Honours

Adrian Dunkerson

“I Own my Own Skin, I Can Change it How I Want to.”: Transmasculinity, Tattoos, and Taking Control.

Description:

Why do so many transmasculine people have tattoos? Being a tattooed trans man myself, noticing how every transmasculine person I know either has tattoos or wants them has sparked this question. My research investigates the role of tattoos in transmasculine gender expression through semi-structured qualitative interviews with tattooed transmasculine people. The significance of this project is to produce knowledge as a trans man in collaboration with other trans people, and to highlight trans joy in a literature dominated by research on our suffering. I believe that my research will be one of many projects that help trans people take back their own narratives within the academ

socialsciences/sociology/assets/docs/adrian-dunkerson_soci-499-honours-thesis.pdf

Rose Hudson

“There is nothing more powerful than a fat girl who doesn't give a f---k”: Gender and Body Size in Euphoria, The Wilds, and Glee

Description:

It is no secret that people today are generally larger than they have been in previous decades: according to Statistics Canada data collected in 2021, 53% of Canadians between the ages of 18 and 34 have Body Mass Indexes (BMIs) that categorize them as either overweight or obese. Despite making up about half of the broader adult population in Canada, the United States and other Western nations, discrimination against fat people continues to go unchecked throughout Western society. Anti-fat bias and stigma have harmful effects on the lived experiences of fat people in all areas of life, from how they are treated in the workplace to their ability to access life-saving healthcare. My thesis uses a critical discourse analysis framework to examine how the deep historical roots of anti-fat bias and stigma are mediated and expressed to the public via television programming, taking a particular interest in the interaction between fatness and the construction of gender in three television dramas directed towards or oriented around the lives of teenagers: Euphoria (2019-), The Wilds (2020-2022), and Glee (2009-2015).  

socialsciences/sociology/assets/docs/rose-hudson_soci-499-honours-thesis.pdf

Adele Mark

Description:

My name is Adele Mark and I am a fifth year Honours Sociology student with a minor in Global Development Studies. The goal of my honours research project is to address the impact that kindergarten through grade twelve (K-12) sexual health education has on women’s sexual experiences in young adulthood, with specific regard to experiencing sexual pleasure and navigating risks. My primary research activity will be facilitating 1-2 focus groups with a sample of university-aged students who identity as women to learn about their experiences with K-12 sexual health education. Participants will be asked to discuss how the guidance they received in sexual health programs may have impacted their future sexual relationships, their perceptions of sexuality, their experiences of sexual pleasure, and how they navigate perceived risks of sexual activity. This project will allow participants to reflect on the influence that sexual health education had on their perceptions and enactments of their sexuality. Additionally, it will offer insights for how the sexual health education curriculum could be amended to ensure that women feel safe to engage in satisfying sexual practices.

Dominica Prasad

Surveillance as a Tool of Colonial Domination: A Historical Analysis of Indian Emigration Passes Used in the British India Indentured Labour Program.

Description:

My analysis examines historical British India emigration passes used to organize the indentured labour program. I use theoretical frameworks— including biopower and racializing surveillance— to understand how the emigration passes were used to maintain colonial hierarchies between British officials and Indian indentured labourers. My research adds novel information about the historical foundations of colonial and racial surveillance which remains an important issue in contemporary society. This research is influenced by my ancestral connections to the indentured labour program.

socialsciences/sociology/assets/docs/dominica-prasad_soci-499_honours-thesis.pdf

Grace Riberio

Stories of Sustenance, Nourishment and Feasting: A case study of mutual aid and community-building efforts on Lək̓ʷəŋən Territory

Description:

Utilizing a qualitative, community-engaged approach, my research seeks to describe the community forming around Community Food Support (CFS), a grassroots mutual aid initiative combating food insecurity on Lekwungen territory. Understanding that the personal is political, my research utilizes feminist ethnographic methods to determine what draws folks to and keeps them engaged in this necessary care work, describing the salience of relationship-building, friendship, solidarity, and resistance within the space. I also seek to understand how the basic tenets of mutual aid are applied in CFS’s Deliveries program, and how these applications facilitate the building of a more supportive and just local community.

