Tag: Sociology

Exploring the Effect of Social Media Popularity Metrics on Curiosity

Presenter: Erica Waldron – Psychology, Sociology

Faculty Mentor(s): Dare Baldwin

Session: (In-Person) Poster Presentation

Social media inundates us with information about popularity; for example, social media posts are accompanied by a number of likes and comments. Dubey and colleagues (2020) recently demonstrated that such indicators of popularity influence people’s curiosity to learn more about specific topics. If so, this is one unexpected, beneficial side effect of social media popularity metrics. However, the way in which they manipulated popularity via Reddit-like “upvotes” may have introduced a confound into their findings. In particular, people were asked to report about an item’s popularity immediately before reporting on their curiosity regarding that item. The immediate juxtaposition of these two questions may have led participants to assume that popularity was relevant to curiosity, thereby creating what is called a demand characteristic that contaminated their findings. My thesis research attempts to replicate Dubey and colleagues’ research while avoiding this potential demand characteristic. People rated curiosity first and were asked about popularity only at the end of the survey. Analyses on preliminary findings modeled after Dubey et al. suggest that their findings are not replicating. That is, people are no more curious about items with a high number of upvotes than those with a low number of upvotes. To the extent that my full data set is consistent with this non-replication, these new findings bring into question whether popularity has any relationship to curiosity.

Detaining Democracy: Totalitarian Implications of United States Immigrant Detention Centers

Presenter: Lauren Monkewicz – Sociology

Faculty Mentor(s): Matthew Norton

Session: (In-Person) Poster Presentation

This study examines healthcare violations in ICE detention centers through the critical sociological lens of statemaking. It aims to answer: do the violations that occur within these centers have an effect on the United States’ state making process? Are there any intersects between the way ICE treats detainees and the actions of a totalitarian government? To assess the nature of the state through this lens, this paper examines government reports, third party investigations, and various accounts of life as a detainee, relying on previous scholarship on typologies of the state to guide its definitions. Ultimately, this research suggests that there are totalitarian implications behind the egregious healthcare transgressions that occur in ICE detention centers. The nature of the abuse towards detainees has inherent connections to fundamental totalitarian traits, demonstrating that these actions leave a stain on the United States’ democracy.

Keywords: Totalitarianism, democratic regime, detention centers, state, healthcare

Structure-Property Relationship of Halogen bonding Supramolecular Receptors

Presenter: Faith Longnight − Chemistry, Sociology

Co-Presenter(s): Scout Trom

Faculty Mentor(s): Hannah Bates, Thaís de

Session: (In-Person) Poster Presentation

Anion receptors hold an important place within the field of supramolecular chemistry due to the vast biological impacts many anions have in biology. Our project focuses on the synthesis of various novel reversible halogen-bonding anion receptors. The investigation varies the withdrawing characteristics of substituents of charged and neutral receptors to enable a thorough structure- property relationship study. Preliminary results show that the neutral receptors have significantly lower binding strength when compared to their corresponding charged receptors. We also see that the more electron-withdrawing the substituent group, the stronger the binding for the charged receptors. We also see that the binding pocket of our receptors best fit to chloride, our target analyte, when compared to the other halide anions. Through this study, we hope to identify the key structural characteristics needed to bind smaller anions, like chloride, so that future work can include creating receptors that can bind chloride in cells. The results of this study will provide fundamental knowledge of the most efficient way to modify receptors for an optimal binding moving forward in the field of halogen-bonding supramolecular sensors.

