This ethnography is based on 48 months of detailed participation, interviews, and observation with active gymgoers at three middle-class gyms in Chicago. It is a study of a particular social institution that, despite its explosion onto the mainstream cultural scene, has surprisingly eluded social-scientific inquiry. Demographically, the group that has been most caught up in the fitness movement are young, single, college-educated Americans living in large city centers. As a study of a particular social world, this research will examine the localized social world of the gym and its young male members, focusing on how their interactions get patterned into negotiated order. I focus on problems of motives, the role of language in an embodied world, the role of belief systems and forms of knowledge, and the function of rules and rituals in the making and maintenance of social order. I find that gymgoers, driven by a shared goal to become physically stronger and leaner, co-construct new selves and new forms of reality. Just as gymgoers attempt to transform their bodies so too do they craft new new ways of feeling, new presentations of self, new ideas, and new interaction rituals that are sui generis and irreducible to social background variables. / Sociology

In the fall of 1966, the Voice of Women, a Canadian-based, women's peace organization began participating in a humanitarian aid project to provide clothing for the victims of the Vietnam War. The intention of the project, began by another Canadian organization, the Canadian Aid for Vietnam Civilians, was to provide hand-made clothing and blankets to those most defenseless to the atrocities of the war: namely, Vietnamese children. What resulted was an assistance program to which the Voice of Women would dedicate more than ten years of its efforts and which would create a resurgence in an organization that had recently been shaken by several damaging events. What appeared to be simply women providing assistance to children in need was in fact an example of the result of maternal feminism at work. Not only did members of the Voice of Women utilize their roles and instincts as women and mothers to gain support from others for the knitting project; they also use these same roles and instincts as a means to make a strong political statement regarding the Vietnam War. This study will examine the mean by which the Voice of Women gained a great deal of support from both Canadian and American women. Likewise, it will analyze the role that maternal feminism played in the organization of a project that would prove to be a highly political and controversial endeavor.

Extreme poverty remains a persistent problem across the globe. Academics, practitioners, politicians and activists have sought ways to address this persistent problem. Traditional approaches to dealing with endemic poverty have centered around international aid and trade. The band aid approach of using aid alone to alleviate poverty has, at best, been ineffectual. International trade has also often been used as a means to increase the economic standing of an impoverished country. Trade has the potential to increase a country's economic position (e.g., gross domestic product) however it does not necessarily reduce poverty. It has become apparent that more effect means of reducing poverty are needed. In recent years, several bottom-up alternative approaches have emerged. Fair Trade is one such approach that seeks to balance the inequalities of traditional trade and provide a market where those on the bottom can participate more fully and fairly in economic enterprise. This study investigates the state of the alternative form of trade known as Fair Trade. Specifically, this study examines the development, functioning, and sustainability of the North American Fair Trade market. Realistically speaking, Fair Trade, which accounts for only a very small percentage of global trade, currently does not appear to be a replacement for traditional free trade. However, this study investigates if the Fair Trade market has the potential to become an important component of general efforts (e.g., by the United Nations and World Bank) to raise the living standards of the world's poor and function as an alternative market to the traditional free trade market. Two key areas of the market were examined in this study to ascertain the sustainability of the Fair Trade market. Specifically, the financial sustainability of the Fair Trade market was assessed. Quantitative data on sales and growth of Fair Trade goods over the past several decades was compiled to illustrate the relative significance and the future prospects of this market's financial status. These data were supplemented with an analysis of the financial records of available years of operation from a sample of Fair Trade businesses. Also, the organizational structure of the Fair Trade market was examined to ascertain the operational sustainability of the market. Organizational data were compiled to identify the business choices made by Fair Trade businesses. Results suggest that financially the North American Fair Trade market is growing at or above the pace of comparable non-Fair Trade businesses. Further, this study highlights a distinct and largely self sustaining organizational structure of the North American Fair Trade market. / Sociology

