This thesis presents qualitative exploratory research findings on the phenomenon of feederism. Feederism, also referred to as "erotic weight gain," involves people who are sexually aroused by gaining weight (called "feedees" or "gainers") or encouraging others to gain weight (called "feeders" or "encouragers"). Sometimes feederism is practiced within relationships and sometimes it is practiced alone. Respondents emphasize the importance that fantasy plays within feederism. The experiences and understandings of 30 respondents are considered in an attempt to examine how those who are interested in feederism might be stigmatized and how they may cope with having this stigma.

This thesis presents qualitative exploratory research findings on the phenomenon of feederism. Feederism, also referred to as "erotic weight gain," involves people who are sexually aroused by gaining weight (called "feedees" or "gainers") or encouraging others to gain weight (called "feeders" or "encouragers"). Sometimes feederism is practiced within relationships and sometimes it is practiced alone. Respondents emphasize the importance that fantasy plays within feederism. The experiences and understandings of 30 respondents are considered in an attempt to examine how those who are interested in feederism might be stigmatized and how they may cope with having this stigma.

This study focuses upon the experiences and perceptions of women Atheists in the Southern U.S., a region which is highly religious and, therefore, has comparatively low numbers of Atheists. Taking a Symbolic Interactionist approach, I examine how these Southern Atheists understood what it means to be an “Atheist,” how they became Atheist, their strategies to manage their stigmatized identity as Atheists, and finally the role gender has in managing this stigma. I utilize a Feminist methodology to investigate and foreground women’s experiences. I conducted participant observation at 23 Atheist and Humanist meetings in two southern cities in two different states; I also interviewed 51 Atheists, 40 female and 11 male. I found a variety of definitions for Atheism, though all participants agreed that they do not believe in god. This identity is also informed by political ideologies and philosophies that cultivate pro-social behavior. Participants also discussed what they perceived to be the best things about what it means to be an Atheist. I also examined the stages by which Atheists come to this identification especially as this relates to the importance of place and their experiences in educational, religious and family institutions and how these affected their decisions to self-identify as Atheist. Additionally, I investigated how Atheists undergo stigma management (and negative interactions) by selectively concealing their identity, which they based on what they believed others assumed about Atheists. Many strategies were used to assuage feelings of being uncomfortable. As a stigmatized group, they discuss the importance of community and social support. In addition, Atheists saw several parallels between their experiences and the LGBT community such as similar language and face prejudice and discrimination, even though they said that the Atheists can more easily “pass.” Atheist women manage their stigma by utilizing various tactics to avoid hurting the feelings of others. Female Atheists walk a fine line between being masculine and assertive when they identify as masculine and caring about the feelings of others. Participants also discussed the role gender plays in self-identifying as Atheist. Lastly, they explained that it is harder to be woman and an Atheist.

I use a mixed methods, qualitative approach to explore whether individuals become so invested in an organization that they engage in impression management to influence others’ perceptions of the organization. Additionally, I aim to reveal impression management strategies in an environment that is explicitly gendered in a transformative manner. I use roller derby as a case study because it is a rare example of a single-sex dominated organization that is voluntary and explicitly aims to be transformational of the current gender system.

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Diplomová práce "Výchova tancem. Evaluace dopadů předmětu taneční a pohybové výchovy se zabývá zhodnocením efektů předmětu taneční a pohybové výchovy, který byl před několika lety zařazen do RVP (Rámcově vzdělávací program) pro základní školy. Cílem této práce je podat přehled o oblastech, v nichž může taneční a pohybová výchova být přínosem a naopak poukázat na případné negativní nebo problematické stránky tohoto předmětu. Informace o této problematice byly získávány prostřednictvím kvalitativních výzkumných metod, tedy pomocí polostrukturovaných a skupinových interview a také metod zúčastněného a nezúčastněného pozorování v hodinách taneční a pohybové výchovy. Informátory/kami v tomto výzkumu byli lektoři/ky taneční výchovy, pedagogové/žky tříd, v nichž je tento předmět vyučován a také žáci/kyně. Největší přínosy taneční a pohybové výchovy lze shledat ve sféře sociálních vztahů, ale i v oblastech seberozvoje jedinců a rozvoje některých klíčových kompetencí. Taneční výchova například přináší potenciál pro transformaci nefunkčních kolektivních vztahů, stává se v některých případech nástrojem začlenění jedinců upozaděných nebo vyčleněných z kolektivu. Taneční a pohybová výchova také stimuluje dětskou fantazii a do určité míry může vést k rozvoji kreativních schopností u některých jedinců. Podporuje...

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Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / During the 20th century, production and labor flows across borders have increased the frequency of transnational constituted families. In the past, family configurations across borders were composed primarily of an immigrant male income-producer living apart from women and children who remained in the sending country. In contrast, in recent years more women are also leaving their loved ones behind in order to become their family’s main source of income. In many cases, women even leave their children to be cared for by their relatives. This social phenomenon is now known as transnational motherhood. In the U.S., transnational motherhood has become increasinly common, particulalry among women of Filipino and Latin American origins. The new trends of transnational motherhood, challenge mainstream western ideas about family configuration and in particular, about women’s maternal role. Whereas in Western cultures mothering is generally understood as a practice that involves the physical presence, nurturance and training of children for adulthood, transnational mothers generally choose physical separation in order to better their children material conditions. Consequently, transnational mothers may suffer as a result of social stigma and peer pressure of 'good mothering'. The present study examined the processes of meaning construction that serve to promote and negotiate motherhood identity and stigma management among Mexican mothers who left their children back in their country. In doing so, this study relied on theoretical frameworks about ideology, identity construction, social roles and stigma management.