Divergent Identities Research Articles

The two lives of the Mental Capacity Act: rethinking East-west binaries in comparative analysis.

The Mental Capacity Act 2005 in England and Wales and Singapore's Mental Capacity Act 2008 (which substantially transplants provisions from the former statute) might appear to be twins on paper, but they have gone on to lead very different lives. In this article, we examine how two broadly identical laws have taken on divergent identities within their respective jurisdictions when implemented and interpreted in the courtroom. We reveal and analyse differences in parliamentary intent concerning at what stage a person's decision-making agency is putatively empowered; judicial development of central concepts; underlying socio-cultural commitments; and outline opportunities for bi-directional learning in mental capacity law across both jurisdictions.

Not translating food as a political statement: the case of Najat El Hachmi

ABSTRACT The initial premise of this article is that food ‘goes beyond the need for nourishment’ (Chiaro, 2008, p. 195). The basic assumption is that food is a system of cultural representation. In line with Charron and Desjardins (2011, p. 1), our starting point is that ‘[l]anguage and food define and shape collective identities […]. Food not only shapes identities, but it can also act as a pivot or bridge language between divergent identities, a form of cultural mediation or translation.’ The first section analyzes how food has been studied in a wide variety of disciplines as a way of transmitting the characteristics of a culture, its identities, and ways of seeing the world. Within the context of food as a semiotic system that communicates, the second section focuses on the novels of Najat El Hachmi, those in which food is seen as a way of translating cultures.

Ethnic cosmopolitanism, cultural identity and conflict dynamics in the Kusaug Traditional Area of Northern Ghana

ABSTRACT This study investigates the perceptions of ethnicity and their impact on conflict dynamics and cultural identity with the aim of proposing a pathway towards the building of an ethnic cosmopolitan worldview for peaceful coexistence. The research adopted a qualitative methodological approach with interviews and focus group discussions involving 50 purposively sampled participants from the Kusaasi, Mamprusi, Mossi, Busanga, and Hausa ethnic groups resident in the Kusaug Traditional Area of northern-eastern Ghana. Participants recognize the possibility of developing a cosmopolitan worldview that respects divergent identities and values but also acknowledge the challenges and complexities involved. The study argues that the development of ethnic cosmopolitanism that integrates all the core values of the differentiated ethnic groups in Kusaug holds the potential to de-escalate conflicts and to promote peaceful coexistence. Public sensitization, education, and awareness programmes are recommended to promote tolerance, respect, and appreciation of unity in diversity.

Yes She Can: Examining the Career Pathways of Black Women in Higher Education Senior Leadership Position

Problem Black women continue to face significant underrepresentation in senior leadership roles, particularly within higher education. Despite this disparity, there exists a dearth of research and understanding surrounding the achievements and success narratives of those who have managed to ascend to senior-level leadership positions within the higher education sector. Solution Higher education institutions and professionals in the HRD field ought to develop and implement identity-based leadership initiatives that address the distinctive challenges Black women (as well as other women of color) face in leadership roles. Concurrently, universities are encouraged to establish structured mentoring programs to facilitate connections between Black women leaders and mentors possessing either congruent or divergent identities, but with a demonstrated cultural competence capable of accommodating the mentee’s requirements. Furthermore, universities must formulate and uphold policies that cultivate and retain Black women’s talent, intellectual contributions, and leadership acumen. Stakeholders Black women leaders, human resource development researchers, practitioners, scholars, higher education administrators.

