Hierarchical Power Research Articles

Elaboração e validação de Instrumento de Identificação de Assédio Sexual de Estudantes de Medicina (IIASEM)

Abstract Introduction: Sexual harassment is a reality that permeates hierarchical and gender power relations, and although noticeable in the medical and academic environment, it is considered a silenced violence that causes organic and psychological harm, with great consequences for the victim. Objective: To develop and validate an instrument to identify the occurrence of sexual harassment in medical students. Method: This instrument was developed, after reviewing the literature on the subject, with Likert-type responses at five option levels, which has two parts: the first with information on the participants’ sociodemographic and academic characteristics and the second containing 21 items grouped into three dimensions: forms of harassment, facilitating factors and identification of the harasser in the academic environment and in hospital practice. Semantic and content validation was carried out by consensus of experts and FACE validation was carried out by a focal group of 12 students, two from each year of the course. To verify reliability, the instrument was sent to 1,146 medical students once a week for four weeks, with 350 (30.5%) students responding to the Test following the recommendation for psychometric studies. After 15 days, the Retest was started with the 350 Test respondents, following the same submission chronology to verify stability. In the Retest, 69 responses were obtained. The Excel program version 16 was used to create the database and the Stata statistical program version 13 was used for the analysis. The instrument was applied online using the LimeSurvey free software. Results: The reliability of the instrument was evidenced by a Cronbach’s Alpha of 0.8163 and 0.7826 for Test and Retest, respectively. For the verification of stability, the Stuart-Maxwell test was used, which showed a value of p = 0.126 and the weighted Kappa, where the result of all 21 assertions are contained in the confidence interval, demonstrating the homogeneity of the distribution of the average scores between the Test and the Retest. Conclusions: The validated instrument proved to be reliable and stable and can be used in medical schools to identify sexual harassment in medical students.

Least Squares-based Optimal Reconciliation Method for Hierarchical Forecasts of Wind Power Generation

Wind power generation is hierarchically organized and can be aggregated/disaggregated based on geography and electrical network structure. Forecasts are required at all levels of such a hierarchy for different operational requirements, which are also known as “hierarchical forecasts”. In this paper, we propose a new method to produce hierarchical wind power forecasts which performs better than the conventional top-down or bottom-up method. At first, wind power generation at all levels of the hierarchy is independently forecasted using state-of-the-art techniques. Then, a least squares regression model is used to optimally reconcile these base forecasts. Adjusted forecasts are as close as possible to base forecasts but also satisfy the requirement of the aggregate consistency (i.e., the lower-level forecasts add up exactly to the higher-level forecasts). Case studies validate the effectiveness of the proposed approach for very short-term wind power forecasts. The accuracy improvement of reconciled forecasts over benchmarks is confirmed at all levels of the hierarchy, regardless of forecast horizons and hierarchical structures.

Tessituras entre cartografia e terapia ocupacional: experiências e fabulações

Abstract Research methodologies are influenced by hierarchical power structures that shape the means, discourses, and knowledge involved, with varying degrees of control. As researchers in occupational therapy, these considerations have prompted us to reflect on how we experience and understand research and knowledge construction through the lens of human activities and ethical-political stances. In this paper, we advocate for cartography as a qualitative research-intervention method that emphasizes the embodiment of the researcher within the research process. We aim to showcase distinct approaches to exploring the connection between cartography and occupational therapy, emphasizing the dynamic movements and emergent phenomena within these processes. Our discussion is framed around two key acts of storytelling: 1) Ethical-methodological considerations in engaging with cartographic insights through experimentation, interpretation, and innovation; and 2) Emergent challenges in occupational therapy that inform the development of specific perspectives and methodologies. Through these fabulations, we reveal a sensitive-critical dimension that interweaves lived experience and (r)existence/resistance in the production of contextually situated and socially engaged knowledge, wherein the human activity of researching is embedded in feeling-doing-thinking-being a researcher.

