Urbanisation and sport participation in townships in China

Urbanisation as a phenomenon is a complex social process which can be quite difficult to define and understand. In recent years, urbanisation in China has developed at an ever increasing rate. Urban population rates have now surpassed 50% (figure from 2011). Based on the growing importance placed on the increasing number of urbanised/urbanising townships, the issue of people’s lives within the townships has also become an important feature in regard to the impact that urbanisation is having upon China. Clearly this links China’s urban development to the transformation of sport participation in China. This research aims to examine what the reality of the sport participation on-the-ground is within six selective townships in China and examine the reasons for the reality through the lens of figurational theory. In order to do so, some features of Norbert Elias’s figurational theory (involvement and detachment, power) are employed as the theoretical framework. Two townships in Lüliang of Shanxi province, two townships in Jincheng of Shanxi Province and two townships in Huizhou of Guangdong province were selected in order to answer these key questions. The three cities which the townships are located are in different stages of urbanisation. Semi-structured interview were conducted. The current situation were described from the aspects of age, gender, occupation and income aspects and the transformation of sport participation. This research concludes that the current sport participation situation within these six townships is due to the influences stemming from several aspects: sport policy and sport organisation; economy condition, culture, urbanisation, and self-requirement and individual interest towards sport. This power forms a network of interdependency which also aids our understanding of the current sport participation within these six selected Chinese townships.

Vulnerability or resilience? Psycho-social factors associated with deliberate self-harm among adolescents

Background: Deliberate self-harm (DSH) is common among adolescents in Ireland and internationally. Psychological factors, negative life events and lifestyle factors have been found to be associated with self-harm in this group. However, large scale population-based studies of adolescent selfharm and its correlates have been lacking, and internationally a standardised methodology was needed to facilitate comparative studies. The focus on vulnerability which has been prevalent in this field has meant that research has failed to examine resilient adaptation among at-risk adolescents. Method: Data were obtained from a cross-sectional school-based study conducted in Ireland and in each of the six other centres which participated in the Child and Adolescent Self-harm in Europe (CASE) study. In Ireland, 3,881 adolescents in 39 schools in completing the anonymous questionnaire, while across all 7 centres, over 30,000 young people participated. Data were gathered on health and lifestyle, self-harm thoughts and behaviour, a wide range of life events, psychological characteristics (anxiety and depressive symptoms, self-esteem, impulsivity and coping style), and support available to young people. Results: This thesis reports the findings of the Irish CASE centre as well as one international study. The factors associated with DSH among Irish adolescents differed by gender, but among both genders drug use and knowing a friend who had engaged in self-harm were associated with DSH. Among Irish boys, strong associations were found between bullying and poor mental health and DSH. Among boys who had been bullied, psychological and school factors were associated with DSH, while family support was protective. Links between stressful life events, psychological characteristics and DSH within the international CASE sample were examined. Increased history of self-harm thoughts and acts was associated with greater depression, anxiety and impulsivity, lower self esteem and an increased prevalence of ten different negative life events, supporting the hypothesis of a “dose-response” relationship between these risk factors and the self-harm process. Associations between coping style, mental health factors (depressive symptoms, anxiety and self-esteem) and self-harm were examined among Irish adolescents. Emotion-oriented coping was strongly associated with poorer mental health and self-harm thoughts and acts. A mediating effect of emotion-oriented coping on associations between mental health factors and DSH was found for both genders and between problem-oriented coping and mental health factors for girls. Similar mediating effects of coping style were found when risk of self-harm thoughts was examined. Resilient adaptation among adolescents exposed to suicidal behaviour of others was examined. Self-harm thoughts were common in these adolescents. Among those exposed to suicidal behaviour of others, vulnerability factors were drug use and higher levels of anxiety among boys, while for girls drug use, bullying and abuse were vulnerability factors, while resilience was associated with higher self-esteem and use of problem-oriented coping. Conclusion: These findings can aid in the identification of young people at risk of self-harm in the school setting and highlight the importance of mental health, peer-related and lifestyle factors in the development of DSH. High-risk groups of young people such as bullying victims and those exposed to suicidal behaviour of others have distinctive profiles of risk factors which differ from those of their peers. Findings relating to the importance of positive coping skills can inform positive mental health programmes, many of which aim to enhance life skills and build resilience among young people. Knowledge of the factors associated with positive adaptation among at-risk adolescents can inform prevention efforts among this group.

