In this dissertation, I considered five representative images of childhood that the Fifth Generation filmmakers created throughout a thirty-five year period of post-Maoist social transition in China since the beginning of the market reform and opening policy in 1978. To look at evolving childhood through their films is to position the construction of childhood under the prism of the most prominent and controversial cinematic transformation. On the one hand, the Fifth Generation’s shift towards incorporated production, theatrical narration, sentimental style, and generally conservative ideology, signals and constitutes their transition into the paradoxes of “market-socialism;” on the other hand, it maps out the fluctuation and signification of three discourses of capitalism, socialism and Confucianism through evolving images of the child and childhood. I expect this original work that bridges Chinese film studies with childhood studies to unfold a thorough and dynamic scroll, through which I can tap into China’s social transition toward authoritarian neoliberalism, and reveal the discursive mechanism where propaganda of communist regime and re-mobilized Confucian values negotiate and compete with global capitalist orders over the construction of childhood. This dissertation claims that the significance of childhood lies in its capability to fight against a homogenized and hostile environment as both a fundamental humanist domain, and a political, critical and imaginative weapon in commercialized Chinese society.

The process of transition to college is complex and has received attention from many scholars (e. g. Baker & Siryk, 1999; Beal & Noel, 1980; Choy, Horn, Nunez, & Chen, 2000; Gaither, 1999; Paul & Brier, 2001; Tinto, 1993). Transition impacts persistence in college, hence retention rates (Tinto, 1993). As a result, postsecondary institutions have developed models of transition. In one such model, first year students experience transition in four domains; academic, social, personal-emotional, and attachment (Baker & Siryk, 1999). Past studies have explored transition from the perspective of majority versus minority student experiences (Allen, 1992; Hurtado, Carter, Spuler, 1996; Rodriquez, Guido-DiBrito, Torres, & Talbot, 2000) as well as male versus female experiences (American Association of University Women, 1992; Fassinger, 1995; Gablenick, MacGregor, Matthews, & Smith, 1990). The current body of literature fails to adequately represent transition issues for non-majority students, however. For example, additional research is needed to compare experiences among minority groups (e.g., African American v. Hispanic v. Native American). In addition, studies that explore the relationship between retention and transition for minorities and women are needed. The current study was designed to examine transition experiences of minorities and women attending predominantly White institutions. In addition, the study addressed the link between transition and retention to second semester and the second year of college. The Student Adaptation to College Questionnaire (SACQ) (Baker & Siryk, 1999) measures the transition experiences of students in college. In the current study, the author administered the SACQ to minority students in their first year at a predominantly White institution. The participants' responses were analyzed to determine if differences existed in transition experience by race or sex. Follow-up information was collected to explore whether students who had higher transition levels were more likely to return to college for the second semester and the second year. Results revealed that minority students made successful transitions during the first year as well as developed a strong attachment to the institution and higher education. However, there were no significant differences in the transition experiences of the participants by race or sex. When examining the relationship between transition and retention, findings show that students who left had high or medium transition levels. / Ph. D.

Despite gains made in the educational attainment of ethnic minorities, members of these groups remain underrepresented in higher education. Fewer numbers of minorities at the undergraduate level translates into fewer minority students eligible to pursue graduate and professional degrees. As such, institutions of higher education have begun to recognize the importance of not only ensuring that minority students earn bachelor's degrees, but that they are prepared for success in graduate school. Graduate school preparation programs (GSPPs) were created to improve access, retention, and graduation rates among groups underrepresented in higher education, and prepare them for transition to graduate study. To date, however little research has been conducted to see if GSPPs actually assist minority students in making that transition. This study explored the academic and social transition experiences of minority students to graduate school and analyzed the differences in transition by race (Black/African American, Hispanic/Latino, American Indian/Alaskan Native), type of GSPP experience (no program, research-only program, graduate/professional school seminars only, holistic program), and duration of experience (less than six weeks during summer, 7-12 weeks during summer, summer and academic year). The study employed a national sample of 621 ethnic minority graduate students at nine research extensive universities. Data were collected using the Minority Graduate Student Experiences Survey (MGSES), a 77-item instrument specifically designed for this study. Items for the survey were developed utilizing existing literature on the academic and social integration experiences of graduate students. Overall, ethnic minority graduate students reported favorable academic and social experiences but appear to be more satisfied with their academic experiences than their social experiences. No significant differences were found by race on any of the subscales on the Academic Experiences (AE) scale, however, differences did emerge between Black/African American graduate students and Hispanic/Latino graduate students on one subscale of the Social Experiences (SE) scale. Significant differences were also found by program type and program duration on the AE and SE subscales. Finally, results indicated differences between those who reported no program involvement and those who had been involved in a program of some type on the both the AE and SE scales. / Ph. D.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-08-17T18:10:05Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertacao Tassio.pdf: 1337132 bytes, checksum: b769e80ab15a1010a6d3b986321f3389 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2014-02-25 / FUNDAÇÃO DE AMPARO À PESQUISA E AO DESENVOLVIMENTO CIENTIFICO E TECNOLÓGICO DO MARANHÃO / This work seeks the emergence of the Solidarity Economy in Brazil as an alternative proposal for production of existence due to the loss of formal jobs for workers. The use of new technologies that save labor, work in the productive sectors of the economy and the opening of the internal market to competition with foreign companies resulted in loss of formal jobs and a challenge for workers seek alternatives for the production of their material existence . The solidarity economy is then presented as alternative proposal of another economy, based on values and principles antagonistic to capitalism, given the inability of traditional programs for generating employment and income to solve the unemployment crisis. This proposal gains relief from the encouragement received by intellectuals and rulers and shall be incorporated within the state, trade unions and civil society organizations. Expose the appearance of the phenomenon of solidarity economy, presented mainly by its greatest representative in Brazil. Paul Singer, as this phenomenon is in some of its main tangible in Brazil and Maranhão; investigate how Marx treated the phenomenon of recovered factories and cooperatias, and analyze, under this perspective, what elements in these experiments indicate points of overcoming and limits to the capitalist mode of production. / Este trabalho pretende situar a emergência da economia solidária no Brasil como proposta alternativa de produção da existência diante da perda de empregos formais por trabalhadores. O emprego de novas tecnologias poupadoras de mão-de-obra nos setores produtivos da economia e a abertura do mercado interno à concorrência com as empresas estrangeiras acarretou em perdas de empregos formais e um desafio para os trabalhadores buscarem alternativas para a produção da sua existência material. A economia solidária se apresenta então como proposta alternativa de uma outra economia, pautada em valores e princípios antagônicos ao capitalismo, diante da incapacidade dos programas tradicionais de geração de emprego e renda em resolver a crise do desemprego. Esta proposta ganha relevo a partir do fomento recebido por intelectuais e governantes e passa a ser incorporada dentro do Estado, sindicatos e sociedade civil organizada. Exporemos a aparência do fenômeno da economia solidária apresentada, principalmente, pelo seu maior representante no Brasil, Prof. Paul Singer; como este fenômeno se apresenta em algumas de suas principais manifestações concretas no Brasil e no Maranhão; investigaremos como Marx tratou o fenômeno das fábricas recuperadas e cooperatias; e analisaremos, sob esta perspectiva, quais elementos nestes experimentos indicam pontos de superação e de limites ao modo de produção capitalista.

