Sociology of Culture Commons^™

Breaking Taboos: Syrian Women Reshaping Gender Roles In Zarqa, Jordan, Farah Qonaish

Theses and Dissertations

This research explores the changes in gender roles among Syrian refugee women in Jordan. Since 2011, more than a million Syrian refugees have settled in Jordan. Around 83% of Syrian refugees have resided in host communities in Jordan and around 70% of the Syrian population come from the rural areas in Syria refugees. Syrian refugees have experienced change on different levels of their lives since the beginning of the displacement. This ethnographic study was conducted in Zarqa, a major city in the middle region of Jordan, and a major host community for Syrian refugees in Jordan. The city is known …

Cerrando La Brecha: Difusión Virtual De La Cultura Maya Para La Conciencia Pública Y La Preservación, Ana María Vera Arias, Dr. Lilia Lucia Lizama Aranda, Brenda Marin, José Montesino

Journal of Maya Heritage

En este artículo se aborda el origen, los métodos y el resultado del ciclo de conferencias de divulgación virtual organizado por el Centro del Patrimonio Maya en colaboración con Arqueólogos sin Fronteras del Mundo Maya, esto con el objetivo de compartir conocimientos y generar conciencia sobre diversas facetas de la cultura maya. La pregunta central gira en torno a cómo se pueden comunicar efectivamente las complejidades y la rica herencia de la cultura maya a una audiencia no especializada. Como resultado, encontró que las conferencias de divulgación virtual fueron un método adecuado para ampliar el interés sobre la cultura maya …

Examining The Creative Process Of Visual Artists: A Phenomenological Study, Filiberto Vargas

Dissertations

Creativity fuels problem solving and innovation, driving both economic growth and individual success. Yet, many schools and organizations fail to nurture it. Today, there is a decline in creativity scores among U.S. students. This is concerning since many of these students will be the future leaders of organizations and communities. For this reason, this dissertation explores the creative process of visual artists to better understand how creativity can be cultivated. Visual artists' perspectives and sense-and-meaning-making processes offer a unique view of innovation and creativity. However, there is limited research on the creative processes of contemporary visual artists from culturally diverse …

Urban Security And The Crisis Of Values In A Risk Society: Elements For Reflection And Research, Bahamou Abdelilah, Abdelghani Chafik

Journal of Maya Heritage

Abstract: Urban security has become one of the most pressing challenges of the 21st century, shaped by the complexities of modern urban life. As cities grow and evolve, they face unprecedented security challenges that transcend traditional notions of crime prevention. These challenges encompass social, cultural, economic, and psychological dimensions, deeply intertwined with societal transformations.

In the context of what sociologist Ulrich Beck refers to as the "risk society," rapid globalization, technological advancement, and cultural diffusion have disrupted traditional social values. This disruption has created environments of uncertainty and fear, where mutual trust and social cohesion are eroded. As Émile Durkheim …

Layers Of Identity, Elizabeth Toffel

Teaching Resource Archive

Students explore identity, specifically that identity is layered, shaped by personal experience, cultural background, community ties, and unique traits. Students conduct interviews with peers, reflect on identity components, both individually and collectively, and create a layer artwork on transparent acetate sheets. When stacked the layers visually showcase the layers of the student’s identity and represent how identity is complex, constructed, and always shaped by multiple influences.

Cultural Identity In Mental Health Services And Helpseeking Behaviours Among African International Students, Mark Ofosu Asirifi

Theses and Dissertations

Acculturation stress impacts international students’ psychological well-being and academic success, yet research on African students remains limited. For African international students, this stress is intensified by cultural stigma surrounding mental health services, deterring help-seeking due to fears of judgment and ostracization. This identity negotiation complicates their willingness to access support, reinforcing cultural barriers to mental health care. This study explores how cultural identity shapes the mental health perceptions and help-seeking behaviors of African international students in the United States. Grounded in the Communication Theory of Identity (CTI) and the Health Belief Model (HBM), the research examines how acculturative stress, stigma, …

Mirrors Of The Reel: Black Women's Identity In American Cinema (2009-2024), Melanie-Penny Harrison

