Help and The Social Construction of Access: A Case-Study from India

The theory of the social construction of reality and the theory of the social construction of mass media are still partially discussed. Several previous pieces of research have not yet correlated, elaborated, or synthesized from the theoretical aspect. Even though much has been said about the social construction of reality, media consumers are heavily influenced by media "made" constructions. The research aims to synthesize the Bergerian theory of social reality construction (Berger and Luckmann) with the Bunginan theory of social reality construction (Burhan Bungin). The method used is a literature study. The results showed that the synthesis of the social construction theory of reality and the social construction of mass media reality produced a thesis understanding of an objective and subjective reality which was sufficiently understood through the social construction theory of mass media reality. This is considering the individual phenomenon which, in all durations of daily life, cannot be separated from the role of social media interaction. They externalize, objectify as well as internalize reality based on mass media references. In the hierarchy, the social construction theory of reality can be placed as a grand theory by considering genealogical aspects, while the social construction theory of mass media reality can be placed as a middle-rank theory. This is of course related to the more universal focus on social construction of reality.This research aims to analyze an effective business communication model in the context of culinary entrepreneurship post the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly in Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in Depok City. The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted the culinary sector, with social restrictions and changes in consumer behavior. Therefore, it is crucial to understand how culinary MSMEs can adapt and succeed in facing these challenges.This study employs a qualitative approach, utilizing in-depth interviews with culinary MSME owners in Depok City. The data collected are analyzed using thematic analysis to identify emerging patterns and findings. The research findings indicate that an effective business communication model for culinary MSMEs post the COVID-19 pandemic involves several key elements. Firstly, MSMEs need to have a clear and targeted communication strategy, including identifying the appropriate target market and developing relevant messages. Secondly, the utilization of digital and online media is crucial in promoting products and reaching potential consumers. MSMEs need to leverage social media, websites, and online booking platforms to enhance product visibility and accessibility. Furthermore, collaboration with relevant stakeholders is also an essential factor in a successful business communication model. MSMEs can establish partnerships with local suppliers, culinary communities, and government institutions to expand their reach and gain necessary support.This research provides valuable insights for culinary MSMEs in Depok City and similar sectors in developing effective business communication models post the COVID-19 pandemic. By adopting these approaches, MSMEs can enhance their chances of success in facing challenges and capitalizing on emerging opportunities amidst changing consumer behavior and intensifying competition in the post-pandemic era.

A social construction, or social construct, is an important methodological tool used when investigating social phenomena. It is a general term referring to the idea that social phenomena are best understood as products of social interaction. The concept is also related to phenomenological theories of knowledge such as social constructionism, social constructivism, and the social construction of reality. Reference to phenomena as social constructs or constructions is commonplace in many (sub)disciplines across the social sciences.

With The Social Construction of What?, Ian Hacking aims to cool down the overheated debates around social constructionism (the 'science wars') by clarifying just what the phrase 'social construction' can be properly understood to mean. The book is a collection of previously published essays and lectures on a variety of topics, united not by a common argumentative thread but by this anti-polemical project. The first three chapters explore a series of approaches to specifying what is meant by the phrase 'social construction', and unpack the philosophical issues, or 'sticking points', raised by the application of social constructionism to the natural sciences. Chapters 4 and 5 develop the idea of 'interactive kinds', categories that interact with and alter the objects they label. Reframing social construction in terms of interactive kinds and looping effects helps to specify how a phenomenon can be socially constructed and real at the same time. Chapter 6 elaborates a distinction between 'forms of knowledge' and 'content of knowledge'. Hacking uses this distinction to assign relative roles to contingency and determinacy in the development of scientific knowledge. Chapter 7 applies the 'sticking points' developed in Chapter 3 to a case study of science-in-the-making, and Chapter 8 re-tells the story of the 'Captain Cook' controversy in a way that aims to defuse some of the tension. In this Review I will focus on Chapters 1-4, because these chapters introduce the concepts with which Hacking attempts to specify the meaning of 'social construction'; the later chapters are mostly applications of these concepts.

