This dissertation examines the substantive representation of ethnoracial minorities at the national level, the inter-minority dynamics of descriptive representation at the state level, and the effects of ethnoracial cues on White public opinion regarding policies that disproportionately affect minorities. Taken together, the three chapters offer evidence to support the claim that race not only shapes mass opinion, but also elites' responses to it. The expectation in a representative democracy is that the preferences of the public should influence the voting behavior of elected officials in Congress. Most scholars agree that this is indeed the case, but they have recently begun to ask whose opinions are most influential. Members of Congress seem to disproportionately represent the interests of copartisans and affluent Americans. The literature speaks less to the nature of the relationship between the political preferences of ethnoracial minorities and the voting behavior of members of Congress. Is there also a racial disparity in representation, even after accounting for partisanship and income? Are White Americans better represented in government decisions than are African Americans and Latinos? Chapter 1 explores the relationship between congressional district-level public opinion on proposed bills (estimated using multilevel regression and poststratification), broken down by racial, partisan, and income group, and the roll call votes of House members on those same bills. I find strong evidence of overresponsiveness by members of Congress to copartisan and high-income constituents, and some evidence of underresponsiveness to Blacks. In some cases, minorities' preferences are underrepresented even by representatives of their own parties, on race-targeted policies, and in majority-minority districts. Chapter 2 examines how legislators respond to coethnic and cominority constituents. I conduct an audit study of all state legislators to explore how they respond to constituents of different ethnoracial groups, and to assess whether Black and Latino state legislators in particular are as responsive to cominority constituents (i.e., non-White individuals from a different ethnic minority group) as they are to coethnics (i.e., individuals from the legislator's own ethnic group). Blacks and Latinos currently make up about one-third of the overall U.S. population, and an even larger share of some state populations. In light of this growing diversification of the American electorate, elected officials have incentives to appeal to a broad racial constituency. I conduct an experiment in which state legislators are randomly assigned to receive an email from a coethnic, cominority, or non-coethnic constituent. My findings suggest that Latino constituents are consistently disadvantaged. White and Republican legislators respond to Latino constituents the least, and Black legislators do not show any cominority solidarity toward them. Latino legislators, on the other hand, do exhibit cominority solidarity toward Black constituents by favoring them over White (non-coethnic) constituents. These results have important implications for the prospect of "black-brown" coalitions and for the descriptive representation of ethnoracial minorities. Finally, understanding the factors that shape White Americans' preferences over policies that disproportionately affect racial and linguistic minorities is increasingly important in a diversifying society. Chapter 3 focuses on the effects of racialized stereotypes on the formation of White public opinion regarding Hurricane Maria relief in Puerto Rico. Due to the ongoing fiscal crisis and the damage caused by the hurricane in 2017, the case of Puerto Rico has figured prominently in American media coverage as of late, but we know little about how the attitudes that shape U.S. policy toward Puerto Rico are formed. I conduct a nationally representative survey experiment in which I have two actors---roughly identical in all features except skin complexion---portray hurricane victims and give general information about the damage Maria caused. By varying the skin tone (light or dark) and language (Spanish or English) in the videos, I am able to assess the ways in which racial and linguistic markers shape Americans' preferences about a putatively race-neutral policy (disaster relief). I find that the Spanish language treatment decreases respondents' support for Puerto Rico, but not by much. The effects of race, on the other hand, are contingent on respondents' partisanship, race, and prior knowledge about Puerto Ricans' American citizenship.

Internationella studier har visat att poliser drivs av såväl inre som yttre motivation och att de vidtar varierande copingstrategier för att hantera yrkets baksidor. Syftet med undersökningen var att utforska vad som påverkar arbetsmotivationen för svenska poliser i yttre tjänst samt vilka copingstrategier de använder sig av för att hantera yrkets psykologiska påfrestningar. Kvalitativa djupintervjuer genomfördes med 10 poliser i yttre tjänst. En tematisk analysmetod resulterade i sex teman under samtliga frågeställningar. Resultatet visade att polisers motivation är beroende av faktorer från individ till samhälle. Faktumet att polisyrket i hög grad tillfredsställer psykologiska behov tycktes delvis kompensera för yrkets psykologiska påfrestningar. Copingstrategier förekom i form av individuell mental självhjälp såväl som att söka hjälp utifrån. Organisatoriska faktorer och pågående attityd- och normförskjutningar i samhället visade sig ha en kraftig påverkan på polisernas motivation. Studien synliggjorde hur dessa pågående processer färgar polisers vardagliga arbete, vilket utgjorde studiens främsta bidrag.

