Sociology of Culture Commons^™

Discussion Of Iran Awakening By Shirin Ebadi, Musselman Library

Iran: Beyond the Headlines

In preparation for our book discussion on Iran Awakening by Shirin Ebadi for our Iran: Beyond the Headlines series, we created some of our own discussion questions about the book. Please feel free to use for your own book discussion!

A Meal For The Man On The Redline, Stephen Lin

SURGE

These words will bite,

Acid bubbling

At the pit of your bowels

Vowels volatile won’t

Be easy to swallow. [excerpt]

The Algorithmic Self, Frank A. Pasquale

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Education, Crystal C. Gray

Eddie Mabry Diversity Award

Education is a spoken word poem that explores many aspects of the African American struggle within (self-knowledge). It starts with an African American college student who is disappointed with the lack of courses about her culture. Most curricula in the United States tend to be from a Eurocentric perspective, leaving out a multitude of information about people of color. All groups of people of color have unique experiences, however, African Americans have the most known (or perhaps I should say, unknown) history. The standard explanation of their existence is often limited to the start of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade, when …

Huggies, High-Fives, And Huismannen: Exploring The Masculinity And Everyday Experiences Of Dutch Stay-At-Home Fathers, Courtney C. Grey

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This qualitative research study explores Dutch stay-at-home fathers, or “huismannen,” and their everyday experiences with their role and their own masculinity. There has been much research conducted on stay-at-home fathers within other countries and cultures, but the current research significantly lacks the perspective and voices of those within the Dutch culture. To gather these voices, oral history interviews were conducted with five Dutch huismannen, and the collected data were analyzed using gender theory focused on masculinity and current relevant literature. This analysis led to the conclusion that Dutch stay-at-home fathers create and conform to a complicit masculine identity. …

The Effect Of Refugees On Jordanian Identity, Max Yenkin

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Jordan has become known as the home for refugees from the crises that have occurred along its borders. Several waves of large groups of refugees have come to Jordan: 1948, 1967, 1991, 2003, and 2011-present, with copious amounts of refugees coming from different surrounding countries to Jordan. The Hashemite Kingdom is ruled through keeping relations between the Bedouin tribes that have lived in the area from the founding of the country. This has led to the denial of equality for former refugees who obtained citizenship as well as the other refugee populations in areas such as work and education. As …

Gender And Sexuality In Nepal: The Experiences Of Sexual And Gender Minorities In A Rapidly Changing Social Climate, Sophia Greene

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Gender and sexuality in current day Nepal is at the crux of a societal revolution, as the deeply ingrained patriarchal society framed against the emergence of new ideas results in a shifting social climate in which old and new clash. As modernization and economic development permeate Nepal, they bring with them individualistic ideals which gradually infiltrate society, altering long held social attitudes toward marriage, gender, and sexuality. However, despite societal change and even changing legislation for the rights of women and members of the LGBTI community, both of these minorities still face overwhelming discrimination and prejudice in Nepali society. Sexual …

Business, Education, And Enjoyment: Stakeholder Interpretations Of The Gettysburg Museum And Visitors Center, Ava M. Muhr

Student Publications

An anthropological study of the Gettysburg Museum and Visitors Center undertaken to understand the ways in which the visitor experience is conditioned by their own personal background, as well as filtered through the carefully constructed historical narrative created by museum historians, National Park Service rangers, and administrators. The Gettysburg Museum and Visitors Center is a site in which multiple stakeholders contend to ensure that their interpretations of the museum’s purpose is being upheld. This paper will examine the ways in which these various stakeholders – primarily NPS rangers, Civil War historians, and history buffs – interpret the catalyst(s) for constructing …

Witnesses To Revolution, Colleen Cassingham

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

My documentary follows two families 4 years after the Tunisian Revolution. All members in the Daly family from Sidi Bouzid participated in the revolution, and the Laroussi family in La Goulette had two brothers martyred on January 14^th, 2011. The film explores the effects of the revolution – emotional, economic, and social – on all the various family members. As we get glimpses into the daily life of two main characters, we see that reactions to the revolution are diverse, although the notion of the ‘Tunisian exception’ is held up to scrutiny by the overwhelmingly negative reactions to …

