Contribution Of Social Context Research Articles

The Contribution of Social Context to Participatory Planning Processes Within a Japanese Community

The concerns of diverse members in the community should be considered in the process of generating various alternatives. This requires a participatory process; a typical example being a small group discussion format such as a workshop. In small group discussions, understandability of participants’ opinions can be affected by the wording of their opinions. Our hypothesis in this study is, “The higher the similarity of wording between an expressed opinion and its wording in the media, the higher the likelihood of opinion adoption”. The hypothesis is examined and tested. In this study, we use the term “social acceptability” to denote the similarity of the wording of participants’ opinions with that used in media articles. To test this hypothesis, we proposed a methodology for evaluating the wording of a WS discussion and applied the methodology to the dialog data of two types discussions held in Ube, a Japanese city located in Yamaguchi Prefecture. Our analysis showed a positive correlation between social acceptability and adoption rate. To improve social acceptability, we suggest that a facilitator should frame the wording used by participants.

Parenting, Community, and Religious Predictors of Positive and Negative Developmental Outcomes Among Muslim Adolescents

Despite existing research on the contribution of social context and religiosity to adolescent behavioral outcomes, few studies have attempted to explore this topic among Muslim adolescents in non-Western settings, looking at both positive and negative outcomes. In response to this gap, the current study explored the effects of three dimensions of developmental assets (positive parenting, community support, and religiosity) on risk, prosocial, and thriving behaviors among Muslim adolescents ( N = 895) from Malaysia. Hierarchical regression results revealed positive parenting as the greatest protective factor against risk behavior, religiosity as the most significant promotive factor of prosocial behaviors, and community support as the greatest contributor to adolescent thriving. In the final model, unique effects varied by outcome. The findings support the importance and universality of multiple levels of developmental assets for youth development, and highlight the need to better understand their interaction in non-Western cultural contexts.

Measuring Diversity in Daily Social Contact: The Contribution of Social Context, Work and Leisure on the Opportunity for Engagement

Role diversity is an important feature of individuals’ social networks that is reflected in the amount of time spent in the company of different role relationships. Time-use data is used to derive an index of dispersion measuring the diversity of one’s social contact among different role relationships. Patterns of social engagement are specialized when large investments of time are allocated to a small number of role relationships, while patterns are diverse when relatively equal amounts of time are spent among all possible role relationships. Tobit estimation of models indicates significant social context, time-use, and attitudinal effects on the diversity of role relationships. Findings indicate that role diversity is a complex phenomenon shaped by one’s existing social context, individual preferences, and present constraints on the use of time.

Neighborhood and Family Contexts of Adolescent Sexual Activity

Although numerous studies have examined the sociodemographic and psychosocial factors associated with first sex there is little research on the contribution of social context. The impact of neighborhood and family structure on adolescents risk of first sex was investigated in a community-based sample of 879 ethnically diverse youth 12-17 years of age (mean age 14.5 years) from Los Angeles California. 48.7% of respondents were Hispanic; 57.9% lived with both biological parents. Commonly reported neighborhood hazards included gangs (59.8%) and drug use or dealing (43.4%). Males who lived in underclass Black or working class Hispanic neighborhoods had significantly higher rates of first sex than those from middle or upper-middle class White neighborhoods. Those reporting more ambient hazards in their neighborhoods had the highest levels of first sex suggesting that neighborhood structural effects are mediated by adolescents perceptions of the level of threat and social disintegration. Males and females living in single-parent or step-parent families had significantly higher rates of first sex than their counterparts living with both biological parents. Parental socio-emotional support and control captured distinct dimensions of the family contexts and were particularly important dimensions for males risk of first sex. These findings suggest that adolescents experience of their neighborhoods and their family situations are key determinants of their propensity to become sexually active. Both families and neighborhoods provide a milieu of opportunities and norms that shape social behavior.