Sociology of Culture Commons^™

Examining Culturally Responsive Understandings Within An Undergraduate Teacher Education Program, Kelly M. Gomez Johnson, Anne E. Karabon, Derrick A. Nero

Journal of Curriculum, Teaching, Learning and Leadership in Education

This article examines how a group of elementary and secondary preservice teachers engaged in understanding “culture” and culturally responsive teaching while enrolled in an early program course. We analyze how culturally-related experiences, emotions, and perspectives contribute to the overall understanding of cultural competency training in teacher education. Preservice teachers varied in their use of individual- and structural-orientations, in isolation and in combination, as they developed and progressed as socially just teachers. These findings reveal that despite attempts to develop and shift toward asset-based perspectives, far more culturally embedded coursework and practicum experiences are necessary. This paper includes a reflection on …

Like A Jar Of Flies? A Study Of Self-Control In An Organizational Social Dilemma With Large Stakes, Matthew W. Mccarter, Jonathan R. Clark, Darcy Fudge Kamal, Abel Winn

Business Faculty Articles and Research

We study the practice of self-control in an organizational social dilemma when the stakes are large, using 47 years of vital census data from 18^th century Sweden. From 1750 to 1800, eighty percent of Sweden lived in a simple-structure organization called a bytvång or village commons. The amount of resources a village family received was a function of their size. During this period, crop failures left the population facing starvation. Using autoregressive time-series modeling, we test whether the people of Sweden continued to take steps toward increasing the stress on the commons by marrying and birthing children or practiced …

Being Black And Depressed Double Sucks, Stephanie C. Jones

Student Theses and Dissertations

This paper investigates the ways race and racism mediate perceptions and experiences of depression among young Black Americans living in the New York metropolitan area. Based on 25 in-depth interviews with Black Americans between the ages of 18-28, the research shows that the Black identity exacerbates suffering for participants because it fundamentally changes how depression is lived, felt, and navigated. This study extends research about the lack of cultural competence among American health professionals, stigma surrounding mental illnesses among the Black American community, and the effects of the systematic dehumanization of Black bodies in American society.

Suicide Watch: How Netflix Landed On A Cultural Landmine, Shabnaj Chowdhury

Capstones

Following the premiere of the television series “13 Reasons Why” in 2017, Netflix stepped squarely on a cultural landmine, stirring controversy over its graphic depiction of teen suicide.

According to media experts, showing a teenager kill themselves on television was completely unprecedented. Mental health experts say the act has significant consequences for “at risk” audience members, or people who were already experiencing suicidal thoughts before watching the show. It is proven that entertainment, and television specifically, can strongly influence audience behaviors and thoughts.

Suicide is one of the only causes of deaths that’s on the rise in the United States, …

Now Hiring: Exploring Deportee Transnational Identities And Socio-Economic Reintegration In Baja California, Mexico’S Call Center Industry, Brenda Vargas

Master's Theses

The anti-immigrant rhetoric in the U.S. intensified deportation, including that of Mexican and Salvadorian migrants with some having served in the U.S. military. Despite weak social connections and explicit/structural barriers in Mexico, many deportees make the decision to stay in Mexico. The focus of this thesis is male deportees belonging to the “1.5 generation,” aged late 20’s-early 60’s, who, after spending their childhood and adulthood in the U.S., have undergone deportation and are faced with social and economic reintegration in the northern border area of Baja California, Mexico. Through 15 in-depth semi-structured interviews, I explore transnational identity negotiations that impact …

An Exploratory Study Of Acculturation Experiences Of Graduate Student Immigrants At The University Of San Francisco, Courtney Lamar

Master's Theses

This study explores the shared challenges during the acculturation process of graduate student immigrants pursuing higher education in the United States. 13 graduate student immigrants at the University of San Francisco discuss their experiences of cultural adjustment into U.S. culture. Through qualitative interviews and thematic analysis, this study seeks to understand the acculturation experiences of graduate student immigrants in the San Francisco Bay Area of the United States. This analysis is based on the individual-level experience examining attitudes and acculturation strategies in the dominant society. Analysis, possibly policy implication for institutions of higher education, and possible directions for future research …

The Effect Of Gender Stereotypes On Academic Success, Brooklyn Proudlock

Honors Projects

Gender stereotyping is the idea of making assumptions about a person or group based on their gender. Commonly heard ones may include “boys are stronger than girls” or “girls belong doing housework.” Gender Stereotypes at Bowling Green State University are analyzed using a survey to undergraduate students.

An Exploration Of Artist Housing In Greater Boston, Ma, Clairessa Morrow

Honors Projects

Boston is a city bursting with art and culture. However, many of the artists and craftspeople who create this environment are being driven out by external factors. This project examines the personal experiences of artists in the Boston area to gain their insight on present issues and their perceptions for the future.

