Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

'Pooped In My Yard And Ate My Grass Last Night': Wild Burros And Tales Of Belonging In Riverside County, California, Christian Hunold, Jennifer L. Britton

Animal Studies Journal

Riverside County, California is home to several hundred free-roaming burros (donkeys) who frequent the open spaces surrounding and between the cities of Riverside, Moreno Valley, Loma Linda, and Redlands, as well as the public parks, private properties, residential developments and roadsides in these towns. Tales of more-than-human belonging (and not-belonging) in Riverside County render visible how multispecies places are mediated by infrastructures of consumption and infrastructures of reciprocity. Where infrastructures of consumption generate callousness, infrastructures of reciprocity sustain responsibility. We investigate these dynamics by tracing how two geographically close but infrastructurally distinctive spaces frequented by the area’s wild burros are …

Simply Caring, Lisa Kemmerer

Animal Studies Journal

Simply Caring

Nothing More Than ‘Anti-Cull Activists’: Accusations Of Bias And The Politics Of Research That Advocates For Non-Human Animals, Jes Hooper, Thomas Aiello, Kristine Hill, Michelle Szydlowski, Sarah Oxley Heaney

Animal Studies Journal

This paper explores the ethical quandary faced by researchers whose work advocates for non-human animals and whose results conflict with prevalent anthropocentric societal narratives. To problematise the concept of research bias, we qualitatively analyse contemporary political debates surrounding the treatment of animals to ascertain if, how, when, and by whom research can be conducted with scientific integrity whilst advocating for more ethical treatment of other animals. By taking a holistic approach to the issues of bias presented within the remit of human-animal studies (research concerning human-animal relations), this paper firstly addresses the historic ways in which accusations of bias are …

[Review Essay] Animal Worlds After Uexküll: Ed Yong. An Immense World: How Animal Senses Reveal The Hidden Realms Around Us. New York: Random House, 2022. 449 Pp., David Herman

Animal Studies Journal

[Review Essay] Animal Worlds after Uexküll: Ed Yong. An Immense World: How Animal Senses Reveal the Hidden Realms Around Us. New York: Random House, 2022. 449 pp.

[Review] Krishanu Maiti, Editor. Posthumanist Perspectives On Literary And Cultural Animals. Springer, 2021. Second Language Learning And Teaching: Issues In Literature And Culture. 188 Pp. Isbn 978-3-030-76159-2 (Ebook), Wendy Woodward

Animal Studies Journal

[Review] Krishanu Maiti, editor. Posthumanist Perspectives on Literary and Cultural Animals. Springer, 2021. Second Language Learning and Teaching: Issues in Literature and Culture. 188 pp. ISBN 978-3-030-76159-2 (eBook)

The Mouse Colony, Katerina Tsiopos

Animal Studies Journal

The Mouse Colony

The Common Law Of Landscape Hostility In The Lives And Deaths Of Honeybees, Caleb Goltz

Animal Studies Journal

This article offers a legal explanation for the decline of honeybees. While most investigations into bee populations and bee survival rates have been scientific, this article provides an additional set of causes, showing how our legal definitions of property and standards of negligence contribute to a landscape hostile to the lives of bees. Examining recent litigation in the United States and Canada, it shows how legal concepts of property impact the lives of bees, especially in cases of pesticide overspray near property boundaries, and in the forms of knowledge and ignorance in play in contesting duties of care in negligence …

Prison Zooing And Conservation: Human And Animal Caging In A Time Of Ecological Catastrophe, Kelly Struthers Montford

Animal Studies Journal

Prisons are responsible for the social and biological death of the humans trapped within them, the animals whom it coerces prisoners to farm and slaughter, free-living animals displaced by prison building, as well as the ecosystems and waters destroyed by prison effluent which makes the lives of those dependent upon these systems and resources for survival, unliveable. In the context of the Sixth Extinction, the prison is at once one of the most resource intensive institutions contributing to Anthropogenic climate change and biodiversity loss, and paradoxically, in the last two decades, sometimes positioned similarly to zoos as an ecological saviour …

