Sociology Commons^™

The Rattler (Volume 101, Issue 6, Edition 1), 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.

Siblings Of Children With Special Needs: Uplifts, Coping, And Stressors, Jesse A. Bingham, Melinda Buchanan, Dr. Susanne F. Olsen, Elaine S. Sorensen

Journal of Undergraduate Research

When a family includes one or more children with special needs every family member is affected by the challenges related to that chronic disability. In the past, research has focused on the child and his or her disability as pathological, whereas today it is acknowledged that many families are able to function positively and adapt well to daily life with a child with special needs. 1

Patterns Of Anti-Muslim Violence In Burma: A Call For Accountability And Prevention, Andrea Gittleman, Marissa Brodney, Holly G. Atkinson

Publications and Research

In this report, the authors documents how persecution of and violence against the Rohingya in Burma has spread to other Muslim communities throughout the country. Physicians for Human Rights conducted eight separate investigations in Burma and the surrounding region between 2004 and 2013. PHR’s most recent field research in early 2013 indicates a need for renewed attention to violence against minorities and impunity for such crimes. The findings presented in this report are based on investigations conducted in Burma over two separate visits for a combined 21-day period between March and May 2013.

The Effects Of Race And Gender In The Hiring Practicies Of Elite Management Consulting Firms, Christopher L. Pitzak, Lynn England

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The purpose of my research was essentially to evaluate the effects that race and gender have in the hiring practices of elite management consulting firms. I chose this industry because of the effect it has in today’s business world. Given the fact that management consuting is predominantly white male, I thought that an analysis of their hiring practices would offer an explanation as to its composition. Having studied race and gender related issues in the classroom, I was anxious to evaluate a real world industry and see how what I had learned in the classroom related to the real world.

Folk Medicine In Communist Cuba, Eric Peterson, Lynn England

Journal of Undergraduate Research

I went to Cuba to do an ethnographic study of common folk medicine. My original intent was to focus on the traditional, home-remedies used by Cubans and the possible discovery of new homeopathic treatments for use in our society. What I discovered, along with a short list of herbal medicines, was a unique integration of folk medicine into the socialist health care system due to the existing political and economic situation.

Do Perceptive People Have More Satisfied Spouses?, Kurt L. Olsson, Dr. James M. Harper

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The main objective of this research was to determine if there is a relationship between the level of satisfaction in a marriage and the accuracy with which the individuals could predict their spouses= perceptions. Attributional styles, or patterns, are those perceptual sets that tell us how to interpret events, especially their causes.1 For example, if a husband attributes the cause of a car accident to poor road conditions instead of feeling that his wife was driving recklessly, he has made an external attribution, assigning the cause to an external influence rather than an internal one. Many comparisons have been made …

Lessons On Love From The Back Of The Pew, Ann M. Sasala

SURGE

Saturday marked the one year anniversary of the death of the most important man in my life, my paternal grandfather. Despite the desire of each of his grandchildren to be his one and only favorite, somehow, looking back, I now understand that he saw the same amount of value in each of us, and that is not something that can be quantified. I learned so much from him: how to shoot a gun, how to remove a splinter, and how to be a good, kind and compassionate human-being under any circumstances. [excerpt]

Separate Spheres Or Common Domestic Ground: Gender Ideology In Parenting Manuals From 1820 - 1860, Jacqueline Henke

Student Theses and Dissertations

A number of historians have described 1820-1860 as a period of rigid gender ideology, a period of two "spheres". During this time, American men were active in the capitalist marketplace of the public sphere, while American women were confined to the domestic cares of the private sphere. Since childcare is a duty of private sphere, this gender-bifurcated narrative alleged that childrearing was a responsibility which inherently devolved upon the 1820-1860 mother. While research has demonstrated support for this model, so, too, has research provided support for a conflicting model. An alternative narrative portrays nineteenth-century childrearing as common domestic ground, a …

Letter Regarding Pbgc Request For Information On Missing Participants In Individual Account Plans, Federal Register, Vol. 78, No. 120, June 21, 2013, Ellen A. Bruce, Brian Reilly

Pension Action Center Publications

On August 19, 2013, the Pension Action Center wrote to the Office of the General Counsel of the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation in response to their request for comments on the implementation of a new program to deal with benefits of missing participants in terminating individual account plans.

