Sociology Commons^™

Balancing Care And Challenge: Integrating Trauma-Informed Learning And Desirable Difficulty, Cerise L. Glenn, Katie Lind, Jessica D. Mccall

Feminist Pedagogy

Amid changing landscapes of campus culture (e.g., new technologies, increasing accommodations requests, program reviews), we utilize pedagogical strategies to expand feminist frontiers in ways that re-energize and promote an inclusive culture of feminist pedagogy. By implementing “desirable difficulty,” we seek collaborative learning environments that address the changing needs of students and teachers while fostering learning effectiveness. Combining aspects of trauma-informed learning with desirable difficulty helps balance these demands with a culture of care, created through approaches designed to promote learning opportunities and meet student needs without overwhelming faculty.

Beyond "Thanks For Your Service": Navigating The Challenges Of Memorializing The Global War On Terrorism, James Craig

Dissertations

As objects of public commemoration, the American public expects our national war and veteran memorials to draw coherent narratives from diverse, often contradictory, experiences. In return, our society bestows these places with extraordinary authority, allowing them to define the essence of events from years ago. This dissertation explores that phenomenon in the context of the national Global War on Terrorism (GWOT) Memorial, which has been approved for placement in the National Mall and is in its design phase. As its framework, this dissertation uses the four truth framework developed by the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission. With a focus …

A More Perfect Peace: Can The Russia-Ukraine War End Justly?, Nathaniel B. Davis, Marlon A. Thomas

The US Army War College Quarterly: Parameters

This article argues that thinking creatively about war termination, both philosophically and politically, utilizing jus post bellum principles and counterintuitive political trade-offs, reveals an opportunity to achieve a sustainable peace that approximates justice. The article surveys how war aims among belligerents have changed, indicating that further change is possible, particularly at the point of war termination. Next, the article examines jus post bellum principles and their application to the Russia-Ukraine War. Finally, the article contends that Ukraine relinquishing Crimea and the Donbas in exchange for NATO membership might be the key to achieving a durable peace that addresses long-term security.

China’S Role In A Future Korean War, Jake Rinaldi

The US Army War College Quarterly: Parameters

This article argues that China’s intervention in a Korean conflict will hinge more on North Korea’s ability to hold territory than on bilateral ties. Rather than treat Chinese intervention as a yes-or-no proposition, this study models three scenarios—full intervention, sustained support, and limited support—based on North Korean resilience. Using Chinese-language sources and scenario-based analysis, it assesses how each model would shape key functional areas such as ISR, cyber, materiel, and force posture. The findings offer US defense planners a framework for anticipating variable People’s Liberation Army involvement in a future Korea contingency.

Photographic Truth: Civilian Manipulation And Reality Under Stalinism, Reese Finnigan

Sociology Between the Gaps: Forgotten and Neglected Topics

No abstract provided.

The Next National Defense Strategy: Mission-Based Force Planning, Frank G. Hoffman

The US Army War College Quarterly: Parameters

The Pentagon needs to embrace a new methodology called mission-based planning to size and shape the defense enterprise properly. This article critiques several proposals for reestablishing the long-standing two major theater war construct in the face of ongoing shifts in the strategic environment, including the nation’s $36 trillion debt and prospects of annual interest payments beyond $1 trillion. It presents a mission priority alternative focused on strategic prioritization based on the authors’ four decades of experience in strategy/force planning at the service, the department, and the Office of the Secretary of Defense levels. Strategic-level service planners and students of Joint …

From The Editor In Chief, Antulio J. Echevarria Ii

The US Army War College Quarterly: Parameters

Welcome to the Summer 2025 issue of Parameters. This issue consists of an In Focus special commentary, three forums (Indo-Pacific Challenges, Russia-Ukraine Issues, and Historical Studies).

Strategic Narratives To Counter Global Threats, Jerry E. Landrum, Chase Metcalf, Michael M. Posey

The US Army War College Quarterly: Parameters

This article argues that the current National Security Strategy lacks the necessary coherence and fidelity to mobilize collective action against the emerging Russia-China axis. It merges multiple theoretical concepts to assert that the “rules-based order” theme is insufficient for mobilizing public support. Using textual analysis of the strategy compared with publicly available polling to determine levels of popular resonance, the authors find that the “rules-based order emphasis” does not resonate. This study’s conclusions will assist practitioners as they develop an updated National Security Strategy in the new presidential administration.

Parameters Summer 2025, Usawc Press

The US Army War College Quarterly: Parameters

Welcome to the Summer 2025 issue of Parameters. This issue consists of an In Focus special commentary, three forums (Indo-Pacific Challenges, Russia-Ukraine Issues, and Historical Studies).

