Social and Cultural Anthropology Commons^™

Beliefs And Practices Related To Community Water Sources: "The Specialness Of Springs", Anita Kay Westhues

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The practice of gathering water from community springs in Kentucky constitutes a rich and complex research setting for the study of folklore beliefs and practices. Local knowledge construction, nostalgia as an evaluative process, contested views about purity and impurity, the protection and retention of a “public commons,” and the crisis which ensues when infrastructure maintenance and the delivery of safe drinking water are no longer guaranteed to communities, are all relevant to this vernacular practice. My thesis explores these topics, informed by fieldwork I conducted in nine Kentucky counties, which included formal and informal interviews with individuals who have used …

The Impact Of Program Structure On Language Acquisition And Intercultural Competence: A Comparative Study Of Study Abroad Programs In Kunming, China, Samantha Bergman

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

According to the Project Atlas study conducted by the Institute of International Education, China is the world’s third most popular study abroad location. With over 390,000 international students currently studying in China, there are more opportunities for cultural exchange and mutual understanding than ever before. However, there is still relatively little existing research on how different study abroad program structures impact students’ Chinese language skills and cultural literacy.

This study examined the impacts of experiential learning and intensive language study abroad program structures on students’ language acquisition and intercultural competence development. Two study abroad programs based in Kunming, SIT China: …

The Harmony Of Studying, Aaron Mccartney

Ethnographies of Parkland Student Life

This poster is the result of an ethnography assignment for Anthropology 103. The aim of the research project was to discover what music Parkland students listen to when they study and to see if there is a preferred music genre. The student visited common study spaces around Parkland College and interviewed some students who were listening to headphones while studying. 85% of the students interviewed listen to music on a regular basis to help them study both when studying at Parkland and when studying elsewhere. They generally preferred it without lyrics so that the music would not distract them while …

Creating Connections: Getting Involved And Making Relationships At Parkland, Aiden Kneller

Ethnographies of Parkland Student Life

This poster is the result of an ethnography assignment for Anthropology 103. The student interviewed a series of Parkland College students about their experiences with meeting people and getting involved at Parkland outside of class and work. His hypothesis was that students find it difficult to connect because of the commuter campus and do not form many close relationships. He concluded that most students are in fact hesitant to get involved and have not met many people at Parkland that they would consider friends.

Parkland's International Soccer Players And The Value Of Teamwork, Dylan Thomas Kleiss

Ethnographies of Parkland Student Life

This poster is the result of an ethnography assignment for Anthropology 103. The aim of this project was to see how ideas and values of teamwork vary across cross-culturally. The data was gathered from interviews with international athletes from Parkland's soccer team. The student concluded that the concept of teamwork differs in cultures throughout the world as it is affected by cultural ties and personal interests.

Nightmares In The Kitchen: Personal Experience Narratives About Cooking And Food, Sarah T. Shultz

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

This thesis explores personal experience narratives about making mistakes in the preparation and serving of food. In order to understand when these narratives, referred to in the text as “kitchen nightmares,” are told, to whom, in what form, and why, one-onone and group ethnographic interviews were conducted. In total, 13 interviews were conducted with 25 individuals (men and women) ranging in age from 19 to 70. Six major themes of kitchen nightmare narratives are identified in Chapter One. Chapter Two explores one of these themes, resistance, in the context of the kitchen nightmare stories of heterosexual married women. Chapter Three …

Inexhaustible Magic: Folklore As World Building In Harry Potter, Samantha G. Castleman

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The practice of secondary world building, the creation of a fantasy realm with its own unique laws and systems has long been a tradition within the genre of fantasy writing. In many notable cases, such as those publications by J.R.R. Tolkien and H.P. Lovecraft, folklore exhibited in the world of the reader has been specifically used not only to construct these fantasy realms, but to add depth and believability to their presentation. The universe of J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series demonstrates this same practice of folklore-as-world-building, yet her construction does much more than just create a fantasy realm. By using …

The Healing Power Of Music And Chants Amongst The Ahl-E Haqq People, Azadeh Vatanpour

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

This thesis examines current practices of music and prayers in the context of Jam ritual among the Ahl-e Haqq, a vernacular religion group in Iranian Kurdistan. I examine the construction and sacralization of the sacred instrument of the Ahl-e Haqq, tanbūr. I also explore the sacred prayer, kalām, and the association of prayer and music. Through the ethnographic method, participant observations, and interviewing religious figures and master musicians during the fieldwork in Sahneh, Iran, I investigate the relation of the Ahl-e Haqq prayers and music, and their effect on healing during their sacred ritual performance. Drawing primarily on scholarship from …

All Hail Helix: The Internet’S Role In The Creation Of Culture And Narrative, Margaret Furtner 17

Honor Scholar Theses

No abstract provided.

How Education Level And Willingness To Learn Affect Older Adults In Their Use Of Mobile Technology In Southwest Idaho, Kimberly M. Neagle

McNair Scholars Research Journal

As a person’s age increases, their use of technology decreases (Casado-Muñoz, 2015), which can hinder their access to resources, such as medical care, online products and services, and basic communication. Previous research shows that if seniors have higher education levels and willingness to learn, they are more likely to use technology (Bailey & Sheehan, 2009). This project used the cultural evolution theory and social learning to examine how education levels affect a senior’s use of technology, and how their willingness to learn affects their adoption of mobile technology. Seventy individuals were surveyed, aged 65 years or older: 45 individuals enrolled …

The Disappearance Of Nyoman And Ketut, Laura Michelle Garvie

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

No abstract provided.