The differences in the social competence of children who attend integrated junior infant classes and children who attend segregated learning environments

There are a number of reasons why this researcher has decided to undertake this study into the differences in the social competence of children who attend integrated Junior Infant classes and children who attend segregated learning environments. Theses reasons are both personal and professional. My personal reasons stem from having grown up in a family which included both an aunt who presented with Down Syndrome and an uncle who presented with hearing impairment. Both of these relatives' experiences in our education system are interesting. My aunt was considered ineducable while her brother - my uncle - was sent to Dublin (from Cork) at six years of age to be educated by a religious order. My professional reasons, on the other hand, stemmed from my teaching experience. Having taught in both special and integrated classrooms it became evident to me that there was somewhat 'suspicion' attached to integration. Parents of children without disabilities questioned whether this process would have a negative impact on their children's education. While parents of children with disabilities debated whether integrated settings met the specific needs of their children. On the other hand, I always questioned whether integration and inclusiveness meant the same thing. My research has enabled me to find many answers. Increasingly, children with special educational needs (SEN) are attending a variety of integrated and inclusive childcare and education settings. This contemporary practice of educating children who present with disabilities in mainstream classrooms has stimulated vast interest on the impact of such practices on children with identified disabilities. Indeed, children who present with disabilities "fare far better in mainstream education than in special schools" (Buckley, cited in Siggins, 2001,p.25). However, educators and practitioners in the field of early years education and care are concerned with meeting the needs of all children in their learning environments, while also upholding high academic standards (Putman, 1993). Fundamentally, therefore, integrated education must also produce questions about the impact of this practice on children without identified special educational needs. While these questions can be addressed from the various areas of child development (i.e. cognitive, physical, linguistic, emotional, moral, spiritual and creative), this research focused on the social domain. It investigates the development of social competence in junior infant class children without identified disabilities as they experience different educational settings.

序破急 Jo-Ha-Kyu: enticement - crux - consolidation. From study to learning: Process drama projects in the Japanese English language university classroom

This dissertation investigates how social issues can be explored through process drama projects in the Japanese university English as a Foreign Language classroom context. The trajectory of this dissertation moves along a traditional Noh three part macro-continuum, called Jo-Ha-Kyu, interpreted as enticement, crux and consolidation. Within these three parts, there are six further divisions. Part I consists of three sections: Section I, the introduction, sets the backdrop for the entire dissertation, that of Japan, and aims to draw the reader into its culturally unique and specific world. This section outlines the rationale for placing the ethnographer at the centre of the research, and presents Japan through the eyes of the writer. Section II outlines relevant Japanese cultural norms, mores and values, the English educational landscape of Japan and an overview of theatre in Japan and its possible influences on the Japanese university student today. Section III provides three literature reviews: second language acquisition, drama in education to process drama, and Content Language Integrated Learning. In Part 2, Sections IV and V respectively consist of the research methodology and the action research at the core of this dissertation. Section IV describes the case of Kwansei Gakuin University, then explains the design of the process drama curricula. Section V details the three-process drama projects based around the three social issues at the centre of this dissertation. There is also a description of an extra project that of the guest lecturer project. The ultimate goals of all four projects were to change motivation through English in a CLIL context, to develop linguistic spontaneity and to deepen emotional engagement with the themes. Part 3 serves to reflect upon the viability of using process drama in the Japanese university curriculum, and to critically self-reflect on the project as a whole.

