Department: Sociology ![[clear]](close-x.png "Remove this limiter")
39 matches in the database.
These are records: 1 - 30.
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1.
Adams, Gloria.
Rural Whiteness, Realizing Race: White Race Identity in Rural Northwestern Pennsylvania: A Critical Review.
Degree: BA, Sociology, 2002, Oberlin College Honors Theses
► In studying race, specifically whiteness, in northwestern Pennsylvania, I am speaking of…
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▼ In studying race, specifically whiteness, in northwestern Pennsylvania, I am speaking of my own experiences and my own identity. In searching for the truth behind race issues and white identity in this place, I must implicate myself in perpetuating racist attitudes and social structures, if not only for my own ignorance of diverse cultures. Like all whites I cannot escape my white skin and the privileges I receive because of it, but I can question that privilege, in an effort to understand my position and enact anti-racist change. This ethnography of whiteness in northwestern PA is as much about myself as it is about the people I interviewed. Although we have had different experiences and have lived in different parts of the country and world, we came from the same roots, born white and rural into the racism of northwestern Pennsylvania.
Advisors/Committee Members: McDaniel, Antoinette Charfauros.
Subjects: Sociology
Keywords: race identity; Pennsylvannia; ethnography
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2.
Ashkinadze, Rimma.
Urban squatting: an adaptive response to the housing crisis.
Degree: BA, Sociology, 1996, Oberlin College Honors Theses
► From introduction: Urban squatting is the unauthorized occupation of empty buildings. Squatting…
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▼ From introduction: Urban squatting is the unauthorized occupation of empty buildings. Squatting is usually thought to be a Third World phenomenon associated with urbanization, poverty, and rural-urban migration. However, there is a history of squatting in the US and Europe as well. Squatting has been reported in New York, San Francisco, Newark, Boston, Philadelphia, Detroit, and Los Angeles. Since World War II and particularly in the last thirty years, urban squatting has received much attention in Europe. The major European centers for squatting have been London, Amsterdam, and Berlin.' In Britain, the squatting of buildings scheduled for renovation or demolition became an organized and public movement. In the United States, squatting is a criminal offense and has not been widely publicized. Squatting has a dual purpose. It can provide immediate shelter while being a political tactic to draw attention to neighborhood neglect, the lack of available and affordable. low-cost housing, the dwindling stock of housing, and homelessness. This direct-action technique serves to empower its participants who are usually people disempowered through their participation in the housing system. Squatting has a long history in the United States. It was a common form of tenure during the pioneer and settler days of this country. The homesteading acts of the nineteenth century institutionalized it. Since then we have had different terms for the same actions. Whereas homesteading is a legal and institutionalized means of taking over and rehabilitating an abandoned building, squatting is not. Squatting is most common during periods of economic recession or depression. During the Great Depression, many squats or shantytowns appeared in towns all over the country. These "Hoovervilles" protested the lack of government response to the financial crisis. Additionally, they were organized and focused on mutual aid.
Advisors/Committee Members: John, Daphne.
Subjects: Economics; Social Psychology; Social Structure; Urban Planning
Keywords: squatting; homestead; urban squatting; city; housing; crisis
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3.
Barfels, Sarah.
Status Attainment Among Children of Single Mothers: The Roles of Parenting and Economics.
Degree: BA, Sociology, 1997, Oberlin College Honors Theses
► My analysis adds to the literature on single motherhood by trying to…
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▼ My analysis adds to the literature on single motherhood by trying to refine a structural equations model to use to examine the causal importance and relationships between economics and parenting in single mother families and the effect on intergenerational attainment. This work also utilizes the relatively new longitudinal data from the second wave of the National Survey of Families and Households which includes more comprehensive (measuring participation in school activities and adding indexes to previously single indicator concepts) measures of parenting practices (Thomson, Hanson, and McLahanan 1994; Astone and McLanahan 1991). Further, the role of these and economic factors are considered on years of education completed and, as discussed subsequently, on whether or not adult offspring have ever enrolled in a four-year college or university to illuminate the effect of educational attainment on eventual socioeconomic status (occupational prestige and earnings). As suggested by Astone and McLahanan (1991), it is hoped that these measures of educational attainment will capture the intergenerational effects of growing up in a female-headed family.
Advisors/Committee Members: John, Daphne.
Subjects: Families and Family Life; Sociology
Keywords: single parent; motherhood; single motherhood; economic; intergenerational; education
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4.
Beechler, Schon.
Women's status and roles in contemporary Japanese society.
Degree: BA, Sociology, 1981, Oberlin College Honors Theses
► The combination of modernization and industrialization and the persistence of traditional attitudes…
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▼ The combination of modernization and industrialization and the persistence of traditional attitudes serves to create a unique set of tensions and strains within the Japanese social system. The position of women is one such area in which the conflicting demands of this system are especially evident. Women in contemporary Japanese society are still expected to be "good wives and mothers" yet they are also often required to participate in the workforce in an economy beset by spiraling inflation. Even those women who are not forced to work by necessity have found that the importance of their wife/mother role has been significantly reduced by demographic and technological changes. The tension affecting women's status and roles within contemporary Japanese society is the focus of this paper. I will use Wilbert Moore's theory of social change, concentrating on the concomitants and consequences of industrialization and modernization to analyze the processes and effects of social change on women's roles and status, and to construct a hypothesis concerning the future roles of women.
