Chinese Left-Behind Children’s Perspectives on Ritual Practices: Navigating Guanxi, Renqing and Mianzi in School-Based Socialization

The social history and experience of communal women in Peru are characterized by exclusion, discrimination, and violence, even more so if they are women affected by the internal armed conflict. However, this does not diminish their capacity for agency and mobilization, as well as their contribution to community organization. In this article, we present the results of a collaborative work with women from the community of Sacsamarca located in the southern Andean region of Peru. Our approach puts community psychology in dialogue with decolonial feminism. The methodology includes field ethnography and life histories. We argue that the women of this community have developed a relational and situated agency, which is sustained by their membership in a larger collective and can resist multiple systems of oppression present to this day. It moves away from the notion of Euro and egocentric agency-emphasis on the individual competence-because it stems from a different conception of human, defined as a being in relation, an "I-we." Relational agency, rooted in community capital inherent to women's individual and social cultural heritage, encompasses material support, knowledge, and skills from family and community. In this sense, the present study shows that, despite having suffered patriarchal and colonial violence, these women possess a remarkable capacity for action and mobilization. Their agency, which is relational and contextual, is manifested in four areas that must be taken into account when creating development and well-being policies. This is meant to promote the growth of these women's resources and empowerment. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved).

This paper adduces examples to show that internal conflicts between a national minority and the majority that escalate into violence and/or a demand to secede are due to asymmetrical power differences not only along the horizontal (social) power axis, but also, most importantly, along the vertical (political) power axis. The paper argues that identity differences (whether ethnic, or socially or politically constructed) that emphasize inequalities between the national groups are a necessary, but not sufficient condition, and that it is the asymmetrical power relation between the state and the majority (power holders) and national minority groups that triggers escalation of conflicts into violence and/or a quest for secession. An asymmetrical or unbalanced power relation between the state and national minority groups jeopardizes a primary normative expectation of a minority group’s collective self-respect, which invokes a sense of belonging; when this normative expectation is assaulted, it is most likely to cause moral outrage that becomes a source of mobilizing power. The paper cites examples of internal wars in former Yugoslavia and Sri Lanka as well other examples in which national minorities have either seceded or united.

The purpose of this research was to develop and validate the moderating effect of marital status on the relationship between student-teacher interaction and academic performance of students at Congolese university using two main studies. The first study was designed to develop the instruments for measuring student-teacher interaction’ and their academic performance at the university and to explore the moderating effect of marital status on the relationship between student-teacher interaction and the academic performance of students. For this study, a mixed research method was used. Samples were drawn from one higher education institutions (the University of Kinshasa), using simple random sampling and stratified random sampling techniques based on students’ status and sex as strata. For this study, both qualitative and quantitative data were collected. Data for qualitative analysis were gathered from married and unmarried students using interviews and focus group discussion, whereas data for quantitative analysis were gathered from married and unmarried students using questionnaire. The analyses were made using mainly multiple regressions, the statistical testing of the generated hypothesis via t-test statistics and Pearson product moment correlation, multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA), and simple slope analyses. Furthermore, the demographic variable of participants (sex of students, student status, study level, socio-economic status of the family and major) was another target of the study. 362 students (include married’ and unmarried’ students) from the university of Kinshasa, took part in the study. The study was guided by the Bandura’s social cognitive theory, that determines human behavior and describe the learning theory that analyzes and explains how feelings, thoughts, actions of others, and social experiences actively shape learning processes. The final results revealed that there is a significant correlation between student-teacher interaction and academic performance. In addition, marital status moderated the relationship between student-teacher interaction and academic performance when students are unmarried.The second study was designed to examining the difference of academic performance between married and unmarried students. Qualitative data were collected from 362 students (include married’ and unmarried’ students) using interview questionnaire. Data were analysed using constant comparative approach (the reported stories that emanated from the conversations with the research participants); the deduced meanings from the interview protocol. The study results indicated that the unmarried students’ academic performance was high than their married students’ counterpart and in significant way; and the marital status was negatively associated with academic performance of students at the university in DRC. Finally, based on the findings, some practical and theoretical implications and future research directions were forwarded.

