Dominant Culture Research Articles

Charles Darwin, Percy Grainger, and John Blacking: Reflections on the Historical Emergence of Music as a Human Universal

Music from every culture throughout history is now available at the click of a mouse. Prior to the development of recording, the unfamiliar largely separated musical cultures. This paper sets out a narrative to illustrate the framework through which a universalist approach to music emerged over the period 1871–1970, derived from placing in relation to one another accounts of the influence of three historical figures. The first is Darwin, whose theories of evolution embraced speculation on the origin and purpose of music, and who himself wrote about the effect on him of encountering unfamiliar musical styles in the Southern Hemisphere. The second is Grainger, influenced by Darwin’s work and persuasively concerned to open musical contact between all cultures. The third is Blacking, a pioneer in ethnomusicology and commentator on Grainger’s ideas. Tracing the links between these authors inevitably represents an English-language historical perspective on the issues of colonization, cultural appropriation, and the educational influence of a dominant culture. In offering such a historical account of fluctuating experience of ‘the other’ in music, the aim is to illustrate these authors’ contribution towards convergence on an open, informed position consistent with viewing musical exchange from a universalist perspective.

Discursos de inclusión, diferencia y normalización: El concepto de inclusión en la construcción de las personas con discapacidad

This paper is part of the debate on educational inclusion in Ecuador. Under the theoretical and methodological perspective of critical pedagogy, a critical analysis of the discourse is made, which shows how the imaginary of people with disabilities develops new forms and technologies of exclusion from the definition of the concept of educational inclusion present in the ministerial agreement No. 0295-13. Finally, it is concluded that the concept of educational inclusion shows contradictions that result in the development of new forms of classification based on the imposition of a dominant culture seen from the perspective of non-disability.

The experiences of culturally and linguistically diverse health practitioners in dominant culture practice: a scoping review.

Increasing the proportion of culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) health practitioners is identified as one strategy to address healthcare disparities that individuals from minority or under-represented backgrounds experience. However, professional and institutional cultures and structures are known to contribute to the challenges for CALD practitioners who work in dominant culture practice contexts. This scoping review used the theory of Legitimate Peripheral Participation to describe and interpret literature about the experiences of CALD health practitioners in view of informing strategies to increase their representation. A systematised search was conducted across four allied health, medicine and nursing databases. Following abstract and full text screening, articles which fit the inclusion criteria (n = 124) proceeded to data extraction. Categories relating to the experiences of practitioners were extracted, and three themes were identified that were subsequently theoretically interpreted: Discrimination, Consequences and Hierarchy. Discrimination functioned as a barrier to CALD practitioners being legitimised and able to participate equally in healthcare practice, retaining their position at the periphery of the practice community; Consequences reinforced this peripheral position and further impeded legitimation and participation; and Hierarchy was maintained through structures that reinforced and reproduced these barriers. The findings summarise how these barriers are reinforced through the intersections of professional and racial hierarchies, and highlight a need for strategies to address discrimination and structures that marginalise CALD practitioners' identity, practices and participation in their health professional communities.

The Impact of Globalization on Cultural Identity

Purpose: The general objective of the study was to investigate the impact of globalization on cultural identity. Methodology: The study adopted a desktop research methodology. Desk research refers to secondary data or that which can be collected without fieldwork. Desk research is basically involved in collecting data from existing resources hence it is often considered a low cost technique as compared to field research, as the main cost is involved in executive’s time, telephone charges and directories. Thus, the study relied on already published studies, reports and statistics. This secondary data was easily accessed through the online journals and library. Findings: The findings reveal that there exists a contextual and methodological gap relating to the impact of globalization on cultural identity. Preliminary empirical review revealed that globalization had a profound impact on cultural identity, reshaping perceptions and facilitating cultural exchange, which enriched local cultures but also challenged traditional norms. This led to the emergence of hybrid cultural forms, blending local and global elements, while also posing threats of cultural homogenization and the erosion of unique identities due to the dominance of global media and consumer culture. Efforts to preserve local traditions and promote cultural resilience were deemed crucial, including the adoption of supportive cultural policies and educational programs that emphasized cultural diversity and heritage. Unique Contribution to Theory, Practice and Policy: The Cultural Hybridization Theory, Cultural Homogenization Theory and World-System Theory may be used to anchor future studies on globalization and cultural identity. The study on the impact of globalization on cultural identity recommended advancing theoretical frameworks to better understand cultural interactions, implementing cultural education and awareness programs, and developing policies to protect and promote cultural diversity. It highlighted the need for legal protections for cultural rights, community engagement in cultural initiatives, and continuous research and monitoring of globalization’s effects on cultural identity. These recommendations aimed to enhance cultural preservation, support cultural expression, and ensure the resilience and sustainability of diverse cultural identities in a globalized world.

