Political Science Commons^™

Congressional Committee Resources On Space Policy During The 115th Congress (2017-2018): Providing Context And Insight Into Us Government Space Policy, Bert Chapman

Libraries Faculty and Staff Presentations

Article 1 of the US Constitution assigns the US Congress numerous responsibilities. These include creating new laws, revising existing laws, funding government programs, and conducting oversight of these programs' performance. Oversight of US Government agency space policy programs is executed by various congressional space policy committees including the House and Senate Science Committees, Armed Services, and Appropriations Committees. These committees conduct many public hearings on space policy, which invite expert witnesses to testify on US space policy programs and feature debate on the strengths and weaknesses of these programs. Documentation produced by these committees is widely available to the public, …

Understanding Sovereignty And The Us Constitution: A View From The Massachusetts And Virginia State Ratifying Conventions, Hannah Novotny

Honors Program Theses and Projects

Eighteenth-century American politics does more than simply provide us with the US Constitution. According to Gordon Wood (1991, 32), the stakes of eighteenth-century historical arguments are very high, as they deal with “nothing less than the kind of society we have been, or ought to become.” Barry Shain (1994, xiv) concurs with Wood, arguing that an understanding of the American founding “defines how Americans understand themselves as a historical people, as well as constraining what they might become.” As Wood and Shain indicate, an understanding of eighteenth-century American political thought shapes how we understand our past and informs the decisions …

​The Case Of The Melting Pot: How Does Opinion Bias Affect One’S Understanding Of Immigration In The Us?​, Mary Ankomah

Honors Program Theses and Projects

In such a delicate political climate the complete acceptance of legal immigrants in the United States seems too often to be a challenge carried to many native-born Americans. Feelings of displeasure, annoyance and anger are repeatedly cultivated by many American citizens towards immigrants. News media and social media platforms have displayed this kind of negative behavior towards legal immigrants, in which they are often accused of “stealing jobs,” “trying to suppress a certain ethnic population,” or “infesting” the area. This study analyzes the political-psychological reason behind this learned reaction, while focusing on factors that have sponsored this level of intolerance …

Decision Tree For Predicting The Party Of Legislators, Afsana Mimi

Publications and Research

The motivation of the project is to identify the legislators who voted frequently against their party in terms of their roll call votes using Office of Clerk U.S. House of Representatives Data Sets collected in 2018 and 2019. We construct a model to predict the parties of legislators based on their votes. The method we used is Decision Tree from Data Mining. Python was used to collect raw data from internet, SAS was used to clean data, and all other calculations and graphical presentations are performed using the R software.

Minority Vetoes In Consociational Legislatures: Ultimately Weaponized?, Devin Haymond

Indiana Journal of Constitutional Design

In societies emerging from or at risk for conflict, dividing power among rival groups—called power-sharing—can be an appropriate arrangement to maintaining peace. But how can groups, who are often emerging from violent conflict, trust sharing a government with rival groups that were just recently shooting at them?

A potential solution is the minority veto, which is allows minority groups to block the government from harming those groups’ vital interests. But what sorts of change blocking mechanisms constitute a minority veto? Who gets the veto power, and when can they be used? Do minority vetoes function as effective incentives for ensuring …

Nato Enlargement And Us Grand Strategy: A Net Assessment, Rajan Menon, William Ruger

Publications and Research

NATO did not dissolve following the Soviet Union’s collapse and the end of the Cold War. Instead, the alliance expanded, in stages—from 16 members at its Cold War peak to 30 in 2020. While NATO enlargement alone did not cause the deterioration of US–Russian relations, it did contribute significantly to that outcome. Champions of NATO expansion aver that it maintains peace in Europe and promotes democracy in East-Central Europe. They add that Russia has nothing to fear. But Russia’s leaders have always seen NATO expansion differently. The article also examines NATO’s enlargement as it relates to US post-Cold War grand …

The Association Between Family Income And Adults’ Attitudes On Whether The Government Should Help The Poor, Emily Malloy

