Sociology Commons^™

Ua3/10 President's Message - Spring Semester, Wku President's Office - Caboni

WKU Administration Documents

President's Message emails sent by Timothy Caboni to faculty & staff during spring semester, 2020.

• Announcing WKU Restart Committees & Commencement Update
• Big Red is in the Final Four! Vote Now!
• Big Red Restart Draft
• Big Red Restart Panel
• Big Red Restart Plan Answers
• COVID-19 & Holiday Schedule
• COVID-19 Testing
• COVID-19 Update
• COVID-19 Update – March 13^th
• COVID-19 Update 4.6.20
• COVID-19 Update: 3/17/20
• End of Semester
• Executive Order to Close Non-Life-Sustaining Businesses to In-Person Traffic
• Healthy On the Hill
• New Vice President for Enrollment & Student Experience – Ethan Logan

Blockchain As A Technological Imaginary: Media Framing And The Views Of Blockchain Professionals In The Arab World, Ibrahim Subeh

Philosophy Dissertations

Blockchain is a new way to organize, process and share data; it is a distributed ledger that facilitates the secure and private exchange of digital assets and content types without the need for intermediaries, thus revolutionizing all sectors involving the use of databases. This first systematic study of blockchain as a technological imaginary empirically assesses the media framing of this emerging technology in the Arab world and juxtaposes it to the perceptions of blockchain professionals in the region. The researcher uses a mixed methods approach consisting of quantitative and qualitative techniques; a quantitative content analysis of the online versions of …

Prescribing Public-Private Partnerships To Global Health Initiatives, Elizabeth Rhoads

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

For six weeks I served as a finance intern with the Toilet Board Coalition (TBC) and created a Portfolio Presentation to deliver to TBC’s corporate board members in May. With my background in Public Health and interest in Corporate Social Responsibility and Sustainability, I was interested in learning how cross-sector partnerships can help accelerate global health development. My internship with TBC provided me with valuable firsthand experience in my topic of research, Public Private Partnerships (PPPs), which I was able to compare alongside a formal literature review. In this research paper I combine my research with my internship experience to …

An Overview Of Supply-Chain Logistics In International Humanitarian Aid: Finding Challenges And Solutions, Arjun Ganga

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Humanitarian supply chain logistics concern the flow of goods and services in public health delivery. Such supply chains operate in both general development contexts and in acute crisis situations. In this paper, I give an overview of supply chains and then explore some of the challenges and potential solutions in delivering goods and services effectively and efficiently. Specifically, I analyze procurement, maintaining quality goods, incentivizing countries to act, collaboration, verification, possible losses in the supply chain, and ensuring appropriate use of product. I conclude that although humanitarian supply chains pose unique challenges, there is surprising efficiency in the system. This …

A Look Into The Varying Usage Patterns Of Traditional And Western Medicine Within Senegal’S Urban Centers, Sarah Smith

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This paper explores the usage patterns of traditional medicine and western medicine in Senegal’s urban centers of Dakar and Thiès and the factors that influence these patterns. I argue that the most influential factors in determining which medicine is used by an individual are accessibility, efficacy, and personal preference. This research was conducted in the first and third most-populated urban centers in Senegal, presenting a unique field site due to the higher concentration of western medicine in urban areas compared to rural areas in Senegal. Qualitative methodology was used through the form of secondary sources and semi-structured interviews which allowed …

The Fairer Sex? Understanding The Link Between Gender And Corruption, Kayla Jackson

Sigma: Journal of Political and International Studies

No abstract provided.

Facebook’S Façade: Understanding The Disillusionment Of Tunisian Youth, Adam Cooper

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Over the past nine years, Tunisian youth voter participation has been incredibly low. Once leaders of the country during its democratic revolution in January 2011, youth in Tunisia are now disillusioned with the Tunisian political sphere and have remained absent from formal politics, a transition that is both confusing and worrying. Tunisian youth have also had a dominant presence on Facebook during this time, often utilizing the online space for political activity in lieu of voting in elections and holding membership in political parties. This paper examines the relationship between the Facebook usage and participation in elections of Tunisia youth, …

Constructions Of Democratic Citizenship And Civic Education In Tunisia, Abigail Smith

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Although Tunisia has made significant progress in establishing procedural democracy since the 2011 revolution, the state still faces significant challenges in consolidating their new spirit of democracy throughout society. This trouble includes difficulty fostering participation from its citizens, particularly among youth aged 18-30. This article hypothesizes that these difficulties stems largely from the state’s failure to construct a concept of Tunisian citizenship in line with democratic ideologies. Citizenship construction is considered as a political science concept that describes the mechanisms by which states relate with their citizenry with the goal of defining citizen interactions with the government and national community. …

