National parks have famously been called "America's best idea" and preserve the nation's natural and cultural resources for the enjoyment of all. One of the current working priorities of the National Park Service (NPS) is enhancing the relevancy and engagement of the national parks with diverse audiences, especially for underserved groups. To address this priority, transportation is needed to provide access to national parks, but transportation may not be equally accessible to all groups in society. Understanding the effects of transportation on visitation to the national parks by racial/ethnic groups is essential for the NPS to improve the accessibility of transportation systems and encourage greater visitation by racial/ethnic minority groups. Moreover, transportation can be more than a means of access, it can also be a form of recreation itself, providing opportunities for visitors to experience and appreciate parks and related areas. But, differences in desirability of transportation recreation opportunities across recreation settings and among racial/ethnic groups are rarely addressed. The intent of this dissertation is three-fold: 1) identify transportation related barriers impacting visitation to national parks by racial/ethnic groups, and the effects of transportation on the visiting national parks, 2) identify the differences in indicators of the transportation recreation opportunity spectrum among racial/ethnic visitors and across recreation settings, 3) measure spatial accessibility of national parks and the effects of spatial accessibility and other factors on visitation to national parks among racial/ethnic groups. The first phase of research is designed to identify barriers to visiting national parks that are related to marginality, subculture, and discrimination hypotheses, and examine the effects of transportation incentives on visitation among racial/ethnic groups. Study results found that racial/ethnic minority groups visited national parks less frequently than Whites. Hispanics were more likely to perceive transportation-related barriers to visiting national parks than Whites. Moreover, providing transportation incentives can increase visitation by Hispanics significantly. The second phase of research developed indicators for a transportation recreation opportunity spectrum (T-ROS), and examined the differences in desirability for T-ROS indicators among alternative transportation modes, different types of recreation settings, and different racial/ethnic groups. Study results identified the important indicators for transportation service in different types of recreation areas, which can help inform transportation planning and management for the NPS. The final phase of research examined the spatial accessibility of national parks from different geographic locations by incorporating geospatial analytics, assessed the spatial accessibility of different types of national parks among racial/ethnic groups, and estimated the effects of spatial accessibility on visitation to national parks. Results showed that Hispanics and Blacks had higher accessibility to national parks than Whites within short distance radii, however, Blacks and Hispanics were more likely to perceive distance as a barrier to visiting national parks than Whites. Study results can help the NPS understand the spatial structure of national parks, provide visual information for visitors about proximate national parks and recreation opportunities, and identified effective management strategies for enhancing visitation of racial/ethnic minority groups from different geographic areas.

Previous research suggests that childfree and childless women are perceived more negatively than mothers. This study investigated attitudes based on parental status, race, and descriptive label. Undergraduate students (N = 386) were randomized to consider targets described as childless, childfree, or mothers/parents. Participants completed a personality characteristic rating scale, the competence and warmth scales of the Stereotype Content Model, an evaluation thermometer, a measure of pronatalism, and a Single Category Implicit Association Test. Childless and childfree women of all races were perceived more negatively than mothers, and women in all parental status groups were ambivalently stereotyped. Implicit attitudes favored parents and childfree targets; however, neither positive nor negative attitudes were demonstrated toward childless targets. Implicit and explicit attitudes were related yet distinct constructs for childless and childfree targets, but were unrelated for parents. With these findings, this study makes a unique contribution to the literature on childlessness and childfreedom.

