What is this thing called Historical Archaeology?

Historical archaeology, in its narrow temporal sense -as an archaeology of the emergence and subsequent evolution of the Modern world- is steadily taking pace in Spanish academia. This paper aims at provoking a more robust debate through understanding how Spanish historical archaeology is placed in the international scene and some of its more relevant particularities. In so doing, the paper also stresses the strong links that have united historical and prehistorical archaeology since its inception, both in relation to the ontological, epistemological and methodological definition of the first as to the influence of socio-political issues in the latter. Such reflection is partly a situated reflection from prehistory as one of the paper’s authors has been a prehistorian for most of her professional life.

El dinero en la historia del pensamiento económico: la teoría monetaria postkeynesiana y su confrontación con la ortodoxia

Las disputas en torno a determinados aspectos del dinero, como su neutralidad y el carácter endógeno o exógeno de la oferta monetaria, han sido permanentes entre las distintas escuelas de pensamiento y autores, estando su origen, probablemente, en la época de desarrollo del pensamiento escolástico. En este artículo pretendemos, en primer lugar, realizar un recorrido cronológico e histórico sobre el tratamiento científico económico del dinero, para, en segundo lugar, poner sobre la mesa la macroeconomía ortodoxa a la que han dado lugar las interpretaciones al respecto, así como los enfoques alternativos frente a este pensamiento dominante. Finalmente, intentamos poner en valor los desarrollos monetarios post-keynesianos, integrados en lo que denominan “Economía Monetaria de Producción”, confrontándolos con la llamada Nueva Síntesis Neoclásica.

Exploring the potential of cassava in promoting agricultural growth in Nigeria

Cassava is one of the major food crops in Nigeria, with multiple uses from human consumption to industrial applications. This study explores the potential of cassava in Nigerian agriculture based on a review of cassava development policies; performs a trend analysis of the cultivation area, production, productivity, and real price of cassava and other competing crops for the period 1961–2013; identifies the sources of growth in production; and examines the production constraints at the local level based on a survey of 315 farmers/processors and 105 marketers from Delta State. The results revealed that several policies and programmes were implemented to develop the cassava sector with mixed outcomes. Although cassava productivity grew at 1.5% per annum (p.a.) during the post-structural adjustment programme period (1993–2013), its real price declined at a rate of 3.5% p.a. The effect of yield is the main source of growth in production, contributing 76.4% of the total growth followed by the area effect (28.2%). The cassava sector is constrained by inadequate market infrastructure, processing facilities, and lack of information and unstable prices at the local level. The widespread diffusion of improved tropical manioc selection technologies and investments in market and marketing infrastructure, processing technologies, irrigation/water provision and information dissemination are recommended to enhance the potential of the cassava sector to support agricultural growth in Nigeria.

Odwrót od rozwoju: kontrowersyjna czy obiecująca zmiana paradygmatu wczesnej edukacji

The article presents three approaches to the conceptualisation of development as a category which describes the dynamics of the biography of man, which the author defines as: universalisation, contextualisation / relativism, and problematisation / negation. Emphasis is laid on a shift in thinking about the child and childhood, to be observed in the post-structural analyses contingent on the thought of Michel Foucault and a critique of developmental psychology which is developing in the world, but has been absent from Poland so far. The strongest critique of both these perspectives is directed against the standardisation measures for which individuality, specificity and diversity become a deviation from the norm. The article shows how strong arguments showing the controversy of development perceived in this way have been collected and how debatable the category of development as such is.

Entre lo riesgoso y lo político : hacia una teoría posmarxista del riesgo

A partir del análisis crítico de diversas teorías del riesgo propuestas por autores como Paul Slovic, CassSunstein, Mary Douglas y Ulrich Beck, este artículo delinea algunos fundamentos para una teoría posmarxista del riesgo. Contra cualquier pretendida "Sociedad Mundial del Riesgo" se identificará una específica Lógica del Riesgo capaz de poseer alcance mundial pero que, más allá de su vocación utópica, es concebida como incapaz de lograr el cierre final de lo social, ya sea mediante los instrumentos de un "Estado costo-beneficio" o del desenvolvimiento dialéctico necesario de la sociedad industrial.

