This dissertation is a transnational history of twentieth-century anti-colonial nationalism. It focuses specifically on the connections between the dissenting British left and Iraqi nationalists during the First World War and its aftermath. Based on extensive archival research in English and Arabic of official and unofficial sources in London and Syria, I show how British and Iraqi anti-colonial activists simultaneously sought to democratize British imperial policy-making in the metropole and periphery of the Empire. From its early hours, Liberal and Labour leaders opposed to the First World War campaigned tirelessly for an internationalist settlement without annexations as the only guarantee of lasting peace for the postwar world. Colonial `national awakenings’ in Egypt, India, and Iraq, they argued, both challenged the legitimacy of British `imperial democracy’ and heralded a new era of international democracy deserving British support. Iraq was, for them, a test case for a nobler approach to maintaining international security through nurturing, rather than subjugating, national sovereignty. The British government’s unwillingness to relinquish Iraq after the war was taken as evidence of its unfitness to govern free peoples either at home or abroad. Through my research, I am able to show how the so-called `extreme nationalist’ editors of Iraq’s daily press followed the development of these arguments globally and adapted them in their attempt to reorient the development of their state around Iraqi national interests. Playing upon the sensitivity of British administrators to domestic and international public opinion, Iraqi nationalists were able to keep the development of their political institutions on a far more democratic course than either the British or Arab elite desired. Thus I show how British and Iraqi figures created a network of dissent that sought to undermine the foundations of British imperial rule in Iraq and realize the idea of national sovereignty as the capstone of international law, to the detriment of imperial legitimacy globally. This study, I believe, demonstrates how transnational approaches can provide us with a richer understanding of the role of popular nationalism in the birth of the international world in the early twentieth century.
High Occupancy Toll lanes ignoring the potential for a violation of environmental justice
In the US transportation system, environmental justice EJ) issues are regulated by a variety of laws to ensure that all have fair treatment with respect to implementation of policies. If State Departments of Transportation adhere to all regulations properly but unconsciously, then an underlying negative impact on a community may still exist as a result of a newly implemented project. Since the implementation of High Occupancy Toll HOT) lanes are fairly new, and since there have been numerous concerns from the public about their discriminatory nature, a decision support system is needed to identify potential EJ violations and issues when implementing a new or converted HOT lane. No prior model exists. The goal of this research is to assist states Department of Transportation DOT) in the early stages of the development of an HOT lane by developing a Potential Environmental Justice Violation Model that will help state agencies predict potential EJ violations before additional resources are invested into a project. By developing a model, this study identifies and classifies characteristic drivers of potential EJ violations related to communities economic, social, or health and safety status. The Potential Environmental Justice Violation Model PEJVM) allows state DOTs employees to define and evaluate the distribution of impacts in the relevant categories. The model provides a method for transforming complex qualitative and quantitative data about a project into a user-friendly format where the results can then be visualized using a spider radar diagram to determine the level of impact of each identified variable. The PEJVM was validated using two previous anonymous HOT case studies and demonstrated using the Interstate 85 Case Study in Atlanta, Georgia. This model offers a uniform method of identifying potential environmental justice violations when implementing a HOT lane. The model will also help inform state agencies of potential violations early in the planning stages of HOT lane projects so that the agency can solve any potential EJ issues before additional resources are invested.
John Witherspoon’s forgotten “Lectures on History and Chronology”: Recognizing the important role of history in the development of his thought and theology for navigating eighteenth century late Protestant scholasticism, revivalism, and enlightenment
Scholarly interest in the writings of John Witherspoon can be broken down into three major periods. The first is marked by collection and assimilation (1764-1835), the second by historical recognition (1835-1935), and the third by deeper critical study and analysis (1935 to present). Witherspoon as propagator of Scottish common sense philosophy in America is one of the most common pursuits in scholarly literature. To support and develop this interest, a greater degree of attention has been given to Witherspoon’s lectures regarding moral philosophy and criticism (eloquence), relatively less to his lectures expounding divinity, and almost none to his lectures covering history and chronology. Due to this limited focus, Witherspoon’s work as a theologian has been neglected and his work as a historian has gone virtually unnoticed. A review of class notes of Princeton graduates from the time of James Madison (1769-71) until a few years beyond Witherspoon’s death (1794) led to the discovery of four unstudied manuscripts of his lectures regarding history and chronology. Analysis of these manuscripts produced the first critical edition of his “Lectures on History and Chronology.” These forgotten lectures reveal an interest by Witherspoon to examine antiquity in the flowing context of redemptive history, simultaneously recognizing the importance of salvation history and the progress of general history maintained and guided by providence. Further examination of Witherspoon’s writings revealed the important role of history in his theological advancement. Witherspoon prioritized the historic and economic dynamic in the life of the Christian necessary to obtain real knowledge, emphasized the redemptive- historical character of salvation that achieves union with Christ, and downplayed exhaustive metaphysics in favor of the progressive and unfolding nature of God’s work in the world. The relationship of history to theology became foundational for Witherspoon not simply as an extension of late Protestant scholasticism, an expression of Christian piety, or an excessive reliance on, or aversion toward, a specific enlightenment philosophy. In his writings, theology itself was undergoing change, and specifically in Witherspoon’s case, toward integrating an important awareness of history. This awareness demonstrates the importance of history very early in the rise of Princeton theology.
