Showing papers in "Sociology Compass in 2014"
TL;DR: The concept of hybrid masculinities was coined by Demetriou as mentioned in this paper to describe men's selective incorporation of performances and identity elements associated with marginalized and subordinated masculinity and femininities.
Abstract: Hybrid masculinity refers to men’s selective incorporation of performances and identity elementsassociated with marginalized and subordinated masculinities and femininities. We use recent theoriza-tion of hybrid masculinities to critically review theory and research that seeks to make sense of con-temporary transformations in masculinity. We suggest that research broadly supports three distinctconsequences associated with recent changes in performances and politics of masculinity that workto obscure the tenacity of gendered inequality. Hybrid masculinities (i) symbolically distance menfrom hegemonic masculinity; (ii) situate the masculinities available to young, White, heterosexualmen as somehow less meaningful than the masculinities associated with various marginalized andsubordinated Others; and (iii) fortify existing social and symbolic boundaries in ways that often workto conceal systems of power and inequality in historically new ways. IntroductionAgrowingbodyofsociologicaltheoryandresearchonmenandmasculinitiesaddressesrecenttransformations in men’s behaviors, appearances, opinions, and more. While historical re-searchhasshownmasculinitiestobeinacontinuousstateofchange(e.g.,Kimmel1996;Segal1990), the extent of contemporary transformations as well as their impact and meaning is thesource of a great deal of theory, research, and debate. While not a term universally adoptedamong masculinities scholars, the concept of “hybrid masculinities” is a useful way to makesense of this growing body of scholarship. It critically highlights this body of work that seeksto account for the emergence and consequences of recent transformations in masculinities.The term “hybrid” was coined in the natural sciences during the 19th century. Initiallyused to refer to species produced through the mixing of two separate species, by the 20thcentury, it was applied to people and social groups to address popular concern with miscege-nation. Today, scholars in the social sciences and humanities use “hybrid” to address culturalmiscegenation – processes and practices of cultural interpenetration (Burke 2009). “Hybridmasculinities” refer to the selective incorporation of elements of identity typically associatedwith various marginalized and subordinated masculinities and – at times – femininities intoprivileged men’s gender performances and identities (e.g., Arxer 2011; Demetriou 2001;Messerschmidt 2010; Messner 2007). Work on hybrid masculinities has primarily, thoughnot universally, focused on young, White, heterosexual-identified men. This research is cen-trally concerned with the ways that men are increasingly incorporating elements of various“Others” into their identity projects. While it is true that gendered meanings change histor-ically and geographically, research and theory addressing hybrid masculinities are beginningto ask whether recent transformations point in a new, more liberating direction.The transformations addressed by this literature include men’s assimilation of “bits andpieces”(Demetriou2001:350)ofidentityprojectscodedas“gay”(e.g.,Bridges,forthcoming;
459 citations
TL;DR: The authors examine the moral economy embedded in claims and programs and examine a series of frame tensions: between universal and particular claims to legal status, between legalization based on vulnerability and that based on civic performance, between economic and cultural deservingness, and between the policy level and individual subjectivity.
Abstract: Over the last two decades, research on unauthorized migration has departed from the equation of migrant illegality with absolute exclusion, emphasizing that formal exclusion typically results in subordinate inclusion. Irregular migrants integrate through informal support networks, the underground economy, and political activities. But they also incorporate into formal institutions, through policy divergence between levels of government, bureaucratic sabotage, or fraud. The incorporation of undocumented migrants involves not so much invisibility as camouflage – presenting the paradox that camouflage improves with integration. As it reaches the formal level of claims and procedures, legalization brings up the issue of the frames through which legal deservingness is asserted. Looking at the moral economy embedded in claims and programs, we examine a series of frame tensions: between universal and particular claims to legal status, between legalization based on vulnerability and that based on civic performance, between economic and cultural deservingness, and between the policy level and individual subjectivity. We show that restrictionist governments face a dilemma when their constructions of “good citizenship” threaten to extend to “deserving” undocumented migrants. Hence, they may simultaneously emphasize deservingness frames while limiting irregular migrants’ opportunities to deserve, effectively making deservingness both a civic obligation and a civic privilege.
