Humanities and Social Sciences

Each summer, hundreds of Canadian post-secondary students are recruited by Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) under the Federal Student Work Experience Program (FSWEP) to become Student Border Services Officers (SBSOs). In a paid, non-union role, students act in similar capacities to full-time Border Services Officer (BSO) labour. This thesis provides an in-depth analysis of the never before examined SBSO program in an academic context. Through qualitative interviews conducted with former SBSOs, a wide range of issues were uncovered, from low wages to poor culture, in addition to the challenges and tribulations associated with the examination of insular organizations, such as CBSA.

Scholars have discussed the role of romanticism in the condescending attitudes of Upper Canadian conservatives toward Indigenous peoples but they have yet to examine its role in the political culture of settler society; specifically, as it applies to the political ideology of Tories, the group that prevailed in bustling towns and embryonic outposts alike. Weaving together intellectual history, the history of emotions, and environmental history, this article explores the romantic tradition’s salience within the mentalité of Upper Canadian conservatism. It contends that influential figures from the worlds of politics and literature repeatedly invoked aspects of romanticism over several decades in denouncing subversive phenomena and in seeking to legitimize their vision of a hierarchical society. In particular, they drew on such compelling romantic tropes as powerful emotions and the magnificence of nature in the hope of bolstering a social order predicated on elite hegemony and rank-and-file deference. This helps to shed light on one of the animating factors within the Tory tradition, a multifaceted force that, for good or ill, has played an important role in shaping Ontario’s history.

In this paper, we shed light on the question of whether it is morally permissible to enslave artificially intelligent entities by looking at up to date research from the social sciences – as well as the ancient lessons from Jewish law. The first part of the article looks at general ethical questions surrounding the ethics of AI and slavery by looking at contemporary social science research and the moral status of ‘Sex Bots’ – AI entities that are built for the purpose of satisfying human sexual desires. The second part presents a Jewish perspective on the obligation to protect artificial intelligent entities from abuse and raises the issue of the use of such entities in the context of sex therapy. This is followed by a review of slavery and in particular, female slavery in Jewish law and ethics. In the conclusions, we argue that both perspectives provide justification for the ‘Tragedy of the Master’ – that in enslaving AI we risk doing great harm to ourselves. This has significant and negative consequences for us – as individuals, in our relationships, and as a society that strives to value the dignity, autonomy, and moral worth of all sentient beings.

Offenders and crime, especially those with a violent nature, are rife within the news media. However, little research exists pertaining to these offenders who are going to be, or nearing, their release on parole. This thesis aimed to extend prior literature by conducting two qualitative content analyses. The first included a general selection of Canadian parole-based newspaper articles from 2002 to 2022 in order to create a foundation of how parole is represented in the media. The second was an in-depth analysis that drew upon articles from a male offender (Larry Takahashi) and a female offender (Joanna Larson) to compare representations based on gender. This exploration uncovered four central themes, the types of crimes published, gender of offenders, age of victims, and the usage of certain language. The results of this study revealed several implications related to community attitudes, and public policy.

Important work on alignment systems has been applied to philosophical work on joint action by Tollefsen and Dale. This paper builds from and expands on their work. The first aim of the paper is to spell out how the empirical research on alignment may be integrated into philosophical theories of joint action. The second aim is then to develop a successful characterization of joint action, which spells out the difference between genuine joint action and simpler forms of coordination based on alignment. I begin by introducing the empirical research and two definitions of joint action. I then argue that instead of using this research in conjunction with Searle’s account of collective intentionality, as Tollefsen and Dale suggest, we would be better served by applying this research to Gilbert’s account of plural subjects. In the final sections I distinguish between alignment, coordination, and joint action, clarify the roles of joint commitment and sub-personal alignment in joint action, and argue that these concepts are both consistent and mutually supportive. Combining these two research programs gives us an account of joint action that does justice to both the empirical and philosophical research.

