Political Science Commons^™

Contextualizing The 2019 “Chile Despertó” Movement: The Impact Of Historical Relational Processes On Mobilization And Repression, Tanya Leon

International Studies (MA) Theses

To expand our theoretical and empirical understanding of mobilization and repression in Latin America, this thesis asks three critical questions. Are economic indicators sufficient predictors of social movement emergence in Latin America? What other factors contribute to large-scale mobilization in Latin America? How do government’s respond to large-scale Latin American social movements? Specifically, when, and why do democratic governments choose to employ repression against social movements? Accordingly, I construct a quantitative model to test the correlation between rise in protest and worsened economic conditions. I apply it to a comprehensive dataset of political events in multiple South American countries throughout …

An Event-History Analysis Of The Diffusion Of Permitless Concealed Carry Laws Throughout The United States, Jackson Vicknair

Honors Capstones

No abstract provided.

The Hard Work Is Worth It: Overcoming Unfavorable Determinants To Pass Pro-Immigrant Education Policy In A Conservative State Legislature, Megan Cardwell Godfrey

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Immigrants, English learners (ELs), and culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD)students often lag behind their White, monolingual peers in academic achievement and English language proficiency. While there are policy solutions to improve academic and linguistic opportunities and outcomes for immigrant/EL/CLD students, such as implementing bilingual instructional models and increasing teacher diversity, these pro-immigrant policies can be hard to come by in some legislative contexts due to unfavorable economic, social, or political determinants. This qualitative case study analyzed the multifaceted political work that contributed to the passage of two pro-immigrant education policies in the Arkansas 93rd General Assembly: a bill for bilingual …

Por Una Vida Mejor: Educational Attainment For Latinos In The Nuevo South In The Pursuit Of A Better Life, Maria Ana Sandoval

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Por una Vida Mejor, a sentiment that is shared amongst the Latino community. How this sentiment fares in the pursuit of higher education has been largely understudied. I analyze how Latino college students navigate the sociopolitical environment in Arkansas in their pursuit of middle-class certification to help their family and fulfill the American dream. In this thesis I offer an analysis to understand Latinos in the Nuevo South. I use data from the 2021 Latino College Students Navigating the Sociopolitical Environment in Arkansas survey through the lens of Funds of Knowledge (Velez-Ibanez and Greenberg 1992). I conduct a quantitative analysis …

Anticipatory Intelligence Resilience Modeling Evaluation Of Aspire Research Center, Madeleine Alder

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

The analysis of threats and vulnerabilities in a system is essential in developing resilience strategies to strengthen the system’s ability to adapt and succeed. This report delivers a threat analysis of ASPIRE, a research organization centered on engineering solutions for promoting electric vehicle (EV) adoption. ASPIRE, which is an international network of university research partners and comprised primarily of engineering teams, is focused on developing technology that can be used by industry or governmental partners. The threat of low public buy-in for ASPIRE technology is one of the most significant concerns facing the system. Low adoption rates or public resistance …

Enter The Battleverse: China's Metaverse War, Josh Baughman

Military Cyber Affairs

No abstract provided.

The Sanctuary Campus: Establishing Safe Spaces Of Higher Education For Undocumented And Daca-Status Students, Lizbet Martinez-Port

CSB and SJU Distinguished Thesis

The election of President Donald Trump in 2016 brought fear to undocumented and DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) status students on campuses across the United States. In his campaign, Trump detailed his desire to get rid of the Consideration of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals. Various institutions of higher education created resources, put in place sanctuary policies, and even declared themselves as sanctuary campuses to fight against the challenges that hindered undocumented and DACA students from achieving a higher education. This paper focuses on the policies at the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John’s University, two private Catholic …

Political Discussion And Disagreement: Seeking Validation Through News Media, Michael Carmona

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This study explores how often individuals discuss politics with family/friends and acquaintances, how often individuals are exposed to disagreement during those discussions, the strategies they use to respond to political disagreement, and the use of news media following those disagreements. Through the lens of Uses and Gratifications theory, this study examined these elements through an online survey of U.S. adults. The results of this study did not support Hopmann’s, Bjarnøe’s, and Wonneberger’s findings about the relationship between the frequency of political disagreement and the strategies for responding to that disagreement. This study highlights how the discussions and disagreements we have …