Unveiling the Heartbeat of Healing: Exploring Organizational Culture in a Tertiary Hospital's Emergency Medicine Department and Its Influence on Employee Behavior and Well-Being.

This study examined the organizational culture of an emergency medicine department (EMD) in a tertiary hospital in Karnataka, India, using a prospective cross-sectional design from January to February 2024. It aimed to identify the predominant and supporting organizational cultures within the EMD and their influence on employee behavior and well-being, including job satisfaction, burnout, stress levels, and coping strategies. A total of 82 participants, including physicians, emergency medical technicians, and nurses, completed the Organizational Culture Assessment Instrument (OCAI) and a self-designed questionnaire. Ethical clearance was obtained (IEC2-656). Clan culture emerged as the dominant culture (73.17%), emphasizing collaboration and adaptability, correlated with lower stress levels and high job satisfaction (90.78%). Emotional exhaustion was the most common burnout symptom (53.66%). The coping strategies varied, with employees in Clan cultures seeking social support, while those in Hierarchy cultures sought guidance from superiors. This study highlighted the significant role of organization culture in employee well-being and EMD effectiveness, influenced by social values like respect for authority. The limitations included single-setting analysis, an uneven subgroup representation, and a lack of qualitative insights. Future research should involve multiple hospitals and qualitative methods for a comprehensive understanding.

Examining Organizational Culture with OCAI

Abstract This research aims to analyse organizational culture mapping at the Faculty of Economics, University of Borneo, Tarakan. It employs a descriptive quantitative approach and utilizes the Stratified Random Sampling method for sampling. The research sample consists of 93 respondents from the Faculty of Economics, including students, alumni, lecturers, and staff. The analytical method employed is the Organizational Culture Assessment Instrument (OCAI), with the assistance of Microsoft Excel 2010. The research findings reveal that the current dominant organizational culture profile is the Clan culture, emphasizing HR development, loyalty, and the organization's familial function. Additionally, the Hierarchy culture, characterized by a structured work environment and stringent controls, also holds prominence. Conversely, the anticipated organizational culture profile underscores maintaining the Clan culture while embracing new cultural shifts in the future, particularly towards an Adhocracy culture. This culture emphasizes fostering a dynamic work environment that encourages members to freely explore and express creative ideas, fostering innovation. JEL classification numbers: J43. Keywords: Organizational culture, OCAI Mapping.

‘I was content just staying within my own circle’: interrogating the relationship between sport and acculturation among Chinese international students at a Canadian university

ABSTRACT The aim of this study is to understand the sport and physical activity experiences of Chinese international students within a large Canadian public university in Toronto, Canada. This aim was addressed by conducting semi-structured interviews with nine Chinese international students enrolled at this university and analyzing the data through acculturation theory. The study found that sport was primarily utilized for helping participants maintain connections to their culture; an outcome of the acculturation process classified as separation (Berry, 2005), by helping them build a sense of community with fellow Chinese international students. We argue that creating such spaces for sport participation was instrumental to helping the participants navigate the dominant campus culture. Although there was also some evidence that sport created opportunities for the participants to interact with Canadian students, they experienced institutional and cultural challenges that prevented them utilizing sport to connect with, and feel a part of the broader university community. Based on these findings, we argue that sport can potentially be a useful tool for international students to maintain connections to their cultural community, though this is dependent on the demographics of such a community within each individual university campus. And while sport is often promoted as an effective tool for integration amongst international students, engaging in sport or physical activity with domestic students does not, on its own, result in the achievement of such goals and is insufficient without accounting for broader cultural challenges and barriers.