Reforming the Self and Re-Forming the Other: Revisiting the Political Potential of Baldwin’s Fiction

Presenter: Kyra Lauersdorf – English, Sociology

Faculty Mentor(s): Katherine Kelp-Stebbins, Matthew Norton

Session: (Virtual) Oral Panel—Read, Speak and Act

The existing scholarship pertaining to James Baldwin tends to examine either his nonfiction essays or his fiction novels, but it rarely places the two alongside each other. This project aims to bridge the schism between the two bodies of work, using the political theory that Baldwin outlines in his nonfiction as a lens through which to analyze his literary fiction. Such an analysis reveals how, in many ways, Baldwin utilized his fiction as a space in which to engage and examine his own political theory. As such, the fiction that Baldwin produced during his lifetime contains as much if not more political ideation than his nonfiction –– and warrants just as much consideration from scholars for its political potential. This project seeks to contribute to existing scholarship on James Baldwin through its interdisciplinary analysis of the author’s works. Ultimately, it argues that Baldwin’s literary fiction possesses significant potential to effect political belief changes among its readers and ought to be valued accordingly.

The Roles of Theatre and Drama in the Criminal Justice System

Presenter: Hannah Joel − English, Sociology

Faculty Mentor(s): Aryn Bartley, Ce Rosenow

Session: (Virtual) Oral Panel—Read, Speak and Act

Prisons deter the public from engaging in criminal behavior and reform the incarcerated. Despite the goal of deterrence, however, statistics reveal flaws within current U.S. rehabilitation practices. According to a Bureau of Justice Statistics study that followed 404,638 incarcerated individuals upon their release from prison, 67.8% were rearrested within three years of release. 76.6% were rearrested within five years. The alarming recidivism rates suggest that the criminal justice system is failing to properly rehabilitate incarcerated individuals and that they are not given a chance to transform their lives. The criminal justice system is overlooking a critical aspect: the importance of prison education. Theatre and drama programs are examples of prison education that can be highly effective in transforming an incarcerated individual. To analyze the roles these programs play in the criminal justice system, I researched the benefits such programs bring to the lives of incarcerated individuals. Since this is a preliminary study, I relied on the testimonies from incarcerated individuals and articles on prison education programs. These sources demonstrate that theatre and drama programs helped change incarcerated individuals’ lives by developing empathy and reflection on their deviant behavior. Recognizing the role that such programs play in the prison system is crucial in terms of understanding and considering what we can do to mitigate the chances of recidivism in the future.

The Individual: On Lesbian Lands

Presenter: Elle Hopkins − Sociology

Co-Presenter(s): Pippa Simmons

Faculty Mentor(s): Judith Raiskin

Session: (In-Person) Poster Presentation

The creation of the lesbian homeland called the OWL farm, or Open Women’s Land, happened during the second wave of feminism, a movement which lasted from the early 1960s to the late 1980s. This paper will examine why women, specifically lesbian separatists, chose to create a sanctuary for women that was completely separate from patriarchal influences, how they governed their lands, and why women wanted to visit the lands. This will be done by analyzing primary sources such as journals written by residents on the farm, newsletters published at the farm and other miscellaneous resources from the SO CLAP archival collection. This is an effort to understand why the popularity of lesbians lands peaked over two decades (1975-1995) and has decreased over time and why the views of lesbian separatism don’t fit with the modern views of feminism.

Victims’ Advocate Experiences and Perceptions on Engaging with Survivors of Crimes

Presenter: Ethan Guo − Sociology

Faculty Mentor(s): Ellen Scott

Session: (In-Person) Oral Panel—Connection and Community

The United States Criminal Justice System’s response to crimes committed against other persons relies heavily upon people who are “Victims’ Advocates”. This advocate system is what guides survivors through the process of criminal justice by working closely with survivors to ensure that they are comfortable and aware of their rights and the ways in which they are involved in a criminal case. This study utilizes multiple interviews with Victims’ Advocates, as well as supplementary interviews with survivors in order to examine Victims’ Advocates’ perception of their impact on survivor experiences with the criminal justice system. Both in general experiences as well as how specific circumstances create different environments for survivors. Interviews from advocates revealed a pattern of how survivors’ responses differ greatly across the specific type of survivor and the nature of the crime experienced. Perceived participation and engagement levels differed greatly between crimes such as: domestic violence, theft, burglary, stranger assaults, homicides, car theft. Experiences; and also varied by across the extent of impact a survivor felt their participation and engagement would have in the proceedings against the defendant. Recognition of these patterns and differences when it comes to survivor involvement can better inform our societal approaches to how organizations and their frameworks’ are better suited for the needs of survivors.

