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The Impact of Architecture and Its Applications to Prison Design
Get PDFThesis advisor: Marius StanArchitecture is frequently viewed as “frivolous” and is thus not considered a serious political issue that deserves attention and funding. However, this view is too reductionistic and is consequently misguided. In this paper, I argue that architecture has a significant impact on human life and therefore deserves more consideration in public policy, which I then apply to the issue of prison design. I also posit architectural guidelines based on Heidegger’s conception of dwelling, as well as on architecture’s ability to facilitate psychological comfort and moral improvement.Thesis (BA) — Boston College, 2022.Submitted to: Boston College. College of Arts and Sciences.Discipline: Departmental Honors.Discipline: Philosophy
Is Inclusionary Zoning Inclusionary: A Study on the Racial and Socioeconomic Impacts of Housing Policy
Get PDFThesis advisor: Geoffrey SanzenbacherRacial housing discrimination in the United States has created systemic segregation which precludes black Americans from living in the well-resourced suburbs of their white counterparts. Certain housing policies such as inclusionary zoning (IZ), a policy that offers real estate developers incentives in exchange for the creation of affordable housing, seek to counteract these injustices. Research on inclusionary zoning thus far has proven the policy’s effectiveness in providing low-income groups access to high-performing schools in low-poverty neighborhoods, increasing children’s academic and long-term economic outcomes. However, sparse research exists which examines if inclusionary zoning provides access to low-poverty settings specifically for black Americans, a goal that should be a priority for housing policies intended to make communities inclusive. Using data on inclusionary zoning policies from the Lincoln Institute and IPUMS NHGIS decennial census data, this study employs a difference in difference regression to analyze the changes in racial and socioeconomic composition of 420 jurisdictions across the United States as a result of their implementation of an IZ policy. This paper finds that while the effects on a jurisdiction’s socioeconomic makeup are minimal, the implementation of an inclusionary zoning policy does significantly increase the percentage of black residents. When controlling for policy characteristics (i.e. whether a policy is mandatory, and what range of income it serves), IZ policies can increase the percentage of black residents by more than 0.8% over 10 years. However, this study also finds that when IZ policies are implemented voluntarily, without regard to the income range served or the location of the affordable units, the policies can have an adverse effect on the black population.Thesis (BA) — Boston College, 2022.Submitted to: Boston College. College of Arts and Sciences.Discipline: Departmental Honors.Discipline: Economics
Divided Cities: Segregation and the Political Geography of Muslim Representation in Western Europe
No full textThesis advisor: Jonathan LaurenceWhat explains variation in local minority representation outcomes across Europe? I articulate a theory of residential segregation as a key driver of Muslim representation. I hypothesize that in cities where residential segregation is high, Muslims are more likely to display increased levels of descriptive representation and reduced public goods provision. Within a comparative, cross-national most-different-systems framework of England and France, I use a multi-method research design and exploit both quantitative and qualitative evidence to test these claims. I demonstrate that while segregation increases Muslims’ descriptive outcomes, it creates a population threshold, beyond which increases in segregation decrease their representation. I show, however, that the presence of Muslim councilors exerts a powerful countervailing effect on segregation’s detrimental impact on public spending.Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2022.Submitted to: Boston College. Graduate School of Arts and Sciences.Discipline: Political Science
Becoming Wholehearted: Constructing a Jewish Liturgical Asceticism
Get PDFThesis advisor: Ruth LangerThis dissertation creates a Jewish theology of asceticism focused on articulating the ideals toward which Jewish observant life is directed, a method for reflecting on the ‘ends’ of a Jewish life well lived in relationship to practice. I apply this theological asceticism to an analysis of Jewish liturgical prayer (tefilat keva), arguing that it is a desire-forming practice that causes practitioners to reimagine human flourishing and what leads to true satisfaction. My approach to this topic is modeled on a careful analysis and evaluation of the Anglican theologian Sarah Coakley’s “new asceticism” in light of Charles Taylor’s “maximal demand.” I augment Coakley’s definition of asceticism to fit a Jewish theological anthropology articulated by Rabbi Israel Salanter. I then apply this ascetic discourse to the study of the daily practice of liturgy.
The Jewish liturgical asceticism I develop draws together elements from the Catholic James Fagerberg’s liturgical theology, the Presbyterian theologian James K. A. Smith’s theories about how liturgy forms a social-imaginary, and R. Israel Salanter’s teachings on the formation of desire (ta’avah) through the practice of hitpa’alut. The dissertation ends with an application of this method for theologically reflecting on the desire forming power of a daily prayer life through a close reading of elements of the weekday morning service, shacharit.