Meditating On Mountain Bikes, Sam Bowen

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

For a long time, Nepal has been an exotic destination for adventurers and spiritual wanderers. Geographically, there are no comparisons. “The country is vertical,” said Jagan Biswarka as he pointed across Phewa Lake to the snow-capped mountains. “You can see the 8000 meter from 800 meter. This will be one of the best playgrounds in the world. Nowhere in Nepal. Nowhere in the world.” Mads Mathiasen, a Danish expatriate agrees. “I think very few people realizes how big a contrast there is in Nepal from seventy-one meters above sea level – the lowest place in Nepal – to eight-thousand eight-hundred …

A Resistance, Remembered? Remembrance, Commemoration And The Parallel System In Prishtina, Kosovo, Conner Gordon

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Though the 1999 war that liberated Kosovo from Serbian control is over fifteen years in the past, memories of the 1990s still remain in a state of chaos. This paper approaches the development of these collective memories through interviews with Prishtina residents about the memories and legacy of Ibrahim Rugova’s parallel structures in the 1990s. Though they draw from similar narratives as memories of the Kosovo Liberation Army’s armed resistance, memories of the nonviolent resistance play a vastly different and largely underrepresented role in current Kosovar Albanian public discourse. Through competing deployments of resistance memories, disproportionate memorialization of Kosovo’s violent …

From Laws To Last Names: Examining Popular Opinions Of Adoption In Morocco, Margaret Liston

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

As international adoption is becoming a much more common reality for many orphans and abandoned children worldwide, it is an important time to consider the implications of attitudes regarding adoption in Morocco—an Islamic state which defines adoption in a very specific but different way from the Western world. Despite the abundance of literature analyzing the historical and legal aspects of adoption in Morocco, there is a notable absence of research that examines the opinions of Moroccans removed from the adoption process on the institution itself. This study seeks to highlight potential trends in attitudes regarding adoption by examining the views …

Theravada Buddhism And Dai Identity In Jinghong, Xishuangbanna, James Granderson

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This ethnographic field project focused upon the relationship between the urban Jinghong and surrounding rural Dai population of lay people, as well as a few individuals from other ethnic groups, and Theravada Buddhism. Specifically, I observed how Buddhism manifests itself in daily urban life, the relationship between Theravada monastics in city and rural temples and common people in daily life, as well as important events wherelay people and monastics interacted with one another. This research was intended to fulfill a need to observe how Theravada Buddhism influences Dai lives on the mundane level.This involved a several week study period in …

Mind Within The Body The Presence And Importance Of Mental Health Within Traditional Tibetan Medicine, Reta Flynt

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The purpose of this Independent Study Project was to identify aspects of mental health within the traditional Tibetan medical system that are both taught in the classroom and carried out in clinical practice, with a primary focus on the importance of maintaining mental health. Throughout the research process, aspects of illness etiology, diagnosis, treatment processes, and influence from Tibetan Buddhism were found to be deeply connected in maintaining mental health within patients of Traditional Tibetan medicine. As well, much emphasis was found on the mind's influence on the physical wellbeing of an individual, suggesting that mental and physical health are …

The Social Institution And Inscription Of Child Marriage In The Terai Region Of Nepal, Alexandra Baer Chan

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Marriage is typically considered to be one of the foundations of the family unit, and family is thought to be one of the pillars of society. Because marriage is such a primary social concept, its forms and functions may be taken for granted, despite the fact that it is culturally dependent. For example, the idea that one must be in love in order to get married may be more cultural ideal than universal idea—and is thus not true of many cultures. Arranged marriages are still performed in many parts of the world, and can be means of building kinship circles …

Child Marriage: Addressing The Challenges And Obstacles In The Post-2015 Agenda, Valeria Pelayo

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This study explores the progress of child marriage eradication over the last forty years in order to identify the weak points of implementation as well as how these are being incorporated in the post-2015 agenda. An assessment of current rates by geographic region and several other demographic factors is included along with future projections for these affected areas. The shortcomings identified include a lack of program evaluation, negligence towards married children, a shortage of data on sub-national legislation efficacy, and minimal attention paid to child marriage in the context of slavery and human trafficking. The scope of the problem is …

