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Volume 8
Issue 11
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Soc. Sci., Volume 8, Issue 11 (November 2019) – 22 articles

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14 pages, 1139 KiB  
Article
Gendered Career Pathways among Doctoral Graduates in the United Kingdom
by Nitzan Peri-Rotem
Soc. Sci. 2019, 8(11), 317; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci8110317 - 16 Nov 2019
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 7449
Abstract
While women form about half of PhD students in Western countries, previous studies have shown that female doctoral graduates are underrepresented in senior positions and have lower earnings compared to their male counterparts within and outside academia. Less is known however about the [...] Read more.
While women form about half of PhD students in Western countries, previous studies have shown that female doctoral graduates are underrepresented in senior positions and have lower earnings compared to their male counterparts within and outside academia. Less is known however about the role of gender in determining the odds of securing a permanent position among doctorate recipients. In this study, we use data from the UK Doctoral Impact and Career Tracking Survey from 2013 to explore the career trajectories of doctoral graduates within seven to nine years after earning their degree. We find that in every observed time point following graduation (0.5, 3.5, and 7–9 years), men are significantly more likely to work in a permanent job than women are. Furthermore, gender gaps in permanent employment are particularly pronounced in the private sector and in non-academic occupations. Using a nested logistic regression model, we find that the higher propensity of female doctoral graduates to work in part-time employment compared to their male counterparts, in combination with other differential employment characteristics has cumulative negative implications on their likelihood of securing a permanent position. Full article
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16 pages, 344 KiB  
Article
Who Is Concerned about Terrorist Attacks? A Religious Profile
by Ângela Leite, Ana Ramires, Maria Alzira Pimenta Dinis and Hélder Fernando Pedrosa e Sousa
Soc. Sci. 2019, 8(11), 316; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci8110316 - 16 Nov 2019
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 6091
Abstract
As part of the study on the psychological impact of terrorist acts on ordinary people, the objective of this study is to understand if religious identity protects individuals from feeling concerned about the possibility of terrorist attacks. The study was based on a [...] Read more.
As part of the study on the psychological impact of terrorist acts on ordinary people, the objective of this study is to understand if religious identity protects individuals from feeling concerned about the possibility of terrorist attacks. The study was based on a sample from the World Values Survey, wave 6 (2010–2014), of 30,446 citizens of countries whose dominant religion is Christianity. According to the concern felt regarding the possibility of becoming the target of a terrorist attack, a religious profile was identified. Most of the sample reported high levels of worry about terrorist attacks. The most religious respondents, more faithful and more devoted to religious practices, are more worried about the occurrence of terrorist attacks. Opposite to what is mostly found in the literature, religion does not act as a protective barrier to the primary objective of terrorism, which consists in the use of violence to create fear. People worried about the probability of becoming a target in terrorist attacks are also victims of terrorism. Full article
(This article belongs to the Section Contemporary Politics and Society)
14 pages, 349 KiB  
Article
Flipped Classroom to Improve University Student Centered Learning and Academic Performance
by Ángel Custodio Mingorance Estrada, Juan Granda Vera, Gloria Rojas Ruiz and Inmaculada Alemany Arrebola
Soc. Sci. 2019, 8(11), 315; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci8110315 - 15 Nov 2019
Cited by 31 | Viewed by 8249
Abstract
In recent years, educational research has focused on analyzing significant differences in the academic performance of university students according to the intervention model of the traditional methodology vs. the flipped classroom. This empirical-analytical research is based on a quasi-experimental design with non-equivalent groups. [...] Read more.