Book Reviews, Usawc Press

The US Army War College Quarterly: Parameters

No abstract provided.

The Social Standing Versus The Mind Standing Of Older Adults In Egypt: Cross-Sectional Analysis Of The Relationship Between Social Capital And Cognitive Functions, Shaza H. Shinaishen Dr

Theses and Dissertations

Introduction: Egypt's population, much like that of other countries, is expected to age considerably over the course of the coming decades. Although biological and socioeconomic predictors of cognitive function have been studied widely, personal level social capital remains unexplored, especially in LMICs.

Purpose: This study primarily investigates the relationship between individual social capital and cognitive functioning among older adults aged 65 years and older in Egypt using the structural and cognitive components of social capital, including group membership, civic engagements, and caregiving roles.

Methods: A cross-sectional survey on 363 older individuals in different geographical and demographic segments of Egypt using …

Finding Meaning In Loss: The Role Of Attachment Styles, Coping Strategies, And Resilience, Salma Seyam

Theses and Dissertations

Grief is a deeply personal yet universal experience impacted by personal, social, and cultural factors. The present study examines how attachment styles, coping mechanisms, and resilience impact both grief intensity and the ability to find meaning after a loss, within an Egyptian sample. While previous studies have explored the experience of grief, few have looked at these factors within a Middle Eastern cultural context. A total of 140 bereaved Egyptians who experienced the loss of a loved one within the past three years completed standardized measures assessing grief intensity (Prolonged Grief Disorder-Revised; PG-13-R), coping strategies (Brief COPE), meaning-making (Grief and …

“Redefining The Fortress” Migrant Experiences, Adaptation And Connection Within Serbian Borderlands, Nicholas J. Leone

Theses and Dissertations

Abstract This thesis seeks to examine migrant experiences due to Serbia's geopolitical significance along the so-called Balkan route, and how this is specifically exemplified in the northern autonomous region of Vojvodina. Serbia’s position outside the external border of the European Union has caused it to be a strategic transit point for migrants en route to desired destinations, typically within Western and Northern Europe. However, the European Union’s externalization policies in partnership with Serbian authorities have played an extensive role in migration mobility patterns and humanitarian conditions for migrants traversing within the Serbian borderlands, specifically along the border with Hungary. The …

A Tragedy Of Incommensurability: Indigenous Rights And The Limits Of Human Rights Law, Zeina Ali

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis explores the tragedy of incommensurability between indigenous rights and international human rights law. Despite the emergence of frameworks like the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), indigenous calls for sovereignty remain fundamentally unintelligible within a liberal order structured to preserve settler-state legitimacy. Tracing the historical and theoretical evolution of indigenous advocacy, this study critiques the strategic shift from demands for self-determination to claims of cultural rights. It argues that this shift offers no real alternative: self-determination and cultural rights are functionally equivalent, as both are ultimately filtered through legal and political frameworks that cannot …

Nepaliness As Assemblage: Diasporic Belonging, Colorism, And Caste In The Associational Life Of Nepali Migrants In Florida, Shuvechha Ghimire Sharma

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The research fundamentally challenges romanticized ideas of migration—shedding older inequalities, idealizing “leveling up,” and being a part of “unified diasporic communities”—and unmasks a rather uneasy, far more intricate reality: the preexisting sociocultural and political structures and identities are not shed, rather actively reproduced and rigorously, often consciously, reconfigured within the transnational diasporic spaces. As such, the research reveals that Nepali diasporic associations in Florida play a vital role in perpetuating and reshaping social inequalities and contested national identities, significantly impacting transnational dynamics. The work contends that caste hierarchies persist in structuring associational life, influencing participation and resource distribution. Concurrently, colorism …

Ways Of Living And Knowing, Reem El Hassan Mohamed

Theses and Dissertations

After decades of sedentarization, the Muzeina tribe in South Sinai now has new generations born into sedentary lifestyles, never experiencing nomadism like their ancestors once did. This shift has impacted their knowledge system, traditionally shaped by interactions and kinship with nature. Exposure to social media is influencing younger generations' ways of living, raising the older generations’ concerns about their Bedouin identity. Despite being one of the largest tribes in South Sinai, the Muzeina are rarely represented in literature.

