Ambivalent Role Research Articles

Стратегии освоения страдания в культуре

The article is devoted to the study of suffering as a component of human subjectivity. The factors that determine the unavoidability of suffering in human life are highlighted. The dynamics of the meanings of the word "suffering" are shown from the original meanings associated with the concepts of "death" and "hard work" to modern meanings grouped around the experience of pain, death, and guilt. At the same time, the essential features of existential suffering are a lack of freedom and destructiveness. The features of the strategy of avoiding suffering as an experienced state are analyzed: at the early stages of historical development; in religious concepts; in Epicurean philosophy; in hedonistic theories. Using the example of the analysis of archaic initiation practices that determined the life cycles of an individual and society, the ambivalent role of the painful trials and sufferings that accompanied them is described: as an indicator of readiness to transition to a new status and as a factor of coercion in an undesirable social role. The tendencies of rethinking suffering in the period of Axial time are shown (the formation of a "suffering person"; voluntary acceptance of suffering; the appearance of a bundle of "suffering and redemption" in the Abrahamic religions). A feature of religious strategies of escape from suffering is the withdrawal of a state without suffering beyond the real world and the promise of existence without suffering after death. The consequences of the reinterpretation of suffering, characteristic of modern society, as an existential experience that adjusts a person to a passive life position and the living of pleasures are considered. The positive and negative aspects of suffering are highlighted, as well as the dual relationship of suffering with meaning: on the one hand, suffering itself assumes the existence of a meaning that must be discovered; on the other hand, the subject himself is called upon to fill the meaning of the suffering situation. The meaning here is what helps to survive the irremediable suffering. Giving a situation of suffering meaning changes the personal attitude of the sufferer, increasing his chances of overcoming the situation and, more importantly, ensuring his moral safety. Personal strategies for understanding suffering are described. The conclusion is made about the ambivalence of the phenomenon of suffering, its dialectical connection with pleasure, its dependence on the spiritual mood, as well as the influence of meaningful suffering on the processes of personal development.

The Only way is up? How Different Facets of Employee and Supervisor Perfectionism Help or Hinder Career Development.

Although the double-edged nature of perfectionism is widely acknowledged, little is known about how it shapes employee career development. By combining two field studies, we provide a multiperspective insight into the relevance of both employee and supervisor perfectionism for employee career development. While we expected self-oriented perfectionism (SOP) to have an ambivalent role for career development, we proposed that socially prescribed perfectionism (SPP) in particular, but also other-oriented perfectionism (OOP), would show maladaptive relationships with career-related indicators. In Study 1 (N = 116), we focused on the employee perspective and how multidimensional perfectionism relates to career aspirations (operationalized via work motivation) and subjective career success. Employees high in SOP reported higher, whereas those high in SPP reported lower perceived career success. OOP was negatively related to intrinsic motivation, but positively explained extrinsic (social) motivation and amotivation. In Study 2 (N = 146), we examined the role of supervisor perfectionism in supporting or hindering employees' career development by providing or draining resources. Our results show that supervisors high in SOP - and partly in OOP are reluctant to delegate highly responsible tasks; SPP even increased the likelihood of assigning illegitimate tasks to subordinates. Our findings suggest that both employee and supervisor perfectionism may boost or thwart employee career development and success. We discuss that supervisor perfectionism may limit employees' opportunities for experiential learning.

A Philosopher’s Fairy Tale: Dostoevskij and Kierkegaard on Imaginary Worlds

ABSTRACT The faculty of imagination plays an important but somewhat ambivalent role in the works of Fëdor Dostoevskij and Søren Kierkegaard. On the one hand, both Kierkegaard and Dostoevskij believe that it can facilitate the becoming of ethical and religious subjectivity, but they are also aware that an overly active imagination can lead to escapism which may in turn hinder ethical and religious self-development. This paper focuses specifically on the negative side of imagination, examining the stories of Frater Taciturnus from Kierkegaard’s Stages on Life’s Way and General Ivolgin from Dostoevskij’s The Idiot, both of whom construct highly elaborate personal imaginary worlds which, as this paper argues, serve as a means of escapism. The paper outlines the structure of these imaginary worlds and examines how they serve as a means of avoiding personal and moral responsibility.

