Semester

Spring

Date of Graduation

2022

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Type

PhD

College

Eberly College of Arts and Sciences

Department

Sociology and Anthropology

Committee Chair

Jesse S.G. Wozniak

Committee Member

Katie Corcoran

Committee Member

James Nolan

Committee Member

Christopher Plein

Abstract

The world of American politics continues to infiltrate households across the United States as technological advancement extends the reach of breaking news and government action. With this expanding reach, communities all over the country are digesting and contemplating their place in national politics more fervently than ever. At the crux of this discussion is the backbone of political engagement and action—identity and its resulting political attitudes. For decades, partisanship has been a point of contention amongst American citizens. Cities across the nation showcase protests, demonstrations, town hall meetings, and more illustrating citizens’ care for their democratized input in government affairs. But what about those in the quieter parts of America? Until recently, rural America has been overlooked (and underseen) by the social and political sciences. This study illuminates the rural perspective on attitudes toward politics and peers as well as the role of rural identity in attitude formation. As a state with multiple kinds of rurality (suburbia, exurbia, rural farmland, small towns, and Appalachia), Pennsylvania proves worthy of its own analysis—particularly as it finds itself at the heart of political action as a battleground and swing state since the 2016 presidential election. Utilizing in-depth interviews from rural and small-town Pennsylvanians and observational data from the areas in which they live, this study explores rural Americans’ input on their individual contributions to government affairs as well as rural political attitudes and community needs/expectations from their elected officials— ultimately offering a renewed and under-considered perspective on rural identity and rural political attitudes.

Included in

Sociology Commons

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