Entre lo riesgoso y lo político : hacia una teoría posmarxista del riesgo

A partir del análisis crítico de diversas teorías del riesgo propuestas por autores como Paul Slovic, CassSunstein, Mary Douglas y Ulrich Beck, este artículo delinea algunos fundamentos para una teoría posmarxista del riesgo. Contra cualquier pretendida "Sociedad Mundial del Riesgo" se identificará una específica Lógica del Riesgo capaz de poseer alcance mundial pero que, más allá de su vocación utópica, es concebida como incapaz de lograr el cierre final de lo social, ya sea mediante los instrumentos de un "Estado costo-beneficio" o del desenvolvimiento dialéctico necesario de la sociedad industrial.

Entre lo riesgoso y lo político : hacia una teoría posmarxista del riesgo

A partir del análisis crítico de diversas teorías del riesgo propuestas por autores como Paul Slovic, CassSunstein, Mary Douglas y Ulrich Beck, este artículo delinea algunos fundamentos para una teoría posmarxista del riesgo. Contra cualquier pretendida "Sociedad Mundial del Riesgo" se identificará una específica Lógica del Riesgo capaz de poseer alcance mundial pero que, más allá de su vocación utópica, es concebida como incapaz de lograr el cierre final de lo social, ya sea mediante los instrumentos de un "Estado costo-beneficio" o del desenvolvimiento dialéctico necesario de la sociedad industrial.

Paranormal politics and the romance of urban subcultures: youth mobility in Cassandra Clare’s and Melissa Marr’s fantasy texts

This essay examines the political and social significance of the intrusion of the supernatural into youth subcultures in two urban fantasy series: Cassandra Clare’s Mortal Instruments and Melissa Marr’s Wicked Lovely. Both series represent the idea of human youth mobility and social affiliation based on volition. The tolerant urban spaces through which their girl protagonists initially move accommodate a diversity of subcultural aesthetics. By contrast, the supernatural subcultures with which these girls become involved are fraught with conflict, and the mobility of their members is limited. Drawing on post-subcultural theory, we identify a tension between late modern and premodern social organization and political values in contemporary urban fantasy for young adults and compare how it is resolved in Clare’s and Marr’s texts.

Análisis de mujeres cachemires como sujetos subalternos en la representación institucional de India y Paquistán a partir del fenómeno de desaparición forzada (1989-2008)

El interés de esta monografía es analizar las consecuencias de la representación institucional de India y Paquistán en la disputa territorial por Cachemira durante el periodo de 1989 a 2008. Puntualmente, se analiza y explica cómo la representación institucional prestada individualmente por India y Paquistán validó sus intereses como agentes de poder en la región, pasó por alto las necesidades de la población cachemir y fomentó la práctica de la desaparición forzada, lo que en consecuencia convirtió a las mujeres cachemires en un grupo subalterno. Para tal objetivo, se hará uso de la teoría postcolonialista, específicamente el enfoque subalternista de la autora Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak ya que permite explicar adecuadamente el proceso mediante el cual las mujeres cachemires se convirtieron en un grupo subalterno.

Rumination, post-traumatic growth, and distress : structural equation modelling with cancer survivors

Objective Theoretical models of post-traumatic growth (PTG) have been derived in the general trauma literature to describe the post-trauma experience that facilitates the perception of positive life changes. To develop a statistical model identifying factors that are associated with PTG, structural equation modelling (SEM) was used in the current study to assess the relationships between perception of diagnosis severity, rumination, social support, distress, and PTG. Method A statistical model of PTG was tested in a sample of participants diagnosed with a variety of cancers (N=313). Results An initial principal components analysis of the measure used to assess rumination revealed three components: intrusive rumination, deliberate rumination of benefits, and life purpose rumination. SEM results indicated that the model fit the data well and that 30% of the variance in PTG was explained by the variables. Trauma severity was directly related to distress, but not to PTG. Deliberately ruminating on benefits and social support were directly related to PTG. Life purpose rumination and intrusive rumination were associated with distress. Conclusions The model showed that in addition to having unique correlating factors, distress was not related to PTG, thereby providing support for the notion that these are discrete constructs in the post-diagnosis experience. The statistical model provides support that post-diagnosis experience is simultaneously shaped by positive and negative life changes and that one or the other outcome may be prevalent or may occur concurrently. As such, an implication for practice is the need for supportive care that is holistic in nature.