The Formation Of Climate Change Beliefs Among Young Adults In Appalachian Kentucky: A Consideration Of The Role Played By Economic Risk Perception, Rebecca Johnson

Morehead State Theses and Dissertations

A thesis presented to the faculty of the Caudill College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences at Morehead State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree Master of Arts by Rebecca Johnson on December 6, 2018.

Zombie Culture In Past And Modern Mythologies, Lehua Johnson

Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters

In modern media the notion of a zombie brings to mind the images of rotting flesh, a desire for flesh, and surviving in a desolate post-apocalyptic world. While zombies have certainly evolved into a niche genre separate from horror and science fiction, it is imperative that the origins of this modern-day phenomenon are explored and analyzed in an academic context. From the empty threats of the goddess Ishtar in ancient Mesopotamia to urban legends of former Haitian slaves, the foundation of zombie culture provides strong insight to humanity’s fear of losing itself to mere corporeal forms. Zombie culture is the …

Evaluating Bad Norms, John Thrasher

Philosophy Faculty Articles and Research

Some norms are bad. Norms of revenge, female genital mutilation, honor killings, and other norms strike us as destructive, cruel, and wasteful. The puzzle is why so many people see these norms as authoritative and why these norms often resist change. To answer these questions, we need to look at what “bad” norms are and how we can evaluate them. Here I develop an integrative analysis of norms that aims to avoid parochialism in norm evaluation. After examining and rejecting several evaluative standards, I propose what I call a comparative-functional analysis of norms that is both operationalizable/testable and nonparochial, and …

Project Renew Worcester, Danni Yue, Amy Zhang, Jing Han, Omid Ashrafi, Yiming Xu

School of Professional Studies

n The client for this capstone project is RENEW Worcester which is a fledgling solar power project whose main goals are to bring renewable energy in the form of solar power into local, primarily low-income communities and are committed to the mission of making the transition off of fossil fuels to clean, renewable power. Based in Worcester, Massachusetts, they are a local chapter of Co-op Power which is a consumer-owned sustainable energy cooperative (co-op) made up of numerous different local chapters all over the New England area as well as the state of New York. The problem that we will …

Portraits With A Posthumous Voice: Reinforcing And Contesting Social Norms In The Heterotopic Museum And Cemetery, Matthew J. Crissey

Museum Studies Theses

Abstract

The following paper qualitatively analyzes and documents over 500 memorial-photographs/etched portraits on tombstones in ten Western New York cemeteries. This paper covers fourteen topics, ranging from religion to gang-violence. A juxtaposition of portraits exhibited within the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery with memorial-portraits on tombstones revealed heterotopic environments creating a public forum enabling the reinforcing or contestation of social ideologies. In other words, the author observed the similarities of identities and social norms publicly expressed on tombstones and gallery portraits.

A Social Constructionist approach enabled the study to examine how one social phenomenon contributes to the shaping of a culture. …

A Recipe For Success In The ‘English World’: An Investigation Of The Ex-Amish In Mainstream Society, Jessica R. Sullivan

Dissertations

As a largely understudied and misunderstood religious group, the Amish appear to be a relic of more traditional times. Because they are a secluded group with little influence from the outside world, they remain relatively untouched by technology and social media. This results in a strict, fundamentalist church community with extremely high rates of retention. Distancing themselves from outsiders and temptations in the English world aids in retaining strong church boundaries, and results in a population that doubles every 20 years (Kaufmann 2010). Acknowledging these aspects, this research delves into the lives of those who have defected from the church …

Bluegrass And Old-Time In Catalonia: An Ethnographic Case Study Of Aesthetic Communitas, Michael J. Luchtan

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This is an ethnographic case study of a musical community in Catalonia centered around the performance of bluegrass and old-time music. By using Victor and Edith Turners’ ideas of normative communitas, this paper identifies an aesthetic communitas model which describes a community centered around a performative genre. Through participant observation in the 16th Annual Al Ras Bluegrass and Old Time Music Festival and interviews with local musicians, fans, venue owners, and luthiers, the ethnographic narrative details the characteristics of the aesthetic communitas in Catalonia and searches for associations of Appalachia that accompany the cross-cultural manifestation of bluegrass and old-time music …

La Comunicación Lingüística En Español Y Sus Barreras En El Sistema De Salud De Los Estados Unidos, David Sánchez-Jiménez

