Advanced Western Societies Research Articles

New horizons for critical-emancipatory education research: the contributions of Roy Bhaskar’s critical realism

Objective: The following text shows the potential contributions offered by critical realism when it comes to generating an educational research structure that allows bringing to light knowledge that traditional educational research fails to show. Methodology: To do this, the following text reflects theoretically on how the study and analysis of social inclusion and anti-poverty programs existing in advanced Western societies could be approached through the analytical prism of critical realism. Results: Thus, from the analytical tools of critical realism, the limitations of these programs will be shown, both in their basic foundations and in their educational proposals fortraining for employability. Conclusions: Based on such limitations, alternative paths can be indicated in order to achieve a fairer society, among others the proposal for a universal basic income.

On the Micro-Foundations of Creative Economy: Life Satisfaction and Social Identity

Incorporating the unavoidable changes manifesting in the behavior of individuals as an outcome of evolution at the level of development of the economy and society, we pinpoint a new theoretical background requiring the reconfiguring of the micro-foundations of economic theory regarding the creative economy. We thus set the theoretical micro-foundations of the creative economy where the main microeconomic incentive lies in life satisfaction attainment rather than utility maximization. At the macroeconomic level, we propose the pairing of sustainability with the creative economy. The objective is met through the vehicle of social identity derived from the responses to a questionnaire distributed in Greek society. Through principal components analysis, we locate two sets of variables shaping life satisfaction: the exogenous influences within social identity (state of health, age, and level of education) and the endogenous primary influences within social identity (lending, cultural change, and happiness). Each one of these variables is determined by other interpretative variables. Furthermore, we observe a weakness of economic policy to influence life satisfaction in advanced Western societies, resulting in a paradox of the economic toolkit. Our findings are relevant for policymaking to promote life satisfaction, especially within the creative economy context.

Development of strategies to promote healthy sexuality based on Iranian girls perspective about the role of virginity in the construction of their sexuality: an explanatory sequential mixed method study protocol

BackgroundThe modern Iran is a blend of tradition and modernity, but its dominant culture is still traditional and takes pride in female virginity. On the other hand, the influential factors such as modernity, education, social networks, global communication, influence from advanced Western societies, have obviously led to the emergence of a freer sexual attitude associated with less significance of virginity. Since the traditional, cultural and religious significance of virginity among Iranian girls can shape their sexual behaviors, therefore, the aim of the present study is development of strategies to promote healthy sexuality based on Iranian girls perspective about the role of virginity in the construction of their sexuality.Methods/designThis is a two-stage study; an explanatory sequential mixed-methods follow-up design will be employed in the first stage, which consists of two quantitative and qualitative phases. The first phase is the cross-sectional survey that will be conducted on 700 single girls born in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. The sample will be selected using the cluster sampling method in the health centers of Tabriz-Iran. The determined sample size will be divided among the selected health centers based on the quota criterion, and eligible households will be selected randomly from the said centers using the SIB website (sib.tbzmed.ac.ir). To collect the required data in the quantitative phase, we will use a researcher-made questionnaire to evaluate the girls’ views about virginity and its influential factors, designed based on the theory of “social construction of sexuality”. After quantitative data collection and analysis, the findings inform qualitative data collection and analysis. The qualitative phase of the study will be conducted on girls living in Tabriz using in-depth and semi-structured individual interviews and purposive sampling method to collect the required qualitative data. The collected data will be analyzed using the conventional content analysis approach. The findings of two phase will be integrated for further explanation and interpretation to be used in the second stage. In the second phase of this study, a nominal group meeting will be held with the participation of reproductive and sexual health experts. The strategies extracted from the results of the first phase and review the texts in this meeting will be provided to experts and after receiving the opinions and ideas of the relevant group of experts and prioritizing them, appropriate strategies to improve and promote the healthy sexuality of Iranian girls will be presented.DiscussionThis study is one of the few studies conducted in the field of sexual health and culture in Iran, that using a “mixed-methods” approach to determine and explain the role of virginity in the construction of the sexuality from the Iranian girls perspective. We hope that this study can present evidence-based documents from the latest physical, psychological and social developments in young Iranian girls’ sexuality and that the presented healthy sexuality promotion strategies, which will be based on Iranian socio-cultural developments, can provide the basic information required for policy-making and planning for young girls’ sexual health. It is also hoped that the findings of this study will be useful in culture-based sexuality education and support for reproductive and sexual health care for the young Iranian generation.