Police Brutality Responses Then And Now: The Effect Poverty, Demographics And Police Funding Has On Police Brutality Response To Civil Rights Movements, Chelsea Marseille

Public Administration & Policy

This study examines the police brutality response during the Black Lives Matter protests, and the reoccurring pattern of police brutality as a response to Civil Rights Movement protests. The study first acknowledges the history of police brutality responses to Civil Rights Movement and how this history affects the responses today. There are eight cities involved in this study that are being compared in four different datasets. The cities data are based on four independent variables, those being population, demographics, police budget in 2020, and persons in poverty. This study will analyze if these four independent variables will influence the dependent …

A Tale Of Two States: An Analysis Of Sex Education In Alabama & New York, Danielle Chan

Political Science

Sex education policy in the U.S has been debated throughout the years largely because of its rates of teen births and sexually transmitted diseases which rank among the highest in developed countries. States are left to their own discretion to decide what kind of sex education curriculum they will implement in schools. The federal government can incentivize states’ education policies but sex education, in particular, has been dealt with differently depending on the federal administration. Despite the change in federal administrations, the federal government’s influence has tended to lean towards promoting abstinence-only-until-marriage (AOUM) sex education begging the question of why …

Designing Democracy: A Normative And Empirical Analysis Of Redistricting Reform, Morgan Deckert

Honors Theses

A democracy is more than just an empirically observable mode of governance; it is an actively adopted ideal, an inherently value-laden concept that affects and permeates throughout all dimensions of society. It encompasses corresponding rights held by all democratic citizens, and various state obligations that arise directly from this unique status. As political institutions and practices are given tangible form in a democracy, these moral principles provide both a mandatory set of requirements and an ideal to be oriented towards in their construction. In majoritarian systems with single-member districts, the establishment of electoral boundaries through redistricting is one such process. …

Barriers To Public Health In Latino American Indigenous Communities, Wilzave Quiles Guzman

Honors Program Theses and Research Projects

This paper focuses on barriers to public health in Latino American Indigenous communities. Indigenous people throughout the world are at a public health disadvantage due to a lack of clearly defined practices within the decision-making processes to plan, evaluate, and control finances from governmental and non-governmental entities in charge of managing health services. I argue that political, social, and institutional changes are still needed to achieve health equity in Indigenous communities and that these changes should go beyond implementing a universal health care program. I must recognize improvements made by many Latino American countries like Brazil, which prepared a plan …

How Influential Were U.S Political Parties On Voters In The Most Recent Presidential Elections?, Elizabeth Seravello

Political Science Student Work

Party identification has been a part of how we run our elections for more than 100 years and it has been a steady solid influence on who voters decide to elect in U.S presidential elections for just as long. My research specifically examines how party identification affected vote choice in the most recent presidential elections and how that relationship either changed or did not change in the last four presidential election cycles; with the recent polarization of the parties. I compared what party voters registered as in that election to who voters voted for in each election, with the Democratic …

Humanitarian Intervention And American Public Opinion: An Analysis To Intervene, Alexia Inge

Departmental Honors & Graduate Capstone Projects

N/A

Campaigning In The Digital Age: How Social Media Changed The Framework Of Elections, Faith Hamelin

Honors Theses

Throughout the 21st century, it is normal for social media users to see politics on virtually every platform an individual uses, ranging from LinkedIn to TikTok. Broadcast news, including television and radio have always aired political discussions, as mass communication became the most common and favorable way for politicians to communicate with constituents. However, politics were not a prominent aspect of social media use until less than a decade and a half ago. As the internet became further integrated into our daily lives, through radio, television, and cellular or smart phones, we found ourselves invested in politics at a previously …

Personal Outcomes Of Activist Interpreting: A Case Study, Mark A. Halley

Showcase of Faculty Scholarly & Creative Activity

No abstract provided.