This ethnography explores the impact of sedentarization and contextual developments on the Muzeina's knowledge system, inherited from their ancestors. Muzeina’s relationship, and …

Growing Pains: Relations Between Racial Discrimination And Body Esteem With Ethnic-Racial Identity By Pubertal Timing For Female Adolescents Of Color, Emily J. Takamasa

Theses and Dissertations

Puberty is a near-universal experience among adolescents, and yet rarely have researchers considered the racialized contexts and salience it has, for girls of color. Using the phenomenological variant of ecological systems theory (PVEST), this study examines the relation between pubertal timing, body esteem, racial discrimination and ethnic racial identity (ERI) components (affirmation, exploration, resolution) among adolescent girls of color (n = 218, Mage = 15.7, U.S. sample). Results showed that higher body esteem predicted greater ERI exploration and resolution, particularly for girls with average or late pubertal timing. Additionally, racial discrimination was linked to higher ERI exploration and resolution only …

College Health Services Should Implement Trauma-Informed Design To Reduce The Negative Health Effects Of Sexual Misconduct, Emilie Whitehouse, Meena Wilwerding, Tara Richards, Lane Kirkland Gillespie

Criminology and Criminal Justice Faculty Publications

Sexual misconduct victimization including sexual assault, sexual harassment, dating/domestic violence, and stalking is widespread among U.S. college students. While survivors often experience negative mental health impacts such as depression and anxiety, positive disclosure experiences and supportive services can reduce these effects. One way to help increase service utilization is to use trauma-informed design (TID), which creates supportive physical and emotional environments for survivors and service providers. Here we provide case examples of how TID has been adopted in campus health centers and argue that TID is an underutilized strategy for ensuring that college student survivors are supported rather than revictimized. …

Self-Initiated Police Activity, Crime, And Complaints Against Police, Vincent Joseph Schaan

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This quantitative study aimed to examine the statistical relationship between self-initiated police activity, citizen complaints against police officers, sustained findings of misconduct, and crime within three police agencies located in the southwest United States. Prevailing law enforcement perception fueled by protests and riots infers that reducing proactive policing will decrease complaints. Using chi-square and binary logistic regression, this study analyzed 53,585 police and public contacts to answer three core questions. The statistical tests found a statistically significant inverse relationship between self-initiated police activity and complaints against police, with an odds ratio of 2.386 (95% CI: 1.62,3.50; p<.001). The findings indicate that officers who engage in self-initiated police activity have a 35.95% lower statistical probability of facing a citizen complaint. This study also found no statistically significant relationship between actual police misconduct and self-initiated police activity. The findings advocate for evidence-based decision-making based on statistical data, which found a reduced probability of complaints when law enforcement officers initiate public and police interactions. These findings contribute to positive social change by providing critical knowledge and information, and creating the potential for law enforcement officers and agencies to improve their relationships with the public by reducing complaints. Increasing self-initiated police activity provides a gateway to a reduction in crime and fewer complaints against police; therefore, data and information may motivate agencies and officers to increase self-initiated police activity to help reduce complaints and reduce crime.

Beyond Diversity Initiatives: Building A Community Of Care In Scientific Societies, Richelle L. Tanner, Kathryn Wilsterman

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

"In this Professional Biologist article, we present one such reframing that centers individualized care through structural changes. We argue that psychological and sociological motivations of belonging and social capital in the academy are funda- mental challenges contributing to the cultural problems within STEM fields and are particularly present within professional scientific societies. In support of this argument, we present survey- based data alongside significant literature from the humanities. In this reframing supported by existing organizational culture literature and our survey results, we suggest that scientific societies are uniquely positioned to promote significant cultural change within STEM by focusing on building …

Election Performance In The Mountain West, 2008-2020, Monserrat Cristando-Romo, Maryam Raja, Annie Vong, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Elections & Governance

This fact sheet presents data on the Election Performance Index (EPI) and voter turnout in the Mountain West states of Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah for the 2008, 2012, 2016, and 2020 presidential elections, as originally reported by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Election Data & Science Lab in their Elections Performance Index.

Editor’S Introduction, Michael D. Pante

Philippine Studies: Historical and Ethnographic Viewpoints

No abstract provided.

The Role Of Neuroscience In Mental Health Management Within The Adhd Population, Kadi Rae Smith

University Honors Theses

Neuroscience-based educational interventions play a role in the management of Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD), including the regulation of ADHD-correlated depression and anxiety. Existing research shows that elevated rates of depression correspond to anxiety within the ADHD community; approximately 8.83% of the global population. Social ostracization and isolation are established contributors to depression and anxiety which are commonly comorbid with ADHD. The need exists for further investigation of the beneficial impact that an accurate, biological understanding of how the brain works has on the mental health of the ADHD population, and by extension their families, education systems, and medical industries. …

Trauma In The Middle Ages: The Viking Experience Of Trauma Through Saga, Kagan L. Vogt

