As a society we often attribute our actions to our religious beliefs, or level of religiosity, and assume that those who are more religious often do more to help others in need. However, from a conflict theorist's perspective, these beliefs regarding religiosity could be viewed as a way to maintain control and promote solidarity among the masses, as exemplified by the comment of George H.W. Bush. This study, using the special topic module on volunteering and donating from the 1996 General Social Survey, examines this question to determine whether religion and volunteering and donating are related and whether the relationship is consistent when control variables are considered. Factorial analyses were completed using data from 2,904 respondents (N=2,904) to create a multidimensional scale measuring level of religiosity and scales measuring different aspects of volunteering and donating. Crosstab and correlation analyses were used to identify relationships between level of religiosity and the various scales measuring volunteering and donating, while regression methods were then utilized to determine the effect that level of religiosity and the identified control variables had on the relationships. The results of this study indicate that while religion is correlated with some aspects of volunteering and donating, it is a significant predictor of volunteering and donating only when those activities are religiously oriented. These results not only suggest that the common belief that highly religious people volunteer or donate more than those who are not may be false; they also suggest that comments such as the one by former President Bush are unfounded and create social barriers for a segment of the population based on moral judgments.

The primary purpose of this research was to examine the effect of internal and external attribution and a person's Body Mass Index on weight prejudice. Data for this research was obtained from an ABC News/Time Magazine Poll (2004). Logistic regression was used to analyze the data. My hypothesis that people who internally attribute the cause of being overweight or obese will be more likely to be prejudiced toward overweight or obese individuals was supported by my findings. My hypothesis that people who internally attribute the cause of obesity and have a lower Body Mass Index would be more likely to be prejudiced against overweight or obese individuals was not supported by my findings. Individuals with more education were shown to be more likely to be prejudiced against obese individuals. Women were shown to be less likely than men to be prejudiced against obese individuals. A respondent's age and urbanity were not shown to significantly predict weight prejudice.

The purpose of this study was to examine the physical and social factors associated with wheelchair selection. The study was carried out to test the viewpoint that social factors have a greater impact than physical factors on which type of wheelchair (power or manual) patients choose. A questionnaire was administered in the summer of 2004 to 200 members of a veteran's organization in the Northcentral Region of the United States. The sample consisted of 52 respondents. The results of this study suggest that a high correlation exists between the level of injury the respondents have and their wheelchair selection, but no significant difference was found for the number of years the respondent was using a wheelchair and the wheelchair selected. In social terms the respondents were found to select wheelchairs that were similar to those of their friends who were also in wheelchairs. Looking at the person(s) who helped the respondents select their wheelchair, no correlation was found for wheelchair type selected and the individuals who aided in that selection. Independence with a particular wheelchair type, whether power or manual, was found to be a significant factor for the respondents. Although the public response is more favorable toward a manual-wheelchair user than to a powerwheelchair user, it was not found to be a significant factor in individual wheelchair selection.

Using the 2 000 General Social Survey I analyzed appropriate variables to assess the effects of agents of socialization in relation to the attitudes and beliefs of African Americans toward interracial marriages. Socialization theory was examined and used as a framework to guide this current study. Regression analyses indicated that neighborhood composition is the best predictor of facilitating positive attitudes for African Americans toward interracial marriages. In line with past research, African Americans, despite ongoing discrimination and prejudiced attitudes, still prefer to reside in neighborhoods that are mixed 50-50 (Farley, Schuman, Bianchi, Colasanto, and Hatchett 1978). Contrary to expectations, education, schools, peers, class, and religion failed to be significant. Moreover, 96 percent of African Americans opposed laws banning racial intermarriage.

Using information obtained from interviews of a sample of fifteen African-American women from two counties in a border state, the overall perceptions of women receiving public assistance and the labels and stigmas (i.e., welfare checks, food stamps, and medical cards) associated with receiving public assistance were examined. Research findings indicate that there is stress associated with receiving public assistance, and the stigmas associated with public assistance influence people in the public domain to brand recipients socially. The findings from the interviews produced results indicating that the perceived differences and mistreatment felt by welfare recipients were, in part, the result of welfare stigma symbols (i.e., welfare check, food stamps, and medical card). The respondents felt that race exacerbated labeling and stigmatization.