Transmutation of The Reproductive Life of Women in Southern/West Cameroon(S) 1922-1972: A Colonial Manipulation

In all human communities, societal continuity depended on the quality and availability of infant and maternity welfare services. Conscious of the outcomes of infancy care on the productive efficiency of individuals at adulthood, the reproductive life of women and child welfare became an area of European domination during colonialism. Using British Southern/West Cameroon(s) as the theatre, this paper sets out to uncover colonial motives in the transformation of reproductive practices among women as it examines the different strategies and mechanisms employed in extending maternity and infant welfare as a measure of colonial imperialism. Archival information and oral interviews made up primary sources while books, published articles and dissertations constituted the secondary sources. The descriptive historical approach was employed in the analysis of the work. This paper submits that: the British colonial administration in Southern Cameroons had a mask colonial exploitative economic agenda behind the assignment put forth by the League of Nations Mandate Commission in its Article II of the British Mandate agreement. A baseless racial discrimination and cultural domination motivated the transformation of the reproductive life of indigenous women and the extension of basic infant welfare services during the Mandate and trusteeship periods in Southern Cameroons. These services were mostly provided by Western Mission agencies and plantation firms who recognized the independence of Southern Cameroons but withheld the rights to medical autonomy. In some cases, the transfer of rights to manage the medical arm of the different agencies was partially transferred during the last years of the Cameroon federation and in some cases after the abrogation of the Cameroon federation. The British decision to administer Southern Cameroons as a mandate was a conspiracy to enforce the tentacles of colonialism and its diverse arms with hope of greater economic and cultural gains.

“The loving queer gaze”: The epistemological significance of queer joy

AbstractThis article contends with queer joy as an epistemology to highlight an affective experience that grounds a basis for revising dominant approaches to sexual ethics. Drawing on findings from a mixed‐methods study with 100 2SLGBTQ+ young adults from Canada and the US, we argue that queer and trans people mobilize queer sexual joy as an epistemology of script breaking that led participants to explore freedom and play, enjoy novel forms of care and communality, and to challenge oppression. We found that 2SLGBTQ+ young adults are undermining dominant sexual cultures which perpetuate gender‐based violence through cisheteronormative logics of objectification and dominance. Rather than simply producing misery, normative sex and gender regimes produced a disorientation among 2SLGBTQ+ young adults which was fruitful for breaking sexual scripts and developing approaches to sex and relationships grounded in greater authenticity, creativity, reciprocity, play, and joy. We propose that by taking queer joy as a way of knowing, we may learn how queer and trans people negotiate the performativity of gender and sex, their own bodily knowledge, and the epistemic injustices that have precluded this knowledge from being valued. Pushing against the “joy deficit” in sociology that constrains the field to the study of the misery that minority communities face, this paper not only demonstrates what sociologists might learn from the texture of queer and trans lives, but also how these lessons can help to undermine cisheteronormativity as a root cause of gender‐based violence.