Getting "Bi" In The Family: Bisexual People's Disclosure Experiences, Kristin S. Scherrer, Emily Kazyak, Rachel M. Schmitz

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

There are many similarities in gay, lesbian, and bisexual individuals’ coming out experiences, but bisexual people face unique challenges. Despite this, an explicit focus on bisexual people is missing from family research. Using family systems and cultural sociological perspectives, the authors analyzed how social and cultural factors shape disclosure processes for bisexuals as they come out to multiple family members. After analyzing qualitative data from a diverse group of 45 individuals, they found that bisexual people navigate monosexist and heterosexist expectations in their family relationships. Cultural constructions of bisexuality shape the ways that bisexual people disclose their identities, including how …

Values Of Western Society Play A Role In Terrorism, John Visser

Faculty Work Comprehensive List

Guest editorial by Dr. Visser published in the Des Moines Register, February 26, 2015.

In The Absence Of Peace, Emma R. Okell

SURGE

Today, the Monday after the attack, all of the flags were at half mast. Everything continued as normal, as if nothing had happened. Yet there was an intensity in the air. I didn’t notice the increased police, but it was easy to feel the increased security. [excerpt]

Border X-Ing, Alicia A. Castro

SURGE

The sun out-stretched its bright arms in an embrace with the mesquite trees that beckoned upwards. The wind greeted the clothes drying upon delicate wire while my mother meticulously placed white towels in the light and the jeans under the shade of the Arizona Ash. The washboard sits upright in the bucket full of suds and other assorted laundry. Inside the shed there is both a working dryer and washer only a few years old, but she has chosen to do this chore outside. Here she can close her eyes and be back in Mexico with the dry heat and …

Family Therapist Connecting And Building Relationships With Substance Abusers In The Seminole Tribe Of Florida: An Ethnographic Study, Sunny Nelli Khachatryan

Department of Family Therapy Dissertations and Applied Clinical Projects

The purpose of this ethnographic study was to examine the process of a family therapist entering and then navigating the cultural system of working with substance abusing Seminole tribal clients. The study also utilized two tribal members sharing their opinions about how Seminoles view therapy. As noted in the interview questions and responses, the research presented guidelines for family therapists to follow when working with tribal members. Because there has been no study conducted with family therapists providing clinical services to tribal members, this study introduced tools for clinicians to keep in mind and utilize when working with tribal clients. …

When Justice Demands Inequality, John Thrasher, Keith Hankins

Philosophy Faculty Articles and Research

In Rescuing Justice and Equality G.A. Cohen argues that justice requires an uncompromising commitment to equality. Cohen also argues, however, that justice must be sensitive to other values, including a robust commitment to individual freedom and to the welfare of the community. We ask whether a commitment to these other values means that, despite Cohen’s commitment to equality, his view requires that we make room for inequality in the name of justice? We argue that even on Cohen’s version of egalitarianism equality, freedom, and welfare are not always compatible. Justice will require trade-offs between these values. Sometimes, equality will need …

Review Of Jon Stratton And Nabeel Zuberi's Black Popular Music In Britain Since 1945 (2014), Tim Engles

Faculty Research & Creative Activity

A review of Jon Stratton and Nabeel Zuberi's book Black Popular Music in Britain since 1945.

Nation-State Personality Theory: A Qualitative Comparative Historical Analysis Of Russian Behavior, During Social/Political Transition, Mark George Bound

Department of Conflict Resolution Studies Theses and Dissertations

The study theorizes that a nation-state can manifest a condition similar to that of personality commonly associated with humans. Through the identification of consistent behaviors, a personality like condition is recognizable, and the underlining motivations dictate national policy independent of any current social/political influence. The research examines Russia during two historical periods examining the conflict events and social/political transitions of the period, to identify common behavioral characteristics, which indicate the existence of any independent personality like trait.