Non-Iterative Solution for Coordinated Optimal Dispatch via Equivalent Projection—Part I: Theory

Coordinated optimal dispatch is of utmost importance for the efficient and secure operation of hierarchically structured power systems. Conventional coordinated optimization methods, such as the Lagrangian relaxation and Benders decomposition, require iterative information exchange among subsystems. Iterative coordination methods have drawbacks including slow convergence, risk of oscillation and divergence, and incapability of multi-level optimization problems. To this end, this paper aims at the non-iterative coordinated optimization method for hierarchical power systems. The theory of the equivalent projection (EP) is proposed, which makes external equivalence of the optimal dispatch model of the subsystem. Based on the EP theory, a coordinated optimization framework is developed, where each subsystem submits the EP model as a substitute for its original model to participate in the cross-system coordination. The proposed coordination framework is proven to guarantee the same optimality as the joint optimization, with additional benefits of avoiding iterative information exchange, protecting privacy, compatibility with practical dispatch scheme, and capability of multi-level problems.

Socio-Onomastics of Distorted Names: Nicknaming Practices among Punjabi Speakers in Pakistan

Due to hierarchical power relations and the difficulty of confronting others or expressing disdain explicitly in small rural communities, nicknames and spoiled names can be an overt avenue for venting displeasure, ridiculing, expressing social inequality, asserting superiority, conveying judgment, or warning against improper behaviour. The study focuses on how native Punjabi speakers in rural Punjab, Pakistan, distort names to express disdain, rage, affection, or frankness towards people in their presence or absence. Distorted names used both overtly (in the person’s presence) or secretly have been collected through a questionnaire filled in by 22 participants belonging to 22 villages in Punjab, Pakistan. Socio-cultural implications of those names have also been investigated and discussed. The author shows that the boundary between distorted names and nicknames is indistinct. This applies to both their formal features, semantic and pragmatic properties. Speakers not only morphologically distort the formal names but also use the names of castes, animals, physical attributes, and professional titles as address forms or referential expressions. Although distorted names generally offend the referent, they, like nicknames, can be used in both positive and negative contexts. The article describes the main motivational patterns of distorted names, similar to those usually pointed out for nicknames, and focuses mainly on their pragmatic features as noted in the metalinguistic comments of the respondents. Though the use of such naming labels may display quite universal regularities, the socio-cultural situation of the caste-based traditional rural communities of Punjab brings its own specifics to the way distorted names and nicknames are used in the area under study.

Prospective power systems models development algorithms

This research aims to automate the creation of prospective models essential for long-term power system planning. Several algorithms and accompanying tools have been developed to transform an existing power system simulation model (SM) into a series of prospective simulation models (PSMs). This article outlines a general approach to SM conversion using a command system, enabling the binding of SM variants to specific planning periods and operating conditions (OC). Several tools to ensure PSM quality and adequacy, including forecasted power consumption balancing and security-constrained optimal power flow (SCOPF), are presented. Advanced techniques for assessing transient stability model quality and implementing hierarchical power system modeling are also integral parts of this development process.

Experiências de convivência com o transtorno mental grave: narrativas sobre o processo de recuperação pessoal

Abstract The article approaches the subject of recovery, a sociopolitical movement, field of studies and practices that aims, from the experience of people living with mental disorders, to promote a more optimistic outlook of the prognosis. Aiming to understand the recovery process of people who experience severe mental disorders, qualitative research was developed, based on Gadamerian hermeneutics. We conducted in-depth interviews, in the form of life narratives, with five people who recognize themselves in the process of recovery, and are part of a mental health patient group. Based on narrative analysis, three axes were organized: recovery process facilitators and coping strategies; barriers of recovery process; and relationship with diagnosis. The discussion is based on Canguilhem’s theory; in the logic of psychosocial care, and in theories about the notion of recovery. We identified important intersubjective and sociocultural resources for recovery, however, we concluded that these same elements may constitute barriers to a creative existence, as the social norm remains crossed by the stigma that accompanies mental disorders, and by hierarchical power relations.