222 citations
TL;DR: An overview of the range of digital health technologies that are currently in use and the work of researchers in the field of critical digital health studies who have addressed their broader social, cultural and political dimensions are reviewed.
Abstract: Discussions of digital health technologies in the popular media and the medical and public health academic literature frequently comment on how these technologies might offer new or improved ways of delivering health care, conducting health promotion activities and monitoring public health Following the presentation of an overview of the range of digital health technologies that are currently in use, I review the work of researchers in the field of critical digital health studies who have addressed their broader social, cultural and political dimensions The discussion focuses on four major topics: health and medical websites and platforms; telemedicine and telehealth; the politics of digital health; and digitised embodiment I end with identifying some important directions for future research in critical digital health studies
188 citations
TL;DR: This article reviews the sociological literature on the topic of complementary and alternative medicine and considers how sociological research on users and practitioners of TM/CAM has developed in that time, and examines the role of sociology moving forward.
Abstract: Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) and traditional medicine (TM) are important social phenomena This article reviews the sociological literature on the topic First, it addresses the question of terminology, arguing that the naming process is a glimpse into the complexities of power and history that characterize the field Second, focusing on the last 15 years of scholarship, it considers how sociological research on users and practitioners of TM/CAM has developed in that time Third, it addresses two newer strands of work termed here the 'big picture' and the 'big question' The big picture includes concepts that offer interpretation of what is happening at a societal level to constrain and enable observed patterns of social practice (pluralism, integration, hybridity and activism) The big question, 'Does it work?', is one of epistemology and focuses on two developing fields of critical enquiry - first, social critiques of medical science knowledge production and, second, attempts to explain the nature of interventions, ie how they work Finally, the article examines the role of sociology moving forward
121 citations
TL;DR: The concept of aesthetic labor as discussed by the authors is a sociological intervention for understanding how the value of certain looks is constructed, and how looks matter for social stratification, which is the practice of screening, managing, and controlling workers on the basis of their physical appearance.
Abstract: Amid the growing literature on the costs and rewards of physical appearance for labor market outcomes, an economistic emphasis on looks as an investment strategy has gained prominence. The concept of aesthetic labor is a useful sociological intervention for understanding how the value of certain looks is constructed, and how looks matter for social stratification. Aesthetic labor is the practice of screening, managing, and controlling workers on the basis of their physical appearance. The concept advances research on the service economy by moving beyond a focus on emotions to emphasize worker corporeality. This article first untangles aesthetic labor from related concepts, including body work, emotional labor, and embodied cultural capital. Next is a review of three contexts in which scholars have applied aesthetic labor to the workplace: the organization, freelance labor, and the market. Because it situates the value of beauty in context, aesthetic labor foregrounds those power relations that define aesthetics, such as class, race, and gender. The concept incorporates insights from field theories of bodily capital, such that aesthetic labor denaturalizes beauty and seeks to explain the processes through which looks translate into economic and symbolic rewards.
94 citations
TL;DR: The role of theory in qualitative health research is paramount for translation into practice and policy, since it moves beyond pure description of data, allowing interpretation of the social processes underpinning and potentially explaining the findings as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: The role of theory in qualitative health research is paramount for translation into practice and policy, since it moves beyond pure description of data, allowing interpretation of the social processes underpinning and potentially ‘explaining’ findings. However, the use of theory in empirical research proves challenging to undertake and subsequently articulate in theses and publications. This paper offers insight into how theory may be used in empirical research, drawing on both theory-driven and grounded theory approaches. The approach described assists researchers in bridging the central criticisms of these two methodological approaches. Furthermore, if offers researchers and students a step-by-step guide for integrating theory within and throughout the research process. Within our step-by-step guide, we provide examples from our own research that we hope will help readers to map the difficult terrain of using theory within and throughout their own research. Think of this paper as a guide to working with theory and research in an interconnected and interdependent way – a pluralistic approach for theory verification and generation.
