Sociology Commons^™

“It’S Not Important For You To Speak:” The Perception Of Purity And Its Power Over Women’S Reproductive And Sexual Health, Margot Radding

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

There is a general silence in both society and academia surrounding women’s health and the social conception of purity. Purity myths and misconceptions have created stigmas that women of all backgrounds must navigate to manage and care for their reproductive and sexual health. This study investigates the importance of purity and how it is used to define, measure, and categorize women’s bodies and behaviors. Women’s perception of purity, specifically in regards to menstruation and pre-marital sex, were investigated using semi-structured interviews in Dehradun, Uttarkhand. This study analyzes how stigmatized conceptions of impurities manifest as silence in society. Data collected from …

Intertidal Interactions: Stakeholder Relationships Arising From Kitesurfing In Paje, Zanzibar, Jenna Walczak, Iris Levine

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This study investigated the growth of the kitesurfing industry in Paje, Unguja, Zanzibar in relation to its social, economic, and environmental impacts on the community. Prior research has noted that the increase in unregulated kitesurfing tourism in the intertidal zone in Paje has led to conflicts between various stakeholder groups— including seaweed farmers, fishermen, the tourist industry, tourists, and community members. This research aimed to promote a better understanding amongst all actors regarding aspects in which the kitesurfing industry can continue to benefit those involved while ensuring that the rights and livelihoods of the locals are upheld. In order to …

Rural Emergings, Urban Imaginings: The Effect Of Urbanization On Senegalese Ethnic Identity, Arianna Calabrese

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

For the past 40 years, Dakar has been the destination of Senegal’s massive rural exodus, with millions of rural villagers flocking to the city in search of work and education. The rural exodus has produced a unique multi-ethnic environment, where villagers, traditions, cultures, and languages from across the country converge. Ironically, therefore, Dakar’s landscape has been distinguished by the creation of an urban culture by a population of rural inhabitants. This paper examines the effects of urbanization on ethnic identity and affiliation, and further discusses the impact of Urban Wolof on personal identification among Dakar’s citizens. It then demonstrates how …

“It’S Not The Pride Parade Model”: Investigating Changes In Queer Activist Practices In Sarajevo After 2008, Matthew Zarenkiewicz

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

In 2008, a group of queer activists in Sarajevo organized the Sarajevo Queer Festival in an attempt to raise the visibility of queer people in Sarajevo, but the event resulted in a violent attack on the queer community. Since 2008, the actors and tactics of activists have changed, moving from the single, more radical, Organization Q, to the emergence of more groups with a more moderate approach. My research poses the question how have the tactics of queer activists in Sarajevo changed since the attack on the Sarajevo Queer Festival and the passage of the 2009 anti-discrimination law. Through semi-structured …

Suzhi At The Margins: Minority Politics And Identity Among The Mosuo, Graham Link

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This anthropological study explores the socio-political discourse of suzhi among the Mosuo minority, occupying the Yongning Basin region between Yunnan and Sichuan. The concept of suzhi, translating roughly as ‘quality’, first appeared during the 1980s in the context of ‘population quality’ (renkou suzhi), which refers variously to the educational attainment, material development, or more abstract moral quality of a people (see Jacka, 2009). In terms of ethnicity in China, numerous other studies have already shown how discourses like suzhi have been deployed to construct ‘Han modernity’ vis-a-vis its ‘Other’, the ‘primitive’ minority (see Zukosky, 2011, also Jacka, 2009; Gladney, 1994). …

The Autonomy Of Chinese Migrants Despite Structural And Social Determinants, Helen Yu

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

China is currently undergoing one of the largest domestic migration movements in its history, as hundreds of millions of its citizens move out of their countryside homes into urban areas to seek work in the wake of the nation’s rapid globalization. This paper examines the lives of these migrants – how much agency they have over their decisions and their destinies while simultaneously subject to overarching controls set onto them by economic circumstance, government laws, and cultural traditions. It explores how they subvert tradition and former government policies by leaving home, and how they respond when confronted with discrimination in …