Self-efficacy is defined as “people’s beliefs about their capabilities to produce effects” (Bandura, 1994, p. 1) and has been firmly established in the literature as a motivator for behavioral change for decades (Bandura, 1977). Much of the literature has been dedicated to understanding the ways in which self-efficacy impacts outcomes within specific domains such as academics (Smith, 2018; McLean, 2018), work-related self-efficacy (Orth & Volmer, 2017; Perera, Granziera, & McIlveen, 2018), exercise and health-related self-efficacy (Martin, 2016; Thompson, Mitchell, Johnson-Lawrence, Watkins, & Modlin, 2017), among other specialized areas. Behavioral outcomes and attainment of future goals is arguably most important during during emerging adulthood, “the developmental period between adolescence and young adulthood” (Sussman & Arnett, 2014, p. 147). This developmental stage extends from 18 to 25 years wherein individuals begin to attain a certain level of independence from their families, and, for the first time, experience a new-found freedom not known in adolescence. This is a stage of exploration, a time to discover one’s own way in career, relationships, and views of the world (Sussman & Arnett, 2014). Much of the work dedicated to self-efficacy has focused on the predictive quality of the variable with less attention being given to the ways in which key social factors may determine self-efficacy and whether or not self-efficacy is differentially experienced between groups based on demographic characteristics. Key social factors (i.e., gender, race-ethnicity, social status, etc.) heavily inform individual development across the life course and are rooted within social contexts. These factors are central to contemporary issues surrounding disparities and differentials that exacerbate risk factors experienced by vulnerable populations. As families continue to become more and more diverse, the importance of studying the impacts of these factors is growing in importance. Utilizing the social role theory provides a framework for understanding how behavior is influenced by social stereotypes associated with gender, race, and social status (Eagly, 1987). Self-efficacious thought patterns impact much about a person in terms of how they view themselves, decisions they are likely to make, and what the associated outcome may be. Given the nature of emerging adulthood and the fact that many individuals are making monumental decisions that dictate future trajectories, the goal of this research is to study the relationship between gender, race-ethnicity, and social status and self-efficacy among emerging adults. Data on 284 participants were collected and analysis is forthcoming. Participants were recruited through the use of physical flyer postings, social media advertisements, and through Amazon’s Mechanical Turk (mTurk) system. Regression analysis and bivariate assessments will be used to explore the relationship between self-efficacy and key social factors. Findings will be discussed in terms of how the self-efficacy of emerging adults is impacted by key social factors and what professionals can do with this information. Having these conversations will bring this information to the forefront of a greater conversation that needs to be had about systematic and societal inequalities that stem from the demographic of an individual.

This thesis examined bodied activism in Chicago's Slutwalk 2012 march, a contemporary movement initiated in Toronto, Canada that publicly challenged the mainstream sentiment that women are responsible for their own rape and victimization. Adopting an intersectional approach, I used textual analysis to discuss photographs posted on the official Chicago Slutwalk website to explore the ways this form of public bodied protest discursively engages women's empowerment from movement feminism as well as third wave and postfeminisms. I additionally analyzed the overall website and its promotional materials for the Slutwalk marches as well as how Chicago's photographic representations privilege the white female body as victim, demonstrating how the reclamation "slut" privileges whiteness. The website depictions normalize how one should react to a system of violence which provides negative implications for women and men who are situated in a postfeminist rape culture. Positioning my analysis within Communication/Cultural Studies and Women's and Gender studies, I contributed to the literature about rape culture and postfeminist activism through my analysis of Slutwalk. By employing intersectionality from feminist theory and textual analysis, I demonstrated how Slutwalk's promotion of bodied activism naturalized postfeminism and excludes Black women from participating.

Abstract This thesis analyzes lynching and segregation in the American South between the years 1877 and 1951. It argues that these crimes of physical and social violence constitute genocide against black Americans, according to the definitions of genocide proposed by Raphael Lemkin and then the later legal definition adopted by the United Nations. American law and prevailing white American social beliefs sanctioned these crimes. Lynching and segregation were used as tools of persecution intended to keep black people in their designated places in a racial hierarchy in the United States at this time period. These crimes were two of many coordinated actions designed to physically and mentally harm a group of people defined and targeted on grounds of race. These actions of mentally and physically harming members of the group do constitute genocide under both Lemkin's original concept of genocide and the United Nations' legal genocide definition. Studies of the black experience, although starting to gain some research popularity, are virtually absent from genocide historiography. This thesis aims to fill part of that void and contribute to the emerging studies of one of America's "hidden genocides."* * "Hidden genocides" is a term that Alexander Laban Hinton, Thomas La Pointe, and Douglas Irvin-Erickson have used to describe intentional destruction of groups in human history (genocide) that are often denied, dismissed or neglected in popular and scholarly discussions about genocide. [Alexander Laban Hinton, Thomas La Pointe, and Douglas Irvin-Erickson. Hidden Genocides: Power, Knowledge, Memory. New Brunswick, NJ.: Rutgers University Press, 2014).