Advisors/Committee Members: McQueen, Albert.
Subjects: Families and Family Life; Sociology; Womens Studies
Keywords: women; mother; wife; Japan; society; industrialization; modernization; Japanese society
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5.
Calivis Green, Melissa.
Human Cesspools by Design?: The Inherent Contradiction in Public Housing.
Degree: BA, Sociology, 1998, Oberlin College Honors Theses
► Many architects and planners neglect the complex relationship between spatial organization and…
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▼ Many architects and planners neglect the complex relationship between spatial organization and the needs of a particular group. Following notions of Modernism as prescribed by architects such as Le Corbusier and Gropius, they believe instead in architectural determinism or the idea that architecture should dictate the social relationships of the residents through the design itself This paper will attempt to demonstrate that the "effective environment" or the totality of variables influencing behavior, such as crime and self perception, includes both the physical design and the social factors. The design and the social factors can not be separated from one another. Instead,we must realize that the two are intertwined. Design and social factors are related insofar as the physical environment can influence the development or the expression of certain attitudes or behaviors, as well influence social relationships; (Broady, 1966 and Gutman, 1975) yet, can not determine them. We can find evidence of this interaction of design and social factors in Housing Projects such as Pruitt Igoe. Using data from the 1990 General Social Survey (GSS) our analysis will probe attitudinal differences between the socio-economic classes that are in part shaped by their environment. It will be demonstrated that the poor and the middle class have different attitudes. The poor tend to be less trustful and more withdrawn as a result.
Advisors/Committee Members: John, Daphne.
Subjects: Sociology; Urban Planning
Keywords: housing; socio-economic; public housing; urban; design; architecture; planning; Le Corbusier; Gropius
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6.
Camacho, Cindy.
Divergent Discourses: Medical and Cultural Understandings of Latina Reproductive Health in the Era of Gardasil.
Degree: BA, Sociology, 2011, Oberlin College Honors Theses
► In 2006, the vaccine Gardasil was distributed in the United States. Gardasil…
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▼ In 2006, the vaccine Gardasil was distributed in the United States. Gardasil was created to block four strains of human papilloma virus (HPV), two of which cause about 70% of cervical cancer, and two others that cause 90% of genital warts. Although the Gardasil vaccine is an advance in the fight against cervical cancer, reports show that Latinas have low vaccination rates of Gardasil, disproportionately higher rates of cervical cancer and that cervical cancer screening rates are much lower for Latinas than women of other ethnicities. I argue that there is a disconnect between the Latina and medical discourses and the lack of integration of these discourses potentially contributes to the disparity of cervical cancer for Latinas. I have identified the groups that have produced the most influential discourses in the debate around Latina reproductive health: medical communities and Latina communities. To test this hypothesis, I collected data related to each of these discourses in the Lorain County area employing surveys and in-depth interviews. My work focuses on what the discourses say about the problem of reproductive health care for Latinas and how each community can enter into communication with each other in order to reduce the number of Latinas whose lives are directly affected by cervical cancer.
Advisors/Committee Members: John, Daphne.
Subjects: Ethnic Studies; Public Health; Sociology
Keywords: cervical cancer; Gardasil; Latinas; health disparities
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7.
Caplan, Jamie Fay.
College Orientation for the First-Year and Transfer Student Populations: How can the needs of both groups be simultaneously met during orientation and beyond?.
Degree: BA, Sociology, 2008, Oberlin College Honors Theses
► The aim of this honors thesis was to compare the first-year and…
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▼ The aim of this honors thesis was to compare the first-year and transfer student experience during orientation at Oberlin College in the Fall of 2007. The research aimed to examine a population that is not typically included in conceptualizing college orientation, to understand how transfer students and first-years differently experience the freshman-centric atmosphere on-campus during orientation and to provide a complete outline of how orientation can best support all new students. The transfer student during orientation represents a blending of first-year and upperclassman characteristics because they must experience the first-year-centric environment but they have previous college experience. How can the transfer student population be best served during orientation at Oberlin College?
Advisors/Committee Members: John, Daphne.
Subjects: Higher education; Sociology
Keywords: college orientation; higher education; transfer students; new students; history of college orientation
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8.
Farah-Robison, Raquel.
Battling for History: Divisive and Unifying Figures of the Salvadoran Civil War.