Applying threshold learning theory to teach sustainable business practice in post-graduate engineering education

This paper presents the results of a qualitative action-research inquiry into how a highly diverse cohort of post-graduate students could develop significant capacity in sustainable development within a single unit (course), in this case a compulsory component of four built environment masters programs. The method comprised applying threshold learning theory within the technical discipline of sustainable development, to transform student understanding of sustainable business practice in the built environment. This involved identifying a number of key threshold concepts, which once learned would provide a pathway to having a transformational learning experience. Curriculum was then revised, to focus on stepping through these targeted concepts using a scaffolded, problem-based-learning approach. Challenges included a large class size of 120 students, a majority of international students, and a wide span of disciplinary backgrounds across the spectrum of built environment professionals. Five ‘key’ threshold learning concepts were identified and the renewed curriculum was piloted in Semester 2 of 2011. The paper presents details of the study and findings from a mixed-method evaluation approach through the semester. The outcomes of this study will be used to inform further review of the course in 2012, including further consideration of the threshold concepts. In future, it is anticipated that this case study will inform a framework for rapidly embedding sustainability within curriculum.

Predicting emotional exhaustion among haemodialysis nurses : a structural equation model using Kanter’s structural empowerment theory

Aim To test an explanatory model of the relationships between the nursing work environment, job satisfaction, job stress and emotional exhaustion for haemodialysis nurses, drawing on Kanter's theory of organizational empowerment. Background Understanding the organizational predictors of burnout (emotional exhaustion) in haemodialysis nurses is critical for staff retention and improving nurse and patient outcomes. Previous research has demonstrated high levels of emotional exhaustion among haemodialysis nurses, yet the relationships between nurses' work environment, job satisfaction, stress and emotional exhaustion in this population are poorly understood. Design A cross-sectional online survey. Methods 417 nurses working in haemodialysis units completed an online survey between October 2011–April 2012 using validated measures of the work environment, job satisfaction, job stress and emotional exhaustion. Results Overall, the structural equation model demonstrated adequate fit and we found partial support for the hypothesized relationships. Nurses' work environment had a direct positive effect on job satisfaction, explaining 88% of the variance. Greater job satisfaction, in turn, predicted lower job stress, explaining 82% of the variance. Job satisfaction also had an indirect effect on emotional exhaustion by mitigating job stress. However, job satisfaction did not have a direct effect on emotional exhaustion. Conclusion The work environment of haemodialysis nurses is pivotal to the development of job satisfaction. Nurses' job satisfaction also predicts their level of job stress and emotional exhaustion. Our findings suggest staff retention can be improved by creating empowering work environments that promote job satisfaction among haemodialysis nurses.

A randomised controlled trial of an online theory-based intervention to improve adult Australians' sun-protective behaviours

Objective. To evaluate the effectiveness of a single-session online theory of planned behaviour (TPB)-based intervention to improve sun-protective attitudes and behaviour among Australian adults. Methods. Australian adults (N = 534; 38.7% males; Mage = 39.3 years) from major cities (80.9%), regional (17.6%) and remote areas (1.5%)were recruited and randomly allocated to an intervention (N=265) and information only group (N = 267). The online intervention focused on fostering positive attitudes, perceptions of normative support, and control perceptions for sun protection. Participants completed questionnaires assessing standard TPB measures (attitude, subjective norm, perceived behavioural control, intention, behaviour) and extended TPB constructs of group norm (friends, family), personal norm, and image norm, pre-intervention (Time 1) and one week (Time 2) and one month post-intervention (Time 3). Repeated Measures Multivariate Analysis of Variance tested intervention effects across time. Results. Intervention participants reported more positive attitudes towards sun protection and used sunprotective measures more often in the subsequent month than participants receiving information only. The intervention effects on control perceptions and norms were non-significant. Conclusions. A theory-based online intervention fostering more favourable attitudes towards sun safety can increase sun protection attitudes and self-reported behaviour among Australian adults in the short term.

Test-retest reliability of graph theory measures of structural brain connectivity

The human connectome has recently become a popular research topic in neuroscience, and many new algorithms have been applied to analyze brain networks. In particular, network topology measures from graph theory have been adapted to analyze network efficiency and 'small-world' properties. While there has been a surge in the number of papers examining connectivity through graph theory, questions remain about its test-retest reliability (TRT). In particular, the reproducibility of structural connectivity measures has not been assessed. We examined the TRT of global connectivity measures generated from graph theory analyses of 17 young adults who underwent two high-angular resolution diffusion (HARDI) scans approximately 3 months apart. Of the measures assessed, modularity had the highest TRT, and it was stable across a range of sparsities (a thresholding parameter used to define which network edges are retained). These reliability measures underline the need to develop network descriptors that are robust to acquisition parameters.