John Cabot University ScholarShip
Not a member yet
907 research outputs found
Sort by
The Commonsense Factor Within Children Narrratives: Commonsense As Medium To Perceive Cultural Anxieties
No full textThesis (B.A. in English Literature and Communication Studies)--John Cabot University, Fall 2017.The thesis primarily aims at portraying a panoramic view of what is commonsense and how it can be applied to children literature. More specifically, the analysis will present the conception of commonsense as defined by innatist philosophers Descartes and Thomas Reid and cultural theorist Gilles Deleuze. The texts that will be examined in detail are: Alice in Wonderland, The Wizard of Oz. The main objective of the analysis is exemplifying how commonsense is the vehicle through which we perceive and consequentially understand the cultural values and anxieties of the time in which the child narratives where produced. The thesis shows how common sense is the only means through which humans can perceive a world and its consequential environment (whether it is a fantastic world or our own world). Thus, it is by relating with the protagonist and accepting their commonsense that we perceive their cultural environment. In depth, the concept of common sense will be understood by analyzing how each protagonist of these child narratives behaves and interacts depending on the trials, tasks and characters they are confronted with. Depending on the plotline and the events that occur within the latter, common sense is be defined as applicable or non-applicable. Furthermore, the thesis will prove how often times the final outcome of a story will present common sense as a problematic theme/conception, depending on who applies it and how it is applied. Each narrative will be respectively presented to exemplify specific traits. Alice in Wonderland, will be analyzed with the objective of proving the non-applicability of common sense, and its consequential challenging, due to the scientific and logical excess within the Victorian Era. It is commonly known that the industrialization of the late 19th century society, along with many scientific discoveries, massively affected cultural ideals and beliefs, and Alice In Wonderland through commonsense exemplifies this radical change. The Wizard of Oz, on the other hand, will be used as a narrative for understanding common sense as applicable, thus as a way to perceive the new 20th century capitalist society
Artistry in Bronze: The Greeks and Their Legacy (XIXth International Congress on Ancient Bronzes)
No full textThe papers in this volume derive from the proceedings of the nineteenth International Bronze Congress, held at the Getty Center and Villa in October 2015 in connection with the exhibition Power and Pathos: Bronze Sculpture of the Hellenistic World. The study of large-scale ancient bronzes has long focused on aspects of technology and production. Analytical work of materials, processes, and techniques has significantly enriched our understanding of the medium. Most recently, the restoration history of bronzes has established itself as a distinct area of investigation. How does this scholarship bear on the understanding of bronzes within the wider history of ancient art? How do these technical data relate to our ideas of styles and development? How has the material itself affected ancient and modern perceptions of form, value, and status of works of art
ISIS: Its Emergence and ways to Combat it
No full textThesis (B.A. in International Affairs)--John Cabot University, Spring 2017.The thesis deals with understanding the emergence of the terrorist state ISIS (the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria) and its difference from previous terrorist groups such as Al-Qaeda. It will also attempt to answer the following questions: how did ISIS manage to spread in important territories in Syria and Iraq? Who finds ISIS and how does it promote its aesthetics of horror globally? How it does it make use of the most technological postmodernist aspects of the media to spread terror? The thesis will also deal with understanding the theoretical and academic explanations to its emergence so that it can offer suggested solutions to ways in which we can combat it. One of the main questions that the thesis poses: is it enough for the United States and the Western world to combat ISIS by using military force, or are there more effective and more humanitarian ways in which this terrorist group can be combatted? The thesis also poses this question: how far is the United States hegemony responsible in creating those terrorist groups that have excessive hatred for the West, socially the United States? In other words, what are the lessons that the United States can learn from the emergence of such a threatening terrorist group?The thesis deals with understanding the emergence of the terrorist state ISIS (the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria) and its difference from previous terrorist groups such as Al-Qaeda. It will also attempt to answer the following questions: how did ISIS manage to spread in important territories in Syria and Iraq? Who finds ISIS and how does it promote its aesthetics of horror globally? How it does it make use of the most technological postmodernist aspects of the media to spread terror? The thesis will also deal with understanding the theoretical and academic explanations to its emergence so that it can offer suggested solutions to ways in which we can combat it. One of the main questions that the thesis poses: is it enough for the United States and the Western world to combat ISIS by using military force, or are there more effective and more humanitarian ways in which this terrorist group can be combatted? The thesis also poses this question: how far is the United States hegemony responsible in creating those terrorist groups that have excessive hatred for the West, socially the United States? In other words, what are the lessons that the United States can learn from the emergence of such a threatening terrorist group
The Improvement of Human Rights in Prison Systems Study Case : Casa Circondariale di Roma Regina Coeli
