Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: This article draws together and analyzes historical, cultural and psychological research on the American South, to examine the impact of the history and culture of militarism in the South on contemporary Southern politics. Two strands of research will be explored: first, historical studies of Southern militarism, such as those of John Hope Franklin and other scholars, and second, psychological research, particularly Nisbett and Cohen’s groundbreaking (1996) study of the ‘culture of honor’ among white Southerners. The ‘culture of honor,’ commonly found among native-born white (especially male) Southerners, mandates that perceived challenges or insults never go unanswered or unpunished, lest the challenged party lose face in the eyes of peers. Politically, the implications include more hawkish positions on defense issues and greater support for governmental use of force, violence and aggression – in education, the criminal justice system and in international affairs.
George W. Bush’s actions as president have reflected these ‘culture of honor’ and militaristic values resoundingly. Not coincidentally, it now appears that the Bush II presidency is the ‘fourth wave’ of Republican partisan realignment among white Southerners, especially white Southern males. Although Nisbett and Cohen’s analysis focuses on individual insults, I argue that insults can be societal or national in scope as well. In this vein, the 9/11 attacks (seemingly unprovoked in many minds) can be construed as a colossal national insult. The Bush administration’s aggressive, accept-no-boundaries responses, on issues including the war in Iraq, rendition of terror suspects, torture and abuse of detainees, and unlimited detentions without access to lawyers, are virtually perfectly consistent with the Southern ‘culture of honor’ value system. The article concludes by discussing the implications for Southern politics, of the combination of the history of militarism in the South, the Southern ‘culture of honor,’ the 9/11 attacks and the Bush administration’s responses.

Publication Type: Paper (prepared oral presentation)
Review Method: Peer Reviewed
Abstract: Since its inception in Nisbett’s 1993 article in The American Psychologist, the concept of “culture of honor” has been used to make sense of a diverse range of cultural contexts. In this paper we return the conceptualization of culture of honor to the Southern United States in an attempt to understand the political realignment that occurred in the early 1950’s. Analysis of ANES data from 1952, 1980, and 1992 was analyzed to examine the impact of culture of honor, using a variety of operationalizations, on political opinions and voting behavior over time. Results suggest that it was not that the Democratic Party did something to offend the culture of honor that is so popular in the South. Instead, it appears that the Republican Party began to capitalize on and exploit it. We are still seeing the aftershocks of this culture’s impact today, and politicians would to do well to address it if they want to gain or retain the white Southern vote.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: Criminologists have long sought the causal mechanisms of violent crime. One of the theoretical structures to study the causes of violent criminality was a symbiosis of Wolfgang and Ferracuti (1967), Hackney (1969), and Gastil’s (1971) theories that proposed higher rates of violent crime were the result of a southern subculture of violence. Using one of the southern states utilized in prior studies on the regional subculture of violence, Arkansas, this study attempted to explore Gastil’s thesis by disaggregating our methodological reach from all states to focusing on just one. As well this study examined the situational effects of the availability of alcohol on violent crime in relation to the southern subculture of violence thesis. In Arkansas, there are wet counties that can legally distribute alcohol, dry counties that do not allow distribution of alcohol in any form, and intermediate counties that have a minute number of sites which serve alcohol. This study explored the impact of the alcohol availability, structural variables, and control variables, based on Census data, of each county on violent crime rates keeping the southern subculture of violence constant. The results of this study have ramifications for both theory and policy.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Review Method: Peer Reviewed
Abstract: We construct and index to measure state policies that support lone mothers in Italy, Spain, Uruguay and Chile, and provide a theoretical framework to explain variance across the countries.

Publication Type: Proceeding