Migrant domestic workers, vulnerability and the law: immigration and employment laws in Cyprus and Spain

The intersection of gender, welfare and immigration regimes has been one of the main focus of a rich scholarship on paid domestic work in Europe. This article brings into the discussion the nexus of employment and immigration law regimes to reflect on the role of legal regulation in structuring and reducing the vulnerability of domestic workers. I analyse this nexus by looking at the cases of Cyprus and Spain, two states falling under the cluster of Southern Mediterranean welfare regimes, that share certain characteristics in terms of immigration regimes, but have substantially different employment law regulation models. The first part sketches the debate on the employment law regulation of domestic work. The second part starts by giving an overview of the immigration regimes of Cyprus and Spain in relation to migrant domestic workers and then proceeds to analyse the two countries’ models and substance of employment law regulation in domestic work. The comparison of these two divergent approaches informs the debate on how the legal regulation of domestic work should be best structured. In Spain there have been recent dynamic legislative changes in the employment law regulation of domestic work. The final part of the article traces these changes and reflects on why such processes have not taken place in Cyprus.

Music therapy, in tuning at the end of life

In this article music therapy is presented as a helpful tool to support the persons (and their relatives) living at the end of their life and, also, as a non pharmacological and complementary therapy in an integral and holistic medicine. What we report here comes from the direct experience, nourished after many years of interventions and reflections in oncology and palliative care units. We’re talking about silence, music, therapy, models and techniques. We will read and feel therapeutic sessions… but above all, we’re talking about life, conscience and love.

Musicoterapia y Arteterapia. Puntos de encuentro en el camino terapéutico

En este artículo pretendemos buscar los aspectos que confluyen en el ámbito de la musicoterapia y el arteterapia, comenzando por su definición y orígenes y siguiendo con los modelos teóricos más importantes. Al analizar los trabajos de investigación elaborados a partir de proyectos en los que se combina la práctica de las dos disciplinas, observamos la necesidad de una mayor interdisciplinareidad. Esto daría lugar a un mayor enriquecimiento de las sesiones y por tanto, del trabajo terapéutico, lo que revertiría en una mejora de la calidad de la intervención.

Relanzando la Respuesta Rápida Militar: Los Battlegroups

La utilidad de los Battlegroups, casi una década después de declarar capacidad operativa plena, ha estado y continuará estando en duda debido a la inacción europea. Para que la UE se convierta en el actor internacional que durante tantos años ha proclamado, necesitará consolidar su capacidad de respuesta rápida militar para hacer frente a crisis multidimensionales y llevar a cabo todo el espectro de Misiones Petersberg. El artículo hace un repaso a la concepción y el desarrollo de los Battlegroups y propone un conjunto de reformas para que puedan llegar a ser un instrumento efectivo de respuesta rápida militar.

‘New’ migrant identities: unravelling opportunities and restrictions

Labour and capital mobility from globalisation has given rise to significant increases in the reliance of migrant labour in established gateways, but also in new migration destinations. Many aspects of migrant incorporation in new migration destinations have received some attention, not least regarding employer and employee relations. Less attention has been focused on the construction of migrant as a marker of identification, although identities, particularly regarding gender and ethnicity, in the workplace have received considerable attention. This article aims to illuminate knowledge on how migration produces social change thereby responding to a call from Batnitzky et al. (2009, p. 1290) for additional attention on what ‘the practical and symbolic effects of migration are as people move across different structures and institutions of social control….’ Mindful of Goffman’s (1969, 1983) emphasis on individual interactions and experiences, it examines what it means to be a migrant in terms of everyday encounters and experiences. It investigates the array and interplay of internal and external processes that create migrant identities and the implications of this for social integration.

The paper argues that one of the paradoxes of globalisation, and of the associated increased levels of migrant labour, is the construction of the migrant identity that ultimately impedes social integration. It shows how the application of migrant identity (internally and externally) bestows a particular status that affects (options for) individual behaviour and subsequent actions and outcomes. The paper argues that while migrants value the migrant identity status because of the benefits that it brings, this status can also cause high levels of dissatisfaction among migrants and it can exclude migrants from wider benefits of full citizenship. Migrants have individual identification processes, but external forces, including social structures and institutions, also affect migrant identity. These forces help to shape individual expectations and standards, contributing to identity interruption and dissonance.

The paper is structured as follows: it uses social identity theory as a means of understanding what it is to be a ‘migrant’ in a new destination, while simultaneously recognising the inevitability of this generic label - migrants are an extremely heterogeneous group, made up of individuals with different experiences, values and so forth. The analysis considers the significance of context and of social interactions, thus paying attention to how identity is constructed and performed by the individual and also assigned by others. Empirical evidence is used to examine how having a migrant status affects individual prospects. The paper evaluates the extent to which patterns and processes of migration present an opportunity for social change, positive or negative.