In recent years, educational research has focused on analyzing significant differences in the academic performance of university students according to the intervention model of the traditional methodology vs. the flipped classroom. This empirical-analytical research is based on a quasi-experimental design with non-equivalent groups. The results reveal significant differences on the average grades of university students; those participating in the flipped classroom obtained higher scores than students following a traditional methodology, regardless of the specialization. Moreover, this research concludes that the flipped classroom approach offers an opportunity to transform the traditional system by improving the classroom environment, the teaching-learning process and the student’s assessment. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Internationalization of Higher Education and the Transformation of Universities)
16 pages, 496 KiB  
Article
The Ideal and the Real Dimensions of the European Migration Crisis. The Polish Perspective
by Barbara Cieślińska and Małgorzata Dziekońska
Soc. Sci. 2019, 8(11), 314; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci8110314 - 14 Nov 2019
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 5043
Abstract
In the article the so-called European migrant crisis of 2015 is presented from the perspective of Polish society. First, we consider criteria for distinguishing refugees from other types of immigrants. Second, we examine the characteristics of the 2015 inflow which contribute to its [...] Read more.
In the article the so-called European migrant crisis of 2015 is presented from the perspective of Polish society. First, we consider criteria for distinguishing refugees from other types of immigrants. Second, we examine the characteristics of the 2015 inflow which contribute to its perception in terms of crisis. The third issue is Polish society’s reactions to the phenomenon of migration. On the one hand, the results of nationwide polls are presented. On the other hand, the perspective of a provincial city is introduced. In the city an active refugee center has been operating for almost three decades and major importance has been attached to the idea of a multicultural society. The analysis of these issues indicates that the inflow related to the migration crisis does not coincide with the current patterns of refugee migration and is not consistent with the celebrated vision of a multicultural society. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Reshaping the World: Rethinking Borders)
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9 pages, 256 KiB  
Article
Compassion Fatigue and Vicarious Trauma in Everyday Hospital Social Work: A Personal Narrative of Practitioner–Researcher Identity Transition
by Mim Fox
Soc. Sci. 2019, 8(11), 313; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci8110313 - 13 Nov 2019
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 6156
Abstract
The story of my evolution as a practice-based collaborative researcher is a story that comes full circle. Through exploring my own experiences of compassion fatigue and vicarious trauma as a hospital-based social worker, I am able to investigate the phenomenon across the profession [...] Read more.
The story of my evolution as a practice-based collaborative researcher is a story that comes full circle. Through exploring my own experiences of compassion fatigue and vicarious trauma as a hospital-based social worker, I am able to investigate the phenomenon across the profession and provide a critique of the needs of practitioners working in the complex environment of hospitals and health care. Parallel to this is an investigation into the need for practice research in this complex environment and in the profession overall as seen through the lens of a collaborative research partnership with social work hospital colleagues that transformed my approach to research. I have drawn on personal narrative, autoethnography and reflexive processing to investigate my own impact on and from this research. I conclude with an understanding of the power of storytelling in participatory action research and in the potential in collaborative research methodologies for authentic reciprocity and relationship to traverse the practice–research divide. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Personal Essays in Social Science)
21 pages, 498 KiB  
Article
Fathers’ Parental Leave Uptake in Belgium and Sweden: Self-Evident or Subject to Employment Characteristics?
by Leen Marynissen, Eleonora Mussino, Jonas Wood and Ann-Zofie Duvander
Soc. Sci. 2019, 8(11), 312; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci8110312 - 13 Nov 2019
Cited by 15 | Viewed by 8253
Abstract
The limited increase in fathers’ involvement in childcare tasks in response to the unprecedented rise in female labour market participation illustrates the incomplete nature of the gender revolution. Available research provides evidence for micro-economic mechanisms and the influence of gender norms and social [...] Read more.
