The Conversation

What is Haitian Voodoo?

Written by Guilberly Louissaint, Anthropology Ph.D. Student, University of California, Irvine

Voodoo believers walk during the annual Voodoo festival Fete Gede at Cite Soleil Cemetery in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.AP Photo/Dieu Nalio Chery

For many in the West, Voodoo invokes images of animal sacrifices, magical dolls and chanted spells.

But Voodoo – as practiced in Haiti and by the black diaspora in the United States, South America and...

When does trash talking work?

Written by Karen C.P. McDermott, Researcher in Communication, University of Connecticut

Boxers Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Conor McGregor engage in some verbal sparring prior to their 2017 bout.AP Photo/John Locher

The Abstract features interesting research and the people behind it.

Karen C.P. McDermott recently completed a study on trash talk, the taunts or boasts meant to intimidate or distract an opponent.

Her study was one of the...

College rankings might as well be student rankings

Written by Jonathan Wai, Assistant Professor of Education Policy and Psychology and Endowed Chair, University of Arkansas

College rankings often take student caliber into account, an analysis shows.vectorfusionart/Shutterstock.com

Each year various magazines and newspapers publish college rankings in an attempt to inform parents and prospective students which colleges are supposedly the best.

U.S. News & World Report’s “Best Colleges” –...

Trump administration revives public charge clause that kept Nazi-era refugees from the US

Written by Laurel Leff, Associate Professor of Journalism, Northeastern University

“Give me your tired and your poor who can stand on their own two feet. And who will not become a public charge," said Acting head of Citizenship and Immigration Services Ken Cuccinelli.AP Photo/Seth Wenig

During the Nazi era, roughly 300,000 additional Jewish refugees could have gained entry to the U.S. without exceeding the nation’s...

The misguided attacks on 'This Land Is Your Land'

Written by Will Kaufman, Professor of American Literature and Culture, University of Central Lancashire

Some of Guthrie's greatest champions have had difficulties with the song.Al Aumuller/Library of Congress

In recent years, Woody Guthrie’s “This Land Is Your Land” has become a rallying cry for immigrants. And in July, after President Donald Trump tweeted that four Democratic congresswomen of color needed to “go back where...

How two Islamic groups fell from power to persecution: Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood and Turkey's Gulenists

Written by Ahmet T. Kuru, Professor of Political Science, San Diego State University

Mohammed Morsi, Egypt’s first-ever democratically elected president, died unexpectedly during a trial in June 2019. He was a member of the Muslim Brotherhood, an almost century-old Islamist group that rose to power after the Egyptian Revolution of 2011.

Its political tenure was short. Morsi was deposed by a coup in 2013, on the one-year...

What states that don't protect LGBTQ workers from discrimination have in common

Written by Tesa Rigel Hines, Clinical Instructor, American Politics and Public Policy, Purdue University Northwest

Some states protect LGBTQ worker from discrimination, but many others do not.Rachaphak/Shutterstock.com

Are you fully protected from employment discrimination?

For employees who identify as LGBTQ, and work in one of at least 17 states nationwide that fail to protect workers, the answer at best is uncertain. At worst, it’s “no”...

Students who plan to seek more education than needed for their career earn more money

Written by Soobin Kim, Post-doctoral Research Fellow, Michigan State University

Extra education has been shown to pay off in the long run.John O'Boyle/Flickr

When it comes to career success, it pays to aim for more education than what you need for the job you want.

That is the key finding of a new study that I and several colleagues did by analyzing the salaries of high school students who expected to get more education than...

Guatemala: Corrupción, inseguridad son los primeros retos para el próximo presidente

Written by Naomi Roht-Arriaza, Distinguished Professor of Law, University of California, Hastings

Alejandro Giammattei es un ex director de sistema penitenciario cuyo mandato se vio empañado por el asesinato de siete prisioneros en 2006 durante una redada policial. Fue acusado, pero nunca enfrento cargos relacionados con esas muertes.AP Photo/ Santiago Billy

El próximo presidente de Guatemala será Alejandro Giammattei, un...

Guatemala: Corrupción e inseguridad son los primeros retos del próximo presidente

Written by Naomi Roht-Arriaza, Distinguished Professor of Law, University of California, Hastings

Alejandro Giammattei es un ex director de sistema penitenciario cuyo mandato se vio empañado por el asesinato de siete prisioneros en 2006 durante una redada policial. Fue acusado, pero nunca afrontó cargos relacionados con esas muertes.AP Photo/ Santiago Billy

El próximo presidente de Guatemala será Alejandro...