Showing papers on "Social change published in 1993"

Principles of Critical Discourse Analysis

Abstract: This paper discusses some principles of critical discourse analy- sis, such as the explicit sociopolitical stance of discourse analysts, and a focus on dominance relations by elite groups and institutions as they are being enacted, legitimated or otherwise reproduced by text and talk. One of the crucial elements of this analysis of the relations between power and discourse is the patterns of access to (public) discourse for different social groups. Theoretically it is shown that in order to be able to relate power and discourse in an explicit way, we need the cognitive interface of models. knowledge, attitudes and ideologies and other social represen- tations of the social mind, which also relate the individual and the social, and the micro- and the macro-levels of social structure. Finally, the argu- ment is illustrated with an analysis of parliamentary debates about ethnic affairs.

Economies of signs and space

Abstract: This is a novel account of social change that supplants conventional understandings of `society' and presents a sociology that takes as its main unit of analysis flows through time and across space. Developing a comparative analysis of the UK and US, the new Germany and Japan, Lash and Urry show how restructuration after organized capitalism has its basis in increasingly reflexive social actors and organizations. The consequence is not only the much-vaunted `postmodern condition' but also a growth in reflexivity. In exploring this new reflexive world, the authors argue that today's economies are increasingly ones of signs - information, symbols, images, desire - and of space, where both signs and social subjects - refugees, financiers, tourists and fl[ci]aneurs - are mobile over ever greater distances at ever greater speeds.

What is hegemonic masculinity

Abstract: A developing debate within the growing theoretical literature on men and masculinity concerns the relationship of gender systems to the social formation. Crucially at issue is the question of the autonomy of the gender order. Some, in particular Waters, are of the opinion that change in masculine gender systems historically has been caused exogenously and that, without those external factors, the systems would stably reproduce. 1 For Hochschild, the "motor" of this social change is the economy, particularly and currently, the decline in the purchasing power of the male wage, the decline in the number and proportion of "male" skilled and unskilled jobs, and the rise in "female" jobs in the growing services sector. 2 1 have argued that gender relations themselves are bisected by class relations and vice-versa, and that the salient moment for analysis is the relation between the two. 3

Frontiers in social movement theory

Abstract: Social protest movements such as the civil rights movement and the gay rights movement mobilize and sustain themselves in ways that have long been of interest to social scientists. In this book some of the most distinguished scholars in the area of collective action present new theories about this process, fashioning a rich and conceptually sophisticated social psychology of social movements that goes beyond theories currently in use. The book includes sometimes competing, sometimes complementary paradigms by theorists in resource mobilization, conflict, feminism, and collective action and by social psychologists and comparativists. These authors view the social movement actor from a more sociological perspective than do adherents of rational choice theory, and they analyze ways in which structural and cultural determinants influence the actor and generate or inhibit collective action and social change. The authors state that the collective identities and political consciousness of social movement actors are significantly shaped by their race, ethnicity, class, gender, or religion. Social structure--with its disparities in resources and opportunities--helps determine the nature of grievances, resources, and levels of organization. The book not only distinguishes the mobilization processes of consensus movements from those of conflict movements but also helps to explain the linkages between social movements, the state, and societal changes.

The relations of emotionality and regulation to preschoolers' social skills and sociometric status

Abstract: The purpose of this study was to examine the relations of emotionality (intensity and negative emotion) and regulation (coping and attentional regulation) to preschoolers' social skills (as rated by adults) and sociometric status. Teachers' ratings of children's constructive coping and attentional control were positively related to boys' social skills and peer status, whereas negative affect was negatively related. Acting out (vs. avoidant) coping and emotional intensity were negatively related to girls' and boys' social skills and boys' peer status. In addition, mothers' reports of boys' coping by seeking social support and low emotional intensity were associated with boys' positive social functioning, whereas avoidant coping was positively related to girls' rated social skills. The results are discussed in relation to research on emotion regulation and coping with emotion in interpersonal contexts.

Participatory Action Research as a Process and as a Goal

Abstract: Participatory action research is presented as a social research method and process and as a goal that social research should always strive to achieve. After describing the key features and strengths of participatory action research, we briefly analyze its role in promoting social change through organizational learning in three very different kinds of organizations. We argue that participatory action research is always an emergent process that can often be intensified and that works effectively to link participation, social action, and knowledge generation.