84 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors review the emergent literature on this topic, highlighting four themes: (i) parent preferences, identities, and values; (ii) the role of marketing campaigns and informal networks in attracting the middle class; (iii) the nature and consequences of middle-class parent engagement in urban schooling; and (iv) the relationship between neighborhood change and school change.
Abstract: Middle-class flight from urban public schools to suburban districts or private schools is a key source of educational inequality. Recently, however, a number of studies have focused on middle-class and upper-middle-class families who have made a different choice, opting to remain in the city and send their children to neighborhood public schools. While the movement of advantaged families into urban public schools has received positive attention in the media, this growing body of research tells a more complicated story. Middle-class families – with their economic, cultural, and social capital – can bring important resources to schools, resulting in widespread benefits. However, their engagement in urban public schools can also lead to marginalization and exclusion. We review the emergent literature on this topic, highlighting four themes: (i) parent preferences, identities, and values; (ii) the role of marketing campaigns and informal networks in attracting the middle class; (iii) the nature and consequences of middle-class parent engagement in urban schooling; and (iv) the relationship between neighborhood change and school change. We conclude by outlining a research agenda aimed at deepening our understanding of the mechanisms by which middle-class parent engagement in urban schooling may serve to mitigate, reproduce, or exacerbate educational inequalities.
79 citations
TL;DR: It is advanced the case that, in understanding the impact of neighborhoods and poverty on crime, sociological and criminological research would benefit from expanding the analytical focus from residential neighborhoods to the network of neighborhoods individuals are exposed to during their daily routine activities.
Abstract: Research on neighborhoods and crime is on a remarkable growth trajectory. In this article, we survey important recent developments in the scholarship on neighborhood effects and the spatial stratification of poverty and urban crime. We advance the case that, in understanding the impact of neighborhoods and poverty on crime, sociological and criminological research would benefit from expanding the analytical focus from residential neighborhoods to the network of neighborhoods that individuals are exposed to during their daily routine activities. This perspective is supported by re-emerging scholarship on activity spaces and macro-level research on inter-neighborhood connections. We highlight work indicating that non-residential contexts add variation in criminogenic exposure, which in turn influence offending behavior and victimization risk. Also, we draw on recent insights from research on gang violence, social and institutional connections, and spatial mismatch and call for advancements in the scholarship on urban poverty that investigates the salience of inter-neighborhood connections in evaluating the spatial stratification of criminogenic risk for individuals and communities.
79 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors re-visited and re-appraised Freidson's restratification thesis and developed three areas of theoretical debate and elaboration related to questions of elite power, culture and identity, and relational contingency.
Abstract: This paper re-visits and re-appraises Freidson's restratification thesis. His thesis was proposed in the mid-1980s to counter the idea of de-professionalisation, suggesting professional elites can retain collective interests in a more bureaucratic and marketised workplace. Contemporary research highlights the growth of professional–managerial hybrids, and the blurring of professional and organisational boundaries. Within this context, the restratification thesis offers a relevant sociological lens for understanding the emergence and implications of these hybrid elite roles. Research tends to support the broad descriptive aspect of the thesis, but there remains much debate about its explanatory accuracy. The paper reviews Freidson's thesis and develops three areas of theoretical debate and elaboration related to questions of elite power, culture and identity, and relational contingency, with particular reference to the experiences of the medical profession. The paper re-interprets hybrid elite roles in terms of their points of ‘professional–organisational intersection’ from which it develops a tentative extension of Freidson's categorisation.
74 citations
TL;DR: Rainie and Wellman as discussed by the authors explored what it means to be socially connected in a techno-social world and argued that people's use of digital communication technology tends to strengthen social connectedness and prompt, not deter, face-to-face interaction and local community ties.