Family change, intergenerational relations and policy development in contemporary France

ABSTRACTThis article examines the impact of changing family structures on intergenerational relations in contemporary France. It explores the ways in which policy has responded to these changes and sought to influence the direction of change. The author argues that, in a context of population ageing and rapid socio-economic development, family forms and living arrangements have become more diversified and complex, creating new challenges for family members and requiring innovative policy responses. The article draws on socio-demographic data and evidence from social policy analyses to track changing family structures and associated patterns of intergenerational solidarity. It documents attempts by policy-makers to establish and support a new social contract between the generations. Although many of the trends reported are common to other advanced Western societies, the author identifies distinctive features in the role played by the state in France in fostering and supporting intergenerational relations and solidarities. Other governments, including in East Asian countries, have looked for lessons that might be learned from the French case, but without, it is argued, being able to reproduce the necessary societal conditions that have allowed the French family-friendly policy model to develop and prosper.

Cyber Security Policy and Strategy in the European Union and Nato

Abstract Nowadays it is clear not only for professionals but also for outsiders that our advanced Western societies cannot operate without the infrastructure based on information technologies. The security of these infrastructures, which are present in public utilities, economic life, public administration, defence sector or even in the smallest detail of everyday life, have a vital importance. The reason for this is very simple: if these systems do not work, then society does not work either. The importance of cyberspace can no longer be questioned. Accordingly, the challenges and threats to cyberspace have to be addressed at strategic level. This paper presents the most important cyber security principles and strategies of the European Union and NATO.

Higher education and inequality

ABSTRACTAfter climate change, rising economic inequality is the greatest challenge facing the advanced Western societies. Higher education has traditionally been seen as a means to greater equality through its role in promoting social mobility. But with increased marketisation higher education now not only reflects the forces making for greater inequality but even exacerbates them. This could be changed but it would require major shifts in higher education policy and practice of which there is currently little sign.

Confronting the Modern Problematic

The modern problematic, defined by Kenneth Schmitz, is a widespread acceptance of God’s absence in the culture of the technologically advanced Western societies. Schmitz clearly has been deeply influenced by Karol Wojtyla’s work as both philosopher and religious leader. Pope John Paul II’s Fides et Ratio is notable for its courage in advocating the serious pursuit of truth guided at least in part by the philosophy of being. This essay draws on certain important contrasts in Schmitz’s subsequent meditations upon the transcendental of beauty and its implications for communication and postmodern culture with its emphasis on the human subject. The purpose is to reflect on the special significance of this important contrast, shift, and development that occurs in these aspects of Schmitz’s own philosophy within the tradition of the philosophy of being that has been given renewed definition and importance for our challenging times in John Paul II’s encyclical on faith and reason.

Economic Reforms and Social Service Delivery in Nigeria 1999 - 2007 : Issues and Options

The security and development of any nation depend critically on the adequacy of its social service delivery to the populace. Social service delivery in Nigeria’s Fourth Republic focused essentially though not exclusively on education, health, water resources and housing. Meanwhile, government mechanism for successful implementation of these programmes is not adequate in Nigeria. This paper examines the nexus between economic reforms and social service delivery in Nigeria with a view to exploring the policy issues and options. For the purpose of this objective we drew references from advanced Western societies that have previously embarked on similar schemes. We adopted the theory of dualism for analysis and generated the data mainly through documented evidence. We conclude that since the federal government in Nigeria initiates economic reforms and involves both state and local governments in the implementation of social service for the welfare of the populace as their statutory responsibilities, harmonious blending of these reforms and policies across tiers and levels of government is inevitable to attain the much needed good governance and national development in Nigeria.