Factors That Influence A Woman’S Choice To Breast-Feed, Emily Lippincott, Dr. Renata Forste

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Breast-feeding is the healthiest way for a mother to ensure that her newborn child gets the best nutrition possible; in addition, breast milk provides maternal antibodies to the child that are highly effective in preventing disease (2). Hence the slogan “Breast is Best” was created to encourage mothers to breastfeed their children; unfortunately, there are still a larger number of women who have resisted this message and continue to choose other methods of feeding. For instance, white women are two times more likely to breast-feed than their black counterparts, and college educated women are three times more likely to breast-feed …

Inquiry Into Issues Of Trustworthiness And Quality In Narrative Studies: A Perspective, Jason Loh

The Qualitative Report

Many narrative studies subscribe to the criterion of verisimilitude as a form of quality check. However, such a criterion does not fully nor explicitly address the issue of quality or rigour. This paper examines a possible set of necessary criteria for evaluating narrative studies. It draws on the quality literature from the broader qualitative research field as well as the narrative research field. Specifically, it deals with the need to have a list of considerations to refer to in order to ensure acceptability and recognition of narrative studies’ rigour. This paper posits that issues of trustworthiness, narrative truth, verisimilitude and …

Capturing Undergraduate Experience Through Participant - Generated Video, Paddy O'Toole

The Qualitative Report

The enrolment and attrition rate in science degrees in the Western world is of increasing concern, both nationally and at university level. At the same time, teaching undergraduate science requires universities to invest in laboratories, staff and equipment to meet the initial demand of enrolling students. In this article, I discuss participant - generated video as an innovative method of research used in a study to extend understanding about the experience of science students’ experience in an Australian university. In this paper, I present the method s and practices used to explore the experience of a selected number of undergraduate …

Student Versus Scholar: A Review Of Carol Grbich ’S Qualitative Data Analysis: An Introduction (2nd Ed.), Sheryl L. Chatfield

The Qualitative Report

Grbich’s analysis text is marketed for beginners although it contains some content that may be more meaningful for those with prior exposure to qualitative inquiry. The content of the book might be viewed as a series of contrasts: serious versus humorous; decisive versus flexible; didactic versus experiential. While some content areas are covered in great detail, the role of transcription in analysis is minimized. Recommended use of this text is as a supplemental book in a first qualitative course or as a primary text in a subsequent course.

Ua51/1 Collections & Connections, Jennifer Wilson

Collections & Connections

This spring/summer 2013 issue features Al and Jeane Baker honored for their in-kind gift to the libraries' centennial mural as well as Dr. Nicholson who won this year's Kentucky Literary Award for his book about Derby. The issue also highlights the 2013 SOKY Book Fest that brought in 130 authors. It reports the newly renovated Commons at Cravens and the just installed web-based service StackMap, which can visually guide users to the stacks of books in Cravens Library using their smart phones. As usual, all of the Libraries’ literary events have been mentioned in the issue, particularly the new grant-supported …

Cameroon Deaf Empowerment Organisation: Reflections On An International Service-Learning Capstone, Te'aira Tucker

Undergraduate University Honors Capstones

Te’aira Tucker’s capstone is a reflection based upon her experience working on a service learning project in Cameroon, West Africa. As part of her service-learning project, she conducted an internship with a deaf organization, the Cameroon Deaf Empowerment Organisation (CDEO), partnering with this organization through Dr. Berdichevsky’s International Deaf Partnerships (IDP) program. Te’aira went to Cameroon during the summer of 2012 initially to work on an HIV/AIDS education campaign focusing on deaf Cameroonian women. However, upon arriving, she learned that this initiative was not needed, and therefore, she turned instead to a different and pressing need associated with the CDEO …

The Ways Women In Saudi Arabia Define Domestic Violence, Maha Mohammed Nahshal

Student Theses and Dissertations

Domestic violence has been on the global agenda for several decades; however, domestic violence has become an important public concern in Saudi Arabia only in the last ten years. Drawing on qualitative, exploratory data from interviews with fifteen women from Saudi Arabia, this exploratory study, examines how women in Saudi Arabia define domestic violence. This study was conducted in Saudi Arabia; it is the first study about how women in Saudi Arabia define domestic violence. This study uses a small group of educated, employed women. The result for this study shows five themes: (1) family environment, (2) privacy and security, …