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

This study investigates whether white supremacy structures, embodied in Hollywood’s predominantly white leadership, drive negative portrayals of Black women in 31 mainstream American films from 2009 to 2024. Employing a mixed-methods approach—quantitative content analysis, qualitative content analysis (QCA), and narrative methodology—I code portrayals for racism, patriarchy, heterosexism, colorism, and internalized racism, classifying them as progressive (e.g., empowered roles), regressive (e.g., subservient stereotypes), or hybrid. Guided by Critical Race Theory and intersectionality, the analysis examines narrative structures, character agency, symbolism, and dialogue to uncover intersectional patterns (e.g., race, gender, class) across three periods: 2009–2013, 2014–2018, and 2019–2024. Across these periods, cultural …

Love Is Dead In The Restless West: Hippies, Manson, And California Culture, 1966-1970, Rebecca Allen

Scripps Senior Theses

Though an extreme aberration from most of the hippie counterculture of the 1960s, Charles Manson’s ultimately murderous cult arguably represents something particular about American culture in the late sixties, in which youthful hostility towards the status quo sometimes grew radical, and in the case of the Manson Family cult, extremely violent. By the mid-sixties, more and more young people began to feel alienated by a culture they felt no longer embodied their larger aspirations, and as a result, were drawn to the emerging counterculture that embraced alternative lifestyles that frequently clashed with the traditional sensibilities of their parents’ generation. After …

The Ascendance Of Influencers: Saints Of Capitalism In The Digital Age, Riley R. Hourihan

Master of Liberal Studies Theses

This thesis examines the rise of social media influencers as modern-day saints within the cultural and economic framework of late capitalism. Drawing on interdisciplinary scholarship from religious studies, media theory, and cultural criticism, it argues that influencer culture does not replace religion but retools its structures—ritual, authority, devotion, and community—for the digital age. Through detailed case studies ranging from Hailey Bieber and Taylor Swift to Ballerina Farm and MrBeast, the paper explores how influencers shape identity, mediate ethics, and mobilize affect through algorithmic rituals and parasocial relationships. Influencers perform a form of digital sanctity that parallels traditional hagiography, guiding followers …

Identifying Intangible And Biocultural Heritage Elements Toward Environmental Understanding: Engaging Stakeholders Through Art, Martha B. Lerski

Publications and Research

Grounded in a case study in Barbuda in the Caribbean, this research examines sustainability from the perspective of what arts and heritage can contribute to community engagement and local and broader understandings about the environment. This article documents a growing body of literature recognizing the role of arts and culture, including local knowledge and traditional ecological knowledge (TEK), in climate change endeavors. Art and TEK present expansive world views. Contextual information situates research done on the island of Barbuda pre- and post-Hurricane Irma. Visual arts workshops engaged community members in mixed methods research. Results documented cultural elements, particularly intangible and …

Impacto De La Pandemia De La Covid-19 En Las Familias De Los Jóvenes Universitarios De Las Poblaciones Rurales Mayas Del Estado De Yucatán, Jorge Atocha Pacheco Castro

Journal of Maya Heritage

Abstract. This study examines the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the families of university students from rural Maya communities in Yucatán, Mexico. Utilizing an anthropological framework, the research highlights the interplay of structural vulnerabilities and cultural resilience. It explores how families navigated economic challenges, social interactions, and cultural practices amid the crisis. Key findings include the reliance on traditional subsistence practices such as small-scale agriculture and backyard farming, which provided a safety net during economic downturns. Socially, rural families reported lower stress levels and stronger communal bonds compared to their urban counterparts, owing to expansive living spaces and outdoor …

Preparing Spiritually Resilient Warriors In The Canadian Special Operations Forces Command, Vic Morris

Doctor of Ministry Major Applied Project

Morris, Victor E. “Preparing Spiritually Resilient Warriors in the Canadian Special Operations Forces Command.” Doctor of Ministry. Major Applied Project, Concordia Seminary, 2024. 285 pp.

