Regional Sociology Commons^™

Church Satisfaction Among Rural Minnesota Protestant Lay Leaders, Terry E. Huffman

Great Plains Sociologist

This paper reports on general church satisfaction among a sample of rural Minnesota Protestant lay leaders. The author examined the relationship between the dependent variable general church satisfaction with eight independent variables divided into three dimensions of church life. Prominent findings indicate that the vitality of churches is associated with higher levels of church satisfaction among the lay leaders. Additionally, older lay leaders reported greater general satisfaction with their church than did younger lay leaders. However, church contentment is not significantly connected to the mere size of the congregation, type of denomination, gender of the lay leader, or status of …

Gender In Pop Fiction: “Reading” Gender Power In Popular Fiction, Linda Colmenero-Chilberg

Great Plains Sociologist

This article investigates changes in the levels of women’s power in the American publishing industry in the period between 1985 and 2004. Four areas are analyzed including the representation of women at the executive levels of publishing divisions and international media conglomerates, the gender of the most powerful mass market authors of popular fiction, the gender focus of those genres that are most popular with the buying public and the representation of male and female characters in that mass-market genre fiction.

Briefly Noted

Great Plains Sociologist

Short summaries of new books. A book's appearance here does not preclude its being reviewed in a subsequent volume.

Book Reviews

Great Plains Sociologist

Reviewer: Karen Glumm
A Sociology of Mental Illness
Mark Tausig, Janet Michello, and Sree Subedi

Reviewer: Susan L. Schrader
Intersections: Readings in Sociology
Ralph B. McNeal, Jr., and Kathleen A. Tiemann, Eds.

Reviewer: Tracy B. Citeroni
White Saris and Sweet Mangoes: Aging, Gender, and Body in North India
Sarah Lamb

Reviewer: Michele Lee Chesser
Racist America: Roots, Current Realities, & Future Reparations
Joe R. Feagin

Reviewer: Annette Prosterman
Environmentalism Unbound: Exploring New Pathways for Change
Robert Gottlieb

Reviewer: Jack Niemonen
Tripping on the Color Line: Black-White Multiracial Families in a Racially Divided World
Heather M. Dalmage

Reviewer: Scott London
Colonizing …

Democratization Of Large Bureaucratic Organizations Having A Vertical Power Structure And An Authoritarian Leadership, Jorgen Bro

Great Plains Sociologist

This paper discusses how grass-root workers in large bureaucratic organizations can organize and thereby force democratic changes in the workplace when it has a vertical power structure and an authoritarian leadership. The kinds of organizations we are considering are large factories and similar organizations where a majority of the members are manual or low skilled workers. When we discuss leaders, we are primarily considering the management leadership, but under some circumstances also top-leaders when it is relevant. The paper will first define and discuss the relationship between democracy, bureaucracy, power, leadership, vertical power, and authoritarian leadership. Second, we will discuss …

Sioux Falls' Indian Population: Demographic Profile, Strengths And Challenges, Susan L. Schrader

Great Plains Sociologist

Representatives of the urban Indian community in Sioux Falls, South Dakota conducted a door-to-door survey of urban Indian households in the winter of1997. Data from 526 urban Indian households is presented, paying particular attention to service utilization, helping behaviors within the urban Indian community, and potential challenges to the city as it experiences rapid influxes of Indians to the urban environment. Implication from the study are investigated, and recommendations for future research are made.

Tenure Of Girl Scout Volunteer Leaders: An Issue Of Self-Role Merger, Donald E. Arwood, Linda Brandt, Jason Karsky, Forrest Sanner

Great Plains Sociologist

Past and present Girl Scout Volunteer Leaders (GSVLs) in a regional Girl Scout council were sampled to determine the factors that theoretically lead to self-role merger as a GSVL. Self-role merger as a GSVL exists when interacting with others, as a GSVL, is important in sustaining one's sense of worth as a person. The relationship between self-role merger and tenure as a GSVL was also examined. A test of hypotheses shows that the following variables are strongly related with self-role merger: a sense of achievement gained through role performances, the friendships developed through volunteering, and the extent of activities performed …

Poor Children And Vacation Homes: The Relationship Between Seasonal Homes And Child Poverty In Wisconsin Counties, Carol D. Miller