Following parental labor migration, the family unit is disrupted contributing to the formation of a unique form of child-headed households (CHH) among the left-behind children (LBC). Parental migration creates a gap in terms of children support, care, and protection leading to unmet psychosocial support needs among the LBCs in child-headed households. This research chapter sought to explore the fusion of education and care (Educare) in schools as a holistic system of support for the left-behind at a school where LBC expend most of their time. This elevates and transforms the school from just being centers for education excellency but also centers for care and learner well-being. The chapter draws from qualitative data in which twelve left-behind learners and ten education and community informants participated in a focus group discussion. Findings revealed that the school has great potential to support learners in adverse living and learning situations through the curriculum, extra-curriculum clubs, peer groups, and school personnel (teachers in loco parentis). However, the same school environment was found to be associated with negative typecasting of LBC’s that sometimes affects the support system. This chapter recommends building the support base for LBC within school through sensitizations, capacitation, and taping support from community resources.

This study aimed to investigate the relationship between students’ social interactions and their Indonesian language learning achievement in Madrasah Ibtidaiyahs in Gorontalo Regency. Students’ social interactions included parents’ upbringing patterns, the peer interaction, and the teacher-student interaction in the learning process. This study was an ex post facto study involving parents’ upbringing patterns, the peer interaction, and the teacher-student interaction as the independent variables X1, X2, and X3, respectively. The intervening variable was the learning motivation (X4) and the dependent variable (Y) was the Indonesian language learning achievement. The research population comprised all Year V students in 25 Madrasah Ibtidaiyahs in Gorontalo Regency. The sample was selected by using the multi-stage sampling technique and it consisted of 9 Madrasah Ibtidaiyahs involving 101 Year V students. The research instruments included a questionnaire to measure the independent and intervening variables. The data were analyzed using the multiple regression and path analyses at p < 0.05. The results of the research data analysis showed that the direct and indirect effects of the parents’ upbringing patterns (X1) on the learning achievement through the learning motivation (X4) were 0.177 and 0.0458. The direct and indirect effects of the peer interaction (X2) on the learning achievement through the learning motivation (X4) were 0.277 and 0.0717. The direct and indirect effects of the teacher-student interaction (X3) on the learning achievement through the learning motivation (X4) were 0.266 and 0.0689. The direct and indirect effects of all independent variables as an aggregate on the learning achievement through the learning motivation were 0.678 and 0.1756. The peer interaction was the one with the strongest direct effect, namely 0.277, on the Indonesian language learning achievement among other variables in the study. Keywords: social interaction, parents’ upbringing patterns, peer interaction, teacher-student interaction, learning achievement

As rural people keep migrating to cities in China over the past few decades, tens of millions of children have been left behind by their parents. In this study, I investigated how Chinese migrant parents involve in their left-behind children's education through the theoretical lens of concerted cultivation and the accomplishment of natural growth. I drew on qualitative data from left-behind children, migrant parents and teachers collected at a rural primary school in Sichuan Province. Most migrant parents involved in this study migrated to a less developed area in Tibet. Their voices are a valuable addition to the literature that has so far focused on those going to developed cities. It was found that shadow education is a major channel through which the parents involved in their left-behind children's education. The parents could 1) exercise concerted cultivation and variously use shadow education, 2) hope to meaningfully involve but were constrained by multiple barriers, or 3) exercise natural growth and leave their children to themselves. I interpreted these patterns with a view to China's evolving culture, ideology and social structures. I conclude by discussing sociological implications of these patterns, and theoretical contribution to the literature.

This mixed-methods study aimed at investigating the Turkish higher education learners’ attitudes towards Emergency Online Teaching (EOT) under the Covid-19 pandemic in order to discover the benefits and drawbacks of it. The participants were 251 higher education learners who received the EOT during the Covid-19 crisis in Turkey. Both qualitative and quantitative data were gathered by means of a questionnaire in August 2020. Quantitative data were obtained via closed-ended questions with the response on a Likert-scale format. Qualitative data were acquired through open-ended questions. The results showed that the hurried shift to an online instruction by universities in Turkey was not fully satisfactory and the majority of the respondents (74.1%) preferred face-to-face learning to the online format, however, the participants also stated that they felt safer during this pandemic disease thanks to the availability of distant online education. The drawbacks they mentioned included inadequate technological infrastructure or facilities, lack of sufficient teacher-student and peer interaction, lack of learners’ attention and concentration, tediousness of online lessons, learners’ inadequate engagement in class activities, as well as the absence of comprehensive assessment procedure.