The Canadian Armed Forces has outcomes and expectations for warriors to be spiritually resilient but does not have a training program that has been researched, tested, and validated to achieve this. This study investigates how chaplains can prepare spiritually resilient warriors in CANSOFCOM. A chaplain-led spiritual resilience course was created and delivered to CANSOFCOM members. The course was aligned with the holistic wellness strategy of OPF2, and designed as an inductive, experiential learning experience. An …

The Interplay Of Covid 19, Organized Religion, And Social Media: “How Can I Be The Person I Feel I Need To Be?”, White Dove Bryant Beethoven Keith Short

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Young adults are disaffiliating themselves from organized religion (Hout & Fischer, 2014). This study investigates the impact of social media use on religious identity, teaching, and learning. Social media use is changing young adults as individuals in worldview and perspective, spirituality, religion, and personal lifestyle (Schaeffer, 2019). Messages devised for young adults by Christian ministers for discipleship in teaching and instruction are inharmonious with young adults and their personal views of the world, how to live, and religion (Pew Research Center, 2019). The continued existence of religious teaching, congregant replenishment, and practice of the organized institutional Christian church within society …

The Meanings Of The Hospital De San Lázaro In Seventeenth-Century Manila, Francis Galasi

Journal of Global Catholicism

The Hospital de San Lázaro was a specialized health facility in the early modern Philippines, dedicated to the care of lepers and sufferers of other contagious diseases. While it was established for this specific purpose, its role in colonial society varied. This versatility reflected the distinct priorities and commitments of the groups pulled into its orbit, as each charged San Lázaro with a unique meaning. This article explores how and why these groups—the indigenous Filipinos, the Spanish residents and the Discalced Franciscans—understood San Lázaro in their own way. It highlights the ability of fixed institutions, such as a hospital, to …

Casar Auc Community Lecture: ‘Gender-Based Violence,Women And The Law In Egypt And The Us’, The Prince Alwaleed Center For American Studies And Research Casar

Performances, Events, and Presentations

This engaging - AUC community only - special topics lecture discussed the social challenges and legal obstacles women face when discussing gender based violence crimes in Egypt shedding a comparative light on the US given the recent election results.

This event hosted Counselor Mohamed Samir Ahmed, Spokesperson of the Administrative Prosecution Authority (APA) in Egypt, Independent Lecturer in Political Science & Gender Based Violence Crimes.

The event was moderated by CASAR Assistant to Director & Adjunct Faculty Yasmeen El-Ghazaly.

This lecture was a collaboration between The Prince Alwaleed Center for American Studies and Research (CASAR AUC EGYPT ) and the …

Transformación De La Sociedad Saharaui: Evolución Histórica Y Reorganización Social, Mustapha Ouzir

Journal of Maya Heritage

Este artículo analiza la evolución histórica y los cambios sociales en la región sahariana, desde Oued Nun hasta el río Senegal, destacando el impacto de la llegada de las tribus Banu Hassan sobre la población autóctona amazigh Sanhaja. Se exploran los cambios en la estructura social, caracterizados por una nueva jerarquía étnica y tribal. Además, se examina la influencia de la colonización española en la transformación de la sociedad saharaui, que pasó de un estilo de vida nómada a uno más sedentario. El estudio destaca el proceso de sedentarización y los cambios socioculturales resultantes, como la alteración de roles familiares …

Teaching The Grateful Dead, Happenings, & Spontaneous Pedagogy, Ryan Slesinger

Dialogue: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Popular Culture and Pedagogy

To teach a course on the Grateful Dead I developed a praxis I call “spontaneous pedagogy” that pairs academic rigor with flexible curriculum details to enable creativity and engagement among students in a truly studentcentered classroom. The pairing of spontaneous pedagogy with the Grateful Dead course worked well because the subject emphasizes improvisation, which initially inspired and—during the course—paralleled my praxis. I had developed this praxis previously, implementing it each semester from 2007 to2010 for one Composition II unit on definitional arguments entitled, “The Nature of Reality.” Students were asked to define what they consider as real and apply that …

Tendencias Fonéticas Y Aspectos Gramaticales Del Español Hablado En El Sáhara, Mustapha Ouzir

Journal of Maya Heritage

Este estudio analiza las tendencias fonéticas y los aspectos morfosintácticos del español hablado en el Sáhara, una región marcada por su historia colonial como territorio español. Mediante una metodología cualitativa, que incluye observación libre, conversaciones grupales y pruebas fonológicas, se investigan las características lingüísticas de los hablantes saharauis, cuya lengua materna es el hassanía. Los hallazgos revelan una interferencia fonética significativa, como la neutralización vocálica, la reducción de diptongos y la influencia del español canario. También se identifican desviaciones morfosintácticas respecto al español estándar, incluyendo problemas de concordancia gramatical, tiempos verbales y uso de preposiciones. Estos fenómenos reflejan el impacto …