Modernizing Women: Gender and Social Change in the Middle East

Abstract: Valentine Moghadam's seminal study of the gendered nature of political and social processes in the Middle East and North Africa has been fully updated to reflect more than a decade of major changes. This new edition reflects an emphasis on the impacts of both globalization and democratization. It also includes entirely new chapters on the gender dynamics of conflicts in the region, on women and the Arab Spring, and on the achievements of women's rights movements. The result is an indispensable contribution to our understanding of current popular struggles for modernity, democratisation, and meaningful citizenship.

Organizational Repertoires and Institutional Change: Women's Groups and the Transformation of U.S. Politics, 1890-1920.

Abstract: Although social movements are often presumed to cause change, the dominant theoretical accounts lead to the opposite conclusion. To explain how challenging movements do produce institutional change, this article introduces the concept of organizational repertoires. Groups marginalized by existing political institutions have an incentive to develop alternative models of organization. These alternative models, in turn, are more likely to be adopted by other political actors to the extent that they embody familiar, but previously nonpolitical, forms of organization. This argument is illustrated with an analysis of political innovation by women's groups in the United States at the trun of the century.

The “Environmental Justice” Frame: A Conceptual Discussion and an Application

Abstract: Drawing on a social constructionist perspective, this paper: (1) identifies some of the most salient dimensions of the “environmental justice” frame as it has emerged from local community struggles over toxic contamination in the United States; and (2) provides an empirical illustration of the emergence and application of this concept in a particular contaminated community, the Carver Terrace neighborhood of Texarkana, Texas. Carver Terrace, an African-American community consisting mostly of homeowners, recently organized to win a federal buyout and relocation after being declared a Superfund site in 1984. Using case study evidence, the paper argues that the residents' ability to mobilize for social change was intimately linked to their adoption of an “environmental justice” frame. The intent of the conceptual discussion of environmental justice and the case study is to clarify the meaning of a term used with increasing frequency and some ambiguity in both popular and academic discourses. This paper documents the process by which the environmental justice frame is constructed in an interplay between the local community and national levels of the antitoxics movement.

The sociology of social change

Abstract: Preface. Part I: Concepts and Categories:. 1. Fundamental Concepts in the Study of Change. 2. Vicissitudes of the Idea of Progress. 3. Temporal Dimension of Society: Social Time. 4. Modalities of Historical Tradition. 5. Modernity and Beyond. 6. Globalization of Human Society. Part II: Three Grand Visions of History:. 7. Classical Evolutionism. 8. Neo--evolutionism. 9. Theories of Modernization: Old and New. 10. Theories of Historical Cycles. 11. Historical Materialism. Part III: Alternative Vision: Making History:. 12. Against Developmentalism: Modern Critique. 13. History as a Human Product: Evolving Theory of Agency. 14. New Historical Sociology: Concreteness and Contingenc. 15. Social Becoming: the Essence of Historical Change. Part IV: Aspects of Social Becoming:. 16. Ideas as Historical Forces. 17. Normative Emergence: Evasions and Innovations. 18. Great Individuals as Agents of Change. 19. Social Movements as Forces of Change. 20. Revolutions: the Peak of Social Change. Bibliography

The idea of demographic transition and the study of fertility change: a critical intellectual history.

Abstract: The position is argued that progress in the further study of fertility change rests on a reappraisal of the recent intellectual history of demography. Principally recognition needs to be given to the policy influences which were apparent even before the 1950s. The notion of demographic transition as merely a descriptive term is unproductive and impedes a wider range of approaches to the field. The discussion was an examination of the methodological constraints and the reasons for the continuing reliance on descriptive notions of demographic transition. The theory of demographic transition in 1944-45 and the contrasts between Thompsons 1929 notions and the 1945 notions in the United States were discussed as influenced by the changing institutional context important new intellectual developments and the impact of political events. Notesteins ideas were a primary reference point for discussion as reflecting the distinct change in thinking between 1947 and 1949. Democratic stability and long-term prosperity were hinged on the whole process of modernization and widespread economic development; fertility non-regulation was related to lack of motivation. Notestein and Kingsley Davis were thus at the helm of advocating government sponsored policies on family planning for pretransitional countries. "Peasants were not stupid" they were economically rational and the notion of awkward nonrational institutions and social mores was ignored. The impact of the fall of China and Chiang Kai-sheks nationalist regime and the change in foreign affairs on the Princeton Office and demographic intellectual life was discussed in some detail. The ideological competition of the 1960s and 1970s thwarted self reflection on the inadequacies and flaws in the supply centered activism of the international family planning industry and the "overly dogmatic commitment and rigidity to demographic transition." The historical model (Talcott Parsons variations in classifications) was too fluid and general as a causal explanation for change but it became an irrefutable theory. Modernization became the dominant theory in the 1950s and 1970s even though it could not generate unambiguous testable hypotheses about the specific causes of fertility change. Hodgson and Demeny recognized these inadequacies. Demographic transition theory was both a product of a conception in social science and a means for examining predicting and guiding social change. Current schools of thought are the deductivist the contextualist or interpretative and various realist approaches which interact with the aims of control understanding and intervention. There is a need for historical reconstruction in specific contexts of fertility and perceived costs of childrearing.