A descriptive analytical study was done of the influence of Federal government policies on the present economic and educational status of Indian Americans. Three Perspective views underlying government actions toward Indians were identified. The policy of extermination manifested itself in open conflict and the removal of Indian tribes to reservations. This segregation intensified Indian poverty and retarded educational development. The paternalism underlying the special wardship status of Indians created a sense of powerlessness in which Indians felt alienated from the decision-making process. Assimilation policies which were in essence Anglo-conformist policies were strongly followed in many government boarding schools. Anglo-conformity techniques in many cases led to a loss of self-esteem and cultural identity, and various types of social maladjustment became evident among Indians. Historically the policies which have shaped Indian educational and economic policies have been Anglo-directed. Certain social movements which are Indian-directed have arisen as a reaction to paternalism and assimilation. Tribalism and Pan-Indianism are two examples. The social movement which has most support among Indians and non-Indians is the move toward self-determination. Through self-determination Indians are seeking to establish greater respect for their culture and to increase belief in their competence to decide and direct economic and educational policy for themselves. Self-determination is compatible with cultural pluralism. Several schools and projects which have developed as a result of the self-determination movement are described and in part evaluated. Among these are schools at Rocky Boy and Ramah, The Rough Rock Demonstration School, the Navajo Community College, and the Institute of American Indian Arts, all of which are in New Yexico. Some industries which are financed and directed by reservation money and located on the reservations have been established in conjunction with this movement. The tribes which originated in the Southwest and which maintained an agricultural existence with social and religious institutions based on agriculture appear to have been less influenced by Anglo-conformist policies. These tribes have progressed far on the road to self-determination. One example is the Zunis who are independent and relatively autonomous. Tribalism and self-determination seem to be bringing about a renaissance of Indian culture and of cultural pluralism.

A comparative study was conducted of several variants of the Raven cycle of myths as manifested among the Tlingit Indians of the Northwest Coast. The results of this folkloristic study indicate that the myths serve several didactic functions. In addition to the manifest function of explaining the origin of the present order of the world the myths also serve to provide members of the society with a classificatory system through which they are able to relate to observable phenomena within their environment. The myths also provide institutionalized behavioral alternatives available to the society as manifested by the actions of Raven, the principal character in Tlingit mythology. In the role of Culture Hero, Raven's motives for his actions are altruistic, and in this context are to be emulated, while in the role of Trickster his motives are selfishness and greed and because they are ultimately destructive to society, are not to be condoned.

This work traces the relationship of Jews to African-Americans in the process of Jews attaining whiteness in the 20th century. Specific attention is paid to blackface performance in The Jazz Singer and the process of identification with suffering. Theoretically this work brings together psychoanalytic theories of projection, repression and masochism with afro-pessimist notions of the libidinal economy of white supremacy. Ultimately, I argue that in its enjoyment and its masochism, The Jazz Singer empathizes with blackness both as a way to assimilate into white America and express doubt at this very act.

This study focused on the continued mathematical achievement gap between African American and Latino students in an urban elementary school. An illustrative case study design was used to examine the teachers' perception of factors contributing to this gap in mathematical performance, and what instructional math strategies can narrow the achievement gap. Socioconstructivism and culturally relevant pedagogy were the learning theories used to form the conceptual framework in this study. Qualitative data were obtained from 6 individual interviews with 4th grade math educators, classroom observations, and teacher artifacts. Data analysis in this study included data triangulation and coding, as well as identification of common themes as an important analytical approach to enhance the credibility of this study. Methods for minimizing bias and error included peer debriefing and member-checking, which consisted of obtaining feedback from participants to ensure the trustworthiness of findings. The key results of this study indicated that teachers perceived that 4th grade African American students often lacked basic skills and background knowledge for their school grade. Based upon the findings, the outcome was a plan for professional development training to help teachers gain knowledge on how to incorporate cultural relevant pedagogy, through strategies that include differentiating learning instructions and mastery learning into their classrooms, to narrow the mathematical achievement gap between African American and Latino 4th grade students. Implications for positive social change from this study include providing teachers with research-based strategies targeted toward narrowing the mathematical achievement gap between 4th grade African American and Latino students at the local and district site.

This dissertation explored the factors associated with dropping out of middle school and high school among Hispanic/Latino male students. Predictor variables investigated were: age, home language, retention history, SES, program of studies, suspensions, and GPA. Data were from a large urban school district in the state of Florida. A sample of 865 Hispanic/Latino male Latino students in the 8th grade in 1995-96 was followed longitudinally every year to the year 2000-01. Survival analysis and logistic regression were used to examine the data. The research questions were: 1) What is the relation between age, home language, retention history, SES, program of studies, suspensions, and GPA and dropping out of middle and secondary school by Hispanic/Latino males? 2) At what grade levels do the predictor variables begin to affect the male Hispanic/ Latino students' propensity for early school leaving? When are they at greatest risk? Of the predictor variables included in this research, age, retention history, program of studies, suspension, and GPA, were found to be statistically significant in the students' decision to drop out of school. This research also found that approximately 31% of this Hispanic/Latino male sample dropped out prior to completing their high school education during the 5-year span. Investigating the most hazardous time for dropping out of school, results suggested that for these students it is well into their secondary education, very close to when they would actually graduate, during their junior to senior years. It may be the time close to their eighteenth birthday that lets them legally choose to leave school that triggers this hazardous time period.