Publications and Research

La enseñanza del español con fines médicos en los Estados Unidos ha experimentado un crecimiento exponencial en las dos últimas décadas. Sin embargo, los pacientes de origen hispano se encuentran desprotegidos ante las barreras lingüísticas que impone el sistema de salud estadounidense en muchos contextos monolingües y bilingües. Esta investigación descriptiva muestra como, por un lado, los malentendidos producidos por la comunicación ineficiente desarrollada por intérpretes e intermediarios (familiares, enfermeras con conocimientos de español, facultativos con una preparación lingüística deficiente, etc.) tienen serias repercusiones para la salud en el tratamiento de los casos. Por otro lado, el estudio da cuenta …

Book Review: The Strip. Las Vegas And The Architecture Of The American Dream., Marta Soligo

UNLV Gaming Research & Review Journal

Book Review: The Strip. Las Vegas and the Architecture of the American Dream

Diversity Plan: Academic Year 2017/2018 Status Report, Illinois Mathematics Amd Science Academy

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion: Resources

Below are some highlights of IMSA’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion work, Academic Year 2017-2018:

• Created Equity and Excellence Policy based on a model of Inclusive Excellence that is now board approved.
• Developed Diverse Fellows program, to be piloted Academic Year 2018-2019.
• Created Diversifying STEM Equity Model.
• Implemented “I am not racist, am I” e-learning curriculum, film and discussion with all juniors, n = 20; 50 faculty/staff were trained to facilitate discussions.
• Conducted a train-the-trainer Safe Zone workshop for 27 faculty/staff, which led to the creation of 68 safe spaces.
• Rolled out Live-Safe app, which promotes student safety and can be …

Effects Of Cultural Tightness-Looseness And Social Network Density On Expression Of Positive And Negative Emotions: A Large-Scale Study Of Impression Management By Facebook Users, Pan Liu, David Chan, Lin Qiu, William Tov, Victor Joo Chuan Tong

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Using data from 13,789 Facebook users across U.S. states, this study examined the main effects of societal-level cultural tightness–looseness and its interaction effects with individuals’ social network density on impression management (IM) in terms of online emotional expression. Results showed that individuals from culturally tight (vs. loose) states were more likely to express positive emotions and less likely to express negative emotions. Meanwhile, for positive emotional expression, there was a tightness–looseness by social network density interaction effect. In culturally tight states, individuals with dense (vs. sparse) networks were more likely to express positive emotions, while in culturally loose states this …

P-06 Faith, Hope And Love: An Integrated Conceptual Framework For Examining Religious Outcomes In A Global Church, Karl G. D. Bailey, Duane C. Mcbride, Shannon M. Trecartin

Celebration of Research and Creative Scholarship

The 2017-18 Global Church Member Survey conducted by the General Conference of the Seventh-day Adventist Church is designed to assess the quinquennial Church Strategic Plan (2015-2020). In designing this survey, we considered a variety of theoretical frameworks that could explain relationships between the target outcomes in the Strategic Plan. The resulting novel theoretical framework is based on Biblical principles and an integration of a number of frameworks in the social sciences: motivation (Deci & Ryan, 2008; Greenberg, Solomon, & Arndt, 2008; Koole, Greenberg, & Pyszczynski, 2006; Pyszczynski, Greenberg, & Goldenberg, 2003; Ryan & Deci, 2000) and hope (Bernardo, 2010; Snyder, …

Cultural Variations And Socio-Ecocultural Understanding On Cross-Cultural Adaptation, Awang Rozaimie

The Qualitative Report

Cross-cultural adaptation is a challenging process while sojourning abroad. The inability to understand cultural variation triggers psychological, physical or behavioral difficulties and maladjustment or misunderstanding. Socio-ecocultural underestimation is the root of intercultural resistance, stereotyping, ethnocentrism and racist sentiments among sojourners. Most of the cross-cultural adjustment studies have quantitatively demonstrated factors and predictors of adaptation success. However, the specific forms of cultural variation that impacted sojourning adaptability is blindly explained. Hence, this phenomenological paper autoethnographically observed the socio-ecocultural environment while sojourning in New Zealand. The findings highlighted that cultural awareness and sensitivity assist sojourner’s cross-cultural adaptability due to the socio-ecocultural variation.

The Intentional De-Cohesion In Deportability, Talha Issevenler

Publications and Research

A critical exploration of loss or decohesion of political agency in deportability.