Abstract: This essay explores what it means to be socially connected in a techno-social world. It describes how a “triple revolution” in social connectedness has been catalyzed by the ever-increasing use of the Internet, mobile communication, and social media networking (Rainie and Wellman 2012). It argues for the usefulness of the concepts of the community and the network in understanding how social connectedness is created and experienced in the use of digital (computerized) communication technology. It examines some of the consequences – both benefits and hazards – of being near-continuously available to one another via the Internet, mobile phones, and social media. And it describes how digital (online) and face-to-face (offline) spaces become fully integrated and experienced as a single, enmeshed reality. The article concludes that people's use of digital communication technology tends to strengthen social connectedness and prompt, not deter, face-to-face interaction and local community ties.
70 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, a particular aspect of the critique of the increasing focus on the brain and neuroscience; what has been termed by some, "neuromania", is discussed.
Abstract: This article reviews a particular aspect of the critique of the increasing focus on the brain and neuroscience; what has been termed by some, 'neuromania'. It engages with the growing literature produced in response to the 'first three years' movement: an alliance of child welfare advocates and politicians that draws on the authority of neuroscience to argue that social problems such as inequality, poverty, educational underachievement, violence and mental illness are best addressed through 'early intervention' programmes to protect or enhance emotional and cognitive aspects of children's brain development. The movement began in the United States in the early 1990s and has become increasingly vocal and influential since then, achieving international legitimacy in the United States, Canada, New Zealand, Australia, the UK and elsewhere. The movement, and the brain-based culture of expert-led parent training that has grown with it, has been criticised for claiming scientific authority whilst taking a cavalier approach to scientific method and evidence; for being overly deterministic about the early years of life; for focusing attention on individual parental failings rather than societal or structural problems, for adding to the expanding anxieties of parents and strengthening the intensification of parenting and, ultimately, for redefining the parent-child relationship in biologised, instrumental and dehumanised terms. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors provide an interdisciplinary overview of the three major approaches to corruption, focusing on actors' behavior and the social context, and provide a framework for comparing and contrasting the predominant approaches in corruption studies.
Abstract: Corruption has become one of the most popular topics in the social scientific disciplines. However,there is a lack of interdisciplinary communication about corruption. Models developed by differentacademic disciplines are often isolated from each other. The purpose of this paper is to review severalmajor approaches to corruption and draw them closer to each other. Most studies of corruption fallinto three major categories: (i) rational-actor models where corruption is viewed as resulting fromcost/benefit analysis of individual actors; (ii) structural models that focus on external forces thatdetermine corruption; and (iii) relational models that emphasize social interactions and networksamong corrupt actors. Focusing on actors’ behavior and the social context, this article explainscorruption concepts taken from sociology, economics, organization studies, political science, socialanthropology, and social psychology. IntroductionCorruption is an elusive phenomenon conceptually. Its literature is enormous, and mostdisciplinesinthesocialsciencesattempttosaysomethingaboutit.Unfortunately,thereisalackof interdisciplinary communication about corruption, such that models developed by differentacademic disciplines are often isolated from each other. However, each social science hasrevealed interesting and important features of corruption, so it is worth drawing them closerto each other. Hence, this paper reviews corruption concepts taken from social anthropology,economics, political science, social psychology, sociology, and organization studies.Many studies of corruption fall into three major categories: (i) a micro-level perspectivewhere corruption is viewed as resulting from rational decisions of individual actors; (ii) amacro perspective that focuses on social norms and the structural arrangements that facilitatecorruption; and (iii) a relational approach that examines social interactions and networksamong corrupt actors. This paper brings some coherence to the extensive literature oncorruption. It provides an interdisciplinary overview of the three major approaches tocorruption, focusing on actors’ behavior and the social context. The article tries to reflectthe broader social scientific context and theoretical background related to each approach.Finally, it argues that relational approach has the potential to integrate the other twoparadigms and link rational actors with structural elements.Conceptualization of corruptionWe can find dozens of competing and sometimes contradictory definitions of corruption inthe literature. Some studies offer interesting overviews of such definitions (Kurer 2005;Pellegrini 2011; Williams 1999). Rather than try to resolve the definitional problem, thispaper will provide a framework for comparing and contrasting the predominant approachesin corruption studies. Here, I will use corruption as a broad umbrella term based on fourminimal, sometimes implicit, conceptual elements that one finds across most disciplines.© 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
TL;DR: This article argued that being physically active is a privilege rooted in how race, place, gender, and body image converge differently on Black women's propensity to be physically active than other races and gendered groups.