Faktorer som påverkar omvårdnaden av patienter från olika kulturer inom palliativ vård – en litteraturöversikt

När befolkningen i Sverige blir allt äldre kommer det bland annat leda till ett ökat sjukvårdsbehov. I genomsnitt har människor födda i länder långt från Norden sämre hälsa än personer födda inom Norden, de kan ha en annan kultur och tolka kommunikationen inom vården annorlunda. Syfte: Att beskriva faktorer som påverkar omvårdnaden av patienter och anhöriga från andra kulturer inom palliativ vård. Metod: En litteraturöversikt. Resultat: Är baserat på nio vetenskapliga artiklar. Det fanns kulturella skillnader i synen på allvarlig sjukdom och död. Inom flera kulturer är det tabubelagt att tala om döden och detta var sjuksköterskorna inom västerländsk kultur oerfarna vid, de var mer vana vid en rak och ärlig kommunikation med patienterna. Sjuksköterskorna hade kommunikationssvårigheter med patienter och närstående då de inte hade samma språk. Det var även svårt och tidskrävande att finna lämpliga tolkar som kunde hantera känsliga ämnen relaterat till palliativ vård. Konklusion: Sjuksköterskor upplevde att möten med patienter och anhöriga från andra kulturer ofta var svåra om de inte pratade samma språk. Trots detta upplevde sjuksköterskorna arbetet som tillfredsställande. Det framkom att för lite tid och stress var ett av problemen samt att behovet av tolkar var stort.

Fatores Associados à Prevalência de Sintomas Osteomusculares em Professores

FERNANDES, Marcos Henrique; ROCHA, Vera Maria da; RONCALLI, Angelo Giuseppe. Fatores Associados à Prevalência de Sintomas Osteomusculares em Professores. Revista de salud pública, v. 11, n. 2, p. 256-267, 2009.

Beyond Policy - Empowerment as choice or empowerment as voice?

Transient simulations for present and last interglacials using a comprehensive coupled climate model CCSM3 (Community Climate System Model 3.0), links to model result files in NetCDF format

Transient simulations are widely used in studying the past climate as they provide better comparison with any exisiting proxy data. However, multi-millennial transient simulations using coupled climate models are usually computationally very expensive. As a result several acceleration techniques are implemented when using numerical simulations to recreate past climate. In this study, we compare the results from transient simulations of the present and the last interglacial with and without acceleration of the orbital forcing, using the comprehensive coupled climate model CCSM3 (Community Climate System Model 3). Our study shows that in low-latitude regions, the simulation of long-term variations in interglacial surface climate is not significantly affected by the use of the acceleration technique (with an acceleration factor of 10) and hence, large-scale model-data comparison of surface variables is not hampered. However, in high-latitude regions where the surface climate has a direct connection to the deep ocean, e.g. in the Southern Ocean or the Nordic Seas, acceleration-induced biases in sea-surface temperature evolution may occur with potential influence on the dynamics of the overlying atmosphere. The data provided here are from both accelerated and non-accelerated runs as decadal mean values.

En böjd stavdesigns påverkan på stakfasens egenskaper

Syfte Studien syftar till att klarlägga hur stavisättningen och stakfasen påverkas vid användandet av en böjd jämfört med en rak stavdesign vid stakning i hög hastighet på rullskidor på rullband. Följande frågeställningar har undersökts:  Leder en böjd stavdesign till att stavisättningen sker längre fram?  Leder en böjd stavdesign till att stakfasens absoluta längd förändras?  Leder en böjd stavdesign till att stakfasens relativa längd förändras? Metod Tio manliga längdskidåkare (ålder 25,3 ± 5,1 år, kroppslängd 182,1 ± 8,6 cm, kroppsvikt 78 ± 6,5 kg) deltog i studien. Forskningspersonerna genomförde ett Vmax-protokoll stakning på rullskidor på rullband, med rak såväl som med böjd stavdesign. Rörelsedata samlades in och analyserades för att fastställa eventuella skillnader i stavisättning, stakfas, återförandefas och total cykeltid. Resultat En signifikant skillnad kan påvisas gällande stavisättning, där en böjd stavdesign leder till en stavisättning längre framför bindningen jämfört med en rak stavdesign. Ingen signifikant skillnad kan påvisas rörande stakfasen, återförandefasen eller total cykeltid. Slutsatser Studiens visar att stavspetsens rörelsebana flyttas vid nyttjande av en böjd stavdesign i riktning framåt. Dock påverkas inte stakfasen, återförandefasen eller total cykeltid, vilket innebär att stakfasens längd, i absoluta såväl som relativa termer, är densamma vid stakning med rak och böjd stavdesign.