國際關係建構主義學者認為國際規範具有社會本體論的特性，即規範是杜會事實（social fact）而非自然事實，國際規範如何普遍運作有效則是國際成員相互建構而成，是一種社會建構（social construction）。國家主權正是一種國際規範、社會建構，其正當性原是奠基於領土疆域的不干涉原則，但由於歷經歷史的情勢發展，由不同成員相互所建構而成。建構主義學者質疑主權是固定、永久不變的本質，具有自然客觀存在的基礎，而認為主權是一種社會建構或人類建構，是隨歷史時空變遷的國際規範與政治論述。國家主權原則是歷史偶發的原則，以往的領土內外與認同異同的區分主權，既不自然也不必要，而是若干歷史的先前意外事件的結果。國家現已相互建構奠基於人道的國家（主權）保護（人民）責任（The Responsibility to Protect）原則，此原則闡述了國家主權意含了責任，首要責任是保護國內人民；以及保護因種族屠殺、內戰、叛亂、壓迫或國家失靈，還有國家遭質疑無意或無能力終止或扭轉此苦難而受苦的人們，不干涉原則不及於國際保護責任。隨著學者提出各種補充的理論基礎及批判，促進了此國際規範的擴散與國際社會化，以及後續在聯合國安理會的決議下，依據此規範而人道軍事干預利比亞、南蘇丹、馬利、中非共和國等國，更說明此原則已經成為具體的國際規範。在此國際規範的社會建構過程中，建構主義理論的描述與解釋顯示出其優點所在。

1. Edmund D. Pellegrino, MD* 1. 2. *Director, Center for Clinical Bioethics and The John Carroll Professor of Medicine and Medical Ethics, Georgetown University Medical Center, Washington, D.C. 1. Is there such a thing as pre-embryo in the real world? 2. Are personhood and individuality the same thing? 3. Can the embryo really be harmed without being wronged? 4. Can benefit to others be used to justify the death of an embryo? 5. Is a purely negative morality sufficient to describe the moral life of humans? Goldworth has examined the ethical implications of IVF in terms of possible harms to the “pre-embryo,” the participating couple, the offspring produced thereby, and the community. Using the principle of “primum non nocere” as his moral guide, he concludes that although harms may occur by the use of IVF, there are no moral wrongs. In each case, he detects sufficient good for others to override the prima facie obligation not to inflict “gratuitous” harm. I take issue with this conclusion, the line of reason leading to it, the presuppositions with which it begins, and the subsidiary arguments it employs to buttress its justifications of IVF. I argue, to the contrary, that IVF does cause both harm and moral wrong to embryos and that even within the restricted moral constraints adopted by Goldworth, it is morally unjustifiable. Although I will confine myself to the embryo, my criticisms apply, mutatis mutandis, to the author’s other conclusions concerning harm and wrong to the couple, the offspring, and the community. Goldworth’s line of argument starts from a single moral presupposition, namely, “… any decision is ethically permitted if it is voluntary and does not cause gratuitous harm to others.…” He distinguishes“ harm” (ie, death or damage to others) from wrongs, which are morally condemnable because they are“ gratuitous” (ie, inflicted without adequate justifying reason). Therefore, he takes the proscription against harming as a prima facie obligation that can be trumped for a good reason, such as benefiting others. In the case …

