<p> Dental caries, popularly known as tooth decay or cavities, is among the world&rsquo;s most common health problems. When caught early, it is also one of the most easily resolvable. Yet, advanced decay is a trenchant marker of social inequality and a major contributor to the maldistribution of physical pain and psychosocial suffering. Why? Access to dental care within the U.S. model of fee-for-service dental private practice follows existing lines of social stratification. Dental disparities, a term that calls attention to the relationships between maldistributed disease and maldistributed care, reflect deep ontological, moral, and political differences about responsibility for the prevention and treatment of dental disease, the quality and distribution of dental care, and even what constitutes health and well-being. What kinds of sociopolitical and moral negotiations constitute and transpire around dental disparities? How do these negotiations shape the experiences of patients and providers, and how do their experiences shape these negotiations? What can an ethnography of the dental safety net &ndash; a complex, fragile, and unpredictable network of treatment opportunities for low-income families &ndash; tell us about health governance more broadly? These are some of the questions that drive my research. </p><p> In this dissertation, I explore how the sociopolitical relations of dental disparities are enacted through the dental safety net. Drawing on fifteen months of ethnographic research in clinical and community settings in central Appalachia, a region that has come to symbolize the dental crisis in the popular imagination, I show how the dental safety net exemplifies health governance in a neoliberal milieu. A fragmented system characterized by a discontinuity that starkly contrasts the model of health care generally advocated in both private and public medical systems, I argue that the dental safety net in far southwest Virginia does not merely fail to relieve the suffering of marginalized people but also can produce it. For example, the constitution of publicly-funded and charitable dental care can serve to routinize and even incentivize excess extractions among low-income adults while exempting preventive or restorative care. In addition to its effects on underserved patients, the dental safety net is a site through the fraught and contradictory relationships of dental providers and the sociopolitical stakes of the pursuit of oral health equity can be understood. For example, the flexible teamwork arrangements prized in private practice, when posited for the dental safety net, are often interpreted by dentists as risks of pluralization and threats to professional hierarchy that must be contained through legislative means. Borrowing from the crude classificatory scheme used to screen teeth quickly, I show how the dental safety net is decayed, as it bears the wear of overuse beyond maintenance; missing, or better described as an absence than a presence; and filled, like a cavitated tooth or a canaled dental root, with manufactured solutions of variable standards and longevity.</p>

This dissertation analyzes everyday talk about livelihoods, or about the challenges of work and getting by, among displaced Kurds in the city of Diyarbakır in southeastern Turkey. Over the past two decades, Diyarbakır has grown dramatically with the influx of tens of thousands of displaced and dispossessed rural Kurds uprooted by state policies of forced migration. These policies were designed with two strategic aims in mind: eliminating rural support networks for the Kurdish armed rebellion (the PKK), and concentrating populations in less dispersed and thus theoretically more easily policed spaces. However, it is argued here that while the former ambition has perhaps succeeded, the displacement and dispossession of rural Kurds throughout the 1990s, rather than suppressing dissent, has generated new fields and new forms of political struggle. Based on two years of fieldwork in Diyarbakır, this study explores the ways in which ordinary talk about livelihoods, about how to make a living and pay the bills, is, in this context, about more than ‘the economy’ alone. The interplay of people’s efforts to rebuild life and livelihood and the semiotic interpretation of these efforts is analyzed as a rich and under-appreciated site for the everyday practical generation of the political in Kurdish Turkey. This study contributes to the anthropology of Kurdish Turkey and of the Middle East, as well as to theories of displacement and dispossession, evaluative discourse, and the pragmatics of political stance. / Anthropology

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of California, San Francisco with the University of California, Berkeley, 2008. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 69-12, Section: A, page: 4772. Adviser: Vincanne Adams.