Degree: BA, Sociology, 2011, Oberlin College Honors Theses
► The Salvadoran Civil War (1980-1992), fought between the state's military and a…
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▼ The Salvadoran Civil War (1980-1992), fought between the state's military and a leftist guerrilla group (the FMLN) ended in a peace agreement brokered by the United Nations that acknowledged both sides as equal partners in the reconstruction of civil society. As a result, both camps have been able to write their histories, erect their monuments and hold celebrations in honor of their martyrs. This project studies these competing narratives and the forms in which this history is preserved, and presents an analysis of four key figures, two who reflect the continuing fractured state of historical memory (Major Roberto d'Aubuisson and Col. Domingo Monterrosa), and two who offer the hope that someday, a unifying, healing narrative can emerge (Archbishop Oscar Romero and Comandante Schafik Handal). The goal of this project is to explore how the mythologies these icons are understood and expressed, and what it indicates about collective memory in post-war El Salvador.
Advisors/Committee Members: Vujacic, Veljko.
Subjects: History; Latin American Studies; Sociology
Keywords: El Salvador; Salvadoran Civil War; historical memory; collective memory; sites of memory
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9.
Freiman, Jonathan.
Journeying towards America: an anthropological inquiry into what we think is real.
Degree: BA, Sociology, 1987, Oberlin College Honors Theses
► You have in your hands a thing: a discrete, bounded entity. You…
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▼ You have in your hands a thing: a discrete, bounded entity. You see paper, which you identify as a thing, and you see some concept, 'thesis', less directly than paper, but still as a thing. But as much as you have a thing, you engage in a process, the interaction of my mind and yours, a time-delayed conversation. A thesis (or article or book) performs the role of an intellectual launching pad, a catalyst for thought. Both 'realities', the slices of a dead tree and the process-engagement, confront you through experience. And yet, as Americans we are more likely to think of even the process elements of a thesis as a thing: a bounded, complete set of thoughts ready for dissection. Unless reminded, we allow the process to slip into the background. We forget the engagement and concentrate on the analysis. I call this paper "Journeying Towards America" to emphasize what we sometimes forget: that any written work is both a journey shared and a place reached, a process of exploring the intricacies of the foreign terrain, and a recounting of the things found there.
Advisors/Committee Members: Glazier, Jack.
Subjects: Sociology
Keywords: anthropology; America; anthropology
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10.
Glenn, John Kirtley.
Comparisons across countries : public policy and the preforming arts in the 1980's.
Degree: BA, Sociology, 1988, Oberlin College Honors Theses
► State involvement in the performing arts has led a varied life at…
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▼ State involvement in the performing arts has led a varied life at different times in different countries, but rarely has it existed without controversy o£ some kind. The present time is no exception. The 1980's have witnessed a serious attack on public funding of the performing arts. While the previous two decades can be characterized as periods of growth and expansion both in the public sector and the world economy, the 1980's have been characterized as a period of economic austerity and, restraint in the public sector. Concerning the actual amount of money involved, the arts seem to generate a disproportionate amount of political controversy. President Carter's comment that he was spending as much time choosing a new Chairman for the National Endowment for the Arts as on the SALT talks is illustrative. Changes in public policy toward the performing arts often reflect a great deal about the government involved and the present political context. The arts can function as an important symbol for the state, as a symbol of national identity or of a “cultured,” high-minded state. More importantly, the almost marginal situation of the arts within the scope of state activity make it a kind of meter to the political culture within a particular country. This paper asks many questions. It is descriptive: What can we understand about the nature of arts policy in general? What are the existing policy structures for the performing arts? It is exploratory: What has occurred in the realm of public policy toward the performing arts in the 1980's? Perhaps most importantly, however, it is explanatory: Why have these changes occurred in the specific and different ways that they have? What has been the impact of these changes upon the performing arts? What is the likely impact upon the future? It seeks to identify the major elements in arts policy that influence and determine policy changes and to find a more general understanding of how these elements interact within the policy framework and within the constantly changing policy environments. I do not intend to completely account for public policy toward the performing arts, the nature of which would be unending. I intend rather to discuss what I perceive as the major elements affecting changes and important to an understanding of public policy in the 1980’s.
Advisors/Committee Members: Norris, William.
Subjects: Performing Arts; Public Policy
Keywords: government; preforming; arts; state; funding; 1980's; public; policy
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11.
Godlove, Hannah.
Tradition, modernization and public health policy : combating HIV/AIDS in Senegal.
Degree: BA, Sociology, 2007, Oberlin College Honors Theses
► This thesis explores how traditional beliefs and institutions have been used in…
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▼ This thesis explores how traditional beliefs and institutions have been used in a nationwide campaign against the spread of HIV / AIDS in the case· of Senegal. Relying on the works of Max Weber, Edward Shils, and Erving Goffinan, the theoretical chapter of the thesis develops the concepts of traditionalism, modernization, rationalization, and social stigma. This theoretical framework is applied to the case of Senegal in order to support the idea that the tradition of Sufi Islam played an important role in the nationwide campaigns against AIDS. However, I argue that a successful national policy against HIV / AIDS must rely on a combination of central government initiatives, NGO participation, local community efforts, and religious institutions. More specifically, the main goal of such a comprehensive program should be to target the social stigma surrounding infected individuals, and focus on lowering rates of infection through the dissemination of information. The case of Senegal demonstrates that traditional religious institutions can playa key role in lowering levels of HIV / AIDS infection in developing countries.