No full textThesis (B.A. in International Affairs, Minor in Business Administration )--John Cabot University, Fall 2017.The idea of this thesis was born almost one year ago, when on January 2nd, 2017 when56 inmates died1 as a result of rival factions inside at the Anísio Jobim PenitentiaryComplex (Compaj) in Manaus. However, a significant number of prisoners notinvolved in the gang system has also been killed, either by prisoners themselves or byauthorities with the intention to stop the uprising. One of the causes that influenced theease of the uprising and the difficulty in controlling it is the overcrowding of the prison.In fact, according to the UNODC (United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime), “aftervisiting Brazil in 2015, the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture has recommended theadoption of immediate measures to reduce the overcrowding of prison units, whichfavors the spread of infectious diseases such as Tuberculosis and HIV, malnutrition anddrug use among other human rights violations.”2Unfortunately, Brazil is not the only country that encounters issues about the conditionsof prisoners and their rights. In fact, according to the testimony of the InternationalCommittee of Red Cross (ICRC), “in very diverse environments and over many years,the ICRC has witnessed first-hand the consequences of overcrowding on detainees andon the authorities. Indeed, overcrowding is an increasingly widespread problem inseveral countries and places of detention.”3 Since it is a worldwide issue, it is importantto highlight the seriousness of overcrowding conditions and its consequences.This thesis will explore the Human Rights of prisoners. First, I would like to introducethis topic by analyzing the role of prison systems as a legal punishment within thesociety. In fact, it is important to remember that prisons are not separate from thesociety, they are actually part of it. Because of this, everything that is important withina society, it is also important inside of a prison system. For instance, healthcare andappropriate living conditions should be guaranteed to prisoners in the same level it isguaranteed in the rest of the society outside prisons. Moreover, it is common to linkprison system with corruption and abuse of power by authorities. Because of this, Iwould like to understand better the relationship between prisoners and authorities, inorder to have a clear explanation about the condition of prisoners in Italy.Precisely, I am interested on which kind of prevention measures an ideal prison systemshould take in order to guarantee prisoners’ health and safety. However, a keycomponent of the prison system are prison guards. Because of this, I will take inconsideration their condition of work and how it is important in order to have aneffective and efficient prison system. Most of the time prison guards are underpaid andoverworked. Unfortunately, inappropriate working conditions leads to destabilization.In fact, prison guards become more vulnerable to corruption in order to compensate forwhat they are not receiving from the State. Corruption have a key role in this kind ofenvironment in which authorities are underpaid by the government and the prisonersobtain power through it. For instance, events such violent riots raised by prisoners isone of the most dangerous aftermaths; police officers are involved in prison escapes,allowing prisoners to run away, or to provide weapons and information to criminalgroups.Throughout my thesis I would like to analyze the average human rights conditions inItalian prisons. More precisely, I will take the prison system of Regina Coeli in Romeas study case. It is the best-known prison in Rome, active since 1881 and it is allocatedin the center of the city in the borough of Trastevere. It is curious and unusual at thesame time to know that a prison system with currently 962 detainees is located in thecenter of Rome in one of the most visited boroughs of the city. I will analyze in depthhow the prison system of Regina Coeli could be used as an example for other prisons inthe Italian territory. The prison system has a hospital inside the building since 2013with two surgery rooms. Moreover, a significant number of social activities areinvolved within the prison system of Regina Coli, such as a library, music therapy,language courses, and cultural and sportive activities are available for the prisoners.Because of this, I would like to analyze the positive outcomes of the administration ofRegina Coeli, thanks to visits to the prison system with the support of educators andauthorities of the prison institute
Virginia Woolf: Caregiving and the Fragmented Self
No full textThesis (B.A. in Art History)--John Cabot University, Spring 2017.This dissertation examines the interrelationship between caregiving and the notion of self in the fiction of Virginia Woolf. Starting from the premise that caregiving constitutes a challenge to the traditional notion of the self as autonomous, it proposes that Woolf’s depiction of caregiving evolves alongside her writing: from metaphorical death in The Voyage Out and performance or oppressive imposition in Mrs. Dalloway, caregiving becomes a powerful, enabling possibility to transcend the limits of the self in To the Lighthouse. Woolf identifies in the empowered caregiving character the solution to the fragmentation of the narrative and the isolation of the characters typical of Modernist Literature. More generally, this dissertation aims to demonstrate that, though the gendering of caregiving is problematic, the caregiving dynamic is necessary both to society and to the construction of narratives
Preventing financial statement frauds through better corporate governance
No full textActing within the agency theory theoretical framework, the paper focuses on the role of the corporate governance as a system to monitor and predict the fraud occurrence and magnitude. Specifically, the study examines the impact of the quality of the corporate governance of the firms, for which a fraud was detected, on the fraud occurrence and magnitude. We posit that fraudulent behaviours, by those who can take advantage of information asymmetry and gain personal benefits from them, can occur when strong agency problems emerge and a weak governance exists. Thus, the financial statement fraud can be seen as the result of high agency problems and high conflicts of interests not solved by the company. Starting from a sample of 101 listed companies, for which a fraud was detected, using a principal component analysis, we develop a corporate governance index, which measures the quality of the governance system of the firms. To test the hypothesis, we run a multinomial logistic regression on a cross-sectional analysis, controlling the results with a matched sample of firms that did not experienced any fraud. Empirical evidences seem to confirm the existence of a negative relationship between the quality of the corporate governance system of a firm and both the financial statement fraud occurrence and magnitude, indicating the governance system of the firm as a fraud deterrent for any amount of financial statement fraud. These findings are even stronger for firms characterized by the presence of a blockholder.
