Law, Politics and Society

In a new documentary, a professor of sociology at the University of Kansas weaves together personal testimony, historical analysis and creative artistic expression to illuminate the layered realities of racial trauma in AAPI (Asian American Pacific Islander) communities.

Stephen Ware, a University of Kansas professor of law, has written the book “Principles of Negotiation, Mediation, and Other Processes of Dispute Resolution,” a book aimed at helping law students and practitioners understand how to negotiate, the different approaches and why it’s a vital skill.

Newly released data on The Care Board will expand the type of data and methods available for understanding the care economy in the United States. Developed by researchers at the University of Kansas, the Care Board publishes statistics from several high-quality sources to show the magnitude of care work inside homes and care jobs as a share of the national economy.

In a new scholarly article, Nathan Wood, associate professor of history at the University of Kansas, describes how after soldiers and poachers killed the last free European bison, Polish naturalists worked with international organizations following World War I to revive the species from the few animals scattered on estates and zoos across the continent.

Andrew Torrance, a professor of law at the University of Kansas, has published research on how kissing, one of the most basic human acts and a sign of love, has been viewed alternately as property that can be stolen, a contract, a criminal act or as agency over one’s own body. His article was published in the journal Evolution and Human Behavior.

Christopher Etheridge and researchers in KU’s School of Journalism & Mass Communications conducted two studies with citizens of India gauging their media literacy and online behavior. The studies found the higher a person’s media literacy was, the higher their trust in democratic institutions. How and what types of social media they used also predicted how civically engaged they were as citizens.

Raj Bhala, University Distinguished Professor of Law at the University of Kansas, has published a new scholarly analysis examining how the rule of law is defined in Shakespeare's “Measure for Measure.” Developed during a sabbatical at three universities in England, the paper is part of a series exhibiting how Shakespeare can illuminate several legal matters, according to Bhala.

Meggie Mapes, a communication studies researcher at the University of Kansas, has found in a new study that rhetoric around the #MeToo movement often focused on punishment and "carceral feminism" instead of causes of gender-based violence. The work shows how punishment is a common part of communication in society, the author argues.

In a new article, Jack Zhang, associate professor of political science at the University of Kansas, finds that the People’s Daily newspaper has reduced foreign news coverage during President Xi Jinping’s administration, suggesting such coverage is influenced more by domestic politics than by China’s growing international interests.

In a new scholarly article, Kevin Mullinix, associate professor of political science, finds Christian nationalism shapes beliefs about who is most deserving of punishment in society in ways that are contingent on the identity of the offender and victim — and the extent to which the crime violates particular norms.