Minority Members Research Articles

The importance of equity in transplant oncology.

Transplant oncology encompasses and utilizes liver transplantation (LT) in combination with other aspects of cancer care to offer improved long-term outcomes for patients with liver cancer, but not all patients have equal access and ability to undergo LT. Social determinants of health may negatively impact a patient's ability to receive liver-related oncologic care, including LT. This review highlights recent work exposing gaps in access to LT, including transplant oncology, and interventions to ameliorate these disparities. Members of racial and ethnic minorities and indigenous groups, females, socioeconomically disadvantaged persons, and patients from rural areas are less likely to undergo LT. Recent studies have also described programs that have successfully mitigated some of the barriers in access to transplant oncology that these patients experience, including targeted outreach programs and access to virtual healthcare. Disparities in access to LT for liver cancer are increasingly well described, but additional research is needed to find effective ways to ameliorate these differences.

Ideological segmentation of mass strata of the population under conditions of aggravated confrontation with the West (empirical analysis)

Using the data from surveys conducted by IS FCTAS RAS over a number of years, it is shown that despite the absence of the segmentation traditionally used for ideological structuring in the mass strata of the population, it still exists, but is based on different grounds. Moreover, the importance of ideological contradictions in the perception of Russians themselves has grown significantly over the past decade, and the majority of the country's citizens now have internally consistent ideological views. The comparative role of their various components changes over time under the influence of external events. The main line of demarcation in the ideological segmentation is the attitude to the West in modern conditions, which is based on different attitudes to the civilizational specifics of Russia and, in turn, influences their assessment of the vector of the country's development, their trust in the authorities, attitude to the special military operation, etc. It is also shown that in recent years, in the course of active crystallization and polarization of ideological views of Russians', an ideological majority and an ideological minority have been formed in the country, comprising almost two-thirds and about one-third of the population, respectively. The normative-value basis of the former is the recognition of the priority of state interests over human rights and the conviction that Western values are not suitable for Russians. The ideological majority is divided into a core and a peripheral group, which differ in the degree of consistency of their views and assessments, including those regarding to the special military operation in Ukraine. The ideological minority, which is characterized by the desire for Russia to adhere to the norms proposed by Western countries, is also heterogeneous. It includes, firstly, a group that is consistent in its negative attitude towards the current course of Russia, which makes up about a quarter of the population, and whose moods are primarily influenced by the unfavorable socio-economic situation these people are experiencing. The other group includes representatives who are loyal to the authorities and the course being implemented but would like Russia to follow the Western-oriented path in future. The normative value basis of the views of the members of the ideological minority is the recognition of the priority of human rights over the interests of the state.

Conceptualisation and operationalisation of minorities in international law: Past experiences and new avenues

AbstractDespite decades of scholarly effort, there is still no universally accepted definition of the concept of minorities or the criteria for minority membership. Beyond its theoretical importance, the lack of a definition also has practical significance, as it may easily lead to the abuse of minority rights. In this paper, we offer a brief historical overview of the various definitional attempts in international law, including those enshrined in legal documents as well as in the practice of adjudicatory bodies. Starting from the era of the League of Nations and the case-law of the Permanent Court of International Justice, we continue by looking at major developments within the United Nations (with special attention to the practice of the Human Rights Committee) as well as the Council of Europe (and the approach of the Advisory Committee of the Framework Convention for National Minorities). Our aim is to explore the trajectory from old to recent conceptual endeavours, where the major dividing line is drawn between the relatively narrow notion of minorities (covering only autochthonous or traditional groups) as opposed to a more inclusive view (including also immigrants and, potentially, visitors under the minority protection mechanisms).

“I was told that people might hurt me”: Experiences of religious discrimination among Jewish, Christian, and Alevi youth in Turkey

AbstractThis study investigates the experiences of young members of Alevi, Christian, and Jewish religious minorities in Turkey, a secular country with a Sunni Muslim majority. Data was collected through semi structured interviews with 29 participants aged from 17 to 24. A thematic analysis was employed to explore patterns of discrimination and exclusion in their everyday lives. The experiences of Jewish and Christian participants are characterized by ostracism, increased vulnerability to injury, and passing as a member of the majority. Alevi participants report being subjected to intense pressure to become assimilated into majority Sunni practices, as well as frequent exposure to harshly unfavourable stereotypes, and ongoing rejection of Alevi theology as a ‘true’ belief system. The discussion centres on the issue of misrecognition and, particularly, denial of identity, contextualizes the findings into broader dynamics of nation‐state politics, and focuses attention on the agency of minorities and majorities. Limitations of the study and recommendations for future research have also been presented. Please refer to the Supplementary Material section to find this article's Community and Social Impact Statement.