Honors Projects

This research examines whether people in different social classes have varying views on whether the government should help the poor and whether that depends on political affiliation. Income inequality has become a greater problem in the U.S. in recent decades. This means that the poor could require more assistance and it is important to know if the public thinks the government should help the poor. Knowing what influences public opinion on this issue could help policy makers make informed decisions about whether the government should help the poor. Data from the 2008 (N=2,023) and 2018 (N=2,348) General Social Survey (GSS) …

Trust, Political Participation, And Poverty: The Effects Of Poverty On Political Behavior, Melanie Cain

Honors Projects

With the upcoming 2020 election, the right to vote and otherwise participate in politics is as important as ever. In this research, I have examine the relationship between trust in government, political efficacy, participation in politics, and poverty to study why those in low-income households have lower rates of political participation and offer solutions to raise the rate of participation.

Attitudes Of Democracy: The Correlation Between Corruption, Social Sexism, And Democracy, Michelle Clifford

Student Works

Previous studies have found a correlation between gender inequality and corruption, but much debate still exists about the cause of this correlation. A common theory is that any country with little corruption and low gender inequality is a democracy and that the relationship is a spurious one that comes from the nature of democracies. Others contest that this is a reflection of women having a higher moral standard. This study measures the correlation between sexist attitudes and corruption. Measuring the attitude toward gender inequality rather than institutions, laws, or the behavior of individuals helps us better understand the culture and …

Women In Socialist Cuba: Political And Economic Equality, Julia E. Rogers

Senior Honors Projects, 2020-current

Gender equality is recognized as a fundamental human right and goal by the United Nations. The 1959 Cuban Revolution advocated for widespread social changes including equality for women. Cuba is a critical case because it both confirms and refutes assumptions about gender equality. The central research question explored in this thesis is: How do domestic and global factors combine to affect the rhetoric and experiences of gendered and racial groups with respect to economic and political opportunities in socialist Cuba? I examine whether the divergences between expectations and experiences conform to the general literature. I find that women did achieve …

Guiding Principle 28: The Unfulfilled Promise To End Protracted Displacement In Azerbaijan, Kaleigh Rose Mclaughlin

Honors Thesis

In 1998 internal displacement became a major focus of international concern with the adoption the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement by the United Nations. This seminal document outlined the rights and protections of internally displaced persons (IDPs), as well as developing policy solutions for ending displacement. In the two decades since the adoption of the Guiding Principles, there has been an explosion of research into various case studies. This paper re-examines the case of Azerbaijan within a new theoretical framework. This paper uses the work of Walter Kalin, former UN Secretary-General on the Human Rights of Internally Displaced Persons …

Us Versus Them: A Study Of The Basis Of Varying Perceptions Of Immigrants In Border Towns, Michelle Clifford

Student Works

94% of the United States population within ten miles of the US/Mexico border identifies as Hispanic. Even among these Latino-Americans, opinions of immigrants vary from extremely supportive to extremely opposing. What is the basis of these varying perceptions among Americans? This paper analyzes interviews conducted among residents of border towns in south Texas for opinions on how these perceptions have changed under the Trump administration, for any "us versus them" feelings, and for any other factors that may contribute to the construction of perceptions of immigrants.

Public Sentiment Toward Migration In A Globalizing World: The Case Of Spain And Its Distinctive Demeanor Toward Its Immigrants, Caroline Thompson

Honors Theses

This thesis discusses Spain's overall public opinion around immigration, exploring factors that contribute to the development of a country's attitude toward its immigrants. Spain exemplifies a particularly distinctive attitude in relation to its European Mediterranean counterparts, displaying an increased receptiveness toward its immigrant population. I examine economic factors, studying whether or not perceived economic competition can lead to significantly increased negativity toward immigrants. However, I find that, specifically regarding the Spanish case, economic competition does not determine the country's attitude toward immigration. Therefore, I focus on this element of authoritarian legacy and its contribution to public opinion around immigration. Following …

Y'All Like Ike: Tennessee, The Solid South, And The 1952 Presidential Election, Cameron N. Regnery