Dose- And Time-Dependent Neuroprotective Effects Of Pycnogenol® Following Traumatic Brain Injury, Mubeen A. Ansari, Kelly N. Roberts, Stephen W. Scheff

Sanders-Brown Center on Aging Faculty Publications

After traumatic brain injury (TBI), both primary and secondary injury cascades are initiated, leading to neuronal death and cognitive dysfunction. We have previously shown that the combinational bioflavonoid, Pycnogenol® (PYC), alters some secondary injury cascades and protects synaptic proteins when administered immediately following trauma. The purpose of the present study was to explore further the beneficial effects of PYC and to test whether it can be used in a more clinically relevant fashion. Young adult male Sprague-Dawley rats were subjected to a unilateral moderate/severe cortical contusion. Subjects received a single intravenous (i.v.) injection of PYC (1, 5, or 10 mg/kg) …

Considering Covenants, Kelly Erickson, Dr. Alan J. Hawkins

Journal of Undergraduate Research

In an effort to combat the no-fault divorce era and it=s social repercussions, two states, Louisiana and Arizona, have already passed a Covenant Marriage Law (CM). This law is meant to strengthen the marriage commitment from it=s inception by requiring the following conditions of couples who choose to participate in a Covenant Marriage: 1) that they have carefully chosen to marry and have disclosed any information that could adversely affect the relationship, 2) that they understand that the legal grounds for separation or divorce include adultery by the other spouse, felony and imprisonment, abandonment for one year, physical or sexual …

Friends In The Desert Foundation, Inc. Program Evaluation, Gina Brooksbank, Jessica Wilde, Holly Williams

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This report presents an evaluation of the Friends in the Desert, Foundation Incorporated (FID), a sit-down feeding program in downtown Henderson, Nevada. The evaluation identified both strengths of the program and opportunities for growth. Major components of this report are presented in the following order: scope of work, research design, findings, recommendations, conclusions and limitations. The report recommendations provide the agency’s members and principal stakeholder groups with proposals designed to improve the program’s financial position and long-term viability. These recommendations focus on opportunities for restructure, growth, and uninterrupted success.

FID is a sit-down feeding program located at St. Timothy’s Episcopal …

Friends Of Rainbow Company Program Evaluation, Holly Balmer, Christian Downing, Eric Garner

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Friends of the Rainbow Company (Friends) is a nonprofit organization that supports the mission of The Rainbow Company Youth Theatre (Rainbow Company) in Las Vegas, Nevada. Established in 1978, it supports the Rainbow Company through non-traditional financial streams and hands-on support. The Rainbow Company receives primary financial support from the City of Las Vegas Office of Cultural Affairs. Being the City’s only youth theatre education program of its kind, it has received local governmental funding since 1976. The City support is mainly for salaried employees and facilities.

Friends and the Rainbow Company are very closely linked in several ways. First, …

Spatial Health Indicator Analysis Data Collection Unlv Study, Amelia Gulling, Jeff Greer, Tom Stewart

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Southern Nevada Strong (SNS) is a collaborative regional planning project between local public agencies and NGOs throughout the Las Vegas Valley. This project is headed by City of Henderson on behalf of the Southern Nevada Regional Planning Committee. SNS received a $3.5 million Sustainable Community (SC) grant from HUD which is set to expire in 2015. SNS member agencies receive preference for future HUD grants by participating in successful SC grant, which could be considered a motivating factor for participation for outside agencies.

Demographics, Skills Gaps, And Market Dynamics, Randall W. Eberts

Conference Papers

No abstract provided.