The Development and Performance of Alternative Criteria for Lung Cancer Screening.

The recommendation for lung cancer screening (LCS) developed by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) may exclude some high-benefit people. To determine whether alternative criteria can identify these high-benefit people. Model-based projections. United States. People from the 1997-2014 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) to develop alternative criteria using fast-and-frugal tree algorithms and from the 2014-2018 NHIS and the 2022 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System for comparisons of USPSTF criteria versus alternative criteria. Life-years gained from LCS were estimated using the life-years gained from screening computed tomography (LYFS-CT) model. "High-benefit" was defined as gaining an average of at least 16.2 days of life from 3 annual screenings, which reflects high lung cancer risk and substantial life gains if lung cancer is detected by screening. The final alternative criteria were 1) people who smoked any amount each year for at least 40 years, or 2) people aged 60 to 80 years with at least 40 pack-years of smoking. The USPSTF and alternative criteria selected similar numbers of people for LCS. Compared with the USPSTF criteria, the alternative criteria had higher sensitivity (91% vs. 78%; P < 0.001) and specificity (86% vs. 84%; P < 0.001) for identifying high-benefit people. For racial and ethnic minorities, the alternative criteria provided greater gains in sensitivity than the USPSTF criteria (Black: 83% vs. 56% [P < 0.001]; Hispanic: 95% vs. 73% [P = 0.086]; Asian: 94% vs. 68% [P = 0.171]) at similar specificity. The alternative criteria identify high-risk, high-benefit groups excluded by the USPSTF criteria (those with a smoking duration of ≥40 years but <20 pack-years and a quit history of >15 years), many of whom are members of racial and ethnic minorities. The results were based on model projections. These results suggest that simple alternative LCS criteria can identify substantially more high-benefit people, especially in some racial and ethnic groups. U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Lung Precision Oncology Program.

Engagement in rapid public health research among young people from underserved communities: maximising opportunities and overcoming barriers

BackgroundInclusion in public health research of young people from low-income households and those from minority ethnic groups remains low. It is recognised that there is a need to change the way in which research is conducted so that it becomes more inclusive. The aim of this work was to identify novel and innovative ways to maximise recruitment and inclusion of diverse participants when doing co-production within very short time frames for emergency responses.MethodWe conducted interviews with young people from low-income and minority ethnic backgrounds, and members or leaders of groups or organisations supporting or representing young people from underserved communities.ResultsA total of 42 participants took part in an interview. This included 30 young people from low income or minority ethnic backgrounds and 12 community leaders/service providers. Of the 30 young people, 26 participants identified as female and 12 participants identified as being from a minority ethnic background. Participants discussed a number of interrelated barriers to research involvement and identified ways in which barriers may be reduced. Prejudice and discrimination experienced by young people from underserved communities has led to substantial mistrust of educational and governmental establishments. Rigid and unfamiliar research practices further limit the involvement of young people. Four themes were identified as ways of supporting involvement, including: making opportunities available for young people, adaptations to research governance, understanding and acknowledging challenges faced by young people, and ensuring reciprocal benefits.ConclusionThis research explored barriers to engagement in rapid public health co-production. Working with communities to co-produce rapid recruitment and research procedures to suit the needs and the context in which young people live is necessary.

Secularity and Muslim-Christian Relations in Uganda

Abstract The article reconstructs aspects of the secularizing project of the British colonial administration in Uganda by exploring how state regulatory practices in the field of Western school education set the conditions for two forms of religious difference: first, relations between Muslims as members of a religious minority and the Christian majority, and second, dynamics among Muslims that transpired not only in leadership competition but also in controversies over education and proper religious practice. Focusing on the intersections between a state regulatory regime and the activities of Muslims who claimed religious and political leadership on behalf of other Muslims in the areas of Buganda and Bugisu, the article argues that these Muslim intellectuals mediated and contributed to the colonial administration’s production of Muslims as a religious minority. As articulators of Islam, they (re)formulated and debated the forms and purpose of Muslim education and partly novel understandings of proper religious practice, and what it means to be a modern, pious Muslim in the new colonial order. Their political aspirations were hampered, not only as a direct consequence of the colonial administration’s production of systematic inequalities between Christians and Muslims, but also as a result of the dynamics of intra-Muslim plurality.