socialsciences/sociology/assets/docs/grace-ribeiro_soci-499-honours-thesis.pdf

Julia Scott

The Exclusivity of Urban Space: A Critical Case Study of 7-Eleven’s Water Drip System

Description:

My research project is a case study on the sprinkler system that was installed at a 7-Eleven location on the corner of Quadra and Yates Street. According to several news stories, this system was installed to deter people from loitering outside the store by dripping water on them. My research is looking to understand how this sprinkler system functions as an expression and escalation of current practices of hostile architecture, how dominant discourses like neoliberalism and capitalism impact the organization of urban space, and who is being impacted or targeted by this sprinkler system. Furthermore, I will be obtaining data from comments posted on this news story from Facebook and Reddit to understand how local online users have reacted to this news and if there are shared conceptualizations of this sytem.

socialsciences/sociology/assets/docs/julia-scott_soci-499-honours-thesis.pdf

Nate Shelley

Description:

My research project compares newspaper coverage of the Clayoquot Sound logging protests of with the Fairy Creek logging protests. Using a combination of content analysis and thematic analysis, I am examining the portrayal of the protesters; the tension present between the industrial demands of forestry and the growing environmental values of British Columbians; and the role of the state in moderating use of BC's forests.

Talia Shortt

The Social and Organizational Dimensions of Aviation Accidents: A Sociological Investigation into Aloha Airlines Flight 243

Description:

Hello there! My name is Talia Shortt, and I will soon graduate with my degree in sociology honours and environmental studies. This past year I have been investigating the social and organizational dimensions behind aviation accidents, with specific regard to the dramatic final flight of Aloha Airlines Flight 243. In contrast to conventional interpretations that focus on managerial wrongdoing, pilot error, and technological failure, my thesis reveals a more complex picture that shifts our attention from individual causal explanations to the overarching structures within organizations that surround and constitute aviation failures. These factors are difficult to identify and untangle yet have a great impact on the decision-making in organizations. For this reason, the revisionist history and sociological explanation my thesis presents is more frightening than historically accepted interpretations. However, we must remember that the invisible and unacknowledged tend to remain undiagnosed and therefore elude remedy. Alright, I think that covers it! I am deeply enthralled by the sociology of disaster and hope to pursue further studies in such areas! 

socialsciences/sociology/assets/docs/talia-shortt_soci-499-honours-thesis.pdf

Hannah Thon

Seeing Power, Seeing Colour: A Feminist Critical Discourse Analysis of Colorblindness
Within Academic Understandings of BDSM

Description:

When someone says ‘woman,’ what’s the first image that comes to mind? What if they were to say a submissive woman? What about a masochistic woman? In my work, I use the practice of BDSM as a backdrop to critically assess academic understandings of race, specifically the dichotomy of whiteness and non-whiteness. BDSM is a practice that eroticizes power, and with this, power structures are purposefully and explicitly expressed - including those surrounding gender and race. In my engagement with this topic, I challenge how race is seen in relation to submissive and masochistic women within BDSM, specifically how the presence of colorblindness assumes (and hides) whiteness as the unmarked ‘standard’ for all identities. So, when someone says ‘woman,’ do you think of a white woman (much of academia might)? If so, why might this be? And does it even matter? (yes!!)

Shirley Xie

Colour-Coded Labour Market Integration: A Comparative Study of Employment Outcomes Between Racialized and Non-Racialized Immigrant Women

Description:

Immigrants make up a significant portion of the Canadian labour force and play an important role in the growth of Canada as a country. However, coming to Canada with a decent education and work experience, racialized immigrants, especially women, still face discrimination which prevents them from achieving their full potential in the labour market. My research uses both quantitative and qualitative methods to examine the effect of race and ethnicity on the employment outcomes and experiences of this cohort. It explores the statistical trends about employment outcomes by race and the complex social factors underlying these trends.

socialsciences/sociology/assets/docs/shirley-xie_soci-499-honours-thesis.pdf