<p> Recurrent corporate scandals have underscored the need for business leaders, the majority of whom were trained in business schools, to address tradeoffs between the interests of investors and those who serve the common good as an expression of socially responsible business leadership (SRBL). This study offers an integrated corporate social responsibility model (ICSRM), which displays the factors that scholarly research suggests promote and hinder corporate social responsibility (CSR) practice. However, because the CSR concept originated in the United States and the American business school model is replicated across the globe, most theories that support this conceptual framework were developed through that lens. This study addresses this weakness by exploring the impact of other cultural contexts on CSR thought and practice. </p><p> Specifically, the purpose of this exploratory mixed methods cross-national study is to examine the impact of culture on the motives and views of Master of Business Administration (MBA) students from three distinctive cultural clusters regarding the factors that support CSR. The findings, gleaned from 290 surveys and three focus groups, indicate that these MBA students have almost identical motives toward CSR, which are expressed in their eagerness to manage the tension between profitability and the common good. Additionally, the students demonstrate very similar views regarding the factors that drive CSR&rsquo;s implementation. In short, the study suggests that cultural dimensions do not seem to have a meaningful influence on students&rsquo; personal attitudes regarding these factors, providing a basis for scholars to better understand and further explore the possible relationship between cultural factors and SRBL.</p>

<p> This project investigates the way that larger power structures and highly specific site architectures affect voices of contestation through a situated ethnographic study of the #BlackLivesMatter movement on Tumblr. Rather than a comprehensive study, this project looks at how protesters may utilize high media and social network literacy to strategically make their voices heard by seemingly isolated and uninvolved users. Rather than ignorant to the structures around them, the specifics of these choices or e-tactics demonstrate a degree of awareness by protesters of larger cultural forces that may limit or constrain their ability to be heard. Through this lens, this thesis compares the role of Tumblr and other social sites as arenas for democratic dialogue and the insertion of previously marginalized peoples and narratives. The use of blogs by #BlackLivesMatter protesters and other counter-hegemonic movements as a realm for civic journalism and &ldquo;counter media-errorism&rdquo; is also analyzed. Ultimately, this project shows a clear need for further ethnographic study on the particulars of Internet and information and communication technology structures and how activists pursue social change within these structures. </p>

<p> The purpose of the research is to explore the cultural intelligence (CQ) of law firm librarians in the United States. This dissertation is motivated by three research questions: (a) What is the overall level of CQ of participating law firm librarians? (b) What variations among participating law firm librarians, if any, exist among the four capabilities of CQ?; and (c) What viewpoints do the librarians have about the value and importance of CQ within their law firms? This research contributes to the limited amount of empirical literature on CQ. Officially defined in early 2000s, the CQ framework is what guides this study. The research extends the application of the CQ framework by applying it to an area not formerly studied, law firm libraries.</p><p> A concurrent nested strategy model was used in order to gain a broader perspective of CQ. The researcher conducted a mixed-methods study using a web-based survey process incorporating the CQS, an instrument that measures CQ level, demographic and open-ended items. The target population consisted of librarians within the United States who currently work in private law firm libraries. Of the initial 170 individuals who responded to the request, 70 provided survey responses. The sample was based on self-selection from those that were members of two professional associations. </p><p> Based on a triangulation of the findings, four conclusions were made: (a) law firm librarians have a strong sense of value and importance of CQ to their law firms, (b) law firm librarians have varying levels of CQ within each of the four CQ factors, (c) the librarian's feel valued and appreciated within their law firm, and (d) law firm librarians cope with cultural challenges and have to adapt to unfamiliar environments. The findings support the research questions and prompt thinking of how to incorporate CQ into training, maximize the benefits of CQ with stakeholders that utilize the library services, and how law firms may use CQ to help with industry changes. This research provides a glimpse into CQ and additional important issues to law librarians within law firms in the United States including their value within a law firm.</p>

