Social Networks, Social Capital, Civic Engagement, Quantitative Methodology, Qualitative Methodology, Research Methods, Political Participation

Reconocer el sexismo en espacios participativos

by Barbara Biglia

Biglia, B.; Luna, E. (2012).  Reconocer el sexismo en espacios participativos. Revista de Investigación en educación, 10(1):88-99.

RESUMEN: Este artículo se enmarca dentro de las investigaciones educativas de Pedagogía de Género. En un primer... more RESUMEN: Este artículo se enmarca dentro de las investigaciones educativas de Pedagogía de Género. En un primer momento se quiere evidenciar cómo, incluso en espacios participativos supuestamente igualitarios, se siguen produciendo dinámicas sexistas típicas de nuestra sociedad. Seguidamente, se identifican factores que permiten o dificultan el reconocimiento del sexismo en el propio grupo de referencia por parte de mujeres. Para hacerlo, se utilizan los resultados de un cuestionario auto-suministrado virtualmente a 84 activistas de movimientos sociales de diferentes naciones. Finalmente, se proponen reflexiones al respecto de cómo tener en cuenta los factores detectados para el diseño de propuestas educativas hacia la reducción de dinámicas sexistas.

PALABRAS CLAVE: Feminismos, Participación, Educación, Identidades de Género
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Recognizing sexism in participative spaces

ABSTRACT: This article can be contextualized within the educational research in the area of Gender Pedagogy. Initially, we explore the extent to which sexist dynamics are reproduced even in the context of allegedly egalitarian participatory spaces. We also attempt to identify the factors that can facilitate or hinder the recognition of sexism within their own reference group, by women. This process is facilitated by a survey that was filled on-line by 84 activists of social movements from different national backgrounds. In conclusion, we propose reflections for the manner in which our findings should to be taken into account in order to design educational initiatives towards the resolution of sexist dynamics in society.

KEY WORDS: Feminisms, Participation, Education, Gender Identities

Abstract, Dedication, and Acknowledgments for the Hobbs (2011) dissertation published by SAS.

by Robert Dean Hobbs

The Hobbs (2011) doctoral study is published in the ProQuest Dissertations and These database, UMI No. 3484309

The purpose of the qualitative research was to assess models of education developed for the study to investigate how... more The purpose of the qualitative research was to assess models of education developed for the study to investigate how and when to incorporate second and third languages into the curriculum to improve language acquisition. Research indicates that L3 enhances and reinforces L2 and L1. The stratified systematic grounded theory study explored the perspectives of neurolinguists, psycholinguists, sociolinguists, and interdisciplinary education researchers to derive variables for constructing a new model of education. The outcome of the Internet survey revealed that 100% of the participants agreed that education must change and that teacher training must improve. Variables from the cross-disciplinary data contributed to the construction of an integrated model of multilingual education consisting of four primary models and other models to serve as tools for designing curriculum, instruction, and assessment as well as determining demographics and student meta-analysis of language abilities and storage in the brain. The first model emerged from the data to offer multilingual principles of education. The other primary models are macro, meso, and micro models. The macro model represents schools, instruction, assessment, and the curriculum cycle. The meso model depicts the developmental domains of the individual learner and includes a cyclical equation. The micro model delineates multilingual processing in the brain based on neurolinguistic research, variables from the current study, and Kees de Bot's bilingual adaptation of Levelt's language processing model. Recommendations include the incorporation of notional-functional pragmatic-aesthetic concepts as depicted in the models developed for the study and enhanced by input from published researchers with unique language and research repertoires who were located on four continents.

Fear of the fire. The uneasy connection between Environmental Culture and Society in Waste Management in Italy

by Giuseppe Tipaldo

accepted @ ESA 2011 Conferenze - 7-10 September 2011
Panel Environmental Attitudes, Values and Awarness

Verschuivende achtergronden van verenigingsparticipatie in Nederland

by Rene Bekkers

Co-authored with Nan Dirk de Graaf. Paper in Dutch / artikel in het Nederlands.

Why has the massive decline of religious involvement in The Netherlands since World War II not led to a decline of... more Why has the massive decline of religious involvement in The Netherlands since World War II not led to a decline of participation in voluntary associations? Religious involvement has always been the most important predictor of participation in voluntary associations. In the last four decades, new associations (environmental and human rights organizations, sports clubs and cultural expression groups) compensated for the decline in membership in the traditional associations (labor unions, political parties). Data from the Family Survey of the Dutch Population (2000), show that new organizations are more attractive to postmaterialists, that young people participate more often in associations offering selective incentives, and that the rise of the average level of education and extraversion has ensured a stable supply of volunteers.