Great Plains Sociologist

Seasonal residents escape to their vacation homes in Northern Wisconsin to enjoy the natural resources and recreation. However, their presence affects the economies of Northern counties. U.S.Census data are analyzed and results show that high percentages of seasonal homes are correlated with higher child poverty rates. A higher percentage of seasonal homes in a county is associated with higher unemployment rates, high housing costs, more jobs in services and fewer jobs in manufacturing and extractive industries. Vacation homes distort local economies around retail and services that provide low-wage jobs for families, so children living in counties with a high percentage …

Front Matter

Great Plains Sociologist

Front Matter
Editorial Policy Statement
Contents

Book Reviews

Great Plains Sociologist

Reviewer: Diane Kayongo-Male
Reinventing Identities: The Gendered Self in Discourse
Mary Bucholtz, A.C. Liang, and Laurel A. Sutton

Reviewer: Janet Kelly Moen
The Web of Politics: The Internet's Impact on the American Political System
Richard Davis

Reviewer: James H. Larson
Reinventing the Wheel: Marx, Durkheim and Comparative Criminology
Ni He. Lanham

Reviewer: Robert Thompson
New Historical Atlas of Religion in America
Edwin S. Gaustad and Philip L. Barlow

Reviewer: Carol J. Cumber
One Market Under God: Extreme Capitalism, Market Populism, and the End of Economic Democracy
Thomas Frank

Reviewer: Elizabeth Gill
Runaway World: How Globalization is Reshaping Our Lives
Anthony …

Briefly Noted

Great Plains Sociologist

Culture, Conflict and Children: Transmission of Violence to Children

Danger in the Field: Risk and Ethics in Social Research

Travels Through Crime and Place: Community Building as Crime Control

Robbing Drug Dealers: Violence Beyond the Law

Social Conflicts and Collective Identities

The Paradox of Social Order: Linking Psychology and Sociology

Self, Identity, and Social Movements

Tangled Up in Red, White, and Blue: New Social Movements in America

Flag Burning: Moral Panic and the Criminalization of Protest

Means Without End: Notes on Politics

Old Order Mennonites: Rituals, Beliefs, and Community

The Kibbutz: Awakening From Utopia

The Deathly Embrace: Orientalism and Asian …

Stepmothers' Preparation For Remarriage: Influence On Spouse And Stepchildren Relations, Cindi Penor Ceglian, Donald Arwood, Renee Oscarson, Jason Karsky

Great Plains Sociologist

Role theory suggests that preparation for one's role contributes to clearer guidelines and less ambiguity about role performance, which in turn contribute to unity and stability of family life (Cherlin, 1978). The purpose of this study was to examine if stepmothers preparation for remarriage (observation, reading, educational programs, or talking to their spouses) influenced their relationships with stepchildren and spouses. The results indicate that stepmothers who prepare for remarriage are more involved with their stepchildren, have higher levels of communication with the children's fathers regarding child rearing issues, and have positive relationships with their stepchildren.

The Devils Lake, North Dakota -- Manitoba Water Trouble Case: A Transitional Environmental Problem, Lisa Brandt

Great Plains Sociologist

The Devils Lake—Manitoba water trouble case clearly shows the characteristics of a transnational environmental problem. This class of problem is difficult to negotiate because little innovative organizational structure has been created to manage contemporary multi-definitional problems. Furthermore, two major social forces, global interdependence and ethnolocal independence, act as mechanisms within an ecosystem management context to complicate attempts by parties to influence each others' behavior. Unilateral action rules the day but is under increasing pressure by social and cultural forces to give way to negotiated changes in transboundary cost-sharing and resource control situations.

Police Professionalism: An Occupational Misnomer?, Jeff Bumgarner

Great Plains Sociologist

In recent years, much has been written about police professionalism by scholars and practitioners alike. Prevailing in these writings are discussions about various factors thought to be associated with professional policing, such as training and formal education, the organizational structure of the police agencies, and community policing initiatives. However, what is often being described as indicators of professional law enforcement are simply good police practices which, however worthwhile they may be, are not synonymous with professionalism. This article seeks to examine the occupation of policing against the backdrop of professionalism as defined in the literature.