<p> Although there are many organizational culture studies that have been conducted, very few have been conducted in the context of a human service organization (Jaskyte, 2010). Organizational culture has been described as a neglected area of exploration as it relates to the enhancement of quality of life for persons with disabilities (Gillet &amp; Stenfert-Kroese, 2003). </p><p> This research took the form of a qualitative case study of the culture of one human service organization. This study may make three specific contributions to the organizational culture literature. These include: (a) providing an empirical study of a human service organization's culture, (b) attempting to describe and understand specific mechanisms that may contribute to culture formation and maintenance, and (c) identifying aspects of a human service organizations culture that may help or hinder their effectiveness. Fourteen participants were be engaged in the research. The participants were associated with three different position levels. </p><p> The participating organization presented a strong and unified culture. The espoused theories and the theories-in-use of the organization's founders were highly congruent. The founders of the organization conveyed a sense of mission that was readily adopted by initial hires. The mission of the organization was formulated around principles of highly individualized support, community inclusion, quality of life, and a consistent regard for the dignity and respect of the individuals supported by the organization. Potential contributions of this research include: (a) being one of the few qualitative studies related to the culture of an organization that provides services for persons with intellectual/developmental disabilities (IDD); (b) a research design that provides a relatively comprehensive approach to the study of a single organizational culture; (c) a rich account of how human service workers, from multiple position levels, experience their culture; (d) a preliminary analysis of how leadership may influence culture in the context of a human service environment, and (e) an exploratory investigation as it relates to discovering additional approaches that may assist in evaluating the relationship between culture and organizational effectiveness. The following is a listing of potential future directions for research related to this type of study: (a) a replication of this study, or an approximation thereof, with one or more human service organizations; (b) additional research related to the congruence of, or lack thereof, between espoused theories and theories-in-use held by staff members of human service organizations; (c) the development of mixed methods approaches (quantitative/qualitative) to assessing and measuring congruence between espoused theories and theories-in-use; (d) the relationship between specific types of organizational cultures and effectiveness as it relates to supporting persons intellectual/developmental disabilities and perhaps more specifically, challenging behavior; and (e) research related to various leadership models and behavior as it relates to culture formation in human service organizations.</p>

<p> A qualitative research study utilizing the Delphi research technique was used to explore the integration of leadership, ethics, and organizational culture into the curriculum of a Military Aviation Safety Leader. Despite the existence of safety programs and education, the military services still experience deadly aviation mishaps. There is a dearth of literature that has focused on curricula for Military Aviation Safety Leaders, specifically on whether or not leadership, ethics, and organizational culture should be integrated into safety topics. As a result, there is wide variance in curricula for Military Aviation Safety Leaders across the military services. The problem addressed in the present study is the incomplete understanding of how integration of leadership, ethics, and organizational culture may enhance the unique educational needs of the Military Aviation Safety Leader and the issues that stem from the dearth of research and understanding. The issues that directly stem from the paucity of research and understanding include poor standardization in curricula; curricula that are inadequate to the needs of the Military Aviation Safety Leader; and ultimately, poor safety practice and increased aviation mishaps as a result of non-optimal education for the Military Aviation Safety Leader. A qualitative research method utilizing the Delphi research technique was chosen as the best approach to investigating the research problem. The Delphi technique of probing experts over several rounds of focused questions achieved development of information in the form of expert consensus which in turn yielded relevant information for the literature and school curricula. In turn, future Military Aviation Safety Leaders will benefit from the information generated by the study, elevating their awareness of how ethics, leadership, and organizational culture may enhance safety in the organization. Thirteen Military Aviation Leaders were chosen to participate in the Delphi study. The research revealed that there are positive relationships between ethics, leadership, organizational culture, and safety. The research demonstrated that these topics should be integrated in safety curricula for Military Aviation Safety Leaders. The research examined methods and media for curriculum delivery. Case studies and small group scenario-based discussions ranked as methods of curriculum delivery most preferred by the experts. Resident teaching was preferred over on-line teaching media for curriculum delivery. The expertise and experience of the Delphi panel was a significant strength of the study in its findings which will improve and enhance understanding of the benefits of integrating leadership, ethics, and organizational culture into the curriculum for a Military Aviation Safety Leader.</p>