The limited increase in fathers’ involvement in childcare tasks in response to the unprecedented rise in female labour market participation illustrates the incomplete nature of the gender revolution. Available research provides evidence for micro-economic mechanisms and the influence of gender norms and social policy design on couples’ gendered divisions of parental leave, but knowledge on how national level contexts shape partners’ agency remains limited. Hence, comparative research from different national contexts is needed. This paper examines the association between fathers’ pre-birth income and workplace characteristics, and whether they take up parental leave after the birth of their first child in Belgium and Sweden by using detailed longitudinal register data from Sweden and Belgium. Results show that, whereas an opportunity cost logic seems to underlie fathers’ parental leave decisions in Belgium, gender equality in contributing to the household income yields the highest probability of fathers’ parental leave uptake in Sweden. Furthermore, in Sweden, fathers’ employment characteristics are more strongly associated with whether fathers’ take leave longer than the quota than whether fathers take any leave at all. The different mechanisms in Belgium and Sweden suggest that the design of leave policies and the broader normative and institutional national level context moderate couples’ parental leave uptake decisions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Family and Work: Parental Leave and Careers)
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22 pages, 715 KiB  
Article
Real-World Sustainable Citizenship between Political Consumerism and Material Practices
by Carolin V. Zorell and Mundo Yang
Soc. Sci. 2019, 8(11), 311; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci8110311 - 12 Nov 2019
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 5017
Abstract
While the number of theoretical concepts surrounding sustainable citizenship, political consumerism and ethical lifestyles is rising continuously, this article is interested in how citizens themselves delineate sustainable citizenship through their practices. Asking which contours real-world sustainable citizenship has, we draw on the practice [...] Read more.
While the number of theoretical concepts surrounding sustainable citizenship, political consumerism and ethical lifestyles is rising continuously, this article is interested in how citizens themselves delineate sustainable citizenship through their practices. Asking which contours real-world sustainable citizenship has, we draw on the practice turn. From this perspective, sustainable citizenship might be an empirical nexus of material practices, like buying organic products or sharing goods. These practices rely on dispositions that include practical rules, attitudes and political values. With survey data from Germany (N = 1350) and using principle component analysis, we reconstruct sustainable citizenship through stable and widespread real-world patterns. The results suggest that sustainable citizenship is a relatively coherent, nonetheless hybrid bundle of performances and dispositions. Real-world sustainable citizenship most resembles political consumerism, but consists overall of three distinct practices: sustainable purchasing, reduced consumption, and green mobility. All three are shown to be connected to engaged citizenship norms and the intention to advance social-ecological change. However, social class seems to prevent some citizens particularly from applying sustainable purchasing, while age and infrastructures constrain green mobility. Altogether, our results show that citizens from all social backgrounds practice sustainable citizenship. Yet they do so through different forms of practices, adjusted to their capabilities. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Rethinking Environmental Citizenship for Grassroots Politics )
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10 pages, 3999 KiB  
Article
Subterranean Detention and Sanctuary from below: Canada’s Carceral Geographies
by Jen Bagelman and Sasha Kovalchuk
Soc. Sci. 2019, 8(11), 310; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci8110310 - 12 Nov 2019
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 5062
Abstract
This paper begins with an account of Lucía Vega Jimenez, a Mexican woman who lived and worked in Metro Vancouver, Coast Salish Territories (Canada) and who died while held in detention in British Columbia’s Immigration Holding Centre. This article argues that Lucía’s story [...] Read more.
This paper begins with an account of Lucía Vega Jimenez, a Mexican woman who lived and worked in Metro Vancouver, Coast Salish Territories (Canada) and who died while held in detention in British Columbia’s Immigration Holding Centre. This article argues that Lucía’s story exposes a number of critical aspects regarding the geographies and politics of migration in Canada today. First, Lucia’s story points to the ways in which Canada’s determination process invisibilises certain forms of violence and, as such, serves as a highly restrictive and exclusionary mechanism. Second, it shows how this exclusionary mechanism extends like ‘capillaries’ throughout urban space. In this context city services (like transit) increasingly become less spaces of refuge, and more privatized border checkpoints. Third, following Lucia’s story reveals how city checkpoints funnel people with precarious status into remote detention, akin to Foucault’s ‘carceral archipelago.’ While expanding on carceral literature, this paper departs from existing scholarship that tends to think about remoteness horizontally. The paper argues that it is below the surface where carceral regimes become particularly hostile and—as such—the paper calls for deepened engagement with questions of verticality. Finally, the article illustrates how subterranean carceral dimensions are being politicized, agonistically, through sanctuary practices. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Precarity Generators: Borders, Bordering Processes, and the Creation of Precarious Crossings)
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9 pages, 272 KiB  
Article
Are Smart-City Projects Citizen-Centered?