Classroom Ecology And Academic Performance: An Exploration Of The Merits Of The Single-Row Horseshoe Classroom Design, A. Olu Oyinlade, Silvana Maria Russo Watson

Great Plains Sociologist

Many studies on the effects of the traditional row-column classroom arrangement on academic performance have concluded that an action zone-whereby students who sit in the front and middle rows perform better than those seated at the sides and the back-exists. Therefore the traditional classroom arrangement does not provide learning parity for all students based on their seating positions, suggesting therefore, that some students are at a learning disadvantage due to seating position.

The present study investigated the single-row horseshoe design for its learning merits, with an attempt to discover if it offers a learning parity for all students or if …

Exurbanization And Rural Churches In Wright County, Minnesota, Gary A. Goreham

Great Plains Sociologist

The population of many rural communities in counties adjacent to metropolitan areas is increasing through the process of exurbanization. This study used structured interviews, documentary and secondary data, and direct observation to examine the impact of exurbanization in one nonmetropolitan county —Wright County, Minnesota —on the county's churches. The characteristics of natives and exurbanites were compared, their relationships examined, the impact of exurbanites on the county's congregations explored, and implications for church, denominational, and community leaders offered.

Front Matter

Great Plains Sociologist

Front Matter
Editorial Policy Statement
Contents

Briefly Noted

Great Plains Sociologist

The Globalization of Crime: Understanding Transitional Relationships in Context

Interrogating Social Justice: Politics, Culture and Identity

Criminal Injustice: Racism in the Criminal Justice System

Test of Faith: Hope, Courage and the Prison Experience

The Case for Penal Abolition

Diversity and Justice in Canada

Bad Kids: Race and the Transformation of the Juvenile Court

Gods of the City: Religion and the American Urban Landscape

Conversion, Identity, and Power: The Impact of Christianity on Power Relationships and Social Exchanges

Religion and American Politics: The 2000 Election in Context

Filled With Spirit and Power: Protestant Clergy in Politics

Paranormal Beliefs: A Sociological Introduction …

Book Reviews

Great Plains Sociologist

Reviewer: Cynthia L. Phillips
Gender Justice in the American West: Women Prisoners in Men's Penitentiaries
Ann M. Butler

Reviewer: Mary Warner
New Pioneers in the Heartland: Hmong Life in Wisconsin
JoAnn Koltyk

Reviewer: Elizabeth A. Gill
Transgressing Borders: Critical Perspectives on Gender
Suzan Ilcan and Lynne Phillips, eds.

Reviewer: Melissa A. Jones
The Secret Life of Families: Truth-Telling, Privacy and Reconciliation in a Tell-All Society
Evan Imber-Black

Reviewer: Keith Crew
Murder Most Rare: The Female Serial Killer
Michael D. Kelleher and C.L. Kelleher

Reviewer: Jack Niemonen
New Tribalism: The Resurgence of Race and Ethnicity
Michael W. Hughey, ed.

Reviewer: Evandro …

A Vision For The Northern Great Plains, Dr. Cornelia Butler Flora

Great Plains Sociologist

This essay presents a number of positive alternatives for the future of the rural Northern Great Plains. A number of trends occurring in the 1990s are used to assemble this vision, such as sustainable agriculture, information technology, wireless communication, and small communities working together in mutual interest. This vision identifies the important role of social capital and social relationships as rising in value over a consumer oriented society. The strength of a positive vision exists in its ability to fire people to actively seek these ends, [ed.]

Stepmother Self-Role Incongruency In The Newly Formed Family: An Analysis Of Stepmothers In The Great Plains, Jason L. Karsky, Donald E. Arwood, Cindi Penor Ceglian

Great Plains Sociologist

This study is a cross-sectional analysis of stepmothers from a Midwestern community in South Dakota. In this study, the relationships among six sets of variables are analyzed. The dependent variable is stepmother self-role incongruence index. The independent variables along with the strength of relationship in regards to stepmother self-role incongruence, are as follows; role ambiguity index (.393), anticipatory socialization index (-.203), wicked stepmother index (494), stepfamily/stepparent unfavorability index (.288), and a spousal disagreement index (.241). Hypothesis testing supported the hypotheses introduced in this study. Multiple regression analysis identified wicked stepmother beliefs as the best predictor of stepmother self-role incongruence (Beta …

Three Theories Of The Future Of The Great Plains, Scot A. Stradley

Great Plains Sociologist

The purpose of this paper is to present three theories of the future of the Great Plains. The theories consist of two extremes, based on the differences between supply and demand. Two of the three theories of the future of the Great Plains are supply side. One is a demand side theory. One or more of these theories can be found in public policy debates affecting the Plains.

