Collective Action Research Articles

Validation of the Hogg Climate Anxiety Scale

As one of the biggest environmental and equality challenges of our time, climate change is causing some people to experience climate anxiety. To address the need for valid and reliable measurement of this construct, we adapted the Hogg Eco-Anxiety Scale to measure climate anxiety in the United Kingdom (n = 501) and United States (n = 508). In both samples, we found the Hogg Climate Anxiety Scale (HCAS) was comprised of four dimensions: affective symptoms, behavioural symptoms, ruminative thoughts, and anxiety about one’s personal impact. The four-factor HCAS fit the data well, showed measurement invariance in these two samples, and all dimensions were internally consistent. Importantly, we also provide evidence for convergent validity by demonstrating that HCAS scores were positively correlated with an alternative measure of eco-anxiety and a more general indicator of worry in one’s daily life. The dimensions of the HCAS also showed distinct associations with theoretically related constructs, for example only personal impact anxiety and rumination were significant predictors of taking collective action on climate change, and personal impact anxiety was distinctly predictive of climate inequality beliefs. We recommend the HCAS as a brief (13 item) measurement tool to capture experiences of climate anxiety.

Compound players and emotional arenas: The self-identification of the Movement for Peace with Justice and Dignity in Mexico

After the Mexican ex-president Felipe Calderón declared a ‘war’ against criminal organisations, the number of murders and people reported as disappeared increased steadily in the country. However, the authorities constantly ensured that these crimes occurred exclusively among criminals. This narrative was fractured when, after the murder of his son in 2011, the poet Javier Sicilia started leading the protests of activists, relatives of victims and social organisations from virtually all of Mexico. After some mobilisations, they adopted the name Movement for Peace with Justice and Dignity (MPJD). Following a ‘players and arenas’ understanding of social movements, I analyse the formation of the MPJD as a self-identified compound player. First, I explore the structural and agency elements in the participants’ backgrounds. Then, I discuss how the emotional content of the interactions in public demonstrations influenced their relationships developing a sense of community that fostered their identification as part of the MPJD. Overall, this study advances a micro-level perspective to understand the dynamics of collective action.

Evaluation of Social Capital Attributes as Predictors of Collective Actions among Smallholder Farmers in Tinderet Sub-County, Kenya

Small farms make up 85% of farms worldwide. Similarly, in Kenya, the agriculture sector is dominated by smallholder farmers. To overcome constraints imposed by small units and for sustainable development, smallholders often organise themselves into groups or farmer-producer organisations (FPOs) to access services. They exploit elements of social capital; social networks, norms and trust to enhance cooperation for collective actions. It is often assumed that social capital attributes among farmers’ groups are exploited for positive collective actions such as access to credits and the sale of aggregated produce. Social capital attributes, however, differ from one farmer organisation to another. This study evaluated levels of social capital attributes among farmers from value-chain-linked groups. The predictive value of the social capital indicators on the desired outcome of collective actions was investigated. Based on a retrospective study design, interviews were conducted on 72 farmers drawn from 9 FPOs with 215 members. Attitude scales ranked 1 to 5 were used to gather the opinions of participants on the attributes. Participants were sampled by purposive and multi-stage sampling schemes. Single-sample Wilcoxon test was used to analyse strength of each attribute among participants. Median value for indicators of social trust, social participation, norms, common vision and social networks were significantly higher than ‘neutral,’ P< .05. Collective actions in inputs-acquisition and produce-selling did not differ significantly from ‘neutral’ (P > .05). The mean for social capital attributes had strong predictive ability on collective actions as tested by Spearman’s Rank analysis using SPSS; R2 = .382, P = .000. The collective actions in learning, inputs-purchase, produce-selling, price negotiations and market-information seeking could be predicted from the social capital attributes evaluated. It is recommended that stakeholders build capacity of FPOs, particularly for collective actions in inputs-acquisition and marketing of produce for sustainable development

The Body of “the Body of Christ”: An Introduction to Hyperscanning Research and a Discussion of Its Possible Implications for Understanding Social Experiences During Religious Gatherings

Neuroscience has become a well-accepted methodological modality in the study of religion, especially of religious behavior, personal prayer, meditation, mysticism, spiritual experience, and personal religious experiences. However, such studies have been performed on individuals only; none have helped scholars understand the neuro-physiological correlates of religious communities, religious interactions, collective liturgical action, or the like. This article introduces the new field of social neuroscience, showing how its primary tool, hyperscanning, is revealing surprising levels of “brain-to-brain synchrony.” Though there are no hyperscanning studies of religious communities yet, the authors suggest that findings about shared attention, interpersonal coordination, and feelings of closeness all have clear parallels in and implications for religious communities. The authors then suggest both directions and cautions for future research.