The attitude of the Tatars of the Kirov region (Russia) to religious rites

In modern Russia, much attention is paid to the preservation of cultural traditions of different peoples and faiths, but at the same time many aspects remain undisclosed in research. A rich material for study exists in the multiethnic and multicultural Kirov region. Tatars occupy the second largest population in the region and have their own rich cultural traditions based on Islam and influencing the culture of the region. The purpose of the research is to study the attitude of Tatars to religious rituals on the example of the Kirov region. To achieve this goal, ethnosociological expeditions were undertaken in 2018-2023 to the Malmyzhsky and Kilmezsky districts of the Kirov region as one of the most representative areas where the Tatar population lives. Within the framework of the expeditions, methods of included observation were used, as well as interviews in the form of interviews. As a result, the attitude of the Tatars towards such religious ceremonial as the obligatory observance of prayer, marriage (nikyah), the prohibition on eating pork, as well as the special position of women was revealed. As the study showed, Tatars in the Kirov region do not have a canonical manifestation of the foundations of Islam, but a folk faith characterized by a simplified perception of these foundations: not all Tatars observe the fivefold prayer, some of them also eat pork. It remains important for the Tatar population to observe the nikyah rite at marriage, but at the same time there is a relaxation in choosing a partner – he can be of any nationality, but must be a Muslim or convert to Islam. There are certain changes in the situation of women: there are no restrictions on their rights and freedoms, and not all Muslim women adhere to a strict and closed style of dress. In addition, the Tatars' desire to combine the traditional way of life with the modern dominant culture, as well as with other national cultures of the region ("neighborly mutual assistance", holding various festivals of traditional cultures, assimilation of Tatars) was revealed. It was concluded that the attitude towards traditional confessional rituals in the Tatar community is softened and does not imply strictness in observance. The results of the study are useful for building intercultural communications between various stakeholders (government, business, non-profit organizations).

The Effect of Organizational Culture on Job Satisfaction in Jordanian Tourism Public Sector

Objective: The significance of this study comes from the lack of previous direct discussion on improving organizational culture and job satisfaction in tourism public sector. It aims at identifying dominant organizational cultures in the Jordanian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, and to statistically test their influence on job satisfaction among the employees working in this public entity. Methods: A questionnaire was used to collect responses of 200 employees in the centre and branches of Jordanian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, where stratified proportional sampling was adopted. Besides the demographic section, there were two sets of questions derived from Organizational Culture Assessment Instrument developed by Quinn and Cameron, and the Job Satisfaction Survey by Spector. Both descriptive analysis and Structure Equation Modelling were manipulated to achieve the study objectives. Results: All organizational culture dimensions were of insignificant influence on job satisfaction; the highest regression coefficient was for management of employees, while it was the lowest for dominant characteristics, and organizational glue. The “clan” and “adhocracy” turned out to be the dominant organizational cultures. Conclusion: The insignificant influence of organizational culture on job satisfaction could be due to the bureaucratic nature of the public sector, where high levels of control, centralism and inflexibility assumingly exist. This study has significant contributions to decision makers since they would recognize more the need to make the work environment more rewarding and achievement oriented. Moreover, researchers have shed more light on organizational values and cultures influencing work performance in developing countries.

Identifying Corporate Culture Using the Organizational Culture Assessment Instrument

Research background: Corporate culture undoubtedly plays a crucial role in successfully overcoming the challenges associated with modern trends in today's business environment. Corporate culture is an incredibly fascinating field within organizational management. It requires investigation, as it is not static but evolves and adapts over time. Purpose of the article: The aim of the article was to define the type of corporate culture by identifying both the current and desired corporate culture. Additionally, the study examined the differences in values related to corporate culture. Methods: The Organizational Culture Assessment Instrument was utilized to identify the current and desired corporate culture. This methodology evaluated the company's underlying values and related assumptions, providing a realistic representation of its culture. Findings & Value added: The key conclusions is that in the wood industry, companies were perceived as highly personalized environments, resembling close-knit families where employees frequently interacted and shared commonalities. Alongside mentoring, facilitation, and support, effective management also emphasized cooperation and functional teamwork. Formal rules, loyalty, and mutual trust played a significant role in maintaining cohesion within the company. Employee development, trust, openness, and solidarity were emphasized. Success was based on human resource development, teamwork, employee engagement, and interest. The dominant corporate culture in the wood industry was clan corporate culture. Therefore, leadership based on mentoring, facilitation, and support should be prioritized. The valued added is the finding that the clan corporate culture should continue to prevail in wood industry companies for the next 5 to 10 years. Therefore, it is recommended teamwork, consensus, and a sense of belonging should continue to be prominent in the wood industry's future. Loyalty and mutual trust should be key elements in maintaining company unity. Employee development, trust, openness, and solidarity should also be consistently implemented, along with human resource development, teamwork, employee engagement, and interest. These findings can assist managers in their management practices.