This study used in-depth qualitative interviews from six participants to understand prison activists’ perceptions of the prison system and their strategies for enacting change. A constructionist lens was used to analyze the data with Joel Best’s (2017) social problems theory. Prisons were framed and problematized by the activists based on systemic issues of colonization, mental health and substance use, CSC misconduct, and cultural attitudes towards punishment. Lack of public awareness, and in educational environments, towards these issues led to strategies of education in order to build communities that are more inclusive, caring, and connected. Strategies like advocating for trauma informed care and connecting non- incarcerated with incarcerated were examples of community building. The activists also experienced challenges in their work with negotiating relationships - in particular, the fear of helping, frustration in managing the complexities of activism, and moving forward despite challenges in their work. Therefore, Goffman’s (1959) theory of presentations of self was another useful theoretical lens. The findings suggest that prison activists use different framing strategies depending on the context of the situation and how they want to present themselves. Furthermore, the strategic and covert methods for enacting change diverge from traditional activist methods and aim to create change at an individual level.

Since the publication of his last book-length political polemic, 'Hatred of Democracy' (2005), the work of Jacques Rancière has generally focused on developing the conceptual and historical features of his account of aesthetics. With the recent publication of his 2009 debate with Axel Honneth, 'Recognition or Disagreement?' (2016), we have good reason to return to his political thought as it is outlined in 'Disagreement: Politics and Philosophy' (1995) and related texts such as his “Ten The ses on Politics” (1998). Programmatically speaking, Rancière conceives of politics as a practice of dissensus enacted in the name of equality. But in examining the debate between Rancière and Honneth, Jean-Philippe Deranty and Katia Genel have recently sought to reframe Rancière’s account of dissensus in the terms of Honneth’s theory of recognition. Drawing on the subtitle of Disagreement, it is necessary to critique Deranty and Genel both at the level of politics and how this politics implicates philosophy. Elsewhere, I have already indicated how reframing dissensus as a form of the politics of recognition blunts the radicality of Rancière’s methodological commitments. I will not revisit these claims here. Instead, I would like to dispel the assumption that makes this “recognition” reading—as one variant of a generally liberal reading of Rancière—possible. On this assump tion, Rancière holds that dissensual speech is political action. As Deranty writes, “politics in Disagreement is a battle of justifications, mainly a battle about what counts as justification and who is entitled to proffer and expect justifications.” But Rancière’s work isn’t about how to distribute social goods and allocate duties and entitlements to such a degree that we will willingly accept inequalities in our societies. So I will argue, by contrast, that for Rancière speech functions as a me tonymy for a broader praxis of egalitarian, dissensual politics. More specifically, I will contend that Rancière’s egalitarian politics entails two forms of praxis: the symbolization of equality through dissensus and the subversion or elimination of relationships of command, coercion, or force implemented by regimes of policing.

This research study attempted to understand the mechanisms in which cultural values, acculturation status, and systemic barriers affected Asian Canadians attitudes towards accessing mental health resources. The sample of 134 students, staff and faculty affiliated with Douglas College were tasked with completing an online survey which consisted of three self-report measures, and questions regarding mental health related experiences. These measures assessed participants level of adherence to Asian American values, acculturation orientation, as well as their attitudes towards seeking mental health services. The multiple linear regression performed suggested that adherence to Asian American values were strongly predictive of scores on attitudes towards seeking mental health resources. The study also found that there were significant mean differences in attitudes toward seeking mental health resources, with participants who were more oriented towards Canada having higher scores compared to participants more oriented to their home culture. The study’s results are consistent with previous literature and contribute deeper insight into the reasons for which Asian Canadians may not access mental health resources. Implications of the study’s results suggest that shame and stigma, particularly from family, still contribute to the deterrents of care, in addition to being unaware of the pathways to care.

Early recovery from drug addiction is synonymous with strides in growth and self-awareness. One construct, recovery capital, attempts to identify changes by assessing strengths and resources available to initiate and sustain abstinence. This research sought to investigate how recovery capital changes over the course of a residential treatment. The researchers anticipate that due to the biopsychosocial nature of treatment an increase in capital will occur. Our sample consisted of residents (n = 38) at an adult men’s treatment center for alcohol and drug addiction. This study utilized a repeated measures design wherein the Assessment of Recovery Capital (ARC) was administered at two different points of a participant’s treatment. The results suggest there was a statistically significant difference between the two assessments [t (25) = 7.10, p < .001, d = 1.39]. This study concluded a residential treatment stay benefits building and maintaining recovery capital. Further research is required to investigate how recovery capital changes post-treatment and how best it can be used to support individuals through the early stages of recovery. Utilizing a control group would strengthen the claim about the influence of residential treatment upon the development on recovery capital.