T main premise of this article is that social construction, under the guise of being the radical wolf that will empower teachers and students alike, has instead promoted a pervasive sheepishness, a passive disinterest in large-scale progress in composition studies. While social construction ostensibly offers a contextually-sensitive open field for scholars and teachers, its practical effect has been to fragment composition studies by encouraging ultra-specific scholarship that does not readily cohere into shared knowledge. We believe that social construction is fundamentally a form of Romanticism, enabling not only the solipsism of which its advocates once accused “expressivists,”1 but also the conservatism for which expressivists once excoriated current-traditionalists. And while some scholarship has clearly turned away from social construction in recent years, we believe that its influence continues—most obviously in the durable arguments against the “positivism” of data collection. We believe that reframing social construction through a Romantic/Classic lens might clarify the roots and the lasting consequences of the theory’s enduring appeal. Composition’s long-standing resistance to data-rich research approaches, fully explored by Richard Haswell (“NCTE/CCCC’s”), is one of the most prominent signs of social construction’s Romanticism, and our essay aims to untangle both the philosophical causes and practical effects of this orientation. Finally, we invoke a different line of thinking available from the beginning of these disputes, Robert Pirsig’s “metaphysics of quality,” as a compelling example of one possible way out of the feedback loop of current social construction and into a more progressive and responsive philosophy. We pause here for an important preliminary note. During the course of trying to publish this article, here and in other journals, we met with criticism from several reviewers for not outlining social construction theory with complete care before forwarding our own argument. We want to make clear that this perceived omission is by design. While it might be academic custom to sum up previous studies to prove one’s credibility, there are two reasons why we have streamlined that part of our article. First, we contend that social construction is such a nebulous theory that attempting to pin it down would take an article in itself. That is indeed one of the problems with social construction that we directly

In 2009, Mark Deuze proposed an updated approach to media studies to incorporate ‘media life’, a concept he suggests addresses the invisibleness of ubiquitous media. Media life provides a useful lens for researchers to understand the human condition in media and not with media. At a similar time, public service media (PSM) strategies have aligned audience participation with the so‐called Reithian trinity which suggest the PSB should inform, educate and entertain while performing its core values of public service broadcasting (Enli 2008). Remix within the PSM institution relies on audience participation, employing ‘the people formerly known as the audience’ (Rosen 2006) as cultural artifact producers, and draws on their experience from within the media. Remix as a practice then enables us to examine the shift of the core PSM values by understanding how audience participation, informed by a human condition mobilised from our existence of being in media and not merely with media. However, remix within PSM challenges the once elitist construction of meaning models with an egalitarian approach towards socially reappropriated texts, questioning its affect on the cultural landscape. This paper draws on three years of ethnographic data from within the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), exploring the remix culture of ABC Pool. ABC Pool operates under a Creative Commons licensing regime to enable remix practice under the auspices of the ABC. ABC Pool users provide a useful group of remix practitioners to examine as they had access to a vast ABC archival collection and were invited to remix those cultural artefacts, often adding cultural and fiscal value. This paper maintains a focus on the audience participation within PSM through remix culture by applying media dependency theory to remix as cultural practice and calls to expand and update the societal representation within the ABC.

在世界性经济危机与社会主义中国的经济将维持正增长的强烈反差对比之下，重新审视中国坚守的方向和走过的道路，意义非同寻常。共和国的前30年为后30年的改革发展奠定了坚实的基础。共和国的后30年继续进行探索，取得了多方面的辉煌成就。历史经验告诉我们，建设社会主义最重要的不是有没有详尽的蓝图，而是有没有认清社会主义方向的视野，有没有不折不挠地迈向社会主义未来的勇气。尽管今天的中国还存在着大量问题，面临着多重严峻的挑战，但只要坚持社会主义的方向，未来的道路一定会越走越宽广。 关键词: 社会主义中国经济增长人类发展 To examine the directions and developmental process of China's socialist construction at a time when the Chinese economy is growing rapidly despite the current world economic crisis is an act of no ordinary significance. Broadly speaking, China's sixty years of socialist construction can be divided into two phases: the first thirty years from 1949 to 1979 and the second thirty from 1979 to 2009. The first thirty years of China's socialist revolution and construction laid a solid foundation for the reform and opening up of the next thirty years, a period in which China's continued exploration of new directions led to spectacular achievements. History teaches us that the linchpin of building socialism is not whether you have a detailed blueprint for socialism, but whether you have a grand vision for understanding socialism and the courage to direct socialist construction. Although China today faces many problems and even grave challenges, we will open up an ever wider path for socialism with Chinese characteristics so long as our country adheres to the direction of socialism.