Subject political culture in post-communist societies: a comparative study of post-Yugoslav students [Podložniška politična kultura v postkomunističnih družbah: primerjalna študija postjugoslovanskih študentov]

by Andrej Kirbis

Co-authored with Sergej Flere, Published in Družboslovne razprave, 27 (66), 45-66

The present study examined several measures of political culture among 2,178 social science students (M age = 19.8... more The present study examined several measures of political culture among 2,178 social science students (M age = 19.8 years, SD = 1.89) in eight post-Yugoslav entities. The aggregate level results indicated that socio-economically less developed environments had higher average levels of subject political culture, which is characterized by authoritarianism, general traditionalism, traditional gender roles attitudes, state paternalism and general distrust. The only exception from this tendency was the measure of economic egalitarianism, where between-country differences were not significant. Authors demonstrate that nearly two decades after the dissolution of Yugoslavia some of the same value differences are still found in its successor territories. They conclude that the process of democratic consolidation is far from over in post-Yugoslav entities and that Slovenia comes closest to achieving that goal in political-cultural context.

Citizen participation: A comparative analysis of post-Yugoslav entities [Državljanska participacija: primerjalna analiza postjugoslovanskih entitet]

by Andrej Kirbis

Co-authored with Sergej Flere, published in Teorija in praksa, 48 (2), 350-375.

The present study examined the dimensions and levels of citizen participation in eight post-communist entities of the... more The present study examined the dimensions and levels of citizen participation in eight post-communist entities of the former Yugoslavia, using a sample of 2,178 young adults (M age = 19.8 years, SD = 1.89). Principal component analysis yielded three distinct dimensions of citizen participation: electoral and non-electoral political participation and civic-social participation. All three participation dimensions were found to be positively associated at the individual level. In addition, the results demonstrated significant between-country differences with higher levels of non-electoral and civic participation in countries that were socioeconomically and politically (GNP per capita, Human Development Index, Freedom House scores) less developed (Kosovo, Federation BiH, and FYR Macedonia). Electoral participation levels and socioeconomic development were positively related, though not significantly. Authors found that differences in participation were similar to those observed in comparative studies carried out prior to the dissolution of Yugoslavia. Modernization theory did not prove to be valid for explanation of aggregate level participation differences. Authors point to several possible contextual determinants within post-Yugoslav societies, which ought to be taken account in future comparative participation analyses.

Protest Participation in Europe: A Multilevel Analysis of European Values Study 2008

by Andrej Kirbis

Co-authored with Klanjšek, R., Flere, S., Tavčar Krajnc, M., Musil, B., & Naterer, A. (2012). Paper to be presented The Second ISA Forum of Sociology Social justice and democratization, Buenos Aires, Argentina, August 1-4, 2012.

In the recent decades protest participation has become most widely accepted and practiced form of citizen engagement... more In the recent decades protest participation has become most widely accepted and practiced form of citizen engagement democratic countries. Many researchers believe protest participation is crucial for a democracy to be consolidated and effective, and previous studies have shown that protest participation is one of the main characteristics of a democratic public. More importantly, is has been found shown that protest participation is associated with prodemocratic attitudes, though past research has rarely compared motivations behind protest participation in established and postcommunist European democracies. In addition, the majority of studies are single-level analyses, not taking into account individual-level characteristics, or vice versa. We investigated associations between macro-level country characteristics and single-level sociodemographic and political cultural variables (prodemocratic attitudes index used by Klingemann et al., 2006). Using multilevel modelling allowed us to examine simultaneously the effect of individual-level as well as group-level predictors on the protest participation (signing petitions, joining in boycotts, and attending lawful demonstrations). We hypothesized that levels of socioeconomic development and communist past of a country would prove to be the strongest macropredictors of protest participation (Inglehart and Welzel, 2007), and that prodemocratic orientations effect protest participation, even when controlling for other individual and state characteristics. We employed the newest (2008) wave of European Values Study. The results indicated that 1) higher levels of socioeconomic development were the only significant predictor of protest participation, while countries’ GINI index of income inequality, continuous years as a democracy, postcommunist past and present levels of quality of democratic institutions (Freedom House scores) all proved non-significant. Prodemocratic attitudes had a positive effect on protest participation, even after controlling for individual characteristics. Among the latter male gender, higher education, income and town size all had a significant positive effect, while higher age had a negative effect on protest participation. More importantly, the participation–prodemocratic attitudes link was stronger in established democracies. Authors conclude that institutions of representative democracy, political elites and policy makers should view protest as a democratic potential, since it is not only becoming increasingly popular and relevant form of expression of citizens’ voice in Europe, but because mainly the prodemocratic oriented public is most likely to protest.

