Family, Life Course, and Society Commons^™

Weathered Mountains: A Qualitative Study Of West Virginia Women And Their Perceptions Of Strength, Land, And Womanhood, Danielle Renee Mullins

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

Appalachia and those living within the region have been discussed, examined, critiqued, and defined primarily by those living outside of the area, particularly following the 2016 Election. The main narratives of Appalachia form a dichotomous view of the land and its people: beautiful landscapes threatened by resource extraction and a people wrecked by the symptoms of longterm poverty and economic stagnation. Simultaneously, the Appalachian identity has been constructed around a rugged or blue-collar male identity that excludes and makes invisible the female experience. This study seeks to break through the landscape and poverty binary, as well as the male-archetype, to …

The Influence Of The Maternal Infant Health Outreach Program On Child Development: Through The Eyes Of Moms And Home Visitors, Debra L. Lockwood

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

MIHOW, the Maternal Infant Health Outreach Worker Program, is a parent-to-parent home visitation program that aims to enhance early childhood development in economically disadvantaged and geographically isolated families with children from birth to three. This qualitative case study conducted in two rural Appalachian counties examined the perceptions and experiences of moms and home visitors regarding the influence MIHOW has on child development. Findings were interpreted in relation to extant literature on the prevention of developmental delays. Five themes emerged from the data. The first theme related to the developmental checklists and screening materials and moms’ understanding of how the checklists …

Does The Perception Of Obesity Cause Discrimination In The American Workplace?, Kevin R. Anderson

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

This thesis addresses the problem of discrimination facing the obese in America, specifically the discrimination the obese population contends with in the work place. The purpose of this study is to show the scope of the obesity problem across the United States, stigmas placed on the obese, sociological perceptions regarding the obese, and discrimination that the obese face in the work place.

Despite reports on the growing problem of obesity in America, little is known about the perspectives of the obese themselves, especially regarding discrimination in the work place. Literature is largely negative, relating the obese with undesirable traits and …

Socialization And Attitudes: Effects Of Religion, Political Identification, And Class, 1972-2002, Melissa Kimmel

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

This study analyzes the effects on culture wars attitudes of socialization into religion, political identification, and class on culture war type attitudes. Stepwise OLS and Logistic regression models were used to determine which of the three social institutions would have greatest impact on the attitudes: abortion for reasons beyond one’s control, abortion for willful reasons, capital punishment, prayer in schools, interracial marriage, teaching sex education in schools, homosexuality, premarital sex and extramarital sex. The findings support the theory that religion is the primary social institution involved in the development of culture war attitudes.

Modernization And Divorce In Japan, Motonobu Mukai

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

Divorce rates in Japan have increased since the mid-1960s, and even more rapidly since the 1990s. Divorce rates decreased throughout the period of industrialization, although modernization theory has argued that economic development brings pervasive cultural changes (including higher divorce rates). However, values regarding family are also influenced by the persistence of traditional values. Before WWII in Japan, a decreasing divorce rate was influenced by political ideology, which deliberately intended to change traditional ways of marriage and divorce. After WWII, however, this ideology diminished, and material affluence has led to an individualistic view that in turn has led to higher divorce …

The Relationship Between Juvenile Delinquency And Family Unit Structure, Angela D. Mullens

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between parental absence and juvenile delinquency and to determine if a link exists between the two variables. Data was collected from male juveniles who were alleged to have committed status or delinquent offenses between 1996 and 2004. Each offense was categorized according to the family unit (e.g., intact, father only, mother only, etc.), offense type (e.g., underage consumption, petit larceny, breaking and entering, etc.), offense level (e.g., status misdemeanor, and felony), the victim (e.g., crimes against the person, crimes against property, etc.) and the juvenile’s age at the time the …

Domestic Violence In Appalachia With A Focus On Cabell County, Wv, Deborah Ann Moore

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

This study of domestic violence in Appalachia with a focus on Cabell County, West Virginia involves many aspects. The costs of domestic violence, as well as, how abused women here conceptualize the major contributors to abusive behavior in men are examined. The demographics of Cabell Co., WV are discussed. The effects of battering and violence on woman’s work and employability are examined. What I did not anticipate to find through the qualitative interviews is the absence of a honeymoon stage in Walker’s (1989) cycle of violence. Goode’s (1971) resource theory provides an influential explanation of violence in Appalachia where a …

Am I My Neighbor's Keeper : Toward A Community-Based Model Of Local Violence, George F. Bills

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

The purpose of this exploratory concurrent mixed methods study is to better understand the community context of domestic batterer intervention systems (Gondolf, 2002) by converging demographic trends in crime and arrest, family income, and marriage and divorce rates with community status indicators and marital conflict themes. In the study, county-level Uniform Crime Reports data, US Census data, and Vital Statistics data will be used to analyze community differences in social context and patterns of domestic violence in Cabell County, WV and Lawrence County, OH. At the same time, the local domestic batterer intervention system in Cabell County, WV, will be …

Attitudinal And Behavioral Changes Demonstrated By Expectant Fathers As Measured By The Index Of Self Esteem, Terry G. Savage

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

Thirty married men who were expecting their first child were tested in the first, second, and third trimesters of pregnancy with the Index of Self Esteem to see if the subjects experienced a significant drop in self esteem during the course of pregnancy. The current study focused on the attitudinal and behavioral changes in the subjects as measured by the index of self-esteem. A decrease in self-esteem of the expectant fathers was not found, however the lack of diversity within the sample may account for the results. It would be necessary to conduct more extensive research to be more representative …