Hyphenated Identities: Navigating Interpersonal Challenges and the American Dream in Jhumpa Lahiri’s Unaccustomed Earth

The concept of immigrant identity involves both acts of resistance and adaptation to an unfamiliar environment. According to scholarly reports, the first waves of Indian immigrants are known to show a deep attachment to their native cultures, their ancestors, their languages, and their interpersonal relationships. On the other hand, their second-generation constantly face the challenge of moving between two different cultural contexts and finding a harmonious balance between these two divergent identities. The hyphenated identity of people in diaspora communities has a significant impact on their closest interpersonal relationships, leading to various issues such as longing for the past, feelings of isolation, mourning and melancholy, and to name a few. These issues are effectively explored by renowned Pulitzer Prize-winning writer Jhumpa Lahiri in her third book, Unaccustomed Earth (2008), and are, therefore, the focus of this paper. The short stories included in this collection exhibit a poignant and intricate connection to the prevailing social landscape of contemporary society. This paper explores the impact of hyphenated identity on interpersonal relationships in the context of the ‘American Dream’ as manifest in the chosen text. Furthermore, this research paper examines the tactics employed by the characters in Lahiri’s short stories to overcome the obstacles in their diasporic encounters.

‘For King and Empire’: The Changing Political, Economic, and Cultural Identities of Kru Mariners in Atlantic Africa, 1460–1945

AbstractThis article traces histories of the Kru in West Africa from the fifteenth to nineteenth centuries, arguing that divergent identities of fifteenth- to eighteenth-century Kru canoers became unified when that unified identity was necessary for maintaining political, economic, and cultural autonomy during and after the slave trade. In conjunction with earlier multilingual work on the Kru mariners of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, this article seeks to place the narrative of Kru identity and labor in a larger context of maritime history across the region at large. This article argues that the Kru relied on longstanding maritime traditions from localized groups to capitalize on the need for work and cash in a capitalist economy driven by growing European imperialism. The historical narrative of Kru maritime power shows how local and global identities in Atlantic Africa shifted in response to exploitation, blurring the lines between response and resistance.

Voices of women in the global south: Tricontinental magazine and the new feminist narrative (1967-2018)

ABSTRACT This article examines how the emergence of new subaltern subjects, imbued with revolutionary ideals like anti-colonialism and anti-imperialism, within the framework of the second wave of feminism, deepened the breach in the monolithic, homogenising model of femaleness constructed around a base with deeply Eurocentric roots. Tricontinental magazine, a groundbreaking publication in the dissemination of new feminist realities associated with the alternative experiences of women in Asia, Africa and Latin America, provided a space for the women of the Global South to raise their voices and demand new divergent identities and discourses. The visibility of female authors and the recognition of the many women’s organisations that joined forces with Tricontinental magazine brings to light a new account of anti-colonial, anti-imperialist feminisms as movements of social transformation in the context of the Global South. Although the alter-globalisation narratives contained in numerous manifestos, testimonies and publications authored by a plethora of women have received little or no recognition in the feminist historiography to date, they represent a complex pioneering framework that served as a platform for transnational cultural exchange in the context of the ideological and political polarisation of the Cold War.

A Liouville theorem for a class semilinear elliptic equations on the Heisenberg group

We obtain a Liouville type theorem for a classical semilinear subcritical elliptic equation on the Heisenberg group. A pointwise estimate near the isolated singularity is also provided. The soul of the proofs is a generalization of the Jerison-Lee's divergence identity and then an a priori integral estimate.

Customary Village (Desa Adat) and Inter-Ethnic Fragmentations in Seram Island, Maluku

This article introduces the socio-spatial implications of the recent transformation of inter-ethnic relations in Seram Island, Maluku. These transformations follow the implementation of the current regional autonomy policies in Indonesia, specifically on Customary Village (Desa Adat) Law No. 6 of 2014, which provides legal support for re-strengthening the traditional political forms at the village level or commonly known as negeri adat in the context of Maluku. The author highlights the consequences of this law on the change of governmental structural status from the uniform village model of desa, which was held previously in Soeharto’s New Order era, to negeri adat. This law provided a chance for minority groups generally termed by the surrounding population as “primitive” or “backward” to gradually emerge as political actors. Yet, this revival of adat has also generated a rivalry among villages on obtaining the “adat” label. It resulted in renewed identity claims and encouraged villagers to demand an increased village fragmentation (pemekaran desa) in order to gain independent financial resource from the government as well as to reinforce their autonomy in managing their traditional territory. Given these contesting claims, the challenges around the discourse of adat and the definition of adat itself remain unclear and need to be discussed. In Indonesia, especially in the context of Maluku society, adat is still considered as a natural state that is widely prevalent within the society’s daily life, such as social hierarchies and institutions as well as land transmission processes. On the other hand, this article attempts to show how adat also promotes areas of intervention in political contests and, thus, will concentrate on the processes of administrative configuration and on the power games between village societies. Examined through ethnographic method and participatory mapping, the focal point of interest is a sub-village (dusun) named Masihulan, a minority hinterland community of animists in North Seram, the so-called Alifuru. The author analyses how the application of desa adat law has provided this community the opportunity to split from its previous principal village, called Sawai, in order to become an independent village. Besides the economic oriented objective, divergent identity claims exacerbate local tensions and may provoke disintegration between social groups.

