Cette thèse est le résultat d'une analyse statistique inédite portant sur le lien entre le suicide des jeunes québécois et leur cheminement scolaire. Elle est également la rencontre de plusieurs champs d'études de la discipline sociologique : suicide, famille, éducation, relations de genres. Au cours de notre démarche, nous avons créé un nouveau cadre explicatif du suicide des jeunes, en lien avec les différents parcours qu'ils empruntent au sein de l'institution scolaire. Nous avons également travaille des données mettant en relation les taux de suicide des jeunes québécois et des données portant sur les parcours scolaires, données privilégiées provenant directement du ministère de l'Éducation. Nous cherchions à savoir s'il existait un lien entre ces deux éléments, jusqu'ici étudiés séparément en sociologie. Notre recherche repose sur un postulat de base : le suicide est causé par un déficit d'intégration sociale. Nos résultats ont montré clairement qu'il existe un lien puissant entre le suicide des jeunes et les parcours scolaires, mais uniquement pour les femmes. Les transformations récentes des structures familiales, de l'économie et l'évolution du système d'éducation québécois depuis soixante ans ont fait en sorte que l'école constitue une source d'intégration sociale importante pour les femmes. En effet, l'éducation constitue une des principales voies par laquelle elles peuvent atteindre leur indépendance et accéder aux emplois du secteur tertiaire, maintenant dominant dans l'économie. Le passage dans l'institution scolaire est donc un facteur d'intégration sociale très important pour les jeunes femmes québécoises. Plusieurs relations statistiques fortes sont ressorties entre le suicide des femmes et les données concernant le parcours scolaire. De son côte, le suicide des hommes était davantage influencé par des éléments sociodémographiques, notamment au niveau du revenu et des structures familiales. Il semble donc que le suicide des hommes et des femmes trouve sa source dans des facteurs d'intégration sociale bien différents.

This thesis "The role of the subject as seen in modern social movements" aims at closely scrutinising the predominant and popular social movement theories since the Second World War. Through the careful analysis of the role of the subject in the predominant social movement paradigms (collective action theories, resource mobilisation theories and even identity-based theories) the subject, it is demonstrated, is all too often seen as secondary or merely a recipient of social change. The thesis concludes that an ethnomethodological perspective, in which the subject is recognised and scrutinised, will serve as a valuable tool for the analysis of social change and social movements in modern society. The works of Alberto Melucci substantiates the author's assertions.

This study examines the social construction of girls' violence and gang involvement as a social problem by print journalists and social problems experts (namely social scientists) as claims-making groups. The issue of girls' violence and gang involvement has recently received great attention in the public eye due to increased exposure in the news media. However, social scientists and other experts have also been at the fore of claims-making about this issue. As a result of varying interests, this issue has been constructed by two sets of claims-makers (print journalists as media representatives, and social problems experts) in two different ways. This study will also discuss the relationship between print journalists and social problems experts, as the media and social problems experts are not mutually exclusive groups: the claims of experts are presented in both media publications and professional fora and are conveyed differently in terms of their content and context. This study reveals the different constructions of girls' violence and gang involvement as a social problem, and the interests and agendas which influence print media claims-making and the claims-making by social problems experts in professional fora. This research also explores the relationship between print media and expert claimants, the impact these groups have on public perception and social policy, and the implications differing constructions have for young offenders in Canada. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)

I explore the historical antecedents of contextual constructionism--the theoretical structure employed in this essay--which is rooted in the development of symbolic interactionism and labelling theory. I also devote attention to an overview of selected interactionist, labelling, conflict, and contextual constructionist accounts of the 'illicit drug' issue. I illustrate how early interactionist and more recent contextual constructionist studies have demonstrated that claims-making against 'illicit drugs' are typically based on soft or non-existent evidence, and that such claims-makers have engaged in moral crusades against 'illicit drugs', not to address 'objective' harmful conditions, but rather for bureaucratic interests and to promote certain moral positions. I examine the methodological approach used by Goldhagen (1996) in his provocative account of the causes underlying the nature and magnitude of the Holocaust. This quasi-constructionist analysis clearly exemplifies the power of symbolic communication in the social construction of definitions of problematic conditions and the development of intervention strategies. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)