Communicating Expectations: Informing Strategic Communications by Conservation Level Segmentation and Impression Management Preferences

In the United States, collaboration between landowners and endangered species conservation (ESC) organizations is required to accomplish conservation goals. However, collective action for ESC is stymied by governance legitimacy deficits. Strategic communication is a tool used to accomplish organizational goals that can restore legitimacy through communications that re-align governance institutions with societal notions of appropriateness. Strategic communication, though, has yet to be investigated in the context of landowners and ESC. To illustrate how strategic communication can increase ESC collaboration, we surveyed 956 owners in Houston toad range in Texas to elicit their preferences for stewardship and communication constructs. Findings revealed distinct segments of landowners based on their stewardship preferences that preferred different types of communications. If ESC agencies are to enhance legitimacy amongst an increasingly heterogeneous landowner audience, they will want to adopt landowner-centric governance and communication strategies that account for differences in landowner conservation values, ESC experiences, and organizational expectations.

Unequal by malice, protesters by outrage: Agent perceptions drive moralization of, and collective action against, inequality.

Economic inequality does not encounter strong protests even though individuals are generally against it. One potential explanation of this paradox is that individuals do not perceive inequality as caused by intentional agents, which, in line with the Theory of Dyadic Morality (Schein & Gray, 2018), should prevent its assessment as immoral and consequently dampen moral outrage and collective action. Across three studies, we test and confirm this hypothesis. In Studies 1 (N = 395) and 2 (N = 337), the more participants believed that inequality is human driven and caused by intentional agents, the more they moralized inequality, felt outraged and wanted to engage in collective action. This was confirmed in Study 3 (N = 243) through an experimental design. Thus, our research shows that agent perception is crucial in the moralization of economic inequality and, more broadly, that morality can be a powerful motivator and effectively mobilize people to action.

The eclipse of solidarity: Precarious work, agency and collective action

Precarious work is a growing and alarming phenomenon. This paper analyses two of its distinctive normative features. First, precarity increases the risks workers face, blurring their capacity for prospection and lessening their security in accessing the opportunities associated with their jobs. Second, precarious work challenges workers’ collective action capacity. I will argue that both features threaten workers’ republican freedom. I develop the second point by presenting a conception of solidarity between workers and then showing how precarious work erodes it. On the one hand, when the labour market is dualised, precarity is distributed unevenly and the risks undergone by groups of workers are different. Thus, dual labour markets create a potential conflict of interest between the preferences of different groups, insiders and outsiders. On the other hand, various economic changes hinder workers from acting based on shared purposes due to increased coordination costs. To the extent that workers’ power depends on their bonds and collective action, primarily through unions, the eclipse of their solidarity leaves them powerless and thus increases their domination. Finally, I consider various scenarios that could boost workers’ collective power.

Speaking truth to funders: Alternative accountabilities in the voluntary and community sector during the COVID‐19 pandemic

AbstractThis paper studies grassroots organizations that provide various forms of support to vulnerable local communities in the United Kingdom in a context of increasing austerity, public sector drawbacks, a lack of funding and extensive monitoring, and evaluative requirements. We focus on the COVID‐19 pandemic, which challenged traditional funding relationships. We analyze lived experiences of trust, emotion, and suffering to understand the politics of accountability across the diverse economy. We draw on Gibson‐Graham's post‐capitalist framework, which insists on the politics of language, the subject, and collective action. In the setting we study, the language of crisis reshaped funding, vulnerable subjectivities emerged to support vulnerable communities, and fragmenting accountabilities were met with attempts to promote collective action and solidarity. We, therefore, contribute to literature in critical accounting and literature focused on the voluntary and community sector by studying a landscape of diverse accountability practices to explore the possibilities that they offer in terms of accounting for non‐capitalist organizing.

Beyond the board: a thematic analysis of political actions from 4chan’s /pol/ board

This article aims to understand the organisational practices of digital political actions on 4chan’s /pol/ (Politically Incorrect) board, as well as the underlying worldview within which those actions were nested. By using a qualitative thematic analysis of 21 threads, several themes were identified regarding preferred goals, methods, content, dissemination strategies, and worldview of intentional, orchestrated political actions with supposed real-world effects. Results show that the observed political actions were bottom-up, non-hierarchical, and collective actions, through which collective identity was established despite the almost complete anonymity of the /pol/ board. Additionally, the political actions were marked by the negative perception of Western liberal democracy, extremely negative attitudes toward the Left, minorities, and progressive liberals, antisemitism, and racism - values closely related to the far-right. Although the goals of /pol/ political actions differ, the dominant broader goal is to “redpill the normies” - indoctrinate the general population into denouncing liberal democratic ideology and accepting the far-right worldview.