by Eva M. Sánchez-Teba and Guillermo J. Bermúdez-González
Soc. Sci. 2019, 8(11), 309; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci8110309 - 11 Nov 2019
Cited by 10 | Viewed by 5184
Abstract
Smart cities have become a new urban model for thinking and designing cities in the connected society. It is time to ask ourselves what kind of city we want and need. There is still a long way to go in relation to the [...] Read more.
Smart cities have become a new urban model for thinking and designing cities in the connected society. It is time to ask ourselves what kind of city we want and need. There is still a long way to go in relation to the role of citizenship in the field of smart cities. This autoethnography reveals different contradictions found during the preparation of my doctoral thesis, which studied the citizens’ perception of smart city policies in a city in southern Spain, in my double role as a doctoral student/researcher and public manager. Many of the statements and conclusions of different scientific research contrasted with the reality that I was experiencing in my daily work. My conclusions can help in the current debate on which cities we want to build at a time when the population is concentrated in cities and where it is necessary to respond to not only the economic, but also the social and environmental problems posed by sustainability Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Personal Essays in Social Science)
16 pages, 934 KiB  
Review
Indonesian Women in Public Service Leadership: A Rapid Review
by Helen McLaren, Cassandra Star and Ida Widianingsih
Soc. Sci. 2019, 8(11), 308; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci8110308 - 09 Nov 2019
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 7353
Abstract
Masculinist contours have legitimized male domination in Indonesia’s upper public service ranks. However, some women have managed to crack the glass ceiling. A systematic search was undertaken of seven academic databases and the Google Scholar search engine to identify facilitative features of women’s [...] Read more.
Masculinist contours have legitimized male domination in Indonesia’s upper public service ranks. However, some women have managed to crack the glass ceiling. A systematic search was undertaken of seven academic databases and the Google Scholar search engine to identify facilitative features of women’s career advancement through Indonesia’s echelon ranks. Fourteen articles, representing nine studies, were identified. While policy initiatives exist to increase women’s representation and career advancement, studies consistently identified little application to practice. Patterns across the studies located women’s career advancement as an individual concern and showed that women wanting careers were expected to manage the double burden of productive and reproductive life, obtain permissions from husbands and extended family, and adopt masculine leadership traits to garner colleagues’ support. Barriers frequently outweigh opportunities for career advancement; these including entrenched homo-sociability asserting that men make better leaders. Consequently, the blocking of women’s opportunities invoked personal disappointments, resulting in women’s public denial of their leadership ambitions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Section Gender Studies)
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22 pages, 317 KiB  
Article
Ecological Citizens with a Movie Camera: Communitarian and Agonistic Environmental Documentaries
by Katrin Hedemann
Soc. Sci. 2019, 8(11), 307; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci8110307 - 08 Nov 2019
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 4305
Abstract
Environmental documentaries attained wider public and academic attention, especially in the aftermath of Al Gore’s prominent documentary on climate change An Inconvenient Truth. Making environmental documentaries is a cinematic form of political advocacy. However, there is a lack of research on the [...] Read more.