Advisors/Committee Members: Vujacic, Veljko.
Subjects: Health; Sociology
Keywords: HIV; AIDS; Senegal; public health policy; health
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12.
Guest, Avery Mason.
A Negro look at the world.
Degree: BA, Sociology, 1963, Oberlin College Honors Theses
► The demand for equal rights now among the American Negro population has…
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▼ The demand for equal rights now among the American Negro population has sparked wide-spread discussion about the causes of the movement. Different authors and leaders, through a wide-ranging assortment of sometimes contradictory and sometimes interlocking reasons, have attempted to explain why the movement arose and why it has kept going. Approaches range from the mystical explanation of Martin Luther King, Jr. (in the final analysis God is causing the Negro to demand equal rights at the present time) to the coldly rational approaches of many social scientists who see the current Negro unrest as part of a typical case history of a social movement. Actually King is not completely mystical because he does openly and vociferously recognize many of the empirical social causes of the Negro revolt. Acceptance of the mystical approach clashes with the scientific methods and values of the writer and most social scientists and thus, by assumption, is rejected. Two generally accepted or generally debated characteristics of a social movement are; (1) the emergence of protest instead of accommodating leadership for the movement, and (2) the increase in wealth and general economic well-being of the oppressed group minus concomitant increases in political power and social standing or/and the realization by followers of the social movement that their rights and privileges are not being recognized and granted. In other words, the followers of the social movement perceives themselves as deprived, wish to rectify the situation, and turn to leaders who oppose the accepted values of the general society instead of those who support the accepted values. These are only two debated characteristics of the movement which especially interested the writer, and they are generally considered true of only the initial stages of a social movement (there can be little doubt that the demand for equal rights now has not run its course). The writer decided to restrict his investigation to only these two characteristics because of a lack of time and a desire to be fairly thorough in the investigation. .Most of the research was tangential instead of directly related to the above characteristics. The writer desired to see how Negroes perceive change in their status, what kind of program of action they advocate, and who they consider 1eaders. He also sought to discover the correlations between perception of change, achievement motivation and civil rights ideology. Preliminary work consisted of reading articles giving the present gamut of Negro attitudes on status, rights, strategies and goals, articles analyzing the cases of the Negro revolt, and articles portraying the history and life of the Negro in America. These readings were continued during and after the interview process to aid the writer in understanding and interpreting his results. To determine present Negro feelings related to the above named two characteristics, the writer decided to design an interview-questionnaire with four main sections: (1) Negro leadership, (2) Negro achievement motivation, (3) Negro civil rights ideology, and (4.) Negro perception of change in status.
Advisors/Committee Members: Yinger, J. Milton.
Subjects: African American Studies; Black Studies; Social Psychology; Social Structure; Sociology
Keywords: status; leadership; achievement; civil right ideology; Negro; equality
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13.
Hicks, Liza Oktay.
The Prevalence of Abuse and Battering Among Homeless Women, and an Assessment of Current Services Provided for Battered Women: Should Homeless Women Receive Such Services?.
Degree: BA, Sociology, 1992, Oberlin College Honors Theses
► Homeless women are treated as a distinct population from battered and abused…
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▼ Homeless women are treated as a distinct population from battered and abused women by the service industry. Over the last two decades, services have been developed aimed at helping abused and battered women. If most homeless women have histories of abuse, these services may be utilized as a model for providing services for homeless women. Before developing these types of services for homeless women, it is important to know 1) to what extent homeless women are abused and 2) whether the services provided for abused and battered women are effective. This paper will review the relevant literature to this area of study, present research questions, describe research methods used in the study, and present and discuss the findings.
Advisors/Committee Members: Norris, William.
Subjects: Sociology; Womens Studies
Keywords: homeless; women; abuse; services; help; battered
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14.
Joseph, Jane Ellen.
Socio-historical studies of the National Woman's Party and the National Women's Trade Union League.
Degree: BA, Sociology, 1980, Oberlin College Honors Theses
► In every society there are individuals or groups of people who have…
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▼ In every society there are individuals or groups of people who have the power to control, or at least direct, various resources. Resources, an ambiguous term, can mean anything from monetary supplies to legislative sanctions to different objects or opportunities.. Just as there will be individuals controlling these assets, there will also be groups perceiving and expressing discontent. For example, these people may be dissatisfied with the power groups' methods of leadership; they may perceive their needs to be neglected and/or they may want to seize control of these assets and channel resources into their own hands for the betterment of their group. One might even understand this inevitable aspect of conflict in society as part of a continuing reinforcement of the status quo which functions to enhance what the particular society has designated as 'natural'. As a society allows people to voice their protests and malcontent, a power structure is in a position to display its strength by repressing their actions and words and then punishing, them by ignoring them or by coopting members of the group or the group's demands into the authority structure. The issue of conflict is essential for an understanding of social organization, for as William Gamson notes, "a system cannot function effectively if it must devote too much of its resources to problems of integration and conflict management." Conflict is built into a system which can only handle a certain number of demands; some people will always be dissatisfied. The point then is that there are two vantage points- the perspective from the challenge group which seeks to exert influence and the authority perspective which seeks to contain conflict and maintain a stable society.