Transcending hunter gatherer pursuits while balancing customary cultural ideals with market forces of advanced western societies: Extending the traditional boundaries of Indigenous Yolngu people of the Northern Territory of Australia

As large multinationals move their operations into remote regions of the world, imperatives of social responsibility and sound business pragmatism compel engagement of the marginalized local Indigenous people. This notion is particularly relevant for the mining industry in Australia, which is undertaken in remote regions, where the local Indigenous communities are significantly socio-economically disadvantaged compared to other Australians. This article reports the job-related outcomes of Indigenous Yolngu people of East Arnhem Land in the Northern Territory of Australia who were participants in a unique vocational-educational programme set up by the multinational mining company Rio Tinto Alcan. These mainline job-related outcomes are in two main areas: (1) employment in mainline work at the Nhulunbuy refinery or the mine site and (2) entrepreneurial timber-related business (milling timber, house construction, furniture manufacture). Both streams are inaugural achievements for these Indigenous Australians. The concluding sections present challenges for multinational corporations when anchoring institutional processes, structures and the contemporary technologies of the workplace with the contextuality of rural Australian communities.

Psychological Maltreatment

Psychological or emotional maltreatment of children may be the most challenging and prevalent form of child abuse and neglect. Caregiver behaviors include acts of omission (ignoring need for social interactions) or commission (spurning, terrorizing); may be verbal or nonverbal, active or passive, and with or without intent to harm; and negatively affect the child's cognitive, social, emotional, and/or physical development. Psychological maltreatment has been linked with disorders of attachment, developmental and educational problems, socialization problems, disruptive behavior, and later psychopathology. Although no evidence-based interventions that can prevent psychological maltreatment have been identified to date, it is possible that interventions shown to be effective in reducing overall types of child maltreatment, such as the Nurse Family Partnership, may have a role to play. Furthermore, prevention before occurrence will require both the use of universal interventions aimed at promoting the type of parenting that is now recognized to be necessary for optimal child development, alongside the use of targeted interventions directed at improving parental sensitivity to a child's cues during infancy and later parent-child interactions. Intervention should, first and foremost, focus on a thorough assessment and ensuring the child's safety. Potentially effective treatments include cognitive behavioral parenting programs and other psychotherapeutic interventions. The high prevalence of psychological abuse in advanced Western societies, along with the serious consequences, point to the importance of effective management. Pediatricians should be alert to the occurrence of psychological maltreatment and identify ways to support families who have risk indicators for, or evidence of, this problem.

Reflections on ‘governing the family’: the close relationship between child protection and social work in advanced Western societies – the example of England

The purpose of this article is to critically reflect on recent developments and debates about child protection policy and practice in advanced Western societies, with particular reference to England. It includes a discussion of the scandal associated with the death of ‘Baby Peter’ and the political reactions to it, together with an analysis of the Munro Review of Child Protection. In the process it considers why the profession of social work is continually subject to criticism in child protection work but, at the same time, continues to be entrusted with playing the central role in it. It is argued that a major reason for this is that social work plays a key role in ‘governing the family’ in advanced Western societies where, while it is important that children are protected from ‘significant harm’, it is also important that the privacy of the family is not seen as being undermined. Social work expertise is key to maintaining this fine balance and mediating between the various tensions involved.

The Munro Review of Child Protection: An Appraisal

Over the last 40 years child protection systems in all Advanced Western Societies have been subject to high profile criticisms and regular major reviews. In many respects the Munro Review of Child Protection (2011) in England, is very different to those which have gone before. This paper summarises the main findings and recommendations of The Review and locates it in its immediate policy and practice contexts. The paper also begins to identify some of its possible gaps and challenges and argues that the success of The Review is likely to depend on cultural, political and economic factors well beyond its influence and outlines what these are.