Environmental documentaries attained wider public and academic attention, especially in the aftermath of Al Gore’s prominent documentary on climate change An Inconvenient Truth. Making environmental documentaries is a cinematic form of political advocacy. However, there is a lack of research on the broad range of such films from Germany. While earlier works tended to an accusatory style, newer environmental documentary seems to be more constructive and aiming at spreading information about feasible alternatives. This article pursues three objectives: first, to gain a deeper understanding of the shift from accusatory to constructive documentaries; second, to connect film studies to the political change-making role and therefore to theories of ecological citizenship; and third, to explore the question of what citizenship with a movie camera means. The accusatory and constructive style are associated with agonistic and communitarian ecological citizenship. A sample of two films from the German context, namely Leben ausser Kontrolle produced by Bertram Verhaag in 2004 and Voices of Transition produced by Nils Aguilar in 2012, is analyzed comparatively. The interpretive research method combines methods of studying audio-visual rhetoric with the framing approach from social movement studies. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Rethinking Environmental Citizenship for Grassroots Politics )
14 pages, 1033 KiB  
Article
Email Based Institutional Network Analysis: Applications and Risks
by Panayotis Christidis and Álvaro Gomez Losada
Soc. Sci. 2019, 8(11), 306; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci8110306 - 08 Nov 2019
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 5806
Abstract
Social Network Analysis can be applied to describe the patterns of communication within an organisation. We explore how extending standard methods, by accounting for the direction and volume of emails, can reveal information regarding the roles of individual members. We propose an approach [...] Read more.
Social Network Analysis can be applied to describe the patterns of communication within an organisation. We explore how extending standard methods, by accounting for the direction and volume of emails, can reveal information regarding the roles of individual members. We propose an approach that models certain operational aspects of the organization, based on directional and weighted indicators. The approach is transferable to other types of social network with asymmetrical connections among its members. However, its applicability is limited by privacy concerns, the existence of multiple alternative communication channels that evolve over time, the difficulty of establishing clear links between organisational structure and efficiency and, most importantly, the challenge of setting up a system that measures the impact of communication behavior without influencing the communication behaviour itself. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Big Data and Social Sciences)
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21 pages, 582 KiB  
Article
Cross-National Attunement to Popular Songs across Time and Place: A Sociology of Popular Music in the United States, Germany, Thailand, and Tanzania
by Tony Waters and David Philhour
Soc. Sci. 2019, 8(11), 305; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci8110305 - 05 Nov 2019
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 5359
Abstract
This paper explores empirically Edward T. Hall’s assertion about the role of musical elements, including rhythm recognition and what are called “ear worms” in popular culture. To test Hall’s assertion, data were collected from the United States, Germany, Tanzania, and Thailand in 2015–2017 [...] Read more.
This paper explores empirically Edward T. Hall’s assertion about the role of musical elements, including rhythm recognition and what are called “ear worms” in popular culture. To test Hall’s assertion, data were collected from the United States, Germany, Tanzania, and Thailand in 2015–2017 using a 26 brief “song intros.” Data were also collected from exchange students from South Korea and Turkey. Survey responses were analyzed using factor analysis in order to identify patterns of recognition. It was found that there were indeed patterns of recognition apparently reflecting national boundaries for some song recognition, but others crossed boundaries. A separate analysis of patterned recognition comparing American youth under thirty, with elders over 60 indicated that there were also boundaries between age groups. Such experiments in music recognition are an effective methodology for Culture Studies given that musical elements are tied to issues of identity, culture, and even politics. Music recognition can be used to measure elements of such subconscious habitus. Full article
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17 pages, 245 KiB  
Article
Massification, Marketisation and Loss of Differentiation in Pre-Entry Marketing Materials in UK Higher Education
by Elizabeth Knight
Soc. Sci. 2019, 8(11), 304; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci8110304 - 30 Oct 2019
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 5868
Abstract
Since the mid-1970s, the higher education system in the UK has massified. Over this period, the government policy drivers for higher education have shifted towards a homogenised rationale, linking higher education to the economic well-being of the country. The massification of higher education [...] Read more.