Halfies, Half-Written Letters, And One-Eyed Gods: Connecting The Dots Of Communicative Cultures, Gregory Stephens

Dialogue: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Popular Culture and Pedagogy

This essay distills the theory of communicative cultures as a tool for cultural analysis. Nadine Gordimer’s line about the difficulties of returning to “half-written letters” is used to frame anthropology’s critique of “bounded culture” or “container cultures,” predominat in Cultural Studies. Anthropologists Lila Abu-Lughod and Kirin Narayan have described “halfies” as in-between peoples who can help us understand fluid, processual cultures as normative. Building on this stance, and the work of rhetorical genre scholars, Stephens defines communicative cultures as “a set of shared commitments expressed through cultural means.” This approach to cultural analysis, in which literature is viewed as an …

Pop Culture And Politics: Engaging Students In American Government Through Art, Music, And Film, Laura Merrifield Wilson

Dialogue: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Popular Culture and Pedagogy

Strategically and thoughtfully employing popular culture in teaching political science can enable students to better understand, analyze, and relate to the material. In a discipline that can be viewed by students as too boring, too distant, and too polarizing, the use of relevant music, TV/film clips, toys, memes, and other popular culture artifacts can engage otherwise unengaged students in a meaningful way. This paper argues that using popular culture in teaching political science can demonstrate relevance, serve as a generational translator, expose the bias of experience, and enable an expression of self. In demonstrating relevance, popular culture makes material fresh …

Unmasking Male Voices In Woman Hollering Creek: Contributions To Pedagogy And Masculinity Studies, Ramón Javier Guerra, Joan Latchaw

Dialogue: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Popular Culture and Pedagogy

In teaching Sandra Cisneros’ Woman Hollering Creek to undergraduates, we have developed a sociocultural and historical framework, beginning with the theoretical work of Gloria Anzaldúa’s Borderlands and the concept of transfrontera feminism. With incidents of seduction and sexual abuse of women, spousal abuse, and patriarchal family structures, the collection of stories strongly indicates the oppressive representation of machismo. Scholars and teachers have drawn important critiques of Cisneros’s work based on destructive sociocultural forces on women. However, in rereading the text with an intended focus on the representations of male characters, we have surmised that Cisneros structured the stories in the …

Finding The Sacred In The Profane: The Mardi Gras In Basile, Louisiana, Luc Guglielmi

Dialogue: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Popular Culture and Pedagogy

In Basile, a small community in Southwest Louisiana, there would not be any Mardi Gras without Ash Wednesday and vice-versa. Most of the people in Basile speak of Ash Wednesday when defining the Mardi Gras as there is a reciprocal spiritual relationship between Mardi Gras and Ash Wednesday. The people from Basile, therefore, in giving equal spiritual value to these two feasts, assign a liturgical value to Mardi Gras because they need, and will admit this freely, to have a good Mardi Gras in order to enter into the sacred season of Lent.

Mardi Gras performs a function that is …

The Batman Comes To Class: Popular Culture As A Tool For Addressing Reflexive Pain, Kyle A. Hammonds, Karen Anderson-Lain

Dialogue: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Popular Culture and Pedagogy

In this essay, a case study approach is used to examine ways in which comics and graphic narratives can be used to provide a context within which undergraduate students may theorize about culture. The authors employed Batman: Year One as an organizing narrative for students to theorize about culture and communication. Specifically, students were challenged to (1) understand applications of communication theory in the context of graphic narrative, (2) use graphic narrative as a space for theorizing about communication and culture outside of comics, (3) utilize narrative theory to extrapolate meaning from complex, multi-modal forms of communication. While this …

Zombie Literature: Analyzing The Fear Of The Unknown Through Popular Culture, T. Hnter Strickland

Dialogue: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Popular Culture and Pedagogy

This paper will focus on how the rise in popularity of zombie literature in the 21st century is reflective of a western cultural need to address the fear of the unknown through popular culture. Through the flesh-eating zombie, we enter a parallel world where everything familiar in our communities becomes evil. The genre reflects the fear in Western society of the neighbor who has turned against you, survival in the midst of government collapse, and the monster within. Zombie fantasy literature allows society a venue to deconstruct what is known while dealing with these fears and the unbridled hate of …