Federal and state descriptions of gifted and talented services include identifying and developing leadership talent, but in many states, services are not mandated or funded. Consequently, leadership development is often left to extracurricular programs (e.g., student organizations, athletics). The Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps (JROTC) provides school-based military-focused leadership education and opportunities to apply emergent leadership skills. This qualitative descriptive study examined leadership talent development in JROTC and the postsecondary paths participants chose. A self-report survey was distributed to graduating seniors enrolled in JROTC in Texas public high schools and semi-structured interviews were conducted with JROTC instructors across the state. The findings highlighted characteristics of students in the sample who chose to pursue military-focused education or careers after high school and themes about the experiences and key considerations related to choosing postsecondary paths. JROTC instructors supported students with differentiated development plans and information about flexible pathways to reach postsecondary goals. Students benefitted from broad definitions of success, exposure to career options, realistic self-assessment, and alignment between intentions and preparation.

This qualitative multiple-case study was designed to explore how CEOs in philanthropy learn to make strategic decisions. The study builds off the following premises: (1) as part of their role, CEOs need to make critical decisions in a complex and rapidly changing environment; (2) due to the role of a CEO there are power dynamics at play, and these may have an impact on how CEOs are able to engage in conversation; and (3) due to the staff reporting to the CEO and the CEO reporting to the board, they are essentially peerless within their respective organization, possibly contributing to a sense of isolation. The research site of this study was across a number of organizations, one for each participant. There were three primary sources of data: semi-structured interviews, data collection of publicly available documents, and critical incident reports. Key findings included that: (1) all participants engaged with staff and/or the Board of directors before making a strategic decision, either to obtain buy-in or get information needed to make the decision; (2) informal learning was the primary way participants learned what activities they needed to partake in, in order to make a critical decision; and (3) having full authority and responsibility helped CEOs in their decision-making, while power and other interpersonal dynamics hindered a CEOs ability to make a critical decision. Two main categories of CEOs emerged during the data collection process, those who were deemed Reflective and those who were Action-Oriented. Although not part of this research study’s original design, the data collection took place during the COVID-19 pandemic and also after a resurgence of attention to police brutality against Black people in the United States and other violence towards historically marginalized groups. These themes were prevalent throughout the data gathered for this study and findings and analysis. The overarching recommendation emanating from this research is that succession plans should be put in place in order to best develop potential candidates for the role of CEO.

Throughout the long nineteenth century, the European Great Powers and, after 1865, the United States competed for global dominance, and they regularly used their armies to do so. While many historians have commented on the culture of these armies’ officer corps, few have looked to the acculturation process itself that occurred at secondary schools and academies for future officers, and even fewer have compared different formative systems. In this study, I home in on three distinct models of officer acculturation—the British public schools, the monarchical cadet schools in Imperial Germany, Austria, and Russia, and the US Military Academy—which instilled the shared and recursive sets of values and behaviors that constituted European and American officer cultures. Specifically, I examine not the curricula, policies, and structures of the schools but the subterranean practices, rituals, and codes therein. What were they, how and why did they develop and change over time, which values did they transmit and which behaviors did they perpetuate, how do these relate to nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century social and cultural phenomena, and what sort of ethos did they produce among transatlantic army officers? Drawing on a wide array of sources in three languages, including archival material, official publications, letters and memoirs, and contemporary nonfiction and fiction, I have painted a highly detailed picture of subterranean life at the institutions in this study. The reader will find that although practices, rituals, and codes varied from one type of school to the next, the values and behaviors they inculcated were quite similar . . . and quite anachronistic for the liberalizing societies that the products of the schools were meant to serve.

Juvenile Correctional officers are important to the function of secure facilities because they maintain constant contact with offenders. This quantitative study sought to determine why turnover rates continue to rise and offered insight into retaining officers. This study utilized Abraham Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs theory as the foundation for explaining relationships between the variables: quality supervision and intent to stay and job satisfaction, job search, and job embeddedness of juvenile correctional officers across the United States. Survey data were collected from 247 juvenile correctional officers using a web-based survey containing 5 scales including Quality of Supervision and Intent to Stay, and Job Embeddedness, Job Satisfaction, and Job Search. The relationship between quality of supervision and intent to stay and job embeddedness, job satisfaction, and job search, were analyzed through correlational and multiple regression analyses. An ordinal regression analysis determined that of the variables examined, job satisfaction was a significant factor in the quality of supervision for juvenile correctional officers supervising female youth in secure facilities. A multiple linear regression analysis determined that of the variables analyzed only job satisfaction and job search had a significant effect on juvenile correctional officers supervising female youth intent to stay employed at secure female facilities. This research enhances the body of knowledge examining the cause of individuals' intent to stay and quality of supervision. Reduction of employee turnover increase of job satisfaction, and quality of supervision can positively benefit juvenile justice organizations by enabling correctional staff to meet the overall mission of keeping youth and communities safe.