Since the mid-1970s, the higher education system in the UK has massified. Over this period, the government policy drivers for higher education have shifted towards a homogenised rationale, linking higher education to the economic well-being of the country. The massification of higher education has involved a widening of participation from traditional students to new and diverse student cohorts with differing information needs. The increased positioning of students as consumers by higher education means the student choice process has become complex. Drawing on a recently conferred doctorate, this article asks whether the messages sent by institutions about the motivation for undertaking a degree have changed during the recent period of massification of UK higher education. It asks how such changes are reflected, overtly or in coded form, in the institutional pre-entry ‘prospectus’ documents aimed at students. Taking a discourse-historical approach, the work identifies six periods of discourse change between 1976 and 2013, analysing prospectuses from four case-study institutions of different perceived status. The research finds that the materials homogenise gradually over the period and there is a concordant concealment of the differential status, purpose and offer of the institutions, alongside an increase in the functional importance of the coded signalling power of the differential prestige of undergraduate degrees within the UK. This research’s finding that the documents produced by institutions have become increasingly difficult to differentiate highlights equity issues in provision of marketing in terms of widening participation and fair access aims. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Access to Higher Education in Competitive Marketplaces: A Critical Appraisal of Policy Aims to Reconcile Equality of Opportunity and Marketisation)
16 pages, 465 KiB  
Article
Unveiling ‘European’ and ‘International’ Researcher Identities: A Case Study with Doctoral Students in the Humanities and Social Sciences
by Betina Lopes and Mónica Lourenço
Soc. Sci. 2019, 8(11), 303; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci8110303 - 29 Oct 2019
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 4712
Abstract
The significance of ‘identity’ in doctoral studies is widely acknowledged. Nevertheless, despite much research on what is involved in the process of identification with/as a researcher, very little attention has been devoted to understanding the effects of the internationalization of higher education in [...] Read more.
The significance of ‘identity’ in doctoral studies is widely acknowledged. Nevertheless, despite much research on what is involved in the process of identification with/as a researcher, very little attention has been devoted to understanding the effects of the internationalization of higher education in promoting feelings of belonging to a researcher community that goes beyond the national space. This qualitative case study aims to understand whether and how doctoral students in the Humanities and Social Sciences develop a ‘European’ or ‘international’ researcher identity during their doctoral studies. To address this aim, in-depth semi-structured interviews were conducted with twelve home and international doctoral students from a Portuguese higher education institution. Results from thematic analysis suggest that although the dichotomy ‘European’/‘international’ was not always clear in participants’ minds, those students who undertook mobility experiences or took part in international research networks or supervisory teams were more likely to regard themselves as ‘international’ or ‘European’ researchers. The implications of these findings for doctoral programs in an era of internationalization are highlighted. Full article
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13 pages, 244 KiB  
Article
Troublesome Access: Non-Admission Experiences in the Competitive Finnish Higher Education
by Ulpukka Isopahkala-Bouret
Soc. Sci. 2019, 8(11), 302; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci8110302 - 29 Oct 2019
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 3913
Abstract
In this study, I address policy aims to reconcile equality of opportunity and marketization by examining difficulties in access to Finnish higher education. Finnish higher education is largely funded by the state and has no tuition fees. However, new demands have arisen that [...] Read more.
In this study, I address policy aims to reconcile equality of opportunity and marketization by examining difficulties in access to Finnish higher education. Finnish higher education is largely funded by the state and has no tuition fees. However, new demands have arisen that align with market-driven policy. At the same time, the Finnish system is one of the most competitive systems in the Organization for Cooperation and Development (OECD), and around 70% of applicants do not gain admittance. The purpose of this study is to examine how prospective degree students who have applied without being allowed to start studying toward a degree respond to the loss of opportunity and position themselves in the higher education marketplace. The analysis is based on 50 online narratives. The results are elaborated into three exploratory story models: (1) ‘Never give up on your dreams’; (2) ‘Need to figure out a new plan’; and (3) ‘You can’t get everything you want in life’. The stories show that marketization of higher education affects the experiences and expectations of prospective students. Moreover, marketization offers opportunities differently for those who already have plenty of resources to compete for access to higher education and those who do not. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Access to Higher Education in Competitive Marketplaces: A Critical Appraisal of Policy Aims to Reconcile Equality of Opportunity and Marketisation)
15 pages, 497 KiB  
Article
Social Farming: An Inclusive Environment Conducive to Participant Personal Growth
by Roberta Moruzzo, Francesco Di Iacovo, Alessandra Funghi, Paola Scarpellini, Salomon Espinosa Diaz and Francesco Riccioli
Soc. Sci. 2019, 8(11), 301; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci8110301 - 28 Oct 2019
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 5299
Abstract
Social farming can ameliorate the everyday life of people engaged in farming activities, including perceived changes in mood or behavior. It can also be therapeutic, as it can address a range of public health and service provision issues. This paper presents the findings [...] Read more.
