Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: Sociologists have documented that networks influence market exchange through improved matching and vouching. Here, I propose that networks can also blunt the signal of market participation, as actors who are on the market surrounded by their network are pooled together with those who use networks for other reasons. To control the clarity of that signal, actors would like to choose whether to appear with their networks on the market. However, reality puts restrictions on their ability to do so. On-line social networks, where actors can always appear with their networks, alleviate these restrictions and make the pooling effect stronger. The consequences of greater pooling on-line differ by exchange type. For example, they are positive for actors who are looking for a job, but are already employed, and so cannot be seen as looking. By pooling themselves with actors who are using on-line networks to utilize their social capital better, the employed job seekers can be on the market, while claiming that they are not. However, the greater pooling has negative consequences for actors who are single and earnestly looking for a spouse. In this market, it is important to signal capacity for commitment, so greater pooling of those who are there only for their friends with those who are ready to commit works against the latter. Data used to derive these arguments come from an extensive qualitative research project with various on-line social networks, recruiters, employees, as well as those who are looking for a job or for a relationship.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript

Publication Type: Roundtable
Abstract: Teachers recognize that students have different learning needs. Effective professional development on differentiation might make all the difference to help teachers develop instruction that serves the needs of diverse learners.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: Scholars across several disciplines have heavily debated the validity of Afrocentricity. Some critics propose that Afrocentricity is simply a vehicle for promoting racism, while others contend that it stands on weak or fabricated theoretical grounds. However, in the wake of these often-heated debates social scientists have begun to move beyond argumentative discourse to build observable evidence regarding the viability of Afrocentricity to solve social problems plaguing the black community. In an attempt to contribute to the scholarly discussion, I investigate the impact Afrocentricity has on volunteer participation and involvement. Using a national probability sample of 406 black respondents, I initially test the correlation between respondents’ self-identification with an African ethnicity and their reported behaviors and attitudes that are congruent with five Afrocentric constructs, spirituality, purposeful living, collectivism, tolerance and empowerment. Next, logistic models are built to regress five measures of volunteer participation and involvement on self-identification with an African ethnicity, the only significantly correlated construct, empowerment, and a set of control variables. The findings reveal that an African ethnic identity is unable to predict any measure of involvement and participation. However, the empowerment construct significantly predicts a respondent’s interest in local affairs and national affairs, as well as community involvement. Although the results do not resolve the debate surrounding Afrocentricity, they urge its proponents to clearly understand the impact Afrocentricity has had on behavior and rigorously test their assumptions regarding its efficacy in solving social problems.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: When Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf coast and New Orleans in 2005, the disaster laid bare a long history of racism, classism and gender discrimination as it became clear to anyone paying attention that all people did not have equal access to vital recovery resources. While the disaster threw us back in time, the organizing since Katrina has catapulted us forward, with activist strategies that both draw upon the race and class consciousness of the 1960s and the insights of multiracial feminism while extending a reach transnationally. In this paper we draw upon W.E.B. Du Bois’s ([1903], 1970) scholarship on double consciousness, Gloria Anzaldúa’s (1987) work on mestiza consciousness, and Darlene Clark Hine’s (1995) concept of “culture of dissemblance” as conceptual tools for understanding the complexity of recovery after Katrina. We then discuss the 2007 International Tribunal on Hurricane Katrina and Rita as an unprecedented and transformative meeting and model of organizing. We conclude with multiple reasons why sustained attention to rebuilding remains vital for activists and scholars.