The dangerous construction of national, religious and moral identities in the Ukrainian War

The Russian invasion of Ukraine violates fundamental norms of international law and is at the same time an attack on the order of values of liberal democratic societies. The long prepared, ideologically based aggression was massive underestimated. In the foreground of the war are not rationally comprehensible interests, but identity-related conflicts of recognition with their very own grammar of uncompromisingness and power dynamics. For Russia, Ukraine and Europe, the scholarly reappraisal of the highly divergent identity constructions is of central importance. The theological critique of a nationalist-identitarian-political use of the Christian faith is an important peace service that the churches have to perform.

The Dangerous Construction of National; Religious and Moral Identities in the Ukrainian War

The Russian invasion of Ukraine violates fundamental norms of international law and is at the same time an attack on the order of values of liberal democratic societies. The long prepared, ideologically based aggression was massive underestimated. In the foreground of the war are not rationally comprehensible interests, but identity-related conflicts of recognition with their very own grammar of uncompromisingness and power dynamics. For Russia, Ukraine and Europe, the scholarly reappraisal of the highly divergent identity constructions is of central importance. The theological critique of a nationalist-identitarian-political use of the Christian faith is an important peace service that the churches have to perform.

Objective risk assessment vs standard care for acute coronary syndromes\u2014The Australian GRACE Risk tool Implementation Study (AGRIS): a process evaluation

BackgroundStructured risk-stratification to guide clinician assessment and engagement with evidence-based therapies may reduce care variance and improve patient outcomes for Acute Coronary Syndrome (ACS). The Australian Grace Risk score Intervention Study (AGRIS) explored the impact of the GRACE Risk Tool for stratification of ischaemic and bleeding risk in ACS. While hospitals in the active arm had a higher overall rate of invasive ACS management, there was neutral impact on important secondary prevention prescriptions/referrals, hospital performance measures, myocardial infarction and 12-month mortality leading to early trial cessation. Given the Grace Risk Tool is under investigation internationally, this process evaluation study provides important insights into the possible contribution of implementation fidelity on the AGRIS study findings.MethodsUsing maximum variation sampling, five hospitals were selected from the 12 centres enrolled in the active arm of AGRIS. From these facilities, 16 local implementation stakeholders (Cardiology advanced practice nurses, junior and senior doctors, study coordinators) consented to a semi-structured interview guided by the Theoretical Domains Framework. Directed Content Analysis of qualitative data was structured using the Capability/Opportunity/Motivation-Behaviour (COM-B) model.ResultsPhysical capability was enhanced by tool usability. While local stakeholders supported educating frontline clinicians, non-cardiology clinicians struggled with specialist terminology. Physical opportunity was enhanced by the paper-based format but was hampered when busy clinicians viewed risk-stratification as one more thing to do, or when form visibility was neglected. Social opportunity was supported by a culture of research/evidence yet challenged by clinical workflow and rotating medical officers. Automatic motivation was strengthened by positive reinforcement. Reflective motivation revealed the GRACE Risk Tool as supporting but potentially overriding clinical judgment. Divergent professional roles and identity were a major barrier to integration of risk-stratification into routine Emergency Department practice. The cumulative result revealed poor form completion behaviors and a failure to embed risk-stratification into routine patient assessment, communication, documentation, and clinical practice behaviors.ConclusionsNumerous factors negatively influenced AGRIS implementation fidelity. Given the prominence of risk assessment recommendations in United States, European and Australian guidelines, strategies that strengthen collaboration with Emergency Departments and integrate automated processes for risk-stratification may improve future translation internationally.