Economies Of Extinction: Animals, Labour, And Inheritance In The Longleaf Pine Forests Of The Us South, Nathaniel Otjen

Animal Studies Journal

Despite mounting critiques, extinction continues to be framed as a unidirectional problem where humans, through acts of negligence and intent, lead nonhuman species to their demise. In addition to universalizing the actors and processes involved, unidirectional approaches overlook the ways nonhuman beings participate in the extinction of others and the ways extinction continues to impact multispecies communities long after the violent event or the death of an endling. With its focus on how nonhuman animals experience and navigate violence, the field of critical animal studies can illustrate how nonhuman animals contribute to extinction events and how extinction unfolds across distinct …

The Violent Narrowing Of Animal Life, Tony Weis

Animal Studies Journal

Mainstream environmentalism has long prioritized wild animals and their habitats while paying little attention to the explosive growth of global livestock production and consumption. However, this blind spot to livestock is changing quickly, in large part because of the rising general awareness of the resource and emissions intensity of animal-based foods and how it relates the interwoven crises of climate change and biodiversity loss. This paper considers both the fertile ground for animal advocacy to be found in the mounting scientific evidence about environmental inefficiencies of animal-based foods, and the need to be attentive to the risks it bears. The …

No Going Back: Un-Fixing The Future Of De-Extinction, Jessie L. Beier

Animal Studies Journal

‘Extinction is a colossal problem facing the world’ proclaims the Colossal Laboratories & Biosciences website, adding, ‘And Colossal is the company that’s going to fix it’. For Colossal, this involves combining the science of genetics with ‘the business of discovery’ in order to bring back the woolly mammoth, which will not only help ‘rewild’ lost habitats, but also contribute toward ‘making humanity more human’. De-extinction is the process through which extinct species can be brought back into existence, often with the goal of reintroducing species to the wild and restoring ecosystems. While still in its nascent state, the science of …

Not Another Plant-Based Documentary: A Critical Review Of Eating Our Way To Extinction, Melissa Plisic

Animal Studies Journal

Despite mounting evidence that industrial animal agriculture is a formidable force of climate change and mass extinction, many humans remain impervious to this knowledge. Eating Our Way to Extinction is a timely documentary that takes this issue head on. This film review is guided by Alexandra Juhasz’s explanation of media praxis as ‘an enduring, mutual, and building tradition that theorizes and creates the necessary conditions for media to play an integral role in cultural and individual transformation’ (299). Eating Our Way to Extinction attends to some of the most popular strawman arguments against veganism and is widely accessible. That being …

[Review] Carol Gigliotti. The Creative Lives Of Animals. New York University Press, 2022. 289 Pp. Isbn 9781479815449, Wendy Woodward

Animal Studies Journal

[Review] Carol Gigliotti. The Creative Lives of Animals. New York University Press, 2022. 289 pp. ISBN 9781479815449

Attachment Security Moderating The Effects Of Social Media Use On Body Dissatisfaction In Adolescent Girls, Jenna Walters

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

Social relationships are important for the vast majority of people, especially adolescents. Social media has become increasingly common in people under the age of 30 and has been associated with body dissatisfaction and stress; furthermore, insecure attachment styles have also been associated with body dissatisfaction in adolescents. Using the survey results from 104 adolescent girls from a Midwestern metropolitan area, this study examined how attachment style potentially moderates the relationship between three social media variables (frequency of use, emotional investment in social media, and pressure felt from media) and body dissatisfaction in adolescent girls. Controlling for age and body mass …

Stereotype Threat Within The Lgbtq+ Community, Chloe Laporte

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

This study examined stereotype threat for students from the LGBTQ+ community. Stereotype threat can cause negative effects regarding performance and can influence the expression of social behaviors. This project observed differences between LGBTQ+ and non-LGBTQ+ identifying groups who believe the study tests performance stereotypes for LGBTQ+ students (or not), on a quantitative test, as well as for responses about social behaviors. I postulated that LGBTQ+ individuals under threat will perform more poorly on the test, and exhibit more problematic social behaviors. In the current study, some participants were assigned to a control condition and were given a diagnostic test, while …

