Traditional Ethos Research Articles

Making Sustainability Palatable? Changing Practices of Middle-Class Food Consumption in Bangalore

This paper nuances the perspective of the Indian middle class as conspicuous consumers who have inherently unsustainable consumption practices and discusses the powerful role that cultural practices play in shaping consumption and waste. Using 127 qualitative interviews with people from the IT sector, it examines some practices and transformations in cultural arrangements that are intimately linked to food consumption and the identity of the middle class in Bangalore. This material challenges the assumed correlation that if middle-class income rises, people consume more wastefully. In particular, the emphasis on freshness and the low reliance on packaged products for daily consumption results in a low volume of food waste generated in the household. Making a distinction between the public and private space, the paper argues that culture and traditional ethos can be powerful allies of sustainable consumption.

A Blind Spot in Public Broadcasters’ Discovery of the Public: How the Public Values Public Service

Confronted with new technological options, changing usage patterns and rising criticism, public service broadcasters (PSBs) are paying fresh attention to the public as a target for accountability. This article first investigates how PSBs are repositioning themselves through increased responsiveness to and collaboration with the public and assesses the permissibility of such strategies, bearing in mind the traditional ethos and core principles of public service. The second part reacts to the finding that, while there is much talk about the public and the need to reconnect, little is known about the public’s perception regarding the importance of the idea of public service in times of media change. Results of a Swiss representative case study show that people still consider public service highly important in times of the Internet. Unexpectedly, linear regression and structural equation modeling reveal that this assessment is virtually independent of sociodemographics and individual values.

Traditional Ethos and Asian Modernization: Indonesia and the Philippines

Traditional Ethos and Asian Modernization: Indonesia and the Philippines

Doktoranci w szczelinach akademickości

The subject of the article concerns the situation of doctoral students trainedin the context of an institutionalized system of higher education. The academicethos has been offered for sale, and has become another educational service usedfor different interests. The metaphor of “gaps” that I introduce in the article describeswell the unprivileged position of the young people entering the world of science. I try to identify the “gaps” and the “tensions” disintegrating the existingorder, in which the traditional ethos of commitments is eroded by the new systemof claims. The university tied up with formal regulations creates a new environmentwhere everything: the role of mentors, the relationships, and the positionof doctoral students change significantly. I choose hermeneutic to analyze theframework education programs, and to try to answer the question: What goalsare implemented and what effects of the training of doctoral students emergefrom the interpretation of the source material? I refer also to qualitative data(interviews with university students) which shows the evolution of the youth’sattitudes to their own role and place in the world of scholars.

Regulation Theory and the Political Economy of the European Union

AbstractEuropean integration theory considers to what extent the EU can realize a telos where American pluralism is the template. Not without merits, but considering the financial and eurozone crises fatally, such perspectives elide power relations and attendant contradictions and irrationalities that are constitutive of transatlantic integration itself. Regulation theory, which synthesizes the reformist ethos of Europe's postwar statist tradition and Marxism, and which has produced a considerable body of analysis of the EU published at the margins of EU scholarship, offers a compelling alternative that potentially overcomes these shortcomings. This article critically assesses how regulation theory has interpreted the single market, financial liberalization and EMU as a suppression of alternatives to neoliberal post‐Fordism, or finance‐led accumulation, in Europe. It argues that understanding the EU's current conjuncture of eurozone crisis management requires a neo‐Gramscian extension of regulation theory, stressing transnational patterns of capitalist accumulation and power relations.

Urban heritage governance within the context of emerging decentralization discourses in Jordan

Decentralization is becoming a fashionable trend in many parts of the world as states are increasingly challenged by their ability to achieve an ideal state of development and of democracy. Debate on decentralization and good governance is twofold: administrative and political. Conditioned by international aid, decentralization discourses in Jordan emphasize an administrative reform to achieve economic development and social justice. In urban heritage governance, confining decentralization discourses to economic dimensions undermines the impact of the ‘political culture’ of governance. The study analyzes the political culture of decentralization as it evolved in Jordan in two phases: archeological governance and urban heritage governance. Based on both primary and secondary data, the study traces the totalitarian lineage that has marked the former centralized political culture of archeological governance during colonialism. Political cultural lineage is challenging the flux of democratic and decentralization discourses in contemporary urban heritage governance; leading alternatively to democracy crisis that features the re-introduction of colonialism in the form of ‘internal colonialism’. The study recommends a political cultural reform that liberates decentralized urban governance among its multi-layered governmental system from the traditional ethos of external and internal colonialism.