Towards a new model of criminal justice system in the era of globalised criminality: the biggest challenges for criminal process legislation

The main objective of this thesis is the critical analysis of the evolution of the criminal justice systems throughout the past decade, with special attention to the fight against transnational terrorism. It is evident – for any observer - that such threats and the associated risk that terrorism entails, has changed significantly throughout the past decade. This perception has generated answers – many times radical ones – by States, as they have committed themselves to warrant the safety of their populations and to ease a growing sentiment of social panic. This thesis seeks to analyse the characteristics of this new threat and the responses that States have developed in the fight against terrorism since 9/11, which have questioned some of the essential principles and values in place in their own legal systems. In such sense, freedom and security are placed into perspective throughout the analysis of the specific antiterrorist legal reforms of five different States: Israel, Portugal, Spain, the United Kingdom and the United States of America. On the other hand, in light of those antiterrorist reforms, it will be questioned if it is possible to speak of the emergence of a new system of criminal justice (and of a process of a convergence between common law and civil law systems), built upon a control and preventive security framework, significantly different from traditional models. Finally, this research project has the fundamental objective to contribute to a better understanding on the economic, social and civilization costs of those legal reforms regarding human rights, the rule of law and democracy in modern States.

Experiences of the foster care process in the Republic of Ireland: retrospective accounts from biological children of foster carers

This thesis examines the experiences of the biological children of foster carers. In particular it explores their experiences in relation to inclusion, consultation and decision-making. The study also examines the support and training needs of birth children in foster families. Using a qualitative methodology in-depth, semi-structured interviews were conducted with fifteen birth children of foster carers aged between 18 and 30 years. The research findings show that for the majority of birth children, fostering was overall a positive experience which helped them develop into individuals who were caring and nonjudgemental. However, from the data collected in this study, it is clear that fostering also brings a range of challenges for birth children in foster families, such as managing feelings of loss, grief, jealousy and guilt when foster children leave. Birth children are reluctant to discuss these issues with their parents and often did not approach fostering social workers as they did not have a meaningful relationship in order to discuss their concerns. The findings also demonstrate that birth children undertake a lot of emotional work in supporting their parents, birth siblings and foster siblings. Despite the important role played by birth children in the fostering process, this contribution often goes unrecognised and unacknowledged by fostering professionals and agencies with birth children not included or consulted about foster care decisions that affect them. It is argued here that birth children are viewed by foster care professionals and agencies from a deficit based perspective. However, this study contends that it is not just foster parents who are involved in the foster care process, but the entire foster family. The findings of this study show that birth children are competent social actors capable of making valuable contributions to foster care decisions that affect their lives and that of their family.

Exploring the relationship between social network sites and the consumption of cultural goods through the lens of affordances

This thesis presents research theorising the use of social network sites (SNS) for the consumption of cultural goods. SNS are Internet-based applications that enable people to connect, interact, discover, and share user-generated content. They have transformed communication practices and are facilitating users to present their identity online through the disclosure of information on a profile. SNS are especially effective for propagating content far and wide within a network of connections. Cultural goods constitute hedonic experiential goods with cultural, artistic, and entertainment value, such as music, books, films, and fashion. Their consumption is culturally dependant and they have unique characteristics that distinguish them from utilitarian products. The way in which users express their identity on SNS is through the sharing of cultural interests and tastes. This makes cultural good consumption vulnerable to the exchange of content and ideas that occurs across an expansive network of connections within these social systems. This study proposes the lens of affordances to theorise the use of social network sites for the consumption of cultural goods. Qualitative case study research using two phases of data collection is proposed in the application of affordances to the research topic. The interaction between task, technology, and user characteristics is investigated by examining each characteristic in detail, before investigating the actual interaction between the user and the artifact for a particular purpose. The study contributes to knowledge by (i) improving our understanding of the affordances of social network sites for the consumption of cultural goods, (ii) demonstrating the role of task, technology and user characteristics in mediating user behaviour for user-artifact interactions, (iii) explaining the technical features and user activities important to the process of consuming cultural goods using social network sites, and (iv) theorising the consumption of cultural goods using SNS by presenting a theoretical research model which identifies empirical indicators of model constructs and maps out affordance dependencies and hierarchies. The study also provides a systematic research process for applying the concept of affordances to the study of system use.