Exploring Game Features and Reframing: the Construction of a Relationship Model

Background Social learning generates reframing when individual and collective values are reflected. This reframing enables community members to move from personal to collective views and actions, resulting in valuable outcomes that improve the community's functioning. This research aims to enhance the development of reframing with the help of role-playing games (RPG), given that digital games are considered particular communities. Method A relationship model was constructed to identify which game features generate reframing and how much they promote reframing. The model’s validity was tested using experts’ feedback and a game experience test (GET). The factor analysis results interpret that the features tested impact reframing. Results The study proposes that RPGs can promote reframing and identifies reframing associated with particular game features (such as game stories). Conclusion Students, game designers, related teachers and researchers can benefit from using the model to encourage reflection using games or require a model to bridge game features with social learning.

A Collective Action Formation to Address Mental, Emotional, and Behavioral Health in Schools: The District 87 Wellness Collaborative

The District 87 Wellness Collaborative is a multi-dimensional, interprofessional initiative in the Midwest region of the United States that was co-designed to facilitate collaboration, civic engagement, and partnerships among university scholar-practitioners, community agencies, and school administrators and personnel. The primary aims of the Wellness Collaborative are to develop, enhance, and extend school initiatives that address mental, emotional, and behavioral health outcomes of school-age children, their families, and the education workforce. The Wellness Collaborative is composed of disciplinary expertise in kinesiology, school counseling and psychology, social work, nursing, geography, and community health. Broader campus and community partners include specialists from civic and community engagement offices, extension services, and healthcare providers. This ecologically framed initiative supports strategic and system-level change within the district (system) and individual schools (sub-systems). It addresses complex school-level organizational factors (i.e., environment, norms, organizational culture, incentives, etc.) that influence wellness behaviors that affect school and physical education workforce professionals.

Mobilizing stakeholders for implant removals in Burkina Faso using landscape assessment data

BackgroundSuccessful efforts to encourage uptake of subdermal contraceptive implants, with a lifespan of three to five years, necessitate planning to ensure that quality removal services are available when desired. In Burkina Faso, implant use has tripled over the past 8 years and now comprises almost half of the contraceptive method mix. Population Monitoring for Action (PMA) surveys identified barriers to obtaining quality removal when desired, particularly when the implant is not palpable, or providers lack needed skills or supplies. The Expanding Family Planning Choices (EFPC) project supported ministries of health in four countries with evaluation and strengthening of implant removal services.MethodsAn implant removal landscape assessment was conducted at 24 health facilities in three regions of Burkina Faso with high implant use that included provider observations of implant removal, interviews with providers and health facility managers, and facility readiness surveys. The project used landscape data to mobilize stakeholders through a series of participatory workshops to develop a collaborative roadmap and commit to actions supporting quality implant removals.ResultsLandscape findings revealed key gaps in provision of quality removal services, including high levels of provider confidence for implant insertion and removal (82% and 71%, respectively), low competence performing simple and difficult removals (19.2% and 11.1%, respectively), inadequate supplies and equipment (no facilities had all necessary materials for removal), lack of difficult removal management systems, and a lack of standard data collection tools for removal. Exposure to the data convinced stakeholders to focus on removals rather than expanding insertion services. While not all roadmap commitments were achieved, the process led to critical investments in quality implant removals.ConclusionLandscape data revealed that facilities lack needed supplies and equipment, and providers lack skills needed to perform quality implant removals, limiting client reproductive choice. Disseminating this data enabled stakeholders to identify and commit to evidence-based priority actions. Stakeholders have since capitalized on program learnings and the roadmap, including following MOH guidance for implant removal supplies and health provider training. Our experience in Burkina Faso offers a replicable model of how data can direct collective action to improve quality of contraceptive implant removals.

Sustainable transformation of global ocean governance: Can a global public goods approach lead the way?