Empowerment of Women in Semi-Urban/Semi-Rural Regions of Delhi and Haryana

Ensconced within the urbanized environs of the Delhi metropolis and its umbrella towns, there exists several semi-urban semi-rural pockets which are inhabited by communities with agrarian backgrounds who had sold off their lands to merge with the fast developing city spaces. Still holding on to their traditional socio-cultural ethos, these communities have taken to sundry businesses and fringe jobs to fulfill the requirements of surrounding urban settlements. The womenfolk living in these areas are at an interface between the traditional and the progressing worlds. Despite voluminous research on different sections of city-based women, very little attention has been paid to this particular category. This paper analyzes the scope and potential of women empowerment in such areas. We conducted a survey based on a questionnaire targeting representative womenfolk of four such pockets in and around Delhi. Our findings indicate that there is a latent potential among these women which, with due support is waiting to be tapped for the progress of the human populace.

Thriving amid the performative demands of the contemporary audit culture: a matter of school context

The predominant focus in this paper is on issues of school context and, in particular, on the dimensions of context at a large English comprehensive school that enable it to thrive within the current demands of the contemporary audit culture. Featuring interview data gathered from a number of senior educators, the paper draws on Braun et al’s (Braun, A., S. Ball, M. Maguire, and K. Hoskins. 2011. “Taking Context Seriously: Towards Explaining Policy Enactments in the Secondary School.” Discourse: Studies in the Politics of Education 32 (4): 585 -596) heuristic device for thinking about the ‘situated’, ‘professional’ and ‘external’ dimensions of context at the school. This device supports an analysis of the school’s intake (in particular the high cultural and class related aspirations of parents and students) and its values (namely the school’s traditional ethos of academic and behavioural excellence). The central argument of the paper is that these contextual dimensions contribute significantly to the school’s capacity to forge a worthy school identity within the current hyper-accountable and competitive environment where academic achievement (along increasingly narrow and conservative lines) and maintaining standards in relation to this achievement are utmost priorities.

IS THERE EPISTEMIC JUSTIFICATION FOR SECRECY IN SCIENCE?

AbstractEmpirical evidence shows that secrecy in science has increased over the past decades, partly as a result of the commercialization of science. There is a good prima facie case against secrecy in science. It is part of the traditional ethos of science that it is a collective and open truth-seeking endeavor. In this paper, I will investigate whether secrecy in science can ever be epistemically justified. To answer this question, I first distinguish between different sorts of secrecy. Next, I propose an account of what it is for a practice to be epistemically justified, with the help of work by Alvin Goldman and Philip Kitcher. I then discuss motivations for secrecy in science that are found in the literature to see whether they amount to, or can be turned into, epistemic justifications for secrecy. The conclusion is that, although some forms of secrecy – particularly those motivated by universal moral concerns – are epistemically justified, secrecy that arises from special, often commercial, interests is not.

OF BUREAUCRATS AND PASSIONATE PUBLIC MANAGERS: INSTITUTIONAL LOGICS, EXECUTIVE IDENTITIES, AND PUBLIC SERVICE MOTIVATION

Over recent decades, a number of managerial reform initiatives in continental Europe have aimed at moving away from the traditional Weberian model of public administration. Such shifting bases of legitimacy are brought about by changes in the institutional logics in place, which not only provide frames of reference but also social identities and vocabularies of motive for the actors in the field. In this article, we approach the expanding research on public service motivation (PSM) by employing an institutional prism. Based on an executive survey in a continental European context, we examine the assumption that highPSMis associated with the traditional ethos and social identity in the public sector. What we find is that a Weberian legalistic‐bureaucratic logic supports neither a high attraction to policy‐making nor a high level of compassion. A managerial orientation, on the other hand, entails significantly higher scores on these two dimensions, as well as on overallPSM.

Discourses of Poor Work Ethic in Botswana: A Historical Perspective, 1930–2010

This article analyses discourses of poor work ethic in Botswana from the colonial 1930s to the first decade of the new millennium. The traditional Batswana ethos stressed the importance of hard work, but in the early 1930s British colonial administrators had begun to complain about the Batswana chiefs, leading to colonial policy changes intended to address attitudes to work. Despite these changes, the issue of poor work ethic remained a critical topic of discussion by the colonial hierarchy in the mid-1940s, and a long-running debate has continued ever since, targeted today at the post-colonial public service. This article shows how debates about poor work ethic intensified in the post-colony owing to political patronage, corruption and politicisation of the public service by Botswana's ruling élite. This discourse describes the erosion of a traditional ethos of self-help and self-reliance and decries its replacement by a syndrome of over-dependence on the state by the people. Meanwhile, numerous attempts by government to address poor work ethic have produced unimpressive results. Although a meaningful quantitative comparison of colonial and post-colonial work productivity would be difficult to achieve, an analysis of the evolution of discourses surrounding work ethic in Botswana can yield insights into changes in attitudes of people and the state toward work and social welfare from the colonial period to the present.