Honors Theses

This thesis examines the changing nature of politics in the American South, specifically through the 1952 presidential election in the state of Tennessee. For much of the South’s history, the region was dominated by the Democratic party, earning it the nickname the “Solid South”. Following the Civil War and Reconstruction, the South became an aggressively one-party region in which the Republican party found little electoral success and the Democratic party reigned supreme. This partisanship began showing signs of fracturing in 1948 when southern Democrats began to leave the party over racial issues. The presidency of Harry S. Truman (1945-1953) further …

“[Don’T] Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor...” A Study On The Trump Administration’S Unprecedented Reforms To The U.S. Refugee Admissions Program And Their Implications, Savannah Day

Honors Theses

From 2017 to 2020, the Trump administration cut United States refugee admissions tenfold. These reforms come unprecedented to the 40-year-old resettlement program (USRAP). By critically reviewing literature on this topic as well as conducting eight original interviews with five national nonprofits contracted by the Department of State to do refugee resettlement casework, this study sought to identify the implications of the Trump administration’s reforms to the program. Once implications were identified, I used the applied frameworks of program model as well as Michael Worth’s sociological and political science theories of American nonprofit-government relations to better inform and guide the study. …

A Study Of The Social Credit Score System And The Implications It May Have In Chinese Society, Glennis Mcwilliams

Honors Theses

This thesis examines the social credit score (SCS) system of China and the implications that it may have in Chinese society. The SCS is a revolutionary accountability system that is touted to ascertain a person’s trustworthiness of a person. An individualized score is produced by a complex algorithm which takes into account both social and financial behaviors. My research, comprised primarily from secondary qualitative data, discusses the SCS system and analyzes the political, social, and economic implications that the SCS may have on Chinese society. Conflict theory is utilized to help contextualize my findings and explain the increase in authoritative …

"You Play Like A Girl": How Alternative Conceptualizations Of Sexism Impact Attitudes Toward Women In Professional Sports, Kate Wigod

Honors Theses

This thesis examines whether alternative conceptualizations of sexism impact attitudes towards women in professional sports. Specifically, this thesis focuses on the United States Women’s National Soccer Team (USWNT), who sued their governing body in 2018 on the bases of unequal treatment and pay. The choice to focus on this particular team is because these women generate more revenue and outperform the United States Men’s National Soccer Team; two factors that are normally used to justify why female athletes should not be paid equally. To measure sexist attitudes, a survey of 74 questions was administered through Lucid and served as the …

The Mapuche And Chilean State: An Analysis Of The State Reaction To Mapuche Protests, Mckenna Gossrau

Honors Theses

The history between the Mapuche and Chilean state is long and complex. Since 2000, the conflict between the state and Mapuche has periodically drawn wider public attention as well as public demands for change. In this thesis, I look to examine how the Chilean state has reacted to the demands of the Mapuche since 2000. Mapuche activists have protested violently and peacefully against state policy that has left many rural Mapuche impoverished and landless. This project assesses the impact of protests on state-Mapuche policy. The project also examines how deeply entrenched neoliberal fiscal policies of the state play a central …

Al Qaeda, Boko Haram, And Isis: A Study On The Life Cycle Of Terrorist Organizations, Taylor Dedic

Honors Theses

This paper discusses the internal activities of terrorist organizations during their different periods of high and low activity. The research in this paper focuses on the case studies of three organizations, al Qaeda, Boko Haram, and ISIS, and analyzes the shifts in their activities throughout their life cycles. By focusing on terrorist organizations rooted in Salafi-Jihadism, this paper aims to point out the importance of analyzing these organizations through the context of their own ideology. Due to their ideology, these groups view their fight to be centuries-long, thus they do not view a period of reduced activity as their defeat. …

Perceptions Of Judicial Bias In The Mississippi Judiciary, Allyson Avant

Honors Theses

The purpose of this study is to explore Mississippians’ opinions towards the Mississippi state judiciary and further examine any differences in such opinions across race, gender, knowledge, and education levels. In doing so, it is possible to gain further understanding of the ways that historical context and knowledge influence perceptions of the state judiciary. Data collected from an anonymous survey of approximately 500 individuals shed some light on the perceptions Mississippians have towards the state judiciary. While many of the results were generalizable across various demographics, African Americans consistently held more negative views of their state judiciary than their White …