As online and offline spaces, digital and analogue worlds merge into each other and saturate our everyday lives, concepts of reality and its social construction need re-thinking. Digital game cultures, formerly often regarded as not only separate from reality, but also secondary in their importance for ,real lifeʻ, can give us insight into processes of cultural construction und re-construction, relevant for our mediatised society in general. This paper analyzes digital game cultures as sub-creations (Tolkien 1947) that are consistent, significant and serve as comments on and additions to society. Focusing on religious elements in digital games, the paper states that game cultures reflect cultural practice in general and therefore contribute to the social construction of reality in essential ways. The paper is based on the results of several case studies on digital games during which a system to categorize digital games concerning the way they use religious elements was developed, going beyond existing game categories. The paper will introduce these classifications in order to support the assumption that religion in games can be seen not only as a key element in game cultures, but also as a reflection of social attitude towards and social status of religion in a wider prospect. Following this assumption, the paper will show how the analysis of digital games and their religious contents can help us observe and understand processes of social reality construction that might not be accessible or visible in other social contexts.

This chapter helps us understand what is meant by saying that something is socially constructed. The purpose of this chapter is to provide an explanation of the constructivist way of understanding our world. Using examples on theories of the role of eggs and sperm, sex and gender, and sexual identities, we argue that all things, from physical objects to sexual concepts and theories, are human (i.e., social) constructions. In contrast to those who say that something that is socially constructed is therefore not real, we argue that all constructions, even those that are purely conceptual and those deemed “false” are real in their consequences.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to determine whether it is useful to tease apart the intimately related propositions of social production and social construction to guide thinking in the multidisciplinary study of disasters.Design/methodology/approachThe authors address our question by reviewing literature on disasters in the social sciences to disambiguate the concepts of social production and social construction.FindingsThe authors have found that entertaining the distinction between social production and social construct can inform both thinking and action on disasters by facilitating critical exercises in reframing that facilitate dialog across difference. The authors present a series of arguments on the social production and construction of disaster and advocate putting these constructs in dialog with vulnerability frameworks of the social production of disasters.Originality/valueThis commentary contributes to disambiguating important theoretical and practical concepts in disaster studies. The reframing approach can inform both research and more inclusive disaster management and risk reduction efforts.

The construction of identities is of relevance for the teaching of democracy and social sciences (Santisteban y Pagés, 2007). With their imprint on action and anchoring in the future, identities are dynamic, narrative, historical, social, plural and permanent constructions, through which the world is interpreted and subjectivities are organized (Hall, 1996). From an interpretative and critical perspective, this paper aims to explore and analyze what the secondary curriculum of Social Sciences in Argentina, Catalonia and South Africa say about identities, and then, based on testimonies about the practice, establish some possible guidelines for potential proposals and curricular innovations on the subject. Through a mainly qualitative methodology (Eisner, 1990), the curriculums are approached through a document analysis (Rapley, 2014); the testimonies -corresponding to questionnaires and interviews made to some members of the professoriate of the three sites - are analyzed by emphasizing the perspectives on the practice by investigating and interpreting their meaning (Flick, 2015). Although in all three curriculums identities are assumed as social, historical and temporal constructions (Grossberg, 1996), in each case it occurs in a different way and with its own characteristics. A majority of teachers conceive identities as traits or characteristics of people and a minority thinks of them as constructions. Among the possible contributions for potential curricular innovations are emphasized in the identities as social constructions and in their relevance in the teaching of the social sciences. Keywords Identities; curriculum; social sciences; teaching; professorate

Social and Cultural Construction of Urinary Incontinence among Korean American Elderly Women