Ethnic Minorities and Political Participation: A Comparative Study of Post-Yugoslav Countries

by Andrej Kirbis

Co-authored with Tavčar Krajnc M. & Flere, S. 2012. Published in Innovative Issues and Approaches in Social Sciences, 5 (1), 6-23.

Understanding patterns of political participation of ethnic minorities is crucial for their integration within... more Understanding patterns of political participation of ethnic minorities is crucial for their integration within postcommunist European countries most of which are ethnically complex and with histories of conflicts. Past research on the relationship between political participation and ethnicity in the democracies has given mixed results and there seems to be a research gap in the literature regarding the patterns of political participation of minorities in postcommunist states. The present study examined differences on two measures of political participation in a representative sample of post-Yugoslav citizens. Employed data source was the South-East European Social Survey Project (SEESSP), fielded in 2003 and 2004. The SEESSP covered six former Yugoslav entities (Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, FYR Macedonia, Kosovo, Montenegro, and Serbia). Results indicated that ethnic minorities had lower levels of electoral participation in four out of six analysed political entities, and had lower levels of party membership in three countries. In addition, a significant voter turnout gap existed among different minorities within individual countries. Finally, no major differences in motives behind political participation were found when comparing the association between authoritarian attitudes and political participation within majority and minority groups. Implications of the results are discussed.

Community engagement: A relational perspective

by Kim Johnston

The Social Capital of Victim Support Groups in Northern Ireland: A Discussion on the Reasons for the Gap Between Theory, Policy and Practice

by Laura Graham

This paper was presented at the Political Studies Association Conference in Belfast, Northern Ireland in 2012.

Victim support groups in Northern Ireland provide a unique platform for the development of social capital. It is... more Victim support groups in Northern Ireland provide a unique platform for the development of social capital. It is because of their reach within the "victim constituency" that government has supported policies aimed at building social capital in victim support groups. The aim of these policies is to promote both bonding and bridging forms of social capital through single identity and cross-community work in the hopes of improving victims' quality of life as well as contributing to conflict resolution and peace-building on the societal level. To this end, the European Union, British and Irish governments have poured millions of pounds into funding schemes for victims work that builds social capital.  The result of these policies is high levels of bonding forms of social capital, but low levels of bridging forms of social capital.  Additionally, there is evidence that some victim support groups are “hunkering down” (cf. Putnam, 2007), resulting in decreased social trust, inclusion and cohesion. Therefore, this paper aims to address the reasons why this is the case, as well as discuss the implications of these findings for a diverse audience.  Drawing on the findings of the Compromise After Conflict study on the leadership of victim support groups, this paper addresses the reasons why policies promoting social capital in Northern Ireland have led to a disparity between levels of bonding and bridging, and have in some cases contributed to constriction in Northern Ireland’s victim support groups.  This findings revealed in this paper are significant for practitioners, policymakers and academics alike.

Systems Theory Approach to the Health Care Organization on National Level

by Ryszard Stocki

Bielecki & Stocki

National health care systems have been found ineffective in most countries. The subsystems of the health care systems... more National health care systems have been found ineffective in most countries. The subsystems of the health care systems are not autonomous and as such cannot be competitive in the market. A participative health care system with empowered patients as customers and hospitals as providers is proposed. The consequences for both further modeling and implementation of such systems are discussed.

The role of social network in the acquisition of local dialect norms by Appalachian migrants in Ypsilanti, Michigan

by Betsy E. Evans

2011, Autochthony as Capital in a Global Age, in Theory, Culture & Society , vol. 28 no. 1 34-54

by Mathieu Hilgers

For a little over a decade we have been witnessing a profusion of discourses on autochthony — that is, an original... more For a little over a decade we have been witnessing a profusion of discourses on autochthony — that is, an original belonging to a group or territory — in many parts of the world. A global approach to this question first requires a look at the principle of autochthony and its genealogy. Starting from African examples, places of prolific expression of the phenomenon, this article shows how autochthony plays the role of capital that can be invested, valued and profited from. The structure of this capital carries within itself the seeds of conflict. The article analyses how the stabilization of its value requires the execution of specific strategies. Among these strategies, I will focus in greater depth on voting. The relationship between capital, autochthony and elections will thus bring us back to debates that animate political science: in new municipalities, autochthony as capital is at the heart of candidate selection, suffrage, political participation and citizenship.