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (2030 Agenda), by setting integrated ocean goals (IOGs), is expected to strengthen the means of implementation of the legal regime of the 1982 Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). This could lead to a sustainable transformation of global ocean governance in the Anthropocene to address systemic risks to the global oceans. Based on the realization of blue justice, the sustainable transformation of global ocean governance encompasses three holistic and interconnected dimensions: blue security, blue economy, and blue protection. It is a complex and adaptive global collective action that involves various actors and methodologies. This study introduces the concept of global public goods (GPGs) to the debate on sustainable transformation of global ocean governance, emphasizing that the process and outcome of governance transformation benefit mankind as a whole. Using cost-benefit analysis, aggregator techniques, and a heterogeneity game model to analyze the undersupply of GPGs, this study then argues that a framework for the provision of GPGs can provide adaptive institutional arrangements for coordinating the "collective action dilemma" involved in the sustainable transformation of global ocean governance. Collective action should be strengthened to promote the achievement of the SDGs: ⅰ) the establishment of international ocean regime complexity to facilitate coordination; ⅱ) the broad implementation of transboundary marine spatial planning as a tool for the coordination of interests; and ⅲ）the promotion of equitable capacity-building, including co-production of ocean knowledge, sharing information on marine data, and diversified financial support mechanisms to reduce heterogeneity.

Climate Resilience, Vulnerability, Differential Impacts and Adaptive Capacity in Nigeria

This research investigates and promotes climate resilience in Nigeria’s vulnerable communities, which are disproportionately affected by climate change. How climate change worsens existing problems such as food insecurity, poverty, and conflict in Nigeria serve as the rationale to this study. Hence, defining climate resilience, reviewing relevant literature, and conducting a case study to generate evidence-based recommendations give insight into the objectives of this study. Therefore, reviewed literature shows the diverse impacts of climate change on disadvantaged groups, such as small-scale farmers and urban coastal dwellers. Vulnerability assessments highlight the need for adaptive capacity, integrating local knowledge in solutions. Case studies illustrate vulnerabilities in poor urban coastal areas, rural regions, and the Niger Delta. Differential impacts are examined, such as the gendered effects of climate change on women and the challenges faced by indigenous communities and urban slums. Adaptive capacity is discussed, stressing social capital, collective action, and the interrelation of adaptation, adaptive capacity, and vulnerability. Adaptive capacity assessment in Nigeria indicates difficulties in rural farming households and urban coastal communities, requiring enhanced capacities. Indigenous knowledge plays a vital role in adaptive measures, fostering resilience. Resilience enhancement strategies emphasize social justice, inclusive governance, and community-based adaptation, acknowledging the significance of local empowerment and participation. Technology and innovation provide possibilities but need context-specific methods. These strategies can help build climate resilience in Nigeria’s vulnerable communities, offering a basis for policymakers, practitioners, and stakeholders to tackle the complex challenges of climate change.

“Being a Girl Has Become a Public Health Problem!”: Feminist Organizations Both Resisting and Reproducing Postfeminist Mental Health Discourses

ABSTRACT An apparent decline in youth mental health in the Nordic countries has received a lot of attention over the last decade, and young women have been described as a particularly vulnerable group. To combat the problem, political debate has centred on solutions at the individual level, despite significant evidence of the associations between structural factors and adverse mental health. In this article, I explore how two feminist support organizations working for young women in Sweden (tjejjourer) frame and address girls’ mental health as a problem of feminist concern. Interviews with staff, organizational documents, websites, social media, and other communications were analysed following Snow and Benford’s theory on collective action frames, to identify the organizations’ problem diagnoses, solutions, and motivational frames for action. The results show that the organizations both reiterate and resist a postfeminist discourse on mental health. There is notable friction between structural problem diagnoses, based on intersectional analyses of power, and political demands and support oriented towards the individual. In conclusion, I argue that this friction may be a result of the organizations’ adoption of discourses on risk, vulnerability, and mental health itself, but also that the complex relationship between structural critique and individual care is indispensable for feminist organizing.

Curators of digital futures: The life cycle of pioneer communities

Research typically considers corporate actors such as large tech companies or government agencies as drivers of deep mediatization, the increasing saturation of society by digital media and their infrastructures. This article aims to focus on another group of collective actors: pioneer communities, exemplified by the Maker, Hacks/Hackers, and Quantified Self movements. They are characterized by their experimental practices and their visions of media-related, digital futures. On the basis of published research, the article discusses their life cycle, starting with their formation, when they emerged from the context of social movements and technology-related communities, through their peak phase, during which they receive media attention, to their dispersion phase, a stage in their development characterized by their “becoming everyday” as their experimentation is absorbed into everyday practices. It is argued that the role pioneer communities play in processes of deep mediatization rests in their ability to curate experimentation and visions of digital futures.