Minority groups, Indigenousness and Indigeneity, and place in social perceptions of future climate interventions

Radical climate intervention technologies such as carbon dioxide removal and solar radiation management pose difficult questions as potential remedies for destructive climate change. The effect these technologies could have on Indigenous peoples and minority groups, and those living in rural areas, could be profound and potentially calamitous. Drawing on a large-scale, cross-country set of nationally representative surveys (n = 30,284 participants, with at least 1,000 in each country) in 30 countries and 19 languages, this article examines public preferences for climate intervention technologies through the three dimensions of minority groups, Indigenousness, and place. The survey explores 10 climate intervention or geoengineering technologies: stratospheric aerosol injection, marine cloud brightening, space-based geoengineering, afforestation and reforestation, soil carbon sequestration, blue carbon and marine biomass, direct air capture with carbon storage, bioenergy with carbon capture and storage, enhanced rock weathering, and biochar. Comparing the full sample of respondents with a subsample self-identifying as ethnic minorities or Indigenous peoples, it finds this latter category of respondents has greater familiarity with these technologies than non-members, are more positive about small-scale trials and have more positive attitudes towards engineered options (versus nature-based options). Those in cities also expressed stronger support for small-scale field trials. Moreover, members of Indigenous groups or ethnic minorities expressed significantly higher levels of support for small-scale trials for nearly all technologies, were more supportive of policy incentives, and, inter alia, less supportive of policy restrictions. Conversely, non-members of Indigenous or ethnic minority groups expressed small but significantly greater support for independent national restrictions being placed on solar radiation management and engineered forms of carbon removal.

Differential effects of positive versus negative contact: The importance of distinguishing valence from intensity

More and more research is considering the effects of both positive and negative intergroup contact on intergroup attitudes. To date, little is known about what factors may differentially influence these effects. We propose that differentiating not only between positive and negative contact (i.e., its valence), but also considering the intensity (i.e., low or high positivity/negativity) of contact valence is critical to understanding contact effects. We predicted that intensifying positivity in the realm of positive contact would have a stronger effect on outgroup attitudes than intensifying negativity. We report evidence supporting this hypothesis from three experiments which manipulated the quality of feedback given during a cooperation task by a confederate who acted as a member of a student outgroup (two online: N = 87, N = 169; one in person: N = 78), summarized in an internal meta-analysis and a large survey of White British majority and Asian British minority members ( N = 2,994). Our results suggest that intensity of valenced intergroup contact may be a key factor for resolving inconsistencies in the current literature on valenced intergroup contact.

Being Free, Feeling Free: Race, Gender, and Republican Domination

Abstract Members of racial and sexual minorities often live in the fear of arbitrary interference from others—rogue police officers or sexual harassers. Are they unfree by dint of believing they are unfree? I draw on the republican theory of freedom—according to which we are unfree if we are subjected to a risk of arbitrary interference—to offer a qualified positive answer. I clarify the role of probabilistic judgements about risk in republican political theory. I argue that under specific circumstances, diagnoses of republican freedom can be indexed to a certain belief about probability—what it is warranted for someone to believe in light of their distinctive epistemic perspective.

Discrimination, Internalized Sexual Prejudice and the Post-Sex Experience Among Members of Sexual Minorities

ABSTRACT Postcoital dysphoria (PCD) refers to a counter-intuitive experience of sadness, tearfulness, irritability or dysphoria following an otherwise satisfactory and consensual sexual experience. Research to date has primarily focused on heteronormative samples. The current study explored the prevalence of PCD, and potential correlates of internalized sexual prejudice, perceived discrimination, and sex life satisfaction within a LGBTQIA+ population. One hundred and seventy-two adults identifying as LGBTQIA+ completed an online survey. Main outcome measures included the Post Sex Experience Scale (p-SES), Everyday Discrimination Scale (EDS), Internalized Homophobia Scale (IHS), Satisfaction with Sex Life Scale (SWSLS), and study specific questions. Prevalence of PCD was 42% of males attracted to other males and 81% of participants identifying as bisexual/sexual fluid. A significant and a moderate inverse correlation was found between sex life satisfaction and PCD (r = −.75) for individuals identifying as bisexual/fluid sexual orientation. Significant correlations were found between perceived discrimination and PCD (weak positive correlation, r = .28), and sex life satisfaction and PCD (moderate negative correlation, r = −.59) in men attracted to men. This research suggests being a member of a sexual minority is associated with sex-related dysphoria and dissatisfaction. Further research is needed to further elucidate PCD.

