The focus of this study is the formation of 'community' in contemporary greenfield master planned estates.The project is cast against the historical backdrop of modern utopian place-making, and the idea that a particular permutation of urban design, infrastructure and social programs can produce an ideal of community: of connectivity, social support and social identity. A further ambition of contemporay urban design is the marketable idea of securing a physical and social space. The thesis comprises four parts. Part I presents the theoretical framework of the thesis, a task which incorporates a review of theoretical concepts and of the relevant literature. Part II discusses methodological issues, the research design and research process, before providing background information needed to support the following empirical chapters. Part III comprises these empirical chapters and sets about detailing and analysing data captured through the comparative case study of Harrington Park and Garden Gates. The final section of the thesis provides an interpretation of the empirical and research data. It draws conclusions as to the character of the Master Planned Community (MPC)and the dynamics which contribute to its contemporary character. It concludes by attempting a tentative theory of the MPC. / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

This ethnographic study explored the social and cultural context of Maldivian women???s emotional, social and psychological well-being and the subjective meanings they assign to their distress. The central question for the study was: How is suffering and distress in Maldivian women explained, experienced, expressed and dealt with? In this study participant observation was enhanced by lengthy encounters with women and with both biomedical and traditional healers. The findings showed that the suffering and distress of women is embedded in the social and economic circumstances in which they live, the nature of gender relations and how culture shapes these relations, the cultural notions related to being a good woman; and how culture defines and structures women???s place within the family and society. Explanations for distress included mystical, magical and animistic causes as well as social, psychological and biological causes. Women???s experiences of distress were mainly expressed through body metaphors and somatization. The pathway to dealing with their distress was explained by women???s tendency to normalize their distress and what they perceived to be the causes of their distress. This study provides an empirical understanding of Maldivian women???s mental well-being. Based on the findings of this study, a multi dimensional model entitled the Mandala for Suffering and Distress is proposed. The data contributes a proposed foundation upon which mental health policy and mental health interventions, and curricula for training of health care providers in the Maldives may be built. The data also adds to the existing global body of evidence on social determinants of mental health and enhances current knowledge and developments in the area of cultural competency for health care. The model and the lessons learnt from this study have major implications for informing clinicians on culturally congruent ways of diagnosing and managing mental health problems and developing patient-centred mental health services.

This research is an exploration of the place of religious beliefs and practices in the life of contemporary, predominantly Catholic, Filipinas in a large Quezon City Barangay in Metro Manila. I use an iterative discussion of the present in the light of historical studies, which point to women in pre-Spanish ‘Filipino’ society having been the custodians of a rich religious heritage and the central performers in a great variety of ritual activities. I contend that although the widespread Catholic evangelisation, which accompanied colonisation, privileged male religious leadership, Filipinos have retained their belief in feminine personages being primary conduits of access to spiritual agency through which the course of life is directed. In continuity with pre-Hispanic practices, religious activities continue to be conceived in popular consciousness as predominantly women’s sphere of work in the Philippines. I argue that the reason for this is that power is not conceived as a unitary, undifferentiated entity. There are gendered avenues to prestige and power in the Philippines, one of which directly concerns religious leadership and authority. The legitimacy of religious leadership in the Philippines is heavily dependent on the ability to foster and maintain harmonious social relations. At the local level, this leadership role is largely vested in mature influential women, who are the primary arbiters of social values in their local communities. I hold that Filipinos have appropriated symbols of Catholicism in ways that allow for a continuation and strengthening of their basic indigenous beliefs so that Filipinos’ religious beliefs and practices are not dichotomous, as has sometimes been argued. Rather, I illustrate from my research that present day urban Filipinos engage in a blend of formal and informal religious practices and that in the rituals associated with both of these forms of religious practice, women exercise important and influential roles. From the position of a feminist perspective I draw on individual women’s articulation of their life stories, combined with my observation and participation in the religious practices of Catholic women from different ethnic and socio-economic backgrounds, to discuss the role of Filipinas in local level community religious leadership. I make interconnections between women’s influence in this sphere, their positioning in family social relations, their role in the celebration of All Saints and All Souls Days in Metro Manila’s cemeteries and the ubiquity and importance of Marian devotions. I accompany these discussions with an extensive body of pictorial plates.

