Tag: Patricia Gwartney

Senior Honors Thesis on Attitudes Toward Gay Marriage

Presenter : Daniel Schwartz

Mentor : Patricia Gwartney

Major : Sociology

Poster 41

A majority of Americans have been opposed to same-sex marriage since public opinion polls first began asking about it in 1988. However, beginning in 2010, attitudes in support of same-sex marriage began to outweigh opposition. This senior honors thesis helps explain why and how Americans’ attitudes have shifted toward greater support for same-sex marriage. I also thoroughly examine the homophile movement, and propose that without it being so robust, Americans’ attitudes would remain largely opposed today. I relied on existing data from the General Social Survey. My hypothesis was that age cohort would be the strongest determinant of one’s attitude toward same-sex marriage, and my findings supported my hypothesis. While previous literature has examined the strong impacts the homophile movement has had on the public, it has not empirically examined the correlates of the shift in attitudes. Additionally, my research contributes to the dialogue on same-sex marriage as a currently contentious civil rights issue. Homosexuals are the only minority groups that do not enjoy the same marital rights as non-homosexual minority groups. But considering the recent legislative attention same-sex marriage has received, it is likely that homosexuals will soon be granted the right to wed.

Speed Dating Lady Justice

Presenter: Samantha Lowery

Faculty Mentor: Patricia Gwartney, CJ Pascoe

Presentation Type: Oral

Primary Research Area: Social Science

Major: Sociology

Speed Dating Lady Justice, this thesis examines the predictive devices attorneys use to remove jurors due to shortened selection process in petit trials. This study examines how weight, age, and class are used alongside
the master traits of gender and race to select individuals to be excluded from serving as jurors. The ideal jury is a randomly selected cross section of community members. Their role is to judge the accused, fairly and without bias. The extent to which attorneys remove jurors out of their own biases not the biases of the jurors. A multi-method approach was used, ethnographic research and in-depth interviews. Juries who are selected by using predictive devices can cause bias jurors and faulty convictions.