Social farming can ameliorate the everyday life of people engaged in farming activities, including perceived changes in mood or behavior. It can also be therapeutic, as it can address a range of public health and service provision issues. This paper presents the findings of an Italian project that explored the impact of social farming on the well-being of the participants and their ability to perform certain tasks linked to agricultural activities. In addition, this paper tries to evaluate how the organization of the network system around the participants helps them to improve their relational capabilities. Participant observations were made in class rooms and farms where the participants carried out their agricultural activities. Such observations focused on the way in which participants and other subjects (i.e., tutors and training staff) inside the network system interacted. A number of in-depth interviews were carried out with tutors and trainers in order to understand if the participants would play a relevant role in social farming activities and what that role would be. Full article
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15 pages, 558 KiB  
Article
Retailing, Consumers, and Territory: Trends of an Incipient Circular Model
by María D. De-Juan-Vigaray and Ana I. Espinosa Seguí
Soc. Sci. 2019, 8(11), 300; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci8110300 - 28 Oct 2019
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 5535
Abstract
The aim of this theoretical research is to analyze the state of retail distribution nowadays, reviewing the dynamics of action that contribute to the move from a linear to an incipient circular retail model. The framework is based on the Retail Wheel Spins [...] Read more.
The aim of this theoretical research is to analyze the state of retail distribution nowadays, reviewing the dynamics of action that contribute to the move from a linear to an incipient circular retail model. The framework is based on the Retail Wheel Spins Theory and the Retail Life Cycle (RLC), with an extra review of Bauman’s liquid metaphor. We consider two questions. Firstly, are offline retailers ready to disappear as online commerce and digital marketing aggressively break into the retail industry? Secondly, could commercial spaces (in the fifth stage in the evolution of retail and territory) be in the decline stage in the RLC in the near future or can a circular connection take place? Thus, a desk research methodology based on secondary documentary material and sources issued leads to an interpretive analysis that reveals ten trends (e.g., solid retail vs. liquid retail; glocal retail; food sovereignty) and a wide diversity of changes that could involve offline stores recovering territory and entering a circular phase. Our findings suggest that digitalized physical stores are flourishing and our reflections augur changes in pace and the closure of the linear business cycle to recover territory, the city, its local market, and its symbolism, as well as a liquid business steeped in omnichannel formats developing an incipient circular movement. Conclusions indicate that it is possible to perceive a timid change back to territory and retail spaces which, along with phygitalization, will coexist with the digital world. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Adopting Circular Economy Current Practices and Future Perspectives)
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20 pages, 1588 KiB  
Article
The Development of Generalized Trust among Young People in England
by Jan Germen Janmaat
Soc. Sci. 2019, 8(11), 299; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci8110299 - 25 Oct 2019
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 4356
Abstract
This paper explores how generalized trust develops over the life course among young people in England and whether trust is influenced more by family background factors or by conditions in late adolescence and early adulthood. If the latter are important, there may be [...] Read more.