Islands in the stream: a qualitative study on the accessibility of mental health care for persons with substance use disorders in Belgium.

Persons with substance use disorders (SUD) make up a considerable proportion of mental health care service users worldwide. Since 2010, Belgian mental health care has undergone a nationwide reform ('Title 107') aiming to realize a mental health care system that fosters more intensive collaboration, strengthens the cohesion and integration across and between different services, and is more responsive to the support needs of all service users. Although persons with SUD were named as a prioritized target group, how this reform impacted the lives and recovery journeys of persons with SUD remains understudied. This study aims to investigate how persons with SUD, regardless of whether they have co-occurring mental health issues, experience the accessibility of mental health care in light of the 'Title 107' reform. Data were collected by means of in-depth interviews with a heterogeneous sample of persons with SUD (n=52), recruited from five regional mental health networks in Belgium. In-depth interviews focused on experiences regarding (history of) substance use, accessibility of services and support needs, and were analyzed thematically. Five dynamic themes came to the fore: fragmentation of care and support, the importance of "really listening", balancing between treatment-driven and person-centered support, the ambivalent role of peers, and the impact of stigma. Despite the 'Title 107' reform, persons with SUD still experience mental health care services as 'islands in the stream', pointing to several pressing priorities for future policy and practice development: breaking the vicious cycles of waiting times, organizing relational case management, tackling stigma and centralizing lived experiences, and fostering recovery-promoting collaboration.

Exploiting the deep seabed for the benefit of humankind: A universal ideology for sustainable resource development or a false necessity?

AbstractA pivotal point in time has been reached in the ongoing negotiations under the auspices of the International Seabed Authority (ISA) towards the adoption of regulations for the commercial exploitation of mineral resources in the deep seabed beyond national jurisdiction. The ISA has a mandate to ensure that activities in the Area, legally designated as ‘common heritage of humankind’, are carried out for the benefit of humankind as a whole. Yet, there is a growing sense of unease with the potential imminence of the commercial exploitation phase, and concern that the implementation of all components of the common heritage principle, including its environmental and distributive ambitions, will be compromised in the interest of a handful of industry stakeholders. This article dives under the surface of these tensions by asking how the public interest in a global commons can become constructed in a way that conflates diverse and opposing interests in favour of value extraction by the private sector, revealing the ambivalent role of international law in the process. It uses the concept of ‘false necessity’ to question the apparent urgency and inevitability of commercial exploitation, more specifically to the extent it obscures and pre-empts more inclusive conceptions of ‘benefit’ for humankind. By shifting the focus from the much-debated risks of deep seabed mining to the notion of benefit, the article illuminates the inherent contradictions and distributional asymmetries obscured by the conflated yet purportedly universal conception of public interest in exploitation.

Networked feminism in a digital age—mobilizing vulnerability and reconfiguring feminist politics in digital activism

AbstractIn what ways can we understand the productive tensions and complexities of digital feminist activism? This paper explores the increase of networked feminism, which focuses attention on digital activism and its relation to transformative social change. It suggests that we need a better understanding of how digital feminist activism might be changing the shape of transnational feminist resistance and praxis, and how feminist politics are created and enacted in digitally mediated environments. These result in new forms of feminist consciousness built on affective and embodied engagements. The paper explores the complex and ambivalent role of affective politics and embodied ethics to explore conditions of vulnerability. Using illustrative, global cases to show the nuances across digital activism, the paper contributes to understanding the complexities and differential effects of online environments, the mediation of feminist politics through digital knowledge cultures and the possibilities, challenges, and productive tensions that lie in the ever‐increasing use of digital environments.

