Juvenile delinquency continues to be a major social problem in the United States. One of the more salient problems with the juvenile justice system in the United States is its staggering incarceration rate, which poses a significant problem for youth exposed to the juvenile justice system, and the community as a whole. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to understand the perspective of the program facilitators about the effectiveness of the restorative justice program in reducing recidivism for African American males aged 12 to 17 in Baltimore City's urban community. This study relied upon restorative justice theory as conceptualized by Braithwaite as the theoretical framework. Using intrinsic case study design, data were collected from 7 restorative justice facilitators, who participated in face-to-face interviews using semistructured, open-ended questions. Miles and Huberman's qualitative content analysis was used to analyze the data and to record emerging themes and patterns. The key finding of this study indicates that facilitators believe restorative justice results in a reduction of the recidivism rate specifically through the conferencing program when Braithwaite's reintegrative shaming is incorporated into the process. According to the program facilitators, the conferencing program is effective in reducing juvenile recidivism as it promotes transparency and openness to all stakeholders through being very clear and upfront on all levels with the juveniles, parents, and volunteers. As such, there are implications for positive social change by involving all the stakeholders---family, community, policy makers, and juvenile justice practitioners---that may result in reduced incidences of juvenile offending, thereby promoting safer communities.

This thesis deals with the “item number” genre of Bollywood song and dance sequences. I argue that the item song has evolved from a combination of the historically rich culture of prostitution in old India and the western influence of modern times; and that it contributes highly to the male dominated patriarchal society perpetuated by Hindi films by means of the voyeuristic male gaze and objectification of the female body. In conjunction with this research I choreographed a dance called Item No. 3 that was performed in Scripps Dances 2013. A discussion of the significance and decisions behind the choreography is also included in this written document. A record of the performance as available on DVD through the Scripps College Dance Department or at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PVNztFuezEc.

This thesis explores how the material reality of Germany's women's prisons has been largely determined by their ideological foundations, and by the historical developments that have produced these ideologies. The German women's prison system is complex and imperfect, yet in many ways very progressive. It is the result of the last sixty years of tumultuous German history, and has been uniquely shaped by the capitalist and communist histories of the once-divided state. In its current state, it seems to have incorporated elements of a supposedly “rational” or individualistic conception of humanity as well as one that is relational and interdependent, thus promoting independence while still fostering and supporting care-based familial and social support systems. In this way, it reflects the remarkable development of Germany since the end of the horrific Second World War, providing a window into ideologies of gender, crime, and incarceration as they evolved and eventually merged. Germany serves as an excellent case study of the ways in which prisons are a product of their countries' histories, and is a model for understanding how prisons around the world must be analyzed in the context of their nations' past. Any attempt to compare prison systems across international borders must be centered around the unique contextual development of each country and its prisons.

This thesis deals with the “item number” genre of Bollywood song and dance sequences. I argue that the item song has evolved from a combination of the historically rich culture of prostitution in old India and the western influence of modern times; and that it contributes highly to the male dominated patriarchal society perpetuated by Hindi films by means of the voyeuristic male gaze and objectification of the female body. In conjunction with this research I choreographed a dance called Item No. 3 that was performed in Scripps Dances 2013. A discussion of the significance and decisions behind the choreography is also included in this written document. A record of the performance as available on DVD through the Scripps College Dance Department or at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PVNztFuezEc.

The rapid rise of technology, which has become embedded in all facets of 21st century society during the past decade, has fostered a corresponding rise in its misuse. Digital citizenship abuse, a relatively new phenomenon of this electronic age, is a rapidly growing global problem. Parents, schools, and society play roles in supporting appropriate online behavior. Schools must take the lead role to assess and address digital citizenship issues. This ex post facto study investigated the online actions of students in a medium-sized K-12 school district and explored possible causal relationships between online misbehavior and student grade and gender based on data collected from state and district surveys. Kohlberg's theory of moral development, Perkins and Berkowitz's social norms theory, and Bandura's social cognitive theory provided the study's theoretical base. Hypotheses were tested using independent-measures t values, a single-factor, independent-measures analysis of variance (ANOVA), and the chi-square test for independence. With respect to the four components of online student behavior---personal safety, digital citizenship, parental involvement, and cyberbullying---analyses determined that there are significant differences between grade level and gender. As the grade level increased, personal safety risks, digital citizenship abuse, and cyberbullying increased, while parental involvement decreased. Males had significantly more personal safety and digital citizenship issues than females but no significant gender difference for parental involvement. Implications for positive social change include raising awareness of local digital citizenship issues with parents, staff, and students, and ultimately mitigating and preventing student online risky behavior.