WORK ORIENTATIONS IN FLUX?

ABSTRACT In this article, subjective work goals are studied comparatively among employees in five European countries: Finland, Germany, Great Britain, Spain, and Sweden. Inglehart (2008), West European Politics 31) has claimed that a cultural shift from survival values to self-expression values also brings changing values concerning work in advanced western societies. Inglehart's thesis is tested empirically in this article by using pooled data from World Values Surveys and European Values Studies collected in 1990–1999/2000. The results do not show a clear shift from survival values to self-expression values in work goals, which contradicts Inglehart's thesis. However, there was some support for Inglehart's claims in the data. The results also pointed to differences, as well as some similarities, between these European countries regarding work goals. Advanced western countries should not then be treated as a homogenous category in future research on work goals. The support for intrinsic work goals was also analysed using four independent variables: birth cohort, gender, social class, and job satisfaction. Social class was the main individual determinant of intrinsic work goals in most of the research countries. Higher social classes valued intrinsic work goals more than lower social classes did.

Do witches really exist: A mystical-philosophical evaluation

The nature and activities of witches have in recent times come up globally, especially as it concerns the so-called negative effects of witchcraft on human beings. In advanced (Western) societies, many organizations have come up boldly with such names as satanic societies, witches, sacred grove or cult; and what they purport to study, research, teach and discuss in their assembly or sabbath is summarily called 'nature-earth spirituality'.

Culture Crimes Against Women

About five thousand women are murdered by their families each year in the name of family honor. A young Muslim girl was murdered in Berlin by her own brother, because she behaved like a German. Both of them had German citizenship. He was sentenced to nine years of incarceration, and was released after six years. His family celebrated his release from prison. Fatima Sehindel, a Muslim Swedish girl, was a student. She wanted to assimilate in Swedish society. She spoke to the Swedish parliament. She even had a Swedish boyfriend. She was murdered by her own father. These crimes were committed in advanced western countries. It is difficult to get precise numbers of “honor killings,” since most cases are not reported. When a woman is murdered in the name of family honor in the country of origin, it is justified by law, since the concept of family honor justifies the killing of women in these societies. The perpetrators of such killings in these societies are considered heroes of their culture. In these societies, the concept of woman as a vessel of the family reputation is prevalent, and this concept is completed and accompanied by the concept of honor killings. The story of Soraya M., which was publicized in a book and a movie, is another example. Her husband wanted to marry a younger woman, so he claimed that she was flirting with a neighbor. She was stoned to death. This phenomenon is not exclusive to the countries of origin. Many of the women murdered by their families in the name of family honor are murdered in western societies, very advanced western societies that have open-gate policies and are absorbing immigrant populations. Some of the immigrants in these societies come from countries where the concept of honor killing is in common use, is morally acceptable and is legal. Upon settling in their new homeland, the immigrant population continues this accepted practice, as they used to in their homeland. Reports submitted to the United Nations Commission on Human Rights show that honor killings have been committed in Great Britain, Italy, Sweden, the United States, Germany, France, and other countries absorbing immigrants. Some of these honor killings are perpetrated or assisted by women. The concept of honor killing is considered by most of the immigrants, including women, as part of their culture, which must be preserved. They sometimes rely on Article 27 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Honor killings are not the only offenses committed against women in the name of culture. When the perpetrators are charged in court, they frequently claim the “ignorance of law” defense, since they have been behaving that way for generations, and why would the legal situation be different in their new homeland. In most cases, this claim is rejected, but it is used to mitigate punishments down to ridiculous sentences. Most western countries share this problem. This article argues that the mistake of law defense is irrelevant in relation to culture-based crimes against women. It is further argued that committing an offense on the grounds of preserving a culture in and of itself justifies harsher sentencing. In the following paragraphs culture-based crimes against women in countries absorbing immigrants will be introduced. Then the relevance of the mistake of law defense shall be examined in relation to culture-based crimes against women. Finally, and on those grounds, the sentencing considerations when punishing such crimes shall be examined

