The Senior Capstone Seminar is the culminating experience for Sociology and Family Studies majors who do not complete an internship. It requires students to successfully demonstrate an ability to apply research methods and sociological theories to an empirical research problem/question of their own choosing. The application will take the form of a written paper and presentation in a public format. This course is recommended for any students who plan to pursue further graduate study in sociology or research methods. Prerequisites: SOC 211 and permission of instructor; Pre or Corequisites: SOC 417, 422.
Recent Topics and Presentations
Courtney Rankin presents her capstone paper at the annual Scholarship Symposium on April 30, 2013.
Asset Based Community Development: Shunning Paternalism and Restoring Dignity
Mollie Tranum, Spring 2014
This paper discusses the concept of Asset Based Aid from the book When Helping Hurts , by Steven Corbett and Brian Fikkert. The case studies from this book and other studies will be examined in light of the Asset Based Aid model along with the brief discussion of paternalism and its impact. Asset Based Community Development (ABCD) and its implications on those receiving as well as those giving aid will be the primary focus as well as practical implications to those wishing to implement this model. ABCD will be explained and defined as well as the distinction between needs and asset based aid. A theoretical framework will be presented in terms of prominent theories in the fields of sociology, psychology, and social work. These theories include Saleebey's Strengths Perspective, Seligman's Learned Helplessness, Weiner's Attribution Theory, and Rotter's Locus of Control. Biblical implications as well as the author's experience of researching and implementing a proposal of a program to be implemented will be discussed in the terms of asset based community development. Further recommendations, tables of data and sample instruments such as a proposed asset based survey will be included.
A Study of Race in Christian College Promotional Viewbooks
Courtney Rankin, Spring 2013
This research completed a content analysis of photographs in Christian college promotional viewbooks and then compared the percentages of different races of students shown in the viewbook to the actual percentages of white and non-white students in the school. Along with the content analysis a series of interviews was conducted with faculty members from the schools who are associated with choosing the advertising photographs in the college's viewbooks. The results of the content analysis of race in Christian college viewbooks found that white students, as a whole, are over-represented and the non-white students are under-represented. Each of the schools are relatively accurate in the way they feature minority students in promotional material. The interviewers are in unison that their photographs do not over-represent their minority student population thus, the results of the content analysis support the marketers' beliefs about their promotional material.
Cooking Gender: Representations of Women in Women's and Food Magazines, 1950-2010
Alyssa Karr, Spring 2012
Advertisements in women's and food magazines portray social norms, responsibilities, and roles that women should obtain and employ in their daily lives. Through a content analysis of advertisements in Southern Living, Gourmet, and Good Housekeeping from 1950 to 2010, this research project reveals how advertisements depicted women in traditional or non-traditional roles throughout history. Results indicate that advertisements strongly emphasize women in traditional roles until 1980. From 1980 to 1995, non-traditional roles took precedent through the representation of women; however, after 1995, the representations of women in advertisements were substantially balanced between traditional and non-traditional roles. This fluctuating pattern indicates the delayed societal acceptance of non-traditional female roles, and the acknowledgement of unavoidable cultural changes that have occurred throughout time. While traditional roles have stood the test of time, as of 1995, non-traditional roles are also being presented in advertisements examined in this study in an equal and balanced manner.
Choice of College Major in Gender Minority Spaces
Holly Jay, Fall 2012
This research project looks at the relationship between gender and field of study in higher education, focusing specifically on students who are gender minorities in their field. Gender gaps remain high across many fields of higher education, even with the demographic shifts the college institution has experienced, namely more women receiving degrees than men. Since this is a highly complex and multifaceted social phenomenon, qualitative research will be employed. In depth interviews of both male and female students from across different disciplines with traditionally high gender gaps will allow for a rich look into the role of gender in this space. The focus will be on students who are the minority gender within their field, and conversation-based interviewing will be used to garner insight into the relationship between gender and field of study. This study will attempt to answer the question: What are significant factors in the choice of a major for those in gender minority spaces? The intent of this research study is to examine the experience of people who are the minority gender in their field of higher education at Union University, that is people who are pursuing a program of study where their gender makes up a quarter or less of the total students enrolled in that program.