Contemporary society

About: Contemporary society is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 3991 publications have been published within this topic receiving 91755 citations.

Green Perspective for a Hopeful Future: Explaining Green Schools’ Contribution to Environmental Subjective Well-Being:

Abstract: This article offers a new perspective on 2 of the most pressing challenges of contemporary society: improving the state of the environment and improving the subjective well-being (SWB) of adolescen...

The management and production of risk in romantic relationships: a postmodern paradox.

Abstract: Expanding on the work of Ulrich Beck and other social theorists, the central thesis of this article is that individuals in contemporary North American society are increasingly motivated by the need to alleviate expanding levels of perceived risks associated with interpersonal love relationships and mate selection. In response to these perceived risks, men and women today are altering their relationship patterns in such a way that the process of relationship formation and assessment has become increasingly rationalized. As a result, a paradox has been created between the rational management of interpersonal risk associated with romance and the production of risk. This article is primarily a theoretical treatment of the issues, augmented with data on the social history of adolescence, courtship, and marriage and a review of the literature on mate selection processes in contemporary society.

The sociology of rural life

Abstract: From fox-hunting to farming, the vigor with which rural activities and living are defended overturns received notions of a sleepy and complacent countryside. Alongside these developments, the rise of the organic food movement has helped to revitalize an already politicized rural population. Over the years 'rural life' has been defined, redefined and eventually fallen out of fashion as a sociological concept - in contrast to urban studies, which has flourished. This much-needed reappraisal calls for its reinterpretation in light of the profound changes affecting the countryside. First providing an overview of rural sociology, Hillyard goes on to offer contemporary case studies that clearly demonstrate the need for a reinvigorated rural sociology. Tackling a range of contentious issues, this book offers a new model for rural sociology and reassesses its role in contemporary society.

Pillarisation in perspective

Abstract: ‘Verzuiling’ (pillarisation) was originally a methaphor launched in the media in the 1930s for the recurring four‐fold division in Dutch contemporary society in an orthodox Protestant, a Roman Catholic, a Social Democratic and a ‘neutral’ or liberal section (population groups as well as complexes of organisations). Since the 1950s it has also been a key concept in several scholarly works on Dutch society. A research project of historians and social geographers at the University of Amsterdam analysed ‘verzuiling’ on the local and regional level. None of the many theories and interpretations of ‘verzuiling’ proved to be tenable in these analyses. Maybe it is better to reduce the term to a metaphor again and to analyse the processes that together resulted in this four‐fold division in Dutch society on their own terms.

The empowered patient and the sociologist

Abstract: The empowered patient is a near ubiquitous ideal in contemporary health care. In health professional literature as well as in public policy and debates involving patient organizations, the need to empower the patient and extend his or her control over health matters is agreed upon. The authors argue this phenomenon deserve more attention from medical sociology. The increasing use of the term ‘empowerment’ – both as a political ideal and as a descriptive concept – strikes as an interesting entrance to explore the multifaceted expressions of health and illness in contemporary society. The paper suggests some critical comments and opening questions for such a project.