Talent management for NHS managers: human resources or resourceful humans?

The need for effective leadership in the UK public sector has been a prominent discourse in recent years. One aspect of this is a growing interest in talent management. This article examines the evolution of processes used for managing talent and developing leaders in the UK's National Health Service (NHS) by applying human resource management theory to an empirical case study. Our aim was to provide a constructive, but critical, analysis of the current role of managerial talent management and to comment on the suitability of the adopted approach in the NHS. Over the past three decades the NHS has come to adopt an increasingly ‘hard’ approach to talent management, i.e. rationalistic, managerial and narrowly focused on leadership competencies and senior management roles. This parallels a more general shift in the NHS from its traditional public sector ethos and humanistic values to more business-oriented values and ways of working.

COUNTERTERRORISM AND THE NEW AMERICAN EXCEPTIONALISM

The tenets of American exceptionalism—defined as its civil religion—have shifted over time, and exceptionalism's most recent iteration has alarming ramifications, demonstrated through US counterterrorism policy. In crucial respects, the American project can be compared to ancient Rome: in its civil universalism; its sense of exceptional destiny; its use of sacred symbols; and its militarization. Global terrorism today threatens America's sense of divine blessing, its civil-religious identity. The mindset undergirding current US counterterrorism, especially the extensive use of drone attacks, should be normatively criticized as a sharp deviation from the traditional ethos of exceptionalism. The new ethos is one of ruthlessly purging the world of alleged threats rather than redeeming/transforming the world.

Democratization and Women’s Political Space in Nigeria: A Critical Appraisal

The study investigates the extent women participate in politics in Nigeria. Abia and Imo states were closely studied. Two hypotheses were formulated. The instruments used for data collection were questionnaire, interview and focus group discussion. A total of 354 copies of questionnaire were distributed, out of this number, 349 copies were completed and returned by the respondents. Z-test statistical tool was used to analyze the data, Based on the analysis, the major findings revealed that violence against women deter women from getting actively involved in politics in Nigeria. Also culture and traditional ethos prevent the advancement of women in politics also. Based on these findings, the following recommendations among others were proffered: Political mobilization should be carried into the villages to sensitize the women on the need to get involved in politics. More so new laws should be enacted on political thuggery and violence. They should be pursued vigorously to curb the high level of violence meted out to women by their male political counterparts in Nigeria.

The specialized text as a key element in the pedagogy of translation to second languages.

Objectives: To question the traditional ethos of only translating into one’s mother tongue, since English and Spanish have become vehicular, international languages; put forward some suggestions for a method of teaching translation using specialised texts. Method: The starting point is to present to the learners simple though specialised texts to be translated into both languages. In doing so, students realise how important it is to acquire a translation strategy, which can be applied, mutatis mutandis, to both languages. Since the texts are goal-oriented, the prime aim of translating is getting the message across: content analysis necessitates extensive use of documentary research in order to master the terminology used. Results: Since specialised texts are more standardized and predictable than journalistic texts, students soon realise that they can achieve results approaching those of native speakers, so long as they apply the relevant principles. Conclusion: The approach has paved the way for a trilingual handbook to be proposed for publication.
 Received: 08-02-10 / Accepted: 14-06-10
 How to reference this article:
 Humbley, J. & Torres, O. (2010). Le texte spécialisé comme élément clé dans la pédagogie de la traduction vers les langues secondes / Specialized Text as a Key Element in the Teaching of Translation into Second Languages.íkala, 15(2), 2 – 39.

Industry, Entrepreneurship, and Patronage: Lewis Wernwag and the Development of Virginius Island

In the 19th century, Virginius Island developed as a center for craft, industry, and service facilities that supported the United States Armory complex at Harpers Ferry, Virginia. The earliest phase of development in this community is represented at one tract of land that is associated with the family of engineer and entrepreneur Lewis Wernwag. Wernwag was an inventor, bridge builder, and machinist. A landscape and archaeological analysis shows the contradictions of living in a community transitioning to an industrial capitalist economy. While the landscape that Wernwag created reflects the traditional craft ethos—one that does not reinforce the separations of domestic and work life—the family’s household assemblage shows that they did participate in modern consumerism and they reinforced separations around the table and between groups. An analysis of the Wernwags’ property and assemblage shows how this family embraced emerging technological rationalities through material things.