A Critical Consideration Of The Introduction Of Community-Service Learning Projects To Courses In The Sociology Of Social Problems, Karl T. Pfeiffer

Great Plains Sociologist

This paper examines the introduction of community service learning activities in lower division (200 level) undergraduate Sociology of Social Problems courses. Data from student evaluations and grades are presented for five semesters of this class between 1994-1996 (n=98), prior to the introduction of a community service learning option. This data is contrasted with five semesters of the class between 1996-1998 (n=141), following the introduction of service learning activities. Despite generally positive feedback from students and increased enrollments, results suggest that student performance as measured by grades has not significantly changed with the introduction of community service activities. Also student evaluations …

From The Educator's Eye: Images Of Homeless In Rural And Urban Middle-America, Susan E. Wright, R. Dean Wright

Great Plains Sociologist

Poverty and homelessness are popularly conceptualized as urban phenomena. This tendency is reinforced by media and lack of academic research and persists despite increasing evidence that poverty and homelessness areas prevalent in rural as in urban areas. This paper compares data collected from educators in several rural and urban counties in Iowa It looks at actual levels of poverty and reported homelessness, and compares the perceptions of the severity and causes of homelessness as reported by rural and urban educators. It concludes that the difficulties faced by poor people in rural areas are compounded by the tendency of small town …

Front Matter

Great Plains Sociologist

Front Matter
Editorial Policy Statement
Contents

Book Reviews

Great Plains Sociologist

Karen Heil Borchert, reviewer
Rural Woman Battering and the Justice System: An Ethnography
Neil Websdale

Jerome R. Rosonke, reviewer
The Hutterites: Lives and Images of a Communal People
Paul Cloke and Jo Little, editors

Elizabeth Evenson Williams, reviewer
The Contested Plains: Indians, Goldseekers, and the Rush to Colorado
Elliott West

Carol Cumber, reviewer
Capital Culture: Gender at Work in the City
Linda McDowell

Don Robertson, reviewer
Who Rules America? Power and Politics in the Year 2000
William Domhoff

Glenda Sehested, reviewer
Formations of Class and Gender: Becoming Respectable
Beverley Skeggs

Annette Prosterman, reviewer
White Men Falling: Race, Gender, and White …

The Not So Wonderful World Of Disney: An Exploratory Content Analysis Of Gender Themes In Disney Full Length Animated Feature Films, Beth Wiersma

Great Plains Sociologist

Research has focused on the gender messages portrayed in television programs, cartoons, advertisements, literature, picture books, and fairy tales. One venue not included in the research is the Disney full-length animated feature films. The initial research on which this article is based was an exploration of the themes of gender, violence and anthropomorphism in Disney films. Emergent themes include heterosexual couplings, family constellations, good versus evil, and villains. This article will cover only the gender themes. Five areas were used to code gender content which include: physical appearance, personality traits, in-home labor, out of home employment, and societal and familial …

The Potential For Participatory Development Around The Takini School Howes, South Dakota, Amanda Gilvin

Great Plains Sociologist

This article examines community development issues faced in the vicinity of the Takini School, a small grant school on the Cheyenne River Reservation in South Dakota. By exploring various suggestions regarding participatory development, I consider possibilities for Takini's future, as well as how a development agent might function in the emerging community.

A Social Disorganization Theory Of County Crime Rates In Minnesota, J. Mark Norman, Donald E. Arwood

Great Plains Sociologist

This analysis is an application of social disorganization theory for understanding variations in county crime rates in the state of Minnesota. Social disorganization is seen as the breakdown of community institutions of social control, where indicators of breakdown included such things as family disruption and over-crowding. With few exceptions, measures of social disorganization were found to he correlated with county crime rates, with three variables as showing up as especially important; these are percent of children not living with both parents, per capita alcohol tax collected in the county, and net-migration. Three variables—percent of persons with incomes less than $5000, …

Front Matter

Great Plains Sociologist

Front Matter
Editorial Policy Statement
Contents