Ethnic Fractionalization And Health In West Africa, Odia Kaba

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

Artificial borders created during Africa's colonial era have had a lasting impact on the continent, specifically in relation to culture and ethnicity. This study investigates the relationship between ethnic diversity and health outcomes and health care infrastructure in West Africa. I explore the effects of ethnic fractionalization on various health outcomes such as life expectancy and mortality rates, health-related infrastructure and staffing, and disease and immunization levels. This paper will also discuss colonialism and its institutional legacy. The discussion of the findings will include the impact of ethnic fractionalization, GNI per capita, and foreign aid on these outcomes.

Pursuit Of Happiness: How Perceived Financial Autonomy Affects Happiness In College Students, Maxwell Andrews

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

Does having control over how you spend your money influence happiness? Prior research has asked to what extent money positively influences happiness and about the factors/contexts that make it so. This study examines one of those factors on how individual reports of happiness and positive affect are influenced by the realization of financial independence (having the ability to make fully independent decisions on how one spends their finances). It was hypothesized that people who have financial independence (or imagine having that independence) will be more likely to report greater amounts of happiness and positive affect after thinking about finances, as …

Communication With Families: Understanding The Perspectives Of Early Childhood Teachers, Pearl Avari, Erin Hamel, Rachel E. Schachter, Holly Hatton-Bowers

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

Communication between teachers and families in early childhood is a key aspect of successful teacher-family engagement. The goal of this exploratory study was to investigate how teachers communicated with families in early childhood classrooms and what they communicated about. This study of 31 teachers working with children birth to age five, primarily in the Midwestern U.S. examined how they described communication with families using semi-structured interviews. Findings indicated that teachers used multiple formats to communicate with families about children’s daily routines, developmental progress, and other relevant information. Teachers preferred in-person communication although challenges occurred due to classroom dynamics and the …

Syrian Refugee Women’S Maternal Mental Health Perceptions, Coping Strategies, And Help-Seeking Practices In Lebanon, Nada A. Alnaji, Julie A. Tippens, Wael Elrayes

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

Introduction: Globally, 27 million female refugees of reproductive age are subjected to numerous socio-ecological factors that increase their risks of mental health issues, especially during the postpartum period. This study seeks to explore Syrian refugee mothers’ experiences and perceptions of postpartum depression.

Methods: We used a qualitative phenomenological approach to interview purposively sampled typical postpartum Syrian mothers living in informal camps in Lebanon to evaluate their maternal mental health perceptions, coping strategies, and help-seeking practices.

Results: Results revealed three major themes: conceptualizing maternal depression as extraordinary and ordinary, cultural perceptions of mental health help-seeking, and coping with negative emotions.

Discussions: …

Examining Foods And Beverages Served And Child Food Insecurity Across Early Care And Education (Ece) Programs In Communities With High Rates Of Obesity And Food Insecurity, Deepa Srivastava, Lucy R. Zheng, Dipti A. Dev

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

The purpose of this study was to examine implementation of serving food and beverage evidence-based practices (nutrition EBPs) across CACFP participating licensed childcare centers (CCCs, n = 51) and family childcare homes (FCCHs, n = 49) in central California. Results indicated that FCCHs reported significantly higher (p < .05) implementation of nutrition EBPs and barriers than CCCs. Both CCCs and FCCHs refer families to WIC/SNAP when they observe child food insecurity and control how much food is served to children. It is important to consider organizational structure (CCCs, FCCHs) and child food insecurity when developing policies/interventions for improving implementation of nutrition EBPs in ECEs.

A Study On Motivators And Satisfaction In Arts And Culture Public Programs: Implications For Policy Implementation, Eunyoung Yi

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

This study examines individuals’ motivations related to their participation in arts and culture activity programs and their support for the active roles of the government in cultivating such programs in South Korea. In doing so, this study suggests policy implications that help policymakers and stakeholders develop effective arts and culture programs in the public sector.