An Examination of the MMPI-2-RF and MCMI-III of Child Custody Litigants
Over the past decades, Forensic Psychologists have become increasing involved with child custody evaluations to assist the court in determining the best interest of the child. An overwhelming proportion of child custody evaluations involve a variety of psychometric instruments, such as the MMPI-2 and MCMI-III, to assess parental fitness. Few studies have concentrated on the differences in responding styles and clinical scale elevations of individuals undergoing child custody evaluations from those who constitute the norm group. Most studies examining psychometric instruments in child custody context has addressed the MMPI-2 and MCMI-III individually； however, parental test-taking attitudes across multiple measures have been limited. The purpose of the present study was to compare the MCMI-III with the MMPI-2-RF in a sample of child custody litigants, as well as examine how the sample performed on the MMPI-2-RF. The present study examined the MMPI-2-RF and MCMI-III profiles of 49 child custody litigants. Results of the present study found significant correlations between the MMPI-2-RF Validity Scale L-r Uncommon Virtues) and MCMI-III Modifying Index Y Desirability) and MMPI-2-RF Scale RC9 Hypomanic Activation) and MCMI-III Scale 5 Narcissistic) in the sample of child custody litigants. Results also showed consistency between T score elevations typically found on the MMPI-2 Validity Scales L and K and comparable elevations for MMPI-2-RF Validity Scales L-r and K-r. Results further suggest that mean T scores for the RC Scales demonstrate lower elevations than have been shown the MMPI-2 Clinical Scales in samples of child custody litigants.
Partial Affinities: Fascism and the Politics of Representation in Interwar America
Partial Affinities: Fascism and the Politics of Representation in Interwar America, is grounded in a comparatist sensibility, arguing that American culture can be fruitfully explored in its relation to socio-historical contexts extending beyond the borders of the United States. This is exemplified in the assertion, stemming from my research, that we cannot fully understand American culture without a careful investigation into our past engagements with the question of fascism. Cultural changes between the wars, such as the Great Depression, technological modernity, mass consumerism, and urbanization, all generated points of reflection that served to amplify American self-scrutiny. Americans from across the political and social spectrum mirrored their uncertainties about this period of social turmoil in their contradictory descriptions of fascism. Between the wars, Americans asked about the future of democracy, the feasibility of mass culture, and the difficulties of a diverse polity as they were posed through the fears, hopes, and fantasies that circulated around the notion of fascism. This work explores a wide variety of figures across disciplinary boundaries, as literature, film, radio, and the visual arts intersect in the political/aesthetic representations of the American cultural imaginary. The introduction addresses the scholarship on fascism in order to locate a feasible understanding of fascism for students of American culture. The first three chapters look at the development of social technologies such as mass spectacle in the New York Worlds Fair), radio culture, and the changing notion of the human in the new industrial ecology of interwar America. The final three chapters focus on literary culture and everyday life in the period of fascism. In a discussion of authors ranging from John Dos Passos and Ernest Hemingway to Carson McCullers and William Faulkner, chapter four and six explore the pervasive concern with fascism in American interwar literature. Chapter five, on the Southern Agrarians and the New Critics, addresses their reaction to fascism as they developed a depoliticized method of literary investigation that still grounds much of our thinking about literature and culture today.
The Effects of Parenting Style on College Transition
College retention rates are a growing problem for many universities. Previous researchers focused on the inconsistencies between high school exit exams and college entrance exams, marginalized groups, and students with disabilities. However, a gap remains in the current literature regarding other external variables that may affect college transition. The purpose of this study was to examine two nonacademic constructs, (specifically, perceived parenting style and locus of control orientation) as predictors of college adjustment from Bandura’s social learning perspective. Thirty college freshmen, from a suburban community in the Northeastern U.S., participated in this study. Participants reported their high school grade point averages on a demographic survey, as well as completing (a) a parent authoritative questionnaire, (b) the adult Nowicki-Strickland locus of control survey as predictors of college adjustment, and (c) the student adaptation to college questionnaire. The student adaptation to college questionnaire served as the criterion variable in the hierarchical multiple regression analysis. The results of a correlation analysis revealed no significant relationship between perceived parenting style and locus of control orientation and successful college adjustment. However, in MANOVA, using parenting style as the predictor variable and the four subscales of the SACQ as the dependent variables, results revealed a significant difference between authoritative parenting style and the other styles in the areas of academic adjustment and personal/emotional adjustment. The study may help effect positive social change by providing insight to professionals to help them counsel and support incoming freshmen and their parents about nonacademic and academic success factors and improve retention rates and first-year success.
