Rural Sociology Commons^™

"Think Of The Children!": Understanding Parental And Community Opposition To Critical Race Theory, Daniela S. Tierra

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Critical Race Theory (CRT) in schools has become a controversial topic nationwide, leading to widespread and alarming bans on the teaching of CRT. CRT has been accused of shaming white children, creating racial division, and creating a “victim mentality” amongst people of color. The CRT utilized in critical legal studies, ethnic studies, and sociology looks drastically different from what opponents claimed. So, what exactly is CRT - more importantly, what do opponents of CRT believe it to be, and why are they opposed to it? This thesis builds on the sociological field of critical whiteness to examine the academic origin …

Placing Rural Poverty In The Political Economy: Farm Policy In The American Midwest, Aimee Imlay

Theses and Dissertations--Sociology

Approaches to explaining rural poverty highlight the social, economic, and political processes that contribute to poverty in rural communities, yet the political economy of agriculture has rarely been considered a determinant of rural poverty. Within rural sociology, peasant studies, and rural poverty are distinct subdisciplines; thus, farm and nonfarm poverty are viewed as mutually exclusive. This dissertation uses a three-paper format to: 1) examine the impact of changes to commodity programs on rural poverty rates in the Midwest; 2) investigate the impact of direct payments on rural poverty rates in the Midwest; and 3) explore the linkages between peasant studies, …

Alone In The Lone Star State: How A Lack Of Centralized Public Defender Offices Fails Rural Indigent Defendants, Aiden Park

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

The criminal justice system is stacked against indigent defendants. The disadvantages indigent defendants face are exacerbated when mixed with the unique qualities of rural America.

For instance, rural court-assigned attorneys are often picked through ad hoc systems by the very judges these attorneys must appear in front of, creating a judicial conflict of interest. The financial realities of rural public defense work often force counsel to manage a private practice while also balancing court-appointed cases. To the extent integral resources like investigators or experts are present in rural spaces, they are seldom used. This Note highlights the way Texas organizes …

The Conditions Of Oregon's Latinx Farmworkers, Kevin Alejandrez

Theses and Dissertations--Sociology

The goal of this three-paper dissertation is to better understand inequalities that Latinx farmworkers endure and the ways through which these inequalities can be addressed. As such, this dissertation examines pertinent inequalities Latinx farmworkers experience in the United States, their responses to resulting hardships, and the effects that crises such as the Covid-19 pandemic have in both exacerbating hardship and expanding opportunities to challenge inequitable systems in place. This is done through an intersectional analysis of a multi-year ethnographic study conducted in Oregon’s Willamette Valley.

First, paper one, titled, “Subordinate Adaptation: Intragroup Hierarchies Among Blueberry Pickers,” explores the ways in …

Reshaping The Narrative, Crystal Little Owl

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

No abstract provided.

Information Use And Decision-Making For Evacuation At Fuego Volcano, Guatemala, Beth A. Bartel

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

For populations living with risk to rapid-onset environmental hazards, an effective early warning system (EWS) may be the most viable short- to mid-term solution for risk reduction. At Fuego volcano, Guatemala, more than 60,000 people distributed between more than 30 small communities live within the identified hazard zones for pyroclastic density currents (PDCS), highly lethal hot avalanches and surges of volcanic gases, rock, and ash. Despite ongoing risk reduction efforts by scientific and civil protection authorities, more than 400 people died during a paroxysmal eruption on 3 June 2018 when PDCs reached populated areas. A high-end resort, La Reunión, evacuated …

Still, We Thrive: Understanding How Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, And Other Men Who Have Sex With Men (Gbtmsm) Experience Structural Barriers & Facilitators To Wellness, Lucas Gergyek

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Historically and concurrently, structural violence has been a significant force influencing the sexual health and broader health of gay, bisexual, transgender and other men who have sex with men (GBTMSM). Yet to date, the majority of projects exploring the health inequities facing GBTMSM have focused on intrapsychic and behavioural factors as most related to poor health outcomes. As well, these studies are sometimes deficits focused, and fail to evaluate how GBTMSM continue to thrive, and maintain positive health. As a result, the ways in which systems and policies underlie and perpetuate health inequities facing GBTMSM have been somewhat obscured. Connectedly, …

Perceptions Of Trail Safety In Humboldt County, California: An Analysis Of Safety Concerns, Factors That Impact Trail Use, And The Value People Place On Trails, Natalie C. Arroyo

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Trails in Humboldt County, California that are used for both transportation and recreation have myriad community benefits. However, people’s concerns about feeling safe can affect trail use, design, and development, as well as how trails are valued and perceived by residents. There has been a lack of information in Humboldt County about trail safety perceptions despite it being a factor that repeatedly arises in infrastructure planning and funding conversations. My research was focused on answering the following questions: (1) How do Humboldt County trail users perceive their safety on and near trails? (2) What factors affect these perceptions about safety, …

Nebraska Annual Social Indicators Survey (Nasis) 2023 Methodology Report, Bureau Of Sociological Research

Nebraska Annual Social Indicators Survey (NASIS)

No abstract provided.

“My Ob/Gyn Has The Worst Bedside Manner…” A Qualitative Analysis Of Patient-Provider Communication And Mental Health Outcomes Of Women In Rural Georgia, Tobi F. Oloyede

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Despite technological advances in medicine and public health innovations, maternal mortality in the United States remains significantly higher than in other developed countries. Specifically, Georgia ranks as the second worst place to give birth in the country. Maternal mental health conditions are common, manageable complications that can happen at any point during pregnancy, childbirth, or in the first year following delivery, with 1 in 5 women affected. Unfortunately, 75% of women who experience MMH symptoms are left untreated.

This study focuses on patient-provider communication through the birthing experiences of women who have been pregnant in Georgia to examine how their …

Retention And Persistence Of Low-Income, First-Generation Rural College Students From West Virginia, Rachel D. Nieman

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

A considerable body of research demonstrates that first-generation college students face greater obstacles to college retention, persistence and completion compared to their non-first-generation counterparts. However, the extant literature rarely explores rurality as a salient factor to understand these challenges. Even less visible in the literature are the experiences and voices of West Virginians. West Virginia is a predominantly rural state and ranks 49^th in the nation in terms of educational attainment, with only 19.6% of residents over the age of 25 having earned at least a bachelor’s degree. While rural areas may experience multifaceted struggles, the educational attainment of …

Deadly Divisions: Class And Stigma As Fundamental Social Causes Of Spatial Health Inequalities, Misty Lee Harris

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

The objective of this dissertation is to investigate how class and stigma influence spatial inequalities in health across the US, from the structural to the individual level. Class, stigma, and subsequent access to capital resources are not equally distributed across the US. Women, poor, and minority populations continue to have unequal access to capital resources across the country, though this is spatially determined. Similarly, while there are health inequalities along the same social cleavages at the national level, they differ significantly across localities. Research has not paid enough attention to the fundamental social causes of inequities, resulting in the inability …