Abstract: In this essay, I make the case that the intersectionality framework is useful to explain the high level of obesity among Black women. I describe how the intersectionality framework reformulates the examination of racial and gender disparities in health by deconstructing traditional frames of Whiteness and maleness. Next, I discuss key barriers that operate as mechanisms to reduce Black women’s level of physical activity. Then, I provide ways to potentially combat these barriers. In doing so, I argue that being physically active is a privilege rooted in how race, place, gender, and body image converge differently on Black women’s propensity to be physically active than other raced and gendered groups. Middle class Black women are excluded from class-based privileges and experience a form of space invasion where their temporal space, geographic space, and bodily space are invaded. In this regard, this research agenda is not solely about physical activity but rather how the structural arrangements of communities contribute to healthy lifestyles.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors outline the evidence regarding the status effects of physical attractiveness, paying particular attention to outcomes in the areas of jobs, crime, performance evaluations, power, health perceptions, and exchange.
Abstract: In this article, we outline the evidence regarding the status effects of physical attractiveness, paying particular attention to outcomes in the areas of jobs, crime, performance evaluations, power, health perceptions, and exchange. The framework of status characteristics theory is used to guide our explication. The role of attractiveness in marketing is also discussed. While the literature generally supports the idea that attractiveness is good for people, we also consider evidence that beauty can be detrimental for some individuals in certain situations. Issues of race and gender are also considered as well as future research directions.
TL;DR: The authors argue that the most interesting debates in the gender wage gap are those exploring differences among subgroups by class, race, and/or parenthood status (such as the motherhood wage penalty), as well as those considering differences across countries.
Abstract: Scholarship in sociology and economics has long explored the gender wage gap. Recent research suggests that these inequalities are indicative of important differences not only between men and women, but among women and men, reflecting rising levels of income inequality among workers in the post-industrial era. We argue that the most interesting debates in the gender wage gap – those exploring differences among subgroups by class, race, and/or parenthood status (such as the motherhood wage penalty), as well as those considering differences across countries – can bring new insights to the study of wage inequality, as well as to understandings of what drives gendered wage inequality.
TL;DR: The overall aim of this article is to explore how the intersectional approach is used in health-risk research.
Abstract: The overall aim of this article is to explore how the intersectional approach is used in health-riskresearch. The concept has been recognized in health-risk research since the early 2000s, but not ...
TL;DR: This article synthesized existing literature to illuminate The Netherlands' unique form of racism, which is rooted in racial neoliberalism, anti-racialism (i.e., the denial of race), racial Europeanization, and the particular Dutch history of colonial exploitation.
Abstract: Many in The Netherlands deny the existence of race and racism even as significant research strongly suggests otherwise. This paper synthesized existing literature to illuminate The Netherlands' unique form of racism, which is rooted in racial neoliberalism, anti-racialism (i.e. the denial of race), racial Europeanization, and the particular Dutch history of colonial exploitation. This article summarizes existing scholarship addressing racism in wide array of social institutions in The Netherlands before addressing the historical roots of Dutch racism and how Dutch aphasia and racial Europeanization deny the links between contemporary and historical oppression before, finally, offering an explanation for this disconnect.
TL;DR: This article reviewed a range of new and established writing on deindustrialisation and argued that sociology has not made the contribution it could have in this debate and that one of the key strengths of the area is its interdisciplinary nature; especially from disciplines such as geography, anthropology and social history.