Photoinduced electron-hole recombination in zeolites: Marcus theory applied to DCB@MFI systems

The adsorption of DCB in MZSM-5 (M = H+, Na+) and silicalite-1 channel zeolites takes place without chemical or structural modification of the zeolite. Upon UV photoexcitation, a radical anion - hole pair is stabilized as demonstrated by time resolved diffuse reflectance UV–visible spectroscopy. The photogeneration of the radical anion DCB- is assigned to the dual (ambivalent) role of the zeolite framework as electron donor and hole stabilizator. The observation of such electron transfer only in the aluminated zeolite highlights the key role of the aluminum and of charge balancing cations. By studying the recombination of the radical anion – hole pairs at different temperature, the activation energy has been determined as a function of the nature of the charge-balancing cation. The values of the free enthalpy have been calculated using the Marcus theory from which the local redox potential of the zeolite has been estimated.

The spatial politics of platformization: Negotiating platform power in everyday taxi driving in Mumbai

A rich body of studies on platform urbanism investigating the (dis)embeddedness of digital platforms at the urban-digital interface has emerged in recent years. However, with growing attention to platformization in cities of the global south, and to practices of resistance against increasingly overarching platform power, the notion of urban space in the analysis of platform (dis)embeddedness needs to be better conceptualized. Beyond platform domination and subjugation, this contribution aims at offering a conceptual approach to understand and study empirically the politics of platformization in the context of heterogeneous southern cities. Building on Henri Lefebvre’s theory of the production of space and his differentiation between abstract and differential space, I draw on ethnographic fieldwork in Mumbai, India, to retrace the emergence of mobility platforms and their encounter with the long-established metered taxi services in the city. In doing so, I analyse the contentious negotiation between everyday practices and socialities of taxi driving, and historical and contemporary narratives and concepts that seek to govern transport and labor in Mumbai. As a result, attention is directed to the ambivalent role of state institutions in the case of Mumbai that try to come to terms with the logics of the platform economy and to take control of platformization processes in the city. Also, state institutions in their everyday, ground-level workings have provided a level of autonomy to metered taxis, and arguably provide a space for taxi drivers to maneuver the hardships of platform work. I conclude by highlighting the consequences of my observations for taxi driving in Mumbai, class relations in post-pandemic urban societies and the future of platform capitalism.

Agents of change, power, and resistance in the patterns of change of an industrial heritage district: the case of Bellavista, Chile (1970‒2019)

With the global wave of deindustrialization, post- industrial territories have seen local organizations supporting the preservation of industrial heritage. In several cases, these initiatives have met resistance from developers or state- led urban regeneration projects. Using the former textile neighbourhood of Bellavista- Tomé (Chile) as a case study, this paper analyses the combined effect of the site`s morphology and agency of social actors, on the process of changing land use. The methodology used the notion of morphological regions to analyse the neighbourhood’s urban morphology between 1970 and 2019, along with the discourse analysis of semi- structured interviews and secondary data to identify the agency of social actors. The conclusions indicate that, within the neoliberal urban development framework in Chile, the local government has played an ambivalent role regarding the preservation of the industrial fabric. This ambivalence has been greatly influenced by the intrinsic suitability of certain morphological regions for real estate development. The resulting problem threatens the preservation of industrial built legacy and the possibility of promoting urban development while maintaining the local social and cultural identity.