This thesis project is comprised of a partial Chinese translation of The Awakening, a translator’s introduction in Chinese for Chinese readers, and an accompanying critical analysis for my translation. My Chinese translation is guided by feminist translation theory. Its central ideas are that translations should expose and redress gender-based prejudices, challenge and subvert male-dominated linguistic and cultural systems, and promote gender equality in cross-cultural communications. The Awakening is a pioneering feminist novel written by the American author Kate Chopin and published in 1899. It centers on protagonist Edna Pontellier’s gradual departure from her socially conventional roles as a mother and wife and her unfolding awakening to her individuality and sexuality in the late Victorian era. My partial Chinese translation focuses on the gender and sexuality-related excerpts in the novel, which include the depictions of the female body, the Victorian patriarchy, the inner emotions of the protagonist, and the intimacy and sexuality displayed between the protagonist and the male characters in the novel. The translator’s introduction aims to introduce Chinese readers to Kate Chopin and her works and explain the translation interventions I have made in my translation. The accompanying critical analysis discusses my translation approaches and the decision-making process to foreground the feminist themes and convey them to the Chinese readership while preserving the language texture of an English novel from the 19th century in its Chinese rendition.

<p>In this dissertation I examine the contemporary breakdown of critical feminist dialogues so ubiquitous in the 1990s between Israeli and Palestinian women. Building on interviews with Palestinian women that identify a “top-down approach” in dialogues with Israeli anti-occupation feminist activists, this dissertation examines the role of “power inequities,” Orientalism, and “white feminist authority” (Lâm) in forming the discursive environment for even the most critical feminist dialogues. Conducting various discursive analyses of dialogues between Israeli and Palestinian women, I argue that the mainstream exclusivist Israeli feminist movement as well as “critical,” self-titled anti-racist and “anti-occupation” Israeli feminists continue to function with “white feminist authority.” Palestinian women are often pressured to speak through narrow points of entry that prioritize the paradigms of Western feminism and academic theory, namely, anti-nationalism and unitary womanhood/motherhood. These assumptions constitute a feminist paternalism that is similar to Israeli hegemonic discourses that rationalize “exceptional” but necessary violence against the Palestinians. Palestinian women have initiated a comprehensive boycott of status quo dialogues in an effort to create <em>more </em>dialogue. In this way the “silences” of status quo “humaniz[ing]” feminist dialogues (Lorde) which operate through requests for “colonial mimicry” are troubled by the boycott and may ultimately produce future anti-racist and anti-colonial feminist dialogues. The shortcomings of contemporary Western feminism’s role in the Israeli-Palestinian “peace process” are brought to light in this dissertation while potentials for solidarity-activism across “power inequities” are simultaneously mapped out.</p> / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

<p>Race and gender categories have rarely operated in isolation in the lives of Afro-Brazilian women, intersecting to shape their historical and social positioning, everyday experiences, and collective activism. Despite opposition from the Brazilian state and some civil society groups, the Afro-Brazilian women’s movement has increased awareness of the specificity of black women’s identities and oppressions. In recent years their activism has moved beyond Brazil’s borders through participation in United Nations (UN) Conferences. Yet, the dynamism of Afro-Brazilian women’s intersectional identities and their strategic use to gain legitimacy in these arenas has remained noticeably understudied.</p> <p>This dissertation argues that since activist groups do not participate in transnational forums detached from their specific histories and localized experiences, their actions, and strategies must be historically grounded. It draws upon the major arguments of postcolonial feminism, intersectionality, and the political process model to examine how national and transnational processes have shaped the identity articulations and mobilization strategies of Afro-Brazilian women activists. Four distinct processes operating in and outside of Brazil are identified as critical to the identity positions, strategies, and overall trajectory of the Afro-Brazilian women’s movement: colonialism, slavery, democratic transition, and preparations for and proceedings of UN Conferences. The influence of Afro-Brazilian women activists in domestic policy domains and internal movement dynamics are also explored. The result is a comprehensive analysis of the intricate workings of race and gender categories in activist spaces and the multiple historical and contextual factors which shape their configuration, intersection, and impact.</p> / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Between 1987 and 1991, Soviet filmmakers and journalists utilized Gorbachev’s glasnost reform policy to depict or discuss sexuality in cinema and the popular press. I argue that Soviet film and popular press discourses on sex in this period reveal a continuity of conservative sexual mores, which were interwoven with social and moral conservatism regarding the centerpiece of Soviet society, the Soviet family. Furthermore, these discourses take on a fundamentally misogynistic tone, in that women are tasked with defending sexual purity, and thus familial integrity, while simultaneously being cast as those most susceptible to the power of sexual enticement. Thus, the comparatively permissive discourse about sex and sexuality in the 1980s can be interpreted not as a “sexual revolution,” but as an explosion in social and moral anxieties, that were unique to the glasnost period, about the Soviet way of life. Additionally, this study challenges the concept of the totalitarian Soviet system by highlighting intellectuals’ persevering conservatism during a period where the state did not expressly govern or censor discourses on sex and sexuality.

In this paper I intend to discuss the ways in which sex, sexuality, and the female body are treated in the discourse within the Evangelical movement, particularly with regard to teenaged and young girls. I will focus on the way young women are talked to about sex, and how they are socialized and educated to regard sexuality and gender. I will spend most of my time with the popular literature aimed at young women, analyzing the underlying theology and theory at work. I will extrapolate, through the use of the (admittedly limited) data regarding sexual activity among young Evangelicals, including but not limited to the age of first sex, and the rate of non-penetrative sex acts, the results of the current ethic, and how it is affecting the lives of young women in America. By the end of this paper I hope to be able to suggest an alternative ethic, one that is sex-positive while still leaving open the option to teach abstinent behavior.