Regional Sociology Commons^™

Poverty, Work And Social Networks: The Role Of Social Capital For Aboriginal People In Urban Australian Locales, Julie Lahn

Aboriginal Policy Research Consortium International (APRCi)

In this article, I present the key findings from a project entitled “The Social Context of Indigenous Poverty”. The research involved a series of interviews with Aboriginal people in urban SE Australia on issues of poverty, social capital and social exclusion. In the article I draw together Aboriginal perspectives on the meaning of poverty to reflect on the relevance of social capital concepts for understanding Aboriginal economic disadvantage and hence, the merits of policy framed in these terms.

Race, Memory, And Historical Responsibility: What Do Southerners Do With A Difficult Past?, Larry J. Griffin, Peggy G. Hargis

Catalyst: A Social Justice Forum

Newly emerging, transitional societies –– that is, societies that traded dictatorial or authoritarian rule for some form of open or liberal polity –– face at least three interdependent problems of what is called in legal scholarship and social science “transitional justice”: the first is how (if at all) to hold the old regime’s autocratic, often violence-laden leadership responsible for its wrongdoings while in power; the second is what (if anything) to do with thousands upon thousands of ordinary folk whose participation in, or compliance with, the old regime helped legitimate and thus perpetuate the wrongdoing; and the third task how …

Catastrophes And The Role Of Social Networks In Recovery: A Case Study Of St. Bernard Parish, La, Residents After Hurricane Katrina, Carrie E. Lasley

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this dissertation is to examine the experiences of St. Bernard Parish, La., residents as they coped with the impact of the catastrophe of Hurricane Katrina on August 29, 2005. An estimated 50,000 St. Bernard Parish residents relocated to a new home one year after Katina in 2006, and many of those residents moved again. This study examines the effects of the decisions of St. Bernard residents to relocate or to return on their social connections. The utility, adaptability and durability of social networks of these residents will be explored to enrich our knowledge about the social effects …

Perceived Stigma And Stigma Management Of Midwest Seculars, Christopher R. H. Garneau

Department of Sociology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Prior work demonstrates that atheists and other secular individuals experience especially low trust among the American public. This line of research suggests that those with no religious belief encounter societal stigma related to their non-belief. Yet it is unknown how non-believers perceive and manage stigma. I explore perceived stigma and stigma management strategies employed by atheists, agnostics, and other secular individuals in the Midwest using a mixed methods approach. Results from survey data from more than 2,200 secular individuals as well as 24 in-depth interviews with seculars living in the Midwest show that prejudice and discrimination are common experiences for …

An Innovative Approach For Community Engagement: Using An Audience Response System, Jenna L. Davis, Kara E. Mcginnis, Margaret L. Walsh, Coni Williams, Kevin B. Sneed, Julie A. Baldwin, B. Lee Green

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

Community-based participatory research methods allow for community engagement in the effort to reduce cancer health disparities. Community engagement involves health professionals becoming a part of the community in order to build trust, learn from the community and empower them to reduce disparities through their own initiatives and ideas. Audience Response Systems (ARS) are an innovative and engaging way to involve the community and obtain data for research purposes using keypads to report results via power point. The use of ARS within communities is very limited and serves to widen the disparity gap by not delivering new advances in medical knowledge …

Community Mapping: Transforming Thinking And Actions Toward Sustainability, Melanie J. Kornis

Professional Projects

This phenomenological study explored the level of concern regarding issues of sustainability, for individuals residing within one mid-sized Midwestern urban community. Ultimately, this research sought to determine those factors that increase the sense of urgency for some individuals to do more to reduce our global footprint and to create a sustainable future for our children and grandchildren. The participants were chosen via purposeful sampling and the interview process was used for data collection. Several themes uncovered in the study findings were similar to those in the literature review, which include: caring for the environment, making connections within the community, recycling, …

Complementary And Adversarial Stances In State-Civil Society Relationships And Their Implications For Democratization And Development: The Case Of Ethiopia, Teshome Tadesse

International Conference on African Development Archives

State-society relations in Ethiopia have throughout history been one of cooperation rather than competition and destruction at least when it comes to the defense of the motherland. This short paper, attempts to examine the place of civil society vis-a-vis the all-powerful position of the state in Ethiopia and its behaviors in times of national danger or war where both complement each other and defeat the enemy. The states , during these times of national threats, go to a point where it literally begs national communities through traditional associations or civil societal groups and successfully repulses the aggressor. But once the …

“The Gilded Age Hair Trade In St. Louis”, David Straight

The Confluence (2009-2020)

Much can be learned about industries from the envelopes and letterheads of companies. Take the sale of human hair in the Gilded Age, for example.