Discourses Of Psychiatry And Culture: The Interface Between Western And Traditional Medicine In The Treatment Of Mental Illness, Madeline Molot

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Mental illness is a burden of disease that, in many countries, is neglected; South Africa is no exception. There are many reasons for this, including but not limited to a lack of specialized mental health personnel in primary care settings, a budget that favors South Africa’s communicable disease epidemic, and a continued stigma around mental illness. Whenever discussing the healthcare system in South Africa, however, it is important to note another parallel system of care, one with little to no budget or regulation: that of traditional healing. It is estimated that over 70% of South Africans have at some point …

Tuning Out By Tuning In, Chris Wallace

Ethnographies of Parkland Student Life

This poster is the result of an ethnography assignment for Anthropology 103.

The aim of this research project was to answer two questions: How does the use of personal technology impact interactions between students and non-academic college employees, such as receptionists, cashiers and advisors? How does the use of personal technology impact how the student interacts with the professor, inside the classroom and out? The primary focus of the study was not to gather empirical data, but to observe and record the perceptions and reactions of participants.

Marketing To Parkland College Students: The Shadowed Market, Willie Morris

Ethnographies of Parkland Student Life

This poster is the result of an ethnography assignment for Anthropology 103. For this research project the student interviewed the managers of several local businesses in Champaign, Illinois, to find out how they market to Parkland College students. He found that almost none of the businesses specifically market to Parkland students and only 1 in 5 businesses had associations with the college. He also concluded that Parkland College students are a hidden market overshadowed by a much larger university. This is likely due to the international prestige and worldwide popularity of the University of Illinois, as well as the university’s …

Pathway To Pathways: Examining Influences For Choosing Parkland Pathways, Tabitha Hanson

Ethnographies of Parkland Student Life

This poster is the result of an ethnography assignment for Anthropology 103. The Student conducted a research project that examines why students choose to enroll in the Pathways program at Parkland as opposed to: 1) becoming a non-Pathways Parkland student who will transfer to the University of Illinois; or 2) Beginning their college career at the University of Illinois. Her research shows that most local students who know about Parkland and have a strong interest in attending the University of Illinois consider the Parkland Pathways program as the best option.

Paese Di Accoglienza: Il Successo Di Un Modello Innovativo Di Accoglienza Dei Richiedenti Asilo In Italia, Isabela Arena Secanechia

Senior Capstone Theses

This work discusses Italy's migrant reception system including its flaws and their effects. Furthermore, this work explores an alternative, sustainable model of migrant reception created in Riace, Calabria, that has been successful in varying towns across Italy. Ultimately, this work argues that this system, which is beneficial to both Italians and incoming migrants — specifically asylum seekers — can and should be implemented nationally to counter the current flawed system.

Las Ofrendas A La Tierra En Un Mundo Global \ Offerings To Land In A Global World, Alison Wuensch

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Esta investigación aborda si las ofrendas a la Pachamama en el Cusco responden a la desvalorización de las culturas andinas en un mundo globalizado por el turismo, la globalización, la modernización, y la urbanización. El turismo místico en el Perú ha crecido desde las noventas con la promoción del estado peruano de la cultura viva, y una de las ceremonias andinas más importantes es la ofrenda a la Pachamama. El objetivo era identificar y explicar los efectos del turismo, la globalización, la modernización, y la urbanización en las ofrendas a la Pachamama según los chamanes y la observación. Fui a …

Remembering Negdels: Nostalgia, Memory & Soviet-Era Herding Collectives, Maya Sutton-Smith

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

During the socialist period Mongolia’s nomadic herders were grouped into collective herding units called negdels. Today, over twenty years after Mongolia transitioned to democracy, herding has been privatized completely and negdels are a distant memory. This study explores the history of negdels by conducting twenty-five oral interviews with herders about their memories of collective herding. This study focuses on a soum in the Mongolian countryside, Bayandelger, while also incorporating interviews with people from Ulaanbaatar. Bayandelger is a unique location for this project because it was selected by the Soviets to receive assistance in an effort to make it a model …

Pluralism And Religious Education In Bali: How Lack Of Implementation Of Educational Reform Threatens Indonesian Identity In The System Used To Construct It, Nikolai O. Birch

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Indonesia’s education system was developed with the construction of the Indonesian as a cohesive people in mind. In doing so, the system adopted the practice of mandatory religious education as a means of developing the character of the Indonesian student through religion, a component imperative to the nation’s statehood. In the years and decades following, the education system, and subsequently its program of religious education, has been reformed and changed many times. This research attempts to look at how and why this changed system has struggled to implement these changes in the classroom, and why pluralism has been included in …

Where Ethnography Breaks Down: The Ethics, Miscommunications, And Failures Of My Independent Study Project, Natasha Shannon

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This paper will communicate a thick description and self-reflective critique of the research methods I used while conducting short-term ethnographic fieldwork at an NGO (non-governmental organization) in Rabat, Morocco. The research initially sought to answer the following question: How does the culture of a Moroccan NGO interact with the culture of its target client populations, and how does this impact the power dynamics of the NGO’s services? However, the ethical dilemmas of the research caused the question to shift to the following: What went wrong over the course of this short-term ethnography, and why? This paper will address my initial …