To what extent are sacred language practices ultralingual? The experience of British Muslim children learning Qur’anic Arabic

This article draws on qualitative data from a study of young Muslims learning Qur’anic Arabic in the UK to reveal how they engage in sacred language practices that I choose to call ‘ultralingual’. Such practices inevitably foreground linguistic form and performance over meaning, at least in the referential sense. Observable in many faith contexts, the ability to acquire a certain proficiency in an invariably ancient sacred language and then participate, actively and passively, in a range of ritual acts is demonstrated by millions of children globally. Usually attending supplementary forms of education, such children learn to access the code of their respective faiths (e.g., Qur’anic Arabic for Muslims and Biblical Hebrew for Jews) through, usually, a traditional learning approach based initially on systematic instruction in sound-letter correspondences which eventually develops into secure decoding proficiency. An important characteristic of this language practice is the ambivalent role of referential meaning. Often, performers, whether in recitation or in the words uttered in prayers, have partial or no access to the meaning of the words they utter. This article calls this ‘ultralingualism’, a language phenomenon that occurs also in non-religious contexts such as vocal music and multilingual literacy mediation, but which is particularly apparent in faith practices which centre on an ancient text and its language. The young Muslims in this article, however, do not take part in meaningless activities. Much sacred language practice (and some co-sanctified language practice) happens ultralingually, that is, form is emphasised over referential meaning. Evidence in this article argues that such ultralingual practices are accompanied nevertheless by layers of meaning often unrelated to referential or lexical meaning.

Coping with work-related stressors: does education reduce work-related stress?

AbstractAimWork is a central area of human life, and work-associated stress can affect health over a long period of time. From a health sociological perspective, it was assumed in this paper that education as a resource is able to support the management of stress(ors) and thus has a positive impact on health.Subject and methodsThis contribution deals with the research question of whether more highly educated people cope better with work-related stressors than those people who are less highly educated. Previous research has already proved the relationship between education and health but not the role that education plays in the coping process. Data from the National Educational Panel Study (NEPS): Starting Cohort 6 – Adults, was used and a cross-sectional analysis was performed. Linear regression models were estimated to analyse the effect of stressors at the workplace on work-related stress.ResultsThe results show that more well-educated people show a lower level of stress, net of stressors and additional controls. Regarding the moderating effect of education, highly qualified workers are better able to cope with a high level of routine in the workplace. However, more highly educated employees report higher stress levels related to the threat of job loss or lack of occupational advancement compared with less well-educated employees.ConclusionThe general goal of providing healthy work environments can be reached by helping people to recognize and cope with work-related stressors, and by motivating organizations to prevent their members from harmful stressors. Future research should address the ambivalent role of education in moderating the effect of work-related stressors on stress.

Overcoming the Imperialist Seduction: A Polylogue Reading of Mary towards a Theology of Peace

The current war waged by Russia against Ukraine once again sheds light on the ambivalent role of religion in violent conflicts, and especially the use of religious figures for imperialist political strategies. In this context, Mary is of particular interest, as she serves in Christian history (and presence) as the Queen of Peace, but could also take on characteristics of a warrior goddess. I suggest that investigating the complex use and abuse of Mary for imperialist strategies in the context of Christian–Muslim encounters can give some hints for overcoming the ever-present seduction of theopolitical imperialism, especially with regard to the current developments in parts of (Orthodox) Christian theology. Thus, I will first outline the premises of a political theology dedicated to peace that can only be worked out in a permanent polylogue of religions. Second, a historical overview shows the deep ambivalence of Mary as a theopolitical figure, particularly in the context of Christian–Muslim encounters. Thus, it is even more surprising that, thirdly, a close comparative reading of the Qur’anic Maryam can help to overcome the imperial theopolitical seduction. Finally, I will draw some conclusions about a theology of peace with particular regard to our conflictive times.