The Assessment Of Nigerian Diaspora In The Usa And Exploring Its Potential Contribution To Sustainable Development, Binyam Shimelis Aseffa

Capstone Collection

Increased migration is inevitable in an integrating world economy; Nigeria is one of these developing countries with a high migrant or diaspora population. This research is conducted to assess Nigerian Diaspora in the USA and explore its potential contribution to sustainable development. The research used secondary data collection and analysis to come up with the findings. The major findings of the research include; Nigeria is one of the developing countries with the highest migrant population all over the world. Nigerians have left their home in the last few years in droves and today can be found in every part of …

Stuff White People Like #1863, Joseph Stephen Slowinski

SURGE

There I sat: sun burning my neck, sweat pouring down my face, watching grown men play at death. I’d been meaning for years to get to Gettysburg to see the reenactment, and this past July, I was lucky enough to be there for the 150th anniversary of the battle. And so there I was, sitting in a grandstand in the middle of a farm in rural Pennsylvania, surrounded by fellow white people, watching a Confederate soldier get shot in the back for pretending to desert in the face of the Union cavalry. He flopped to the ground in front of …

The Meaning Of Life – Or At Least University Life, Mark Routhier

UCF Forum

The sun will one day burn itself out and all the magnificence and strife that is humankind will be a whisper in a vacuum, a ripple through dark space.

From College To Career: Understanding First Generation And Traditional Community College Transfer Students' Major And Career Choices, Jeff Scott Shelton

Dissertations and Theses

While the connection between major choice and career goals seems logically obvious, research exploring this process is limited, particularly concerning how socio-economic class, based on parents' educational levels, influences the choice process. An important initial step in understanding this larger process is to explore how SES-based differences affect the process of choosing a major, a career goal and the way in which students link their major to a possible career.

This study utilizes a comparative interview design to explore the lived experiences regarding major and career aspirations of first generation and traditional college seniors who have transferred from a community …

Power Of Shame: The Moderating Effects Of Parental And Peer Connection On The Relationship Between Adolescent Shame And Depression, Self-Esteem, And Hope, Alexander L. Hsieh

Theses and Dissertations

Past research and views on shame have indicated that shame has detrimental effects for adolescent development. Little research has focused on the pathways in which shame may affect adolescent traits. Even less studies examine what variables may moderate the effects of shame. Using adolescent self-report questionnaires, this study examined the relationship between adolescent shame and depression, self-esteem, and hope. In addition, this study examined the moderating effect maternal, paternal, and best friend relationships have between shame and adolescent outcome variables. A structural equation moderation model analysis was fit to data from 307 two-parent families. The average age of adolescents for …

Dar Al-Wefaq Women’S Shelter Needs Assessment, Annie Samhouri, Dr. Ralph Brown

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Jordan is considered one of the most progressive Arab states, yet only a handful of Jordan-specific research has been performed that address pertinent topics related to government programs that assist female victims of domestic violence. My original research project sought to identify the demographics of women that seek assistance at Dar Al-Wefaq battered women’s shelter. Identifying the demographics of beneficiaries would enable the Jordanian Ministry of Social Development to strengthen existing programs and better meet the needs of those that seek assistance at Dar Al-Wefaq. Using Dar Al-Wefaq as a case study, I initially planned to statistically analyze demographics such …

What Works In Substance Abuse Treatment Programs For Offenders?, Amber Masters, Dr. Stephen Bahr

Journal of Undergraduate Research

One of the major social problems in the United States is the prevalence of substance abuse. Eight percent of Americans age 12 and over used an illicit drug during the past month—9% of youths 12-17 and 20% of those 18-25 (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, 2009). Substance use is particularly common among individuals involved in the criminal justice system. Among prison inmates in the United States, 73% used drugs regularly prior to their incarceration (Petersilia, 2005). At the time inmates committed their latest offense, 50% were under the influence of alcohol or drugs (Karberg & James, 2005). From …

Sustainable Development And Good Cheese: An Evaluation Of Choice Humanitarian And Hispanics In Philanthropy’S Goat Cheese Project In Tamaula And Huaricho, Mexico, Jeffrey Swindle, Dr. Tim Heaton

Journal of Undergraduate Research

CHOICE Humanitarian and Hispanics in Philanthropy (HIP) partnered to support a local project proposal by villagers in Tamaula and Huaricho, Mexico to create small goat cheese factories in each of the villages. The goal of the project was to create jobs for villagers so that their communities develop despite their structural poverty and reliance on remittances.