This study claims that redesigning the program contents reflecting sociopsychological motivations, expanding the policy target to the general public, and embracing the concept of lifelong arts and culture education will ensure inclusive accessibility and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all citizens.

Guided by intrinsic and …

Examining Academic Performance And Education Stability Measures For Youth In Foster Care, Alex Asbury

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

The state of Kentucky has seen an increase in its population of youth who are involved with child welfare and in the foster care system while also seeing less cases end in reunification with families. While youth process trauma related to the removal from their homes and the potential of experiencing multiple moves through their time with child welfare, it is important that educational stability remain intact to promote normalcy and improve educational outcomes for youth in foster care. Following the signing of the federal Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), the Kentucky education system has seen improvement in its processes …

How The Increase In Remote Employees Due To Covid-19 Has Impacted Local Income Tax Revenues For U.S. Cities, Brian T. Pearson

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

This research paper will discuss COVID-19’s impact on remote work and its effect on local income taxes for cities across the United States. The paper specifically will be looking into how the increase in remote workers has affected revenue and policy changes for local income taxes since the pandemic. Before the pandemic, most US citizens with jobs had to be on-site, but COVID-19 seems to have changed how businesses are operating for the foreseeable future. A lot of businesses across the country have shifted to having more of their employees working fully remote or partially remote (hybrid) schedules. This has …

Expanding The Samat In Kentucky Correction Institutions: Benefits And Funding, Blair Lozier

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

The United States has seen an increasing rate of substance use disorder among individuals. Those convicted and incarcerated are more likely to have substance use disorder. With correctional institutions becoming overcrowded, policymakers struggle to find an answer to the number of individuals incarcerated with substance use disorder. The Cabinet of Health and Family Services and the Department of Corrections created Supportive Assistance with Medication for Addiction Treatment (SAMAT) in Kentucky. SAMAT is an addictive services program focused on preventing overdose and relapse and aiding recidivism for individuals with opioid and alcohol use disorder. The SAMAT has been deemed successful through …

Bourbon Barrel Tax, William Twigg

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

This paper will look at the impacts of barrel tax reform within the state of Kentucky and the impact of the sunsetting of such an important revenue generator for the Commonwealth given the recent passing of Kentucky House Bill 5 (HB5) on March 31, 2023. It will provide a brief history of the bourbon industry, how Kentucky became known as the homeland of bourbon, some background as to what the barrel tax is and why the tax was needed in the first place, and provide some context as to how the tax was assessed, how much it amounted to, and …

“Correct Provision Can Be Made For Their Wants: The Reading Rooms Of The Santa Fe Railroad, Suzanne Stauffer

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

2023-11-03 Board Meeting Agenda, Pennsylvania Counseling Association

PCA Board of Directors Meetings

No abstract provided.

2023-11-03 Cumulative Report, Pennsylvania Counseling Association

PCA Board of Directors Meetings

No abstract provided.

A Short On Time Short Story Contest: Inspiring Creativity In The Library, Alexandra Boris

UT Libraries Faculty: Other Publications and Presentations

This chapter is a case study on the impact of a NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) a short story writing event and contest in an academic library setting. National Novel Writing Month, or NaNoWriMo, is an international event which takes place in the month of November. During NaNoWriMo Participants from around the world attempt to write 50,000 words in 30 days with the end product being a first rough draft of a novel. Many famous authors even participate in this challenge such as Erin Morgenstern, author of The Night Circus, and Sara Gruen, author of Water for Elephants.

This chapter …

Coping Styles As A Moderator Between Body Dissatisfaction And Maladaptive Eating Behaviors, Maisy Seale

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

Body dissatisfaction and eating disorders are prevalent and concerning issues for adolescent girls. Coping styles have been linked to disordered eating behaviors. Little research has tied coping with body dissatisfaction and eating disorders. When this has been done, there have not been significant results. This study was designed to see if there could be significant results for negative coping as a moderator between body dissatisfaction and disordered eating behavior. Adolescent girls aged 11 to 18 years old participated by completing online questionnaires. Hierarchical regression analyses were conducted to test the hypothesis of negative coping as a moderator between body dissatisfaction …