The study is concerned with the history of black and white women in Australia during the colonial period. Particular emphasis is on the variety of cross-cultural relationships which developed between women during that time. As a starting point, male frontier violence is discussed and compared with the more moderate approach taken by women faced with threatening situations. Among Europeans, women are revealed as being generally less racist than men. This was a significant factor in their ability to forge bonds with black women and occasionally with black men. The way in which contacts with Aborigines were made is explored and the impact of them on the women concerned is assessed, as far as possible from both points of view. Until now, these experiences have been omitted from colonial history, yet I believe they were an important element in racial relations. It will be seen that some of these associations were warm, friendly and satisfying to both sides, and often included a good deal of mutual assistance. Others involved degrees of exploitation. Both are examined in detail, using a variety of sources which include the works of modern Aboriginal writers. This study presents a new aspect of the female experiences which was neglected until the emergence of the feminist historians in the 1960’s. It properly places women, both black and white, within Australian colonial history.

Both development and post-structuralist anthropologists have critiqued development. Development anthropologists are concerned that development does not take adequate account of the social and cultural factors of developing nations, while post structuralists question the ontology of development and assert that domination over developing nations is inherent in the concept of development. To examine the social effects of development projects I conducted ethnographic research for a nine-week period on social relations at Sagana Fish Farm, located two kilometers from Sagana Township in the Kirinyaga District of the Central Province of Kenya. (The population of Sagana Township is approximately 5,885 people.) I obtained thirty-one semi-structured interviews, also relying on participant observation and informal interviews with civil servants (permanent employees) and casual laborers (temporary employees). I analyzed information obtained during interviews and participant observation within the context of power and resistance theory. Civil servants tended to value the presence of development projects because projects made structural enhancements and renovations to the fish farm. Development projects presented civil servants the possibility for skills development and additional income to fish farm employees and created temporary employment for individuals from neighboring communities. Civil servants stated that an inexpensive source of protein was available in the form of fish, chicken, and milk as a result of the work of development organizations. However, they also expressed concerns regarding the sustainability of development projects due to tension between expatriate development project workers and fish farm employees, inadequate information sharing and technology transfer, and financial and human resource mismanagement in the Kenya civil service. Casual laborers discussed the possibility of skills development through their work with development projects at the fish farm and expressed concern about their employment conditions. They were concerned about low wages in contrast with the intensity of their labor; insecure terms of employment; an absence of protective equipment at their work site; health and medical issues; and the availability of treated drinking water. Other concerns were associated with dignity, tribalism, and a fear of power of expatriate development workers and Kenyan civil service officers. Based on the above findings I made the following recommendations were made: implement cultural sensitivity training for expatriate development workers; develop project plans that foster a sense of investment in project operations; provide discounted fish to casual laborers; improve the work conditions of casual laborers; establish a health clinic; and provide informal loans to facilitate technology transfer. / Graduation date: 1999

Remnants of railroad logging camps, and their associated features, are perhaps some of the most common archaeological resources found on public lands in the Pacific Northwest. Many camps have already been located, their cultural materials inventoried, and networks of logging railroad grades mapped. Yet, despite these efforts, little can be said about the people who made those transportable communities their homes. This study focuses on the social and physical conditions of railroad logging camps of the Shevlin-Hixon Company of Bend, Oregon, from the company's inception in 1916 until it ceased operations in 1950. Historical literature combined with oral history interviews are used to describe camp movement and physical layout, living accommodations, community amenities, and the kind of social life Shevlin-Hixon logging camps offered its residents. The information presented here not only presents a historical picture of a community that no longer exists but should provide future researchers, particularly cultural resource specialists, with a rudimentary model by which to assess similar railroad logging camps and features throughout the Pacific Northwest. / Graduation date: 1998

On New Year's Eve 1993, there was little indication that popular President Carlos Salinas de Gortari was about to take a monumental fall. Mexico was in the midst of unprecedented prosperity. The world's oldest ruling political party, Mexico's PRI, enjoyed substantial support. Allegations of corruption within an authoritarian regime were now frivolous charges obscured by economic success. The nation was poised to become a major player in the global market; vying with Japan to be the second largest trading partner of the U.S.A. The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) between Canada, the largest trading partner of the U.S., Mexico and the United States became effective January 1, 1994. Just after midnight 1994, the Zapatista National Liberation Army (EZLN) went to war in the southern Mexican state of Chiapas. Approximately 2500 peasants (mostly indigenous men of Mayan descent) had mobilized against the Mexican government. The violence sparked world wide interest in the human rights of Mexican Indians. Ten days later, as the EZLN retreated into the jungle, an international audience remained captivated by the struggle. The Mexican Army did not advance. The EZLN refused to lay down its arms. Within the year, the Mexican economy collapsed. Soon thereafter, President Salinas went into voluntary exile amidst charges of high crimes against the state. Was it just a coincidence that the rebellion coincided with the implementation of NAFTA? Did the treaty really present such an enormous threat to Mexico's underclass? Did NAFTA contribute to the nation's political problems? The following thesis answers these questions. It is the product of years of travel and study throughout Chiapas and Mexico, both before and after the rebellion. The intricacies of the relationship between NAFTA, the Mexican government and the EZLN are revealed. The government's position and rebel demands are reconcilable. This is an important conclusion. But Mexico is a poor country embroiled in a rebellion to the south as well as a precarious economic treaty with the world's wealthiest nation to the north. In addition, the EZLN has come to represent the world's beleaguered poor in an era of free trade. As Mexico's past and present are explored, conclusions about the country's future have implications that go beyond NAFTA. / Graduation date: 2000

