Thesis (M.S.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1970. / eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.S.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1968. / eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1967. / eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (B.A. (Hons.)) - University of Queensland, 2004. / Includes bibliography.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 2007. / Title from first page of PDF file. Includes bibliographical references (p. 275-307).

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Boston University. / Introduction Social stratification is a well documented phenomenon in sociological literature; however, there is substantial recognition that understanding of the underlying principles is inadequate and incomplete. There is often confusion of general and specific types of stratification, and the most widely accepted stratification indices are based on studies of old, stable, and integrated communities. In the light of these limitations, there is an expressed need for (1) the investigation of various kinds of communities and (2) greater precision in defining the types of stratification studied. A socially heterogeneous, low income housing project, fictitiously designated Project HH, was selected as the field of study because a review of the literature did not reveal any such population as having been previously investigated. Using as a point of departure Max Weber's conceptualization of the three orders of stratification as manifested in political power, economic power and social status, this research confined itself to the question of social status. [TRUNCATED]

This qualitative study explores the experiences of single women in Hong Kong from contextual and developmental perspectives. Thirty single women were interviewed using a feminist approach. The findings of this study indicate that single women face some different but also some similar developmental tasks as do married women. They fulfil developmental tasks of working, establishing friendships and securing accommodation. The women also experience stresses arising from singlehood and from their work. An individual woman's appraisal of the situation was significant in determining whether singlehood or work were or were not stressful. Singlehood, instead of being a problem to a woman, might be regarded as a challenge. Single women in this study reveal that they enjoy their lives outside the confines of marriage. They have social support and their participation in employment has enhanced their social status and independence. The experiences of single women in this study are also closely related to their experiences in the wider social environment: with their family members, friends, colleagues, and church-mates, and in their socio-cultural context. Their perception of the attitude of those in these different parts of the social environment had in one way or another, significantly affected how they felt about themselves as single women and how they saw their role in their own family, their work place and their social network. Most of the women perceive the general social attitude toward singlehood to have changed towards being more liberal in Hong Kong nowadays. Not all the women, however, feel well accepted by their immediate social circle or society. Emphasis in this study was also placed on how the single women cope with being single. Patterns and themes identified are illustrated by narrative data.

This thesis examines the effect of ethnicity on assessments of achievement outcomes, and presents a theoretical explanation using Foschi's reformulation. The reformulation integrates aspects of attribution theory and status generalization theory. It proposes that when a higher status performer and a lower status performer are equally successful at a task, the success of the former will tend to be attributed to ability more than the success of the latter. Also, when the two performers are equally unsuccessful at a task, the performance of the lower status person will tend to be attributed to lack of ability more than the performance of the higher status person. The propositions are tested for ethnicity by collecting evidence from attribution studies dealing with ethnicity and assessment of performance outcomes. The findings indicate that there is substantial support for the propositions. Since these have not been directly tested, an experiment is proposed. In the final section of the thesis a standardized experimental format such as the one used in expectation states research is presented. / Arts, Faculty of / Anthropology, Department of / Graduate

Denna studie undersöker socialt statusskapande hos institutionaliserade äldre på tre kommunala äldreboenden i Stockholmsområdet. Tidigare forskning tyder på att ålderdomen är förknippad med rollförluster och stora förändringar i de äldres sociala liv. Inträdet till äldreboendet innebär en ny social arena där tillgång till tidigare erhållna statusmarkörer är begränsad, vilket skapar en neutralisering sett till tidigare social status. Den nyinflyttade står inför utmaningen att lyckas tillskriva sig social status inom den grupp och den kultur som är etablerad på äldreboendet. Syftet med studien är att undersöka denna statusneutraliserande process samt hur social status uttrycker sig hos de boende på äldreboenden. Det empiriska materialet har samlats in genom tre fallstudier och består av semistrukturerade kvalitativa intervjuer med nio respondenter mellan åldrarna 76 och 94 år. Materialet har analyserats utifrån Erving Goffmans teorier om team, roller och framträdanden, Gary Fines och Randall Collins teorier om gruppkänsla och interaktionsritualer samt Arlie Hochschilds teorier om känsloarbete. Resultatet tyder på att inträdet till ett äldreboende är förknippat med en förlust av tidigare roller och sociala arenor samt en begränsad möjlighet att skapa nya. De boende försöker återskapa tidigare roller med hjälp av ett återberättande om dessa för andra boende, en process som försvåras av ålderdomens bördor och hälsoproblem. Äldreboendet som institution underlättar det sociala statusskapandet hos de äldre med såväl fysiska som sociala åtgärder men logistiska begränsningar leder till att interaktionsnivån är limiterad. Slutsatsen är att inträdet till ett äldreboende i kombination med tidigare åldersrelaterade rollförluster leder till en neutralisering sett till tidigare status. Återskapandet av denna status underlättas av äldreboendet som institution men begränsas kraftigt av majoriteten av de boendes bristande hälsa.

The hypothalamic-pituitary-interrenal (HPI) axis in fishes controls the production of cortisol in response to a stressor. To study HPI axis regulation during chronic stress, pairs of juvenile rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) were allowed to form dominance hierarchies. Subordinate trout experience chronic social stress associated with a sustained elevation in circulating cortisol levels. Circulating cortisol levels reflect the balance between negative feedback regulation of the HPI axis and cortisol clearance, both of which lower cortisol levels, and cortisol production via HPI axis activation. The capacity for negative feedback and cortisol clearance appeared to be intact in subordinate fish, based on the rapid decline in cortisol after cortisol injection or during recovery from social stress. In addition, corticosteroid receptor transcript and protein abundances throughout the HPI axis did not differ between dominant and subordinate trout. Elevated transcript abundances of 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 2 (11βhsd2) in the preoptic area (POA) and pituitary of subordinate fish suggested an enhanced role for this cortisol-inactivating enzyme during chronic social stress. Steroidogenesis occurs in the interrenal cells of the head kidney, and appeared to be a primary driver of increased plasma cortisol levels in subordinate trout. Transcript abundances of the HPI axis effectors corticotropin releasing factor (crf) and pro-opiomelanocortin (pomc) were not elevated in the POA or pituitary, respectively, of subordinate trout. However, rate-limiting components of head kidney steroidogenesis were elevated, including steroidogenic acute regulatory protein (star) and P450 side chain cleavage enzyme (p450scc). A novel finding in the head kidney was increased transcript abundance of steroidogenic factor 1, which regulates steroidogenic enzyme transcription in mammals. Accordingly, head kidney preparations from subordinate trout exhibited increased basal cortisol production in vitro. Despite this elevation in basal steroidogenesis, subordinate rainbow trout demonstrated attenuated cortisol production in response to stimulation by exogenous adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) both in vivo and in vitro. A similar attenuation was observed with cAMP, suggesting that impairment of acute cortisol production arises downstream of cAMP in the ACTH signalling pathway. The regulation of crf in the POA during chronic social stress was probed in more detail by measuring the abundance of selected microRNAs (miRNA) predicted to target and reduce crf or 11βhsd2 mRNA, but these were not found to play a role. Methylation of the crf promoter revealed significantly decreased methylation at two loci in dominant trout, but the functional significance of this methylation pattern requires further study. Collectively, the present thesis used an array of experimental approaches to provide a comprehensive picture of HPI axis regulation during chronic social stress in rainbow trout.