This study contributes to the governance literature by focusing on the corporate governance quality and its impact on financial statement frauds. Moreover, the analysis suggests that a good level of governance can help companies to mitigate the agency problems and to detect fraudulent behaviours, thus our empirical evidence can guide regulators in developing regulations to avoid the fraud occurrence
Eco-Cities: An Analysis of the Ecological and Social Costs of the UAE’s Masdar City and the Chinese Eco-City Projects
No full textThesis (B.A. in International Affairs, Minor in History and Communications)--John Cabot University, Spring 2017.Across the developing countries, the emerging phenomenon of the ‘eco-city’ is attracting the imagination of local and international architect to build new master-planned cities as fast solutions to pressing economic, environmental and political challenges, ranging from energy scarcity and pollution to mere need for new cities to accommodate a wave of new city dwellers. Local governments push for the creation of urban districts that will minimize pollution, maximize energy efficiency, utilize renewable energy and resources as much as possible, and provide extensive landscaping features such as public parks and many green spaces. A series of critics have negatively described these pilot experiments as over-reliant on new technology, showcases for clean-tech products, elitarian districts, and areas where sustainability is an empty label employed by stakeholders to cover unfriendly economic objectives. This thesis tries to analyze if and how the eco-cities have lived up to their original promises and I try to find out if these eco-hypotheses at the city level can be actually applied at large scale in the real world. I chose to analyze the eco-city experiments of two different countries: the United Arab Emirates and China. In particular, I looked more in depth at the UAE’s Masdar City project and the ecoproject China and Singapore collaborate on, the Sino-Singapore Tianjin Eco-City. My plan is to analyze the countries’ various projects, what they both have in common, their divergences, and see if these plans might be applicable only to a certain category of countries and why
A Tailored Compassion-Focused Therapy Program for Sexual Minority Young Adults with Depressive Symotomatology: Study Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial
No full textBackground
Lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) men and women represent one of the highest-risk populations for depressive symptomatology and disorders, with young LGB adults being at greatest risk. To date, there have been no randomized controlled trials (RCT) to specifically target depressive symptoms in young LGB adults. This is despite research highlighting unique predictors of depressive symptomatology in this population. Here we outline a protocol for an RCT that will test the preliminary efficacy of a tailored compassion-focused therapy (CFT) intervention for young LGB adults compared with a self-directed cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) program with no specific tailoring for LGB individuals.
Methods
The CFT intervention consists of 8 units with self-directed reading and activities tailored to LGB young adults, and 8 x weekly 1-hour consultations with a therapist. The CBT intervention consists of 8 units with self-guided reading and activities, with 1 x 1-hour session with a therapist at the mid-point of therapy. Fifty LGB individuals with scores of 13 or above on the Beck Depression Inventory-II will be randomized to either the CFT or CBT condition. The primary outcome measure is depressive symptomatology. Secondary outcome measures are symptoms of anxiety, suicidal ideation, internalized homophobia, self-compassion, and shame and guilt proneness. Assessments will occur at pre-intervention, post-intervention, and at 3-month post-intervention.
Discussion
This study is an RCT to test the preliminary efficacy of an LGB-tailored compassion-focused intervention for young LGB adults with depressive symptomatology. If this intervention is efficacious, this could begin to address the substantial mental health disparities amongst sexual minorities