THREE IMAGES OF POLISSIA. A COMPARATIVE STUDY IN POSTCOLONIAL COLORS

The paper examines the images of Volyn Polissia and its inhabitants in the works by the writers of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Based on the methods of comparative and postcolonial studies, the research focuses on the novels “Friendship” (1905) by Lesia Ukrainka, “Malashka” (1881) by the Polish writer G. Zapolska, and “Olesia” (1898) by the Russian author A. Kuprin. The phenomenon of the Volyn-Polissia text provides an opportunity to clarify the topic in historical and cultural dimensions. The narrative structures of the three stories are considered as matrices for perceiving, understanding, and describing reality. The peculiarities of literary practices in topographical and anthropological cataloging of the ‘other’ were also investigated.For a long time, Polissia was under the control of neighboring states. The approach of the Polish and Russian authors to the ‘appropriated territories’ was distinctively invasive (imperial). The positions of cultural and state dominance legitimized the ‘other’ as a secondary and subordinate figure. Thus, the efforts of the colonizers were directed at lowering the native and elevating the stranger. The stranger, as represented in the characters of G. Zapolska and A. Kuprin, was a carrier of higher morality, intelligence, culture, etc. Through total control, he acquired the ‘right’ to rule over those ‘inferior’ to him. In the stories “Malashkaˮ and “Olesiaˮ, which are very similar in their main points, this mechanism is clearly revealed in the female images. The depiction of the local population as wild, aggressive, and drunken ‘creatures’ also attests to the authors’ views.In contrast, the story “Friendship” is perceived as a tale of the national affirmation of the Ukrainian region. Lesia Ukrainka doesn’t idealize the residents of Polissia but clearly shows their distinctiveness. The writer’s characters are Ukrainian and Polish girls of the same age. They have different destinies due to their differing backgrounds. The depicted worlds are independent, which is evidenced by the life of their representatives.

Media Influence on Nyokum: Cultural Shifts in the Nyishi Community

The research paper aims to investigate the impact of mass media on the intercultural adaptation process, specifically focusing on the intricate relationship between the media and traditional festivities among the Nyishi Community of Arunachal Pradesh. This study employed mixed method to shed light on the challenges and transformations occurring within the Nyokum festival celebrations. The Nyokum festival, in particular, has evolved over time, serving as a means to preserve the rich heritage of a culture facing decline amidst modernization and the encroachment of dominant cultures. One notable shift in traditional practices observed during the Nyokum festival is the transition from ritualistic observances to a greater emphasis on merrymaking and revelry. This paper delves into the role of media in shaping the structure of festival celebrations, highlighting how the fusion of foreign influences has led to deviations in cultural production and ongoing changes in traditional practices.

Factors Influencing Women's Preferences for STEM Professions: A Case Study of the University of Peshawar

There is a widely held belief that there is an increasing gender gap in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) worldwide. Women have achieved gender equality with men in certain professions, such as the humanities and social sciences. However, women still lack adequate representation in the highest positions of academia and the professional world in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). This paper is grounded in institutional theory to explore the factors that demotivate or hinder women from joining STEM as a profession in universities. The research is based on a qualitative case study of the University of Peshawar. We conducted 20 interviews with female staff members in 13 STEM departments, with 32 female staff out of 183 faculty members. The collected data generated a total of 123 codes. The axial coding procedure generated 38 codes, which were grouped into fourteen distinct categories and four overarching themes of (1) male dominant culture, (2) multiple influences, (3) professional environment, and (4) job opportunities. The study highlights the complex interplay between societal attitudes and gender in STEM fields, emphasising the need for comprehensive strategies to promote gender equality. Addressing these factors and thoroughly analysing women's engagement in STEM departments is crucial.