Digital geographies of mundane violence: Outline of an emerging research field and the example of (cyber-)bullying in young people’s lives

The objective of this article is to outline the emerging field of the “digital geographies of mundane violence”, which is characterised by a critical and reflective engagement with the spatialities and dynamic and non-linear temporalities of mediated violence unfolding in entangled online and offline spaces. Going beyond a conventional review of existing literature, we apply Barad’s (2007: 25) “diffractive methodology” to “read through” findings of studies on violence with non-essentialist concepts of entangled online and offline space and spatiality. Given the variety of technologies, forms of violence, and spaces in which violence unfolds, we develop our argument by focusing on a specific type of gender-based violence: (cyber-)bullying of young people identifying with “abundant identities” (Persson et al. 2020: 67) that neither conform to hegemonic heterosexuality and binary gender categories nor are confined to LGBTQI categories. We discuss the ambivalent role of digital technologies in the negotiation and diffraction of difference by young people facing exclusionary identity politics and violent processes of heteronormalisation and heterosexualisation. We present an illustrative research design from our own work, which combines retrospective insights into biographies, family and social relations and media use with a participant-led, mobile, partly in-situ exploration of everyday entangled mediated experiences, practices and negotiations of inclusion, exclusion and violence. Therewith we outline how the contextualities, dynamics, fluidities, non-linearities and variegated historicities behind mediated violence in entangled online and offline spaces can be empirically unpacked. We show how digital technologies are an intrinsic and entangled part of social, cultural, and political negotiations, discourses, and processes, and contribute significantly to the normalisation and everyday (re-)production of diverse forms of violence.

The productive accountant as (un-)wanted self: Realizing the ambivalent role of productivity measures in accountants’ identity work

How do accountants experience and respond to increasing productivity pressure and a corresponding measurement regime monitoring their work? Drawing on case research in an international technology company, our study problematizes that productivity measurement tends to build on the assumption that accountants perform primarily routinized and standardized tasks that are amenable to quantification. However, this assumption can contradict their business partner identity, which they perceive as entailing complex, varying, and strategically oriented tasks that are difficult to measure and evaluate in standardized units. We find that accountants’ realization of this ambiguity in productivity measurement can make them recognize the (potential) unwanted self that an unreflective subordination to those measures might give rise to. We further illustrate how, to protect their aspired identity against the entrenchment of such an unwanted self, accountants (subtly) resist productivity measures. We thus show how accountants resist the very technologies that otherwise form their tools of the trade and shape a crucial part of their occupational identity and status. Overall, by focusing on the ambivalent role of productivity measurement, this study contributes to our understanding of the organizational dynamics that make accountants’ business partner identity fragile. We demonstrate how productivity measures can produce a false sense of clarity and direction and an incomplete representation of an occupational identity, which also renders problematic the transparency and comparability that those measures produce.

Experimental Investigation of Naphthalene Induced Degradation of Reversible Solid Oxide Cells Operated on Bio-Syngas

To tackle the demand for renewable alternatives to natural gas and for renewable energy, the operation of reversible solid oxide cells (rSOC) with syngas from biomass gasification is a highly efficient option. The fuel gas, produced close to carbon neutrality by the gasifier can be either converted to electrical power via the fuel cell mode or energetically upgraded via the electrolysis mode for e.g. utilization in chemical synthesis processes. Due to the reversible operation, a system based on an rSOC perfectly fits in an energy system with a high share of fluctuating renewable energy. However, impurities in fuel gas result in a fast degradation of the cells performance. This requires a comprehensive syngas cleaning to enable a stable operation of the cell. For the design of such a system, a deeper knowledge about the degradation processes is required. Especially the influence of tars is part of an ongoing research due to their ambivalent role as fuel and poison.In this work, the model tar Naphthalene is used to experimentally investigate the influence of polycyclic aromatic components on the performance of 10 x 10 cm² fuel-electrode supported solid oxide cells operated at artificial bio-syngas under internal reforming conditions. Two different fuel electrodes based on yttrium-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) and gadolinium-doped ceria (GDC) are investigated. A parameter study of the operational temperature and the operation mode is conducted with the YSZ based fuel electrode to quantify the effect on the degradation. The influence of the set-up is investigated by an experiment without the cell. The cell temperature distribution, the pressure drop and the fuel off-gas composition is measured. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy is used to characterize the cell prior to the experiment and to monitor its performance during the poisoning and regeneration process. The measurements are interpreted via the distribution of relaxation times.The electrolysis mode is observed to be more vulnerable towards poisoning with the tar than the fuel cell mode. The poisoning effects, whether it is a performance degradation or carbon deposition, are not only dependent on the tar but also on the operational conditions. The GDC fuel-electrode did not show the expected high robustness. The investigated cells are prototypes of an ongoing development process; hence a more detailed investigation is required when the development is finished.