Shared Leadership and Employee Satisfaction in China: A Multiple Correspondence Analysis of Gender and Education Aspects of Participative Leadership Models

The relevance of researching on modern management approaches is today´s dynamic labor market’s demand for flexible leadership models, such as shared leadership, to attract talents in companies by meeting employee´s requirements of more participation in management tasks. This paper aims for the investigation of gender and education level related influences on attitudes toward shared leadership and employee satisfaction in a Chinese cultural context for a better understanding of possible limitations of shared leadership. Shared leadership is mainly explored with a focus on its origins in North America, the study of shared leadership in the Chinese culture is underrepresented. This quantitative research is conducted through an online survey, distributed by WeChat, involving 103 Chinese employees, with 39 women and 64 men, 34 years old on average, in a manufacturing work environment to approve the industry relevance. The convenience sampling ensures a high level of trust and data quality of the respondents regarding sensitive information about employee satisfaction and attitude toward shared leadership. Only existing, validated questionnaires were used. The survey regarding employee satisfaction is based on Spector (1985). The survey regarding attitude toward shared leadership is based on Small (2007). The results are evaluated by their means, standard deviations, correlation analysis and multiple correspondence analysis. Statistical analysis is performed by XLSTAT. The first hypothesis (H1), suggesting a clustering effect by gender and education level on shared leadership’s scope, is not significantly confirmed by the correlation analysis. The multiple correspondence analysis raises suspicions about men exhibiting higher employee satisfaction and a more negative attitude toward shared leadership than women. Individuals with a bachelor’s degree tend to display ambivalent attitudes toward shared leadership. The second hypothesis (H2), proposing a positive correlation between attitude toward shared leadership and employee satisfaction, is not confirmed by the correlation analysis. No significant correlation is found among the variables for the entire sample of Chinese respondents. The third hypothesis (H3), proposing an ambivalent attitude of Chinese employees toward shared leadership, is confirmed by the calculated mean score within the survey by Small (2007). There are potential reasons for this ambivalence, e.g. suggesting a conflict between traditional and modern values in China. This paper recommends a deeper understanding of ambivalent employee satisfaction at work to enhance the effectivity and efficiency of planned leadership changes. Tailored leadership training should be designed to align with the preferences of these specific target groups. Future research directions could focus on strategies for persuading team members to embrace a shared leadership approach. Additionally, exploring the reasons behind negative attitudes toward shared leadership paves the way for further research, such as examining potential connections with hierarchical power structures.

‘Towards a Feminist Consciousness’: Digitalising Leadership

This article examines the ways in which transnational and queer feminisms could conceptualise (new) meanings of leadership that are grounded in collectivism. Through being in conversation with the co-founders/running members and collaborators of Towards a Feminist Consciousness, a Pan-African queer feminist online platform from Western Sahara, this paper attempts to interrogate how their leadership praxis challenges the conventional thinking of leadership. The article demonstrates that Towards a Feminist Consciousness’s collective leadership turns cyberspace into a powerful communication instrument to establish mutuality and solidarity networks -transcending the boundaries of the nation and gender. First, the paper emphasises how their leadership emerged to challenge their erasure through decentralising knowledge production, which is usually restricted to certain geographical locations. It further addresses how hierarchal power relations could be negotiated through participating in the decision-making processes, thus allowing the alternation of power and influence. Second, the article highlights that facilitating open dialogue could solidify feminist consciousness transcending boundaries. In doing so, collective leadership processes are established through expert and referent power. Expert power is exhibited through theorising their lived experiences under the Moroccan occupation, while referent power is rooted in establishing mutuality based on their shared purpose and aspirations. The article lastly draws on emotional leadership as an integral element when theorising Towards a Feminist Consciousness’s leadership praxis through the prism of political love as the way forward.

The Far West of Nepal as a Remote Area

Remoteness, as a subject for multi-disciplinary analysis, remains largely under-studied and under-theorised. Though the idea of remote areas is familiar in Nepal, thanks to the government’s long-running ‘Remote Area Development Programme (1966-2017), there has hardly been any conceptual work on the subject in the Nepalese context. We ask who defines ideas of remoteness and for whom it is an issue. Data were collected through two Focus Group Discussions (FGDs), organized in Bajhang and Kanchanpur in 2022, as well as through interviews, informal discussion, and observations during fieldwork in the region between 2020 and 2022.
 The paper suggests that remoteness: (a) is both a fact of geography and a state of mind and culture; (b) thus, is an idea imposed from outside, but also a condition of lived reality; (c) is a relative concept, defined in relation to multi-layered hierarchical power centres located elsewhere; and (d) is a development category. Therefore, we argue, the very notions of ‘sudūr’ and ‘remote’ (durgam) are imposed political constructs, symbolizing (more than spatial position) the loci of power elsewhere, and can have detrimental consequences: persistent neglect, the reproduction of marginalization, and increasing dependency.

