Date of Award
Spring 3-28-2012
Degree Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Arts (MA)
Department
Sociology
First Advisor
Griff Tester
Second Advisor
Adia Harvey-Wingfield
Third Advisor
Anthony Ryan Hatch
Abstract
After its abandonment in the 1980s, threat has re-emerged as an area of theoretical importance in understanding social movement mobilization (Jasper 1998). This case study examines the role of threat in mobilizing members of a movement to empower the Occaneechi Band of the Saponi Nation (a small tribal community in NC). The study explores threats and the emotions that make them up, while also investigating the relevance of other prominent assumptions embedded in mobilization theories. The study employed mixed methodologies including focus groups, individual interviews, and participant observation. Findings supported the idea that threats may be partially responsible for creating mobilization, but also suggest that prominent threats faced by this community complicate the ways in which threat is understood. The findings also shed light on limitations of the prominent Weber-Michels model for movement growth/decline, and highlight potential areas of interest for future research with Indigenous communities.
DOI
https://doi.org/10.57709/2755532
Recommended Citation
Jeffries, Marshall, "The Impacts of Threat and Emotions on Indigenous Mobilization: an investigation of assumptions in social movement theory." Thesis, Georgia State University, 2012.
doi: https://doi.org/10.57709/2755532