Trust is key: Determinants of false beliefs about climate change in eight countries

Science has established the human-caused nature of climate change, yet the prevalence of climate-related misinformation persists, undermining public understanding and impeding collective action. Strikingly, existing research on belief in misinformation about climate change has disproportionately focused on WEIRD (Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, and Democratic) countries. To move beyond this, our online survey (N = 8541) includes high-income countries in North America (US), Western Europe (France, Germany, UK) and East Asia (Japan), as well as an upper-middle income country in South America (Brazil) and lower-middle income countries in South Asia (India and Pakistan). By examining the interplay of news media usage, information sources, and trust in these sources, we advance our understanding of how these factors influence belief in climate change-related misinformation in diverse socio-cultural contexts. Across countries, we found that the strongest determinants of belief in misinformation about climate change were identifying as right-wing (compared with left-wing), consuming less offline news, having less trust in scientists, environmental activists, as well as international organizations, and having more trust in politicians, celebrities, and energy companies. Overall, trust in sources of information about climate change and demographic variables were much stronger predictors of belief in misinformation about climate change than reported news consumption (online, offline or on social media). These findings suggest that trust is key to understanding belief in false information about climate change.

"Fuck tha Police": "Conscious" hip-hop increases Black people's group-based anger and collective action intentions.

Historically, hip-hop has highlighted racial injustices experienced by Black people in a White supremacist power structure, as well as promote Black empowerment and activism. Across two experiments, we examined the influence of listening to hip-hop on Black Americans' collective action intentions. We also explored whether the effect of listening to conscious hip-hop on collective action intentions was mediated by group-based anger and/or collective efficacy using the dual-pathway model of collection action (Experiment 2). In Experiment 1, Black Americans (n = 122) between the ages of 18- and 34 (Mage = 27.71) were randomly assigned to listen to conscious rap, nonconscious rap, or no music, and afterward they completed a collective action intention measure. In Experiment 2, Black Americans (n = 150; Mage = 26.52) were randomly assigned to listen to conscious rap or nonconscious rap and afterward completed group-based anger, collective efficacy, and collective action intention measures. We found that listening to conscious hip-hop (but not nonconscious hip-hop) increased Black people's intentions to engage in collective action (Experiment 1). In Experiment 2, we found that group-based anger, but not collective efficacy, fully mediated the relationship between listening to conscious hip-hop music and collective action. Exposure to some forms of artistic expression may influence emotion focused pathways of dealing with collective disadvantage among groups who are historically disadvantaged. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Symbiosis between Private Sector and Politics amidst COVID-19 Pandemic

In this study, symbiosis is denoted as the cooperation that manifested between parties in an event or setting. Thus, through collective private and government actions that transcends borders, the next phase of combating Covid-19 requires a change of mind on the supposed role of the local government and the private sector. Hence, the study assessed the symbiosis between the local barangay unit and the private sectors that occurred in the respondent-towns in the City of Meycauayan, Bulacan during ECQ. Given the combined efforts from the local barangay units and the different individuals and private enterprises to help the residents, it was determined that there was indeed a positive effect on the community. Residents were aware of the contributions of the private individuals and enterprises which help them to go through the hardships of unemployment, being able to eat and survive the ordeal of the ECQ and Covid-19. In essence, the residents of the respondent-towns benefited form the symbiosis between the private and public sector amidst COVID-19 pandemic.

Carbon Emissions in Cloud Computing: Challenges and Opportunities for Sustainability

In the land of the unreal cloud computing, where bits go on unseen routes, the grim truth manifests itself to the abundant marvels in among the virtuals; carbon emissions. The following concerns the novel problem of greenhouse gas collection within cloud computing - it finds the most hidden source of pollution and building blocks behind this digital paradox. From the humming data centers, crammed with complex meshes of hardware and processes drawing massive amounts of energy, and the kaleidoscope of sources power these huge fiends, an actual stage is created to allow emissions to appear on it in silence. And in the midst of this complexity, even if we do not see very clearly where we are heading towards solutions, there is some light, making us capable for what comes. Source is the right word. The alchemist of innovation, from the energy saving squeezing to the resource sharing singing, all found the soil. Transparency thus turns out to be a steering light amid the obscurity and leads stakeholders towards the trajectories of greener spheres as carbon accounting frameworks show the way. Coordination pivots to the focal point linking stakeholders in the sector as well as the policy and advocacy networks. This weft and waft forms a device that corresponds to the structure of collective action. Hence, beneath the infinitude of the cloud, the two play a dance together where the advanced technology and environmental preservation work together to pave the way of a future that celebrates resilience and sustainability.