The study focuses on two historical periods: the Monarch Period of Peter I (The Great), and the Post-Soviet Union period of Vladimir Putin, …

Threads And Stitches Of Peace- Understanding What Makes Ghana An Oasis Of Peace?, Hippolyt Akow Saamwan Pul

Department of Conflict Resolution Studies Theses and Dissertations

Ghana is considered an oasis of peace despite having the same mix of ethno-political competitions for state power and resources; north-south horizontal inequalities; ethno-regional concentrations of Christians and Muslims; highly ethnicised elections; a natural resource dependent economy; and a politically polarized public sphere, among others, that have plunged other countries in Africa into violent and often protracted national conflicts. Use of the conflict paradigm to explain Africa's conflicts glosses over positive deviance cases such as Ghana. This study used the peace paradigm in a mixed method, grounded theory research to examine Ghana's apparent exceptionalism in staving off violent national conflicts. …

A Digital Dud? New Media, Participation, And Voting In The 2004 And 2008 United States Presidential Elections, Jeremy D. Hickman

Theses and Dissertations--Sociology

This dissertation analyzes the linkages between new media and the possible emergence of the youngest members of the voting population (the “digital native” generation, who have grown up concurrently with the rise of the internet as a means of communication). The main question is whether this digital native generation will have more civic and political participation due to their use of online news sources and social media communication on news media websites and elsewhere on the internet. Regression analyses are used to explain civic and political participation, using American National Election Studies (ANES) from the 2004 and 2008 presidential elections. …

From Grapes To Wine To Brands To Culture: A Qualitative Study Of Kentucky Wineries And Kentucky Wine Producers, Benjamin J. Triana

Theses and Dissertations--Communication

The Kentucky wine industry has grown from six wineries in 1999 to more than sixty wineries as of 2013. However, the industry has reached a crucial point in its development as funds allotted from the Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement ended in 2014. As a result, Kentucky wine producers must navigate the demands of local, regional, national, and international wine markets without the same amount of economic support provided in the early stages of the industry’s development.

The purpose of this study was to investigate (1) how Kentucky wine producers use cultural associations to manage their brands, (2) communicate with multiple …

Living Aloha: Portraits Of Resilience, Renewal, Reclamation, And Resistance, Camilla G. Wengler Vignoe

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

When Native Hawaiians move away from the islands, they risk losing their cultural identity and heritage. This dissertation utilizes a Hawaiian theoretical framework based in Indigenous research practices and uses phenomenology, ethnography, heuristics, and portraiture to tell the stories of leadership, change, and resilience of five Native Hawaiians who as adults, chose to permanently relocate to the United States mainland. It explores the reasons why Kanaka Maoli (politically correct term for Native Hawaiians) leave the 'āina (land; that which feeds) in the first place and eventually become permanent mainland residents. Some Hawaiians lose their culture after relocating to the United …

Visualising Migrant Voices: Co-Creative Documentary And The Politics Of Listening, Darcy Alexandra

Doctoral

This ethnography of media production explores the challenges of literally and figuratively visualising voice. The labour of a shared production and the distribution of the audio-visual documentary essays unfolded within a field of diverse, and at times, conflicting interests. For this reason, judicious attention to what I name ‘encounters’ of ‘political listening’ (Bickford 1996; Dreher 2009) provides one framework for theorising the challenges of researching with marginalised subjects and stories, and the contradictions of developing shared practices within proprietary contexts. These encounters reveal moments of listening and being heard, struggles over ‘veracity’ and ‘evidence,’ and the power relations inherent in …

The Canon Of East Asian Ecocriticism And The Duplicity Of Culture, Hannes Bergthaller

CLCWeb: Comparative Literature and Culture

In his article "The Canon of East Asian Ecocriticism and the Duplicity of Culture" Hannes Bergthaller begins with the premise that ecocritical scholarship often locates the roots of environmental crisis in Western modernity and that it looks towards pre-modern or non-European traditions for a remedy. Bergthaller argues that such forms of cultural critique tend to reiterate a quintessentially modern gesture. Following Niklas Luhmann's account of culture, Bergthaller examines how these reiterations functions as a semantic mechanism for coping with the contingency of social forms. To describe a social practice as cultural, Bergthaller contends, is to valorize it as a marker …