The public good vs. commercial interest: research scientists in search of an accommodation

The environment for scientific research in public organisations is undergoing radical change, particularly with commercialisation pressures and blurring of the distinction between public and private research. The commercialisation pressures are reflected in government policy frameworks and institutional contexts for scientific work which are reconfiguring the context within which scientists work and raising questions about their identities, values, roles, motivations and careers. The changes represent a challenge to the traditional public good role of science and accompanying values. Based on an empirical study of a sample of research scientists from two public sector research organisations in Australia, this paper explores the interpretations and reactions of scientists to this changing environment. It shows that the changes have generated significant tensions between a set of norms entrenched in a traditional ethos of science and the emerging commercialisation imperatives that the scientists struggle to come to terms with or reconcile.

Ethische Probleme in der klinischen Praxis der evidenzbasierten Medizin

Ethical problems as consequences of evidence-based medicine (EBM) have insufficiently been investigated and discussed. EBM--as initially intended--is usually interpreted as an attempt to treat patients individually with respect to their personal preferences and the present situation according to the best available clinical evidence. This practice is in line with accepted medical ethics. Therefore, it does not appear to be a relevant issue for discussion at first sight. However, between the theoretical concept and the practical use (or misuse) of this approach discrepancies exist which require some considerations. In particular the practical use of EBM generates a number of ethical problems: EBM is increasingly misused as an instrument of resource-allocation. Based on randomized controlled trials (RCTs) for very specific patient groups, the general access to medical supply is regulated and limited. The recurrence to general ("supra-individual") external evidence may additionally be in strong contrast to the individual patients' intentions and will and leads to conflicts for therapy decisions. If no longer the individual preferences and the patients' will are in the center of therapy decisions but a so called "general welfare", the mutual trust between patient and doctor is eroded. The utilitaristic approach of a primacy of this general welfare in opposition to the individual welfare is favored by the present interpretation and use of EBM. This conflicts with the perception of the doctor as a patient's advocate. However, the doctor being the patient's advocate is the basis of the traditional medical ethos. We should take care that we do not completely lose the basis of our medical ethos.

Managerial ethos of the Indian tradition: relevance of a wisdom model

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to present a broad historical review of critical wisdom literature of ancient Indian tradition and examine how these precepts can complement and enrich the contemporary managerial frames.Design/methodology/approachThe paper attempts to critically review remarkably deep religious and secular traditions of India and integrate them in a conceptual model.FindingsThe paper findings point towards the need for a holistic frame in overcoming fragmented viewpoints of contemporary management by strengthening the reflective domains of the managerial world.Research limitations/implicationsThe limitation of the paper lies in its didactic nature and the specificity of the contextual boundary limiting its ready transferability.Practical implicationsThe paper provides a pointer in extending horizons of business or non‐business organizations in opening up their possibilities for achieving holistic managerial perspectives by combining economic, social and other higher order sustainable goals.Originality/valueThe paper's contribution is in its integrative value of some of the key themes of Indian wisdom literature and demonstrating their relevance to the modern management.

No Longer a Weak Department of Power? Reflections on the Emergence of a New International Judiciary

The article assesses some of the theoretical and practical implications arising out of some recent changes in the fi eld of international dispute settlement: the rise in the number of international courts, the expansion of their jurisdictional powers, their increased invocation by state and non- state parties, and the growing inclination of national courts to apply international law. Argu- ably, these developments point to the emergence of a new judiciary the operation of which is governed by a new ethos (international norm-advancement and the maintenance of co-operative international arrangements), which is different from the traditional ethos of international courts (confl ict resolution). The article then moves on to discuss some of the ' blind spots ' of the present judicial institutional landscape, which includes a consideration of the remaining diffi culties associated with addressing politically-charged confl icts before international courts (especially those relating to war and terror), and problems relating to the enforcement of judicial orders and judgments. While national courts can, in theory, fi ll some of these remaining gaps, their actual ability to do so remains unclear. In addition, the article addresses in brief some concerns that the emergence of the new institutional judiciary may actually exacerbate: co-ordination problems, and concerns relating to the effectiveness and legitimacy of international adjudication.