه التّقنيات على التوازن العسكري العالمي، بالإضافةِ إلى تحديد الدّلالات الرئيسيّة التي تميّز ظاهرة الثّورة في السيّاق العّسكري، وتحليل كيف يؤثر الإنفاق العسكري على التّوازن الدّولي للقوى العسكريّة، وكيف يمكن للتّطور التّكنولوجي أن يؤثر على توازن القوى العّسكريّة بين الدّول. وذلك باستخدام المنهج الاستقرائي. وانتهت الدّراسة ببيان أنَّ التطور التكنولوجي العسكري يُعزز بشكل كبير قدرات القوات العسكرية من خلال تحسين الأنظمة الأسلحة واعتماد تقنيّات حدّيثة، مما يعززّ التّأثير الإستراتيجي والقدرة على التّصدي للتّحديات الأمنيّة للدّول. كما …