“Anatomy, Grave-Robbing, And Spiritualism In Antebellum St. Louis”, Luke Ritter

The Confluence (2009-2020)

Dr. Joseph Nash Smith’s Missouri Medical College was a leading school for physicians and part of the professionalization of medicine before the Civil War. He also required human dissection that, along with being a St. Louis character, made him one of the period’s most controversial figures as well.

Spring/Summer 2012, Full Issue

The Confluence (2009-2020)

No abstract provided.

“American Bottom: The Floodplain Between The Bluffs And The Levee”, Quinta Scott

The Confluence (2009-2020)

The bottomland bluffs between the bluffs and levees along the Mississippi have been farmland for centuries. In this second of three photo essays, Quinta Scott documents the manmade environments on the floodplains.

“Luther Ely Smith: Father Of The Gateway Arch”, Mark Tranel

The Confluence (2009-2020)

Eero Saarinen’s Arch may be among the most recognized works of public art, but the vision that led to the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial was that of Luther Ely Smith. Mark Tranel looks at Smith’s tireless work to have the warehouse district razed and a national memorial built on the St. Louis riverfront.

“Missouri Through Soviet Eyes”, Ilya Ilf, Yevgeny Petrov

The Confluence (2009-2020)

In 1935, Russian satirists Ilya Ilf and Yevgeny Petrov bought a Ford and drove across the United States and back; their observations shaped the ideas of Russians about the United States for some three decades. One of the places they visited was Hannibal, Missouri. Here is their account, including their own photos.

From The Editor, Jeffrey Smith

The Confluence (2009-2020)

No abstract provided.

Ecotourism In Costa Rica: Empowering Local Communities, Rachel Lequire

Renée Crown University Honors Thesis Projects - All

This paper explores a community-based ecotourism initiative called La Tortuga Feliz, in Pacuare Beach, Costa Rica. This organization founded and run by Western expatriates using a conservation approach provides benefits to the local community while meaningfully involving them in the process.

My research included an extensive literature review, informal and formal interviews as well as participant observation for one month on-site. The objective was to understand what it means to empower and involve local communities in a meaningful way in community-based ecotourism projects.

I will argue that La Tortuga Feliz, although facilitating some benefits to the community, also disempowers the …

The Californians Against Sexual Exploitation (Case) Act: A Case Study In Policy Advocacy, Bailey Mannisto-Ichés

Capstone Collection

In any given year in the United States of America at least 100,000 domestic youth are sexually exploited through the commercial sex industry. Current national and state laws do not adequately protect these children from being groomed, pimped, and exploited over and over again in their young lives. A majority of these children are trafficked from, into or within the nation’s most populated state of California. In 2003 the FBI identified three of the country’s 13 high-­‐intensity child sex trafficking cities as being in California. The cycle of violence these children endure is not being brought to justice through the …

Chapter 5, History, In Intimacy And Community In A Changing World: Sikaiana Life 1980-1993, William Donner

Sikaiana Ethnography

This chapter is a discussion of the legendary and the more recent recorded history of the Sikaiana people from the Solomon Islands.

A related website can be found at www.sikaianaarchives.com

They Call Me Crazy: Factors To Conspiratorial Participation, Rachel Sparkman

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

This study investigates the public perceptions of conspiracy theories and the level and types of participation of those who believe such theories. It addresses the research questions of: (1) Under what conditions would a person speak openly about conspiracy, and under what conditions would they remain silent? (2) What are the social factors that draw a person into joining with others who believe a particular conspiracy has occurred? And (3) is there any relationship between a person's education and profession that would increase or hinder a conspiracist's visible participation of his or her beliefs? A total of thirty interviews were …

The Place To Be

Publications and Exhibits

Public life brings us together in common activity: cheering on the school sports team, enjoying Sunday dinner at a favorite restaurant, shopping at a local store. In these public spaces we conduct business, swap recipes, discuss issues of the day, relax with friends, and welcome newcomers to town. Public life knits together the diverse elements of a community and fosters a sense of civic responsibility. But longer job commutes, greater popularity of home entertainment, and online shopping mean more time spent privately and fewer opportunities to get together. To retain vitality, communities must continually nurture their traditional gathering places and …

Inside Cover

The Bridge

No abstract provided.