El Método Anticonceptivo Implante Subdérmico Para Prevenir La Repetición Del Embarazo Adolescente En La Provincia De Tucumán, Madelaine Hack

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Información Contextual: El método anticonceptivo implante subdérmico se utiliza para prevenir la repetición del embarazo adolescente entre mujeres de 14 a 24 años de edad que no tienen cobertura de salud (es decir, sin cobertura de una obra-social o pre-paga) y que han tenido un evento obstétrico (parto o aborto) en los últimos 12 meses. La prevención del segundo embarazo adolescente es una línea estratégica sumamente importante porque la tasa de embarazo adolescente ha mantenido su valor cercano al 15% por los últimos 20 años. En el caso particular de la provincia de Tucumán, está presenta un contexto interesante lo …

Del Movimiento Estudiantil A Revolución Democrática: Esperanza Está En La Institución, Jensen Handwork

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The Chilean State is currently in a political era defined as the Crisis de Legitimidad (Crisis of Legitimacy) in result of extreme socioeconomic inequality and widespread political disillusionment. In 2011, a social movement led by university students became the most important movement since the democratic transition began in 1990, succeeding in re-politicizing the population. The movement started as a demand that the State offer free higher education and end various injustices in the entire education system, however, in time the movement and became a statewide expression of the frustration felt against the neo-liberal state. Over 80% of the Chilean population …

Hanoians’ Experience: Suspending Moral Bias To Recognize Human Dimensions Of War, Maggie Norsworthy

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Talking about, and learning lessons from The American War in Vietnam can be a process whose genuine engagement requires a suspension—even if temporary—of moral and cultural biases that are embedded in the Western mindset. This research project is one that composes military strategy, government rhetoric, and very human accounts of war in Vietnam in order to understand how people in Hanoi experience and talk about war, with an ultimate aim of making some of these stories and lessons digestible to a Western audience.

My findings discuss some key components of the North Vietnamese mindset towards the American War in Vietnam: …

The Political Participation, Engagement, And Perceptions Of President Magufuli Among Students At The College Of African Wildlife Management, Carolyn Del Vecchio

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

In 2015, John Pombe Magufuli won the Tanzanian presidential election, continuing on the 54-year reign of CCM, the political party founded by the country’s “father,” Julius Nyerere. Before the end of his political career, Nyerere had massive influence in selecting the future candidates of the CCM party that would take the presidential office. However, 2015 was the first election in which the CCM candidate was not selected, influenced, or supported by Nyerere. While CCM has been in power since independence, opposition parties have been steadily increasing in support. For this reason, the 2015 election was critical in determining whether Tanzanians …

Ñaan Baat : Ousmane Sembène Et L’Adaptation Wolof Comme Discours Accessible Sur La Politique Linguistique Sénégalaise, Xavier Lee

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Utilisant les romans écrits en français d’Ousmane Sembène et leurs adaptations respectives réalisées en wolof, j’avance que nous pouvons mieux comprendre la politique linguistique de la société dakaroise, particulièrement au sein des langues wolof et françaises, à travers une analyse sociolinguistique de la consommation et la production de littérature et cinéma au Sénégal. En particulier, j’essaie de mélanger une étude sociolinguistique avec une analyse littéraire et une critique culturale afin de comprendre comment Sembène utilise les langes pour atteindre une audience sénégalaise dans ses adaptations wolofs. J’avance que l’existence des « langues internes » démarque une réalité de la vie …

Navigating Cape Town: A Poetic Cartography, Sam Lin-Sommer

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Cape Town has long been the site of conflicts over urban space. This study explored the potentials of a place-based poetry workshop as a tool for critically engaging with the urban environment. With the assistance of a well-established local poet, the researcher facilitated a poetry workshop that brought three young and emerging poets to contested public spaces including District Six, Company Gardens, and Church Square. After the workshop, poets submitted their writing to the researcher, who compiled and narrated a poem that showcased the voices of these poets while drawing attention to salient ideas evoked by the poets’ work. The …

Student Protests At Uct: An Analysis Of Uct Community's Perspectives Of Tactics Used In The Fallist Movement, Laura Isdahl

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This study investigates the opinions of Rhodes Must Fall from the perspective of various members of the UCT community. Violence has been a term used to describe the tactics used in protests during the Fallist movement. I argue against condemning the students based on this reasoning, citing Fanon, Robins, among others.