Advisors/Committee Members: McQueen, Albert.
Subjects: Political Science; Sociology
Keywords: conflict; National Woman's Party; National Women's Trade Union; authority; society; leadership
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15.
Krancer, Barbara A.
Prison design and prisoner behavior: philosophy, architecture, and violence.
Degree: BA, Sociology, 1980, Oberlin College Honors Theses
► I contend that the architectural environment of the prison can directly affect…
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▼ I contend that the architectural environment of the prison can directly affect prisoner behavior in terms of violence and pathology. Certain design configurations can promote inmate aggression and negative psychological effects. Thus, I shall explore the physical and philosophical state of the prison briefly through history and intensively at present, and shall attempt to present suggestions for the modification of these effects via change in the architectural environment.
Advisors/Committee Members: McQueen, Albert.
Subjects: Aesthetics; Architecture; Design; Sociology
Keywords: prison; prisoner; environment; behavior; architectural; design
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16.
Lee, Monica M.
The Mistakes of the Infallible: The Internal Conflict of Eastern European Communist Intellectuals.
Degree: BA, Sociology, 2005, Oberlin College Honors Theses
► In this thesis, I will explore the reasons why intellectuals, who are…
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▼ In this thesis, I will explore the reasons why intellectuals, who are thought to be critical of all governmental regimes, historically espoused revolutionary politics and communism. I will also elucidate how the "closed system" of logic in communist theory compels "free-floating" intellectuals to adhere to a dogmatic belief in the historical mission of the proletariat and justify revolutionary violence and the violent means used by the Communist Party to transform society. In order to answer these questions, I will examine the literature and autobiographies of two Central European authors-Arthur Koestler and Csezlaw Milosz. First I will show that both authors were in fact "free-floating" intellectuals, who were not firmly based in a socio-economic class or a single profession. Neither author came from or drew the influence of a single homeland. Each writer spent extensive time outside of his home country and was exposed to a variety of cultures. Finally, neither man had solid interpersonal relationships that inhibited his travels and adventures or anchored him firmly in a location or social circle. This unique social position provided them with no definite class or national interests. Thus, Koestler and Milosz depended on logic and the consensus of intellectual circles to develop their political positions.Theories of communism, which were rational and logical, became their political guide.
Advisors/Committee Members: Vujacic, Veljko.
Subjects: East European Studies; European Studies; Sociology
Keywords: Milosz; Koestler; free-floating; intellectual; closed; system; communist
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17.
Mayer, Peter W.
Extra-legal factors in the American legal system.
Degree: BA, Sociology, 1986, Oberlin College Honors Theses
► The laws of the United States have been written over time with…
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▼ The laws of the United States have been written over time with the intention of providing a framework for fair, legitimate, and uniform legal decisions to be made. Laws attempt to provide national tranquility by providing channels of punishment for those who disobey them. At the same time laws in the United States attempt to avoid any conflict with differing cultural values present in our nation. The laws of the United States are intended to function without regard to the race, sex, or religion of the defendant, complainant, or attorneys involved. Laws themselves cannot help but embody the cultural values of their authors, yet at the same time they are expected to function in a manner that ignores individual cultural attributes. Laws are expected to provide a frame of reference for legal decisions on the basis of rules and values accepted by the culture as a whole. The role of the individual in the American legal system is to obey the laws as they are written or face the penalties proscribed for disobeying them.
Advisors/Committee Members: Glazier, Jack.
Subjects: Law; Sociology
Keywords: law; legal; decisions; United States; judicial; race; extra-legal
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18.
Moloney, Molly.
Feminist Social Research: Epistemological and Methodological Implications.
Degree: BA, Sociology, 1996, Oberlin College Honors Theses
► In this paper I examine some of the primary debates in feminist…
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▼ In this paper I examine some of the primary debates in feminist epistemology, with a particular emphasis on postmodern epistemological positions, asking what these mean for doing research. One central question I ask is 'what role should the concept of objectivity have in feminist sociological research?' I argue for a reformulation of the concept of objectivity that, sympathetic with feminist postmodernism, rejects the ideal of value-neutrality in research, but that also rejects relativism and subjectivism. Keeping these debates in mind, I will examine debates regarding feminist methodology and the question of whether or not there is a specific feminist method or methodology. I argue against the existence of a distinct 'feminist method' and reject the polarization between quantitative and qualitative research that dominates much of this debate.
Advisors/Committee Members: John, Daphne.
Subjects: Sociology
Keywords: feminism; postmodernism; subjectivism; social
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19.
Morris, Lynne Clemmons.
A Theory of Social Control.