abstract: ABSTRACT A cultural overview of the so-called "early music movement" in Arizona, specifically the musicians who performed early music in the mid-to-late twentieth century, has never been undertaken. In applying ethnographic methods to Western art music, Kay Kaufman Shelemay suggests, in her 2001 article, "Toward an Ethnomusicology of the Early Music Movement," that a musical anthropology "would seem to hold great potential for the study of `Western music.'" In this paper I analyze and discuss issues related to "early music" in Arizona from roughly 1960 to 2008. In focusing primarily on the musicians themselves, I address issues in three primary areas: 1) the repertory and the so-called "early music revival;" 2) specific types of early music which have been presented in Arizona and the effects of economic factors; and 3) Arizona musicians' attitudes toward the repertory and their motivations for specializing in it. I then analyze Arizona musicians' involvement with both the early music repertory itself and with the community, identifying how musicians were exposed to early music and whether or not those first exposures began a long-lasting involvement with the repertory. In this section I also describe ways in which musicians define early music for themselves as well as analyze more critical areas such as musicians' formation of an "early music identity." I also asked informants to discuss how they see early music as being fundamentally different from other types of "classical" music and how they view their own places in that community of "difference." Finally, I compare musicians' thoughts on the "transformative" effect that some early music can have on performers and listeners and how that effect compares with similar phenomena in other types of Western art music. / Dissertation/Thesis / M.A. Music 2010

<p> The Early Helladic II&ndash;III (EH II&ndash;III) transition was a period of dramatic cultural change in the Argolid, and one of the most prominent shifts which occurred at this time was in the pottery, which changed from forms with few handles, simple decoration, and homogeneous appearances to ones with an abundance of handles, prominent decoration, and wide variation in appearances. While this shift has been explained to some extent by writers such as Rutter (1993) and Spencer (2007), the nature of this change has not yet been fully explored. This thesis explores this problem by examining the organization of pottery production in Early Helladic Lerna, a type site for the region. This is done by examining indirect evidence from Lerna in EH II and EH III, largely through the use of standardization analysis, which is then used to evaluate the organization of pottery production in each phase by using Costin&rsquo;s parameters of craft production, namely intensity, concentration, scale, and context (1991). These are then compared, ultimately concluding that production was at the level of very low-intensity household production for domestic use and limited non-economic trade in both periods. The single change observed is in the context of production, which is found to move from a midpoint between independent and attached production in EH II to embedded production in EH III, a form of attached production. This occurred as the result of a change from a seemingly uncontested political sphere in EH II to one characterized by competition between individuals or groups in EH III, which caused the political powers to draw nearer to their otherwise unchanged pottery production groups in order to compete for power. </p><p> This thesis contributes to current scholarship in several ways. It first of all provides new evidence for the organization of pottery production in the Argolid during EH II and III, which has received little scholarly attention. It also contributes to research into the nature of the political changes which occurred across the EH II&ndash;III transition, such as Weiberg and Lindblom&rsquo;s suggestion of differential adoption of foreign elements in the Argolid in EH III (2014), which I propose is due to varied approaches to competition for political authority. Finally, it provides a useful instance of shifting political power and an associated change in production context that problematizes typical narratives regarding the development of attached craft production (Costin 1991: 12).</p><p>