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<p> A comparison study examined the effects on coping styles that occur when an evidence-based treatment, Seeking Safety (SS), is added to an established social model of recovery. Moreover, an exploratory analysis of participant variables in the control group (136 males, 162 females) was conducted within the social model in order to establish the foundational needs of the population as well as ensure that the experimental group was comparable (22 males, 30 females). Participants volunteered to engage in an eight-session closed-group format of SS to determine if participation contributed to an increase in Adaptive coping styles as well as a decrease in Maladaptive coping styles. Overall, findings support the hypothesized enhancements. A closer look at components of coping demonstrated that individuals improved on nine out of ten substyles of Adaptive coping but displayed no change in using humor to handle stressors. For Maladaptive coping, participants decreased using four of the five substyles. However, females worsened in venting of emotions. As a whole, significant improvement was noted in 15 of the 17 coping styles assessed. Support for these findings was also demonstrated in subjective feedback from participants who expressed receiving benefits beyond enhancement of coping skills in regards to emotional healing. It is believed that the study provides foundational support for the benefits of incorporating evidence-based treatment with the social model of recovery.</p>

The purpose of the study was to identify variables for use in a future instrument assessing the quality of life of adults with learning disabilities. The study focused on the social validation of select variables addressed by the research. Consumer input was solicited to determine which variables would be most important to include on a future instrument. Of particular interest in the study were perceptions of adults with learning disabilities from four-year institutions. / Demographic information and opinions about the participants' perception of important variable items to be included on a future instrument for assessing quality of life were gathered via the Quality of Life Variable Verification Survey (QOL-VVS). Two hundred fifty-two individuals agreed to participate in the study. There were three sample groups comprised of adults with learning disabilities (32) who had graduated from three state universities in Florida, as well as current students with learning disabilities (112) and postsecondary service providers (108) from the same universities. The majority of the participants were White (55%) females (52%) between the ages of 18-30 (53%). / Multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) procedures were used to compare and analyze sample group ratings. Descriptive analyses were used to identify additional variables participants considered important to be included on an instrument assessing quality of life. Discriminant analysis procedures were employed to identify variables that would be good predictors of quality of life for adults with learning disabilities. These procedures were also used to identify effective classification models of quality of life for adults with learning disabilities. / Results indicated that participants in all three sample groups rated 83% of the variable items from important to extremely important. Few significant differences were identified between group ratings. Variables related to education of others, self-esteem, and available services were reported five times or more, by at least two of the sample groups, to be included on an instrument assessing quality of life. Only four variable items were found to have significant differences in discriminating adults with learning disabilities into a high or low quality of life group. No effective classification model was identified. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 56-11, Section: A, page: 4294. / Major Professor: Bruce Menchetti. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1995.

Weber's theory of authority is an important tool when studying power and its relationship to human collectives, especially religious groups. Weber focused on the rise of Protestants' power in the West and how this group created and maintained economic power which helped them gain political control in various countries, including the U.S. In this paper, I incorporate Weber's insights about the Protestant ethic, bureaucracies, and types of authority to examine Wahhabism in Saudi Arabia. I compare Saudi Wahhabism with Protestantism, analyzing the rise of the Saud family as controllers of the economy and politics. The role of bureaucracies in these processes will also be discussed. The similarities and differences between Protestantism and Wahhabism are used to investigate power inside their respective societies. These comparisons will highlight the types of authority which allowed each sect to enhance power and how those processes of creating, consolidating, and maintaining power relate to the larger social climates in both Saudi Arabia and the Western world. Finally, I investigate images of the Saudi State in the The London Times between 1927 and 1937 to explain how power in the hands of a Wahhabi king was presented to Western readers.