Research on Riots, Protest, and Activism (REU Site)

University Of Notre Dame, Notre Dame IN

Investigators

Abstract

This award provides funds for an REU Site in Sociology at the University of Notre Dame. The program will support 24 students over the course of three years. The substantive focus of the Site will be centered on protest and activism with an emphasis on urban rioting and violent protest in the U.S. during the 1960s. The data driving the research are the contents of a recently re-discovered archive of data on riots, race relations, and civil rights activism in the 1960s. Very little of these data have ever been analyzed or even systematically compiled and summarized; therefore students will have the opportunity to make substantial contributions to the recently resurgent sociological literature about racial rioting and collective violence. The year-lengh program will allow sustained engagement with the research project and thereby a rich research experience. Students will begin by engaging in foundational activities such as reviewing literature and learning about how to process and interpret the specific kinds of data available to them for the project. Following this, students will develop their own research topics, write formal proposals, and compile the data necessary to complete their projects. The second half of the experience will focus on the execution of their research plans and writing of formal research reports. The Site will culminate with a mini-conference in which the students will present their work. Students will also be encouraged to submit their reports to social science conferences and to revise toward publication. This award contributes to the Foundation's continuing efforts to attract talented students into careers in science through active undergraduate research experiences.