Through six interviews and observations, I gathered different narratives and accounts of the Fallist events at UCT. This study includes perspectives from activists involved in the Fallist movement, other forms of activism, and some who oppose the movement as a whole. It seeks to gain different narratives than are …

En Toma. Desesperanza Aprendida: El Rol De La Memoria Colectiva En Los Movimientos Estudiantiles. / Occupation. Learned Despair: The Role Of Collective Memory In The Students’ Movements., Abigail Rothstein

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

¿Cuál es el rol de la memoria colectiva en la lucha para un sistema educativo de igualdad hoy en día? Este estudio investiga el Liceo de la Aplicación, una escuela en toma que podría servir como un microcosmo para los movimientos estudiantiles más grandes en el año 2016. La investigación trata conectar las razones para la toma a la historia de Chile, que tiene una historia profunda que incluye la dictadura y varios movimientos estudiantiles del 2006 y 2011. Al fin, esta investigación, junto con un video, demuestra el poder de la memoria colectiva no sólo en los movimientos estudiantiles …

Los Derechos Humanos En Un Contexto Local: La Relación Entre Los Derechos Humanos Y Los Movimientos Mapuche / Human Rights In A Local Context: Relationship Between The Human Rights And The Mapuche Movements., Lucas Richard-Virgene Paulson

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

La comunidad internacional ha trabajado para plantear una visión amplia de los derechos humanos. Sin embargo, todavía existen críticas de las limitaciones y los sesgos del derecho internacional. Para entender más la utilidad y las limitaciones de los derechos humanos, hay un enfoque creciendo en la percepción e implementación de los derechos humanos en los niveles locales. Para contribuir a este cuerpo de información, este estudio se enfoca en la relación entre el activismo Mapuche—un pueblo indígena en Chile—y las organizaciones locales de los derechos humanos. El estudio plantea que, aunque existe apoyo internacional para las demandas del pueblo Mapuche, …

Trash On Taboga: A Case Study On Solid Waste Management And Feasible Methods For Sustainable Improvements, Taboga Island, Panama, Madison Marra

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

On Taboga Island, a touristic island located just 20km outside of Panama City, solid waste can be found both littered and accumulated in an open-air dump that contributes to air, land, and ocean pollution. While more sustainable waste management systems are possible, as seen in other developing countries, differences in perceptions of waste management by users may result in differences in acceptance of new ideas. In this study, semi-structured interviews were used to gauge the status of waste management on Taboga and the perceptions of waste by its residents and visitors in order to ensure the participation of users in …

When The Hunt Is Over: Culture And Conservation In Kazakh Eagle Falconry, Nolan R. Ebner

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The last large scale practice of falconry that uses Golden Eagles takes place in Bayan- Ulgii, Mongolia. Recent media exposure allowed for the development of a tourism industry in the region that culminates in two annual festivals celebrating the cultural heritage. Modern eagle falconry practices have been shown to deviate from traditional hunting and training methods. While Golden Eagles are listed with a regional conservation status of Least Concern by the Mongolian Red List, these new practices place the health of Golden Eagle populations in the region at risk, especially as tourism continues to grow. Furthermore, a changing environmental climate …

Exploration Of The State Of Mental Healthcare Services For Youth In Nairobi, Rashiidah Richardson