Parental labour migration, of either one or both parents, has been associated with various challenges among left-behind children (LBC). However, there is a limited understanding of the LBC's own views and experiences of social and mental well-being and how the new daily life circumstances they encounter following their parents' migration impact them. This study aimed to understand the influence of parental migration and its aftermath on the social and mental well-being of adolescents (referred to as LBC) in two rural districts in Indonesia. Employing a qualitative design, data were collected through individual in-depth interviews with LBC (n = 24) aged 14 to 18 years, recruited using the snowball sampling technique. Data were thematically analysed, guided by a qualitative data analysis framework. The findings showed that parental migration negatively impacted the social well-being of LBC. This impact was reflected in negative labelling from friends and changes in familial roles which influenced their social interactions and activities with peers. Parental migration was also associated with challenges to the mental well-being of LBC. These manifested in the LBC experiencing fractured emotional bonds, leading to negative emotions, including stress, anxiety, sadness, depression, frustration, loss of motivation, and self-imposed isolation, which were associated with their parents' migration and abrupt disruptions in parent-child communication. The transition to new life situations with caregivers after parental migration and the dynamics within the caregivers' households were additional factors that detrimentally affected their mental well-being. Unmet basic needs and educational needs due to financial hardships faced by mothers and caregivers further exacerbated mental health challenges for the children. The findings indicate the importance and improvement of policies and interventions in Indonesia (e.g., counselling services, non-cash food assistance, family hope program, direct cash assistance) that cover and address the diverse needs of mothers or caregivers and the LBC.

In many countries, large numbers of left-behind children (LBC) grow up experiencing prolonged separation from their migrant worker parents. These children are known to be vulnerable to psychological and developmental problems. Drawing on qualitative interview data as well as ethnographic observations, a realist approach was applied in this study to evaluate the feasibility, acceptance, preliminary outcomes and potential sustainability of a community-based intervention to provide care and support to LBC, in a migrant-sending area of rural China. The intervention program comprised “Children's Clubs” in local communities, in which LBC participate in play and educational activities under the care and supervision of local volunteers. Twelve Clubs in 12 different villages were evaluated for the study. In each village, semi-structured interviews were conducted with three community stakeholders, and children and primary caregivers from two families, to examine their perceptions and experiences with regard to the intervention. Our findings indicated that most Clubs adapted the initial program theory and implementation plan to specific community contexts, particularly the socio-economic situation and the support from village leadership and other community members. Program implementation mechanisms consisted of integrating available resources, engaging local volunteers, and delivering various Club activities. Preliminary outcomes indicated the success in establishing a community care platform to benefit the emotional and behavioral wellbeing of LBC, and to enhance the community support networks. To ensure program sustainability, the Children's Clubs should explore new funding schemes, expand the pool of qualified volunteers, and improve the curricular and activities at the Clubs.

We recognise nationalist and centre‐seeking ethnic civil wars as distinct types of conflict and draw on key ideas from political sociology to make hypotheses about the causes of each. First, we argue that the character of states shapes antistate actors in ways that channel ethnic conflict in different ways, with pluralist states promoting nationalist warfare but integrative states contributing to centre‐seeking civil war. Second, we propose that the relative power of communities affects the type of ethnic civil war, arguing that centre‐seeking civil war is most common in situations of communal multipolarity whereas nationalist civil war is concentrated in regions with asymmetric power relations. And because historical statehood promotes elements of pluralist states and asymmetric communal power relations, we hypothesise that the risk of nationalist civil war is high in places with large and longstanding states. To test these hypotheses, we use ethnic fractionalisation to measure configurations of communal power and the state antiquity index to measure level of historical statehood, create a variable measuring the extent to which colonial states were pluralist, and run panel analyses of the odds of civil war onset. With one possible exception, the findings support our hypotheses.

As a result of China’s rural–urban bifurcation, millions of rural Chinese children grow up in the absence of one or both parents due to work migration. Contrary to the dismal picture of left-behind children that is depicted by the mass media, comparative studies based on large-scale survey data suggest that left-behind children do not fare worse than those who live with both parents. Researchers have suggested that the positive effects of remittance might outweigh the negative effects of parental absence, and this explains why there is little total effect of parental migration on children’s wellbeing. This, however, does not explain why left-behind children are doing equally well as non-left-behind children in nearly all aspects of life, some of which are affected more by parental care than by economic resources. This paper aims to explore what factors contribute to the all-round resilience of rural left-behind adolescents. Mixed methods were used to collect both quantitative and qualitative data from adolescents, caregivers, and school teachers from a migrant-sending community in central China. Data analyses reveal that adolescent interpretation of parental migration is deeply embedded in Chinese values on education and ideals of mutual responsibilities among family members, and that a positive understanding of parental motivation for labor migration and commitment to education are significant contributors to the resilience displayed by left-behind adolescents. The heterogeneities in the reaction of left-behind adolescents to parental migration demonstrate that the positive perception of parental migration is not a stand-alone protective factor.