<p> The lessons that psychologists acquire from their work with their clients has been somewhat overlooked in psychological research. Following the initial study of Hatcher et al. (2012), and the related investigation of Smith (2012), this cross-cultural investigation explores the narratives of psychologists who practice in different cultures with regard to their learning from clients. American, Mexican American, and psychologists from M&eacute;xico participated in this study. This investigation has a tripartite objective as it seeks to expand the understanding of: (a) what psychologists learn from their work with clients across nine different areas: life lessons, relationships, ethical dilemmas, coping mechanisms, courage, personality styles and psychopathology, cultural differences, life stages and general wisdom; (b) to explore emic themes that reflect values, dimensions, professional experiences, and realities of therapists who work with bicultural Hispanic clients; and (c) to shed light on cross-cultural similarities and differences that emerge between the three groups. Participants were presented with semi-structured interviews that were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim, and analyzed using qualitative thematic analysis. Altogether, the analysis of the three groups found nearly more similarities than differences. Broadly, these results suggest that working with psychotherapy clients across different nations, cultures, or Spanish/English languages provides more universal than local wisdom. Culturally, American psychologists voiced themes representing individualism, multicultural awareness, and ideas for working with non-western clients. Both psychologists in M&eacute;xico and Mexican Americans brought forth themes representing <i>familismo, marianismo, personalismo</i>, and religion. Mexican American narratives are distinctive for containing Hispanic bicultural, intersectionality, and M&eacute;xico-America borderland themes. The responses of psychologists in M&eacute;xico and Americans were the most similar, while the narratives of Mexican American psychologists were most different. This key finding might be explained by observing that bicultural individuals likely have a greater number of expectations and beliefs to consider than unicultural peoples.</p><p>

<p>This research investigates Taiwanese dancers? practice of international folk dancing through interviews and participant-observation. International folk dancing is a specific dance genre, in which its practitioners explore various regional folk dances around the world, regardless of their ethnicities. I define this practice as a transnational embodiment, because it not only covers folk dances from different countries, but also was a government-sanctioned exercise during the Taiwanese Martial Law Period (1945-1987). Furthermore, many Taiwanese immigrants in California are still practicing this dance for the purpose of connecting with people with similar backgrounds. In this regard, international folk dancing is a historical product from Taiwan?s Martial Law Period, and it also functions as an instrument to scrutinize some Taiwanese immigrants? conceptions of national and cultural identity in California. My dissertation starts from post-World War II Taiwan, when international folk dancing was introduced from the United States and became a mass exercise of the Taiwanese people during Martial Law. For the National Government at this time, international folk dancing was a means of presenting Taiwan?s political alignment with the United States. For the Taiwanese people, however, this dance form was a way to understand the outside world under extreme limitations on information access outside Taiwan during Martial Law. My investigation then shifts to Taiwanese immigrants? current practice of international folk dancing in California. Though these immigrants do not limit their practice to Taiwan-specific dances and are embodying cultures of others, international folk dancing is a strong transnational embodiment that enables these Taiwanese immigrants to reconstruct their idea of home in the United States and to present a new definition of Taiwanese identity through practicing others? nationalisms. Furthermore, I demonstrate that Taiwanese dancers of different generations in both regions are constantly constructing the notions of ?folk? and ?international? through their diverse living and dancing experiences. I argue that international folk dancing challenges these concepts when compared to previous scholars? examinations. Additionally, this dance form demonstrates its practitioners? cultural awareness that even though the practice seems to be inclusive, its dancers are much aware of issues of authenticity, appropriation, and cross-cultural politics. Finally, this sub-genre of self-choreographed dancing indicates a Taiwanized international folk dancing practice. Self-choreographed dancing was developed by the Taiwanese international folk dancing community during the Martial Law Period, and in California, it is practiced more in the Taiwanese international folk dancing groups but is missing in Western dancers? community. As this sub-genre stretches the ideas of ?folk,? ?international,? and the sense of cultural awareness, the dissertation also explores this difference between Taiwanese and Western international folk dancing communities to emphasize the notion of Taiwanese-ness. International folk dancing serves to scrutinize relationships between Taiwan and the United States after World War II. Meanwhile, California-based Taiwanese immigrants apply their past dancing memories to their current practice of international folk dancing, suggesting new definitions to existing conceptions of Taiwanese identity. Moreover, the unstableness in the dance form?s translations in Mandarin Chinese?tu-feng-wu or shi-jie min-su wu-dao?indicates that there is no consistent understanding of ?folk,? ?international,? and even ?international folk dancing? itself. The lack of coherent translation furthermore signals varied interpretations of Taiwanese-ness by Taiwanese people from different places and of different generations.