Cantonese migrant networks, white supremacy, and the political utility of apologies in Canada

ABSTRACT Using the specific example of the attempts of the municipal government of Vancouver in 2018 and the provincial government of British Columbia in 2014 to apologise for historical anti-Chinese legislation in Canada, this paper illustrates how Cantonese migrant networks shaped and were shaped by the politics of white supremacy in Pacific white-settler nations, and argues that historical narratives about historical anti-Chinese discrimination that erupt at these moments of apology and reconciliation aspire to shape future politics by producing historical frames for civil society that are broadly inclusive and based primarily neither on ethnic identification nor shared exclusion in the past but on aspirational narratives of more inclusive belonging in the future. They also provide at the same time a narrative of belonging for migrants who trace ancestry to very different parts of China and with divergent identities and migratory pathways to identify with each other’s histories and to belong to a ‘Chinese’ diasporic past and future marked by resistance to racism and white supremacy in Pacific settler colonies such as Canada, the United States, Australia, and New Zealand. Included in this future are Chinese who were excluded in the past, allowing those who identify as Chinese a path for belonging.

Divergence equations and uniqueness theorem of static spacetimes with conformal scalar hair

Abstract We reexamine the Israel-type proof of the uniqueness theorem of the static spacetime outside the photon surface in the Einstein-conformal scalar system. We derive in a systematic fashion a new divergence identity which plays a key role in the proof. Our divergence identity includes three parameters, allowing us to give a new proof of the uniqueness.

La importancia del concepto de frontera para los estudios de género: un análisis sobre las travestis

El interés académico en problematizar la normatividad de género sufrió un relevante aumento al final del siglo XX, influenciado por los trabajos de teóricos de género y queer. Consecuentemente, se incrementan las investigaciones sobre identidades cis divergentes, como de las travestis brasileñas. Las travestis subvierten el género binario al incorporar aspectos de feminidad a otros socialmente considerados masculinos, a ejemplo del pene. Al evidenciar la posibilidad de transitar entre dos polos que el sistema de género considera mutuamente excluyentes, surge el interés por conocer de qué maneras los cruces fronterizos están presentes en las vivencias travestis. Por tanto, este artículo utiliza una investigación bibliográfica y tiene como objetivo general discutir la importancia de los tránsitos fronterizos en la construcción de la identidad travesti, utilizando un concepto simbólico y geopolítico de frontera. De esta manera, los objetivos específicos de esta propuesta son discutir sobre travestis, abordar la influencia de los centros urbanos en el proceso de transformación de las travestis, comprender el prestigio de la categoría emica europea. Se concluye que distintos tipos de desplazamiento fronterizo integran etapas relevantes de la existencia de los travestis, pues es a través de estos tránsitos que adquieren un capital cultural y financiero que les brinda, además de prestigio, mejores condiciones de vida.

Promoting (religious and political) diversity through legislation in Northern Ireland

ABSTRACT Northern Ireland is a society which has suffered communal strife for decades, a result of divergent political and religious identities. Since the Good Friday Agreement in 1998, the violence associated with this tension has receded. This article looks at some of the different areas where there has been inter-communal conflict: political structures, elections, policing, language, employment and treatment of victims. It identifies the solutions and identifies the tools to implement those solutions. Legislation has been used as a tool of choice to regulate that diversity, to provide protection and to solve problems resulting from that diversity. Legislation is not the inevitable tool to use, softer forms of regulation are also available. There are two suggested reasons for the reliance upon legislation. Firstly, in the absence of trust between political parties, legislation offers an enforceable solution which is legally binding upon all parties. Secondly, legislation can be seen as a concrete and tangible achievement.