The Return of Character Education.

Abstract: I ncreasing numbers of people across the ideological spectrum believe that our society is in deep moral trouble. The disheartening signs are everywhere: the breakdown of the family; the deterioration of civility in everyday life; rampant greed at a time when one in five children is poor; an omnipresent sexual culture that fills our television and movie screens with sleaze, beckoning the young toward sexual activity at ever earlier ages; the enormous betrayal of children through sexual abuse; and the 1992 report of the National Research Council that says the United States is now the most violent of all industrialized nations. As we become more aware of this societal crisis, the feeling grows that schools cannot be ethical bystanders. As a result, character education is making a comeback in American schools.

I Answer with My Life: Life Histories of Women Teachers Working for Social Change

Abstract: Originally published in 1993. This book shows, through the oral histories of ordinary women teachers, that effective prescriptions for change do not come simply from policy-makers. The author focuses on the narratives of three groups of teachers in the USA: Catholic nuns; secular Jewish women; and Black women. For each of these the individual teachers’ narratives have been examined for constructions common to the group and these patterns are assembled into a discourse. Teachers’ self-identities are considered, as are their assessments of the institutions in which they have worked, and their relationships with the pupils. The text examines how the social role of the teacher is constructed by the lives of these women. Incorporating this perspective of diversity into the educational debate, this book argues that these less dominant but important voices shouldn’t be ignored.

Social selection: what does it contribute to social class differences in health?

Abstract: Social selection, or the idea that an individual's health can influence their social mobility and, hence, their position in the social hierarchy, has been suggested as an important element in the process which produces social class differences in health. The present paper examines this idea by drawing together evidence from a range of published research. Direct selection according to health is judged to have little effect on class gradients. The logically distinct idea of indirect selection can be seen most usefully as referring to the accumulation of advantage or disadvantage during life.

Convoys of social support in childhood and early adolescence: Structure and function.

Abstract: Little is known about social networks in childhood, and even less is known about the networks of ethnically diverse children. Interviews were conducted with 333 African-American, Anglo/European-American, and Hispanic-American public school children in Grades 1-2, 4-5, and 8-9. The research was based on the social convoy model (R. L. Kahn & T. C. Antonucci, 1980), in which social networks are viewed as dynamic hierarchic structures affording the provision of support across the life span. An adapted convoy mapping procedure evidenced good test-retest reliability at all ages, and convoy support measures were associated with self-concept and teacher-rated sociability and mood

New social movements of the early nineteenth century

Abstract: Sometime After 1968, analysts and participants began to speak of “new social movements” that worked outside formal institutional channels and emphasized lifestyle, ethical, or “identity” concerns rather than narrowly economic goals. A variety of examples informed the conceptualization. Alberto Melucci (1988: 247), for instance, cited feminism, the ecology movement or “greens,” the peace movement, and the youth movement. Others added the gay movement, the animal rights movement, and the antiabortion and prochoice movements. These movements were allegedly new in issues, tactics, and constituencies. Above all, they were new by contrast to the labor movement, which was the paradigmatic “old” social movement, and to Marxism and socialism, which asserted that class was the central issue in politics and that a single political economic transformation would solve the whole range of social ills. They were new even by comparison with conventional liberalism with its assumption of fixed individual identities and interests. The new social movements thus challenged the conventional division of politics into left and right and broadened the definition of politics to include issues that had been considered outside the domain of political action (Scott 1990).

Social Dynamics of Adolescent Fertility in Sub-Saharan Africa

Abstract: Adolescent fertility tends to be valued and sanctioned in the countries of sub-Saharan Africa when parents have had adequate ritual or training preparation for adulthood and the child has a recognized father. Young women and adolescents who conceive and bear children within this context are widely accepted by society; those who conceive outside of marriage however are strongly condemned by society. Over the past 2-3 decades most African countries have successfully raised their levels of education. Girls and women are increasingly privy to formal school education and training in trade apprenticeships domestic service and ritual initiation which had otherwise been denied in the past. These factors combined with declining menarche in a few areas and changing economic opportunities law and religion make it more difficult to define the exact date of entry into marriage. Many girls are taking advantage of these changing circumstances and their opportunities to obtain educations and resist early marriage and cildbearing. While defying the traditional entry into early marriage many young women do not however refrain from engaging in sexual activities. Pregnancies to unwed mothers are thereby on the rise and may constitute the most profound change observed in the social context of adolescent fertility on the continent. Once pregnant many women find themselves shut out by family planning programs and prenatal clinics which serve only married women. This paper ultimately concludes that the social context of adolescent childbearing has an effect on the outcome for mother and child which is as important as the physiological maturity of the mother.