Agency experience: A case study of leadership development within a high-performing public relations agency
This dissertation examines agency experience as a means of leadership development for public relations professionals. This qualitative study draws upon field research conducted within one of Americas largest public relations agencies. Observations were made for three consecutive weeks inside the agencys headquarters. In addition, one-on-one interviews were conducted with 28 employees of the agency, ranging from assistant account executives to senior vice presidents. Findings reveal that agency professionals, particularly those in the first five years of their career, gain leadership competencies by handling a heavy, complex, and often diverse workload, and from working in a team-oriented, inclusive environment that expects self-motivation. As a whole, the agency setting provides an environment where emerging leaders feel safe speaking their minds. Formal leaders set the tone by coaching others, contributing to strategic development and project direction, and clarifying situations that inevitably develop during the course of implementation. Some of these findings are consistent with related studies in other industries regarding work experience and psychological safety； other findings seem unique to the public relations business. This case study sheds light on what agency experience means for leadership development in one agency. Insights provide baseline knowledge upon which further research can be conducted regarding other agencies and other types of organizations.
Policy processes & networks: An examination of the diffusion of smokefree policies throughout the Kansas City area
The focus of this research is on the secondhand smoke SHS) policy process that occurred over the course of two years 2006-2008) throughout the Kansas City Metropolitan Area. Despite a strong statewide resistance to SHS policy adoption and overall anti-tobacco control climate across Missouri, the Kansas City Metropolitan Area was successful in an initiative to implement SHS policies. This research aims to understand the possible factors that allowed SHS policies to penetrate the public agenda and diffuse across the Kansas City region. The research process employed in this dissertation involves a mixed method approach using qualitative interviewing, archival review, and social network analysis. The research model was designed using the theoretical paradigms of Kingdons Multiple Streams and Rogers Diffusion of Innovation Theory to examine the policy process, and factors that affect the process, specifically identifying how individuals and their relationships networks) influence the processes of agenda setting and policy consideration within communities and diffusion across the area. The results from this research will serve to aid in the following: 1) the theoretical approach in studying the policy process from agenda setting to diffusion； 2) the use of network analysis to understand policy processes； and 3) identifying the key people, roles, and relationships in health policy promotion and policy diffusion.
Influences on U.S. International Population and Reproductive Health Policy
The United States has been a global leader in the international population arena for nearly fifty years, but the domestic policy debate around international population and reproductive health issues has been increasingly characterized by politicization and partisanship. This study explores the strategies and discourse that have been designed and employed to influence the direction and scope of U.S. international population policy over time, including those used by interest groups and members of the United States Congress themselves. Through a case history, qualitative interviews and a descriptive and interpretative content analysis of congressional debates, I assessed: 1) How interest groups and their issue definition, messages and strategies, have sought to influence United States international population policy over time. Specifically, have these messages and strategies influenced the positions of federal policymakers around international population policy? 2) How the gender and political party affiliation of members of Congress have influenced their support for international population programs. Are female legislators more likely than their male counterparts to pursue a pro- international reproductive health and rights agenda? 3) The tone of discourse employed by male and female members of Congress when speaking and voting on international reproductive health and rights issues on the House floor. My goal was to understand the quest by advocates on both sides of the international family planning issue to shift policy around this issue to their benefit. I find that the Religious Right has successfully managed to alter the debate about international family planning and reproductive health, including by deliberately conflating family planning with abortion. I find evidence of a growing partisan divide around these issues in the U.S. Congress, in both voting and speaking patterns. Finally, I conclude that female members of Congress engage more frequently and more positively on international family planning than do their male counterparts.
International transmission of U.S. real, nominal, and financial shocks
This dissertation identifies real, nominal, and financial shocks in the U.S. and observes their effects on U.S. as well as G-7 macroeconomic variables. First, the real and nominal shocks in the U.S. are identified by using long-run implications of an open economy stochastic macroeconomic model, and the effects of these shocks are observed in real GDP, real effective exchange rates, and the prices for the U.S. relative to each of six other G-7 countries. While Blanchard and Quah’s long-run identification strategy is used to identify the shocks, short-run implication of the model are also exploited, as a prima facie evidence, by applying appropriate sign restrictions in the contemporaneous coefficient matrix in the VAR estimation. Consistent with the model’s predictions, a positive supply shock results in an increase in relative U.S. real GDP and a real depreciation of U.S. currency whereas nominal shocks in the U.S. lead to an increase in relative U.S. real GDP and relative U.S. prices. The application of short-run dynamics with proper sign restrictions produces exchange rate overshooting following the U.S. real shocks. Second, A VAR is estimated to provide empirical evidence on the international transmission of U.S. financial shocks on the U.S. as well as on the rest of G-7 macroeconomic variables. A shock to the U.S. financial sector causes a negative and immediate impact on U.S. real GDP and industrial production. Banks’ capital position deteriorates immediately whereas exchange rates and foreign exchange reserves situations worsen after few quarters of shocks hitting the U.S. economy. The international transmission effects demonstrate that transmits a negative effect on real GDP and stock prices in the rest of G-7 countries. The U.S. shocks also lead to a decline in the interest rates in all other countries, showing that other countries follow the U.S. policy of reducing interest rates after a trigger of the crisis in the U.S.