The Public Secret And Private Pain Of Wartime Sexual Violence: Comparing The Heroinat Memorial And The 2020 Newborn Monument From The Perspective Of Ngos In Kosovo, Martha Beliveau

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

In a rare year where there are two monuments dedicated to survivors of wartime sexual violence in Kosovo, the permanent Heroinat Memorial and the year-long Newborn Monument have different approaches and effects in their processes of commemorating wartime sexual violence. This paper approaches a comparison of these two monuments through four interviews with representatives of women-centered civil society organizations in Pristina, Kosovo. This paper finds that the Heroinat Memorial and the 2020 theme of the Newborn Monument are sites of contested meanings, because of the different approaches of each respective monument, each of the monuments’ gendered implications, and the implications …

Gen Z Perspectives On Climate Change And The Future: Having The Courage To Imagine And Fight For A Better World, Isabelle Graj

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

I conducted 6 interviews with Gen Z students to investigate how they think climate change will impact their future and how they frame the issue in general. I communicate my findings and analysis with visual context through a zine, which is a form of alternative media created in the 1930s. Today, zines provide a creative approach to exchange ideas and explain contemporary culture (Gisonny and Freedman, 2006, 26). My zine is not meant to be utterly educational but rather it is meant to convey the emotion, confusion, and chaos associated with my findings. The interviews collectively created an image of …

Medical Trust In Pediatric Care In The United States, Talia Feldscher

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Trust is a critical aspect of the patient-provider dynamic, but in the U.S., its importance is overlooked in many medical settings, especially among those from low socio-economic groups. As the disparities in American healthcare are being recognized on a larger scale, it is necessary to further uncover why this is the case, and how to begin to remedy this disparity. This study presents an original qualitative data set of perspectives from four current health/mental health practitioners, based on their experiences with their pediatric patients, and how the concept of trust is critical to their service provision. Supported by literature, this …

La Construcción Del Imaginario De Una Ciudad Multicultural: El Barrio Chino De Buenos Aires Como Exhibición Pública De Cultura, Yiran Lin

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

En el marco de la globalización, ha surgido una nueva competencia entre las ciudades contemporáneas donde su multiculturalidad se convierte en símbolo de prosperidad. El imaginario urbano se creó en la intersección de los espacios públicos y los espacios sociopolíticos, de las culturas y sus representaciones, de lo ideal y la realidad. Estas dualidades nos hacen preguntarnos: ¿cómo afecta la espacialización pública de la cultura a la comunidad misma y a la sociedad receptora? ¿Quién se incluye en este imaginario y a quién se excluye? En este estudio, examinamos el Barrio Chino de Buenos Aires como caso de estudio de …

Encuentros Intergeneracionales: Continuidades Y Reformulaciones En Las Prácticas Militantes De Las Jóvenes Integrantes De Espacios De Acompañamiento De Aborto En La Amba / Intergenerational Encounters: Continuities And Reformulations In The Activist Practices Of The Young Members Of Abortion Accompaniment Spaces In The Amba, Hannah Robinson

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Debido al acceso restrictivo de los abortos legales, en los últimos diez años los espacios de acompañamiento de personas que quieren interrumpir la gestación se han convertido en un sitio importante de la militancia feminista en Argentina. Estos espacios o colectivos brindan información sobre el uso del medicamento misoprostol para abortar, conectan las personas gestantes con profesionales de salud “amigables” que garantizan el acceso al Interrupción Legal del Embarazo, y proveen apoyo durante el proceso de interrupción. Al mismo tiempo, en los últimos cinco años una marea de jóvenes ha entrado masivamente a la militancia feminista.

A través de la …

“En Defensa Por La Salud”: Los Actores Sociales En La Construcción Del Movimiento Social En Chile, Karina Martinez

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This investigation aimed to describe the construction of the social movement for health demands in the frame of the social outbreak in Chile in October 2019. In addition to identifying the main health demands of this movement, it also had a focus on understanding the role of social organizations in the construction of the movement and placing it within the broader socio-political movement that arises from the social outbreak. The research design was qualitative and descriptive. Having been a remote investigation, it was largely based on literature review with the support of information from a semi-structured interview. Regarding the results, …

El Covid-19 Y El Derecho A La Información De Los Pueblos Indígenas En La Región De Arica Y Parinacota / Covid-19 And The Right To Information Of Indigenous Peoples In The Region Of Arica And Parinacota, Finn Odum

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The present work tries to understand if the health communication programs in Chile are sufficient and, specifically, if the Chilean state guarantees the right to information of indigenous peoples in the context of COVID-19 in the Arica and Parinacota region. For this, semi-structured interviews were carried out and analyzed using the Atlas.ti software. The results showed that the indigenous peoples of Arica and Parinacota need intercultural programs that recognize their rights and cultures, and more access to information.