This dissertation offers a Jewish theological account of the formative power of liturgical prayer on human desire. It also creates an approach for thinking more broadly about desire formation as a key component in the ideal goals of a normative Jewish lifestyle. This theological project will benefit communities of practice looking to better understand the wisdom of their inherited spiritual practices, educators and communal rabbis looking to commend traditional Jewish ways of life, Jewish theologians looking for an approach to discussing the ideals within Jewish life in a way that stays rooted in practice, and scholars of Jewish liturgy who are looking for methods for studying liturgy as a formative act and not merely an historical text.Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2022.Submitted to: Boston College. Graduate School of Arts and Sciences.Discipline: Theology
Critical Consciousness and Educational Leadership: A Study of White School Leaders
Get PDFThesis advisor: Rebecca LowenhauptCritical Consciousness (CC) refers to a critical theory that recognizes oppressive systems and provides those oppressed with a framework to overcome and act against these structures. Although the theory’s origin addressed illiterate adults and empowered them to become critically aware, critically reflective, and active agents of change, researchers have applied this theory to marginalized students in school and other oppressed communities. This study focused on the development of white school leaders as active anti-racist leaders using critical consciousness as a framework for this growth. Exploring white school leaders as transformative leaders - ones who become aware of their whiteness and leverage their positions to address inequities in the face of opposition - may provide a blueprint for other white school leaders. This study lends to the current research because few studies exist on critical consciousness development in white school leaders, the specific leadership strategies they employ, and the seeming effectiveness to foster critical consciousness in their schools. Ultimately, this study explored the development of critical consciousness and the leadership practices white leaders utilized to develop critical consciousness and to nurture active anti-racist educators as a praxis against inequities and oppression.Thesis (EdD) — Boston College, 2022.Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education.Discipline: Educational Leadership and Higher Education
Trust in Educational Leadership in Times of Crisis: Trust Between the Superintendent and Principals During COVID-19
Get PDFThesis advisor: Raquel MuñizTrust is never more important than during a crisis. For years, researchers have been studying trust in organizations and schools, focusing on the principal and teacher relationship and its impact on school climate. The literature has been less focused, however, on the superintendent and principal relationship—and the role trust plays within that relationship. Moreover, given the recency and continually evolving nature of COVID-19, there is little research about the actions superintendents and principals are taking to lead their school communities through this pandemic and even less research on how this crisis impacts the relational trust between the superintendent and the principal. The purpose of this study, therefore, is to examine how trust impacts the relationship between the superintendent and the principals in their district. Accordingly, this study will address the following research questions: 1) How do principals view their relationship with the superintendent and their schools during a crisis? and 2) What practices influence the role of trust in this relationship? To understand how principals view their relationships with their superintendent, as well as practices that influence trust, I conducted six interviews with five principals and the superintendent, and I observed a School Committee meeting where a principal presented on behalf of all principals in support of the superintendent. Principals highlighted how working for a benevolent, competent, and reliable superintendent over a long period of time helps them build trust in their superior while also leading a school during a time of crisis. Practices that appeared to build and sustain trust during the COVID-19 crisis and that support a trusting relationship between the superintendent and principals include length of time working together; perceived trust from the superintendent in the principals’ competence, which led to reciprocal trust; the ability to advocate for systems-wide change; and acts of benevolence. This research emphasizes that the relationship between principals and the superintendent matters. It is essential that trust is developed between principals and the superintendent to ensure a stable working environment for staff, ultimately leading to greater consistency for students during trying times in school and beyond.Thesis (EdD) — Boston College, 2022.Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education.Discipline: Educational Leadership and Higher Education
Urban School Principals' Distributed Leadership for Adaptive Change Through the Lens of Complexity Theory:
Get PDFThesis advisor: Patrick McQuillanUrban school districts' educational leaders face what seem to be an endless number of challenges, such as closing the achievement gap, enhancing student performance, building teacher capacity, creating leadership opportunities, and adapting to a student population that is changing rapidly and increasingly made up of students from low socioeconomic status backgrounds who are limited English speakers and/or English language learners. Through the lens of complexity theory, this three-year instrumental case study examined the leadership practices of two Lynch Leadership Academy Principal Fellows in relation to their leadership growth project that they determined would benefit from improvement and, as a result, would be implemented in their urban schools. Using principal and teachers’ interviews and observation fieldnotes of the professional learning communities meetings at the schools, this study chronicled the actions and behaviors of the principals and teachers through their interdependent and mutual relationships as they developed a theory of action and conducted their Leadership Growth Project, taking into account the concepts of complexity theory and the influence on the school community.
The findings demonstrate that principals, through their leadership and relationships with their teachers and their engagement in professional learning community activities, complicated and disrupted the complacency, compliance, and comfort of the teachers. The formation of a theory of action, however, which was a way for the teachers and the principals to satisfy the needs of their urban school community in response to the challenges they faced, was sparked by such disruptions. Additionally, teachers had to reconsider how they interacted with their students as a result of their capacity for self-organization at the edge of chaos. A conclusion of this research is that in order to achieve successful professional learning outcomes and emergence through adapted change that incorporate the principal's leadership, teachers must be willing to communicate practice-related issues and to offer and accept constructive criticism in an environment of disequilibrium.Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2022.Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education.Discipline: Teacher Education, Special Education, Curriculum and Instruction
Nurse Educators' Description of Ethics from a Disciplinary Perspective: A Qualitative Descriptive Research Study
Get PDFThesis advisor: Jane FlanaganAbstractPurpose/Specific Aims: A qualitative descriptive research design was employed to gain insights in how nurse educators describe nursing ethics from a disciplinary perspective and how they teach nursing ethics in a pre-licensure nursing program. The study aimed to identify how nurse educators describe ethical knowledge needed for nursing practice and how nursing ethics is viewed in relation to bio, medical and healthcare ethics.