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This paper is formative research concerning the state of mental health care for youth in Nairobi, Kenya. Using a mixed methods design, the objectives of this study were to identify the most prevalent mental health concerns among youth in Kenya, to explore the availability and acceptability of youth friendly mental health care services, and to explore the quality of and challenges to providing youth friendly mental health care services. Results indicate that substance abuse, conduct disorder, and family conflict may be among the most pressing mental health concerns for young people. Furthermore, while young people may be willing to seek …

A Comparative Study Of Women’S Health Care: Non-Syrian Refugee Women Living In Amman And Syrian Refugee Women Living In Refugee Camps, Megan Kerstein

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The purpose of this study is to compare access and quality of women’s health care in Amman for non-Syrian refugee women and women’s health care in Syrian refugee camps. I also sought to understand how women’s health care could be improved in both Amman and in Syrian refugee camps. I hypothesized that Syrian refugee women in camps will have less access and lower quality women’s health care since refugee camps’ funding is limited, making medical equipment and women’s health care providers short. Since women in Amman often have more stable family situations and jobs, I thought they would have more …

Dropping In: The Emergence Of Skateboard Culture In Urban Nepal, Olivia Pincince

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Since its inception less than a century ago skateboarding has epitomized youth counter culture. In recent years, this fringe sport has emerged in urban Nepal. Through in depth interviews with members of the skateboarding community and supplemental observational research, this study attempts to illuminate how social identity is realized for the skateboard community and how that conceptualization fits within the larger Nepali society. The following research suggests that skateboarding needs to overcome key economic limitations to truly become a cultural more in society.

Deaf Or [Insert Ethnicity Here]? The Impact Of South African Sign Language And Deaf Community Membership On The Ethnic Identities Of Three Deaf Students In Cape Town, Leanna Quach

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

South African Sign Language (SASL) is the language used by most members of the Deaf community in South Africa. SASL, much like other signed languages, has a long history of development, acceptance, and non-acceptance. The history of SASL is undeniably intertwined and affected by the political history of South Africa. This article examines the relationship between ethnicity, language, and identity in the context of South African Sign Language and the Deaf community. It seeks to understand how the use of South African Sign Language as one’s main language affects one’s identity and their identification with their racial group. The article …

The Impact Of Religion And Culture On Coparenting In Morocco, Corrine Ahrabi-Nejad

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Coparenting is an important relationship between mothers and fathers, which children can benefit from.Coparenting involves the active role mothers and fathers play in raising a child as well as communication between mothers and fathers regarding child related issues. Findings show that positive coparenting relationships lead to overall more satisfaction among both mothers and fathers in terms of child rearing. Additionally, positive parental involvement, especially father involvement, is shown to result in overall better psychological, physiological, and emotional development among children. Identifying ways to create positive interactions and ways to coparent can improve a child’s development. This study involves interviews with …

Local Flavors: A Look At Farm To Table In Samoa, Emily Gove

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

With increased access to foreign markets, Samoa has become more dependent on food imports. Most of these products are packaged and preserved, and often lack nutritional benefits. Women in Business, a local organization, has developed a Farm to Table program to encourage buying local. The effectiveness of the program has not yet been determined, and this project seeks to gauge restaurant owners’ satisfaction with local food, as well as the challenges they face when buying local. Surveys were distributed to 53 restaurants in Apia, Samoa, at the consent of the restaurant managers, and eight surveys were conducted with various players …

Framing Feminine Identity: Exploring Ways Of Being A Woman, Through The Practice Of Faith, And Ideas Of Equality And Justice Through Narratives Of South African Muslim Women Activists, Rachel Anderson

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

What began as an attempt to explore Islamic Feminism through the life narratives of Muslim women, actually enabled a journey into exploring ways of being a woman, through the practice of faith, and ideas of justice and equality. Through multiple in-depth interviews and conversations, a visit to the mosque for Friday prayer, and a night at a theatrical production in the Muslim community, I spent time with influential Muslim women activists in the Durban community of South Africa listening, learning and reflecting.