Just Doing Your Job: Some Lessons of the Sokal Affair Bruce Robbins (bio) The December 3, 1996 issue of the French left-wing newspaper Libération contains a full-page article, plus photograph and interview, devoted to Alan Sokal’s hoax in Social Text and the media coverage that has followed. The article begins like this: “‘Does reality exist?’ It’s difficult to believe, but for the past six months, the American intellectual left has been gorging itself on the question.” This is not an even approximately accurate account of the Sokal affair—no one in this argument has in fact taken the position that reality does not exist—but it is a representative sample of how scrupulously journalists have reported it, in the U.S. as well as abroad, on the left as well as elsewhere on the political spectrum. That’s a load of inaccuracy to crawl out from under. And these are the people who complain that others don’t respect standards of evidence! As the journalists will sometimes tell you off the record, they are “just doing their job.” Perhaps it’s in the nature of their job that they need not worry whether anyone remembers the provenance of this excuse. But it would be too easy simply to blame either them or their profession. After all, the professional deformation is not all on their side. Asked how it feels to know he has provoked this avalanche of malicious half-truths and outright misrepresentations, Alan Sokal could of course respond that it’s not his field, not the point he wanted to make about science studies, not his responsibility. As a physicist, should he have been required to consider what the media would do with his stunt? What are a physicist’s responsibilities in or to the public sphere? (This is of course one of the questions that science studies was attempting to bring to the public’s attention when the hoax came along and diverted that attention elsewhere.) But in addition to being a physicist, Sokal has also declared himself a leftist. As a leftist, he could surely be expected to weigh the likely consequences—consequences not just for the quantity of his email correspondence and lecture invitations, but for untenured, highly vulnerable students of culture around the country, some of whom are already seeing their projects endangered and their reappointments blocked in a gathering backlash. Still, to appeal to politics is not to [End Page 467] end the discussion. For Social Text, too—and it’s also our mistake that has brought discredit on the work of so many other practitioners of cultural politics—a certain obscurity lingers over the question of how responsibilities to politics and to everyday academic business are supposed to be balanced or reconciled. Toward the beginning of Sokal’s essay, there is a little sentence which goes as follows: “physical ‘reality,’ no less than social ‘reality,’ is at bottom a social and linguistic construct.” To the best of my knowledge, no one on the Social Text collective believes this. After more than a decade of editorial meetings, I can’t think of anyone who is entirely comfortable within the constructivist paradigm, anyone who doesn’t bump up against its limits with every intellectual move they make. Andrew Ross’s largely unread introduction to the largely unread science wars issue does what it can to move the focus away from epistemology to matters like the politics of funding and agenda-setting, and I think that’s both right and more characteristic of the journal. For years I’ve been using Diana Fuss’s Essentially Speaking (1989) to tell incoming graduate students they cannot assume they are doing anything intellectually or politically significant by sole virtue of showing that something is a social construct, since saying that X is a social or cultural construct only displaces the “reality” question from the X and onto the “society” or the “culture” that’s supposedly doing the constructing. The papers I want from my students, and the submissions we have tended to welcome for Social Text, have the tact or savvy to acknowledge the potential interpretive regress (what constructs “society” and “culture”? and so...

In this chapter, we draw on a yearlong ethnographic study in a first-grade classroom and explore the social and discursive construction of the everyday life in the classroom through a languaging perspective. Our approach incorporates an ethnographic approach involving long-term participant observation, foregrounding an emic orientation, attending to the relation of parts and wholes, and focusing on cultural and social processes. We provide an illustrative case to show how, as people act and react to each other through languaging and related semiotic processes (the processes of using visual, verbal, written, gestural, and musical resources for communication), they socially construct structures for their interactions with each other in different social institutions like schooling. Such structures are not given but socially constructed. The power of these structures is in how they are taken up by teachers and students as they construct knowledge, social relationships, relational-keys, and cultural ideologies, which both reflect and refract what has gone before and what will come later, as well as the social and material contexts in which they are required to enact daily life together. The illustrative case highlights how the dialectic relationships between theoretical frames and actual engagement in research and analysis may yield potential re-conceptions of essential education constructs such as learning, teaching, instruction, curriculum, literacy, time, and personhood.