Процессуальный код культуры в кабардинских пословицах и поговорках

The article examines the peculiarity of the implementation of the procedural code in Kabardian proverbs and sayings. The subject code is the most explored in linguistic study, allowing us to re-flect on numerous ideas that are important in people’s axiology. Due to the lack of research on the procedural codes of culture, the necessity of introducing these symbolic representations into the scientific field is justified. The aim of the study is to identify the semiotic elements of Kabardian paroemias that mark the value representations of native speakers. The scientific novelty consists in presenting the mechanisms of encoding the ethnomental paradigms of epistemology, in reflect-ing the deep structures of consciousness through words associated with the most important verbs of action. As a result of the study, the most frequent words projecting cultural dominants are iden-tified and their semantic classification is presented.

Coffeehouse as a cultural symbol of Vienna

The article examines the phenomenon of Viennese coffee houses, for which the Austrian capital is famous. A brief excursion into the history of the emergence of the first coffee houses in Vienna is given, the period of the birth of the first cafes, the stage of their heyday and crisis is examined. An attempt was made to determine the role of the coffee shop in modern urban culture. In the context of a study of the cultural dominants of the capital of Austria, Vienna, the national characteristics of the Viennese coffee culture are revealed. The thesis is substantiated that Viennese coffee houses, with their cozy atmosphere and refined sophistication, democracy and respectability, are a symbol of a European city and a center of coffee worship, a symbol that reflects the national picture of the world, partially objectified by means of language.

Working with constructs of inclusion for understanding teachers’ literacy practices and their impact on student learning

ABSTRACT The paper explores teachers’ language literacy practices in underprivileged, inner-city schools in Athens, Greece, and their implications for student learning and educational inclusion. The current developments of global/European and national education policy agendas on literacy and inclusion inform the research questions of the study. Bernstein’s theory of pedagogic discourse frames our analysis on the reproduction of social inequalities through schooling and informs our discussion on the discursive means and the pedagogic practices for their interruption. Findings, based on interview data and classroom observations, indicate that global discourses on inclusion, (re)articulated in the disadvantaged school settings of the study, invest the notion of inclusion with three different meanings: a. inclusion as assimilation and absorption into the dominant culture and society; b. inclusion as therapy for students’ emotional ‘traumas’; and c. inclusion as recognition of difference. We argue that these constructs of inclusion shape teaching practices that either promote or undermine student learning and empowerment.

Reimagining neo-chinese interiors via the lens of semiotics

Globalization has inevitably disrupted the sanctity of the local culture of countries in the world under the impact of dominant foreign culture. Ignoring the preservation of domestic culture will lead to cultural homogenization and loss of identity. Attributable to this, protecting local culture has become one of the most crucial agendas in many countries’ cultural development planning, including China. One of the most potent approaches to this is through design. The emergence of Neo-Chinese interior design in China has created a window to forward new interpretations and meanings while preserving the Chinese culture through contemporary interior design. The study attempts to formulate a new design model by interpreting and conveying meanings of Chinese traditional culture through the material form using semiotics. Meanings from Chinese traditional paintings will be decoded to help formulate the structures for the new proposed model of the Neo-Chinese interior design. They will serve as the research variable and the basis of the study. The outcome of this research can be helpful to Chinese interior designers while also acting as a reference for other countries to maintain and develop the nationality of their design.

A collaborative approach to develop indigenous specific parenting education

AbstractDiscrimination against Indigenous peoples is ongoing and perpetuated by systemic structures such as Eurocentric educational systems that often require learners to suppress their Indigeneity and conform to the dominant culture. Previous attempts at incorporating Indigenous cultures and values into education have often perpetuated harmful and negative stereotypes to the detriment of Indigenous learners. Parenting education courses for separating or divorcing parents are designed to support emotional wellbeing and promote positive co‐parenting relationships. While it is widely known that Indigenous worldviews vary from Western worldviews, there is little research on parenting education courses for Indigenous families and few culturally responsive programs designed for non‐dominant cultures or offered in other languages. Walking in two worlds is a reality for Indigenous peoples; needing to conform to the dominant systems in society while also honoring their teachings and ways of being. This article describes how a parenting education course for Indigenous families was created by employing the principle of collaboration with full involvement of all participants resulting in a course that bridges the gap between two different worldviews.