Critical incidents (CI) have increased over the last several decades, with police officers experiencing more trauma and a rise in psychological problems. Stress inoculation training (SIT) could possibly lower symptoms of posttraumatic stress experienced by the police officers who have responded to CIs. To date, little research exists specific to using SIT to lower symptomatic effects of CIs in police officers. The purpose of this quantitative ex post facto study was to examine and compare symptoms of posttraumatic stress, depression, and anxiety for police officers who have or have not received SIT prior to a CI. The theoretical foundation was Selye's general adaptation system, a 3-stage response to a stressor: alarm reaction, resistance, and exhaustion. Survey data from a convenience sample of 85 police officers were collected using a demographic survey and the Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist--Civilian version. A Cronbach's Alpha test and a multivariate analysis of variance were used to determine whether SIT has affected anxiety and depression. According to study findings, police officers who received SIT showed no statistical significance for anxiety and depression compared to police officers who did not receive SIT. This study promotes positive social change by contributing knowledge and awareness to the law enforcement field who may find these results important to consider when planning training courses for their personnel.

For decades, stress has been scientifically studied and found to have effects on the law enforcement community. Furthermore, scholars have thoroughly studied the correlation between stress and the law enforcement occupation which has been proven to affect their well-being. Although there is currently ample literature on stress and police officers, to date there has been little research on factors associated with stress and SWAT police officers. Using Lazarus and Folkman's cognitive theory of stress and coping as the foundation, the purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore how SWAT police officers cope with stress while on duty and off duty and the factors that cause them stress. Participants included 5 retired police officers who were members of a SWAT team. Moustakas' framework design of phenomenological study assisted in identifying common themes that emerged from participant interviews. Study findings indicate that the primary stressor to SWAT officers was responding to high-risk missions or operations and that law enforcement agencies generally fail to provide the resources needed to cope with stress. In addition, the main coping resources used by tactical officers were self-initiated activities such as exercise, spending time with family, and hobbies (e.g., hunting, fishing, camping, hiking, and sports entertainment). The results of this study encourage positive social change by advancing recommendations to law enforcement leadership to develop coping resources for tactical officers that are specific to their unique needs. The study also increases awareness and knowledge of the coping resources that SWAT officers need and advocating for new programs and trainings aimed at reducing stress for them, which may prevent officer burnout and improve public safety response.

Prison management and key stakeholders lack an understanding of how institutional obstacles interfere with probation officers and parole agents' ability in managing offenders to reduce recidivism in a Midwestern state. In 2014, 1 out of 52 adults in the U.S. were under the supervision of probation officers or parole agents. The purpose of this descriptive phenomenological study was to identify the institutional obstacles that exist for probation officers and parole agents in terms of their lived experiences in their jobs. The participants were 5 probation officers and 6 parole agents from a municipal district in a county in a Midwestern state. The conceptual framework that grounds this descriptive phenomenological study is Meadows' three concepts of systems thinking (elements, interconnections, and purpose). The data collection process involved in-depth interviews and field notes. One hundred percent of the participants identified several themes as institutional obstacles including: lack of community programs, lack of jobs, and heavy caseloads. The implications for positive social change for the key stakeholders identified in the study to reduce recidivism in the criminal justice system were to remove the institutional barriers outlined in the themes and improve institutional practices. Making policy reforms that included drug and alcohol treatment, addressing the issue of prison authority and the creation of rehabilitation programs that feature cognitive development would aid in reduction of recidivism.

The school-to-prison pipeline is an expansive issue that impacts the educational and criminal justice systems in the United States. Traditionally, the research has linked the prevalence of the pipeline to factors based within school systems. These systemic factors include the use of zero tolerance policies, exclusionary disciplinary practices, and the presence of school resource officers. The proposed study aims to assess the impact of factors that perpetuate the school-to-prison pipeline that are non-systemic in nature. For the purposes of this study, the non-systemic contributors to the school-to-prison pipeline to be assessed are parental socialization, child self-control, learned noncompliance, child resilience, child problem behaviors, and child deviance. Scales for each non-systemic contributor were created and complied into a survey instrument. The study utilized an exploratory, quantitative methodology and non-experimental research using a survey approach in a cross-sectional design to assess the perceptions of non-systemic contributors of the school-to-prison pipeline among mental health professionals who service youth at risk for justice system involvement. A sample of 71 mental health professionals participated in the study. Results indicated that resilience predicted behavior problems in schools above and beyond any other non-systemic contributor. This finding produced wide-ranging implications for the manner in which children are socialized at home and disciplined at school.