Over the past three decades, U.S. foundations have given tens of millions of dollars to Brazilian environmental non-governmental organizations (NGO). What groups are getting the money, and what is its impact? Data from 378 grants worth $73 million dollars awarded by 45 foundations to 100 Brazilian environmental NGOs are analyzed to answer three research questions. First, do trends or biases exist in the distribution of foundation aid to Brazilian environmental NGOs? Second, is the distribution of aid better explained by a 'donor interest' model that emphasizes global commons issues such as biodiversity conservation or a 'recipient need' model that focuses more on local environmental concerns? Finally, does U.S. foundation aid influence or steer Brazilian environmental NGOs' towards adopting non-confrontational organizational characteristics or programs within specific bioregions? The results suggest that U.S. foundations are strongly influencing the direction of major Brazilian environmental organizations. The analysis tests Robert Brulle's (2000) argument, which suggests that environmental NGOs that utilize non-confrontational discourses, strategies and tactics receive more U.S. foundation aid than those espousing confrontational approaches. The majority of Brazilian NGOs receiving U.S. foundation aid use non-confrontational discourses, strategies, and tactics to pursue their environmental goals. Findings also support Tammy Lewis' (2003) theory that 'donor interest' drives environmental aid giving and that 'recipient need' issues like urban pollution receive a tiny fraction of U.S. foundation aid when compared to protecting 'global public goods' like biodiversity. The majority of aid recipients focus program activities on the Amazon or Atlantic Coastal Forest, which are bioregions traditionally identified with 'global commons' issues. Statistically significant biases were documented for number of grants and total aid awarded to projects reflecting donor interests. Finally, the largest foundation aid donors demonstrate a statistically significant donor interest bias in their grant making Since U.S. foundations direct the majority of their environmental aid towards Brazilian NGOs that adopt non-confrontational discourses, strategies, and tactics, and work primarily on 'global commons' issues in the Amazon, certain groups may be 'crowded out.' The largest aid donors may also use their grant making influence to steer NGOs towards non-confrontational practices and initiatives identified with northern 'global commons' interests / acase@tulane.edu

The idea that work-shy Western Europeans and work-crazed Americans differ fundamentally in their orientations to working life and private life has gained wide currency on both sides of the Atlantic within the social science community, spawning rafts of studies charting differences in aggregate time use patterns and work value orientations. Taking an experiential perspective on the behaviors and orientations constitutive of working life and private life, my dissertation approaches the question of cross-national and transatlantic difference from a novel standpoint. Drawing on over one hundred and fifty in-depth interviews with comparable elite professionals, the dissertation carries out a three-way case study of the experiential divergences and convergences between the working lives and private lives of comparable French, Norwegian, and American elite professionals working and living in Paris, Oslo, and San Francisco. / The dissertation examines the ways these three groups organize and experience their working lives and their private lives by exploring convergences and divergences relating to a number of analytical dimensions. The study contrasts their daily work routines, their temporal zoning practices, their career pathways and aspirations, their romantic partners' occupational profiles, as well as their ways of talking about work, work effort, and leisure. Capitalizing on my unique body of data, the dissertation reveals the forms which these various practices and orientations take in these three distinctive societal environments. / The dissertation's findings add a new dimension to the ongoing debates around overwork, extreme work, and work-life strain among managers and professionals. The study's comparative findings reveal important differences in the ways that comparable populations of elite French, Norwegian, and American managers and professionals working in similarly high-stakes, rewarding, and remunerative jobs constitute working life and private life. Relative to their American or French counterparts, elite Norwegian managers and professionals treat their working lives as a less greedy life realm, responding to a social and cultural environment which acts in very specific ways to inhibit the kind of extreme work habits which run rampant in these two other societal contexts. / While both the French and American elite managers and professionals engage in extreme working, this way of working assumes somewhat different forms in the two societal contexts. The extreme work of the American managers and professionals is driven by a deep-seated desire to perform well in a competition over money and personal status. By contrast, the extreme work of the French managers and professionals issues from an attachment to an occupational identity defined through membership in a recognized social and cultural elite. This identity is strengthened and reinforced by a surprisingly strong tendency for the male French elite professionals to pair up with occupationally matched women pursuing their own demanding careers. / Just as the dissertation provides a rich and nuanced picture of working life among these three groups of managers and professionals, it illuminates the complex linkages between extreme work among managers and professionals, on the one hand, and facets of societal context, on the other hand. Analyzing these connections from a variety of theoretical perspectives, the dissertation reveals the sources of these differences in stratification cultures, gender cultures, systems of elite education, and patterns of romantic and family life.

With the rise of electoral competition in Mexico, the country's state legislatures have gained greater legal and political relevance. Drawing from theories of legislative organization originally developed to explain the U.S. Congress, this project contributes to the comparative study of legislative institutions by providing the first large-scale analysis of Mexico's emerging assemblies. It adopts both qualitative (e.g., elite interviews, procedural details, etc.) and quantitative (e.g., multi-level modeling, Bayesian estimation of legislative preferences, etc.) approaches to explore the rules guiding legislative processes and study their impact. The goal is to not only improve scholarly understanding of Mexico's evolving democracy but also demonstrate the generalizability of established political theory.

A qualitative phenomenological study of qualified women's perceptions of leadership barriers in the Pentecostal Church

A Case Study of the Socialization Processes of the NASA Spacewalkers in the High Reliability Organizational Culture of the Extravehicular Activity (EVA) Teams