University Honors Theses

Trauma is a fundamental part of human experience and the ways in which human beings experience trauma differs drastically depending on the time and culture represented. Research on trauma in the Middle Ages does exist, however, often offers windows into very narrow intersections within the study of historical trauma. Other cultures and particularly oral traditions lack the same attention from scholars in trauma. The specific experience of Vikings as referenced in the oral tradition of sagas offers a unique window into the traumatic experience of Vikings as well as how they responded to trauma. This unique response to trauma is …

Beyond The Genome: The Racialized Exposome, Flourishing, And Stress Biology In African Americans, A Non-Exhaustive Review, Enye Washington

University Honors Theses

Racial health disparities remain an enduring challenge in the United States, disproportionately impacting African American communities through higher rates of chronic disease and premature mortality. This non-exhaustive literature explores how the racialized exposome - a term denoting the totality of social, environmental, and structural stressors rooted in systemic racism - biologically embeds itself via stress-responsive pathways. Specifically, it examines the interaction between racial stress, flourishing, and key biological markers, including allostatic load and telomere length, considering the gut-brain axis. The review highlights robust evidence that chronic exposure to racial discrimination and structural adversity contributes to multisystem dysregulation and accelerated cellular …

Prosecutorial Perceptions Of Discovery Reform On A Local Level, Gabrielle A. Roubanian, Janne E. Gaub, Marthinus C. Koen, James J. Willis

Qualitative Criminology (QC)

"In recent years, several states in the United States have considered and implemented discovery reforms to regulate how evidence is included and shared as criminal cases play out in the court system. Currently, little research explores how prosecutors have made sense of these reforms and how discovery changes have impacted their day-to-day routines. Consequently, this case study considers how prosecutors at a large prosecutorial agency in the United States made sense of discovery reforms implemented in its state two years before data collection. Findings are based on 35 semi-structured qualitative interviews and highlight how prosecutors experienced the implementation of the …

“They Don’T Want Us Anywhere”: The Impact Of Anti-Homelessness Laws On Unsheltered Residents Of Fort Worth, Texas, Brie Diamond

Qualitative Criminology (QC)

"Access to public space is not afforded equally amongst the population. Often, the people who must spend most of their time in these spaces, people experiencing homelessness, are barred by local or state law from being there. Fort Worth, Texas, implemented a camping ban in 2019 that prohibits camping on public or private property. This article explores the impact of this ban on unsheltered people experiencing homelessness using semi-structured interviews with 18 people residing in encampments across the city. The findings document the tangible and existential losses endured by this group and the impact on the perception of their place …

Campaigning For Change: How State-Level Groups Advocate For Legislative Sexual Offense Reform, Jennifer L. Wooldridge, Danielle J. S. Bailey, Stephanie Taulli

Qualitative Criminology (QC)

"In the criminal justice field, advocacy groups work to better the circumstances for specific groups of people facing perceived injustice. While some advocacy groups have been studied extensively, one type of group – sexual offense reform advocates – has been understudied. This is particularly problematic due to stigmatization and legislative differences in how individuals convicted of sex crimes are supervised compared those convicted of non-sexual offenses. These post-conviction differences make it necessary to better understand these advocacy groups and their processes when fighting for public policy change. The current study examines qualitative interviews conducted with affiliates of a national organization …

Complexities Of Appellate Law: Experiences And Perspectives Of Utah Indigent Appellate Attorneys, Whitney Howey, Stephanie Kathan, Jeremiah W. Jaggers, Chris Cambron

Qualitative Criminology (QC)

"Indigent appellate attorneys experience high stress due to their unique roles and responsibilities. Very little scientific research examines the lives and experiences of attorneys in the workplace. Characterizing and describing the variety of complexities and challenges Utah appellate attorneys face within their work provides information towards filling the profession’s gaps, stressors, and occupational needs. A sample of five Utah appellate attorneys were interviewed to better understand their perspectives and experiences in the workplace. We used thematic analysis to identify themes related to Utah appellate attorney experiences and perspectives. We identified four major themes from the data, including Personal approach, Working …

Puppycide By Gavel: How The Judiciary Uses The Police Killing Of Dogs To Reinforce Justifications For Police Violence, Jeremy J. Smith

Qualitative Criminology (QC)

"Police discharge their firearms more often at dogs than humans, and as a profession, kill thousands of dogs every year. The number of dogs killed by police during these encounters has government officials declaring that an “epidemic” is occurring within policing itself, with some commentators referring to this trend as “puppycide” or “canicide.” The purpose of this article is to examine how the judiciary rationalizes canicide, or the police killing of dogs, and the role canicide plays in the justification of police violence. To do this, the article provides a sociolegal and ethnographic content analysis of federal court cases and …