Negotiation, power and ethics in online collaborative translation: translation of “COVID-19” by Wikipedia translator-editors

ABSTRACT The online encyclopaedic translation of Wikipedia articles has garnered heightened scholarly interest as an inherently collaborative endeavour that has opened new avenues for exploring the ethical intricacies of self-organised negotiation processes and hierarchical power dynamics among online translator-editors. Nevertheless, the ethical terrain of the irreconcilable conflicts between individual translators with discordant voices and divergent motivations in online practices remains relatively uncharted. By investigating the translator-editors’ adopted cooperative behaviour as anchorage fraught with intersubjective conflicts and ethical defences, this article uses the collaborative translation of the Chinese-language Wikipedia ‘COVID-19’ article to explore what (dis)enables ethical cooperation in the digital space. Special attention is given to instances in which collaboration is ensnared by peril, thereby necessitating the imperative preservation of negotiations. The influence of Wikipedia’s environmental characteristics on translational activities is analysed with regard to the confluence of the disruptive and centrifugal social forces at play, which ultimately shape the negotiations and community maintenance of the online translation collaborations.

What Is Minimalist Governance?*

“Informality” and “semiformality” are the primary characteristics of minimalist governance. The operation of minimalist governance assumes a boundary between state and society and some amount of autonomous space between them at the ground level. Whether in a traditional or modern form, minimalist governance stands in contrast to the formal, hierarchical bureaucracy of the state. Minimalism is a pragmatic approach to governance tailored to local conditions, a form of semiformal or informal government that emphasizes operational effectiveness over elaborate bureaucratic procedures. Since minimalist governance does not rely entirely on the hierarchical power of the state apparatus, this semiformal approach is simple and effective, hence its “minimalist” appearance. The key to solving the problem of formalism at the basic level of government lies in managing the relationship between “a thousand threads above” and “a single needle below.” Autonomy and self-governance must be granted to the basic level of the government so that party committees may fulfill their integrative political functions and their role in minimalist governance. Ultimately, this will allow the “needle” of grassroots organizations to connect with “a thousand threads above” while also penetrating deeply into local society. There is significant practical and theoretical importance in understanding the uniqueness of Chinese-style modernization, and the modernization of rural governance, from the perspective of “social foundations,” but to achieve this Chinese-style modernization we must learn from the West and from China’s own traditional and contemporary experiences.

Money Makes the World Go Round: How Much Difference Do Recovery and Resilience Plans Make to EU Reform Governance?

AbstractThe Next Generation EU (NGEU) package transformed European economic governance. This article examines the implications of this change in terms of EU polity formation and in terms of social policy content. It asks whether the temporary availability of large funds increases the leverage of the Commission in the European Semester and how this innovation affects sensitive policies. In the tradition of Stein Rokkan, the article advances a conception of the EU as a compound polity that needs to reconcile dispersed authority with second‐order loyalty. We then contrast our theoretical expectations with traditional reform surveillance and experimentalist governance theories. The drafting of Recovery and Resilience Plans for Italy and Spain provides the empirical basis for assessing these expectations. The analysis shows a dual effect: adding fiscal capacity to the European Semester enhances the Commission's hierarchical power whilst the need to ensure member states' loyalty leaves room for national executives to insist on their priorities.

Understanding Complex Relationships between Teachers and Parents

Collaborative relationships between school and families are increasingly put forward as a means to promote student success and persistence. This collaborative work sometimes creates tensions and misunderstandings (Ravn, 2005) that can exacerbate divisions of power and reproduce inequalities (e.g., Crozier, 2000; Lareau, 2011; Vincent 2000). The main purpose of this study is to identify the areas of tensions and inner contradictions that emerge in the teacher-parent relationships in order to guide them while engaging in individual and collective transformation processes. Relying on Hoover-Dempsey et al.’s proposed model (2010), we conducted in-depth interviews with volunteered elementary and secondary teachers. Salient findings are discussed in light of the cultural-historical activity theory (CHAT) (Engeström, 2015). These include mainly issues of trust versus control when it comes to choosing communication tools and issues related to the hierarchical status and power inside and outside the school when it comes to the redistribution of actions among the school community members. As a promising research and intervention avenue, the authors suggest to apply the Change Laboratory method (Virkkunen & Newnham, 2013) anchored in CHAT and that uses mirror data to reflect upon and foster transformative processes, hence, relationships between teachers and parents.