No-hair theorems for noncanonical self-gravitating static multiple scalar fields

We prove under certain assumptions no-hair theorems for non-canonical self-gravitating static multiple scalar fields in spherically symmetric spacetimes. It is shown that the only static, spherically symmetric and asymptotically flat black hole solutions consist of the Schwarzschild metric and a constant multi-scalar map. We also prove that there are no static, horizonless, asymptotically flat, spherically symmetric solutions with static scalar fields and a regular center. The last theorem shows that the static, asymptotically flat, spherically symmetric reflecting compact objects with Neumann boundary conditions can not support a non-trivial self-gravitating non-canonical (and canonical) multi-scalar map in their exterior spacetime regions. In order to prove the no-hair theorems we derive a new divergence identity.

Identity Work Orientation: Unpacking Divergent Identity Construction Processes of Police Newcomers

Through a longitudinal ethnographic study of new recruits into an English police service we explain how different ‘identity work orientations’ (i.e. legitimacy, authenticity and competence seeking) direct different patterns of identity work and produce different work identities within the same socialization processes. In so doing, we make a three-fold contribution. First, departing from mainstream research of newcomers’ identity construction, our study highlights the fragmentation and diversity of externally provided work identities and the important influences of newcomers’ own orientations in their identity formation. Second, by illustrating three distinct identity work processes, we challenge the monolithic portrait of identity work and theoretical disconnection in the identity work literature. Third, we offer identity work orientation as an analytical lens that transcends theoretical boundaries and sensitizes researchers to diverse identity work. Key words: Identity construction, identity work, newcomer socialization, police.

Divergent identities: competing indigenous political currents in 21st-century Bolivia

ABSTRACTWhile Bolivia grabbed global attention at the turn of the new millennium for militant indigenous mobilizations, the second decade of the 21st century witnessed the deepening of conflicts between different indigenous sectors. In addition to provoking heated debates on what it means to be indigenous, this has raised questions on the utility of the concept of indigeneity as it has been understood thus far to analyze the new political dynamics. In response to these processes and the analytical challenges they present, this article maps out the existing currents in Bolivian indigenous politics, their mutual disagreements, the meanings they give to indigeneity, and their impact on the politics of the Morales government and its critics. It argues that there are two distinct indigenous visions with different political agendas and priorities: a ‘revivalist’current that focuses on the restoration of ancestral cosmovisions and represents the dominant canon, and an ‘expansionist’ current that prioritizes the struggle against structural racism and gives expression to a new tendency in Latin American indigenous politics. The article is based on nearly two years of ethnographic research in the city of El Alto.

Conservation Laws and Other Formulas for Families of Rays and Wavefronts and for the Eikonal Equation

In the previous studies, the author has obtained conservation laws for the 2D eikonal equation in an inhomogeneous isotropic medium. These laws are divergent identities of the form div F = 0. The vector field F is expressed through a solution to the eikonal equation (the time field), the refractive index (the equation parameter), and their partial derivatives. Besides that, equivalent conservation laws (divergent identities) were found for families of rays and families of wavefronts in terms of their geometric characteristics. Thus, the geometric essence (interpretation) of the conservation laws obtained for the 2D eikonal equation was found. In this paper, 3D analogs of the results obtained are presented: differential conservation laws for the 3D eikonal equation and conservation laws (divergent identities of the form div F = 0) for families of rays and families of wavefronts, the vector field F expressed through classical geometric characteristics of the ray curves: their Frenet basis (the unit tangent vector, principal normal, and binormal), the first curvature, and the second curvature, or through the classical geometric characteristics of the wavefront surfaces: their normal, principal directions, principal curvatures, Gaussian curvature, and mean curvature. All the results have been obtained on the basis of the general vector and geometric formulas (differential conservation laws and some formulas) obtained for families of arbitrary smooth curves, families of arbitrary smooth surfaces, and arbitrary smooth vector fields.