This dissertation consists of three papers that explore the geographic context of elections. Through case studies of migration and same-sex marriage, this research demonstrates how elections are the products of stratified social, economic, and political environments that area highly variable across space. This dissertation also details the implications for local, state, and national elections.The first two papers of this dissertation explore how compositional effects of migration fundamentally alter political landscapes. In addressing this research question, Appendix A tackles the primary obstacle of compositional migration research--collecting migration data containing individual party identification. This paper makes a significant contribution by serving as the first study to pioneer a methodological approach that predicts individual partisanship of migrants according to socioeconomic characteristics with logistic regression state models. The results underscore the importance of migrant origins and destinations in considering the political effectiveness of migration flows.Relying on the methodological framework in Appendix A, Appendix B calls attention to the oversimplified, undertheorized, and highly problematic definitions of migration responsible for the cursory understanding of migration's compositional effects. Specifically, the paper suggests what recent U.S. migration trends portend for compositional changes in Democratic and Republican partisanship at the state level through a concept of `political effectiveness'. This research makes several important contributions to the existing literature, including clearly illustrating the complexity of migration through the different ways it produces partisan gains.Approaching electoral analysis through a contextual perspective, Appendix C examines the interrelationship of political strategies used by gay rights advocates in campaigns against constitutional bans of same-sex marriage. Through a comparative analysis of Arizona Propositions 107 and 102, this research examines the interrelationship and basis of political strategies between voters' rejection of Proposition 107 (2006) and passage of Proposition 102 (2008). Additionally, considering that vote choice is largely influenced by discursive political cues, including messaging, it is imperative to examine the basis of political strategies and assess how local context influences political strategies and voting constituencies. Findings from this research also provide important considerations for both gay rights and political strategy literatures.

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The term sex education is one which has been and continues to be used in many different contexts. Few if any definitions of sex education convey a standard meaning of the term. Sex education can imply instruction and training offered to young children, adolescents, or adults. It may be given in the home, by the parents, at school, at church, or by scouting or youth oriented groups. [...]

Kvalitetsgranskningen som genomfördes 1999 av skolinspektionen visade att samordningen av sex- och samlevnadsundervisningen var bristfällig i många skolor. Undervisningen varierade både inom och mellan skolor. Syftet med den aktuella studien är att undersöka hur samordning av sex- och samlevnadsundervisningen upplevs av lärare och rektorer i grundskolan. Studien tar hjälp av skolverkets och RFSU:s synpunkter. Semistrukturerade intervjuer genomfördes på tre skolor, RFSU och skolverket, med totalt 11 personer. Bearbetning och analys av data gjordes med hjälp av induktiv tematisk analys. Resultatet visade att innebörden av skolämnet upplevdes diffust, samtal och samarbeten kring ämnet upplevdes som spontana mer än konsekventa och kontinuerliga. Ett ramverk ansågs saknas för dokumentering och uppföljning. Tidsbrist hade en inverkan på lärarnas och rektorernas prioriteringar av ämnet. RFSU och skolverket ser att rektorn bör ta en mer tydligt styrande roll för en bättre samordning.

Do men and women write differently and if so, do these stylistic differences represent differing world \iews and/or do they indicate divergent decisions that are made by the gendered individual with respect to the positioning inherent in the interactive communicative process? In this thesis I consider how men and women write and interact, as well as the topics of their conversations, by examining the postings that characterize a specific semiotic Internet site: Anthro- L@ubvm.cc.buffalo.edu. Created solely by and through language, a net community is the ideal environment in which to conduct a field study which examines the use of gendered language. In cyber 'public' space, where social interaction in largely stripped of bodily cues, net participants rely on the power of discourse to convey the 'self. I shall show that men and women make different choices as to how they will represent themselves in net public space, and that these choices are conveyed through the preference of specific styles of writing. Although conceptualizations of public space, academic praxis, and individual socialization all contribute to stylistic differentials, I illustrate through my methodology that Gender is the master status that primarily informs communicative decisions. 'Legitimate' language in our culture is constructed on the rational paradigm which characterizes public institutions; this paradigm is the fundamental principle which informs our system of [male] Langue. Posting acts on Anthro-L offer evidence that those who do not 'speak', or choose not to speak within the framework of this model, are conceived as 'other1, and are silenced through desertion, by - play and trivialization. / 29 cm.

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The purpose of this thesis was to examine the complex relationship that exists between lone motherhood and sex work. Utilizing the idea of particularlism, I argue that it is important to understand the environmental context of mothers and the variety and uniqueness of women’s experiences in order for the state to respond with directed policies for lone parents. In order to discover whether or not sex workers who are single mothers have unique needs and experiences, I conducted 15 semi structured interviews with independent escort workers from Toronto and Edmonton. The interviewees reported leading a double life characterized by shame, fear, stigmatization and discrimination. It was discovered that the double life which many women live is not only stressful, but is also a serious impediment to their ability to effectively parent. I argue that it is the current legal status of sex work which poses barriers to these women in achieving financial stability, equal rights, social comfort, access to quality services, and child support; all of which are points that are integral to effective parenting. As such, I assert that decriminalization and the recognition of sex work as work, grants these women access to the support that other working mothers may have, but also directs attention to the societal stigma and discrimination that moralizes and punishes sex workers. Ultimately, I contend that when sex workers are granted equal rights and access to supportive institutions they are capable of effective parenting. Beyond decriminalization, I make a series of recommendations based on the needs expressed throughout the interviews. The implementation of these recommendations could be hastened by decriminalization and a strong sex workers union. They include: flexible child care, altered service delivery, a non judgmental legal system and sensitivity training. / Thesis (Master, Political Studies) -- Queen's University, 2008-01-28 14:37:18.798

This thesis is an examination of the role of values in the development of more meaningful school based sexuality education programs. There is a growing consensus among researchers and educators that presenting only physiological information is inadequate and that sexuality education should include a values component. / The integration of values into sexuality education is highly problematic. Because of the potential for controversy regarding questions of sexual values, many sexuality educators have attempted to teach programs that are value free. / An ethical framework for the integration of values into sexuality education needs to be established. The act-centred and person-centred approaches to sexual ethics are compared and contrasted in terms of their suitability for sexuality education. It is proposed that a person-centred approach may provide a starting point of an ethical framework for the integration of values into sexuality education.