Political Science electronic theses and dissertations (MU)
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The items in this collection are the theses and dissertations written by students of the Department of Political Science. Some items may be viewed only by members of the University of Missouri System and/or University of Missouri-Columbia. Click on one of the browse buttons above for a complete listing of the works.
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Item From shadows to spotlight : the power dynamics behind transitional justice choices(University of Missouri--Columbia, 2025) Dalmas Araujo Paula, Bruna; Krieckhaus, JonathanWhat determines the choice of a transitional justice method? While the literature extensively covers the theoretical framework of transitional justice and its practical impact on human rights protection and the consolidation of democracy, it remains unclear how different forces interact in shaping accountability measures. Specifically, why do different countries adopt varied approaches, such as amnesty versus truth commissions? This paper examines the key determinants of transitional justice mechanisms. I argue that both a strong civil society and powerful armed forces play significant roles in these processes. By analyzing all countries with an authoritarian past using a fixed-effects model, I demonstrate that the strength of these actors significantly influences the likelihood of these events. Ultimately, this study emphasizes the importance of considering the interplay between these key actors to fully understand the dynamics of post-conflict accountability and the adoption of transitional justice measures.Item The legislative career of Champ Clark(University of Missouri--Columbia, 1933) Bevington, Ethel Elizabeth"Champ Clark, christened James Beauchamp Clark, was born in a Kentucky farm cottage on March 7, 1850, in the town of Lawrenceburgh, some sixty-odd miles from Louisville. His was a typical pioneer home, a small structure with low ceilings and rough clapboard finishings. His father, John Hampton Clark, was a New Englander who had migrated to Kentucky. Although a member of a distinguished family, John Clark had been overcome by adversity, and occupied a relatively humble position in life. A. wagon-maker by profession., he was also a dentist, a singing master, and a student of current affairs. Champ Clark's mother, Aletha Jane Beauchamp, a daughter of one of Kentucky's prominent jurists, died at an early age, leaving two children, Champ and Elizabeth."--Page 1.Item Growing pains : child marriage and immigrant integration in the United States(University of Missouri--Columbia, 2025) Stetler, Natalie; Reeder, Bryce W.What is the impact of originating from a country with high rates of child marriage on the economic integration outcomes of female immigrants residing in the United States? Using data collected in the 2018-2022 American Community Survey (ACS), I examine the consequences of originating from countries with child marriage on educational and economic integration outcomes to highlight the post-migration effects of pre-migration gendered experiences, specifically structural inequality. There is significant literature suggesting life-long economic challenges for victims of child marriage, including poor health outcomes, lack of formal education, lower lifetime earnings, and high levels of poverty. Countries with child marriage also tend to heavily restrict the economic empowerment of women, including their access to education and work. While the consequences of child marriage are well known, less is known about how originating from a country where it is the cultural norm shapes immigrant integration outcomes. I argue that originating from a country with high rates of child marriage will negatively impact the economic and educational integration outcomes of female immigrants. Two linear regressions provide support for my theory. This study contributes to the growing immigrant integration literature seeking to understand the significance of pre-migration experiences, intersectional feminist literature highlighting the gendered nature of migration, and human rights literature seeking to demonstrate the lifelong effects of child marriage.Item Democratic representation : the immigrant American case(University of Missouri--Columbia, 2024) Rovelo, Aime; Landgrave, Michelangelo; Squire, PeverillDescriptive and substantive representation links have been found for minority groups such as women and various racial/ethnic minorities. Extant research has not examined whether the link exists for other minority groups, such as immigrant Americans. I ask if legislators with recent immigrant heritage play a disproportionate role in providing substantive representation--in the form of immigration and alienage bill sponsorship--to immigrant Americans relative to their non-immigrant colleagues. This form of substantive representation captures a legislator's involvement with this policy area over others, not whether the policy is 'pro-' or 'anti-' immigrant. I tested this theory for the 2023 regular sessions of eight states where the top migrant group to the U.S. has settled and where immigration activity and policy are salient. Using an original dataset of legislators' public immigrant heritage information gathered from official websites and newspapers, I use Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) regression to test my hypotheses. The dyadic representation results show that an individual legislator's recent immigrant heritage cannot predict a legislator's shares of sponsored immigration and alienage legislation, except in Nevada. The state-by-state results indicate a single legislator with recent immigrant heritage is not enough, and neither are a few legislators, to substantively represent migrants. In other states, other factors mattered more than recent immigrant heritage in predicting whether a legislator would represent migrants through policy representation. Despite the individual-level results, collectively, when these legislators serve in legislatures with the highest shares of legislators with recent immigrant heritage, they sponsor more immigration and alienage legislation than their counterparts. I also examine substantive representation by non-descriptive representatives of other historically excluded backgrounds (i.e., women and racial/ethnic minorities). Individually, these legislators do not have an inclination or reservation for providing policy representation for migrants. The exceptions to this result were Black legislators, Democrats, and legislators representing districts with majority-minority voting-age populations (VAPs). Still, collectively, both legislatures with the highest shares of racial/ethnic diversity and legislatures with the highest shares of women had legislators who provided less policy representation for migrants than predominantly white legislatures and predominantly male legislatures.Item Progress in State administrative reorganization in Missouri since the report of the State Reorganization Commission of 1955(University of Missouri--Columbia, 1960) Botner, Stanley Benton"More than six years have elapsed since January 1955 when the State Reorganization Commission of Missouri submitted its report containing 112 recommendations to improve the organization and operation of Missouri state executive agencies. The purpose of this study is to ascertain the extent to which those recommendations have been implemented, and to examine other recent changes in agency organization and operations."--Introduction.