Abstract: This article reviews a range of new and established writing on deindustrialisation. It traces the origins of the concept from its popularisation in the early 1980s with the onset of large scale loss in the industrial regions of North America and Europe. We argue that with the passage of time, the academic field of deindustrialisation has matured as the scale and consequences of industrial loss become more apparent. We suggest here that sociology has not made the contribution it could have in this debate and that one of the key strengths of the area is its interdisciplinary nature; especially from disciplines such as geography, anthropology, and social history. Its key aim is to explain why this is the case and suggest that by fully engaging with the issue of deindustrialisation and the range of new material available, the sociology of economic life can develop a more rounded account both of work and its absence.
TL;DR: In this paper, the main theory of the political public sphere general, and the role of the Internet and Internet-based media in the theory specifically, is discussed, and a key task for future research is to investigate the complex connections between Internet publics and mass media publics.
Abstract: The article addresses the main theory of the political public sphere generally, and the role of the Internet and Internet-based media in the theory specifically. It first reviews briefly the initial social research on the Internet in the 1990s concerning political participation. After a presentation of Jurgen Habermas' theory of the contemporary public sphere, it proceeds to discuss the main problems concerning the Internet as a platform or infrastructure for public debate: segmentation and concentration. It argues that a general conclusion is that the public sphere differentiates and become more complex. A key task for future research, it argues, is to investigate the complex connections between Internet publics and mass media publics.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors connect ideas from life course and technology studies to examine social connectedness among youth, working age, and older adults, and argue that a sensitivity to key life course themes such as timing and transitions, linked lives, and social and historical context will generate deeper understanding of the role that technology use plays in shaping social life.
Abstract: Technological innovation and adoption is, at root, a social process that unfolds over time. In this review, we connect ideas from life course and technology studies to examine social connectedness among youth, working age, and older adults. We argue that a sensitivity to key life course themes – especially timing and transitions, linked lives, and social and historical context – in studies examining the implications of technological innovation and social connectedness will generate deeper understanding of the role that technology use plays in shaping social life.
TL;DR: In this paper, a review of research on how, and the extent to which, the childless "do" family without kids is reviewed and suggestions for future research are made.
Abstract: Families that do not include children are largely overlooked by family scholars and in popular discourse. Yet this is one of several family forms that has grown in developed nations since the 1970s. As increasingly fewer adults choose to become parents, understanding the families they create, and the consequences of these family forms, will become even more important. Studies of childless adults reveal that they create bonds to fulfill many of the same functions that families with children fulfill. Research on how, and the extent to which, the childless “do” family without kids is reviewed and suggestions for future research are made.
TL;DR: The lack of social psychological research on why people engage in corruption is due to the dearth of empirical data on corruption, the theoretical complexity of this phenomenon, and current popularity of neoliberalism in politics and academic research.
Abstract: In recent decades, corruption has emerged as a major cause of global inequality and an important subject of social scientific research. This article argues that social psychologists have not taken full advantage of analytical tools at their disposal to generate explanatory accounts of corruption in non-Western contexts. In the first part of the article, the author maintains that the lack of social psychological research on why people engage in corruption is due to the dearth of empirical data on corruption, the theoretical complexity of this phenomenon, and current popularity of neoliberalism in politics and academic research. In the second part of the article, the author argues that the symbolic interactionism school of social psychology has a number of tools that could be more helpful in exploring the causes of corruption in non-Western settings than rational-choice approaches that are currently en vogue. The article concludes with an argument that such analyses could generate culturally sensitive as well as policy-relevant theories of corruption.
TL;DR: The application of social network analysis to the study of crime, deviance, and violence has arrived a bit late to this network turn in the social and behavioral science as mentioned in this paper, but only if taken as an opportunity to evaluate our core theoretical principles and consider new ways to understand and measure them.