Face aux enjeux socioéconomiques, démocratiques, et environnementaux, la croissance économique comme fin en soi, ou comme condition nécessaire au « développement », est de nouveau remise en cause. Depuis le début du XXIème siècle, suscitant un intérêt grandissant et de vifs échanges, la Décroissance se fraie une place dans le débat. Après avoir resitué son émergence dans la perspective historique de la controverse qui s'est développée, au cours de la deuxième moitié du XXe siècle, autour de la croissance et du modèle de développement des pays industrialisés, nous suggérons une synthèse des principales idées et des propositions concrètes actuellement portées par ses partisans. Celles-ci soulèvent un certain nombre de questions complexes, pour lesquelles nous proposons d'apporter quelques éclairages à travers un exercice de modélisation prospective. Nous réalisons pour cela une série d'entretiens, qui visent à recueillir différentes visions détaillées et quantifiées de ce que pourraient être, selon les participants, des scénarios de Décroissance, ou - plus largement- des scénarios de transitions souhaitables et soutenables, notamment en termes d'évolution des institutions, des modes de vie et de consommation, pour la France. En parallèle de ces entretiens, nous développons un modèle spécifique de simulation dynamique de l'économie française, construit autour de l'analyse entrées-sorties, sur la base de données publiques, et incorporant un haut niveau de détail. A l'aide de cet outil macroéconomique, nous proposons alors d'explorer, sur un horizon à long terme (2060) les implications possibles de différents scénarios, dont ceux élaborés à partir des entretiens. Nous nous intéressons par exemple aux conséquences possibles en termes d'emploi, de finances publiques, de consommation d'énergie, d'émissions de polluants atmosphériques, et de production de déchets. Les résultats des simulations soulignent l'importance des choix institutionnels, des facteurs culturels, comportementaux, et « non-techniques », et le potentiel de certaines propositions des mouvements de la Décroissance. Ils invitent ainsi à ouvrir le débat autour de la construction collective d'un nouveau projet de société. Dans cette perspective, notre approche offre un support simple et efficace pour la compréhension commune et la délibération collective. / The development paths followed by industrial societies in the last decades have led them in front of complex socioeconomic, democratic and environmental crises, which question the relevance of economic growth, either as a goal in itself, or as a way to achieve “development”. With the emergence of the degrowth movement at the beginning of the 21st century, the call for transitions towards sustainable “post-growth societies” is now consolidating into a multifaceted political project. For the “wealthiest” countries, where the ecological footprint per capita is greater than the global sustainable level, this project may be envisioned as a voluntary, socially sustainable, equitable and smooth downscaling of production and consumption, and thus throughput, to an environmentally sustainable level. Such a project raises numerous questions, for instance: what concrete proposals could initiate such a transition? What could such paths induce in terms of employment, public debt, energy consumption, waste, or greenhouse gas emission mitigation? What structural or institutional obstacles must be overcome and how? Etc. In this research, we offer to discuss such questions with the help of prospective modeling. Our approach involves a series of interviews, conducted, among others, with actors within the Degrowth movement. These are aimed at collecting detailed and quantified visions or narratives about what Degrowth scenarios or – more broadly speaking– scenarios of transition towards sustainable and desirable societies could look like, for France, in the mind of participants, especially in terms of institutions, lifestyles and consumption patterns. In parallel, we have designed and developed a specific dynamic simulation model of the French monetary economy, featuring a high level of detail and disaggregation, based on input-output analysis, and built using public data. Using this macroeconomic tool, we investigate, over the long term (2060), the possible outcomes of different scenarios, including those inferred from the interviews, in terms of employment, public debt, energy consumption, waste and atmospheric emissions. We discuss the potential strengths and weaknesses of the different visions they reflect. Our results highlight in particular the importance of cultural, social, behavioral and “non-technical” factors, stress the potential of various degrowth proposals, and recall the critical need for the collective elaboration of a societal project. In this perspective, our modeling approach provides a simple, yet powerful tool for common understanding and collective deliberation.