Movies and the Enchanted Mind : Emotional Comprehension and Spiritual Meaning Making Among Young Adults in Contemporary Sweden

The outcome of an empirical audience study in Sweden including questionnaires, focus groups and ten in-depth individual interviews discussing favorite films supports claims about viewers as active and playful (cf. Frampton 2006, Hoover 2006, Plantinga 2009). The soft side of mediatization processes is illustrated showing young adults experiencing enchantment through films (Jerslev 2006, Partridge 2008, Klinger 2008, Oliver & Hartmann 2010). The outcome is in line with a growing number of empirical case studies which support conclusions that both thinking and behavior are affected by film watching (Marsh 2007, Suckfüll 2010, Oliver & Hartmann 2010, Axelson 2014). The results of the interviews exploring specific scenes of idiosyncratic relevance support theories about fiction films as important sources for moral and spiritual reflection (Partridge 2004, Zillman 2005, Lynch 2007, Plantinga 2009).  The concept thick viewing is proposed for capturing these moments of film experience when profound and enchanted emotional interpretations take place.

Using modeling as a co-design approach in the planning process of new care environments

Current research shows a relationship between healthcare architecture and patient-related Outcomes. The planning and designing of new healthcare environments is a complex process; the needs of the various end-users of the environment must be considered, including the patients, the patients’ significant others, and the staff. The aim of this study was to explore the experiences of healthcare professionals participating in group modelling utilizing system dynamics in the pre-design phase of new healthcare environments. We engaged healthcare professionals in a series of workshops using system dynamics to discuss the planning of healthcare environments in the beginning of a construction, and then interviewed them about their experience. An explorative and qualitative design was used to describe participants’ experiences of participating in the group modelling projects. Participants (n=20) were recruited from a larger intervention study using group modeling and system dynamics in planning and designing projects. The interviews were analysed by qualitative content analysis. Two themes were formed, representing the experiences in the group modeling process: ‘Partaking in the G-M created knowledge and empowerment’and ‘Partaking in the G-M was different from what was expected and required time and skills’. The method can support participants in design teams to focus more on their healthcare organization, their care activities and their aims rather than focusing on detailed layout solutions. This clarification is important when decisions about the design are discussed and prepared and will most likely lead to greater readiness for future building process.

En teorispäckad sociologisk analys av fritid och sport – ett ambitiöst projekt : recension av boken Leisure, Sports & Society av Karl Spracklen

I september 2014 bytte Leeds Metropolitan University, trots studentprotester, namn till Leeds Beckett University; universitetets första colleges låg i Beckett Park, vilken i sin tur fått namn efter bankiren och konservative parlamentsledamoten Ernest Beckett, 2nd Baron Grimthorpe (1856–1917), vars alma mater faktiskt var Trinity College, Cambridge. Leeds-studenternas motstånd hade sin grund i att namnändringen beräknades kosta en kvarts miljon pund, alltmedan inte minst universitetets idrottsanläggningar tillåtits förfalla. Vi vet inte hur universitetets personal ställde sig till namnförändringen, och särskilt nyfikna är vi ju på vad professorn i Leisure Studies (fritidsforskning, fritidsvetenskap) vid Leeds Beckett University, Karl Spracklen, tyckte om förändringen. Detta är dock blott "idle curiosity"; Spracklen är aktuell av ett helt annat, och viktigare, skäl, nämligen för sin bok Leisure, Sports & Society (Palgrave Macmillan). Spracklen, som är sociolog och vars forskningsintresse också inkluderar "metal music" (som sekreterare för International Society for Metal Music Studies och redaktör för Metal Music Studies) och "whiskey tourism" (som drivande i British Sociological Associations Alcohol Study Group) är en centralfigur inom det brittiska fritidsforskningsetablissemanget – han har bland annat varit ordförande i viktiga LSA, Leisure Studies Association från 2009 till 2013. Han har därtill en lång rad publikationer bakom sig, böcker, antologibidrag och vetenskapliga artiklar inom idrotts- och fritidsforskning i vid mening. Den nya boken ges här en grundlig recension av Erik Backman, som ju vet ett och annat om fritidsforskning, Spracklen bottnar teoretiskt i Habermas, i sig ovanligt bland brittiska forskare, men också i Marx, Weber och Bourdieu, bland andra, i sin utforskning av sambandet mellan fritid, fysisk aktivitet och sport ur ett tvärvetenskapligt perspektiv som innefattar idrottsvetenskap, sociologi, cultural studies, historia, filosofi och psykologi. Och vår recensent är imponerad över bredden, djupet och ambitionsnivån – även om det kan bli lite tjatigt från och till.