What I found was less concrete than labeling these women as ‘Islamic Feminists’ but it was also more …

Accessibility And Quality Of Education For Refugees: A Case Study Of Kyangwali Refugee Settlement, Meital Kupfer

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Education is a tool critical for a good future and success in an individual’s life. Without education, opportunities are lost. For vulnerable populations, including refugees, education is often not an indivisible right; living in a foreign country fleeing violence and persecution creates a difficult situation for learning. In Uganda, where there are over 600,000 refugees, hundreds of thousands of children are disregarded in the quality of their education. Kyangwali Refugee Settlement is one of ten Ugandan refugee settlements in Hoima district, housing over 40,000 Congolese and Sudanese refugees.

This research combined a practicum with Action Africa Help – Uganda, as …

Migrant Access To Healthcare: A Study Of Undocumented Migrant Access To Sexual Healthcare & Family Planning Services In Switzerland In 2016, Emily Egbert

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The Swiss healthcare system has experienced a significant influx of vulnerable migrants over the past few years. This presents a challenge to providers and policy makers to account for and provide aid to these non-­‐ Swiss citizens, such as undocumented migrants (UDM), whose status and circumstances may impede their access to healthcare. Along with this, various cultural barriers may present further challenges to access to the health system. This paper explores UDM access to health through the lens of sexual healthcare and family planning. In examining sexual health, the issues of sexually transmitted infections (STIs), HIV/AIDS, and sexual violence were …

Women In The Religious Wave Of Terrorism And Beyond: The West Versus The Rest An Analysis Of Women’S Motives And Agency In Al-Qaeda And The Islamic State, Regina Blaskie

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

As terrorism expands and changes in this globalized world, women’s involvement in terrorist groups remains to be an object of fascination, particularly Western women who choose to join terrorist groups in the Middle East. This paper aims to reveal and analyze the motivations that women have for joining terrorist groups, without merely labeling them as delusional or misguided by men. While it is true that women have roles in many different terrorist groups, this paper chooses to focus solely Al-Qaeda and largely the Islamic State as they (and increasingly the Islamic State) are extremely important for today’s global security. Furthermore, …

Enough: Narratives Of Migration On A Small-Farm In Sidibouafif, Steven Ring

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Small-scale family farms in the Eastern Rif have undergone challenge after challenge throughout the 20^th century, including war, poverty, restrictions of natural resources, overpopulation, and extensive labor migration. This paper aims to examine the ways in which narratives of migration manifest in the daily lives of a family living in the plain of Al-Hoceima. I hold the belief that the ways in which large-scale processes manifest in our daily lives is indicative of how these processes affect our identity. This research comprises a case-study with the Khalid family of SidiBouafif, and aims to examine the ways in which media, …

Economy And Decision: How Economic Factors Influence The Journeys And Destinations Of Trans-Saharan Migrants In Oujda, Morocco, Dianne Kaiyoorawongs

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This paper discusses how economic factors impact the journeys and destinations of irregular trans-Saharan migrants who enter Morocco through Oujda. Though many may choose either to return home or settle in Morocco and eventually receive status, migration policies continue to view virtually all immigration into Morocco through the lens of transit migration—it assumes that all migrants in Morocco are en route to Europe. The reality, however, is that the majority of trans-Saharan immigrants into Morocco will never have the means to reach Europe. Thus, this paper aims to fill the gaps in our understanding of immigration to Morocco—not simply as …

Healthcare Access For Syrian Refugees Lacking Legal Documentation In Jordan, Caroline Flynn

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The purpose of this study is to analyze the access and utilization of health care services by Syrian refugees lacking documentation. This study focuses on the current procedures utilized by healthcare providers for addressing lack of legal documentation in their Syrian refugee patients, as well as broader policies and strategies for addressing the status and protection of these undocumented individuals. This study grapples with the relationship between legal documentation and access to services. The increased costs and barriers to healthcare that come with stateless and refugee status may influence health outcomes and socioeconomic opportunities that impact these individuals for the …