Abstract: From theoretical physics to field-driven anthropology, researchers are increasingly exploring how the connections among individuals, amoebas, brain cells, organizations, and institutions affect what we feel, think, and do. However, the application of social network analysis to the study of crime, deviance, and violence has arrived a bit late to this network turn in the social and behavioral science. I argue that this network turn in the social sciences be an important turning point in the study of crime and deviance, but only if taken as an opportunity to evaluate our core theoretical principles and consider new ways to understand and measure them. The goal of this essay is to take stock of the state of the field, while also providing a moment of pause to consider some fruitful ways of advancing this line of inquiry.
TL;DR: In this article, a socology of standards is proposed for evidence-based medicine, which reframes the manifold critiques on EBM as concerns over the harm that standardization can bring about and demonstrates how empirical sociological studies have contributed to a better understanding of EBM's justificatory basis and regulatory impact.
Abstract: Evidence-based medicine (EBM), which advocates clinical decisions are based on evidence from medical research, has become an important ideal pursued in contemporary medicine. EBM relies on two key principles: the evidence hierarchy and clinical practice guidelines. Both principles have been fiercely criticized, and critics often invoke the term ‘Cookbook medicine’ to stress the dangers and limitations of EBM. This article reviews diverse critical literature on EBM by drawing on the newly proposed subfield of “Sociology of Standards.” It reframes the manifold critiques on EBM as concerns over the harm that standardization can bring about and demonstrates how empirical sociological studies have contributed to a better understanding of EBM's justificatory basis and regulatory impact. First, it discusses the ‘politics of Evidence’ inherent in EBM's epistemological basis, secondly, explores the actual ‘evidence-base’ of its tools in practice, and third, addresses sociological debates on EBM's regulatory impact. In the concluding section, I argue that a ‘Sociology of Standards’ opens up new research avenues by allowing scholars to challenge – or at least empirically investigate – a host of dichotomies. By doing so, the role of the patient in EBM can be reframed to allow for more productive empirical investigations.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors argue for a media-sensitive analysis of images in social movements and argue that the current opportunities to create and spread images of dissent are contrasted with previous appropriations of technical possibilities from early print to electronic media.
Abstract: Social movements and the messages they wish to spread are essentially visual phenomena. Although this is both an obvious and momentous assertion, social movement research has been hesitant to integrate visual data. Until lately, most insights into the use of images in social movements originated from historical and media studies. This contribution presents the recent surge in literature devoted to the visual analysis of social movements. It focuses on activists' practices of image production and distribution under certain media-historic constellations. In this perspective, the current opportunities to create and spread images of dissent are contrasted with previous appropriations of technical possibilities from early print to electronic media. In times of mobile devices combined with social network sites, scholars of movement images are confronted with profound changes in the ways images contribute to the emergence and dynamics of social movements. Thus, we argue for a media-sensitive analysis of images in social movements.
TL;DR: In this paper, humor is used as a communicative and emotional strategy for social movement activists and organizations and focus on two constellations of movement humor: humor directed outside the group in the forms of tactics and frames, which I termed external humor, and the role of humor in leadership, collective identity, and emotional labor, termed internal humor.
Abstract: At first glance, humor and politics may appear oppositional. Politics is often understood as serious, important, and grave, while humor is perceived as lighthearted and frivolous. Beneath the surface, however, it is evident that humor and politics are actually inextricably linked and have been throughout political history. This paper interrogates the tensions between humor and seriousness, importance and frivolity, and legitimate and dismissible to examine the manifestations of humor in social movement protest. I discuss how humor is used as a communicative and emotional strategy for social movement activists and organizations and focus on two constellations of movement humor: humor directed outside the group in the forms of tactics and frames, which I term external humor, and the role of humor in leadership, collective identity, and emotional labor, termed internal humor. To illustrate the role of humor in protest, I integrate examples from scholarly research, media depictions, and participant observation data to provide examples of how humor is manifest as an external tactic, social movement frame, and its potential role in strengthening ties to leadership and collective identity. The essay concludes by highlighting some potential paths for future study about the relationship between humor, ideology, identity, and power.
