Researchers have found that minorities suffering from traumatic stress report increased levels of stress in the absence of supportive and committed work environments; however, a paucity of empirical research exists for First Nations Peoples (FNP). The purpose of this quantitative correlation study was to examine the nature of the relationship between FNP's associated symptoms of historical loss, assessed by the Historical Loss and Associated Symptoms Scale, and organizational commitment, as measured by the Three Component Employee Commitment Survey. A total of 118 residential school survivors completed surveys. Correlation analysis was used to determine the significance of historical loss in relation to organizational commitment among survivors. Results showed an inverse relationship between affective commitment and associated symptoms of historical loss and between continuance commitment and associated symptoms. No statistically significant correlation was found between normative commitment and historical loss or associated symptoms. Findings can help inform targeted engagement, recruitment, and retention initiatives designed to accommodate FNP perspectives and experiences into organizational culture and systems. Implications for positive social change include better understanding of factors impacting career progression among FNP, such as organizational commitment. Results may also inform culturally safe interventions that help FNP to be successful.

There is a disparity in educational attainment among American Indian youth in the U.S. when compared to the general population. American Indians' rates of high school retention, college enrollment, and college retention are lower than those for any other ethnic group in the country (Cole & Denzine, 2002; National Center for Education Statistics, 2005). This study examined the roles of ethnic identity and perceived discrimination in relation to academic achievement and educational attainment in a community sample of American Indian adolescents living in the southeastern United States. Ethnic identity exploration (EI) was assessed using the Ethnic Identity Achievement subscale of the Multigroup Ethnic Identity Measure (MEIM; Phinney, 1992). Race-based rejection sensitivity (RRS) was assessed using a modified version of the Status-Based Rejection Sensitivity Questionnaire (RS-Race; Mendoza-Denton, Downey, Purdie, Davis, & Pietrzak, 2002). It was hypothesized that low levels of RRS and high levels of EI would be associated with high GPAs during high school. At high levels, EI was hypothesized to attenuate the negative association between RRS and college enrollment. Data was collected over two time points. GPA was assessed while participants were in high school and college enrollment was ascertained three years later. Results indicate that high levels of EI were associated with high GPAs during high school. The probability of attending college was high among individuals who had low levels of RRS and high levels of EI. The probability of attending college was also high among those with high RRS and low EI. Two profiles were associated with a high probability of college enrollment in this sample. The first profile (Low RRS, High EI) was expected to lead to high educational attainment. The second profile (High RRS, Low EI) was an unexpected result. Findings are discussed in terms of two distinct paths to high educational attainment that were identified in this sample. The dual role of ethnic identity is discussed in the context of perceived discrimination. Future work is needed to further clarify the role of ethnic identity in educational attainment in this sample / acase@tulane.edu

This dissertation addresses how retaliation norms develop within adolescent subcultures in schools. Social accounts of violence that are shared amongst peers are examined as natural-setting processes, and are hypothesized to increase group consensus about the appropriateness of face-saving violence. A survey utilizing video vignettes included 139 rural Alaska Eskimo and Black New Orleans high school students. Participation in violence-related social accounts predicted perceived peer violence norms, dependent upon peer relationship variables; and anticipated account-sharing predicted self-reported willingness to use violence, especially for students with pro-violence friends. Post-survey interviews allowed students themselves to assess the study validity and conceptual models, which they generally identified with as common school experiences. Interviews also produced student-generated hypotheses not initially tested by the researcher. These emphasized how perceived violence norms are affected by past violence exposure, peer ridicule, and household violence and alcoholism; the role the student tends to take as either account-giver or account-receiver, and general sociability as a predictor of violence-related account sharing. Second-round quantitative tests analyzed these student propositions, some confirming relevant associations. A broader theoretical perspective discusses why violent subcultures tend to arise in the context of structural-level variables associated with crime, such as poverty, community disorder, and lack of police presence; and lack of escape resources. These factors influence violent subcultures by shaping the objective consequences of violent offending, which only become meaningful as normative violence prescriptions through social account sharing about incident outcomes / acase@tulane.edu

<p>The essay studies the character Marie's search for empowerment in Louise Erdrich's <em>Love Medicine</em>. As a mixed-blood she has difficulty to find respect within the white community because she is considered Native American Indian. However, the Native American Indian community sees her as ´dirty and lowlife´due to her whiteness. She tries different strattegies to form an identity and to find love, power and respect. In the convent she wants to be the best Catholic and find respect within the white community whilst later in life she returns to her Native American Indian tribe where she searches for respect throught marriage and motherhood. The theory used is sociology of religion.</p>