The purpose of this study was to determine whether Alexander Astin's Theory of Student Involvement could be applied to an academic experience in an overseas setting. Using data collected from the program evaluations of 79 students who had participated in the Oregon University System exchange program in Lyon, France during a five year period, 14 research questions were formulated and their attendant hypotheses were tested. These questions asked about the relationships that existed between pairs of variables from the following list of six: extracurricular involvement, overall program satisfaction, housing satisfaction, residence hall satisfaction, academic achievement, and language level. The hypotheses for variable dyads, which had academic achievement as one of the components, were tested using regression analysis. All other hypotheses were analyzed using the Pearson's chi-square test. A P-value of .05 or less indicated a significant relationship between the two variables of interest. Only one significant finding, that the relationship between extracurricular involvement and language level is not independent, was proven in this study. The cross-tab display associated with the chi-square test for this hypothesis indicated that students in the higher language level group (Direct Exchange) were more involved in extracurricular activities than were the lower language level group (Institute) students. Although not statistically significant, three other findings of interest were discovered. These were: the relationship between extracurricular involvement and overall program satisfaction, the relationship between extracurricular involvement and housing satisfaction, and the relationship between overall program satisfaction and housing satisfaction. Based on this study alone, one could not conclude that Astin's Theory of Student Involvement is applicable in a study abroad program. The researcher suggests several possible reasons for this conclusion and makes recommendations for further research. / Graduation date: 1999

Researching what I believe to be exclusionary practices in higher education against African Americans has compelled me to approach this subject, in part, historically. Although I realize that a historical chronology of any subject is often deceptive, as with any writer, I am tempted to interpret events to fit my reality. However, my interest goes far beyond the matter of setting a historical record straight. I am far more interested in investigating reasons why there seem to be structural barriers erected against African Americans in higher education. For many, the answer is simple. They say that it is racism, pure and simple. However, I propose to show that it is more than racism. I contend that higher education is the source and disseminator of the theoretical concept of race and consequently of racism. I contend that once a theoretical concept, such as "race," has been socially and educationally constructed, all questions henceforth can be designed and narrowed down to a perpetually tautological construct called knowledge. In this dissertation, 1 will refer, metaphorically, to the concept of "race" as being an incurably malignant pathological paradigm that has been nurtured in higher education and passed on as knowledge. Based on this pathological paradigm, I will explore how higher education has portrayed African Americans as an inferior paradigmatic archetype. / Graduation date: 1999

Thirty households were randomly selected to examine intra-household gender differentials in work roles and distribution of resources, between adult men and women, and boys and girls. Work related activities were assessed by time used in agricultural work, household work, and income generating work. Distribution of resources was assessed by expenses on clothing, education, and medical care. A significant difference was found in the amount of time spent in agricultural work by men and women, with women contributing more. Women were also found to contribute significantly more time in household work. In income generating activities, men were found to spend significantly more time than women. However, in the total time spent in work related activities, women spent significantly more time than men. The difference in the amount of money spent on clothing for men and women was found to be significant, with men receiving the larger share. The difference in medical care expenses between men and women was not significant. However, directional difference showed that women received less. Although, no meaningful analyses of children could be performed because of sample restrictions, the regression results showed women contributed significantly more than men, and girls contributed significantly more than boys in agricultural work. Similarly, women and girls contributed significantly more time than men and boys in the household work. The regression results also showed that men and boys received significantly more money for clothing than women and girls, and boys received significantly more money for education than girls. Similarly, men and boys received significantly more money for medical care than women and girls. / Graduation date: 1998