The Value Of Education: School Policy Decisions During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Elika W. Somani

Individually Designed Interdepartmental Major Honors Project

During the COVID-19 pandemic, lacking national U.S. policies, wide variation and conflict over chosen public school policy decisions emerged. What factors and guidelines informed the decision-making process in K-12 public schools during the COVID-19 pandemic and who were the key stakeholders? This study examines three school district types – a large city, medium city, and small-town – across Minnesota as case studies to unpack how policy decisions were made during the pandemic. Stakeholder interviews uncovered that the school decision-making process was a) connected to a district's political opinions, b) made by the superintendent and school board, c) primarily influenced by …

White Constituents And Congressional Voting, Eric Hansen

Political Science: Faculty Publications and Other Works

Why do some members of Congress vote more on the extremes of their party than others? I argue that lawmakers representing more homogeneously white districts have greater electoral incentive to moderate their voting records, since the two parties compete more for support of white voters than for the support of minority voters. I provide evidence using roll-call votes from the U.S. House and Senate. I find members representing more homogeneously white districts have more moderate voting records, a finding that holds for Democrats and Republicans. I explore two potential mechanisms: legislator responsiveness and electoral punishment. While legislators do not seem …

Economic Predictors Of Democratic Backsliding: A Comparison Of Populist And Non-Populist Leaders, Jacob Winter

Honors Theses

The initial motivation of this research was to develop a better understanding of the primary causes of democratic backsliding, and by extension, how pro-democratic governments, NGOs, and other institutions can most effectively combat democratic backsliding. Previous research has examined the effects of economic conditions (Waldner and Lust 2018) as well as populism (Kyle and Mounk 2018) on a country’s democracy, but to my knowledge, no study has examined whether the effect of economic conditions on a country’s democracy differs between populist and non-populist countries. My research attempts to provide an answer to this question by examining how personal wealth, price …

Into The Woods: Freedom And The Forest In The Hunger Games, Robert B. Hackey

Far West Popular Culture Association Annual Conference

Forests are contested terrains in literature. The woods are a bucolic setting far removed from the hectic, bustling world of the city or the grueling challenges of industrial life. At the same time, however, the forest challenges us – in the woods, we must take stock of ourselves, overcome unfamiliar obstacles, and face our fears. The forested settings of the Hunger Games – both natural and manmade – force tributes to wrestle with the nature of human freedom. Drawing upon political theorists from Thomas Hobbes to Isaiah Berlin, my paper also explores how tributes face a choice between positive and …

Sticks And Stones: A Case Study In Attempted Electoral Subversion, Ian Klenk

The Review: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Research

On January 6^th, 2021, a mob of rioters stormed the Capitol building in Washington, D.C. to disrupt the ceremonial certification of electors and install former President Donald Trump as the winner of the 2020 election; the citadel of democracy was vandalized, the lives of members of Congress were put in immediate danger, and multiple Capitol police officers died from injuries sustained in defending the American republic from her own citizens.

This paper uses this dramatic and unusual event to examine the role of political leaders in fomenting violence to keep or regain power. More specifically, I examine whether …

Peer Reviewing The World: Increasing Civil Society Participation In The United Nations Universal Periodic Review, Lucien F. O'Brien

Political Science Honors Projects

The Universal Periodic Review (UPR) is an exceptional mechanism within the framework of international human rights. The fact that it evaluates all UN member states’ human rights records on a universal basis sets it apart from other enforcement mechanisms that do not give equal time to all countries or do not seek to cover all human rights. Following the introduction of hybrid modalities in the third cycle, the UPR faces a turning point in terms of who is included in the process and how. Drawing on semi-structured interviews with UN officials, diplomatic mission members, civil society representatives, and academics, as …

Inspiring Active Citizenship In The Community From Within The Classroom, Nathan A. Halm

Honors Projects

This project presents an alternative to contemporary civic education courses and methods in an attempt to inspire students to become Active Citizens. Fighting against common sentiments surrounding contemporary politics such as divisiveness, polarization, apathy, and disenfranchisement, this project provides a framework for students to engage at the local level in an effective and genuine way.

National Model United Nations Ny 2022 Conference, Gabriel Capella, Margaret Price, Declan Kavanagh, Angie Pierre, Dante Garcia, Daniel Cantera, Christopher Capozzi, Jolade Oshinkanlu, Jade Mikalauskis, Wesley Stephens

Political Science Student Scholarship

Gabriel Capella ’25, Major: Political Science
Margaret Price ’25, Majors: Global Studies and Political Science
Declan Kavanagh ’25, Majors: Political Science and Marketing
Angie Pierre ’25, Major: Global Studies
Dante Garcia ’25, Major: Political Science
Daniel Cantera ’25, Major: History/Secondary Education
Christopher Capozzi ’25, Major: Marketing
Jolade Oshinkanlu ’25, Majors: Psychology and Global Studies
Jade Mikalauskis ’25, Majors: Humanities and Mathematics
Wesley Stephens ’25, Major: Political Science
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Jason McSparron, Political Science