The rise of labor activity in the wake of the COVID-19 recession

 Presenter(s): Gabriel Graville – Sociology

Faculty Mentor(s): Michael Dreiling

Session: (In-Person) Oral Panel—Covering Covid

In the economic fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting recession there emerged a period of heightened labor activity. Starting in the Summer of 2021 and continuing through the end of the year multiple industries saw an increase in organized strikes and work stoppages. While heightened collective action in the workplace is well theorized in the recovery periods of a recession there was also an unprecedented rate of resignations throughout the workforce. Through a case study of both the UAW John Deere Strike as well as this wave of resignations dubbed “The Great Resignation” it is evident that there are similarities between the actions of both workers despite collective bargaining institutions having little to no role in “The Great Resignation.” As a result one can argue that “The Great Resignation” is analogous to a more organized collective labor movement despite the individualistic nature of the phenomenon.

The Bracero Program: Recordando A Estos Guerreros

Presenter(s): Monique Falcon — Sociology

Faculty Mentor(s): Julie Weise

Session: (In-Person) Poster Presentation

In 1942, the Bracero Program, a bilateral agreement between Mexico and the United States to bring in Mexican male laborers was created. This program brought over 4 million braceros to the United States and provided contracts for these men to legally enter the US and provide manual farm labor. They worked in many different states like Texas, Washington, Oregon, and California. Within this agreement, the US promised to house, feed, and protect Mexican workers’ rights. However, as the program went on, it was quickly noticed that this promise would be broken as these braceros faced harsh discrimination in the states and extremely poor working conditions, resulting in horrendous injuries. During the Summer of 2021, I had the amazing opportunity to conduct deeper research for my history professor, Julie Weise. In total, I worked 8 weeks, averaging around 35 to 40 hours a week combing through documents and listening to prerecorded interviews with former braceros via the Bracero History Archive. These braceros endured hip injuries, concussions, sore and cracked feet, dehydration from going hours without water breaks, sunburns, and in some cases, were diagnosed with cancer due to lack of protection from toxic pesticides. This is an extremely important piece of US history, yet it is hardly talked about as much as it deserves to be. It is extremely important to remember these braceros and give credit to all their hard work and sacrifices, and acknowledge our mistakes.

A is for Adderall: Moralizations of Illicit Prescription Stimulant use in College

Presenter: Katherine Clarke − Sociology

Faculty Mentor(s): Matthew Norton, Jessica Vasquez-Tokos

(In-Person) Oral Panel—Sex, Drugs, & Music

With some brands receiving FDA approval starting in 2002, prescription stimulants, commonly referred to as Adderall, have been considered by the many they’ve been prescribed to as a life- changing drug that has supported individuals in better managing their everyday lives through addressing the chemical implications of ADHD. Soon after they became widely prescribed, stimulant prescriptions continued to not only gain popularity within the medical field but also recreationally. Colloquially known as “the study drug,” throughout the 21st century illicit prescription stimulant use has become increasingly popular amongst university students. However, unlike other substances seen on college campuses, Adderall is one of the only drugs associated with productivity when taken recreationally. In examining how various social groups and processes determine the cultural boundaries of acceptable versus unacceptable illicit prescription stimulant use, I argue that Adderall’s position on the moral spectrum of drug use is much more liminal than it is commonly understood to be. This paper then explores how social understandings of pleasure and productivity function to determine the acceptability of Adderall use, leading to new conceptualizations of how recreational use is culturally defined. To understand this I observe the influences to use, methods of obtaining and distributing, and contexts of taking stimulant prescriptions at the University of Oregon.