Three sociological aspects of economic development

Includes bibliography

The family in its sociological aspects /

Bibliography: p. [135]-137.

The Society of States under siege? An English School perspective on the emergence of global civil society

In this article I critically examine the theoretical and empirical relationship between world society, whereby global civil society is taken to be its physical or empirical counterpart, and the society of states. This relationship is typically portrayed as contradictory or confrontational, and I contend that this mainstream perspective is reliant on a superficial analysis of the relationship. If one examines the deeper dynamics, viewed in their contemporary international normative context, then one can identify the more constructive and permissive aspects of the relationship. Rather than being wholly incompatible I argue that world society and international society are mutually constitutive and mutually dependent regimes, whose relationship is more often marked by cooperation than by conflict. English School theory provides the conceptual framework for this analysis. The relationship between international and world society presents a core ontological tension within this theory, and again they tend to occupy polarised positions. A synthesis of four international theories - pluralist international society theory, solidarist international society theory, critical international theory, and the discourse of global civil society - informs the hypothesis that the relationship can be normatively and empirically reconciled. In order to empirically support this explanation I analyse two phenomena in world politics - transnational advocacy networks and humanitarian intervention - where there is an apparent tension between international and world society.

The struggle for the body, mind and soul of AFL footballers

"The book discusses the profound, often troubling, always complex struggles for the body, mind and soul of elite performers in contemporary sports entertainment environments. This struggle is shaped by two powerful processes. On the one hand we witness the translation and application of a range of rationalities and knowledges from fields such as psychology, sport science and medicine, dietetics, education and management. All of which have the consequence of subjecting elite performers to often intrusive regimes of measurement, testing, medical intervention, surveillance, education and regulation in the pursuit of performance and success. At the same time we can identify ways in which the commodification of sports/games, the drive to develop and grow as a sports entertainment business and the pursuit and maintenance of a media presence and profile on which brand relationships can be established and grown has the consequence of transforming elite performers into highly paid sports celebrities whose image, persona and brand is positioned in a crowded, highly competitive marketplace to be scrutinised, judged and consumed.
[The] struggle that takes on new dimensions in the evolution of sports/games into global sports entertainment industries and businesses....The book reveals new insights into the tensions that emerge between different levels of the AFL sports entertainment industry about what it means to be a professional footballer at the start of the 21st century. The book analyses aspects of this struggle for the body, mind and soul at different stages in a playing career."--Media release.

Environment and Interaction: a study in social activation of the public realm

The natural and built environment has been shown to affect its users in both psychological and physiological forms. But can if affect the sociological aspects of human processes and actions? The activation of the public realm can be shown to reduce socially dysfunctional behaviour through the simple occupation of the space and a number of other key variables through its design. In order to explore this further we must study how public space is being used in terms of social interaction, which will lead to a set of design ideals through which the social activation of public space can be achieved. Observations of differing social contexts have been undertaken in order to solidify key ideas and design principles for the activation of public space. Three sites were selected, each containing different amounts of vegetation and opportunity for occupation. These were then analysed through a lens of levels of social interaction. In this way it can become evident how the users interact with and within their social environments Through the analysis of the chosen sites, it has become evident that levels of interaction between the users, whether for transitory or occupational purposes, rise directly with vegetation and opportunity for occupation. With this in mind it can be determined that through design, public space can allow for and create greater opportunity for social interaction.

Relaciones amorosas de pareja en las trayectorias vitales de las mujeres encarceladas

[ES]La tesis doctoral analiza las experiencias amorosas de pareja de mujeres encarceladas, con el doble objetivo de visibilizar a las mujeres presas en el ámbito de las ciencias sociales y de introducir las especificidades de las mujeres encarceladas en los debates sociológicos y feministas acerca del amor. Las escasas aproximaciones al amor entre las mujeres presas han tendido a explicar sus relaciones de pareja desde el concepto de “dependencia emocional”, que, como se muestra en la tesis, presenta dos debilidades básicas, de un lado la tendencia a la psicologización y patologización de cuestiones de claro sustrato social; de otro la homogeneización de experiencias que presentan gran diversidad. Otra debilidad de ciertos análisis sobre las mujeres presas y aquellas excluidas socialmente, es que se han basado en concepciones sexistas acerca de las mujeres transgresoras como “malas mujeres”, por considerar que no cumplen con las expectativas culturales y sociales asociadas a los supuestos atributos de género. Esta tesis doctoral adopta una epistemología basada en la crítica feminista que busca modelos analíticos alejados de los estereotipos y la estigmatización de las mujeres transgresoras. Desde una perspectiva metodológica cualitativa, el trabajo de campo fue desarrollado en la cárcel de Nanclares de Oca (País Vasco) durante el 2008. Desarrollé un trabajo etnográfico de observación participante y entrevistas en profundidad semiestructuradas que elaboraban información sobre aspectos relativos a sus trayectorias de vida (familia de origen, vivienda, empleo, nivel educativo, situación penal y penitenciaria, estado de salud, etc.) y sus experiencias amorosas de pareja. En mi análisis, he rastreado la diversidad y variabilidad de las experiencias amorosas de las mujeres presas, el impacto del encarcelamiento en sus trayectorias amorosas y en la configuración de su intimidad, los elementos que hacen para estas mujeres del amor un “cautiverio”, y al mismo tiempo, las estrategias “liberadoras” que despliegan en sus desarrollos afectivos. El amor puede constituir un cautiverio para las mujeres ya que favorece la acomodación a unos roles de género que definen a las mujeres como dependientes y carentes de libertad. Al mismo tiempo, el amor se puede entender como una “estrategia emocional”, una forma de superar las consecuencias del encierro y de lograr ciertos estándares de “normalización” social, en un contexto en que se encuentran excluidas socialmente y fuertemente estigmatizadas.