El presente trabajo pretende comprender si los programas de comunicación de salud en Chile son suficientes y, en específico, si el estado …

El Rol Del Gobierno En Las Campañas Sanitarias De Vih, Covid-19 E Influenza, Sydney Reyes

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Research Question: What are the differences and similarities between the three health campaigns — the flu, HIV, and COVID-19 — that the Chilean government has spread to population?

Objectives: The primary objective of this study was to describe and compare the three public health campaigns — the flu, HIV, and COVID-19 — to examine the role that the Chilean government has in health education and heath promotion. The secondary objectives were to identify the differences in national health campaigns and regional campaigns as well as to show the interactions between health campaigns and indigenous people. Overall, the research project looked …

La Importancia De Los Espacios: Conociendo Los Espacios En Línea Creado Por Los Haitianos Y Organizaciones Haitianas En Chile, Juan Avilez

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The state of Haitian migrants in Chile has often been studied through a lens of understanding the reasons for migratory flows and their effects on labor markets within the context of the Chilean state. Notable studies such as that of Pedemonte in 2015 studying the matrixes of exclusion of Haitian migrants in Chilean culture and that of Tijoux in 2015 studying the effects of racism and a neoliberal system on migrants, have adopted to explore the adoption of Haitian migrants to Chilean culture and detail the challenges and ways of community building that the Haitian population in Chile has adapted. …

La Discapacidad En Valparaíso: La Existencia De Un (¿Nuevo?) Movimiento Social, Julia Conti

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This study examines disability in Chile as a possible new social movement, seeking to answer the question of whether a movement for disability rights exists and if so, what form it takes. Disability has historically been seen as an imperfection, an impairment, and something to cure if at all possible, but beginning in the mid-twentieth century, groups of disabled people have advocated for a changing perception of their own abilities, their place in society, and how society itself contributes to the disabling of people. Alongside this burgeoning movement, scholarship emerged that reconceptualized disability and proposed new models for understanding the …

Empty Streets, Active Feeds: Moroccan Youth Activism In The Age Of Social Media, Samantha Jaloza

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Since the February 20 movement in 2011, Morocco has not witnessed large waves of political activism from its young population. However, Moroccan youth are not inactive citizens, and it would be a mischaracterization to call young Moroccans apolitical or disinterested. Rather, Moroccan youth are finding new ways to interact with political and social issues. With the increase in access to the Internet over the last fifteen years, social media has become an important forum for Moroccan youth, who have often felt marginalized from more traditional forms of political participation like unions and political parties. This research explores the ways that …

The Influence Of Social Media In Recommending Tourism Destinations: A Study Of Kuwait, Ibrahim Ahmad Mohammad Alkandari

Mass Communication Dissertations

Technology has played an essential role in both personal and business applications. In this context, the Social Media (SM) is considered to be among the most powerful communication platforms, with an impact on the supply and demand sides of tourism. The impact of SM on tourism have been studied and researched from various perspectives. Yet the volume of research suggests that few have studied the use of the SM to recommend tourism destinations in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries. Therefore, this dissertation intends to study the impact of SM on the intention to recommend tourism destinations based on users’ …

Short-Term Athletic Foreign Tours And Student Learning Outcomes: A Program Evaluation, April L. Elsbernd

Dissertations

Many studies have shown that the same student learning outcomes observed in long-term study abroad can be met during short-term programs, if executed correctly. Intercollegiate athletic foreign travel tours (AFTs) are similar to short-term study abroad programs, but little research has been done on these programs. By analyzing qualitative and quantitative data from surveys of student-athletes who recently participated in AFTs, as well as interviews with relevant staff members, I was able to determine strengths of the program and identify areas for growth. The evaluation process shaped organizational change recommendations, along with an institutional policy that will allow the AFT …

Rural-Urban Differences In Roles And Support For Community Health Workers In The Midwest, Kate E. Trout, Virginia Chaidez, Angela L. Palmer-Wackerly

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act supports the integration of community health workers (CHWs) into the health care workforce, but little is known about integration and current roles of CHWs among employers in community settings. This analysis of 97 employers described the roles of CHWs in Nebraska and found significant differences between CHWs practicing in rural and urban areas in organization types employing CHWs, funding sources, and minority populations served. The findings suggest that the utility of CHWs is widely recognized among employers, but deliberate support will be needed to better define the roles of CHWs to meet the …

The Rattler (Volume 108, Issue 7), St. Mary's University

The Rattler (Previous issues)

Founded in 1919, The Rattler is the student voice of St. Mary’s University in San Antonio, Texas. The newspaper documents campus life, academic and social issues, student opinion, and local and national events as they relate to the University community. Content typically includes news articles, editorial commentary, arts and culture coverage, sports reporting, and advertisements.