Gaining Political Capital through Social Capital. Inclusion in Policy Making and Network Embeddedness of Immigrants’ Associations in Spain

by Laura Morales

Laura Morales & Luis Ramiro

This article analyzes the relevance of network embeddedness and social capital in allowing migrants’ associations to... more This article analyzes the relevance of network embeddedness and social capital in allowing migrants’ associations to gain political capital and access to policy-making in the cities of Barcelona and Madrid. With data from a survey to migrants’ associations in both locations, we examine the degree to which embeddedness in networks of links with other migrants’ associations and with autochthonous Spanish civil society organizations are consequential for the inclusion of migrants’ organizations in policy-making processes. The results show that migrants’ organizational social capital is critical in facilitating their intermediation function vis à vis political institutions and decision-makers, above and beyond their access to financial and human capital.

Immersion As Concept, Experience, & Design

by Patrick Brown

This thesis was submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Bachelor of Arts (Creative Media) (Honours) by Patrick Markham Brown

Social capital in firm-stakeholder networks: A corporate role in community development

by Robert Boutilier

2007. Journal of Corporate Citizenship, 26, 121-134

Corporations can contribute to sustainable development goals like poverty reduction by bringing linking social capital... more Corporations can contribute to sustainable development goals like poverty reduction by bringing linking social capital into community and stakeholder networks. Often their well-intentioned efforts produce disappointing results because they encounter a variety of pitfalls like unorganised communities, self-serving elites, violent opposition, and conflicting stakeholder demands. This article applies the social network analysis concepts of social capital, bridging, bonding, and core-periphery structure to firm-stakeholder networks. The result is a three-dimensional classification scheme showing 12 patterns of social capital. It is proposed that each of the 12 is associated with a different pattern of outcomes for the stakeholders and the company, exemplified by the aforementioned pitfalls. Measures of the stakeholder network’s current pattern of social capital can be compared with the 12 classification patterns to find the closest match. It is proposed that a match predicts pitfalls and therefore can guide movement towards the patterns that most facilitate sustainable development.

La mise en œuvre des politiques de développement et la pluralisation partisane dans la Huasteca Potosina

by Julie Devineau

Measuring the burden of herpes zoster and post herpetic neuralgia within primary care in rural Crete, Greece

by ILIAS GRAMMATIKOPOULOS

Published in "BMC Family Practice"

BACKGROUND:
Research has indicated that general practitioners (GPs) have good clinical judgment in regards to... more BACKGROUND:
Research has indicated that general practitioners (GPs) have good clinical judgment in regards to diagnosing and managing herpes zoster (HZ) within clinical practice in a country with limited resources for primary care and general practice. The objective of the current study was to assess the burden of HZ and post herpetic neuralgia (PHN) within rural general practices in Crete, Greece.

METHODS:
The current study took place within a rural setting in Crete, Greece during the period of November 2007 to November 2009 within the catchment area in which the Cretan Rural Practice-based Research Network is operating. In total 19 GPs from 14 health care units in rural Crete were invited to participate, covering a total turnover patient population of approximately 25,000 subjects. For the purpose of this study an electronic record database was constructed and used as the main tool for monitoring HZ and PHN incidence. Stress related data was also collected with the use of the Short Anxiety Screening Test (SAST).

RESULTS:
The crude incidence rate of HZ was 1.4/1000 patients/year throughout the entire network of health centers and satellite practices, while among satellite practices alone it was calculated at 1.3/1000 patients/year. Additionally, the standardised incidence density within satellite practices was calculated at 1.6/1000 patients/year. In regards to the stress associated with HZ and PHN, the latter were found to have lower levels of anxiety, as assessed through the SAST score (17.4 +/- 3.9 vs. 21.1 +/- 5.7; p=0.029).

CONCLUSIONS:
The implementation of an electronic surveillance system was feasible so as to measure the burden of HZ and PHN within the rural general practice setting in Crete.

Civic engagement and associationalism: The impact of group membership scope and intensity of participation

by Jenny Lewis

Published in: European Sociological Review 2012, 28(1): 48-58.
DOI: 10.1093/esr/jcq047.
Coauthored with Damon Alexander, Jo Barraket, Mark Considine.

Information and expression in a digital age

by Dhavan Shah