Artes de Exu: intervenções artísticas e representações afro-brasileiras no Rio de Janeiro: Tridente de Ni e Exu dos Ventos

Artes de Exu trata os objetos de arte não só pelos aspectos artísticos e sociológicos, mas também pelos aspectos que ligam as obras a Exu, além do enunciado. Como coisa contida na concepção, na execução e imbricada na própria história da obra. As obras escolhidas são: Tridente de NI (2006) de Alexandre Vogler e Exu dos Ventos (1992), de Mario Cravo Júnior. As obras contêm conflitos que envolvem a mídia, religiosos e políticos. A partir de pesquisas etnográficas é feita uma análise dos olhares que se cruzam na construção dos sentidos na disputa pelo espaço simbólico, considerando ainda o trânsito percorrido pelas obras entre a oficina, o espaço de exposição e a rua. Pertence ainda ao corpo das análises as referências na mídia impressa, forma de veiculação das imagens, apropriações e discursos. As artes de Exu se evidenciam no desenrolar dessas tramas, conforme os objetos artísticos oferecem um lugar para pensar na conciliação entre diferentes: entre a cruz e o tridente, entre Cristo e Exu e entre cristãos e religiões de matriz africana

Uma investigação sobre a forma de governo e o modo de governar da República

Esta dissertação procura, utilizando o pensamento de Maquiavel, Montesquieu e Madison, estudar o governo republicano a partir de dois paradigmas distintos, a saber, a forma de governo e o modo de governar. O primeiro diz respeito ao seu caráter institucional do Estado e da atividade política e se torna inteligível por uma compreensão teórica da política, ou seja, sobre o que lhe confere formato. O segundo se refere aos modos de ação do governo independentemente de seu formato institucional e pode ser compreendido por aspectos sociológicos, pois diz respeito mais à sociedade. Maquiavel e, de um ponto de vista, Montesquieu podem ser considerados os principais representantes da tradição que identifica na forma de governo a definição da república. Montesquieu, sob outra perspectiva, e Madison são os que mais se dedicaram ao modo de governar. Além disso, este estudo procura abordar a liberdade como categoria identitária da política e, assim, formando um todo coeso da tradição republicana.

A study of the Zhiqing identity

More than seventeen million Chinese urban youth (Zhiqing in Chinese) went to the countryside, lived and engaged in agricultural work there during the Up to the Mountains and Down to the Countryside (UMDC) Movement (1967-1981). Although this movement was officially terminated in 1981, it has left an imprint on these people – the Zhiqing identity by which they are still characterized as a unique group in Chinese society and a special generation in Chinese history. Historical and sociological perspectives are combined in this study. By applying Glen H. Elder’s life course approach, the study reveals how Zhiqing’s life trajectories are embedded in the social history and identifies a series of interrelated factors that made Zhiqing into a unique generation. With the guidance of Henri Tajfel’s social identity theory, the study uncovers the emergence of the Zhiqing group and the Zhiqing identity, explains individuals’ acquisitions of the Zhiqing identity and analyzes how it has kept influencing individuals’ lives during and after the UMDC Movement. Using Zhiqing’s life stories allowed the researcher to combine the historical and sociological aspects in her examination of Zhiqing’s identity issues. In each life story, the narrator reviewed his/her life experience, reflected on socio-historical changes and expressed his/her emotions and ideas about identity issues. Utilizing methods of in-depth interview and thematic analysis, the researcher completed the study and presents this thesis as one interpretation on the Zhiqing identity, which, as according the researcher’s hermeneutic stance, is open to further discussion and future research.