Examining trust in the police and justice system among ethnic minority members: The case of Moroccan- and Turkish-Dutch citizens in the Netherlands

While extant studies indicate that ethnic minority citizens report relatively low levels of trust in the police and justice system, it is less clear how that trust can be explained. Thanks to its purposive oversampling of Dutch citizens with Turkish and Moroccan origins and nested structure (individuals clustered within neighbourhoods), the Netherlands Longitudinal Lifecourse Study has enabled us to scrutinise which of the following factors contribute to their trust in the police and justice system: (a) being in a weak socioeconomic position; (b) individual social capital; (c) (perceiving to be) living in underprivileged neighbourhoods characterised by disorder and low social capital; and (d) perceived discrimination. Multilevel structural equation modelling, allowing us to untangle individual perceptions from intersubjective neighbourhood-level conditions, reveals that Moroccan-Dutch citizens report less trust than Turkish-Dutch citizens. We find that perceived neighbourhood disorder and perceived discrimination link to lower trust, while traditional explanations such as socioeconomic position and social capital are far less relevant. We discuss our findings’ implications for ongoing debates on, amongst others, the role of ethnicity and neighbourhood conditions in trust in the police and justice system.

Minority service providers serving majority group customers: The relations between power attribution, empathy and emotional labor

This study examines the service relationships between minority service providers and their majority-group customers, focusing on power attribution, empathy, and emotional labor strategies. An online survey tapped the perceptions of service providers belonging to two different ethnic and national minorities (N = 511; of the sample, 301 respondents were FSU immigrants (59%), and 210 were members of the Arab minority (41%). Age ranged from 18 to 65 (Mage = 37); the total sample included 63% females. All service providers were from the “Service Shop” sector).Minority service providers' responses were affected significantly by the power they attributed to majority-group customers, activating higher emotional efforts to please customers. Testing moderated mediation model revealed that the mediation effect of minority service providers' empathy on the relationship between power attributed to majority-group customers and minority-group service providers’ emotional labor found to be significantly stronger for national minority service employees (in compare to ethnic minorities).The study emphasizes the importance of service relationships in a diverse environment and their practical implications. Additional theoretical contribution is related to the distinction between two types of minorities: national and ethnic minorities (service provider origin) in order to explore their attribution of power towards majority group customers, which effect the mechanism of empathy and in turn minorities provider's emotional mechanism (emotional labor).

The Direction of Ethnic Vocational Education under the Way of “Positional Education”

The essence of education is to develop people and develop humanity. No matter what kind of education, must follow this essential provisions. Vocational education for ethnic minorities is an important link in the education chain and plays an important role in improving the quality of ethnic minority members and adapting to economic and social needs. However, the emergence of common assimilation and marketization in the objectives and courses of ethnic vocational education has brought about the lack of ethnic and professional characte ristics in ethnic vocational education, which has caused the problems such as the failure of the trained talents to meet the needs of local economic and social development. The concept of “positional education” has brought a new Angle of thinking about this issue to ethnic vocational education. Ethnic vocational education must first be accurately positioned, and then it can seek development.

Η ποικιλομορφία και η πολυλειτουργικότητα του ρατσισμού σε άρθρα μεταναστευτικής εφημερίδας

Contemporary western nation-states are built on national and racist discourses and values which are not easily contested by majority members and may affect the discourse and behaviors of minority members as well, even though the latter suffer from the discriminatory consequences of such discourses and values. Research has shown that minority members do not always resist national/racist pressures but often succumb to them, thus accepting majority values and perceiving themselves as Others, namely as majority members usually perceive them. In this context, the present study attempts to explore ways of detecting minority members’ (in the present case, migrants’) internalized racism (Pyke, 2010). The critical analyses performed on two newspaper articles written by young female migrants living in Greece aim to show that, in their effort to adjust themselves to the Greek linguacultural context and to form ties with majority members, the authors reproduce racist views and values usually attested among members of the Greek majority. Given that these articles are published in a newspaper of left wing, antiracist, and pro-migrant orientation, the co-existence of racist and antiracist meanings and values in the same texts blurs the boundaries between racism and antiracism. This renders the texts examined here instances of liquid racism (Weaver, 2016), namely an ambiguous form of racism giving rise to opposing (i.e. racist and antiracist) interpretations and further entrenching the hegemony of racist discourse.