Between Peripherality and Privilege: “Women Wage Peace” as a Case Study of Intersectionality Practices in Women’s Movements

Abstract This article analyzes Women Wage Peace (WWP), an Israeli grassroots peace movement, as a case study of intersectionality in women’s movements. Using an ethnographic model based on semi-structured interviews with previous and current movement members, I investigate the dilemmas and strategies of WWP in its pursuit of a diverse membership base, a goal considered unique in Israeli peace discourse. This study contributes to understanding intersectional theory and practice, explaining why such an approach is not (always) effective in women’s movements despite the best intentions. Examining WWP through the lens of peripherality and privilege highlights the movement’s hierarchical power structure, identifying the places where intersectional awareness does not translate into political practice. By providing examples of the challenges of intersectionality in women’s movements, these findings offer a response to the need for more nuanced analysis in current feminist and social movement research.

Auditing, Revealing and Promoting Industry in the London Borough of Southwark

Renewed enthusiasm surrounds the potential for urban industry and its contribution to the socioeconomic diversity of cities, despite concerns about the loss of industrial uses, land, and buildings in high-value, post-industrial cities. Yet, industry is often hidden and undervalued, and methodologies to change the culture around nurturing industry in cities have not been well explored. As a first step in moving this agenda forward, this article proposes effective ways to reveal industrial uses and to advocate for policy protections of the land they occupy. It examines how London Metropolitan University’s School of Art, Architecture and Design (AAD) Cities action researchers applied their <em>Audit, Reveal and Promote </em>methodology to Southwark, a London borough with a high concentration of urban industry. There are key aspects to revealing industrial economies: collecting accurate data on the ground, showcasing local businesses, building stakeholder networks through mutual trust, and creating a space of possibilities between vertical hierarchical and grassroots power networks to enable stakeholders to participate in urban change. This article presents a methodology for cultural change towards valuing a mix of uses, including industry, to transform land development towards retention and densification of industry.

The coordinated fuzzy control of hierarchical power balance of new energy microgrid

In order to improve the coordinated control effect of hierarchical power balance of new energy microgrid, this paper applies fuzzy control method to this system, and proposes a hierarchical control strategy based on event-triggered communication. Each DG is regarded as a proxy, and the continuous actual value of output is replaced by the state prediction value. Moreover, two different event trigger condition functions for frequency and voltage are designed based on Lyapunov method respectively. At the same time, each DG only communicates with its neighbor DG aperiodic at the event trigger time, and finally all DG are restored to the reference value provided by the virtual leader. Finally, this paper constructs a coordinated fuzzy control simulation system for hierarchical power balance of new energy microgrid. Combined with the simulation results, the method proposed in this paper is feasible.

Research, Power, and Care: Limitations to Collaborative Research with Children and Youth

This article considers the obstacles and opportunities in collaborative action research. It focuses on two examples: a virtual participatory action research with five migrant Latina young women and a participatory action-oriented project in a middle school in Baltimore, Maryland. We argue that intentions alone are not enough to challenge the dynamics of knowledge production. Children and adult researchers continue to interact in the context of hierarchical power structures. Instead of adults “making space” for independent child subjects to participate, we suggest that pedagogies of acompañamiento and ternura, which emphasize nurturing and accompanying participants, are necessary to foster spaces of collaboration. We broaden conversations about critical research methodologies to emphasize actual processes of relationship building in the context of uneven interdependencies and care. We suggest the important role that radical educational pedagogies from Latin America played in shaping our own research approaches.