Degree: BA, Sociology, 1967, Oberlin College Honors Theses
► Durkheim has made the important observation that a society can regulate the…
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▼ Durkheim has made the important observation that a society can regulate the behavior of its members. How is this result achieved? Through two analytically distinct but empirically interrelated processes- socialization and social control.
Advisors/Committee Members: Yinger, J. Milton.
Subjects: Sociology
Keywords: socialization; social control
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20.
Muha, Michael J.
Three measures of political alienation, 1952 to 1976.
Degree: BA, Sociology, 1979, Oberlin College Honors Theses
► The present study seeks to discover the relationships that exist among three…
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▼ The present study seeks to discover the relationships that exist among three open, operationalizations of political alienation, social location (demographic) characteristics of the individual, and dissatisfaction with government policy. After a theoretical discussion of anomie and alienation and their extensions to political alienation, measures of political cynicism, internal political inefficacy, and external political inefficacy are examined with various measures of ascribed and achieved individual attributes and with the perception of policy differences with the Republican and Democratic Parties. Multivariate models are then used to examine the relative impact of these two set of variables on the measures of political alienation.
Advisors/Committee Members: Yinger, J. Milton.
Subjects: Political Science; Sociology
Keywords: political; alienation
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21.
Negroponte, Ramona Catherine.
The Effects of Formal Group and Extracurricular Involvement on College Students’ Self-Esteem.
Degree: BA, Sociology, 2012, Oberlin College Honors Theses
► The purpose of this study was to understand the impact of college…
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▼ The purpose of this study was to understand the impact of college students' engagement in formal group activities on self-esteem levels. Youth and adolescent extracurricular involvement was also taken into account to help determine influence on college participation. Hypotheses suggested that group affiliation would positively affect self-esteem and that extracurricularly motivated children would be more likely to join formal activities in college. A sample of 149 Oberlin College students completed a survey that included the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, and nine of these subjects were selected for in-depth interviews. Both quantitative and qualitative data results indicated that formal group members’ self-esteem levels were not distinct from their non-group participant peers. Early group involvement, however, predicted later engagement, and athletic team membership during middle and high school often led to varsity athletic participation at Oberlin. The relationship between athletic team participation and self-esteem proved significant in the survey data, though interviewees’ self-esteem levels did not necessarily reflect higher trends.
Advisors/Committee Members: White, Clovis.
Subjects: Sociology
Keywords: Self-esteem; well-being; college students; group involvement; extracurricular activities; concerted cultivation; natural child growth
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22.
Nichols, Julia A. (Brezon).
The Spanish University: An Analysis of the Relationship Between Institutional and Political Change.
Degree: BA, Sociology, 1985, Oberlin College Honors Theses
► The purpose of this paper is to reveal the nature of institutional…
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▼ The purpose of this paper is to reveal the nature of institutional adaptation of the University within the context of the political upheavals in twentieth-century Spain. I will focus on the changing structure of the University under the Republican era, the Franco years, and the present democracy. Elements within this changing educational structure suggest an ideal typology, a hypothetical university which manages to rise above its role as a mere function of the social milieu. By contrast, the reality of the University as an institution controlled by political regimes is evident throughout the paper. The contention herein is that among the three forms, the University under Franco was the furthest from the ideal typology. This paper, therefore, attempts to arrive at conclusions concerning the effect of the Spanish political systems of republican democracy, authoritarianism, and socialist democracy upon the University. Ideologies of each system greatly determined the proposed institutional changes. By explaining the nature of the systems, as well as the transitions between each one, I hope to make explicit the institutional reflection therein. The employment of an ideal typology aids in clarifying a means of comparison between what the University should be, and what actually exists under each system. Lastly, the focus on student attitudes is an integral element to the discussion, revealing the inadequacies and strengths of the University through political transitions.
Advisors/Committee Members: Norris, William.
Subjects: Education History; Education Policy; European Studies; Political Science; Sociology
Keywords: Spainish; University; 20th century; typology; education; reform; change; politics
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23.
Paine, Abigail D.
Gendering bodies in preschool: the importance of the interconnectedness of race, class, and gender.
Degree: BA, Sociology, 2000, Oberlin College Honors Theses
► The methods through which children learn to identify with a gender and…
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▼ The methods through which children learn to identify with a gender and its ascribed roles in United States society have been documented thoroughly in both psychology and sociology. Although there are many researchers who agree that gender roles are limiting, stereotypical expressions of gender, they exist and continued to be learned by children, nevertheless. How are children's gender roles enforced? Why do children continue to grow up knowing what to attribute as "masculine" or "feminine"? One interesting way that stereotypical gender roles are enforced is through processes that gender children's bodies.
Advisors/Committee Members: White, Clovis.
Subjects: Gender; Gender Studies; Sociology
Keywords: preschool; gender; body; roles; masculine; feminine
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24.
Regan, Janet Noel.
Comparison of two minorities : New Zealand Maoris and Australian Aborigines.