La Tierra Aquí Es Amable: Soil Macrofauna Density And Producer Perceptions Of Agricultural Soil Fertility In Cerro Punta, Chiriquí, Clara Fernandez Odell

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Ethnopedology, as a subfield of ethnoecology, is the study of localized symbols and values, knowledge, and practices relating to soils. One key framework for ethnopedological studies is the Kosmos-Corpus-Praxis model, which synthesizes local and traditional ecological into three overlapping, interrelated spheres. Cerro Punta, Chiriquí is the primary vegetable-growing region in Panama, an industry highly dependent on the region’s fertile volcanic soils. Semi-structured interviews (n=8) and soil macrofauna density surveys as an indicator of soil fertility (n=9) were used to gather information regarding producers’ beliefs, knowledge, and decisions about soil fertility.

Among producers in Cerro Punta, religious beliefs and land symbolism …

Sustainable Tourism Practices In Vietnam: The Influence Of Institutions And Case Study Of Sapa’S Growing Tourism Industry, Alexandria Cahill

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

As tourism becomes increasingly important to Vietnam’s economy, and subsequently the development of the country, it will become ever more critical to examine the impact of tourism, including both the positive and negative consequences. The intention of this paper is to continue the analysis of the tourism industry in Vietnam; in particular, this paper considers sustainable tourism, which can be defined as minimizing impact on local culture and environment while simultaneously resulting in economic gains and employment, all while operating in a way that can be continued in the future. As Vietnam is rich in diverse cultures and natural landscapes, …

Rebuilding Tunisia, One Artist At A Time, Caitlin Kelley

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This paper argues that Tunisia’s engaged artists are playing a key role in the development of Tunisian civil society and democracy. The bulk of the research is in the form of interviews with five Tunisian artists. Each artist is actively engaged in the project of building a stronger, more democratic society. Through their art, they exercise and protect the political rights won in the 2011 revolution. These artists resist censorship, powerfully and loudly exercise their right to free speech, and help Tunisian society envision a better future for itself. The five artists interviewed for this research represent the type of …

Women’S Movement: Traveling Nepal, Shaelyn Mchugh

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Nepal is a country formed by the highest peaks in the world, numerous unique cultures and ethnicities, religious pilgrimage sites for both Buddhist and Hindus, and more festivals than days in the year. For Lonely Planet’s Best in Travel 2017, Nepal was deemed the world’s “Best Value Destination”. Tourism plays a vital role in Nepal’s economy, but its inds is heavily aimed towards the international market. Nepalis in the hospitality industry, scholars, and economists have argued that domestic tourism could be a key component for overall socioeconomic and cultural changes in their society1.

There has been a surge of domestic …

Think Outside: Exploring The Influence Of Nature On The Individual And Of The Individual On Society, Brielle Wells

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This video project has an overarching goal to question the influence the natural environment has on the development of individual people and society as a whole. It begins by looking into the important role played by creativity in societal and economic development. From here a brief background is given on the requirements of maintaining and producing a creative environment. The piece alludes to the possibility that a relationship with nature has a deeper meaning than just being conducive to creativity. It also shows the effects pollution has had on the work of local artists and briefly the challenges faced by …

Something Old, Something New: Historicizing Same-Sex Marriage Within Ongoing Struggles Over African Marriage In South Africa, Michael W. Yarbrough

Publications and Research

This article examines contemporary struggles over same-sex marriage in the daily lives of black lesbian- and gay-identified South Africans. Based primarily on 21 in-depth interviews with such South Africans drawn from a larger project on post-apartheid South African marriage, the author argues that their current struggles for relationship recognition share much in common with contemporaneous struggles of their heterosexual counterparts, and that these commonalities reflect ongoing tensions between more extended-family and more dyadic understandings of African marriage. The increasing influence of dyadic understandings of marriage, and of associated ideals of romantic love, has helped inspire same-sex marriage claims and, in …

Woven Narratives From Tsum Valley: Reconfiguring Local, Erica Gibble

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Tsum Valley is on the border between Nepal and Tibet. It exists as a border land and a trekking trail and a home. Despite its label as a “Hidden Himalayan Valley,” Tsum is currently undergoing changes that make it increasingly connected to the globalized world. I set out to study and learn weaving in Tsum. I dispersed within my account of learning the craft with scenes from everyday life to better understand how weaving and production of the chu pa fits into work, family, economy and community. For my study I stayed in one home in Lamaguan, Upper Tsum to …

Uphill Struggle: Impediments And Facilitators To Porter Health In The Khumbu Region, Nate Barott

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The surge of Nepal’s tourism industry has resulted in new waves of tourists visiting popular trekking areas such as the northern Khumbu region of the Solukhumbu District. One effect of this growing industry has been the increased prominence of porters in the area. Coming mostly from lowlands south of the Khumbu, porters are composed mainly of young individuals looking to make a career in the enticing business of trekking and mountaineering tourism. The current status of porter health in Solukhumbu is poor. Many ailments exist to physical and social well-being, and social segregation, incentives to carry heavier loads and a …