Rationale/Significance of Study: Recent works in nursing ethics has provided some clarity about what is needed to develop nurses who are confident in using ethical decision-making in every-day practice. Nurse educators are responsible for the development of novice nurses who can effectively practice from a disciplinary perspective rooted in nursing ethics. To date, there is scant research exploring nurse educators’ understanding of what constitutes disciplinary specific ethics and impact on daily nursing practice. This study is a necessary first step to identify how nurse educators understand the ethical warrants of their profession and the ways in which this is, or is not, transmitted to nursing students.
Sample and Recruitment: Nurse educators teaching in baccalaureate nurse programs in the US were purposely recruited through the Nurse Educators Group in Facebook, with subsequent snowball sampling. The final sample consisted of 16 nurse educators who met inclusion criteria and agreed to participate in the study.
Data Analysis: Data was collected using open-ended interview questions and analyzed using conventional content analysis. Data was clustered into “meaning units” from which codes and categories were derived. Codes and categories were further reexamined several times to determine if the analysis accurately portrayed the data. The codes were then developed into themes that expressed the manifestation of the content.
Findings: Four major themes were identified during data analysis. They include: Inherent personal qualities guide nurses’ sense of professional ethics, The ethical nurse is a ‘good’ nurse as reflected in their practice, Disciplinary nursing ethics is not discernable from other ethics, and Nursing ethics education is inconsistent across schools of nursing.
Conclusions: Findings reveal there is no common viewpoint and a lack of conceptual disciplinary language of what constitutes nursing ethics among nurse educators. The research presented here suggests there is a gap in theory and practice with respect to nursing ethics in daily practice, with implications in policy, further research and nursing education.Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2022.Submitted to: Boston College. Connell School of Nursing.Discipline: Nursing
Kant's Retribution: A Framework of Punishment Consistent with Liberal Democracy
Get PDFThesis advisor: Susan M. ShellIn On the right to punish and grant clemency, Immanuel Kant attempts to resolve a potential paradox in social contract theory. The government is the political authority tasked with execution of the rule of law. On the one hand, the execution of the rule of law is consensual and meant to serve the individual citizen. On the other hand, the execution of the rule of law requires punishment (a nonconsensual action). A consensual condition requires a nonconsensual component. This thesis analyzes Kant’s attempt to resolve this issue through his use of a retributivist framework of punishment.Thesis (MA) — Boston College, 2022.Submitted to: Boston College. Graduate School of Arts and Sciences.Discipline: Political Science
Agents of Change?: Understanding the Experiences of Women Mentors in Higher Education
Get PDFThesis advisor: Heather T. Rowan-KenyonStudies of college students’ development indicate the collegiate experience can have a negative impact on undergraduate women’s self-esteem (Zuckerman et al., 2016). Research also suggests mentorship programs that provide marginalized groups, such as undergraduate women, with faculty or administrative adult mentors have the potential to improve outcomes for the marginalized group (Crisp et al., 2017). However, it is important to consider the mentors may struggle against the same systemic marginalization they are working to help their undergraduate mentees successfully navigate. The Brazilian philosopher, Paulo Freire, built the concept of “critical consciousness” to explain how those who are oppressed come to understand the systemic nature of their oppression and subsequently seek to change the factors that lead to it (Freire, 1970). This grounded theory study sought to understand if mentors develop a critical consciousness of their own oppression through their involvement in a mentorship program designed to combat the institutionalized oppression that undergraduate women face. Nineteen interviews and two focus groups of mentors who served in the program were conducted. The following research questions guided this study: (a) How do mentors perceive that their involvement in the Summit program has impacted their awareness and understanding of institutionalized sexism and its effects? (b) How do mentors perceive that their involvement in the Summit program has impacted their motivation or ability to effect change related to institutionalized sexism? (c) In what ways have mentors enacted change on behalf of themselves or other women at the institution that they perceive to be connected to their involvement in Summit?
The theory constructed from the data suggests a varying effect of the impact of serving as a mentor in the mentorship program on participants’ development of Critical Consciousness. Participants’ progression through the components of Critical Consciousness was complex when they considered their own experiences as women at the institution. Data indicates the community of the mentorship program played a fundamental role in participants’ development of Critical Consciousness of institutional sexism at the institution.Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2022.Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education.Discipline: Educational Leadership and Higher Education