Incumbents’ in/ability to drive endogenous sustainability transitions in livestock farming: Lessons from Rotenburg (Germany)

Livestock farmers, as incumbents, face pressures to transition toward sustainability. We study these actors’ role in this process, particularly their in/ability to contribute to endogenous institutional change. Our study entails an interview-based single case study with farmers based on institutional theory. We find “partaking” to be the likely form of endogenous change, as incumbents predominantly rely on routine and sensemaking agency. They externalize the locale of change to other actors whom they expect to change framework conditions. However, we find contrasting examples that may drive institutional change in livestock farming. We also discuss incumbents’ ambivalent role and embedded agency in these change processes. “Strategic agency” and the ability to imagine alternatives are important aspects for perceiving agency in transitions. Hence, we recommend that regional policy-makers and change agents work with farmers to create alternative imaginations for livestock farming with the restructive and affective power to disrupt existing practices and structures.

How to Get Rid of Informal Networks at Work? HR Leadership and the Ambivalent Role of Wasta

How to Get Rid of Informal Networks at Work? HR Leadership and the Ambivalent Role of Wasta

Zinc-Doped Bioactive Glass/Polycaprolactone Hybrid Scaffolds Manufactured by Direct and Indirect 3D Printing Methods for Bone Regeneration.

A novel organic-inorganic hybrid, based on SiO2-CaO-ZnO bioactive glass (BG) and polycaprolactone (PCL), associating the highly bioactive and versatile bioactive glass with clinically established PCL was examined. The BG-PCL hybrid is obtained by acid-catalyzed silica sol-gel process inside PCL solution either by direct or indirect printing. Apatite-formation tests in simulated body fluid (SBF) confirm the ion release along with the hybrid's bone-like apatite forming. Kinetics differ significantly between directly and indirectly printed scaffolds, the former requiring longer periods to degrade, while the latter demonstrates faster calcium phosphate (CaP) formation. Remarkably, Zn diffusion and accumulation are observed at the surface within the newly formed active CaP layer. Zn release is found to be dependent on printing method and immersion medium. Investigation of BG at the atomic scale reveals the ambivalent role of Zn, capable of acting both as a network modifier and as a network former linking the BG silicate network. In addition, hMSCs viability assay proves no cytotoxicity of the Zn hybrid. LIVE/DEAD staining demonstrated excellent cell viability and proliferation for over seven weeks. Overall, this hybrid material either non-doped or doped with a metal trace element is a promising candidate to be translated to clinical applications for bone regeneration.

Who is sensitising whom? A participatory interview guide development as an awareness tool within a health care research project

Who is sensitising whom? A participatory interview guide development as an awareness tool within a health care research project

Compelled TikTok creators? The ambivalent affordances of the short video app for Filipino musicians

This study is concerned with the incorporation of TikTok by Filipino musicians in their performances, promotion strategies, and other career-related endeavors. As the music artists are compelled, whether consciously or otherwise, to adhere to the logics of the platform, we critically evaluate its implications on their experiences as creative workers. As revealed, the use of TikTok by Filipino musicians fosters the construction of a new cultural logic and format that enhances music content and narratives as they engage in novel creative pursuits as well as participate in nascent forms of audience relations. Yet the prevalence of TikTok use within the music industry also engenders a new range of obligations that reinforce existing pressures on musicians. This study sheds light on the ambivalent role of TikTok as a platform that could potentially liberate and amplify independent and creative cultural production while also generating new sources of tension for creative workers.