MyWillamette - Room 1 SSRD Schedule

Correctional Chaplains are a uniquely situated position in the United States carceral system–they are the only employees whose job is not primarily security-based and who routinely interact with adults in custody (AICs). The responsibilities of a prison chaplain are varied and vast, and little research has been conducted on the people and perspectives of those who provide spiritual care for incarcerated individuals. This project examines the scant and dated literature on prison chaplaincy, drawing out three core themes–caregiving under constraint, transformation, and theological dispositions–that are further explored through interviews conducted with prison chaplains across Oregon.

Faculty Sponsor: Wendy Petersen & David Gutterman
Discipline: Peace and Justice Studies

This project examines the tradition of lament in the Hebrew Bible prophets and its potential application in contemporary social justice work. In these texts, lament functions as a public naming of injustice as well as a personal expression of grief. Lament is an essential but difficult and vulnerable task that requires care. When practiced collectively, lament has the ability to become a transformative process for individuals as well as communities. With a focus on public liturgies, this project explores how lament may be used to develop and sustain contemporary movements combating authoritarianism.

Faculty Sponsor: Wendy Petersen & David Gutterman
Discipline: Peace and Justice Studies

Boycotting and buycotting – intentionally purchasing from companies because of their values or actions – have typically been conceptualized as a homogenous construct, usually dubbed political consumerism, that reflects a single mode of behavior. The present study adds to literature exploring differences in predictors of boycott and buycott. Using survey data from 250 adult participants, regression, moderation, and mediation analyses were conducted. The results show multiple key differences between boycott and buycott in moral and political predictors, as well as in the mediators of these relationships, reinforcing the need to distinguish these variables as distinct behaviors.

Faculty Sponsor: Melissa Witkow
Discipline: Psychology, IHSI Grant

When asked to solve problems, we may act on gut feelings, with inconsistent results. This raises a fundamental question in cognitive psychology: how do we recognize our mistakes, and under what circumstances can we correct them? In this study, we asked people to solve problems under time pressure. We then gave people the opportunity to revisit the problem with no time pressure. We predicted that participants who were given feedback and those who were asked to justify their responses would correct their intuitive errors more often. These results may inform theories of error correction in cognitive science.

Faculty Sponsor: Jeremy Miller
Discipline: Psychology

Centered in the criminally-controlled city of a bygone civilization, my novel blends elements of crime fiction with fantasy. It deconstructs a pervasive aspect of the fantasy genre: that magical ability is commonly inherited from birth or bloodline. Magic in this setting is a power that can be called upon by anyone; the caveat of that accessibility is excessive consumption of resources and food to maintain its abilities, breeding stratification within the world. Themes concerning how societies of merit and class disparity degrade people’s empathy and collective self-image are explored, as the novel’s protagonist evades hostility from a criminal syndicate.

Faculty Sponsor: Mike Chasar
Discipline: English

In this panel, three seniors will present work developed in the Creative Writing Senior Seminar. My Father’s Apocalypse by Arlo Craft follows Jenny, a young woman thrown into a spiral of questions when her father is diagnosed with early-onset dementia. Underbellies by Andrew Henne tells the surreal story of a punky tween navigating her hyperreligious coastal hometown. All-American Dreams, Maggie Nevala’s young adult adaptation of The Great Gatsby, plays off the conventions of the high school coming-of-age genre while incorporating some of the major themes and plot beats of its source material.

Faculty Sponsor: Mike Chasar
Discipline: English

This project examines how Preston Singletary’s work helps preserve and reinterpret Tlingit oral tradition through glass art. It argues that Indigenous cultural traditions, long minimized by colonization, continue to endure through contemporary artistic expression. Focusing on the historical and cultural relationship between Singletary, who is of Tlingit descent, and his medium, this study draws on academic seminars, published scholarships, and an interview with the artist. By analyzing both his artistic practice and critical interpretations of his work, the project explores how storytelling through visual art can sustain Indigenous tradition and affirm cultural presence.