Lokalizacja firm i zachowania przestrzenne pracowników sektora informatycznego (na przykładzie poznańskiego obszaru metropolitalnego)

In the contemporary world, areas characterised by the development of the information economy and society are of particular importance. This article has two goals: a theoretical and an empirical one. From a theoretical perspective, an attempt is made to answer the question of how the growth of the IT sector changes the traditional concepts of industrial location and regional development. The empirical part presents the preliminary results of a research carried out under the international project “Accommodating Creative Knowledge: Competitiveness of European Metropolitan Regions within the Enlarged Union” (ACRE). They show the state, dynamics and spatial structure of the analysed sector as well as the spatial behaviour of its employees in the Poznań metropolitan area. The article concludes with a distinction of two development pathways of the IT sector: catching up with the more advanced Western economies and societies, and utilising the endogenous human capital.

The Work‐Life Balance: Geographical Perspectives on Lifestyle, Leisure, Stuff and the Future Presidential Address to the Institute of Australian Geographers’ Conference, Hobart, July 20081

AbstractThe work‐life balance is a pressing social issue in Australia but one on which geographers have been relatively silent. Predictions of ‘a leisure society’ have not been fulfilled. Instead, work has come to dominate life in Australia and in many other advanced western societies. The reasons for this are explored. Materialism is at the heart of the work‐life imbalance. There is, however, evidence of a changing work ethic and the emergence of leisure‐orientated lifestyles, albeit with ‘leisure’ interpreted as ‘freedom to’ undertake gratifying activity rather than simply ‘freedom from’ obligatory commitments. Despite the supposed homogenising influence of globalisation and the internet, place will become increasingly important in a leisure‐orientated lifestyle‐led future.

Teaching and Learning Guide for: Assessing Welfare Reform, Over a Decade Later

Teaching and Learning Guide for: Assessing Welfare Reform, Over a Decade Later

E-Government, e-Society and Jordan: Strategy, theory, practice, and assessment (originally published in November 2003)

e-Government, e-Society and Jordan: Strategy, theory, practice, and assessment by Michael Blakemore and Roderic Dutton A review of e-Government and e-Society developments in Jordan is set in the context of the contradictions and conflicts of negotiating policies that aim to span all scales from local to global. Largely 'developed' hegemonic discourses of technology and governmental reform are critically evaluated in the context of how such global/national strategies will perform uncertainly at regional/local/individual levels. Even within advanced western societies e-Government and e-Society strategies have seldom been underpinned by a research and evaluation framework that feeds back directly into a refinement of strategy and improved policies. As a complex society within the turbulent Middle East regional framework, Jordanian strategy will benefit from a clear understanding of how it will balance the needs of the individual citizen with the macro pressures of globalisation.

Fitter, happier, more productive: Governing working bodies through wellness

Over the last two decades wellness discourses have had a particularly powerful influence on advanced western societies. Some of the discourses have found their way into the corporate realm and these provide the primary focus of this paper. Whereas the focus upon unruly bodies remains a force of continuity with the concerns of 19th century paternalistic industrialists, in contemporary organisational wellness initiatives, working bodies are urged and supported to govern their own productive capacities, both in and outside of work. However, drawing on Foucault's ideas of governmentality and the subject, I propose in this paper that such discourses of organisational wellness cannot simply be seen as transformative and performative. Rather, these discourses encounter employee conflict, contestation and resistance which prevent the translation of macro wellness messages into concrete effects at the local, organisational level. In order to identify and give voice to the various subject positions emerging through discourses of organisational wellness a spectrum of self‐governance is developed.