The present study examined critical thinking (CT) and its importance in Saudi secondary education. The sample included upper-secondary students and teachers in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia's capital and largest city. Qualitative and quantitative methods were used to study students' CT skill development, barriers to growth, instructors' views on CT advancement, and students' views on their CT skills. The study examines secondary school students' critical thinking development and impediments. It also examined teachers' perceptions of their students' progress in CT. The research collected quantitative data from 374 questionnaires and qualitative data from eight interviews. SPSS performed regression analysis on survey quantitative data. A thematic analysis was employed to evaluate qualitative interview data. The quantitative findings from the surveys revealed uneven CT skills. The findings also showed that gender, Grade Point Average (GPA) and family background affect CT. The qualitative findings from the interviews with the teachers stressed the importance of collaborative programming and active student engagement in classroom activities to foster CT. Bullying and peer pressure hindered autonomous and CT, making it difficult for instructors to motivate and support students. The findings emphasised the importance of teachers in creating a safe learning environment and encouraging analytical thinking. Recommendations for improving CT in Saudi secondary education were proposed addressing several critical aspects of CT advancement, including curriculum development, teacher training, parental involvement, government-led extracurricular learning, teacher-student interactions, and gender equality in CT advancement. This study could help Saudi students develop CT skills to meet the challenges of the modern world. Keywords: critical thinking (CT), mixed-methods research, Saudi Arabia, secondary education, teacher-student interaction

This particular research was conducted under the light of Martha Rapp Haggard’s vocabulary approach known as Vocabulary Self-Collection Strategy (VSS). The aim of this particular research was to enhance the active usage of vocabulary in learners with the help of VSS. Moreover, the current study was based on the role of VSS in an English language learning classroom at intermediate level. A diagnostic pre-test was conducted on the ‘vocabulary self-collection group’ and the ‘controlled group’. The two groups were enrolled in two sections of the same reading and writing course of this diploma course. The learners who belonged to ‘vocabulary self-collection group’ were asked to self-collect words to improve their vocabulary, whereas the ‘controlled group’ was taught the vocabulary in usual manner. After two weeks of practice, the unseen post-test was administered from both the groups. The performance of both groups in the post-test was statistically analyzed and the results were quite optimistic, as vocabulary self-collection group outperformed the controlled group. The participants of this research were the researchers and the students of the intermediate level, from diploma classes at NUML. This particular research was based on qualitative and quantitative data. The quantitative data was gathered through the pre-test and the post-test and the qualitative data was attained by the observation of the researcher who analyzed the scores. The research tools were lesson plans, pre-test, and post-test. The current study material used in this course were five illustrated texts for intermediate level and vocabulary journals of the students. The sample size included 46 students of diploma level from National University of Modern Languages, Islamabad. The implementation of this particular strategy led to several improvements. Firstly, vocabulary of the learners improved and also it became a part of their active memory. Furthermore, it helped learners to define the words properly that were not known to them before, based on the context of the given text. Finally, group discussion activity improved ‘student-student interaction’ and ‘student-teacher interaction’ in the class.&#x0D; Keywords: active, vocabulary, vocabulary self-collection strategy, VSS&#x0D;

This study aims to determine the relationship between student-teacher interaction, students' academic motivation, and the teacher's motivation in the eighth-grade English classroom. Quantitative and qualitative data on student-teacher interaction and academic motivation in English learning were collected using a questionnaire, observation, and interview. 137 eighth-grade students at Semarang's Karangturi junior high school in the academic year 2022-2023 were the subjects of this study. Using an observation sheet from Ottevanger (2001), it was determined to see to what extent the teacher uses student-teacher interaction to increase students' and teachers' academic motivation. A final interview is conducted with the English teacher to determine her perception of student-teacher interaction. The results demonstrate a correlation between student-teacher interaction and students’ academic motivation in English classes. The instructor utilizes these interactions by posing questions and issuing directives. Moreover, the instructor concurred that student-teacher interactions are highly beneficial for both students and instructors.

The people of the Moana (Pacific) had no word for art as it is understood in the Western sense. There was simply no need, for art was woven into the very fabric of society and across a vast artistic heritage spanning 3,000 years. The practical and the beautiful coexisted, and were used in social activities, rituals, and celebrations. Art circulated through society in a constant cycle of reciprocation through the maintenance of Vā relationships—which connect all social activities, rituals, and celebrations. In Samoan culture, Vā is a term encapsulating relational activities binding all people and all things together across time in the form of relationships and reciprocal obligations. This chapter explores the index of the Vā through an examination of the author’s contemporary Pacific artistic practice.