Imposter syndrome as a student feeling

Introduction: What happens if we reconsider the concept of "imposter syndrome" as a student experience in academic work? What can we learn about who knows what, how, and about what from imposter syndrome? The term "imposter syndrome" refers to the ongoing feeling, despite one's accomplishments, of being a fraud, frequently accompanied by a fear of being discovered. Definition: Clance and Imes (1978: 241) coined the term imposter phenomenon to describe ‘an internal experience of intellectual phoniness’ among ‘high-achieving’ women who ‘persist in believing that they are really not bright and have fooled anyone who thinks otherwise’ despite their achievements. Risk: academics students, professionals, underrepresented groups—women, members of ethnic minorities, persons with disabilities. Symptoms: Thoughts like "I feel like a fake," "I must not fail," or "I just got lucky", Fear of not succeeding, Undermining one's own accomplishments. Get rid of imposter syndrome: Education, Connect with mentors, Speak with experts,

Under the Radar or Into the Spotlight: How Does Social Presence Affect Minorities in Virtual Groups?

As society has become more reliant on information and communication technologies (ICTs), ICTs have become more adept at supporting social presence. Social presence is the extent to which a medium facilitates awareness of other people and relationships; this is generally considered desirable, but what are the limits to its enhancing effects? Paradoxically, social presence humanizes ICT-mediated interactions, which can lead to more socially conscious behaviors, but it can also trigger pre-existing social biases. We explore the potential unintended consequences of social presence for minority group members-members who are especially vulnerable to stereotyping and discriminatory behavior. Our lab study of 178 groups across three conditions revealed that minority group members were subject to more negative treatment. In turn, minority members responded more negatively when using ICTs with higher social presence. These findings have implications for minority members of virtual groups at work, school, and other social interactions.

Inappropriate Behavior at Finnish Live Music Events

In this study, we concentrated on Finnish live music events, aiming to study audiences’ experiences of inappropriate behavior, particularly the effect of being a member of a minority in the risk of facing such behavior. The research data comprised 19,452 answers to two web surveys; 22% of males, 33% of females, and 64% of nonbinary persons had experienced some or several forms of inappropriate behavior at live music events. The large number of responses from minority group members allowed statistical analysis focusing on their experiences. Being a member of a minority significantly increases the risk of facing inappropriate behavior. The more minority groups a person belongs to, the more likely they are to become harassed or threatened. Event organizers should put more effort into ensuring the quality of experience of minority members, and they should be aware that the way they handle inappropriate behavior is reflected in their reputation.

‘We're still here’: Misrecognition and the quest for dual identification of Roma people

AbstractMisrecognition describes everyday practices that deny the autonomy of minority members to define who they are and instead impose identities that may diverge from their own sense of self. Being misrecognized is particularly relevant for the historically marginalized Roma people, whose national belonging is repeatedly questioned despite centuries of co‐existence and citizenship. Our aim was to understand whether the experience of misrecognition, along with discrimination, would predict identification patterns that represent an obstacle to dual identification among Roma people in three East‐Central European countries: Hungary, Romania and Serbia. We collected data among Roma participants online and face‐to‐face with convenience sampling (N = 1,325). Latent class analysis revealed three similar classes based on national and ethnic identification scores in all subsamples: (1) disidentification, (2) Roma identification and (3) dual identification. Logistic regression analysis showed that misrecognition and discrimination predicted stronger Roma identity than dual identification in Hungary and Serbia. However, misrecognition predicted stronger dual identification in Romania, possibly as a reaffirmation strategy in response to misrecognition. Our results show that misrecognition can add to our understanding of minority group members' identification with the superordinate category of the nation as well as subgroup ethnic minority identity, and this connection could be key for advancing Roma inclusion.

Combating domestic violence in West Bengal, India: Gendered norms and legal regulations

Domestic violence has long been a major concern for women's organisations globally. Despite decades of progressive legislation in India since the 1980s, this paper underscores the persistent and structural nature of domestic violence, which afflicts lives across gender identities. The study draws on findings from a survey of 2193 aggrieved women and select case studies across 13 districts of West Bengal who have accessed the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act (PWDVA), a civil law enacted in 2005 to give protection to victim-survivors from domestic violence (as opposed to punishing the perpetrators). The paper argues that even ‘radical’ legislation such as the PWDVA helps survivors manage and endure violence rather than eliminate it from their lives. In doing so, the legislation offers a coping strategy to the aggrieved rather than a means through which deep-seated social structures of patriarchy that perpetuate domestic violence can be challenged to ensure gender justice. Our study indicates that there is a greater degree of precarity among women survivors with psycho-social disabilities and members of gender-sexual minorities. The majority of actors in the socio-legal ecosystem who should be upholding survivors’ right to live a life free from violence instead place them primarily in the heterosexual patriarchal family. The feminist vision behind the enactment of PWDVA, which valued the assertion of a survivor's rights as a citizen of a democratic country to lead a life free from violence, is eschewed in favour of preserving the institution of family and marriage over gender justice.