Library: Sociology

This dissertation examines the sociological process of conflict resolution and consensus building in South Florida Everglades Ecosystem Restoration through what I define as a Network Management Coordinative Interstitial Group (NetMIG). The process of conflict resolution can be summarized as the participation of interested and affected parties (stakeholders) in a forum of negotiation. I study the case of the Governor's Commission for a Sustainable South Florida (GCSSF) that was established to reduce social conflict. Such conflict originated from environmental disputes about the Everglades and...

This thesis proposes a reconceptualization of the "attitude" as a multidimensional latent process, which may be unstable across situations, individuals, and time. A review of the literature in light of this reconceptualization reveals aspects of the survey situation that may systematically influence measures of attitudes, behaviors, and social norms. This suggests that contradictory findings regarding attitude-behavior consistency may be partly due to specific inadequacies of conventional measures. A reflexive research strategy is proposed, which supplements survey methods with both quantitat...

This thesis reviews the transnational problem of human trafficking, a form of slavery. Women and children are trafficked within and between countries at an alarming rate and it has become a prime agenda for the Bush Administration and the Department of State to call for action and solutions to. This thesis opens with a defining of this problem and overview of the scope of the problem on a global scale. It reviews social, political and economic factors which play a role. It describes laws enacted and police responses and describes what research has been conducted to get a grasp of what is invol...

The effect of video and written modeling on self-efficacy of 70 master's degree students enrolled in their first techniques course was investigated. The ability to understand and use reflection of content, feeling, and meaning was presented to the experimental group through videotaped instruction and examples and the control group through written instruction and examples. Facts about reflecting skills, which included information and three vignettes, demonstrated the use of the skills. Through two pilot studies, the Reflecting Skills Questionnaire (RSQ) developed for this study showed conver...

The analysis reported here compares male and female rape reporting behavior. Results from an analysis of National Crime Survey data indicate that the characteristics of rape, and factors that influence a rape reporting decision, differ by sex, and that sex role socialization may largely influence the rape reporting decision for both males and females. Both men and women were more likely to report victimization when there was physical evidence, but only women were affected by such variables as the victim/offender relationship, the age of the offender, and whether or not the victimization was ...