A team of 10 PC students traveled to New York City to represent a country (Rwanda) in a realistically-simulated committee of the United Nations. Preparation for …

The Effects Of The Russian Invasion Of Ukraine On Exports To Italy, Stephen Johnson, Ryder Hankins, Nathan Carter

Undergraduate Research Symposium Posters

Italy imported 122,000 tons of soft wheat from Ukraine and 72,000 from Russia. During the current events international food and feed prices have increased by 8 to 22% causing mass shortages around the world. On top of the ethical and moral dilemmas of continuing business with Russia, insurance premiums have jumped 400% for doing business with the invading country.

The Political Pandemic: The Relationship Between Political Leanings, Covid-19, And The Economy In 2020, Garrett Clark

Honors College Theses

The effect of political leanings on the pandemic outcomes, both in terms of the COVID-19 cases and death totals and the extent that the pandemic affected the economy, is the analysis of interest. The literature indicates a relationship between political leanings and the COVID-19 response. Data is gathered from a variety of sources, and a series of regressions are performed to analyze several control variables and determine their significance. The results indicate a relationship between political leanings and COVID-19 outcomes. However, results regarding the effects of politics on the economy are less clear. Possible explanations are provided for the results.

What Role Do Women In Politics Play For Democratic Erosion?, Emelyn Rodriguez

Politics Honors Papers

Research has found that women in politics are important for representation and women’s rights, but can women’s increasing involvement in politics also stabilize fragile democracies? This research analyzes the relationship between women in politics and democratic consolidation, asking whether and how women help consolidate democracies and prevent the erosion of democratic institutions. I show initial quantitative evidence suggesting that under some conditions, women in politics reduce the probability of democratic erosion. In the main part of the project, using a case study of the Dominican Republic, I take a closer look at the work women have done for a newly …

Perilaku Memilih Dalam Masyarakat Multikultur: Studi Kasus Pemilihan Walikota Medan 2020, Ahmad Hasan Ubaid, H.B. Habibi Subandi

Jurnal Wacana Politik

Artikel ini menjelaskan tentang bagaimana perilaku memilih masyarakat dalam Pemilihan Wali Kota Medan Tahun 2020. Studi ini mengunakan metode kualitatif dengan pendekatan studi kasus, sumber data utama dari hasil survei perilaku memilih dan wawancara mendalam. Artikel ini menunjukkan bahwa perilaku memilih yang paling dominan pada masyarakat Medan ialah model sosiologis, yakni perilaku pemilih yang didasarkan pada preferensi sosiologis masyarakat. Faktor utamanya ialah disumbang oleh preferensi agama, etnis, maupun gender. Pemilih sosiologis tercatat dalam angka survey adalah sebesar 43,1%. Sedangkan pemilih rasional juga muncul, namun tidak sebesar pemilih sosiologis, yaitu pada persentase sebesar 36,8%. Demikian juga dengan pemilih psikologis yang jumlahnya …

Lesson Plan: Forms Of Government From A Comparative Perspective, Prosper Bernard Jr

Open Educational Resources

This lesson plan is designed to introduce students to three forms of government: presidentialism, parliamentarism, and semi-presidentialism. After briefly covering the key characteristics of each form, the lesson plan examines the process of government formation in parliamentary systems. The scenario covers different possible cabinet types and is designed to help students to distinguish between governments with a majority vs. minority status and to differentiate among different coalition arrangements—from minority to minimal winning to surplus to grand coalitions. The lesson plan concludes with an assignment that asks students to identify the current cabinet types in four countries that have parliamentary systems—Canada, …

U.S./Russia Export Relationship, Adam Nishino, Mohammad Saad Bin Shahzad, Yonathan Assefa, Trel Lakindanum

Undergraduate Research Symposium Posters

Russia and the United States have a long history of trading as early as 1913. Over the years, Russia has become a notable player in US imports. By using the United States Census database and the Office of the United States Trade Representative database. In short, our research will discuss the trade relationship between Russia and the United States over the last century, through history and data analytics, and its effects on trade and politics to the rest of the world.