This paper explores how generalized trust develops over the life course among young people in England and whether trust is influenced more by family background factors or by conditions in late adolescence and early adulthood. If the latter are important, there may be reason for concern about falling levels of trust as material conditions, particularly regarding housing, have deteriorated for the present generation of young people. The first set of influences are highlighted by a perspective arguing that trust is primarily shaped by conditions in early childhood, while the latter are suggested by the so-called social learning perspective, which claims that people continuously adjust their social trust through interactions with people in different contexts. Analyzing data of the Citizenship Education Longitudinal Survey, the study finds that trust remains quite volatile until the early twenties. It declines between ages 16 and 23 and groups differing in educational attainment, civic participation and housing situation start to drift apart in their levels of trust between these ages. Educational attainment, civic participation and housing, as conditions pertaining to late adolescence and early adulthood, also turn out to have a significant impact on trust at age 23 controlling for trust at age 16. However, while the first two conditions are influenced by trust at age 16, housing (tenure) is not, indicating it is a more exogenous factor. Family background factors are not influential. Not only do these findings support the social learning perspective, they also suggest that poor living conditions depress trust among a significant minority of young people and exacerbate disparities of trust. Full article
(This article belongs to the Section Contemporary Politics and Society)
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15 pages, 7327 KiB  
Article
Towards Older Adults Cognitive and Emotional Stimulation via Robotic Cognitive Games
by Patrícia Cesário, Samuel Santos, Bernardo Lourenço, Inês Martins and Paulo J. S. Gonçalves
Soc. Sci. 2019, 8(11), 298; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci8110298 - 25 Oct 2019
Viewed by 3383
Abstract
The paper presents and discusses a framework to promote older adults cognitive and emotional stimulation via Robotic Cognitive Games. The work is based on classic games for older adults, e.g., to place objects in pre-defined positions in an arena, where the authors introduce [...] Read more.
The paper presents and discusses a framework to promote older adults cognitive and emotional stimulation via Robotic Cognitive Games. The work is based on classic games for older adults, e.g., to place objects in pre-defined positions in an arena, where the authors introduce a robot in the games. The paper not only presents the robotic games, but also the methodology developed to properly introduce them to older adults in a nursing home. As such, the paper proposes three cognitive robotic games, a methodology to assess the success of its introduction to older adults, keeping in mind cognitive and emotional aspects. To validate the proposed robotic solution, experimental tests were performed in a nursing home. A prior cognitive and emotional test was done with older adults to have a ground truth to compare with after a batch of games was completed by each older adult. The results and their discussion validate the robotic games approach, and also the methodology used for its introduction in the nursing home. Full article
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16 pages, 273 KiB  
Article
Searching for a Place to Belong in a Time of Othering
by Hyacinth Udah
Soc. Sci. 2019, 8(11), 297; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci8110297 - 24 Oct 2019
Cited by 18 | Viewed by 8100
Abstract
Australia is a land of opportunity, where hard work can bring a better life. Most immigrants come to Australia to establish a new life and fulfil hopes and dreams for better life opportunities. Like many immigrants to Australia, I came to establish a [...] Read more.
Australia is a land of opportunity, where hard work can bring a better life. Most immigrants come to Australia to establish a new life and fulfil hopes and dreams for better life opportunities. Like many immigrants to Australia, I came to establish a new better life for myself and for family. In this paper, I share my challenges of being different, and of being black and the experiences of black Africans in Australia. The paper invites more conversations on finding ways forward to change the system that favours some and disadvantages others. It indicates the need to humanise the Other and make Australia a more inclusive and liveable multicultural environment. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Personal Essays in Social Science)
6 pages, 236 KiB  
Editorial
Feminist New Materialisms: Activating Ethico-Politics through Genealogies in Social Sciences
by Beatriz Revelles-Benavente, Waltraud Ernst and Monika Rogowska-Stangret
Soc. Sci. 2019, 8(11), 296; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci8110296 - 23 Oct 2019
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 4188
Abstract
The idea to create a Special Issue journal around the topic of feminist new materialisms emerged out of the editors’ collaboration in the frames of European project New Materialism: Networking European Scholarship on ‘How Matter Comes to Matter’ (European Cooperation in Science and [...] Read more.
The idea to create a Special Issue journal around the topic of feminist new materialisms emerged out of the editors’ collaboration in the frames of European project New Materialism: Networking European Scholarship on ‘How Matter Comes to Matter’ (European Cooperation in Science and Technology), and more specifically it was born at the 9th Annual Conference on the New Materialisms, held at Utrecht University in June 2018 [...] Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Feminist new materialisms: Activating ethico-politics through genealogies in social sciences)
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