“No Te Voy A Dejar Nunca”: Culture And Second Language Acquisition For Survival In Fear The Walking Dead, Sharon M. Nuruddin

Dialogue: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Popular Culture and Pedagogy

Popular culture reinforces and shapes the beliefs and values of the individual, the community, and the masses. It can also transmit hidden messages about aspects of human behavior that are reiterated in scholarly research. In the field of education, particularly in world language teacher education, film and television can be used as an effective tool for examining how we acquire a second language. Using a symbolic convergence theory perspective (SCT) (Bormann, 1972), I employ Sellnow’s (2014) three-step process for the rhetorical analyses of mediated popular culture texts to reveal “covert messages” (p. 9) within the popular American Movie Channel (AMC) …

Studying Silence In Popular Culture, Kathy Merlock Jackson, Terry Lindvall

Dialogue: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Popular Culture and Pedagogy

This article explains the impetus for and execution of a team-taught, interdisciplinary class in silence using popular culture materials and practices, such as silent film, music, meditation, and mime. The course identifies individuals as possessing characteristics of introversion and extraversion and explores the role of silence in the modern world, incorporating the following: (1) Foundations for the Study of Silence, (2) The History of Silence, (3) The Role of Silence in Spirituality, Creativity and Reflection, (4) Silence in Communication Study, (5) Silent Film and Silence in Film, (6) The Role of Silence in a Highly Technological, Mediated World, and (7) …

Girls, Guns, And Zombies: Five Dimensions Of Teaching And Learning In The Walking Dead, Anthony Neely

Dialogue: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Popular Culture and Pedagogy

Rooted in sociocultural theory, this article utilizes a conceptual framework derived from Alexander, Schallert, and Reynolds’ four topographical dimensions of learning: who of learning, what of learning, where of learning, and when of learning. Situated learning (Lave and Wenger) is presented as a fifth dimension to address how learning occurs in communities of practice absent of formal schooling. Content analysis (Elo and Kyngass) is used to analyze a teaching and learning event from an episode of The Walking Dead based on the five topographical dimensions of learning listed above. Findings provide insights for pedagogical application for …

A Qualitative Exploration Of Spiritual Practices Of Simplicity Among Emerging Adults, Falon Opsahl Barton

Discernment: Theology and the Practice of Ministry

This article explores how emerging adults (18 to 29‐year‐olds) integrate pro‐environmental behaviors and spiritual practices of simplicity. First, this article synthesizes the research on emerging adulthood, including what it is, how they experience and express their spirituality, and their emotional and practical behaviors in response to the climate crisis. Then, this article explores how a small sample of Western Protestant emerging adults practice pro‐environmental simplicity in their daily lives. As a result of integrating spiritual practices that focus on simplicity and pro‐environmental behaviors into their spiritual expressions, emerging adults experience profound spiritual formation and a meaningful way of participating in …

Spirituality Of Emerging Adulthood, Falon Opsahl Barton

Discernment: Theology and the Practice of Ministry

This article synthesizes the research on emerging adulthood. After defining the term, this work explores the causes of this phenomenon, the demographic that constitutes it, and how those in this phase of life experience and express their spirituality. Among the significant issues for this demographic are their emotional and practical behaviors in response to the climate crisis.

Pura Vida: Reflections From Costa Rica, Lisette Gonzalez, Carolina Hernandez, Natalia Zevallos, Ailani Anglin, Isabela Jimenez, Melissa Johnson, Isabella Madrid, Xion Nelson, Alexia Pineda, Delaney Rendon, Chaylah Williams, Angel Vilchis

First-Gen Voices: Creative and Critical Narratives on the First-Generation College Experience

The First-Gen Voices Journal is proud to feature a special volume dedicated to the transformative experiences of first-generation college students on the recent Study Abroad Social Justice Immersion Trip to Costa Rica. Through this journey, participants gained a deeper grasp of activism and community building while engaging with social justice concerns on a worldwide scale. This volume will demonstrate the tenacity, enthusiasm, and vision of first-generation college students dedicated to societal change.

This issue features embedded film content. Experience the unique blend of text and film by clicking on the front cover image.