Operating under the rubric of sport-for-development, nongovernmental organizations have mobilized sport activities as a tool for international development. Along with these initiatives, a scholarly analysis of the phenomenon has emerged. However, this body of research has not included analysis from a critical occupational perspective. This is a conspicuous shortcoming since, in the language of occupational science, sport-for-development initiatives are occupation-based programs. This study explored sport-for-development using a critical occupational approach to research I constructed, wherein the central site of knowledge production was occupations used in sport-for-development programs. Through five case studies with sport-for-development organizations in Lusaka, Zambia, I describe how staff and youth participants spoke about and understood the use of sport occupations in sport-for-development programs and the sport-for-development ideologies and practices in Zambia and how these shaped the participation of youth. Data generation included observing program activities, interviewing participants, and analyzing organization documents. The findings drew attention to the form, function, and meaning of the sport occupations used in sport-for-development, and illuminate that football, which is a heavily gendered and segregated sport, was constructed as the preferential activity for programs. This prioritization of football, in conjunction with a hierarchical, authoritative approach to decision making, and focus on the development of youths’ sports skills, led to athletic, non-disabled boys living in urban areas being the primary beneficiaries of the programs. I argue that the ideological beliefs that re/produced these understandings contributed to occupational injustices by (1) contributing to the practice of sport being used uncritically as an activity for all youth, (2) perpetuating what were considered acceptable activities for boys and girls in the local context to do, and (3) defining boys in opposition to girls, rural youth, poor youth, and youth with disabilities from both genders. Finally, I propose directions for institutionally-orientated actions to address occupational injustices and consideration of the wider uses and implications of a critical occupational approach within health and social research.

Operating under the rubric of sport-for-development, nongovernmental organizations have mobilized sport activities as a tool for international development. Along with these initiatives, a scholarly analysis of the phenomenon has emerged. However, this body of research has not included analysis from a critical occupational perspective. This is a conspicuous shortcoming since, in the language of occupational science, sport-for-development initiatives are occupation-based programs. This study explored sport-for-development using a critical occupational approach to research I constructed, wherein the central site of knowledge production was occupations used in sport-for-development programs. Through five case studies with sport-for-development organizations in Lusaka, Zambia, I describe how staff and youth participants spoke about and understood the use of sport occupations in sport-for-development programs and the sport-for-development ideologies and practices in Zambia and how these shaped the participation of youth. Data generation included observing program activities, interviewing participants, and analyzing organization documents. The findings drew attention to the form, function, and meaning of the sport occupations used in sport-for-development, and illuminate that football, which is a heavily gendered and segregated sport, was constructed as the preferential activity for programs. This prioritization of football, in conjunction with a hierarchical, authoritative approach to decision making, and focus on the development of youths’ sports skills, led to athletic, non-disabled boys living in urban areas being the primary beneficiaries of the programs. I argue that the ideological beliefs that re/produced these understandings contributed to occupational injustices by (1) contributing to the practice of sport being used uncritically as an activity for all youth, (2) perpetuating what were considered acceptable activities for boys and girls in the local context to do, and (3) defining boys in opposition to girls, rural youth, poor youth, and youth with disabilities from both genders. Finally, I propose directions for institutionally-orientated actions to address occupational injustices and consideration of the wider uses and implications of a critical occupational approach within health and social research.

Master of Arts / Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Social Work / Laszlo Kulcsar / Undocumented immigrants are an exploited and disenfranchised faction of society that garner counterfactual attitudes by the public. This study aims to dispel myths held among the public by contesting fiction with facts. First, I argue that media sources and misinformation have culpability in inciting the publics' misguided perceptions about undocumented immigrants. For example, the images propelled to viewers reproduce moral panics, stratification, subjugation, social injustice and the fallacious notion that Mexican‟s are representative of all Hispanic unauthorized immigrants. This thesis then examines the public opinion responses of participants from the CBS and New York Times monthly survey poll of May 2007, compared to academic and government sources on health care, terrorism, and economics. The analysis concludes that participants‟ responses reveal misconceptions on the usage of health care by undocumented immigrants; the threat of terrorism as a means to deny Hispanics citizenship; the economic impact of cost to benefit analysis of the undocumented; and that Mexicans are not representative of all undocumented immigrant groups.

Master of Landscape Architecture / Department of Landscape Architecture/Regional and Community Planning / Blake Belanger / As the world continues to grow and cities continue to change, landscapes architects are constantly challenged with identifying design solutions that address the endless change of urban environments. In 1973, C.S. Holling developed the term “resilience theory,” which identified how social and ecological systems communicate across different landscape scales (Holling, C.S. 1973). In 2013, Kansas State Graduate Kevin Cunningham tested the validity of Holling’s resilience theory as a theoretical basis for urban design. This report attempts to further test the validity of resilience theory as a theoretical basis for social systems within urban design. Methodology utilized includes literature review with specific attention to current social resilience frameworks and guidelines, case study analyses, and an application of the author’s social resilience goals and strategies through a projective design of Washington Square Park, Kansas City, Missouri. Social resilience goals and strategies were developed to respond to social objectives identified within Washington Square Park RFQ/P, GDAP, Main Street Streetcar, Making Grand “Grand” and KCDC’s plan for the park. Objectives were derived based upon their relationship to resilience theory. The created social resilient goals, objectives and strategies will be specific for the revitalization of Washington Square Park. However, the process of identified social resilience goals, objectives and strategies can be utilized as a tool for designs of other urban, civic spaces. The process of identifying social resilience goals, objectives and strategies utilized within this report has the potential to continually promote landscape architects as the primary leaders in urban design practice.

Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Family Studies and Human Services / Melinda Stafford Markham / Walter R. Schumm / This study produces a grounded theory of how parents make decisions regarding the custody arrangements of their children in the divorce process. Eleven parent/adolescent pairs in shared physical and legal custody arrangements were interviewed. Ten factors were found to influence the custody arrangement decisions of divorcing parents: former partner, children, work, new partner, use of a lawyer, role of family, parenting role, place of residence, finances, and divorce. Parents also weighed perceived costs and rewards when making custody arrangement decisions. In addition, an understanding of the involvement of an adolescent in the custody arrangement decisions was gained through this research. The majority of adolescents in this study had some type of input in the custody arrangements at one point or another. Parents and adolescents both expressed concerns with involving adolescents in custody arrangement decisions as well as an appropriate age for adolescent involvement, and how to determine when an adolescent is ready to be involved in the custody arrangement decisions. Custody arrangement decisions are complex decisions that parents and adolescents face; a number of factors are considered and the custody arrangement decision making process varies for all families.

Master of Regional and Community Planning / Landscape Architecture/Regional and Community Planning / Katherine Nesse / Rural communities continue to consolidate and close schools across the country at an alarming rate. Debates surrounding school district consolidation have been known to cause deep tension throughout many communities. It is widely held that, schools in rural areas not only provide education, but create jobs, provide entertainment, and bolster social relationships within a region. Social relationships are necessary for the health and cohesiveness of any community. This in-depth case study of the rural community of Mount Hope identifies the change in cohesion over time. This research shows that there is a relationship between the closing and opening of the school and levels of community cohesion amongst some, but not all, of the groups. The key findings are that a range of social activities not directly related to the school have been affected by the closure. Personal interviews were conducted with local officials, school employees, group leaders, parents, and community members of Mount Hope. This study is relevant to planners, school administrators, and educators alike, as local communities across the state debate the value of district consolidation. The findings are beneficial to communities and school districts to help determine what is best for a community when considering school consolidation or closure.

Depuis les années cinquante la sociologie a été concernée par le phénomène des mouvements sociaux. Diverses théories ont essayé de les expliquer. Du collective behaviour à la mobilisation des ressources, par l`entremise de processus politiques, et de la perspective de framing jusqu'à la théorie des nouveaux mouvements sociaux, la sociologie a trouvé certains moyens pour expliquer ces phénomènes. Bien que toutes ces perspectives couvrent et saisissent des facettes importantes des angles de l'action collective, ils le font de manière disparate, en regardant un côté et en omettant l'autre. Les différences entre les points de vue proviennent, d'une part, d'un changement dans les contextes sociaux, historiques et scientifiques, et d'autre part du fait que les différentes approches ne posent pas les mêmes questions, même si certaines questions se chevauchent. Poser des questions différentes amène à considérer des aspects différents. En conséquence, ce n'est pas seulement une question de donner une réponse différente à la même question, mais aussi une question de regarder le même objet d'étude, à partir d'un angle différent. Cette situation réside à la base de la première partie de ma thèse principale: le champ de la théorie des mouvements sociaux n'est pas suffisant, ni suffisamment intégré pour expliquer l'action collective et nous avons besoin d'une théorie plus complète afin d'obtenir une meilleure compréhension des mouvements et la façon dont ils remplissent leur rôle de précurseurs de changement dans la société. Par conséquent, je considère que nous avons besoin d'une théorie qui est en mesure d'examiner tous les aspects des mouvements en même temps et, en outre, est capable de regarder au-delà de la forme de l'objet d’étude afin de se concentrer sur l'objet lui-même. Cela m'amène à la deuxième partie de l'argument, qui est l'affirmation selon laquelle la théorie générale des systèmes telle que formulée par Niklas Luhmann peut contribuer à une meilleure compréhension de l'action collective. Il s'agit d'une théorie intégrale qui peut compléter le domaine de la théorie de l`action collective en nous fournissant les outils nécessaires pour rechercher dynamiquement les mouvements sociaux et de les comprendre dans le contexte social en perpétuel changement. Une analyse du mouvement environnementaliste sera utilisé pour montrer comment les outils fournis par cette théorie nous permettent de mieux comprendre non seulement les mouvements sociaux, mais également le contexte dans lequel ils fonctionnent, comment ils remplissent leur rôle, comment ils évoluent et comment ils changent aussi la société. / Since the fifties sociology has been concerned with the phenomenon of social movements. Various theories tried to explain them. From collective behaviour to resource mobilization, through political processes and framing perspective all the way to the theory of new social movements, sociology found ways to explain these phenomena. Although all these perspectives cover and capture important facets and angles of collective action, they do so in disparate ways, looking at one side and neglecting the other. The differences between the perspectives come, on the one hand, from a change in the social, historical and scientific contexts, and on the other hand from the fact that the various approaches don’t ask the same questions, even though some questions overlap. Asking different questions leads to looking at different things. Thus, it is not only a matter of giving a different answer to the same question, but also a matter of looking at the same object of study from a different angle. This situation resides at the root of the first part of my main thesis: the field of social movement theory is not sufficient nor integrated enough to explain collective action and we need a more comprehensive theory in order to obtain a better understanding of movements and the way in which they fulfill their role of promoters of change in society. Hence, I consider that we need a theory that is able to look at all facets of the movements at the same time and furthermore, is able to look beyond the form of the object in order to focus on the object itself. This brings me to the second part of the argument, which is the claim that the general systems theory as formulated by Niklas Luhmann can contribute to a better understanding of collective action. It is a comprehensive theory that can supplement the field of social movement theory by providing us with the necessary tools to look dynamically at social movements and understand them within the shifting social context. An analysis of environmentalism will be used to show how the tools provided by this communication theory help us to better understand not only social movements but also the context in which they function, how they fulfill their role, how they are changed and in turn change society as well.

Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Family Studies and Human Services / Sonya L. Britt / Maurice M. MacDonald / This dissertation, consisting of three studies, explores the influence of self-esteem upon retirement planning behaviors. Data for all three essays was obtained from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979 cohort (NLSY79). A Theory of Self-Esteem (Cast & Burke, 2002) served as a theoretical framework for each study. The first essay examined the association between information search behaviors and retirement planning actions upon two dimensions of self-esteem, consisting of efficacy and worth. Both information search behaviors and retirement planning actions were found to be associated with both dimensions. Attained levels of education and the masculine gender were also found to be significantly associated with each self-esteem dimension. Essay two explored creditworthiness as part of the identity self-verification (Stryker, 1980) and self-esteem buffer mechanism, and its association with pre-retirement planning behaviors. Higher levels of self-esteem, attained level of education, net worth, and net income were all found to be associated with individuals who were likely to engage in one or more preretirement planning behavior. Creditworthy practices, however, were not found to be associated with pre-retirement planning behaviors in this study. Essay three postulated that respondents who possessed a composite psychosocial profile consisting of Rosenberg’s self-esteem scale (Rosenberg, 1965), Pearlin’s mastery scale (Pearlin & Schooler, 1978), and Rotter’s locus of control scale (Rotter, 1966) would be associated with engaging in one or more retirement planning behavior. Results showed that a composite psychosocial profile is associated with individuals likely to engage in one or more retirement planning behaviors. Attained levels of education, net worth, net income, and age were found to be associated with individuals likely to engage in one or more retirement planning behaviors. Results of these three studies demonstrate that an association exists between self-esteem and retirement planning behaviors. This study offers the first exploration of A Theory of Self-Esteem (Cast & Burke, 2002) in a consumer finance context since the theory’s establishment ten years ago. These findings are important to academicians, financial planners, financial counselors, financial therapists, and policymakers in developing future research, strategies for financial success, and in the formulation of public policy to promote personal financial well-being.

Master of Arts / Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Social Work / Nadia Shapkina / In the current climate of proliferating nonprofit organizations and demanding social service needs, volunteers play a crucial role. This study looks at career volunteers, who, unlike other types of volunteers, identify with their work as if it were a paying occupation. It examines personal narratives and experiences through interviews in two Kansas communities and in-depth participant observation in one Kansas homeless shelter to find unique identity formation in the way that career volunteers make sense of who they are and what they do. These volunteers show a tendency to reject modern frames around the concepts of work, home, and volunteerism. Instead, they integrate life categories, lending an often counter-cultural conception of identity and meaning to their lives’ work.

Master of Science / Department of Family Studies and Human Services / Jared R. Anderson / The present study tests the reciprocal relationships between marital attitudes, time spent together, and marital satisfaction in a sample of newlyweds (N = 1220). Using cognitive dissonance theory and the investment model, this study tests two sets of theoretically derived unidirectional pathways to provide empirical evidence for longitudinal associations between these three constructs. Two separate models were tested, one for husbands, and one for wives. For both husbands and wives, results of the panel models indicated significant autoregressive paths among all three variables from T1 to T2, T2 to T3, and T1 to T3. Among husbands, significant cross-lagged paths emerged between T1 marital satisfaction and T2 marital attitudes, T1 marital satisfaction and T2 time spent together, T1 time spent together and T2 marital satisfaction, T2 time spent together and T3 marital satisfaction, and T2 time spent together and T3 marital attitudes. For wives, cross-lagged paths between T1 marital satisfaction and T2 time spent together, T1 time spent together and T2 marital satisfaction, and T2 time spent together and T3 marital satisfaction were found to be significant. Bootstrap test for indirect effects resulted in no significant mediating effects in the models. The results of these models are discussed and implications for future research and intervention are given.