TL;DR: This paper attempts to review the sociology of childbirth and to consolidate some of the multidisciplinary contributions made to date on childbirth within the risk society.
Abstract: Despite the fact that the speciality of obstetrics is considered to be a high risk area, indeed it is estimated that in the UK, maternity services account for massive 60% of all the NHS litigation claims burden; scholarly activity in childbirth performance as part of the risk society is relatively underdeveloped when compared to other areas of health. It is the extent of the influence of risk upon the maternity services that makes this underdevelopment especially striking. In an effort to present childbirth as a worthwhile site for empirical investigation and theoretical discussion, this paper attempts to review the sociology of childbirth and to consolidate some of the multidisciplinary contributions made to date on childbirth within the risk society.
TL;DR: This paper found that commitment to moral traditionalism on social issues is the dominant force animating evangelical political conservatism and that evangelicals remain distinctly Republican in their partisan voting despite economic and foreign policy commitments that are not as strongly aligned with Republican priorities.
Abstract: Since the late 1970s, American evangelicals have been a potent influence in conservative politics. Recent scholarship both refines and contextualizes some of the central themes found in the broader literature on evangelical politics. We first review key recent scholarship in American religious history. It shows that current patterns of evangelical conservatism are the product of historically contingent social forces and that political conservatism was never uniform among evangelicals. We then discuss recent scholarship on evangelicals' attitudes toward public issues. This work indicates that commitment to moral traditionalism on social issues is the dominant force animating evangelical political conservatism and that evangelicals remain distinctly Republican in their partisan voting despite economic and foreign policy commitments that are not as strongly aligned with Republican priorities. We then shift our focus to the dominant conservative movement of the moment: the Tea Party. We cite evidence that evangelicals and the Tea Party remain distinct in terms of constituents and issue priorities but that social concerns may be taking precedence over the economic concerns that birthed the movement. We conclude by discussing recent trends that suggest that a de-alignment between evangelicalism and conservative politics may be underway.
TL;DR: Green consumption is a growing area of study that brings together multiple disciplines including environmental sociology and the sociology of consumers and consumption as discussed by the authors, which is an increasingly popular strategy used to address environmental problems and further social change.
Abstract: Attempting to influence everyday consumer practices is an increasingly popular strategy used to address environmental problems and further social change. This article focuses on exploring the controversial topic of green consumption, a growing area of study that brings together multiple disciplines including environmental sociology and the sociology of consumers and consumption. The article begins with a summary of the literature on green consumption and is then organized around three debates over how green consumption contributes to, or fails to contribute to, social and environmental change. The first debate is over locating responsibility for carbon dioxide emissions, the main contributor to greenhouse gases and climate change. The second debate considers what average people are doing to help address environmental problems. The third debate is about access to green consumption. Should policies work to increase access to greener products and efficient technologies for everyone or does the question of access push aside questions of inequality (race, class, and gender) and sufficiency (how much is enough)? These debates, in different ways, attempt to address the broader question of how social change happens and what we should do to support it.
TL;DR: The authors summarizes key findings and provides suggestions for further research in the literature that combines social movements and collective memory, and emphasizes the concept of repertoire and its relation to memory, which is already a widely used term in social movement studies, and provides a resonant tool for future movement and memory research.
Abstract: This article summarizes key findings and provides suggestions for further research in the literature that combines social movements and collective memory. Existing reviews of the collective memory literature highlight the macro and micro levels of analysis; studying movements and memory adds a meso level of analysis. This review covers all three levels and for each level discusses research methods, the social consequences of memory activism, recurring patterns, and explanations. Suggestions for future research emphasize the concept of repertoire and its relation to memory. Tactical repertoires and cultural repertoires provide the resources needed to construct collective memories, and repertoires empower memory activists to engage the political sphere, create change, and nurture solidarity within movement organizations. Because the idea of a repertoire uncovers a process of remembering and is already a widely used term in social movement studies, it provides a resonant tool for future movement and memory research.