Net Clinical and Quality of Life Benefit of Luspatercept in Transfusion-Dependent MDS: A Win Ratio Analysis Using Data from the Phase 3 MEDALIST Study

Background: Patients with transfusion-dependent (TD) myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) often experience various anemia-related symptoms and functional impairments. Treatments reducing red blood cell (RBC) transfusion burden could impact these symptoms and/or functions to varying degrees depending on patients' conditions at baseline and warrants the use of composite endpoints, including both clinical outcomes and patient-reported outcomes (PROs) to fully capture these benefits. However, conventional statistical approaches may not satisfactorily assess composite outcomes, especially when the components of the composite outcomes have different types of scales and/or degrees of importance to stakeholders. The win ratio (WR) approach, one of the generalized pairwise comparison methods commonly used for assessing treatments in cardiovascular diseases, offers hierarchical structure, statistical power, and flexibility to address these challenges. Objective: This exploratory analysis used the WR approach to assess the net benefit of luspatercept vs. placebo on composite clinical/PRO endpoints using data from the MEDALIST study. Methods: Four different WR scenarios were performed, in each of which every possible patient-to-patient pair between the luspatercept and placebo arms was compared on a set of relevant clinical/PRO endpoints in a pre-specified order of assumed priority from patients' perspectives, accompanied with a pre-determined rule to assign a win, loss, or tie for luspatercept in each pairwise comparison on each endpoint. If a win or loss could not be determined on a given endpoint, then the next endpoint in the hierarchy was evaluated until a win or loss occurred. Otherwise, if all pre-specified endpoints were evaluated, a tie was assigned. The scenarios considered two clinical endpoints: RBC-transfusion independence [TI] ≥8 weeks over Weeks 1-24 and RBC-TI over Weeks 1-24. PRO endpoints included changes from baseline to the end of Week 24 in five key domains of the European Organization for the Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire (EORTC QLQ-C30), categorized as improvement (≥10-point improvement), stable (10 > change >-10), or worsening (≥10-point worsening). Improvement was considered a better outcome than stable and worsening, and stable was considered better than worsening when determining a win or loss for luspatercept on each of the PRO endpoints. The four different scenarios of composite clinical/PRO endpoints and their order of priority, shown in the Table were pre-specified for assessment . The WR (nominal 95% CI, p-value) for luspatercept on each scenario of the composite clinical/PRO endpoints was calculated as the total number of pairs with a win divided by the total number of pairs with a loss. A WR >1 indicates that luspatercept is more favorable than placebo. Results: 153 patients randomized to the luspatercept arm were compared to 76 patients randomized to the placebo arm, for a total of 11,628 pairwise comparisons within each WR analysis. In all four scenarios, WRs were nominally statistically significantly in favor of luspatercept ( Table). Most wins favoring luspatercept were attributed to wins on the clinical endpoint. Among those pairs who tied on the clinical endpoint, the luspatercept arm experienced more wins (or tied) in almost all of the five PRO endpoints. WRs were similar whether PRO endpoints were prioritized over others or not. Conclusions: The analysis findings indicate that, for two randomly selected patients with low-risk TD MDS, the odds that the patient treated with luspatercept would have a better outcome (if not tied) than the patient with placebo, is significantly higher than 1, ranging between 1.51 to 1.90. The analysis also shows that when multiple clinical and PRO endpoints, especially with different importance to stakeholders, are considered to provide a comprehensive treatment benefit, WR can be a useful and valuable approach for making this evaluation.

Slow justice and other unexpected consequences of litigation in environmental conflicts

Movements are increasingly taking companies to court for environmental and social harms. Yet little is known about the consequences this strategy has for movements and their struggles. Through a cross-country comparison of three environmental litigation cases in Argentina, Nicaragua, and Spain, we find that local groups encounter three interrelated consequences: i) ‘slow justice’, a strategy generally driven by companies to delay proceedings and demobilize movements; ii) courts reduce complex impacts to simplified, scientifically verifiable and legally punishable damages, thus invisibilizing certain harms, victims, narratives and demands; and iii) local groups lose control of the resistance process as judges and lawyers become key decision-makers. These dynamics interact with the specific features of environmental conflicts —uncertainty, slow violence and marginalized affected parties— to deepen power inequalities in litigation processes. Our findings are contextualized within the literatures on legal mobilization and the judicialization of politics. We conclude that social movements, when looking for a fair and just solution through the judicial system, encounter different but highly hierarchical power structures. And even if they win in the courts, companies can avoid complying with the judicial orders.