In this paper, the author looks at the impact of the policy of federal recognition on a Los Angeles basin Native community: the Gabrielino Tongva. The first section, the literature review focuses on the difficulties of defining “indigenousness” in the academic and political realms, as well as looking at Native scholars’ conceptualization of this unique and multifaceted identity. After a consideration of the theoretical framework of the study, the crossroads between anthropology and public policy analysis, the author presents the tools she used in her study, namely: participant observation, key-informant interviews, and the analysis of published documents and personal files. The section ends with a review of ethical concerns pertaining to doing research with indigenous people. The historical section comprises an analysis of archives and published works about the Tongva and the federal recognition process. Starting by a brief report of major policies that have impacted Native American rights in the U.S. and the evolution of government relations with indigenous communities, the author looks at the legacy of the Tongva people in L.A. today, paying special attention to past efforts at obtaining federal recognition and political divides within the tribe. The analysis is structured according to the different levels of recognition that the author perceived through her research. “Capital R”, or federal recognition is explored through its impact on the individual and the group, and followed by an account of current efforts towards community recognition – “lower-case r.” The paper ends on recommendations for future policies and a personal reflection about the research and its results.

This dissertation examines how the new “multicultural phase” anthologies of American literature treat American history. Anthologies of American literature are more historical, more diverse, and more multidisciplinary than ever before, but they have over-extended themselves in both their historical and representational reach. They are not, despite their diversity and historicism, effective vehicles for promoting critical discussions of American history in the classroom. Chapter One outlines a brief history of anthologies of American literature, while also introducing the terminology and methodology used in this study. Chapter Two explores the role of the headnote as a vehicle for American history in anthologies by focusing on headnotes to Abraham Lincoln in multiple anthologies. Chapter Three examines how anthologies frame Native American origin stories for their readers. Chapter Four focuses on the issues raised by anthologizing texts originally composed in Spanish, and Chapter Five argues for a transnational broadening of the “slavery theme” in anthologies to include Barbary captivity narratives and texts that reference Indian slavery.

Title from first page of PDF document. Includes bibliographical references (p. 86-90-Xx).

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Lehigh University, 2008. / Adviser: Grace I. L. Caskie.

The purpose of this project was to record the private archaeological collection of the Keene family, which was previously unknown to the professional community. While at the two sites, Keene Redfield site (8Ja1847) and Keene Dog Pond site (8Ja1848), in Jackson County, northwest Florida, USF archaeologists also conducted field investigations to look for prehistoric cultural materials in undisturbed contexts. This research was conducted at the request of the Keene family. The field crew systematically documented, cataloged and photographed each artifact in the Keene collection while at the sites. Surface survey and testing were also carried out in order to determine site boundaries, occupation and function. Over 1,000 artifacts from every time period from the transitional Paleo-Indian/Early Archaic through the Mississippian were documented from the collection. Field investigations resulted in the location and investigation of undisturbed cultural strata below the plow zone, enabling the researchers to obtain radiocarbon dates from these deposits. Evidence of hunting and gathering activities and of tool processing including repair, sharpening and possible re-use was found at both sites. This work allowed for the publication of two previously unknown, rich archaeological sites and for a better understanding of the prehistoric activities and functions of this region of the southeast. While participating in this public archaeology project, several other similar opportunities presented themselves, providing USF archaeologists with the ability to maintain a presence in the area to continue public archaeology efforts to engage the community and encourage appropriate participation and good stewardship of these types of private sites.

Food deserts are low-income areas lacking access to nutritious and affordable food. Such limited access has various implications for public health, particularly diet-related diseases such as diabetes. Among American Indian communities, diabetes is particularly rampant at nearly twice the rate of white populations in the U.S. On the Navajo Nation, diabetes incidence has been estimated to be as high as 1 in 3. According to the USDA, the majority of the Navajo Nation is considered a food desert. This paper utilizes food sovereignty as a lens for decolonization to identify the underlying causes of hunger and nutrition-related diseases within Diné communities. This paper will explore the histories of the change in the Diné diet and how colonial processes and the loss of traditional food systems affects current food and health patterns on the Navajo Nation. By expanding the scope of public health issues such as obesity and diabetes in Native American communities from food access and nutrition to power relations embedded in colonial structures that have resulted in the loss of indigenous sovereignty and power, I hope to pinpoint entry points for future indigenous researchers to develop and enact policies that will expand access to healthy and culturally significant foods on the Navajo Nation and contribute to efforts to restore food sovereignty of the Navajo Nation by rebuilding local food economies.