Treatment of social behavior in autism through the modification of pivotal social skills

Abstract: We examined acquisition of individual social communicative behaviors and generalization across other social behaviors in 2 children with autism. The results of a multiple baseline design showed that the children's treated social behaviors improved rapidly and that there were generalized changes in untreated social behaviors. These improvements were accompanied by increases in subjective ratings of the overall appropriateness of the children's social interactions. The results suggest the possibility of identifying pivotal response classes of social communicative behavior that may facilitate the understanding of social behavior in autism as well as improve peer interactions, social integration, and social development.

From Above and Below Social Movements, the International System, and Human Rights in Argentina

Abstract: What role does the international system play in amplifying the impact of domestic social movements on social change? The Argentine human rights movement reached the international system through the projection of cognitive and affective information—persuasion. International response was facilitated by the international human rights regime, and transnational nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) played a critical role. This challenge from above and below did have a clear impact on the target government and the development of broader mechanisms for the protection of human rights—even under the most severe conditions of repression and powerlessness.

Behavioral and Developmental Outcomes in Young Children with Disabilities in Integrated and Segregated Settings A Review of Comparative Studies

Abstract: This article reviews the literature comparing outcomes for young children with disabilities in integrated and segregated settings. An examination of research methodology, dependent measures, and programmatic variables is used to analyze the effects of preschool integration across 22 studies. Despite some methodological weaknesses, an analysis of findings provides support for the benefits of preschool integration with respect to social and other behavioral outcomes. Children's developmental outcomes over time have not been shown to vary as a function of integrated versus segregated placement. The article concludes with a discussion of these findings and their implications for future research and practice in early intervention.

Sociology: A Brief Introduction

Abstract: Brief Contents 1 Understanding Sociology 2 Sociological Research 3 Culture 4 Socialization and the Life Course 5 Social Interaction, Groups, and Social Structure 6 The Mass Media 7 Deviance and Social Control 8 Stratification and Social Mobility in the United States 9 Global Inequality 10 Racial and Ethnic Inequality 11 Stratification by Gender 12 The Family and Intimate Relationships 13 Religion and Education 14 Government and the Economy 15 Health and the Environment 16 Social Change in the Global Community

The Sociocultural Self

Abstract: A social psychological perspective on the self begins with the assumption that the responses of others are critical in defining the self. The self in social psychology is invariably described as a social product whose content derives from its relevant social contexts (Baldwin, 1911; Baldwin & Holmes, 1987; Brewer, 1990; Cool­ ey, 1902; Mead, 1934; Rosenberg, 1965; Stryker, 1987). The emergent selfconcept and how one feels about the self is a function of how the individual is viewed and responded to by important others in his or her significant life do­ mains. Even within a highly individualistic Western psychological framework, it is immediately evident that one cannot be a self by one’s self. Following Baldwin and Holmes (1987), we suggest that “the private as well as the public self is ultimately a social self” (p. 1090). As the social identity literature has shown, people experience their worlds and define themselves in terms of their socio­ cultural contexts (as Americans, as Israelis, as Southern Californians, as psy­ chologists, as middle class, as women, as Blacks, as students, etc.) (Asch, 1952; Gurin & Markus, 1988; Tajfel & Turner, 1985; Turner, Hogg, Oakes, Reicher, & Wetherell, 1987; Zavalloni, 1971). Moreover, individuals who belong to ethnic groups whose language, physical, and cultural characteristics make them distinc­ tive with respect to the dominant group (e.g., in North America those who are not White, male, English-speaking, middle class, and urban) are likely to be responded to in terms of this group membership even if these categories are not particularly personally salient (Hughes & Demo, 1989; Jackson, Antonucci, & Gibson, 1989; Milner, 1984). Thus, a Japanese American boy and a Korean American boy may both be seen as Asians and as good in math and science even though these boys may not think of themselves in these ways at all. Similarly, notall women define themselves in terms of their gender (Gurin & Markus, 1988), but as reflected in many recent well-publicized sexual harassment cases, others often respond to them in this way.