Stratification variables - such as educational attainment, income, poverty, race, women in the labor force, and metropolitan residence - as they relate to demographic change and response theory and economic analysis theory were examined. The theoretical perspectives were supported in the findings because the variables related to economic status highly correlated with fertility levels. This study used the United States Census Bureau and Kentucky Vital Statistics data to examine changes in fertility in Kentucky counties from 1970 to 1990 and to test whether fertility rates (GFR and children ever born) for the years 1970, 1980, and 1990 varied according to the stratification variables. It was hypothesized that educational attainment, income, women in the labor force, and metropolitan residence would have negative relationships with fertility levels. Poverty and race were hypothesized to have positive relationships with fertility levels. Correlations and regressions were conducted to examine the relationships among the variables. Poverty, income, women in the labor force, and educational attainment produced high intercorrelations with one another and with fertility levels. Race and metropolitan residence did not have significant effects on fertility levels.

Becoming a songwriter implies a process through which someone must experience specific things indigenous to the social world of songwriters. This research focused on the process someone goes through to become a songwriter. The process as described by the actor is influenced by both the actor and society. Previous research is limited to structural factors while this study allows the social actor to describe, in his or her own words, how his or her self-perceptions and early environmental influences have altered, influenced, and directed the process the songwriter experiences to become a member of the social world of songwriters. All fifteen songwriters that were interviewed for this thesis described similar environmental influences. All grew up in family environments that provided some type of musical influence. They remember watching their grandparents sing or play an instrument, or they have grown up in an environment in which one or both of their parents were in some way involved in music. Eleven of the songwriters had a parent who played an instrument around the house, four of the parents were members of bands, six of the parents had written songs or poems, and every single songwriter had at least one parent who played music around the house in the form of record collections or watched favorite television programs that were musical in format. The environmental influences were extremely important in that they provided a beginning, a first step towards an understanding of the process that someone experiences to become a songwriter. Second, it becomes even more important to that understanding of the process to view the social world of songwriters through the eyes of the songwriter, and the best way to do that is to ask them to describe "how" they perceive themselves in relation to that process. Many of the songwriters described themselves as being songwriters at an early age, usually during their teenage years. At that time they perceived songwriting as a way to express themselves. Songwriting became their "avenue" not only to deal with life but also to make sense of what was going on around them. Many of the songwriters described themselves as successful not because they had sold songs but because they have grown and matured as individuals writing songs. They recognize that structural success in songwriting has to do with talent but also being in the right place, and the "right places" are part of the process that society controls. When asked if they would always envision themselves as songwriters, all of the songwriters said yes. Their self-perceptions are very clear when it comes to their role as songwriters. It is something they grew up identifying with their selves, and in every sense of their being, music is at the very heart of who they perceive themselves to be.

The purpose of this study was to determine if Hirschi's theory of social control could be applied to domestic violence. Two elements of Hirschi's theory of social control, attachment and beliefs, were used as the independent variables. The Conflict Tactics Scale was used to measure the dependent variables of directed non-contact violence and directed contact violence. Data was collected on 200 cohabiting heterosexual males. Half of these males were in court-ordered counseling programs, the other half belonged to civic or religious organizations. Crosstabulations were used to analyze the data. The Chi-square test of independence was used with an alpha level set at p <.05. Overall, strong support was indicated for both attachment and belief variables. These findings are strongly supportive of further research using Hirschi's theory of social control as applied to domestic violence in adult populations.

The objective of this thesis was to test whether undergraduate students support individualistic, structural or mixed explanations in explaining the causes of poverty and homelessness. The study was undertaken with the assumption that undergraduates would be more likely to use individualistic explanations, rather than structural, as previous poverty perceptional studies had found. A short questionnaire was administered in March and April 1994 to students in a mid-size Southern University. The final sample consisted of 299 students. Cross-tabular analysis, bivariate correlations, and multiple regression were used to analyze the data. Surprisingly, results indicated that students were more likely to support structural explanations for the causes of poverty and homelessness. Race and political identification proved to be the best sociodemographic indicators as to whether the students would support individualistic or structural explanations.

The purpose of this research was to examine the social dimensions of bulimia. Bulimia was viewed using the symbolic interactionist perspective. This perspective was used to see bulimia as a socially constructed line of action. A questionnaire was given to 426 female students at a mid-sized Southern university during the fall of 1994. Crosstabulations and a logistic regression were used to analyze the data. Results suggest that sorority membership, a belief in the importance of avoiding becoming overweight, a belief that one's relationships with men are dependent on being attractive, and low satisfaction with one's social life are related to developing bulimia as a line of action.