Degree: BA, Sociology, 1975, Oberlin College Honors Theses
► The most obvious contrast between these two minorities is their relative size;…
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▼ The most obvious contrast between these two minorities is their relative size; the Maoris represent 10% of the total population of New Zealand while the Aborigines, account for .6% of the total Australian population. These figures are significant: in that they influence the power and resources available to both minorities in their struggles against the dominant majorities. The Maoris are at an advantage because their size is more impressive. The impact of European contact on the original Maori and Aboriginal cultures points to many similarities and several basic differences. The cultures of both societies, as detailed earlier, had developed into complex and well organized structures. Also includes detailed information about the New Zealand Maoris and Australian Aborigines.
Advisors/Committee Members: Yinger, J. Milton.
Subjects: Social Research; Sociology
Keywords: New Zealand; Maoris; Australia; Aborigines; minority; racism; government
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25.
Richman, Beth Ann.
Rape Law Reform's Limits.
Degree: BA, Sociology, 1994, Oberlin College Honors Theses
► The first that I will explore is the criticism of the wording…
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▼ The first that I will explore is the criticism of the wording of the law. Defining the crime of rape was seen as vital, in that, in many states it was impossible to get a conviction for certain types of sexual assaults, simply because statutorily they did not exist (Chappell. 1976). The second aspect of rape reform theory that I will review is the arguments that attempt to prove that rape is similar to other forms of criminal assault. This body of thought fits into an equality based argument that has been championed by some feminist legal theorists that deal with a great variety of subject matter (Bartlett & Kennedy, 1991). These theorists have worked to reduce the sentiment that rape is a special case because it involves sexual activities or motives. This type of theory has been highly influenced by the school of thought within the rape crisis movement that rape is not sex, it is violence (Brownmiller, 1975).
Advisors/Committee Members: John, Daphne.
Subjects: Law; Legal Studies; Sociology; Womens Studies
Keywords: rape; legal; law; women; definition; sex; sexual; assaults; reform; theory
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26.
Rosenbloom, Philip.
Shaping the thin blue line: American police reform from the London model to community policing.
Degree: BA, Sociology, 2001, Oberlin College Honors Theses
► American interpretations of the police officer's role in our society span the…
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▼ American interpretations of the police officer's role in our society span the distance between two distinct and opposite poles. On the one hand, many Americans, especially those living in middle or upper class, non-urban, predominantly white areas, believe that a police officer is a hero, "a courageous public servant [and] a defender of life and property." If they are victimized in some way, they believe they can call the police, and that the police will come to their aid. There is however, a considerable segment of our society, often those living in poor, urban, non-white areas, that understands police officers purely as agents of oppression; as thugs who harass, abuse, and sometimes kill innocent civilians because of personal racial and class biases.
Advisors/Committee Members: Norris, William.
Subjects: Law; Sociology
Keywords: police; reform; United States; London; community; authority
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27.
Rust, Paula C.
The lesbian subculture: characteristics of the lesbian minority, societal attitudes toward lesbianism.
Degree: BA, Sociology, 1981, Oberlin College Honors Theses
► At some point during the early years of formal education int eh…
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▼ At some point during the early years of formal education int eh United States every child is bound to hear America referred to as a "melting pot." The melting pot analogy is supposed to convey the notion that many different peoples have converged in the United States, implying that they have freely intermixed and interbred. shared with each other their heritages and cultures, and produced a unique homogenous blended culture. But if one scrapes away this thin surface of idealism, it quickly becomes apparent that America is not a melting pot society but a pluralistic society, containing many groups of people with differing norms and values, each of which are more or less integrated into what man be referred to as the mainstream or the dominant culture. To the extent which they are not integrated into mainstream, dominant white culture, these groups possess subcultures, or: Normative systems of groups smaller than society, [the term "subculture" giving] emphasis to the ways these groups differ in such things as language, values, religion, and style of life from the larger society of which they are part. Some of these groups, for example groups of new immigrants, possess subcultures which have been preserved in spite of contact with the surrounding, dominant culture. Others possess what Yinger terms a "contraculture," which is a subculture consisting of "norms that arise specifically from a frustrating situation of from conflict between a group and the larger society." During the past two decades the members of many disadvantaged groups have come to recognize their common interests and begun to band together in civil rights and liberation movements. In so doing, they became members of a "minority." As each new minority identifies itself and begins to speak out, both members and non-members of the minority become aware of the minority's existence, of its special problems, and of the flavor of the way of life of its members. As each minority gains societal acknowledgement, it becomes increasingly legitimate and frequent subject of social science research. Thus, minorities such as blacks, women, and the handicapped, alcoholics, Western European immigrants, and gay men are the subjects of a growing body of research literature. A recent addition to the list of minorities who are standing up to identify themselves is that of lesbians. Long hidden and invisible, until the late 1960's lesbians were virtually ignored by society and by social researchers. But in the past two decades, as lesbians have become more vocal, the public and the scientific community are becoming aware not only that lesbians exist but that they have developed a unique contraculture in response to the attitudes of society towards them.
Advisors/Committee Members: Norris, William.