Ua94/6/1 My Story: Wku Women's Basketball's Sandra Skinner, Sandra Skinner

Student/Alumni Personal Papers

My Story is a series of first-person feature articles written by WKU student-athletes. The student-athletes will be telling their own stories in their own words. This article written by women’s basketball redshirt senior Sandra Skinner, whose final season was cut short because of the cancellation of the Conference USA Tournament earlier this month.

Older Adults And Information And Communication Technologies In The Global North, Molly-Gloria R. Harper, Barry Wellman, Anabel Quan-Haase

FIMS Publications

At all ages, people are incorporating information and communication technologies (ICTs) into their lives. It is not that they have stopped talking with each other in-person, it is that ICTs complement their interactions when they cannot be together face-to-face. Since the 1990s, email has provided a routine way to stay in touch and sustain meaningful contact over distance. But not all age groups have adopted ICTs with the same enthusiasm. Research in the Global North has consistently reported that age plays an important role in ICT adoption and use (Anderson and Perrin 2017). For example, older adults have been the …

Evaluation Of The Impact Of Social Collaborations On Sexual And Reproductive Health Knowledge, Lucki Word, Jaila Campbell, Manar T. Edriss, Destiny Stroman, Jewel Evans, Melanie Hanna-Johnson, Md, Anil N. F. Aranha, Phd

Medical Student Research Symposium

Introduction: Developments in technology, such as the popularity of mobile devices and social media outlets, have enhanced the ability of individuals to communicate. Currently, search engines allow for easy exploration of information related to every topic of interest. Our study purpose was to evaluate the impact of technological and social collaborations on sexual and reproductive health knowledge (SRHK).

Methods: A 50-item survey instrument, integrating factors of sociodemographics, number/type of social collaborations, technological communication use, and SRHK, was developed to assess familiarity with sexual and reproductive health perceptions. The survey was provided to consenting patients in an ambulatory, primary care setting. …

The Cyclical Influence Of Society And Music, Bailey Gomes

Conspectus Borealis

No abstract provided.

Pornography: Adolescent Brain Development & Addiction, William K. Canady

National Youth Advocacy & Resilience Conference

This presentation will explain the historical development of pornography. It will highlight three segments: 1- Porn’s impact on brain development of reward pathways, ultimately increasing the appetite for more porn. 2- Porn can be a false substitute for real intimacy, resulting in decreased sexual satisfaction with a real person and increased verbal and physical aggression. 3- Porn promotes sex trafficking, promotes multiple sex partners and reduced STD prevention.

Gendered Conflict Resolution: The Role Of Women In Amani Mashinani’S Peacebuiding Processes In Uasin Gishu County, Kenya, Susan Kilonzo, Kennedy Onkware

The Journal of Social Encounters

The role of women in peacebuilding is acknowledged by many stakeholders central in peace work. While this is so, there are still concerns about what we know about women’s involvement in peacebuilding structures established by non-state actors. Drawing from Amani Mashinani (Peace at Grassroots) peacebuilding model initiated by the Catholic Church in Kenya’s North Rift region, we examine the role of women in processes of conflict resolution in Uasin Gishu County. Suggestions to support women’s participation will be discussed.

Peace Connector Projects: Bishop Korir's Strategy For Grassroots Peacebuilding, William Kiptoo

The Journal of Social Encounters

This essay is a narration of my personal experiences in peacebuilding in the North Rift region of Kenya as a resident of the region, and peace worker from 1995 to date. I draw from my work experiences with the National Council of Churches of Kenya (1995-2005), Catholic Relief Services and the Mennonite Central Committee (2007-2019). Specifically, how connector projects were used as a strategy for grassroots peacebuilding for the conflict-affected communities in the North Rift Valley region. The processes of mobilizing the communities, challenges, and outcomes of reconciliation efforts are discussed. The four connector projects discussed show the rewards attained …