Art, adolescence and Social Work: Anja, the invisible manager

This article has been written with the intention of being able to analyse the contributions of art —theatre, in this case— to the practice of social work. For this purpose, we have chosen to read the social reality in which we intervene through the lens of social constructionism. This helps us to rescue the social and subjective side of art, and, moreover, to recover the depathologization of the subject in professional intervention. Thus, using a practical case taken from work with adolescents in the German FSJ programme, hand-in-hand with a young girl called Anja we trace the developmental and sociological aspects of adolescence in order to later address certain common points of art and psychosocial work. Art will hence be redefined as a transitional object allowing questions to be addressed relating to (self-) perception, attachment, communication and changes in conduct as the ultimate goal of professional action. Lastly, we note the limitations and risks of art-based intervention, in order to conclude with a final synopsis.

The impact of education on the use of breat self- examination among Canadian women

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between the level of education that Canadian women have and their use of breast self-examination (BSE). The secondary objective of this study was to do some exploratory research to measure how the demographic characteristics of these women, and the behaviours that they chose to participate in, might be associated to their use of BSE. This exploratory research was done to gain a better understanding of what kinds of lifestyle and behavioural factors are associated with the use of BSE, and how these factors impact on the relationship that education has on women's use of BSE. The data for the women in the sample were taken from the 1990 Population Health Survey, conducted by Statistics Canada. This survey included questions related to both the demographic characteristics of this population, and their behavioural choices in regards to various healthy lifestyle factors. Education was found to be significantly related to the use of BSE. Many of the demographic variables (age, income, marital status and language) were also found to be significantly related to the use of BSE. The behavioural variables (tobacco use, alcohol use) did not reflect such a strong relationship.

'What ever happened to breakdancing?' : transnational b-boy/b-girl networks, underground video magazines and imagined affinities

In 1997, Paul Gilroy was able to write: "I have been asking myself, whatever happened to breakdancing" (21), a form of vernacular dance associated with urban youth that emerged in the 1970s. However, in the last decade, breakdancing has experienced a massive renaissance in movies (You Got Served), commercials ("Gotta Have My Pops!") and documentaries (the acclaimed Freshest Kids). In this thesis, 1 explore the historical development of global b-boy/bgirl culture through a qualitative study involving dancers and their modes of communication. Widespread circulation of breakdancing images peaked in the mid-1980s, and subsequently b-boy/b-girl culture largely disappeared from the mediated landscape. The dance did not reemerge into the mainstream of North American popular culture until the late 1990s. 1 argue that the development of major transnational networks between b-boys and b-girls during the 1990s was a key factor in the return of 'b-boying/b-girling' (known formerly as breakdancing). Street dancers toured, traveled and competed internationally throughout this decade. They also began to create 'underground' video documentaries and travel video 'magazines.' These video artefacts circulated extensively around the globe through alternative distribution channels (including the backpacks of traveling dancers). 1 argue that underground video artefacts helped to produce 'imagined affinities' between dancers in various nations. Imagined affinities are identifications expressed by a cultural producer who shares an embodied activity with other practitioners through either mediated texts or travels through new places. These 'imagined affinities' helped to sustain b-boy/b-girl culture by generating visual/audio representations of popularity for the dance movement across geographical regions.

Analyzing the learning of the taking personal and social responsibility model within a new physical education undergraduate degree program in El Salvador

EI Salvador presents an unfortunate history that includes a military regime and a civil war that together created a legacy of violence in which the country still struggle nowadays. Salud Escolar Integral (SEI) was created in 2005 as a program to combat youth violence throughout the re-formulation of physical education (PE) classes in public schools, promoting life skills learning that supports the resolution of conflicts with nonviolent ways. In 2007, SEI supported the creation of a physical e~ucation teacher education (PETE) degree at the Universidad Pedag6gica de EI Salvador (UPES), having the goal to assist pre-service teachers with a better understanding of humanistic principles. The present research analyzed if after attending all three years ofUPES PETE program, students presented high self-perception levels of competence and confidence related to attitude, skills and knowledge to teach PE within humanistic principles. Taking Personal and Social Responsibility (TPSR) was the theoretical framework used to analyze the development of humanistic principles. The study had a mixed-method longitudinal design that included questionnaires, reflection templates and interviews. In conclusion, although it is suggested that UPES should provide better support for the development of the teaching principles of empowering students and transfer learning, most of the humanistic principles were highly promoted by the program. At last, it is suggested that future research should track teachers' progress while teaching in schools, in order to analyze if the theory of promoting humanistic principles have also become a daily practice.