Subjects: Gender; Gender Studies; Glbt Studies; Sociology; Womens Studies
Keywords: minority; lesbian; subculture; attitudes; lesbianism; contraculture
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28.
Schmidt, Theresa.
Yoga 'Holistic' Exercise in: Ohio.
Degree: BA, Sociology, 2003, Oberlin College Honors Theses
► Yoga is depicted in U.S. popular culture as the sacred practice of…
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▼ Yoga is depicted in U.S. popular culture as the sacred practice of an ancient tradition, guaranteed to initiate the western participant into the secrets of health and well being, i.e. a low-impact exercise regimen. However, the yoga that is practiced in the U.S. is often removed from its actual history. The physical practices are regularly isolated from the holistic philosophy and come to be understood as the entirety of yoga and marketed as a "spiritual" form of exercise. This paper will explore literature relevant to these themes and examine the reasons for yoga's popularity and the manner in which it is incorporated into the lives of those who practice it.
Advisors/Committee Members: John, Daphne.
Subjects: Health; Sociology
Keywords: yoga; holistic; United States; Ohio; exercise
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29.
Schulte, Megan A.
Kendal at Oberlin: an examination of desires, expectations, and concerns of residents and management and staff in the formation and development of a new continuing care retirement community.
Degree: BA, Sociology, 1994, Oberlin College Honors Theses
► Due to changing demographics in the United States' elderly population,adequate senior housing…
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▼ Due to changing demographics in the United States' elderly population,adequate senior housing is becoming a major concern for an increasing number of Americans. Issues and concerns of housing are related to a multitude of issues surrounding aging including the retention of one's independence and adaptation to age-related changes, the physical, the cognitive, the environmental. One of the most recent developments in senior housing is the continuing care retirement community (CCRC). This research focuses on Kendal at Oberlin, a newly constructed CCRC in Oberlin, Ohio. Methodologically, data were gathered with resident-targeted and management and staff-targeted surveys. Research goals include delineating resident needs,expectations, and desires, their interaction with and relation to management and staff members, and exploring socialization factors involved in community formation. Analyses indicate that independence is a central underlying factor for most issues, concerns, and attitudes surrounding moving to and participating in the Kendal at Oberlin community. Residents share a rather homogeneous set of descriptive characteristics and attitudes suggesting anticipated high levels of community cohesiveness as well as a potential for conflict with the also relatively homogeneous management and staff population. Community formation is being fueled by the excitement of creating a new community and by the wide-spread respect and reverence for Quaker values and philosophies on which the institution is founded. Future developments of this research should include longitudinal analyses of the Kendal at Oberlin community, a prime target of focus due to its currently unique position as a newly opened CCRC.
Advisors/Committee Members: John, Daphne.
Subjects: Gerontology; Sociology
Keywords: Kendal at Oberlin; Oberlin
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30.
Skold, Karen Beck.
Report on honors research: An exploratory study of Puerto Ricans in Lorain, Ohio.
Degree: BA, Sociology, 1970, Oberlin College Honors Theses
► The Puerto Rican community in Lorain, Ohio dates from 1946, when the…
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▼ The Puerto Rican community in Lorain, Ohio dates from 1946, when the first 100 workers were imported by the steel company. Since that time the Latin community has grown to 10,000, comprising a proportionately large segment of the city's total population of approximately 75,000. Most studies of the adaptation of Puerto Rican migrants to life in the United States are based on New York City; to my knowledge the Lorain population has never been the subject of a systematic sociological investigation. Although "El Barrio" in New York is still the largest continental settlement of Puerto Ricans and remains a reference point for many migrants in other cities, the great dispersal of the migration into all areas of the country makes studies of smaller, more typical cities important for understanding the experience of the Puerto Ricans. The question that originally interested me was whether or not the Puerto Ricans were becoming integrated into the structure of American society, as opposed to forming an exploited underclass in the urban slum culture. In Lorain, the younger generation of children born in this country or brought over very young is beginning to come to maturity. However, the second generation is still too young to compare with the first generation because they have not yet achieved the occupational and educational level they will have at the peak of their careers. There are some families who have made considerable progress already in achieving upward mobility. The question behind my study became to discover the characteristics of these high potential families in comparison with families who have remained at the same low level since migration. In order to answer this question I obtained a purposive sample of "middle class" and "lower class" families from a Puerto Rican social worker at a settlement house within the Latin community. My sample is not necessarily representative of the Latin community as a whole because it is nonrandom and does not reflect the actual distribution of middle and lower class families. Probably the average Puerto Rican family in Lorain is closer to the lower class type than to the middle class type. The definition of lower and middle class was left elastic to fit relative standards within the community. The social worker who furnished the names seemed to regard the terms as roughly equivalent to "old-fashioned" and "modern".
Advisors/Committee Members: Yinger, J. Milton.
Subjects: American Studies; Hispanic Americans; Hispanic American Studies; Sociology
Keywords: Puerto Rican; class; Lorain; Ohio; family; community
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